Refreshing Leadership with Maya - Career, Leadership and Life Design

Hosted by Maya Gudka

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Episodes

334

Latest episode

Nov 2026

Language

EN-GB

About the show

Hello there High Achiever! Here's the inside track on: - Career clarity for ambitious leaders who’ve outgrown their current role - Life design and work-life balance for high performers who don’t want to burn out - The “unwritten rules” of progression to C-Suite - Purpose, identity and dharma - when success on paper stops being enough - How the top 1% of leaders think about time, energy, money and long-term impact Because inside the Exec Coaching room is where the real, edgy conversations on leadership are happening! Read disclaimer and terms at https://www.mayagudka.com/disclaimer

Listen to episodes

60 recent

November 9, 202625 min

10 Ways That High Achievers Self-Sabotage

What holds high achievers back is rarely a lack of skill or ambition. It's the patterns running in the background - the ones that drain energy, strain relationships, and make success feel harder than it needs to be. In this episode Maya is joined by executive coach Graziela Cajado-Ogland to introduce the Positive Intelligence framework by Shirzad Chamine. What you'll learn: The nine saboteurs and which ones show up most in senior leaders What the judge is and why it’s the most important saboteur to understand From the Refreshing Leadership archive. This episode was originally released in 2025 As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 Check out her new website www.refreshingleadership.com

November 2, 202635 min

Planning as a Superpower (and without Perfectionism)

Today Maya shares a conversation with one of her favourite planning gurus, Sarah. Sarah Hart-Unger is a doctor, mother, podcaster, blogger, and author. She's one of the people Maya credits with shaping how she thinks about work, parenting, planning, and building a big exciting life. In this episode, Maya gets to ask all the questions she's been saving up - from how Sarah manages so many roles without tipping over, to the planning rituals that underpin all of it, to the honest conversation about who carries the planning load in a household and what happens when it goes unnoticed. What you'll learn: The concept of planning privilege - and why it can pull couples apart How a lack of perfectionism is a key ingredient to Sarah’s success A simple system for setting up your annual and daily goals and plans From the Refreshing Leadership archive. This episode was originally released in 2025 Connect with Sarah at https://theshubox.com/ As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 Check out her new website: www.refreshingleadership.com

October 26, 202612 min

Designing Your Ideal Week

Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way (Series): If you had to live the same week on repeat, what would it have to contain to feel fantastic? In this episode, Maya introduces the ideal week exercise - a blueprint for how your time could look if it was genuinely working for you. What you'll learn: The principles behind designing a week you could actually groundhog - including why routine and novelty both need to be in there, and it’s not just about permanent holiday mode Maya’s own ideal week, from ambitious focus on a Monday to a work-heavy Friday This episode is the final episode of the mini-series, Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way. A practical series for leaders and high achievers on realistic goal setting, achievable time management, and easy perspective shifts - without the overwhelm. Short episodes packed with simple tools and honest reflection to help you reset, refocus and finish the year on your own terms. As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com

October 19, 202613 min

Your Personal Boardroom: Who Has a Seat?

Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way (Series): Who holds a seat in your personal boardroom? The core circle who influences you. And was it an intentional choice, or has it happened by default? In this episode, Maya introduces the life boardroom exercise - a practical matrix that maps the key areas of your life against the roles you might need in each one. What you'll learn: The boardroom roles Maya uses across every area of her life - and why some are more important than others for high achievers How Maya has mapped those roles, and where the gaps remain What happens when you take on too many ‘boss’ roles This episode is part six of the mini-series, Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way. A practical series for leaders and high achievers on realistic goal setting, achievable time management, and easy perspective shifts - without the overwhelm. Short episodes packed with simple tools and honest reflection to help you reset, refocus and finish the year on your own terms. As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com

October 12, 20268 min

The Life Portfolio: Are You Investing in the Right Things?

Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way (Series) : If 80% of your investment portfolio was sitting in one place, you'd be asking questions about concentration risk. But what about your life - your time, energy, identity and attention? Where is all of that going? What you'll learn: - Four investment concepts that reveal where you're over-concentrated, under-invested, or missing opportunities in your life - What Maya's time log from last week's episode showed her about her own life portfolio Welcome to this mini-series, Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way. A practical series for leaders and high achievers on realistic goal setting, achievable time management, and easy perspective shifts - without the overwhelm. Short episodes packed with simple tools and honest reflection to help you reset, refocus and finish the year on your own terms. As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com

October 5, 202613 min

Uncomfortable but important revelations from Time Tracking (Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way Series)

Do you know where your time actually went last week? Not roughly - but accurately? In this first of two episodes, Maya shares how she finally cracked time tracking after years of failed attempts, and what the data revealed about her own days. What you'll learn: How Maya uses ChatGPT to make time tracking work for her - including the exact instructions she gave it The surprises which were revealed by tracking her time for 16 days - which she wouldn't have remembered or admitted otherwise The unexpected category that took up a big chunk of time - that didn’t have anything to do with work As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com

September 28, 202611 min

Working In Your Life V.S. Working On Your Life (Refresh Your Life The Lazy Way Series)

There's a difference between being busy and actually moving forward. In this episode, inspired by a solo trip to Edinburgh that helped her work through something she'd been stuck on, Maya shares four levels at which you can extract yourself from the day-to-day and do the thinking that actually moves your life and work forward. What you'll learn: Four levels - from daily to occasional - at which you can step back from business as usual to actually move the needle How Maya structures her own review and planning practice at each level As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com

September 21, 20268 min

Ask Your 8-Year-Old and 80-Year-Old Self (Make Better Leadership Decisions With These Two Perspectives)

As a Senior Leadership Team Coach, Maya is always looking for the simplest tools that create the biggest perspective shift. In this episode, she shares one of her favourites. This episode is for anyone grappling with a decision, feeling stuck in an area of their life, or simply taking stock before the end of the year. What you'll learn: The 8 and 80 exercise for perspective on leadership decisions - and specific reflection questions Maya uses with her coachees How to reconnect to what really matters, and what will endure As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com

September 14, 202612 min

NEW! What's Your Golden Thread This Month? (Quick Summer Review + Next Steps)

September marks the start of one of the busiest stretches of the year. But before heading into autumn, Maya is sharing two ideas from her summer that she thinks can make any busy period feel more intentional - and more worthwhile. In this episode, Maya introduces the concept of the golden thread, and makes the case for creating more space in your calendar before the busy season hits. What you'll learn: The golden thread - a simple monthly habit that keeps you moving forward even when life gets unpredictable The Kendra Adachi technique Maya is using to make her autumn feel more manageable before it's even started As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com

September 7, 202622 min

Four Steps to Seize September & Supercharge Your Goals Today!

Archive Episode September has a particular energy to it - back to school, fresh start, the perfect moment to take stock of the year and set yourself up for a strong finish. In this episode, Maya shares four simple steps that can each be done in under five minutes, and that together can make goal attainment for the rest of the year feel more fun, more easeful and more inevitable. What you'll learn: Four practical steps to capitalise on September's unique energy How investment changes your relationship to your goals For details of Maya's Vision Builder programme (since renamed Vision Code), visit https://www.mayagudka.com/vision-code-programme As usual, connect with Maya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayagudka/ And subscribe to her YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@MayaGudka?sub_confirmation=1 For all other info, visit the website www.refreshingleadership.com