E357 - Strategic Support for Achieving Goals and Overcoming Self-Limiting Beliefs by Leading with Passion | with Alessandra Wall

The One Big Tip Podcast with Jeff Mendelson

Dr. Alessandra Wall is a licensed clinical psychologist and executive coach and when she's not directly coaching her clients, she is speaking or running corporate training on communicating your value and building social capital for success. Every day thousands of incredibly smart, driven, hardworking, and accomplished women feel unseen, undervalued, and underpaid. They're falling out of love with their work and contemplating leaving their jobs when there's so much left for them to achieve. Dr. Alessandra has made it her mission to help women in leadership show up more powerfully and own their values to feel fulfilled and successfully create the impact they want in the world. To achieve this vision she founded Noteworthy, an executive coaching, consulting, and training firm that works directly with women leaders in STEM and finance to help them articulate, plan and build careers that are wildly successful and deeply satisfying.

Alessandra reveals that she did not pursue any extra certifications beyond her Ph.D. degree. She advises people to ask themselves the purpose of getting additional degrees and to only pursue them if they are necessary for their career goals. Instead, she has invested in extra training on experiential learning, marketing, and business building, which has allowed her to serve her clients better. She discourages the mentality of constantly taking courses without taking action, which is a common phenomenon she calls "course junkies." Alessandra helps her clients break this cycle by encouraging them to take purposeful action toward their career goals.

It’s crucial to understand one's goals and aspirations in order to achieve success. Individuals must identify what impact they want to make and develop a strategic plan to get there. As an executive coach, Alessandra often finds that many individuals are reactive in their careers and make decisions based on circumstances rather than their true desires. Through her background in psychology, she helps individuals identify their fears and overcome self-limiting beliefs. By taking a step back and analyzing what is and isn't working, she provides her clients with strategic support and motivation to follow through on their goals.

There’s an importance in talking about oneself, especially in a professional setting. Alessandra's big tip is to lead with passion rather than an elevator pitch. She suggests taking a minute to think about what you do that you're really good at and love doing. This can help to avoid sounding bored or uncomfortable when talking about yourself. Being visible is essential for advancement, especially for women taught to be humble and not talk about themselves. She also mentions that it's important to think about what you’re good at that is soul-crushing and to avoid articulating it. Alessandra shares that she's good at accounting and cleaning, but these tasks are soul-crushing. However, she loves problem-solving and zombie apocalypse movies, which is more compelling and engaging when talking about herself.

Women in the finance space, as well as engineers and scientists, often ask if they can share personal stories during serious interviews. Alessandra assures them they can, but adapting those stories to showcase their skill sets. Start with three skill sets that you love and want to be known for and then identify the impact that can be made with those skills. By discussing things you are passionate about, the brain releases dopamine, serotonin, and neuropeptides, making the experience more rewarding and memorable. This process applies to entrepreneurs and professionals alike, regardless of the industry.

Understand the importance of not just what is said, but how it is said to make another person feel what truly matters, this approach is effective every time. It is essential that everyone should practice this skill in various situations. This sentiment highlights the idea that communication is not just about the words used, but also about the tone, body language, and other nonverbal cues that convey emotion and meaning.

In this episode:

[01:00] Dr. Alessandra Wall is a licensed clinical psychologist and executive coach.

• Speaks and runs corporate training on communicating value and building social capital for success.
• Her firm Noteworthy helps women in STEM and finance build successful and fulfilling careers.

[04:00] Blowing 10 grand on a course, but constantly being held back by artificial fear of

advancement and never doing anything with it.

• Alessandra helps people understand what drives them, which allows them to identify their skill gaps and seek external support.
• Creating a strategic plan with the help of external support is key to moving forward.

[07:00] Reactively responding to circumstances leads to unwise decisions.

• Knowing oneself leads to making better choices.
• Success without fulfillment creates a gap between who you are and who you were.

[10:00] Acknowledge and seek help for deficiencies or bounce ideas off someone else.

• Fear holds us back, you need someone to walk you through your fears.
• Taking a step back to evaluate what's working and what's not, set up a process and motivation to follow through.

[14:00] Talking about oneself is a common occurrence in various settings such as networking

events, job interviews, and corporate meetings.

• The common advice to create an elevator pitch can fall short when put into practice and can lead to discomfort when trying to convey it.
• People may benefit from learning how to talk about themselves in a way that is authentic and comfortable for them.
• Helping women thrive within systems not built for them, utilizing their limited resources to overcome roadblocks and marauders.

[19:50] Identify three skill sets you love doing and want to be known for.

• Define the impact you can make with those skills to show your value.
• Share tangible results you've achieved in your business to add credibility to your pitch.