Why Leaders Must Press Pause

[Transcript]

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Stay true to yourself, be you, and lead with Gravitas, the hallmark of authentic leadership. Let's dive in.

Hello to my valued podcast audience in our beloved automotive industry. It's Jan. I wanted to drop into your podcast feed today with something a little different. I'm going to be honest with you. I need a break. I need a short break, just a little one—the kind of break that lets you step back, catch your breath, and come back with even more energy and fresh ideas.

We all need that from time to time, don't we? But why are we so concerned about saying that? It's as if we think it's a sign of weakness. It's not. It's a sign of strength when you recognize that you need a break — and I need it.

So, we're gonna take a break. We are not gonna have a regular episode today. And you know me, I believe that leaders set the tone in everything that they say and do. So, if you feel like this too, maybe not today, but maybe sometime in the future, then say that. Let your team know that it's okay to pause. It really is. And you know it, when you come back after taking a short break, it regenerates you. You get much stronger, better creative ideas.

And so, that's what I'm gonna do. Not for long, just for a few days. But I want you to know that behind the scenes, even though I'm stepping back from the guest episodes for the next few days. We still have a lot going on behind the scenes, and we're working on some incredible conversations and an event that I'm really excited about.

First of all, the event. You know that I love technology. Where I can find a way to introduce technology to help leadership, culture, and employee engagement, I am all in. I figured out a way to record a podcast with a guest, whether it's an internal podcast or whatever it is, using the original voice and translating that into a myriad of different languages using the same voice.

So, when I hear myself with a Welsh accent speaking Spanish, French, German, and even Mandarin, we've even managed to figure out how to do Chinese now. It's a great way to use technology to reach people. It's using AI in such a good way, such a good use of AI. And yeah, maybe I'm a little bit more excited about it than anybody else, but hey, it's my baby, so to speak.

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How are you reaching those people on the shop floor? They don't have a corporate email. How are you getting to them? Ask yourself that question, and then if you have a gap, sign up for this webinar on September 12th.

Now, along those lines, future guests are in the pipeline. We've got Tina Kozak coming on the show, and she is the CEO of Franco. She is a powerhouse in strategic communication. Most of you in the auto industry will know her. And we're gonna be talking a lot about internal communications and that gap because that also happens to be a passion of hers.

And then, later on, I would say, late August or probably early September, we will have a tier two CEO interview. Now, we tend to focus a lot on tier ones. We've had a few OEMs, but I really want to get the perspective of a tier two CEO. How are they feeling the heat coming from the OEMs through the tier ones into the tier two level? How are they managing tariffs? Are they seeing benefits? Are they seeing people — more people nearshoring product and bringing product into the US as a benefit? But they also have to balance that with the tariffs that they need to pay for products that they need from outside of this country. So, I want to bring the tier two perspective to the table. We'll have that as well.

Then the other episode I'm working on, and this is going to be really hard, to make sure that we stay away from the political realm. I am not a political person. I'm just not. And my politics are personal, they're personal to me. You'll never see me comment on anything on LinkedIn or Facebook about politics. But one thing that I really wanna focus on is the negotiation style that we see playing out right now with the trade negotiations. With the tariff situation.

We know that a lot of the style that we see playing out comes from the art of the deal. So what I wanna do is look at the key tenants of the art of the deal, how that's playing into the trade negotiations, and then I wanna talk about the negotiation style that we see being successful right now and for the future. And I'm gonna be bringing on Kate Vitasek. She's been on the show before. She is the head of the Vested Way. She really understands how to structure and bring to life a truly collaborative agreement. And she's written several books on the subject, and she talks about getting to we — W.E. — getting to we. So, it's not about you or me, it's about getting to we.

So, we're going to dissect all those different negotiation styles. And if you have any questions that you want answered in any of those podcast interviews that I've just outlined, please email me directly at Jan — J.A.N@gravitasdetroit.com. I would love to hear from you.

So, here's what I want you to do: Mark your calendar for September 12th. Sign up for the webinar. We'll put a link in the show notes below. Subscribe to the podcast, and please share this podcast with your colleagues and friends because I am doing everything in my power to bring you content that you need to transform this industry. And you know what? We can do this together.

So, as I always say, be your 100% beautiful, authentic self, and lead with Gravitas, the hallmark of authentic leadership. See you next time.

Thank you for listening to the Automotive Leaders Podcast. Click the listen link in the show notes to subscribe for free on your platform of choice, and don't forget to download the 21 Traits of Authentic Leadership PDF by clicking on the link below. And remember, stay true to yourself, be you, and lead with Gravitas, the hallmark of authentic leadership.