The Impostor Syndrome Files

In this episode of The Impostor Syndrome Files, we talk about stress, intentionality and why doing more isn’t always the path to greater success. My guest this week is Trish Walker, executive coach, speaker and former president of home and services at Best Buy.
Trish shares how an unexpected “lifequake” led her to step away from a long and successful corporate career and reconsider what she wanted next. Here we explore the importance of listening to our own signals, asking for help and trusting ourselves when life doesn’t go according to plan.
We also challenge the high-achiever belief that our value is measured by how much we do. Trish shares why slowing down can create greater clarity, focus and confidence, and how small shifts can help us move through work and life with less stress and more success.
About My Guest
As a former Fortune 100 executive, Trish Walker guides leaders to perform at their highest levels and achieve Less Stress. More Success™. By blending C-suite executive experience with mindfulness and neuroscience, she translates insight into practical, real-world strategies. She helps leaders think more clearly, make better decisions and strengthen performance to elevate leadership in the moments that matter.
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Connect with Trish:
Website: https://www.mydaily-dash.com/ 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patriciatrishwalker/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@my-daily-dash
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/my_daily_dash/
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Connect with Kim and The Impostor Syndrome Files:

Join the free Impostor Syndrome Challenge:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/challenge

Learn more about the Leading Humans discussion group:
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Join the Slack channel to learn from, connect with and support other professionals: https://forms.gle/Ts4Vg4Nx4HDnTVUC6

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Schedule time to speak with Kim Meninger directly about your questions/challenges: https://bookme.name/ExecCareer/strategy-session

Connect on LinkedIn:
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Website:
https://www.kimmeninger.com

In this episode of The Impostor Syndrome Files, we talk about performance anxiety and why it can affect even the most experienced professionals. My guest this week is Dr. David Lee Fish, a former music professor who now helps people navigate speech fright, stage fright and competition anxiety.
David shares his own experience of freezing during an early performance and the shame that came from believing he was the only one struggling. We explore what’s happening in our bodies when we feel judged or threatened and why our internal “bodyguard” can make high-stakes moments even harder.
We also discuss a different way to respond when anxiety takes over. David explains how mindfulness can help us redirect our attention, why the middle of a stressful moment is the wrong time to debate our fears and how everyday activities can become opportunities to build the skills we need when the pressure is on.
About My Guest
David Lee Fish, Ph.D., works with professionals who are excellent at their jobs but fall short of their potential when they speak in front of others, whether in formal presentations, team meetings, online sessions, or job interviews. His approach to performance anxiety has an unusual origin. He developed it independently through Zen practice, then, years later, discovered that Jon Kabat-Zinn, who brought mindfulness into mainstream medicine, had learned from the same Korean master. They arrived at the same place independently of one another. His counterintuitive method has helped professionals reclaim the confidence that anxiety was suppressing.
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Connect with David:
Website: https://riseupeight.com/
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Connect with Kim and The Impostor Syndrome Files:

Join the free Impostor Syndrome Challenge:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/challenge

Learn more about the Leading Humans discussion group:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/leadinghumansgroup

Join the Slack channel to learn from, connect with and support other professionals: https://forms.gle/Ts4Vg4Nx4HDnTVUC6

Join the Facebook group:
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Schedule time to speak with Kim Meninger directly about your questions/challenges: https://bookme.name/ExecCareer/strategy-session

Connect on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimmeninger/

Website:
https://www.kimmeninger.com

In this episode of The Impostor Syndrome Files, we talk about career pivots, self-discovery and why waiting for the perfect time can keep us from pursuing what matters. My guest this week is Niki Lazaridou, who has held a number of entrepreneurial and senior leadership roles.
Niki shares her diverse career background and the journey that led her to finding her purpose. In our conversation, we discuss the balance between having enough pressure to motivate us and having so much pressure that we shift into survival mode. Niki introduces the Greek word meraki, which describes putting a piece of your soul into what you do, and explains why curiosity, effort and personal investment can create a deeper sense of purpose.
Finally, we explore how our core values can help us distinguish impostor syndrome from a work environment that is genuinely out of alignment. Niki shares how identifying directness, empathy and freedom as her three core values helped her better understand her emotional reactions at work, and why saying our fears out loud can release pressure and create stronger human connection.
About My Guest
With 15 years of experience as an entrepreneur and working in senior positions in a variety of corporations and organizations, Niki has been positioned as a Pool of Experts Team in the United Nations, Senior Risk Manager in PWC, and Program Manager in Publicis Sapient.
Currently serving as Strategy Manager at Minc Sweden, she is commissioned to redesign the entire incubator model in order to foster collaboration in the Nordic Region.
She is also a Mentor in Entrepreneurship at Harvard University, as well as a professional advisor at MIT, currently driving her own collaboration initiative between Harvard and CERN in Geneva.
Niki is also a member of Forbes Women connecting to a global network of women leaders, founders, and professionals.
As an entrepreneur, Niki has worked on projects with MIT Media Lab, ABC, BBC, Puma, Amazon, Peabody Essex Museum, Blue Lagoon Iceland, Body Worlds Exhibition while also being published in Vogue, Elle, Marie Claire, Boston Globe, i-D, Cosmopolitan.
She has delivered workshops & Academic Teaching at IKEA, Hyper Island, Apple, and BA courses in Media Technology at BTH. Her education focuses in Software Engineering, Media and Communications, and AI.
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Connect with Niki:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikilazaridou/
Website: https://www.nikilazaridou.com/
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Connect with Kim and The Impostor Syndrome Files:

Join the free Impostor Syndrome Challenge:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/challenge

Learn more about the Leading Humans discussion group:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/leadinghumansgroup

Join the Slack channel to learn from, connect with and support other professionals: https://forms.gle/Ts4Vg4Nx4HDnTVUC6

Join the Facebook group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/leadinghumans

Schedule time to speak with Kim Meninger directly about your questions/challenges: https://bookme.name/ExecCareer/strategy-session

Connect on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimmeninger/

Website:
https://www.kimmeninger.com

In this episode of The Impostor Syndrome Files, we talk about the uncertainty that comes with career pivots and why change often triggers so much self-doubt. My guest this week is Juliana Pereira, community builder and co-author of Pivot Quest.
Drawing from her own eight career pivots, Juliana challenges the belief that successful people have everything figured out. We explore how curiosity, self-trust and a willingness to become a beginner can help us navigate change more confidently.
We also discuss how to recognize when it may be time for a change, what our energy can teach us about what we want next and why it’s important to consider the cost of not pivoting.
About My Guest
Juliana Naranjo Pereira is a Future of Work Humanist, community builder, and eight-time career pivoter who has spent her life navigating change across cultures, countries, and industries.
Born and raised in New York to a Colombian mother and Portuguese father, she learned early that identity is rarely fixed and belonging is something we create. Her journey has taken her from advertising at BBDO and product design to luxury fashion PR for brands including Gucci, Burberry, and Tiffany & Co.; from developing world-class retail experiences to founding and successfully exiting a wellness venture; from building traditions and community for more than 10,000 students from over 160 nationalities at IE University to serving as Global CMO of an international technology consultancy.
Through her work building communities and leadership ecosystems around the world, she has helped thousands of people navigate growth, belonging, and transformation.
A TEDx speaker, contributor to Harvard Business Review Deusto, and member of the Board of Trustees of UNICEF Spain, Juliana believes that life's most meaningful transformations begin not when we become someone new, but when we uncover who we have been all along.
She believes that a pivot is not reinvention—it is revelation.
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Connect with Juliana:
Book Website: https://pivot-quest.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliananaranjopereira/
Instagram: https://instagram.com/houseofpivots
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Connect with Kim and The Impostor Syndrome Files:

Join the free Impostor Syndrome Challenge:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/challenge

Learn more about the Leading Humans discussion group:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/leadinghumansgroup

Join the Slack channel to learn from, connect with and support other professionals: https://forms.gle/Ts4Vg4Nx4HDnTVUC6

Join the Facebook group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/leadinghumans

Schedule time to speak with Kim Meninger directly about your questions/challenges: https://bookme.name/ExecCareer/strategy-session

Connect on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimmeninger/

Website:
https://www.kimmeninger.com

In this episode of The Impostor Syndrome Files, we talk about how to define success in ways that go beyond traditional performance metrics. My guest this week is M. Nora Bouchard, executive coach, leadership advisor and author of Hidden Metrics: The Coach's Secret to Success That Really Matters.
Nora shares how nearly three decades of coaching leaders has shaped her perspective on what drives meaningful leadership and sustainable career success. We explore why traditional metrics like KPIs often fail to capture what keeps people engaged at work and how leaders can reconnect with a greater sense of purpose without walking away from their careers.
In our conversation, we discuss the importance of creating a personal vision for your leadership that is grounded in your values and strengths. Nora introduces the concept of "hidden metrics" and explains how using your own internal measures of success can increase engagement, strengthen decision-making and ultimately improve performance.
We also talk about why so many leaders never intentionally define what leadership means to them, the importance of making your leadership values visible to others and how greater self-awareness creates more trust and consistency for your team. Finally, Nora shares practical advice for getting started, recognizing where change is needed and asking for support instead of trying to navigate every challenge alone.
About My Guest
M. Nora Bouchard is an executive and leadership coach with over 10,000 hours of coaching experience. Known for her engaging, relatable and insightful style, she helps leaders at all levels reconnect with what matters most in their professional lives—the unmeasured moments of growth, integrity, and purpose that define meaningful work. Over three decades, Nora has partnered with organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to ambitious nonprofits, guiding leaders to honor both their results and their values.
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Connect with Nora:
Book: www.hidden-metrics.com 
Website: https://www.mnorabouchard.com
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Connect with Kim and The Impostor Syndrome Files:

Join the free Impostor Syndrome Challenge:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/challenge

Learn more about the Leading Humans discussion group:
https://www.kimmeninger.com/leadinghumansgroup

Join the Slack channel to learn from, connect with and support other professionals: https://forms.gle/Ts4Vg4Nx4HDnTVUC6

Join the Facebook group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/leadinghumans

Schedule time to speak with Kim Meninger directly about your questions/challenges: https://bookme.name/ExecCareer/strategy-session

Connect on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimmeninger/

Website:
https://www.kimmeninger.com