21. Holding Space for Johanna Korhonen

21. Holding Space for Johanna Korhonen

From Holding Space for Unicorns by Alicia Payne

September 8, 2025 · 42 min · Season 1 · Episode 21

About this episode

Alicia Payne interviews Johanna Korhonen about her journey in tech sales and her passion for empowering women in the industry.

In this latest episode, I had the absolute joy of sitting down with Johanna “Jo” Korhonen . Jo’s one of those people who shows up exactly as she is — loud, funny, open-hearted — and that’s what makes this conversation so special. We talked about her winding path from wanting to be a history teacher, to falling (a little by accident) into telesales, and then building a career in global tech sales. Jo shares why she loves the rollercoaster of sales, the thrill of the chase, and that magic moment when you stop being “the pushy rep” and become a trusted partner. What I love most about Jo is her honesty — about the highs, the lows, and what it really means to be a woman leading in sales. She’s passionate about opening doors for more women to step into this world, and she leaves us with one of her favorite reminders: “you can always re-choose your choice.” We hope you enjoy the chat as much as we did! Johanna Korhonen is currently Chief Sales Officer at Dear Lucy On her awesome LinkedIn Profile, she says: Hi my name is Johanna but since you’re here, you might as well call me Jo 👋 As a stellar sales leader I’ve been turning "no" into "not yet" for ten years. I’ve…

People in this episode

Host: Alicia Payne

Guest: Johanna Korhonen

Topics covered

  • sales
  • women in leadership
  • career development
  • tech industry
  • personal growth

Keywords

  • sales leadership
  • career path
  • women in sales
  • tech sales
  • personal development

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Dear Lucy

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