The UpLevel Podcast

Hosted by Christie Mann

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128

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Aug 2026

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About the show

Conscious leaders create conscious cultures. The UpLevel Podcast is a transformational resource for leaders, coaches, and people managers who are ready to lead with greater presence, purpose, and humanity. With 85% of employees disengaged at work and mental health challenges costing organizations thousands per employee each year, the demand for emotionally intelligent, trauma-aware, and consciously coached leadership has never been more urgent. Each episode explores what it truly means to uplevel within ourselves, our organizations, and the systems we move through. Themes include emotional embodiment, grief, right relationship coaching culture, and the ROI of investing in human well-being. Named one of the web’s Top 10 Coaching Culture Podcasts and a Top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcast by Feedspot, the show is a core part of UpLevel’s mission to build a more conscious, compassionate, and humane world by making deep, healing, and actionable conversations accessible to all. Hosted by Christie Mann, certified coach, author, and co-founder of UpLevel, the podcast invites you not just to do better, but to be better.

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September 30, 2026Episode 1143 min

How Can Leaders Overcome the Fear of Asking for Help? A Live Coaching Session with Bubba Nicholson

Send us Fan Mail Why can asking for help feel so difficult, even when you know you need it? This week on The UpLevel Podcast, join us in a live coaching conversation as our guest Bubba Nicholson opens up about his struggle to ask for help and his belief that reaching out might make him an inconvenience. As a strategic consultant, hybrid athlete, coach, and creator of the Black Pocket Breathwork Protocol, Bubba is stepping into a major new chapter. He is preparing to launch his book, Blue Collar Breathwork: Breathwork for People That Don't Do Breathwork, while continuing to grow his work and bring his mission to more people. We’ll explore the internal voice that tells him people are too busy, that he has not stayed in touch enough, that he might be taking advantage of a friendship, or that someone might think his idea is foolish. Together, Bubba and Christie give that voice a name: Charles. Creating this character gives Bubba a way to recognize the difference between his own values and the protective voice that has been trying to keep him safe. This episode offers a powerful look at how coaching can help us recognize old patterns, separate them from our values, and create more choice in how we respond. In this episode, we’ll explore: Why asking for help can feel deeply uncomfortable for leaders How the fear of being an inconvenience can affect relationships and leadership The connection between self-doubt and asking for support What the "saboteur" represents in coaching How naming an inner critic can create more awareness and choice Why our protective patterns are not always trying to hurt us How old beliefs can influence present-day decisions The relationship between isolation, connection, and community Why vulnerability can become a leadership strength How to distinguish your own values from the voice of self-doubt The importance of recognizing personal growth Why it is possible to change patterns that have been present for decades How asking for help can expand your community and your ability to contribute What it means to step into a bigger platform while continuing your own healing If you want to build the same coaching skills you just heard in action, bottom lining, holding someone's agenda, uncovering self-limiting beliefs, championing what's possible for them, The School of UpLevel teaches these skills so you can use them with your own team, your family, or yourself. You can explore what's available here: https://course.uplevelproductions.com/homepage-page About Bubba: Bubba Nicholson is a high-level strategic consultant, hybrid athlete, and the creator of the Back Pocket Breathwork protocol. After building an elite career in the regulated cannabis industry, a high-stakes path that required traveling 310 nights a year for over four years, Bubba engineered his protocol out of necessity to manage his own health, recovery, and long-term sobriety while building a cannabis business. Today, he leverages that corporate precision to consult on both Global Cannabis businesses & experiential design for contrast therapy companies and has coached well over 2,000 individuals through his protocol. He is the author of the upcoming book Blue Collar Breathwork: Breathwork for People That Don’t Do Breathwork. Bubba strips the mysticism out of somatic practices, opening breathwork up to anyone who may not resonate with mainstream wellness culture they see in their feeds. He reframes breathing as a rugged, mechanical, and tactical tool for everyday performance and resilience. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bubba-nicholson-b5122415/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bubbanicholson/ 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as #3 among the Top 7 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #16 among the Top 49 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #10 among the Top 23 Best Conscious Leadership Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/conscious_leadership_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

September 16, 2026Episode 1047 min

How Do You Lead Transformation Without Losing Your Humanity? A Live Coaching Conversation with Liz Mackay

Send us Fan Mail What does it actually take to lead a team through fast, high-stakes transformation without losing the trust of the people doing the work? This week on The UpLevel Podcast , join us in this live coaching session with seasoned talent leader Liz Mackay as she brings a question so many leaders are covertly wrestling with right now: how do you hold speed, performance, and cost discipline in one hand, and genuine humanity in the other, without one collapsing the other? Liz has spent more than two decades helping organizations grow and change. But underneath the titles and the transformation roadmaps, she came to this conversation asking something more personal: do I believe I'm the kind of steward my people need right now? This episode moves through embodiment and stillness. By the end, Liz names a specific, practical 30-day practice she's committing to and a belief she's ready to release. If you're leading people through change and wondering how to stay grounded while everything moves fast, this conversation is for you. In This Episode: Leading a "messy middle" transformation without losing trust The difference between solving fast and solving well Naming and working with a saboteur (limiting belief) How to lead through organizational transformation without losing your humanity Why high-performing leaders can become overly focused on solutions How embodiment can become another source of leadership intelligence Why leaders need to allow people room to make mistakes and grow How vulnerability can strengthen connection with a team What it means to be a steward of people during a difficult period of change How a leader's personal behavior can influence the culture around them What kind of legacy leaders leave through the people they develop If this conversation has you asking similar questions about your own leadership right now, Executive Coaching is built for leaders navigating exactly this kind of complexity and pressure. You can learn more here: https://www.uplevelproductions.com/copy-of-services About Liz: Liz Mackay is VP of Talent Management at Equinix and a global talent leader with more than two decades of experience across organizations, including Equinix, Amazon Web Services, Google, and DSM; her work focuses on talent, leadership, organizational transformation, and creating workplaces where people can grow and thrive. With a background in drama and an MBA, Liz brings a distinctive perspective to leadership, combining strategic thinking with a deep belief in connection, community, and human-centered work. In this episode, she explores what it means to lead through significant transformation while maintaining trust, empowering others, and staying connected to her own humanity. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizmackay / 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

September 2, 2026Episode 930 min

How Do You Build a Working Alliance Between Two Teams That Used to Operate Like Separate Ships? | A Real Conversation on Communication, Requests, and Saboteurs

Send us Fan Mail What happens when a team stops assuming how people should work together and actually designs the relationship? This week on The UpLevel Podcast, we return to the Designed Alliance conversation between UpLevel's Brand Acceleration and Operations teams. If you missed part one, that episode focused on the human-to-human foundation between two team leads. This episode widens the circle to the full team. We open with a shared vision exercise. Each person names what it would feel like if these two functions worked in true partnership, one crew rowing the same boat rather than departments handing things off to each other. From there, the conversation moves into something most teams avoid: naming specific, actionable requests around communication to reach real agreements that people can say yes to, no to, or counteroffer. You will hear the team talk through email protocols, response time expectations, meeting cadence, and what to do when a saboteur voice shows up mid-project. One team member shares a vulnerable moment about self-criticism, and the group responds with the kind of care that makes this episode worth listening to. This is what building a coaching culture actually looks like in practice. In this episode, you'll hear about: What a Designed Alliance is and why teams benefit from creating one How Brand Acceleration and Operations can move from separate functions toward greater integration Why shared vision should come before detailed protocols and processes How clear requests can reduce confusion and unnecessary frustration Why requests should allow for a yes, no, or counteroffer How unclear expectations can activate workplace saboteurs Creating communication agreements around email, response times, and urgent requests Why acknowledging receipt can matter even when you do not have an immediate answer How teams can give and receive feedback with greater clarity and care The relationship between operational excellence and operational elegance Why perfection cannot be the standard for a healthy team How vulnerability can strengthen rather than weaken working relationships What it means to be the work instead of simply talking about the work If this conversation has you thinking about what it takes to build a culture like this on your own team, The School of UpLevel has on-demand courses designed to help you build these same skills, from coaching conversations to designing working alliances that actually hold up under pressure. You can explore what's available here: https://course.uplevelproductions.com/ About Chrissy, Kaitlin, and Brittany: Chrissy Bernal is a brand architect and PR strategist who helps entrepreneurs and authors build brands with intention and clarity. Based in the Greater Houston area, she's the founder of Be a Better Brand, where she works with clients on strategic marketing, PR, and brand positioning. Chrissy is also a published author, and her own journey publishing children's books shaped much of her approach to branding, giving her firsthand insight into what it takes to build a message that actually connects. She's a previous guest on The UpLevel Podcast, where she spoke on brand growth and PR for authors, and she brings that same strategic, story-first thinking to her work leading marketing at UpLevel. Website: https://beabetterbrand.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrissybernal/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrissybernal/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialChrissyBernal/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ChrissyBernal Kaitlin Voellinger is the Director of Operations at UpLevel, where she brings structure, clarity, and steady presence to the work behind the scenes. She's known for creating safe, supportive spaces for the people around her, whether that's mentoring a colleague through a new challenge or holding the practical details that keep a team moving. Kaitlin leads with integrity and honesty at the center of everything she does, and she believes real success isn't just about hitting a goal. It's about building right relationships along the way and taking the time to actually feel the accomplishment together. She's currently co-leading UpLevel's marketing and operations alliance, bringing the same care and intention to that partnership that she brings to every part of her work. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kmaevoellinger/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaitlin-voellinger-a1770a293/ Brittany Geier is an empowerment coach and guide who helps women reconnect with their inner wisdom, build self-trust, and create lives rooted in authenticity and freedom. A certified Co-Active Coach with a background in industrial engineering, Brittany draws from coaching, embodiment practices, Internal Family Systems, Somatic Experiencing, and Shamanic wisdom. Her work centers on helping women reconnect with themselves and bring their unique gifts and visions into the world. Website: https://www.brittanygeier.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brittanygeier/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brittanygeier/ TikTok: https://www.instagram.com/brittanygeier/ 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

August 19, 2026Episode 820 min

How Do You Build a Real Working Relationship With a Colleague Before Things Get Hard? | Designing the Alliance: A Real Play in Human-to-Human Leadership with Chrissy Bernal and Kaitlin Voellinger

Send us Fan Mail What does it actually sound like when two colleagues sit down and build a real relationship on purpose, before the pressure hits? This week on The UpLevel Podcast , we step back and let you listen in on a real play. Two colleagues, Kaitlin Voellinger and Chrissy Bernal, are stepping into new roles together at UpLevel, leading marketing and operations side by side. Most teams wait for tension to force this kind of conversation. Kaitlin and Chrissy sit down and design the relationship first. You'll hear them name what's already working, share the values they want each other to hold onto, and make specific, honest requests about how they want to be supported when things get hard. This is a live demonstration of what conscious leadership sounds like when it moves from concept to practice. If you've ever slipped into "role to role" mode with a coworker and lost the human connection underneath it, this episode will give you language and a framework to bring it back. In this episode, you'll hear: What it sounds like to acknowledge what's already working in a working relationship How to name and share personal values with a colleague in a way that builds real understanding A live example of asking for feedback before you need it How two people negotiate a working agreement for communication, check-ins, and conflict Why success means pausing to actually feel accomplishment instead of rushing to the next goal What it means to be a "sounding board" instead of an "echo chamber" for a colleague If this conversation has you thinking about the relationships you're building at work, The School of UpLevel has on-demand courses designed to help you build these same skills for yourself, from coaching conversations to designing working alliances that actually hold up under pressure. You can explore what's available anytime here: https://course.uplevelproductions.com About Chrissy and Kaitlin: Chrissy Bernal is a brand architect and PR strategist who helps entrepreneurs and authors build brands with intention and clarity. Based in the Greater Houston area, she's the founder of Be a Better Brand, where she works with clients on strategic marketing, PR, and brand positioning. Chrissy is also a published author, and her own journey publishing children's books shaped much of her approach to branding, giving her firsthand insight into what it takes to build a message that actually connects. She's a previous guest on The UpLevel Podcast, where she spoke on brand growth and PR for authors, and she brings that same strategic, story-first thinking to her work leading marketing at UpLevel. Website: https://beabetterbrand.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrissybernal/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrissybernal/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/officialChrissyBernal/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ChrissyBernal Kaitlin Voellinger is the Director of Operations at UpLevel, where she brings structure, clarity, and steady presence to the work behind the scenes. She's known for creating safe, supportive spaces for the people around her, whether that's mentoring a colleague through a new challenge or holding the practical details that keep a team moving. Kaitlin leads with integrity and honesty at the center of everything she does, and she believes real success isn't just about hitting a goal. It's about building right relationships along the way and taking the time to actually feel the accomplishment together. She's currently co-leading UpLevel's marketing and operations alliance, bringing the same care and intention to that partnership that she brings to every part of her work. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kmaevoellinger/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaitlin-voellinger-a1770a293/ 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

August 5, 2026Episode 736 min

How Do You Rebuild Your Confidence After Taking a Career Break? A Real Coaching Conversation with Amanda Wood

Send us Fan Mail Returning to work after time away can bring hope, excitement, and more self-doubt than many people expect. This week on The UpLevel Podcast , our host Christie Mann coaches multidisciplinary creator Amanda Wood through the very real experience of preparing to return to the workforce after an intentional 18-month career break. Amanda has spent her career leading creative teams, building brands, and running her own agency. During her time away, she developed greater clarity about the kind of work she wants to do, the life she wants to create, and the values she refuses to leave behind. Together, Christie and Amanda explore how coaching can help shift attention away from the inner critic and back toward possibility. Through future visioning, embodiment, metaphor, and practical coaching techniques, Amanda reconnects with what gives her energy: meaningful collaboration, creativity, trust, flexibility, and contributing to something larger than herself. One of the most powerful moments in the conversation comes when Amanda recognizes that the loudest voice in her head is not the most truthful one. As Christie reminds her, self-doubt often grows louder when we're getting closer to something that truly matters. Whether you're returning after raising children, recovering from burnout, taking a sabbatical, caring for loved ones, or intentionally stepping away to reset, this conversation offers encouragement and practical coaching tools to help you move forward with greater confidence. In this episode, you'll learn: How to rebuild confidence after taking a career break Why self-doubt often increases before meaningful change A coaching exercise that creates momentum through future visioning How to reconnect with your strengths instead of your fears Why values should guide your next career move Practical ways to move forward before you feel completely ready About Amanda: Amanda Wood is a multidisciplinary creator with a degree in fine arts and over 15 years of experience as a creative professional in advertising and communications. She has worked in large agencies as an art/creative director for clients like Toyota, Air Canada, McDonald’s, and Mazda and later founded her own agency specializing in bringing new brands to market. She is also a certified yoga instructor and a student of acting and is engaged in many community-based creative projects such as sign painting, schoolyard revitalization, and children’s face painting, to name a few. Amanda lives in downtown Toronto with her husband, six-year-old son, and dog, Cosmo. 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

July 22, 2026Episode 647 min

Why Does Perimenopause Make Leaders Feel Like They're Losing Themselves? | Nick Kettles Leads a Real Coaching Session with Christie Mann

Send us Fan Mail If you've ever felt like your own body stopped taking direction from you, this one's for you. This week on The UpLevel Podcast , join us for a deeply personal coaching session as Christie Mann, executive coach, leadership educator, and co-founder of UpLevel Productions, steps into the client seat as Master Certified Coach Nick Kettles, who has spent more than 25 years working with grief, transition, and ancestral healing, guides her through one of the biggest transitions of her life. Together they explore the grief of letting go of an identity built on capacity, achievement, and always having it together. This conversation is about far more than hormones. It is about what happens when the version of yourself that has carried you for decades can no longer carry you the same way. It is about learning to rest without guilt, discovering a different kind of strength, and trusting that wisdom often grows when productivity slows. Nick brings together Co-Active Coaching, grief work, constellation practices, trauma-informed coaching, and ancestral healing to help Christie make meaning of this threshold. What begins as a conversation about fear gradually becomes an exploration of possibility, elderhood, and giving ourselves permission to become someone new. Whether you are experiencing perimenopause yourself, supporting someone who is, or navigating any season of profound transition, this episode offers language, compassion, and hope for what can emerge when we stop fighting change. In This Episode: Why the exhaustion of perimenopause might be making room for something deeper than physical rest The difference between leadership and eldership, and why one requires letting go of the other What it means to "own" your energy, your work, and your worth without deferring or diluting it How ancestral trauma and ancestral vitality both live in the body, and how naming your lineage can be part of healing it Why so many women in this season describe feeling like Bambi: new, unsteady, and strangely innocent A moment of real grief work, honoring a great-grandmother lost to suicide and the silence that followed Coaching Grief and Loss Masterclass | Oct 14th for 5 weeks Reserve your slot here: https://phoenixconsulting.eu.com/coaching-grief-and-loss/ UpLevel with Grace | Substack Read Here: When the Estrogen Has Left the Building About Nick: Nick is a Master Certified Coach, and healer of 25 years experience in the human potential movement. In a desire to escape an awkward and painful past, throughout his life, he frequently mistook his own adaptive and often reactive life strategies as evidence of a purposeful existence. Today, however, he increasingly finds delight in finally moving slow enough to discover that our purpose and indeed our spirituality can be found at the heart of our messy humanity. This realization guides all his work whether as a coach, trainer, designer or writer. Website: https://nickkettles.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickkettles/ 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

July 8, 2026Episode 526 min

How Do You Know You're Becoming Who You're Meant to Be? | Coaching in Real Time with Quinn Simpson

Send us Fan Mail What does it actually feel like to be so aligned with your purpose that you lose track of time? This season is about stewardship, and that means taking you inside real coaching, leadership, and relationship conversations as they actually happen. This week on The UpLevel Podcast, our host, Christie Mann, coaches Quinn Simpson, co-founder of Gedi Village and Graydin, in a live somatic coaching conversation about becoming. Quinn opens up about the moment a book changed the direction of her life, the mentor who told her she couldn't change the world one person at a time, and the vision she's now building through Gedi Village, an ecosystem designed to bring the concept of a village back into how children learn, with Toronto positioned as a global hub for that vision. The conversation moves into the body. Quinn is coached through a physical embodiment exercise that surfaces something she hadn't expected to say out loud: a lifelong ache to give other people permission to be fully themselves, and the grief underneath that longing. What emerges is a conversation about social health as the missing link between mental well-being and meaningful relationships, and why the next version of Quinn is choosing to build in public. If you have ever felt the pull toward your next chapter but couldn't name what it actually looks like, this conversation will help you feel it before you can explain it. In This Episode: Why Quinn believes systemic change matters more than individual change What Gedi Village is, the philosophy behind it, and the vision for Toronto as a global education hub A live somatic coaching exercise on embodiment and becoming The connection between social health and personal alignment How coaching helps uncover what thinking alone cannot reach Why vulnerability can create permission for others Why urgency and rest can coexist in how we build our future The physical anchor Quinn is creating to stay connected to her next chapter About Quinn: Driven by a passion to transform education, Quinn Simpson is the co-founder of the Gedi Village Foundation. She aims to make Toronto a global education hub by establishing a cutting-edge K-8 school, a professional development centre, and a philanthropic arm advancing social-emotional learning. Quinn was also a co-founder of Graydin, an organization dedicated to revolutionizing how we support and empower the next generation. Since 2011, Graydin has partnered with over 400 schools and universities worldwide to pioneer the educational coaching movement. With 18 years of experience in coaching, teacher training, and content creation, Quinn is a certified Co-active Coach and NLP Coach Practitioner. Previously, she co-founded Akosia, a charity operating for 10 years that used coaching to facilitate filmmaking projects for underprivileged youth and women. Quinn lives in West End Toronto, where she enjoys walking in High Park and teaching her two sons, Theo and Bowie, that coaching skills are for everyone. LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/coachquinn Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quinnsaysyes/ 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts Tags: somatic coaching, purpose alignment, coaching for educators, personal transformation, social health, embodiment coaching, becoming your next self, coaching for founders www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

June 24, 2026Episode 436 min

Stewardship: The North Star of Fatherhood | Coaching in Real Time with Luke Partridge

Send us Fan Mail If you're a parent, a leader, or anyone navigating the tension between responsibility and authenticity, this conversation speaks directly to you. This week on The UpLevel Podcast, Luke Partridge, a seasoned talent acquisition leader with more than 20 years of executive search experience across the UK, Europe, Australia/New Zealand, and Asia, brings forward one of the most human leadership challenges there is: how to show up with integrity, collaboration, and authenticity while parenting three teenagers through constant shifts in family dynamics. Together with Christie Mann, Luke explores his core values of accountability, empathy, and authenticity, the three that form what he calls his "North Star of Fatherhood." Through perspective work and deep reflection, Luke moves from thinking about these values to genuinely experiencing them, and he discovers that vulnerability and transparency are real sources of strength. This episode embodies the season's theme of stewardship: what it means to model values rather than simply teach them, to create the conditions for others to thrive, and to lead from a place of integrity even in the most pressurized moments. Listen in as Luke finds that being a work in progress, admitting what you don't know, and honoring your values when it's hard is exactly what the people who trust us most need from us. In this episode, we’ll explore: Fatherhood as a leadership practice Accountability, authenticity, and empathy Creating a healthy family culture How vulnerability builds trust The connection between parenting and leadership Modeling values through everyday actions A practical reflection practice for staying grounded What it means to steward the next generation About Luke: Luke Partridge is a seasoned talent acquisition leader with over 20 years of executive search experience across the UK, Europe, Australia/New Zealand, and Asia. Based in Hong Kong, he currently serves as a Talent Partner at Equinix, where he partners with business leaders to build high-performing teams in the digital infrastructure space. Previously, Luke honed his expertise at Meta (Facebook), earning praise for his strategic recruitment approach, candidate experience, and ability to align talent with complex business needs. Passionate about proactive talent strategies and team development, he brings deep insight into how to curate your career, getting the maximum from your work path, and using modern recruiting practices, including generative AI applications in talent acquisition. An avid marathon runner and fundraiser, Luke has completed ultra-challenges for Oxfam, UNICEF, and the MS Society while volunteering with environmental causes. A father of 3 and lifelong learner, he shares practical wisdom on building exceptional teams through his writing and speaking. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukepartridge/ 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

June 10, 2026Episode 329 min

From Executor to Builder: Meeting Your Future Self | Coaching in Real Time with Marlenne Johnson

Send us Fan Mail Many talented professionals reach a moment when they know they're capable of more influence, more impact, and more leadership, yet something keeps them standing at the edge of that next chapter. In this episode of The UpLevel Podcast , we invite you inside a real coaching conversation with Marlenne Johnson, an organizational transformation strategist, storyteller, and systems thinker who helps organizations move through complexity with greater clarity, intention, and humanity. Throughout her career, Marlenne has partnered with leaders and teams to guide change, strengthen employee experiences, and create meaningful transformation. Now she finds herself facing a leadership question of her own: How do I move from being known as an executor to becoming a builder, thought leader, people leader, and community leader? Together, Christie Mann and Marlenne design a coaching alliance and explore the beliefs, habits, and assumptions that can keep even the most capable leaders from fully stepping into their potential. Through a future-self visualization rooted in Co-Active coaching, Marlenne connects with the version of herself she hopes to become, only to discover that the qualities she's seeking may already be present. In This Episode: Designing an alliance for safety, bravery, and growth How future-self coaching can open up leadership growth Why so many leaders wait for permission before stepping forward The difference between executing work and creating lasting impact How self-trust shapes leadership presence The role community plays in personal and professional growth Practical ways to bridge the gap between who you are and who you're becoming About Marlenne: Marlenne Johnson is an organizational transformation strategist, storyteller, and systems thinker whose work lives at the intersection of people, power, and change. With a career spanning recruiting, employee experience, and organizational effectiveness, she specializes in helping leaders navigate complex transformation by turning ambiguity into structure and intention into action. Her perspective is grounded in a deep curiosity about how individuals move within systems: how culture, incentives, and identity shape the choices people make inside organizations. Marlenne is known for her ability to see patterns others miss and for bringing both strategic clarity and emotional intelligence to conversations about leadership, transformation, and personal agency. Through her writing and her work, she explores what she calls the work of the “Soul Architect”: the ongoing practice of examining the systems we inherit, the roles we play within them, and the conscious choices available to us as we build something new. She is also the co-founder of the storytelling podcast My Story Is Not Unique, a space for honest conversations about identity, resilience, and the shared human experiences that shape how we lead, live, and grow. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marlennejohnson/ My Story is Not Unique Podcast 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

May 27, 2026Episode 238 min

How Do Leaders Stay Grounded During Uncertainty? | Joni Mar Leads a Real Coaching Session

Send us Fan Mail If you lead others through uncertainty while privately wondering how to stay grounded yourself, this episode is the most honest conversation you'll see today. What happens when the person usually holding the space… becomes the one being held? This week, join us for a deeply personal episode of The UpLevel Podcast; the script is flipped. For the first time this season, our host Christie Mann fully steps into the client's seat and is coached live by her longtime mentor, dear friend, and master coach, Joni Mar. What unfolds is a raw, honest, and deeply human conversation about fear, leadership, uncertainty, and what it means to continue showing up in a rapidly changing environment. As Season 11 centers on stewardship, this episode offers a deeply human example of what it means to embody the work rather than simply discuss it. Together, Christie and Joni move beneath analysis and into embodiment—exploring anxiety around travel, leadership, safety, isolation, responsibility, and the emotional toll of living in a world that feels increasingly volatile. What emerges is a powerful reminder: Leadership isn't about having it all together. It's about staying human enough to remain connected—to ourselves, to others, and to the work we're here to do. In This Episode: What live coaching actually looks and feels like The emotional reality many leaders are carrying right now How fear and uncertainty show up in the body Why grounding practices matter more than ever The paradox of creating safety while still answering the call to lead What it means to steward yourself while stewarding others About Joni: Joni Mar, MCC, CPCC, CNTC, CTIC For more than two decades, Joni Mar has been helping leaders wrestle with a deceptively simple question: Who do I need to become to lead what's next? Known for her warmth, grounded presence, and ability to ask the question beneath the question, she helps leaders uncover the hidden patterns shaping how they think, decide, and lead. Joni believes the most powerful leadership shift is expanding a leader's awareness of who they are being while they lead because the hardest part of leadership isn't strategy, it's identity. A Master Certified Executive Leadership Coach and senior faculty member with the Co-Active Training Institute, Joni has been training coaches since 2003. An early contributor to the global expansion of coaching, Joni introduced Co-Active Coaching to the Hong Kong market and has spent more than a decade working between North America, Asia and Europe, bringing a deeply cross-cultural lens to leadership and human development. A long-time steward of the field, Joni now focuses on supporting the next generation of coaches and helping leaders bring greater wisdom, compassion, and courage into the systems they serve. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonimar/ https://www.instagram.com/joni.mar/ 🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts 🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts www.uplevelproductions.com https://www.instagram.com/uplevelproductions/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/uplevelproductionscompany https://www.facebook.com/uplevelproductionscompany

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