Kim Kulikowskis, Senior Manager of Sales and Leadership Training at IBSA Pharma USA: Discovering the Right Fit. Kim shared how she discovered Personify Leadership while searching for a program that could blend into a six-month leadership development plan. After meeting Michelle at a training event, Kim explored Personify’s program and felt an immediate fit. She appreciated the experiential nature, industry versatility, and strong engagement the program offered, far from the dull, PowerPoint-heavy training sessions she had seen elsewhere. This combination made it ideal for both emerging and current leaders.
(more…)by Michelle Cummings
Every leader faces moments where silence feels safer. A meeting where the dominant opinion goes unchallenged. A decision that doesn’t align with the team’s values. A behavior that crosses a line. In those moments, speaking up is not easy – but it’s essential. That’s the heart of managerial courage: choosing principle over popularity, clarity over comfort.
Managerial courage is not about being loud, reactive, or confrontational. It’s about being steady, clear, and values-driven. It’s about knowing what matters most, and having the discipline to act even when the outcome feels uncertain. True courage is not the absence of fear. It’s moving forward despite it.
(more…)Every leader takes steps each day that signal to their team who they are and what they stand for. Some steps move them forward, toward clarity and ownership. Others keep them stuck, trapped in cycles of blame or avoidance. The difference lies in mindset, whether a leader operates from a victim mentality or an accountable one.
The victim leader mindset is easy to spot. These leaders tend to deflect responsibility, point fingers when things go wrong, or feel powerless in the face of challenges. While this stance may offer temporary relief from pressure, it erodes trust over time. Teams under victim leaders often mirror that behavior, leading to cultures of excuse-making, disengagement, and stagnation.
(more…)When a plan fails or results fall short, it is human nature to look outward first. We might point to shifting priorities, lack of resources, or the actions of others. While these factors may be real, strong leaders start by looking inward. They ask themselves, “What could I have done differently?”
This mindset is not about self-blame. It is about ownership. By focusing first on your own actions and decisions, you give yourself the power to influence future outcomes. Blaming others may feel easier in the moment, but it leaves you with little control to make changes that lead to improvement.
(more…)by Michelle Cummings
Leadership is not just about what you say. It’s also about what you transmit. Neuroscience now shows that your emotions and behaviors don’t stay contained – they ripple. At the heart of this ripple effect are mirror neurons, a set of brain cells that help people reflect the emotional tone of those around them. Whether you walk into the room stressed or composed, frustrated or calm, others are likely to mirror what they observe in you.
This is not just about mood. It’s about influence. If your team sees you leading with optimism, presence, and grounded energy, they are more likely to respond with motivation and clarity. If they pick up tension, anger, or fear from you – even if unspoken – that emotional tone becomes the room’s new baseline. Mirror neurons are always on. They don’t wait for permission. They reflect what’s modeled.
(more…)It is easy to match the behavior we receive, especially when that behavior is unkind or passive-aggressive. A sarcastic comment may get a sarcastic reply. A cold shoulder might be met with one of your own. In the moment, it can feel like self-protection or even fairness, but it rarely leads to the outcome you want.
Mirroring negative behavior can escalate tension, damage trust, and distract from the real issue. While it may give a temporary sense of satisfaction, it often leaves you questioning whether you acted in line with your values. Leadership requires the ability to pause, reflect, and choose a better path forward.
(more…)by Michelle Cummings
Delegation is often described as a time-saver or a workload strategy. But the best leaders know it’s much more than that. Delegation is a trust transfer, and like any transfer, it only works if the handoff is clean. A task passed without context or clarity isn’t delegation – it’s confusion dressed up as collaboration.
Too often, leaders hand off work without taking time to explain what success looks like. Vague phrases like “just take care of it” or “you’ve got this” might sound empowering, but they leave the recipient unclear on where to aim. Without a defined outcome, people spin their wheels or second-guess their actions, and the task eventually circles back to the leader anyway.
(more…)Good communication is not just about the message. It is also about how the message is delivered. Pace and tone are two often-overlooked tools that can make or break understanding. Leaders who know how to adjust these elements create more connection and reduce friction, even with people who have very different communication styles.
Some people prefer a quick, energetic pace. They want to get to the point and move on. Others need a slower rhythm, time to reflect, and space to process before responding. The same goes for tone. One person may respond well to enthusiasm and high energy, while another may feel more at ease with a calm, steady approach.
(more…)For many leaders, listening is not the challenge, waiting is. The moment someone shares a problem, the instinct is to offer a solution, give advice, or respond immediately. This comes from a good place, but it can unintentionally shut down the conversation before the other person has fully expressed themselves.
Real listening means resisting the urge to jump in too soon. When you move too quickly to fix or advise, you may miss important details, misunderstand the situation, or overlook what the other person truly needs in that moment. Sometimes they need answers, but other times they need understanding, validation, or space to process.
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At the heart of every high-performing organization is a strong leader – someone who drives the vision, creates the company culture and knows how to call the shots in a time of crisis. Wouldn’t it be great if every company had multiple leaders like that?
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