Lead & Follow offers a candid discussion of teamwork, collaboration, and professional development. Host Sharna Fabiano talks with scholars, educators, and artists to explore the relational dance between leadership and followership, and how to become excellent in both roles.
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June 5, 2026Episode 440 min
Followership at the FDIC, Executive Assistants, and Responsible Global Followership – Basil Read
Send Fan Mail by Text!Dr. Basil Read shares his work creating a comprehensive leadership curriculum for the FDIC which included followership, plus his research on the influential followership role played by executive assistants, and about his current work exploring responsible global followership and global citizenship. Basil is a retired US Navy Captain, Consultant and a Professor of Practice in Troy University’s PhD in global leadership program. “Followership is engaging with the leader in a way that produces the best possible outcome.”“Responsible global followership is engaging with the world around us to come up with the best possible outcome.”“It’s a choice whether to engage, and it's a choice how you engage.” Episode References J. Basil Read, III, “Followership at the FDIC: A Case Study” https://www.emerald.com/jole/article-pdf/13/4/136/10069009/v13_i4_c14.pdfIra Chaleff, The Courageous Followerhttps://irachaleffauthor.com/Connect with Basil ReadLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/j-basil-read-iii-ph-d-a1274b23/ Support the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
May 20, 2026Episode 340 min
New Territory for Leadership and Followership – Robert Kelley
Send Fan Mail by Text!Dr. Robert Kelley shares his current thinking on citizen-level followership in an environment of authoritarian politics, as well as a few observations of how both business teams and community groups are moving beyond leader-follower structures to get things done.Robert Kelley is a Distinguished Service Professor of Management at the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University. He pioneered the concept of "Followership" in his best-selling book The Power of Followership and his Harvard Business Review article "In Praise of Followers" (a top 25 best-selling reprint for HBR) which changed the prevailing view of leadership. Another one of Robert’s books, How to Be a Star at Work, was honored as one of "The 100 Best Business Books of All Time" and the #1 career book by the New York Daily News. As President of CEO Consulting LLC, Dr. Kelley helps national and international clients, like AT&T and Bosch, and consults with government officials and executives across the globe from the USA to China to the EU. “When we think as followers, is our major responsibility to be a guardrail, to help keep the leader from making mistakes, or is our job to enable the leader to do whatever the leader wants to do?” “Maybe leadership has run its course in terms of a societal institution.”“I think we’re testing out new models of how humans get things done together.” Episode ReferencesStrongmen, Ruth Ben-Ghiat Connect with Robert Kelleywww.kelleyideas.comCarnegie Mellon University Support the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
April 26, 2026Episode 237 min
Co-Creating Psychological Safety - Kinsey Hansen
Send Fan Mail by Text!Dr. Kinsey Hansen shares her research on the co-construction of psychological safety among leaders and followers in organizations, and gives real world tips on how she’s been integrating followership into her leadership courses. Kinsey is an Associate Professor at Angelo State University, where she serves as Program Coordinator for the Master of Arts in Administrative Leadership and teaches in the Student Development and Leadership program. She is part of the team that designed and launched ASU's Doctorate of Education in Transformative Leadership, contributing to its structure, curriculum development, and now serving as a dissertation chair. With a career spanning community college and university leadership, Kinsey brings both scholarly expertise and deep practitioner experience to her work “Followers shape culture every single day through the choices that they make.”“For leaders, the most powerful thing you can do is model followership in your own upward relationships.” “What teaches people whether it’s safe to speak up is what happened to the last person that spoke up.” “It’s powerful when the student sees the relational nature of the dynamic and identifies just how much followers shape leadership” “Once students see that followers influence leaders, they can’t unsee it.” Episode ReferencesAmy Edmondson, The Fearless OrganizationAmy Edmondson, TeamingGlobal Followership ConferenceConnect with Kinsey Hansen Angelo State University Support the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
March 8, 2026Episode 133 min
Followership in the CEO-Board Relationship - Otto Henfling
Send Fan Mail by Text!Otto Henfling brings a distinctive lead–follow lens to the board–CEO relationship, helping boards govern well and CEOs both lead decisively and follow faithfully in service of mission. He is a consultant and governance advisor in Australia with more than 20 years’ experience in the for-purpose sector, including 15 years as a CEO. He also has over 20 years of board experience, including a substantial period as Chair. He works extensively with boards and CEOs on governance, role clarity, risk, and strategic alignment. Otto is currently completing a PhD exploring trust and followership in human services organisations, examining how leaders and followers sustain common purpose in complex environments. Episode ReferencesChristian Monö, Why We FollowS2 E21: Natural Followership - Chris MonöS4 E4: Collaborationship is our Superpower - Chris MonöJoseph Rost, Leadership for the Twenty-First CenturyGlobal Followership Conferenceswww.globalfollowership.comConnect with Otto Henfling Trusted Leadership Consulting: trustedleadership.com.au Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/ottohenfling/ Support the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
January 17, 2026Episode 1224 min
The Tango Waits For You - Episode 4: Night of Spirits
Send Fan Mail by Text!This is a bonus episode of The Tango Waits For You, a 3-part audio documentary series that tells the story of the first year of building a brand-new tango community in Long Beach, California. It’s both my story, of losing a dream and finding it again, and it’s also a story of dozens of people coming together by chance in a way that feels like it was truly meant to be. It’s a story full of friendship, connection, trust, and discovery, all the things we seek together on the dance floor. Being together in person is so important right now. Whether you dance tango or not, I hope you enjoy these episodes.Episode 4: Night of Spirits - LB Tango hosts its first ritual milonga for the greater LA tango community, in celebration of Dia de los Muertos.Episode References“Tar Liom Siar,” written and performed by Moya Brennan, Lynne Earls, and Cormac de Barra. Produced and recorded by Lynne Earls, from the album Timeless. Long Beach Tangohttps://www.sharnafabiano.com/tangoAltar Milonga (Photos by Andrei Andreev) https://www.sharnafabiano.com/altar-milongaElena's Elixirshttps://elenaselixirs.com/Altar Society Brewing & Coffee Co.https://altarsocietybrewco.com/Mike Cokley, Altar Society General Managergm@altarbrands.comWisdom of the past (by Elena's Elixers)Ilegal Joven Mezcal • Largo Bay Coquito Liqueur • Cacao Liqueur • Fresh Lime Juice • Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur • Egg White • Aztec Cacao BittersGarnished with fresh nutmeg and floating marigoldFrom the high deserts of Oaxaca to the sun-warmed shores of the Caribbean, this cocktail traces an invisible thread through the Americas—where every region honors those who came before. In Mexico, marigolds (cempasúchitl) carpet the paths for Día de los Muertos. Guatemala flies giant barriletes for Día de Todos Los Santos. Bolivia shapes bread into guaguas de pan for Día de Todos los Difuntos. Peru, Ecuador, El Salvador—each has its own name, its own ritual, yet all share the same November vigil.This drink brings together ingredients with no obvious reason to meet, yet they dance in surprising harmony.Un Abrazo Final (by Elena's Elixers)Tequila Reposado • Malbec • Fresh Lime Juice • Grenadine • Araceli Marigold Liqueur • Fernet-BrancaSea salt rim, finished with a spritz of rose and marigold for fragranceOn Día de los Muertos, the veil between worlds grows thin. The living and the dead draw close—not in sorrow, but in celebration, in one final dance of remembrance. This cocktail honors that tender moment when memory becomes presence, when those we've lost feel near enough to touch.Salt crystallizes like tears along the rim. Fernet-Branca whispers bitter truths of departure. Grenadine holds the sweetness of stolen moments, while Malbec bleeds with the complexity of love and loss. Tequila and marigold become golden offerings, guiding souls homeward, while rose and marigold scent lingers at the threshold between worlds.Support the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
December 31, 2025Episode 111 hr 3 min
The Space Between: How Followership Expands our Ability to Lead - Sharna Fabiano & Amy Lombardo
Send Fan Mail by Text!This is a reverse interview with my coaching colleague and former teacher Amy Lombardo, originally recorded for Amy’s podcast, Human Not Hacked. Through the lens of dance, art, and embodied practice, this conversation challenges one of our culture’s most persistent illusions: that power means control, and that growth requires constant self-improvement. In this soulful conversation, Sharna and Amy unpack what happens when we stop trying to master ourselves and instead learn to move with life, not against it.Together, they explore how the anti-self-help philosophy—the heart of Human Not Hacked—intersects with Sharna’s groundbreaking work on leadership and followership. From the dance floor to the boardroom, they talk about what it means to lead with presence, to follow with awareness, and to allow space for the unexpected. They also dive into how control shows up somatically: in the body, in relationships, and in the subtle ways we tighten around our desire to “get it right.”Sharna shares her lived experience of unlearning the toxic self-help conditioning that tells us we must be endlessly optimized, productive, and emotionally contained. She speaks candidly about the courage it takes to unhook from those narratives, to honor our imperfections, and to build a new relationship with power—one rooted in responsiveness, humility, and connection.Sharna also reflects on her experience in the Brilliance Coaching Academy, discussing how the training helped her shed the “shoulds” of performance-based leadership and reconnect to her authentic voice as a coach and teacher.About AmyAmy Lombardo is the founder of the Brilliance Coaching Academy and author of the award-winning book Brilliance. With more than 25 years of experience as a coach, leadership mentor, and yoga teacher, Amy weaves together somatic practices, deep listening, and inclusive leadership tools to guide people into authentic transformation. Her work is rooted in the belief that each of us has an inner brilliance waiting to be expressed—and that when we nurture it, we change not only our own lives but the world around us. Amy Lombardohttps://amylombardo.com/Brilliance Coaching Academyhttps://coach-brilliance.com/Human, Not Hacked: The Anti-Self Help Podcasthttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-human-not-hacked-the-anti-297892497/ Support the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
October 12, 2025Episode 1023 min
The Tango Waits For You - Episode 3: Community
Send Fan Mail by Text!The Tango Waits For You is a 3-part documentary series that tells the story of the first year of building a brand-new tango community in Long Beach, California. It’s both my story, of losing a dream and finding it again, and it’s also a story of dozens of people coming together by chance in a way that feels like it was truly meant to be. It’s a story full of friendship, connection, trust, and discovery, all the things we seek together on the dance floor. Being together in person is so important right now. Whether you dance tango or not, I hope you enjoy these episodes.Episode 3: Community - We start teaching two simultaneous classes, add a monthly práctica, and the group dynamic takes on a life of its own. Episode ReferencesAltar Milonga: Night of Spirits - Monday, Nov. 3https://www.sharnafabiano.com/tangoTango Resources & LB Tango Schedulehttps://www.sharnafabiano.com/tangoAltar Society Brewing & Coffee Co.https://altarsocietybrewco.com/Mike Cokley, Altar Society General Managergm@altarbrands.comSupport the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
September 21, 2025Episode 931 min
The Tango Waits For You - Episode 2: Altar Society
Send Fan Mail by Text!The Tango Waits For You is a 3-part documentary series that tells the story of the first year of building a brand-new tango community in Long Beach, California. It’s both my story, of losing a dream and finding it again, and it’s also a story of dozens of people coming together by chance in a way that feels like it was truly meant to be. It’s a story full of friendship, connection, trust, and discovery, all the things we seek together on the dance floor. Being together in person is so important right now. Whether you dance tango or not, I hope you enjoy these episodes.Episode 2: Altar Society - Partnership with a local venue provides an opportunity for Long Beach Tango to expand and grow. Episode ReferencesTango Resources & LB Tango Schedulehttps://www.sharnafabiano.com/tangoAltar Society Brewing & Coffee Co.https://altarsocietybrewco.com/Mike Cokley, Altar Society General Managergm@altarbrands.comSupport the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
September 7, 2025Episode 826 min
The Tango Waits For You - Episode 1: The Dream
Send Fan Mail by Text!The Tango Waits For You is a 3-part documentary series that tells the story of the first year of building a brand-new tango community in Long Beach, California. It’s both my story, of losing a dream and finding it again, and it’s also a story of dozens of people coming together by chance in a way that feels like it was truly meant to be. It’s a story full of friendship, connection, trust, and discovery, all the things we seek together on the dance floor. Being together in person is so important right now. Whether you dance tango or not, I hope you enjoy these episodes.Episode 1: The Dream - After being retired from tango for seven years, Sharna meets four locals at a coffee meetup who want to learn to dance. Episode ReferencesTango Resources & LB Tango Schedulehttps://www.sharnafabiano.com/tangoAltar Society Brewing & Coffee Co. https://altarsocietybrewco.com/Mike Cokley, Altar Society General Managergm@altarbrands.comSupport the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
August 11, 2025Episode 754 min
What Makes Tango So Compelling - Sharna Fabiano & Dan Istrate
Send Fan Mail by Text!In this episode, Sharna shares her own history and experience with tango as a social dance form. It’s a reverse interview with Actor and Director Dan Istrate, who has been a guest on the show twice before. They talk together about Sharna's discovery and rediscovery of tango, and about what makes tango so compelling for so many people.“There’s a weight within this dance, within this concept, that speaks for itself.”"Tango comes like a revelation in one’s life and you just know it.""There was some kind of way that this particular form was changing me on all levels and that’s what made it feel so necessary and inevitable.""You bring yourself to it and it's scary in a way but then it's so beautiful when you really connect."More with Dan IstrateS3 E3: Connected Social Conversations – Dan Istratehttps://leadfollow.buzzsprout.com/1735834/episodes/14781194-connected-social-conversations-dan-istrateS1 E15: Lead/Follow Relationships in Live Theater Performance - Dan Istratehttps://leadfollow.buzzsprout.com/1735834/episodes/9621693-lead-follow-relationships-in-live-theater-performance-dan-istrateConnect with Dan Istratewww.danistrate.com Support the show*Connect with your host Sharna Fabianohttps://www.sharnafabiano.comOrder the book: Lead & Followhttps://www.amazon.com/Lead-Follow-Dance-Inspired-Teamwork/dp/1646632796/Support the Show!https://www.buzzsprout.com/1735834/support
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