Grounded and Aligned™

Stepping into a bigger role can be exciting - but it can also create blind spots that slow your momentum.In this episode of Grounded and Aligned, Karen shares four leadership patterns she repeatedly sees among senior leaders who have recently taken on more responsibility through promotion, growth, acquisition, reorganization, or expanded scope.Drawing from real client experiences, Karen explores why high-performing leaders often struggle to let go of operational work, underestimate the importance of relationships, over-explain their decisions, and overlook the human impact of change.If you're navigating a new leadership role—or preparing for one—this episode will help you avoid common mistakes and accelerate your impact.Key TakeawaysStop doing and start enabling. Bigger roles require more strategic thinking, delegation, and long-term planning—not more execution.Relationships become a leadership priority. As your scope grows, your ability to influence through others becomes more important than your individual contribution.Explaining is different from justifying. Provide context and visibility, but avoid slipping into defensive explanations that undermine your authority.Don't underestimate the human side of leadership. Change affects people emotionally, even when it makes sense on paper.Leadership transitions require intentional adaptation. The habits that made you successful in your previous role may not be the habits that will make you successful in your next one.Register for the Momentum Sprint starting June 18: https://karen-gombault-coaching-ffzda0.subscribepage.ioStakeholder Strategy: Reduce the Learning Curve of Your New Role. We start beginning of July: https://karengombault-stakeholderstrategy.subscribepage.ioConnect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault speaks with Kirsten Schmidtke, founder of a revenue leadership consulting firm focused on B2B technology companies. The discussion examines why revenue issues are often treated as sales problems when they come from how leadership is operating. If your growth targets are not converting into consistent results, this episode looks at how leadership structure, priorities, and decisions affect revenue, especially in the context of AI, remote work, and shifting buyer expectations.Karen and Kirsten look at:The gap between individual sales performance and the ability to generate revenue through a teamHow low trust in forecasting leads to inefficient inspection processes and slower deal cyclesThe effect of multiple or unclear priorities on execution quality and consistency across teamsLeadership-created bottlenecks that restrict deal progression and reduce responsiveness in the sales cycleThe shift from managing activity to coaching for judgment and decision-making in complex sales environmentsRevenue variability is usually driven by how leadership operates, not the market. Clear standards, consistent execution, and fewer internal obstacles determine how reliable results are.Kirsten Schmidtke is the founder of Kirsten Schmidtke Coaching & Consulting, a revenue leadership consulting firm serving B2B technology companies. With 15+ years in enterprise tech, including AWS, she has generated over $100M in revenue and carried multimillion-dollar quotas. She works with CEOs and CROs to close the leadership execution gap that stalls pipeline, burns out sellers, and keeps revenue unpredictable — helping them find the one problem that, when solved, unlocks revenue growth.www.linkedin.com/in/kirstenschmidtke/www.instagram.com/kirstenschmidtke/Connect with Karen: Karen Gombault | LinkedIn

Most senior leaders who avoid the informal conversations — the individual check-ins, the quiet conversations before a decision needs to be made— aren't doing it because they're lazy or disorganised.They're doing it because it doesn't feel right.It feels like politics. Like pre-managing the outcome. Like their work should be strong enough to stand on its own.And that instinct, as understandable as it is, is quietly costing them.In this episode, Karen looks at what happens when strong work meets an audience that wasn't brought along and why the leaders who build the most genuine influence are also the most deliberate about their relationships.In this episode:Why a concern raised in private stays manageable — and the same concern raised in public becomes a positionHow your peers are forming a read on you, whether you're actively shaping it or notThe difference between being politically aware and compromising your integrityOne reframe and two practical things to do before your next significant askIf you've ever walked out of a meeting wondering what happened — this episode is worth your time.Next steps:Follow Karen on Substack where she writes about power, politics and influence: https://karengombault.substack.com/Connect with Karen on Linkedin: Karen Gombault | LinkedIn

In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen examines something most senior leaders do but rarely admit: assuming the people around them already know what they need.Not because they're conflict-averse. Not because they're passive. But because at senior levels, asking can feel like a signal that something has gone wrong.The result is a pattern that quietly damages relationships in both directions — with the boss who doesn't know what support you need, and with the team working hard on the wrong version of what you wanted.Karen looks at:Why senior leaders avoid being direct about what they need and the specific belief driving itWhat the silence actually costs, with your boss, with your team, and in the relationships that matter mostThe difference between being direct and being blunt and why that distinction matters at this levelWhat it actually sounds like to ask clearly: the language, the framing, and the two things that make it workWhy most relationship friction at senior levels isn't conflict — it's accumulated assumptionAt senior levels, the people around you are busy, under pressure, and managing their own complexity. They are not going to guess correctly. Clarity is not a sign of weakness. Ambiguity is.Next steps:If you are postponing a conversation — with your boss, with a key stakeholder, or with someone on your team — and you want to think it through before you have it, book a Focus-15.In 15 minutes, you will clarify what you actually need to say, how to frame it, and what outcome you're working toward. You will leave with a clear direction and the confidence to move forward.https://www.karengombault.com/scheduleFollow Karen's writing on Substack, where she examines the structural importance of relationships and alignment at senior levels. https://karengombault.substack.com🤝 Connect on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen examines a recurring situation at senior levels: leaders who consistently deliver, operate at the next level, and still do not get promoted.The issue is not capability or performance. It is how promotion decisions are actually formed inside large organizations.If you are operating at Director, VP, or SVP level and relying on execution to carry you forward, this episode focuses on what sits outside your direct output: how decisions are shaped, who influences them, and how your positioning is interpreted when you are not in the room.Karen looks atThe structural gap between strong execution and weak positioning in promotion discussionsHow promotion decisions are formed collectively, and why individual performance is insufficient at senior levelsThe difference between being known and being relevant to decision-makers’ prioritiesThe role of advocacy, sponsorship, and silence in shaping promotion outcomesHow early relationship-building influences credibility long before opportunities are formally discussedWhat happens when leaders opt out of political dynamics and how that affects their visibility in decision processesAt senior levels, progression is determined less by what you deliver and more by how your work is carried into decision-making forums by others. If your scope is already expanding but your positioning is not, the gap will become visible when promotion decisions are made.Next steps:If your scope has recently expanded and you are operating with greater visibility and stakeholder complexity, a short, structured reset can materially improve how you deploy your time and authority. Book a Focus-15. In 15 minutes, you will clarify what requires your attention now, what no longer does, where to focus to reinforce authority, and one concrete adjustment to implement immediately. You will leave with a clear direction for the next 30 days.https://www.karengombault.com/scheduleFollow Karen’s writing on Substack, where she examines the structural importance of relationships and alignment at senior levels.https://karengombault.substack.com🤝 Connect on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

At senior levels, execution alone rarely determines results. Most decisions, promotions, and initiatives depend on how effectively you work with other people.In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault looks at a pattern that appears consistently in her work with senior leaders: when progress slows, a relationship dynamic is usually involved. It may be a new boss reshaping the organization, a promotion discussion influenced by several decision-makers, tension between senior peers, or the challenge of aligning large teams.Many experienced leaders still approach their role primarily through execution. Yet as scope increases, outcomes depend increasingly on influence, alignment, and how work moves through other people.Karen introduces a practical way to think about workplace relationships so that they are not treated as informal networking or personality chemistry. Instead, they become part of how leaders deliver on their responsibilities.Karen looks at:Why relationships become more decisive as roles expand and decisions involve multiple stakeholders.The difference between relationships that shape long-term opportunities and those that determine whether work actually happens.The informal individuals inside organizations who influence how actions and decisions are interpreted.Why most senior leaders need one or two trusted relationships that provide direct, honest perspective.How clarity about your objectives changes which relationships matter.Relationships at work are not primarily social connections. For leaders with significant scope, they are part of how decisions move, how initiatives progress, and how judgment develops over time.Next stepsIf your scope has recently expanded and you are operating with greater visibility and stakeholder complexity, a short, structured reset can materially improve how you deploy your time and authority....Book a Focus-15. In 15 minutes, you will clarify what requires your attention now, what no longer does, where to focus to reinforce authority, and one concrete adjustment to implement immediately. You will leave with a clear direction for the next 30 days.https://www.karengombault.com/schedule Follow Karen’s writing on Substack, where she examines the structural importance of relationships and alignment at senior levels.https://karengombault.substack.com 🤝 Connect on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

In senior roles, you are expected to have a point of view. You are promoted for judgment and decisiveness. But there is a structural risk that emerges at VP and SVP levels: the instinct to defend your position can reduce your ability to move work forward.In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault examines what happens when relational alignment at the top is not deliberately built. If you are operating with a broad scope and cross-functional accountability, execution depends less on being correct and more on whether your boss, peers, and team are positioned to support your decisions.The episode looks at:How the need to be right can narrow influence with your boss and affect when and how you are consultedWhat misalignment with peers does to cooperation, information flow, and execution speedWhy teams comply but disengage when leaders over-index on certaintyHow political capital is built or reduced through everyday interactionsThe difference between individual correctness and coordinated progressAt senior levels, momentum is built on relationships. You are accountable for outcomes that require other people’s cooperation. The question is not whether you are right. It is whether you can move forward decisions and initiatives - THAT is your job.Next stepsIf your scope has recently expanded and you are operating with greater visibility and stakeholder complexity, a short, structured reset can materially improve how you deploy your time and authority.Book a Focus-15 with former C-Suite executive Karen Gombault. In 15 minutes, you will clarify what requires your attention now, what no longer does, where to focus to reinforce authority, and one concrete adjustment to implement immediately. You will leave with a clear direction for the next 30 days.🧭 Book a Focus-15https://www.karengombault.com/scheduleYou can also follow Karen’s writing on Substack, where she examines the structural importance of relationships and alignment at senior level.https://karengombault.substack.com🤝 Connect on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

In senior roles, pressure is constant. Decisions are visible. Stakeholders bring urgency, frustration, and competing priorities into the room. You cannot control those inputs but you can control your response. In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault examines emotional regulation as a core leadership skill. Emotional regulation is the ability to notice your reaction, pause, and choose how to respond rather than act on impulse. It is not suppression of emotion, but disciplined composure. When leaders react in the moment — through sharp emails, raised tone, or visible frustration — judgment and discernment are difficult and conversations tend to escalate. When emotions remain steady, discussions stay productive. Karen looks at: How emotional reactivity reduces decision quality Why visible composure increases trust and authority The link between a leader’s emotional state and team stabilityThe role of regulation in high-stakes discussions and negotiations A practical method to reset your nervous system in real time As responsibility increases, emotional regulation becomes part of the role. Your tone influences the room and your reaction sets the standard. Next steps Schedule a free Focus 15 session where she walks you through a practical exercise to regulate your nervous system in real time. If you want to experience the method directly, you can sign up below. 🧭 Book a Focus 15 https://www.karengombault.com/schedule 🤝 Connect on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

If you’re operating with sustained responsibility, constant decision flow, and expanding scope, overwhelm often shows up not because of poor time management, but because of how decisions, expectations, and work are structured. In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault addresses why senior leaders remain cognitively overloaded even when they are experienced, disciplined, and committed. She outlines three pragmatic strategies drawn from her personal experience as CEO and her work with executives who have limited recovery time, and who need effectiveness that holds under pressure, not theoretical productivity models.Karen looks atHow delayed decisions consume disproportionate cognitive capacity and keep senior leaders stuck in analysis rather than executionWhere unclear decision rights between leaders and their teams create rework, escalation, and unnecessary involvementThe cost of vague task-based scheduling versus explicitly defining outcomes within fixed time constraintsWhy senior roles require deliberate boundary-setting rather than reactive availabilityHow structuring decisions and expectations reduces ongoing mental load without reducing accountabilityOverwhelm at senior level is rarely a volume problem. It is a structural one. When decisions linger, roles are ambiguous, and work is framed as activity rather than outcome, leaders absorb unnecessary load that compounds over time. Effectiveness comes from how judgment, authority, and attention are designed into the role, not from working longer or trying harder.Schedule a Focus-15 here: Schedule Leadership Impact Call

In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen addresses a pattern that consistently undermines senior leaders taking on new roles: delaying decisions in the name of certainty.When you step into expanded scope with incomplete information, hesitation carries real organizational consequences. Drawing on client work and direct experience, she examines why waiting for clarity rarely produces better outcomes and how early decisions affect authority, momentum, and cognitive load.If you are operating with accountability from day one and feel the pressure to “get it right,” this conversation reframes what effective judgment actually looks like at senior levels.Karen looks atHow delayed decisions create vacuums that others will fill, often in ways misaligned with your intent or prioritiesWhy hesitation signals uncertainty rather than thoughtfulness, and how that signal slows organizations more than imperfect decisions doThe cumulative emotional and cognitive load created by unresolved decisions, particularly in hiring, budgeting, and investment contextsThe role of early decisions in establishing credibility and authority within the first months of a new roleHow decision speed reduces over-coordination and excessive alignment cycles that drain senior capacityAt senior levels, the cost of indecision compounds quickly. Early decisions are less about being right and more about setting direction, preserving energy, and reinforcing judgment under uncertainty. Momentum, authority, and self-trust are built through action, not prolonged analysis.Next steps🧭 If you are experiencing decision indecision, book an Executive Pulse Call, and we'll work through the decision that needs to be made:https://calendly.com/kareng-coaching/executive-pulse🤝 Connect on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

In this episode of Grounded and Aligned™, Karen Gombault reflects on leadership through an unexpected but instructive lens: observing how people respond when authenticity, vulnerability, and respect are consistently present, without scripting or control.This is not a conversation about celebrity, though it is based on observations of Taylor Swift.It is an examination of why some leaders generate followership effortlessly, while others rely on position, polish, or performance.The episode uses real, observable moments to explore how leadership energy is experiencedand why it cannot be manufactured.What this episode examinesWhy authenticity is recognizable immediately—and difficult to fakeHow vulnerability can exist without undermining authorityThe leadership impact of spontaneous, human decisionsWhat happens when respect and passion are consistently visibleWhy people choose to follow leaders who feel real, not managed“People want to follow her because they want to be in that energy, in that positive energy.” - Karen GombaultAt senior levels, leadership is not only about decisions and outcomes. It is also about presence, and how others experience themselves in your energy.That experience compounds.Next stepsIf you are entering a new year with complex expectations and limited space to think, I offer a free 15-minute Executive Pulse Call.One situation.Clear perspective.A grounded decision on what matters next.🧭 Book an Executive Pulse Callhttps://calendly.com/kareng-coaching/executive-pulse☕ Join the free Grounded and Aligned™ Daily Coffee Chathttps://www.karengombault.com/offers/wuqAChoZ/checkout🤝 Connect with Karen on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

The meeting is scheduled for the next day.A decision needs to be made. Teams are waiting for direction.As you review the materials one final time, you see it immediately:the analysis is incomplete. Key inputs are missing. Several assumptions haven’t been tested.This is not new.You’ve been clear about expectations before. And there is no time left to send it back without delaying the decision.So you make a choice.In this episode of Grounded & Aligned™, Karen Gombault examines a pattern common at Director–SVP level: stepping in to protect outcomes, and the longer-term cost that decision quietly creates.This is not about commitment or competence. It is about what happens when responsibility repeatedly shifts toward you, without being explicitly agreed, named, or corrected.The episode explores how consistent intervention changes accountability, increases cognitive load, and alters how authority is experienced, not visibly, but structurally.If you often find yourself compensating so the business does not absorb the impact of someone else’s gaps, this conversation will feel familiar.What this episode looks at:How repeatedly absorbing work that isn’t yours reshapes accountability — even when done for sound reasonsWhy unresolved performance issues persist when consequences never land where they belongHow authority erodes quietly through accumulated mental load, not overt challengeThe difference between short-term decision protection and long-term organizational strengthWhen stepping back is not avoidance, but an intentional leadership decision“Staying accountable to outcomes is of course part of senior leadership. But taking on work that isn’t yours repeatedly, that is not.” — Karen GombaultAt senior levels, leadership is not demonstrated by how much you absorb.It is demonstrated by where responsibility sits and how you install boundaries.Next stepIf this pattern shows up in your job, I offer a 15-minute Executive Pulse Call.One situation.Clear perspective.A grounded decision on what to do about it.🧭 Book an Executive Pulse Call https://calendly.com/kareng-coaching/executive-pulse🤝 Connect with Karen on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/

You can be grateful—and still feel dissatisfied.In this episode of Stepping Into The Arena, Karen unpacks a powerful phrase shared by her mentor: “You can be grateful and dissatisfied.” At first glance, those emotions may seem contradictory, but they often show up together at pivotal career moments.Karen shares her personal experience of having a successful job, a fulfilling personal life, and yet feeling something wasn’t right. That subtle dissatisfaction was a signal—one she followed more than once, leaving high-level roles (even CEO) to pursue something bigger.If you’ve ever felt conflicted by your desire for more while also recognizing how fortunate you are, this conversation will give you clarity and courage.5 KEY TAKEAWAYS:Gratitude doesn’t mean you have to stay. You can be thankful for your job, your team, and your life—and still know it’s time for change.Dissatisfaction is often the first signal. Karen noticed a pattern in her career: every few years, a quiet feeling would emerge, pushing her toward growth.Acting on dissatisfaction leads to expansion. Each time Karen made a bold move—whether it was a job switch or moving to southern France—life got better.Guilt is part of the process. Leaving “good” roles brought emotional weight, especially as the main earner. But staying would have led to boredom and resentment.Trust your intuition. Even when timing isn’t ideal or others question your decision, that inner pull is worth listening to."It is 100% okay to feel grateful and dissatisfied." – Karen GombaultThis episode is a reminder that your next chapter may begin with a subtle nudge—not a crisis. And acting on that feeling could lead to more satisfaction than you imagined.RESOURCES & NEXT STEPS:Set up a call to explore working together: https://calendly.com/kareng-coaching/introductionFree Resource: Build Your Visibility At Work → https://www.karengombault.com/getnoticed1:1 Executive Coaching – Explore private coaching options: https://www.karengombault.com/workwithmeConnect with Karen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karengombault/