Coaching Real Leaders

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Business #80Management #8

We all want to get to the next level of our career, but so many of us get stuck. Longtime leadership coach Muriel Wilkins takes you inside real-life leadership coaching sessions with high performers working to overcome professional challenges and grow as leaders. Listen in on real conversations and leave with new insights and practical guidance for your own career.

The views expressed on this podcast are those of its hosts, guests, and callers, and not those of Harvard Business Review.

Recent Episodes
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Recent Reviews
  • KristinTho
    Unlocked Confidence
    The episode on Navigating a New Senior Role felt like I was the guest. It really helped me quickly get to the root of my hesitation, uncertainty and discomfort. Thank you!
  • coffeedude_j
    Uncanny insights
    Muriel does an amazing job of keeping the focus on the growth of the individual leader rather than trying to solve their external challenge. I am always learning from both sides of the conversation!
  • Dan Taber
    Brilliant host, brilliant format
    I listen to a lot of great podcasts about leadership and managing - this is my favorite!! The format of the show is ingenious because, by listening to Muriel talk guests through their challenges, you learn about both the coaching practice itself and how to deal with common leadership challenges. As a senior manager, I can relate to struggles in almost every episode. It’s like I’m getting my own personal coach for free! Muriel is such a talented coach and teaches me something new every time.
  • Drippin runner
    Singing my life with her words!!
    When I listened to the episode on disillusionment with the executive team, “Killing me softly with his song” popped into my head because the episode was so apropos to my situation! So many of these episodes are- highly recommend!
  • Kim Heitz
    I’ve learned so much!
    A friend recommended Muriel’s podcast a year ago just as I began to lead a larger team and moved into a new and expanded role. Hearing Muriel coach other leaders through their challenges helped me so much during those early months. Each conversation was like reading an entire book on leadership and management. I’ve learned something relevant that I can implement with every episode.
  • I<3cookies123456789
    Encouraging and helpful!
    I am a relatively new manager, working in a sometimes challenging leadership environment. I learn something new every episode that helps me be a better leader in my workplace, whether it’s interpersonal skills, setting personal boundaries, clarifying my goals, or thinking about my future career steps. I’m so grateful for Muriel and the generosity of her guests to share their stories!
  • ElaineAGrant
    Just what I needed!
    I run a small company. Like most entrepreneurs, I run into new challenges almost daily. I wasn’t sure a podcast from HBR would be relevant for to me, given the small size of my business. But the situation posed by the leader in an educational institution struggling to understand how to prioritize a longterm goal is almost exactly what I’m struggling with. Muriel’s questions were incredibly insightful, and I found her candor both refreshingly direct and still compassionate. I’ve listened to a lot of business podcasts, and this is one of the best.
  • RobertoLuis2
    Not up to par for HBR
    I wanted to live this but it’s slow, the insights are pretty basic, and Muriel’s voice timbre is tough to listen to. I keep trying every episode but can’t finish them.
  • Dave Stachowiak
    Such a generous and helpful podcast
    Muriel brings a helpful, direct, and compassionate style to each conversation with a client. I’m grateful for her generosity in hosting this show and also to the leaders who share their struggles and stories. A wonderful resource for leaders who are seeking immediate, practical steps for what’s next in growing their skills.
  • Xxqchristyxx
    Not a great podcast
    I was intrigued initially with this podcast I think it has a lot of potential. I went back to the beginning episode one and extremely disappointed on episode two when they brought Raism into the picture for no apparent reason, although the issue seem to be a supervisor or boss as they put, it, had nothing to do with race, but they continue to bring it in, even after the person with the issue said the person basically is not racist has a great heart they continue to use the word racist although the coach is not a therapist she should at least recommended the person going to see a therapist, so they understand the difference between racism and just poor management. I can’t say I’m really super surprised considering the other Harvard business review podcast moved to left agenda only instead of staying neutral and trying to support people in general. They are trying to influence only..
  • BritxFashion1
    This is the best leadership podcast I’ve ever listened to
    Having the ability to listen to other leaders explain their issues is so incredibly relatable and really helps the coaching from Muriel hit home so much more. I’m bingeing every episode and can’t wait for more to come out!
  • Demi206
    A hidden gem
    Thank you Muriel Wilkins and the team to the podcast! I just love the format and content. You make executive coaching accessible. What a gift to the community. I learn so much from you and insights are precious! 🌷💕
  • C. Nadia
    My Favorite Podcast
    Ms. Muriel Wilkins is doing what she was born to do. She is incredibly gifted as a coach. She deftly leads leaders to answer their own burning questions through her savvy execution. As a mid-career manager, I have learned so much from Muriel in every episode; there are golden nuggets that I carry away every time I listen.
  • megs29722
    A must listen for anyone navigating the corporate world
    This podcast is a wealth of knowledge. Muriel has such a talent for identifying the real cause of the coaching clients roadblock. She helps the client break down the issue in a way that makes it both much more clear and seem like less of an insurmountable challenge. Her discussions are always positive and offer actionable, relevant advice for the listener as well. My only gripe is the length of the podcast and the frequency. I want more! I wish the episodes were 1 hour + and posted every week.
  • Health_ Coach
    This podcast is a gem!
    This podcast is a gem! every episode provides very interesting information about coaching and leadership.
  • Happy healthy fit me
    I LOVE this podcast
    As a leader and a coach, I love Muriel’s genuine, targeted and organic approach to coaching. I learn something from every episode.
  • Kikikisses
    A Must Listen for Leaders
    I started listening to Coaching Real Leaders with an open mind, but not expecting any real takeaways. I was pleasantly surprised and Muriel's ability to bring the listener in has made me a fan! The questions posed are very relevant to the human and leadership experience. I love that Muriel dives deep to diagnosis the real issue, not just talk about symptoms of an issue. She also makes relevant suggestions but does not take the leader all the way to the answer, they need to actively engage with coming up with their personal future state.
  • BrevityRules
    Real life examples of professional challenges
    I truly cherish this podcast and it’s my most shared pod. The real life examples are relatable and extremely helpful to think through scenarios. I appreciate Muriel’s willingness to share her expertise and experience. She’s very down to earth and offers a welcoming environment for the participants. Love it! For the podcast format, one piece of feedback: it has too many ads of the same sponsor. Since it’s one sponsor, perhaps it can be recreated with gusto and shared at the beginning of the pod. I find the constant ads distracting and find myself skipping through. Having said that, I’ve used the ICF to find my coach, so thank you. 🙏🏽
  • L Daley
    Insightful
    Love hearing Muriel do real coaching work on her podcast. I pick up a nugget or two from each episode and come away inspired and with new insights to work into my own practice.
  • @techandres
    Excellent Podcast to become a better leader
    Every coaching session on this podcast is like a personal coaching session on leadership for me. So many lessons on how to become a better leader but also how to be a a great coach. Muriel is an amazing leadership coach!
  • MBA wi
    Endless Insights!
    Muriel's expert coaching is an inspiration - every episode is a mini-masterclass in empathetic and effective leadership. I always learn something about myself, and about how to lead better at work - my team, my peer relationsips, and my relationships with more senior colleagues. Thank you, Muriel!
  • Trainer in training
    Gems of Wisdom
    Muriel asks the hard questions with grave and humor. Focusing on what each of her coaching clients can control, Muriel guides them on a voyage of self-discovery that often resonates with her listeners personal experiences
  • Strellita123356
    You will Learn Something Great
    Be ready to learn something great for your career. I admire how the host guides the leaders to find better ways of doing things and evolve in their careers. You feel engaged and that you can apply all those lessons too.
  • Rae Z in DC
    A great listen
    Muriel has such an excellent approach. She listens deeply with an experienced ear and helps the leaders reframe and get to actions. A great listen!
  • jumc
    Practical & Actionable Advice
    At the conclusion of every episode, I come away with a professional pearl that I can apply to my career path— both today and in the future. Thank you, Muriel!
  • JS_108
    Accelerated learning as a fly on the wall
    This podcast is the best coaching podcast, period. Muriel’s experience as an executive coach is available to anyone and everyone if you listen to the podcast. It is packed with so much of content that I listen, two or three times so that I don’t miss anything. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to be a fly on the wall to observe these conversations. Thanks Muriel and HBR for making this happen!
  • Lighthouse Advance
    The best coaching podcast out there.
    The best coaching podcast out there. Format is crisp and flows smoothly. Muriel is a masterful coach and in each episode she works with clients with different coaching needs. I look forward to each new episode. She makes me a better coach! No matter your level of experience and expertise do yourself a favor and subscribe to Coaching Real Leaders. You won’t be disappointed.
  • Kara Sand
    Always value packed episodes!
    Really enjoyed learning about your coaching approach with the leader who needed sponsorship support. Asking the question “Would you invest in yourself?”, using a metric for her point of comparison, and helping her have confidence in herself. All effective things to help her progress forward. Thanks again for another fantastic episode!
  • Cortezchicago
    Real issues that leaders face daily
    Coaching is so natural in this podcast. Addresses real issues that real leaders encounter regularly. Great podcast that actually caters to more than just executive level leaders.
  • Chess beats Facebook
    Amazing resource for coaches and leaders alike
    I’m generally pretty lazy with reviews but this one warrants the attention. It’s a great learning resource on so many different levels. First, it models what coaching should look like. As an aspiring coach, I can’t tell you how helpful it is to observe this. The scenarios are also very relatable and so you can take a lot of the insight that Muriel provides and apply it to your own situation. It is also a chance to get in touch with your humanity and remember that we are not invisible creatures of the business world.
  • StillTheSea
    Obsessed with this podcast
    This is what it feels like to be coached by one of the country’s best executive coaches. I’m completely hooked.
  • chi-town Pete
    So relevant and hitting home for me!
    Thank you for this podcast! So many topics discussed is almost as if I were being coached directly!!
  • @MichaelUnbroken
    A Must Listen✨✨
    I just wanted to take a moment and say thank you for creating such an impactful podcast! I believe that we all have a voice that deserves to be heard. Thank you for putting this into the world! BE UNBROKEN! @MichaelUnbroken
  • melanie rocks!
    Murreal Wilkins
    This podcast has me hooked. Why? Ms. Wilkins’ knowledge, her outline for all of Season One podcasts, and her interview skills are outstanding. Along with an almost perfect voice, it’s her ability to allow the leader to come up with excellent tools to solve real leadership scenarios. Ms. Wilkins is talented to say the least. I would highly recommend this podcast for her insight, creative strategies, effective communication skills, and her demeanor. Unique, talented, and brilliant! I am about to launch my second startup. I am hanging on every word. I have not been a leader of more then 5 employees in a 15 year business. Launching shortly with a goal of 35 employees. Thank you, Ms. Wilkins.
  • DrubyCo
    Something for everyone!
    First, let me say that I tend to get disinterested with podcasts almost instantly. However, I stumbled on this podcast and I can’t stop listening. I was looking for something relevant to me, as a Coaching and Career Development professional, but not under or overdone. This podcast hits that sweet spot. As a coach, it helps me exercise my skills by “playing along”. As a professional, it teaches me and shows me alternative ways to think about leadership and goal setting. As a listener, I am thoroughly entertained by the stories and situations being discussed and constantly thinking about the parallels in my personal and professional life. Muriel is incredibly talented, perfectly pragmatic and full of wisdom for any listener. So excited to have a podcast I actually like!
  • S Paloma
    Actionable insights on real career challenges
    This is the first time I’m reviewing a career podcast. Every time I listen to Muriel Wilkins’ Coaching Real Leaders, I take away actionable insights on how to handle situations that come up at work. Muriel is candid, kind, and asks terrific questions. Highly recommend this podcast!
  • bonseye
    Relate to and highly recommend
    Hearing real world scenarios makes people feel that they are not alone in challenges. It comes very timely personally. Best advice I would say in my career. Gives invaluable perspective and a framework to overcome challenges. Highly recommend!
  • Balanced Accounting
    Ridiculous
    I listened to one episode thus far as it was included in my “Dear HBR” feed. Let’s put aside the racist “anti-racist” ideology the guest is trying to install in her culture. But it is ridiculous for the host/coach to not push back with the crazy concept that maybe the guest’s staff is being childish and overly sensitive, not to mention bringing race issues into the workplace as a reason to gripe. This is a, I would presume, successful guy giving his money away, and you are going to impune racist acts on him because he was micromanaging or used an incorrect name? And the guest even said once she acknowledged one complaint it opened the door. There is a power structure in every organization and it has nothing to do with race. It’s one thing to mention to the boss that he made a mistake, but to allow your staff to dictate how the organization is run and how this philanthropist does his job is ignoring all concept of an organization and role power that any successful organization needs.
  • kcdrummer
    Best Resource on Coaching Leaders
    I do not like using the words best because there’s so many different ways things can be applied to determine something is best. However, I will say that this is the best resource to show how the coaching process actually works effectively that I have heard.I’m sure there’s other great resources out there as good or better however I’m going to utilize this in helping other people leaders learn how to coach at a higher level. This is clearly and example of a master coach who has develop the skills of her years and I wouldn’t expect people leaders to be able to coach on this level without a lot of practice, failure, and learning over several years however the basic framework of getting specifics when generalities are used, defining what the real goal is, and understanding what’s happening in the environment are done masterfully here as well as keeping the control of the conversation with the participant by asking really good questions versus doing all the talking as many coaches might do. Great resource, really appreciate the work here.
  • mattscross
    An Excellent Resource
    While leadership coaching continues to grow in popularity, many are still unsure of what it entails. This podcast provides a behind the scenes look into the coaching experience - and does so with grace and substance. Listen in as Muriel and her clients explore the challenges and solutions that real leaders face every day.
  • 124118
    Mini Master Classes in Leadership!
    In addition to showcasing her impressive coaching expertise, in each episode Muriel Wilkins provides great insights into resolving very timely leadership challenges. Her ability to guide her clients to practical solutions and educate her audience along the way quickly made this podcast series one of my favorites. I encourage you to listen, learn and become a better leader!
  • MomKimK
    Muriel is amazing!
    Muriel gives insightful actionable suggestions to her clients that can apply to anyone. Listening to the podcasts, I have learned new techniques for managing tough conversations, ways to push myself out of my comfort zone, and how to reframe a challenging situation. Muriel has a gift in her ability to listen, synthesize information and address the core issues head on. Yet she is always supportive and encouraging. The HBR articles that are attached are also great resources! This is an excellent podcast and addition to HBR. Kim Keating
  • Stranded Maggot
    meh
    Listened to the first few episodes. Predictable and not that informative.
  • Certified Exec Coach
    Fantastic learning opportunity for leaders BUT not for aspiring coaches
    This was a great example of a very common leader blind spot and how uncovering that can lead to a significant shift in perspective and options. Also very real scenario where something that runs psychologically deeper may be the speed bump. However, the coach was doing quite a bit of diagnosing and prescribing actions. That is great advice-giving not coaching. It gives the erroneous impression that one session will help people overcome life-long assumptions and patterns of behavior and give them a clear line of sight to their goal. That is not realistic and may in fact be dangerous for some clients.
  • VirtualJS
    Practical insights for real situations
    This podcast is so great and different than others because it’s not listening to an interview with someone about something theoretical or abstract – it’s being able to listen to a real-life leader share what he/she is going though and then getting the helpful coaching needed. The best part is coming out of each episode realizing that the issues I face as a leader each day are shared by so many others and that I am not alone. Muriel is terrific asking great questions, listening, and offering practical insights week after week to the benefit of all!
  • DorieClark
    A Fantastic Learning Opportunity for Personal Development
    Muriel creates an insightful and teaching atmosphere that gets right to the heart of coaching by leading people to find the solutions themselves. She is adept in her focus on the real problems at hand - not just what appears on the surface. Her strategies are actionable for every listener to apply towards success and improvement in both their careers and lives.
  • V Nolaily
    Loved it!
    As someone who has led organizations for the last 14 years I loved listening to this podcast! The scenarios are very relatable which allowed me to feel like I was getting coached along the way which I found invaluable. I’ve already made two shifts (ex a reflection period at the end of the week) as a result of listening. My time is limited so I was grateful to get so much out of this podcast. I’m already looking forward to the next one!
  • e.vars
    Not Coaching
    I was expecting to listen to CEOs getting coached. Instead, I listened to CEOs getting told how to fix their problems. That isn’t coaching. Coaching is about the client figuring out how to solve their own problems. This is done through a coach asking questions and then moving the client to take action steps that the client herself decided on to solving the problem. This podcast has a client talking about a problem, the coach asking for the context (which is actually a no-no in the professional coaching world), and then telling the client what she needs to do to fix the problem. Yuck. This just gives coaching a terrible name.
  • Ann Bundy
    Fabulous Learning from a Coaching Expert!
    I love Grace’s “organic” shifting in her understanding about her authority story and how that was impacting her ability to move forward connecting with the C-Suite in new and fresh ways. Muriel’s ability to “pause and parse” the conversation with insights and her powerful perspective made it all so very accessible and real, and I especially appreciated the summary of her three key take-aways at the end for maximum impact for both Grace and the audience.
  • sbheller
    Great coaching demo
    Great coaching session, Muriel. Really appreciated your modeling of great listening and helping the client discover new awareness about herself and her situation.
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