Michelle Gladieux is President of Gladieux Consulting and author of the new book Communicate with Courage: Taking Risks to Overcome the Four Hidden Challenges. Communication is an essential building block in leadership at all levels. And yet it’s frequently misunderstood. Michelle demystified this and provides help in overcoming some of the biggest challenges this week on the On Brand podcast.

About Michelle Gladieux

Michelle Gladieux is President of Gladieux Consulting, a Midwest-based team known for the design and presentation of seminars in communication and leadership topics around the U.S. She’s the author of Communicate with Courage: Taking Risks to Overcome the Four Hidden Challenges. She facilitates strategic planning and executive coaching for clients in diverse industries, governments, non-profits, and in academia and has 18 years of collegiate teaching experience at three universities in her home state of Indiana.

Episode Highlights

Communicating from the heart(land). I asked Michelle if being from the Midwest—the heartland—made her a better communicator. She shared a touching story of the “hard-earned pearls” of wisdom her mother passed down to her and how it led her to help others in their own communication.

“Nobody’s born a great leader,” Michelle said. Or a great communicator for that matter. Michelle shared a story about how every time someone’s implied she’s given a great speech effortlessly, she says, “the effortless part is an illusion.”

What are the hidden challenges in leadership communication today? Michelle shared these along with how they’re addressed in her book Communicate with Courage:

• Hiding from risks
• Defining to be right
• Rationalizing the negative
• Settling for good enough

What brand has made Michelle smile recently? “Purdue University is the only university to be included on Fast Company’s list of brands that matter.” This means a lot to Michelle as Purdue is both an institution she’s taught at and her alma mater.

To learn more, check out the resources on the Gladieux Consulting website, follow the company on Instagram, and learn more about Michelle’s book Communicate with Courage.

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Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet!

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