Journey to Effective Communication in Leadership, with Tara Lehman

Unlock the secrets to effective leadership and communication with Tara Lehman, a respected leadership and business coach from Twin Life Coaching and Business Services. Tara delves into her rich history of leadership, highlighting how her early experiences have shaped her philosophy today. She offers invaluable insights on mastering the art of active listening and explains why it's critical to focus less on crafting responses and more on truly understanding team members to foster a thriving business environment.

Tara and I tackle the myth of multitasking, explaining how modern distractions like smartphones and computers can sabotage genuine engagement.  Tara shares her expertise on adapting communication styles to meet diverse perceptions and reveals practical steps leaders can take to enhance their listening abilities and build stronger team connections. Celebrate with us as we hit the 100-episode milestone, a testament to our commitment to the podcasting journey.

Tara Lehman is a career, leadership and business coach who helps her
clients by empowering and supporting them with their goals, challenges
and struggles. Tara and her sister Barb opened Twin Life Coaching &
Business Services originally in 2017 with Tara creating their division
Amplifying Leadership in 2023.  Tara is a Certified Career Strategist
with Career Professionals of Canada in good standing and was given an
Honourable Mention for Outstanding Career Professional Award of
Excellence in 2023.  She empowers and trains people and businesses along with providing leadership coaching and resources.

Connect with Tara:
https://amplifyingleadership.ca/a-l-community-info

Tara's Podcast:
https://amplifyingleadership.ca/podcast-%2F-ebooks

Follow Tara on social media:
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/twinlifecoaching
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/twinlifecoaching
LinkedIn
https://ca.linkedin.com/company/twin-life-coaching-business-services

Chapters

• 0:04 Leadership and Communication in Podcasting
• 5:49 Effective Communication in Leadership
• 17:48 Podcasting Growth and Leadership Journey
• 21:19 Podcast Promotion and Networking

Transcript

Carl Richards: 0:04

Welcome to Communication Connection Community, the podcaster's podcast. This podcast takes a deep dive into modern day communication strategies in the podcasting space. We chat with interesting people who make the podcasting and speaking spaces exciting and vibrant. We also dive into the podcasting community with news updates, latest trends and topics from this ever-evolving space. So strap in, it's going to be one amazing ride.

Carl Richards: 0:32

Let's dive into today's episode, and today we're shifting a little bit to talk about leadership as well, as well as well as podcasting, because that's what we do on this podcast. But leadership is a huge part of pretty much everything we do. Even in your own life, you're a leader, or you should be. You should be a follower. In your own life, you should lead in what it is that you're doing. And our guest today is an expert in leadership and she's a podcaster, and I know we're going to talk about her podcast a lot because it blends quite well with what she's doing with leadership. Tara Lehman is a leadership and business coach and consultant with Twin Life Coaching and Business Services. She's created her leadership division, Amplifying Leadership, which is also the name of her podcast. Tara aspires to help others feel empowered to accept and adapt to change, grow their strengths and overcome their perceived weaknesses. I loved that word, Tara perceived weaknesses, because weakness is perceived correct.

Tara Lehman: 1:30

It is that's right, and thank you for the introduction.

Carl Richards: 1:34

Yeah it's great to have you here. Welcome to the show. I'm glad that we finally did this, because we've been talking about oh, we're going to do this, we're going to get you on the show, yes, and it ends up in the linkedin feed somewhere, and then it and then I got covid for what?

Tara Lehman: 1:48

five and a half weeks, and that delayed it.

Carl Richards: 1:50

So yeah, yeah oh, you too, oh so yeah so you're the one, okay, you're the one. And, like it was, like every other person I talked to had some form of either covid or ebola or something. So, yeah, so I'm glad that, firstly, that you're healthy, I'm healthy and we can do this. So how did you get into this leadership space? What was the catalyst that got you to where you are?

Tara Lehman: 2:15

Well, you know, it starts back when I was in my early twenties. I joined a company and it just it was a good company that gave me lots of opportunities. So I started as customer service and eventually ran the Canadian division. During that time I also had the ability to be a leadership trainer, change management as well as what does coaching mean for your employees and things like that and so it really, really resonated with me that the coaching, consulting piece around leadership was something that I felt inside, Like I just it was a strength of mine. When I did the strengths assessments, leadership was number one, usually communication number two, so it really led to doing some coaching and consulting. Just so everybody knows, the name of my company, Twin Life Coaching and Business Services is because I am an identical twin sister and we both have the company together.

Carl Richards: 3:09

There you go, so there's two of you.

Tara Lehman: 3:11

There's two of me and we are identical, so we do look very much alike.

Carl Richards: 3:16

So let me ask you am I speaking with Tara or am I speaking with your twin?

Tara Lehman: 3:20

You're speaking with Tara. My sister's name is Barb twin.

Carl Richards: 3:26

You're speaking with Tara. My sister's name is. Barb, it's, it's it's a good thing. It's not like Tara and Torah or Tara and like the.

Tara Lehman: 3:31

You know the tt kind of connect. Yeah, we hear a lot about that, but no thanks mom oh goodness, well it's.

Carl Richards: 3:38

It's a pleasure having you on the show. I want to go down this road because obviously, this is a podcast. That that's about. It's about podcasting, it's about communication, but I like to hear from different individuals other than just myself, because I've talked about this many times on this show in one form or another. But why is communication such a solid and crucial piece of the leadership journey?

Tara Lehman: 4:01

Wow that is. You know there's so many answers to that, but really the top level is that you don't have effective communication, you won't have an effective business, you won't have an effective team, and you know then you don't accomplish what you set out to accomplish. And also, not having open communication doesn't allow you to necessarily keep and retain those key employees because they no longer feel welcome or heard. So having great communication really is the key and that goes to active listening with your employees, of course. That's number one. You know if we don't listen, we don't know what they need, and you know then it just goes down from there. So communication is something that I push really hard for leaders, that it's something you need to do.

Carl Richards: 4:46

I'm glad you brought up the listening piece, because it's one thing that I learned very early on while in broadcasting, but then later on when I became a Toastmaster, that it forces you to listen because if you're, for example, if you're giving an evaluation of a speaker, you have to be listening to their presentation and assessing what it is that you're going to say and processing your thought in a way that you can communicate it within the next 15 minutes when you're called on to do so.

Carl Richards: 5:11

But it's such a crucial component, even just in simple communication, because I think sometimes the challenge is we love to hear ourselves talk. We don't necessarily like talking, but we love to hear ourselves talk. But when it comes to listening, we're already thinking of the next thing we're going to say, and once we have, we go yeah, uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh, and then we're ready to jump in with the next thing is that we're going to say and if we haven't heard correctly and taken it in and processed it, what the other person has said, then there's a communication breakdown.

Tara Lehman: 5:43

Absolutely, other person has said, then there's a communication breakdown, absolutely. One of the things I say about active listening is you know, if you're a person who loves their cell phone or you're in your office and you're just looking at those Teams messages or whatever platform or email, et cetera, you're not listening to that person. So if it's easier to close the door or literally turn off your phone or shut that laptop or whatever you need to do to give them 100% attention, and you're right, the thoughts come in our mind and so if the thoughts come in our mind, you just refocus. You miss something. Be honest, just say hey, carl, I have a lot on my mind today. I'm terribly sorry, I just missed what you said, or could you please repeat?

Tara Lehman: 6:22

That's okay, because everybody's going through things, but we need to be open and honest about that. If we don't capture what they're trying to tell us. But it's so important to get rid of the distractions when it comes to listening in leadership, in podcasts, in whatever you do at home, even right, I mean we really need to get rid of the distractions so that we can truly listen to what others are saying to us. Otherwise we can't appreciate truly what that is that we're supposed to take in from them.

Carl Richards: 6:49

I might get you to repeat that, because I was just scanning my messages on my phone while you were I'm kidding, I wasn't doing that but to make a point that that's quite often what happens, and I've seen leaders do that. I've seen, I've been on podcasts where I've been a guest and people have reached and grabbed their phone and you know what it's like, right, it's ever so subtle. You just kind of slide it over and then all of a sudden there's that head carriage forward and the head is down and their head is still nodding while you're speaking, but they're not engaged. And in a leadership. It's one thing in the, in the, in the podcasting space, of course, especially when you're, whether you're live or whether you're recorded, but when you're in a leadership space and you're doing something that is pulling you away from the talk or communication that you're having with the other person, firstly it's disrespectful. And also there's this belief that, oh, I'm multitasking, multitasking, multitasking doesn't exist.

Tara Lehman: 7:44

It does not. I was going to mention that I had a guest on my Amplifying Leadership podcast who said try to say your name and count the number of letters that you have in your name at the exact same time. You can't do it. You can't do it. That's multitasking, you can't do it. So I agree 100%.

Carl Richards: 7:58

You're right, you can't, you can't do it, but we think we can.

Tara Lehman: 8:02

We think we can.

Carl Richards: 8:03

And we know and it's been proven because distracted driving has proven this that you cannot be focusing on the task of operating a motor vehicle and also sending a text message. Now some people would argue well, yes, I can, I can do two things at once. Or the standing joke is just ask any mom who's dealing with cooking supper and talking on the phone and changing a diaper and doing something else at the same time. They're multitasking, yes, but what are they really focused on?

Tara Lehman: 8:27

Yep, you can only focus on one thing.

Carl Richards: 8:30

Does the diaper end up as part of the dinner? Does the phone conversation? Does the phone fall? You know what I mean. So this whole concept of being able to multitask it's a myth. I'm glad that we're on that same page and I'm glad that the communication piece is one that we also agree on. As far as the leaders that you work with, would you say that the communication piece is a huge struggle for them, like when they come to you, is it a? I'm having a hard time getting my team to do things? And you boil it down to okay, sometimes it's systems, but a lot of times it's communication.

Tara Lehman: 9:04

A lot of times it's communication, and I find that a lot with either very seasoned leaders or very new leaders or those who haven't been trained properly on what communication is in the first place. So you know, communication isn't just our voice, it is what we do with our hands, and I know people can't see us, but I'm moving my hands as I talk because I'm a hand talker. You know, there's so many other things pictures and things like that that are part of communication. So those are key things that we have to remember as well.

Carl Richards: 9:31

So they come to you. Quite often it's for issues of communication. Even if it doesn't start out that way, you can figure out that yeah, okay, whether they be a seasoned leader or brand new leader, business owner, entrepreneur, whatever it is that the communication is. The is the crux of whatever it is that they're dealing with and, without giving away your best stuff because we don't want to do that we want people to actually contact you after today to start working with you. What are, what are some of the, the things that that you suggest right off the top, that that they do as simple fixes before they even have to do a deep dive.

Tara Lehman: 10:08

So they need to first understand their communication style. You know, if they are currently not a great listener, then you need to figure out how to become a listener, and that is obviously something that you know as a coach. I help people understand. But also understanding your communication style is not the same as somebody else's. That is a huge key component as well. We're all different and I say that as an identical twin, by the way, because she's left-handed, I'm right-handed. We're called near identical twins. So we all communicate very differently and we take in so much information in our brains that even if we all think that that's the color yellow, it doesn't mean we see it as the same shade. So you really need to understand what your communication style is like so you can work on you, but then also communicate to be understood, because everybody communicates differently. And that's where the visualization can help or where pictures can help.

Tara Lehman: 11:02

If you're speaking to someone who maybe English isn't their first language, you know what are those other attributes to communication that you need to put in there. So I help a lot of my clients with understanding. It's not just about the word. You know a PowerPoint, without speaking, can just tell you a little bits and pieces, but when you add that trainer or whatever to it, you gain so much more. I talk about even like the questioning techniques. So if you are a person who is a leader, where you just are always asking, hey, carl, did you get this done? You get a yes or a no, start asking questions. That will help you understand what the barriers are. Maybe you didn't communicate it correctly, can?

Carl Richards: 11:38

I just give a shout out to Barbara for being a lefty, yes, yay, lefty, woohoo, yay, we're brothers. Wait a minute, we're not for it, we're siblings by hand choice. Anyways, that's so cool, and it's interesting to hear you say that you're what? Did you say it mirrored opposites, is it?

Tara Lehman: 11:57

mirror identical twin mirror, identical twin?

Carl Richards: 12:00

okay, I've never heard of that, but anyways, and the other thing, just to go along with what you were saying, and thanks for letting me do a shout out to Barbara, barbara, when you're listening to this, we have to connect for no other reason because when we sit side by side, or even when we sit across from one another, we'll reach for the right drinking glass, right, right, right, you've been, you've been to lunch with her and you're like, oh, that's my glass right, you've done that, I know you have, I know you have, uh, but but I like how you said that, um, how you, how you boiled that down, because the other thing that I was thinking about is that not only do we listen differently, but we, we learn.

Carl Richards: 12:32

We learn differently. We all have different learning styles and and we absorb content differently. That's why people have been, you know, edging me on. They say you should have a video version of your podcast, because there are visual learners and like I'm like yes, I spent 25 years in the audio space though, so it's a comfort zone for me, but still, people learn differently. People absorb content differently. People absorb what people are telling them differently, so you have to be prepared to adapt to that, based on the, obviously, based on the skill sets that you're and the training that you're helping people with.

Tara Lehman: 13:06

Absolutely. It's about being able to communicate, to understand and communicate to be understood, and all the tools that go with it in the background, which is something that I help as well, Right? So, yeah, it's, you really need to get those key things. So if people are struggling those new leaders or those seasoned leaders and they can't figure out why the team isn't getting along or no one's talking to them, it's start with you, find out what's going on, and maybe there is. You're not communicating to be understood or to understand.

Carl Richards: 13:34

Tara, this is phenomenal. I we could talk about leadership and communication all day, because there are two subjects that I'm excited about. However, I also want to talk about your podcast, and I know that you know you. You have a life outside of just talking to me, and I appreciate the fact that we can do this. But the podcast, because it's mirrored speaking of mirroring it's it's basically the same. Like your, your business and your podcast go together, which I think is genius. I think more people should do that. So many people have podcasts, that kind of relate, but then they don't, and then they go down a rabbit hole with other things and they say, well, it's just a hobby and that's fine too, but I like how yours connects. So tell me about the podcast.

Tara Lehman: 14:13

So after I created the division amplifying leadership, I decided to also do a podcast called amplifying leadership, because my goal with leadership is to really make it stronger out there in the world. That's why it's called amplifying it right, make it stronger and build those skills, which is a continual thing. So I opened the podcast, you know, as a guest-only podcast. It was every couple of weeks and I started. I reached out with people. I knew I mean, that's what we do, and then it started gaining traction. And so the idea of my podcast is you know, talk about where you came from, how did you become a leader, because everybody's story is slightly different. You know things about. We talk a lot about communication. There are things about safety and psychological safety to just general leadership tips and tricks, and it became popular quite quickly.

Tara Lehman: 15:03

I ended up having to go weekly have and I still have lots of people wanting to be on. I, you and I were talking prior that you know I'm I'm already booked out and the you know the ones that are ready to go or next year. Because it's such a popular podcast, because it's all about you know, what can we share as leaders with each other and via a different content stream and podcasts. You know, as leaders, we're busy, so we can listen to this on that car ride to work, gain a whole bunch of new insights and tips, even if we're seasoned leaders, because we're listening to other leaders and CEOs and business owners et cetera on my podcast. So we're learning from each other. That's part of our continual development. So that's why I wanted to make sure it linked with the division that I created for leadership as well.

Carl Richards: 15:54

As I said, I think it's a phenomenal thing that you're doing. I like that you actually stole one of my questions by giving me the answer. It's okay, it happens when we have conversations like this because I was going to share. And how is that? You know how is it? Or what would you say to individuals who are sitting on the fence about doing a podcast? Because that, because that's what we do we run a full service agency helping coaches, consultants, real estate professionals who know they want to be in this space but are either they're scared to do it or they don't know where to start, or they're just on the time. What's the benefit been to you? And I know you've shared that. You've had some phenomenal conversations with guests and it's been a learning and sharing for you and the guests and also the listeners. But what are some of the benefits that you're finding from the show?

Tara Lehman: 16:45

Well, first and foremost, I learn things with almost every conversation right, and I'm a seasoned leader and I think that's so phenomenal, you know. I think if somebody can relate it to what they actually do, that makes it a stronger podcast and you get more guest inquiries rather than you having to go search for them. So you know, I've met a couple of people who have very specific like you, a very specific type of podcast, which is really important because then people tend to follow it, because they can't wait for the next one to come out. I, you know, started adding Tip Thursday with Tara. It's just a quick little less than 10 minutes leadership tip once a week because I started getting requests for more about my knowledge.

Tara Lehman: 17:31

And a podcast can really amplify your business because it shows your expertise as well. So that helps bring in the clients. If that's what you're looking for, it helps bring in some business but also elevate you as the expert in what you're promoting as a business as well. So I think all of those things are why a podcast can be really important. And if you are scared, trust me, I was too when I listened to my episode one and two and I listened to I just recorded episode 100, completely different, right. I mean, they sound different, the energy's different. I say just start, you'll grow into it. That's what happens. It just grows with you.

Carl Richards: 18:07

First off, congratulations on episode 100. That's phenomenal, the fact that there's a lot of stats out there now that are saying podcasts don't last the first 10 episodes. A lot of them don't. So the fact that you're at number 100 is a testament to not only making sure that you're seeing it as a long game because it is but then, also. You can go back and listen to some of those early episodes. You probably cringe and go. What was I thinking?

Tara Lehman: 18:30

Yes.

Carl Richards: 18:31

I do that too, and I think God. And what's funny is I mean I started my podcast 2019. I had two at one point. Now it's just one. We merged two together and again, not to toot my own horn, but I came from a radio background Voice. That was not something I had to work with Presentation, not something I had to work with but I listened to those first few episodes.

Tara Lehman: 18:54

Holy casnoli Different, yeah the energy.

Carl Richards: 18:57

But you learn right. You learn, you grow, you develop, and I like that. It's as you say. It's in line with your business and your values. You're having great conversations with people. People are sitting up and taking notice. You're recognizing that there's an opportunity to add more content and people are becoming more and more content. I don't want to say that we're junkie, but they are. We're becoming these massive consumers of content where we want not just the show, we want those tip Tuesdays or Thursdays or whatever you called it. Then we also want what's going on behind the scenes. You know what's happening. That'll be the next thing You'll have, like a green room with your guest after the show, which is then premium content.

Carl Richards: 19:38

Talk to me about that there's all these other things that you do. So I think, overall, you're doing a phenomenal job as a leader, as a coach and as a podcaster, so I'm glad we took this time to chat today. What can you pass along to our guests?

Tara Lehman: 19:57

I know there's something that you wanted to share with them today. Yes, so Amplifying Leadership my website's amplifyingleadership. ca, where it lists all of my services, but I've also created a Amplifying Leadership community, so the community has a discussion group. There's on demand, you know, short courses. I've created my eBooks because I've also loved to write so various different things on there. It's relatively new, so definitely check that out If you have any interest in being a leader who it's part of a community.

Carl Richards: 20:26

I love it and I'm glad that you're building community out as well. That's another piece of not only business but in the podcasting space that it's. It's what we're doing afterwards and that value added, that's deepening that no like and trust factor. And there's no better time than, especially with the world we're in right now, this being recorded. You know the end of May of 2024, it's a precarious time in many ways, every corner of the globe. So kudos for what you're doing. I appreciate that. Tara Lehman has been my guest today, a phenomenal leadership coach and podcaster. And before I turn you loose to go solve the world's problems and probably record another podcast episode yourself, I'll give you the final thought.

Tara Lehman: 21:07

Yeah. So anybody who wants to do a podcast or anybody who's feeling like they're making mistakes, remember this. Failure is transformational. Listen to it, learn from it and grow because of it. That's my quote.

Carl Richards: 21:19

Tara thank you so much for taking time out of your day today to join me on the podcast.

Tara Lehman: 21:25

I greatly appreciate the opportunity, Carl, and it was nice to see you again.

Carl Richards: 21:28

And thank you for joining us today. Special thanks to our producer and production lead, Dom Carrillo, our music guru, Nathan Simon, and the person who works the arms all of our arms, actually my trusty assistant, Stephanie Gafoor. If you like what you heard today, leave us a comment and a review, and be sure to share it with your friends. If you don't like what you heard, please share it with your enemies. Oh, and if you have a suggestion of someone who you think would make an amazing guest on the show, let us know about it. Drop us an email, askcarl at carlspeaks. ca. Don't forget to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter as well. You'll find all those links in the show notes, and if you're ready to take the plunge and join the over 3 million people who have said yes to podcasting, let's have a conversation. We'll show you the simplest way to get into the podcasting space, because, after all, we're Podcast. Solutions Made Simple. We'll catch you next time.