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The Executive Connect Podcast

The Executive Connect Podcast

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The Executive Connect Podcast Executive Connect is a leadership and business podcast for operators, builders, and executives focused on real-world execution, growth, and long-term value creation.

Hosted by Melissa Aarskaug, the show brings together founders, investors, and senior leaders to unpack what actually works across business strategy, wealth building, AI, and leadership. These are not theoretical conversations. Each episode is grounded in experience, hard-earned lessons, and practical insight from people actively building, scaling, and investing.

From navigating complex markets to leading teams, allocating capital, and adapting to technological change, Executive Connect explores how high-performing leaders think, operate, and make decisions in real environments.

If you are building a company, leading a team, or designing your next chapter, this podcast will challenge how you think and help you move with greater clarity and intention.Copyright Executive Connect
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Episodios
  • How to Manage Up, Build Influence, and Grow Your Career | Andrea Wasserman
    Mar 31 2026
    What if the key to career growth is not working harder, but learning how to manage up with influence and impact?

    In this episode of Executive Connect, host Melissa Aarskaug sits down with Andrea Wasserman, Fortune 500 executive, advisor, and founder of The Executive Express, to talk about how leaders can give feedback to their boss, build trust with senior stakeholders, and grow their executive presence. Andrea breaks down what managing up really means, why timing matters, and how rising leaders can become strategic thought partners instead of just task executors.

    This conversation is for professionals who want to build influence at work, communicate with more confidence, and move from mid-level management into executive leadership. Andrea also shares how to handle a blocking boss, improve emotional intelligence, and create more visibility without overstepping.

    What You Will Learn
    • How to manage up without looking like you are sucking up
    • Why timing matters when giving feedback to your boss
    • How to build influence with senior leaders
    • What separates strategic leaders from task doers
    • How to grow executive presence inside your company
    • What to do when your boss controls communication
    • The top career accelerators for rising leaders
    • How emotional intelligence helps leaders earn trust

    Chapters
    (0:32) Why giving feedback to your boss feels risky
    (2:55) What managing up really means
    (4:05) Why timing matters in upward feedback
    (6:13) How strategic thought partners think
    (7:49) Building influence without stepping on toes
    (9:42) What to do when your boss blocks access
    (13:50) Three career accelerators for rising leaders
    (17:04) Common blind spots that slow advancement
    (18:46) A real executive success story
    (22:14) Style flexing and executive presence
    (25:12) Emotional intelligence tools for leaders
    (27:28) Final advice on managing up
    (28:00) What Andrea would tell her younger self

    About Andrea Wasserman
    Andrea Wasserman is a Fortune 500 executive advisor and founder of The Executive Express. With more than 20 years of leadership experience across major brands and industries, she helps rising leaders strengthen executive presence, build influence, and grow their careers with more clarity and purpose.

    CONNECT with Andrea Wasserman
    Website: https://www.theexecutiveexpress.com/
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreawasserman/
    Instagram: @TheExecutiveExpress
    TikTok: @TheExecutiveExpress
    YouTube: The Executive Express

    CONNECT with Executive Connect
    Website: www.executiveconnectpodcast.com
    YouTube: Executive Connect YouTube Channel
    LinkedIn: Melissa Aarskaug
    Instagram: @executiveconnectpodcast
    TikTok: @executiveconnectpodcast
    Facebook: Executive Connect
    If you like the content please do share, subscribe and like the channel.
    Tune in to the complete episode on the channel under podcasts.
    For more visit - executiveconnectpodcast.com
    #executive #leadershipdevelopment #team #cxos #ceo
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    29 m
  • How To Communicate Clearly Under Pressure | Jen Mueller
    Mar 30 2026
    What if your communication style is costing you trust, clarity, and opportunities without you even realizing it?

    In this episode of Executive Connect, Melissa Aarskaug sits down with Emmy-winning sports broadcaster and communication coach Jen Mueller to break down what great communication actually looks like under pressure. Drawing from years on NFL and MLB sidelines, Jen explains why small talk is not fluff, how leaders accidentally create confusion and drama, and what it takes to communicate with more clarity, confidence, and connection.

    From high-stakes interviews to everyday workplace conversations, this episode shows how to make your message land faster, build stronger trust, and create better outcomes with the people around you.


    What You Will Learn
    • Why small talk is a real leadership skill
    • How to turn casual conversation into trust and connection
    • Why vague communication creates confusion and stress
    • How to set expectations clearly before high-pressure moments
    • The ETA method for stronger conversations
    • Why context matters more than most leaders realize
    • How to communicate better with introverts on your team
    • How short interactions can create long-term opportunities


    Chapters

    (0:20) Why communication is a leadership edge
    (1:18) Jen’s path from sports to coaching
    (3:07) Why small talk actually matters
    (5:49) Lessons from high-pressure interviews
    (10:46) How to build a better communication culture
    (13:16) Why messages get lost at work
    (18:39) How to keep people engaged
    (23:57) How to help introverts speak up
    (26:56) Why preparation improves communication
    (28:52) Final thoughts on stacking small wins
    (30:49) Where to connect with Jen


    Guest Bio

    Jen Mueller is an Emmy-winning sports broadcaster, communication coach, and founder of Talk Sporty to Me. With more than 25 years of experience interviewing athletes, coaches, and leaders in high-pressure environments, she helps professionals communicate with more clarity, confidence, and impact. Known for her work on NFL and MLB sidelines, Jen now brings those same communication strategies to business leaders who want better conversations, stronger relationships, and more trust in every room they walk into.


    Connect with Jen Mueller

    Website: https://www.talksportytome.com/
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenmuellertalksporty/
    YouTube: Talk Sporty to Me
    YouTube: I Cook, You Measure

    Connect with Executive Connect

    Website: www.executiveconnectpodcast.com
    YouTube: Executive Connect YouTube Channel
    LinkedIn: Melissa Aarskaug
    Instagram: @executiveconnectpodcast
    TikTok: @executiveconnectpodcast
    Facebook: Executive Connect
    Más Menos
    31 m
  • The Emotional Patterns Keeping Leaders Stuck | Zaina Orbai
    Mar 26 2026
    What if the next level of leadership is not about doing more, but understanding what has been driving you all along?

    In this episode of Executive Connect, host Melissa Aarskaug sits down with Zaina Orbai, executive coach and former senior leader who helped take both Yelp and The RealReal public, to talk about the emotional programming that quietly shapes leadership, ambition, perfectionism, and reinvention. Zaina shares what happens when high-achieving women hit an inflection point, why old patterns stop working, and how internal beliefs around worth, control, and success can quietly hold leaders back.
    This conversation is for anyone who looks successful on the outside but feels stretched, stuck, or disconnected on the inside. Zaina offers a grounded look at how leaders can build more self-awareness, create better internal alignment, and redefine success in a way that is actually sustainable.


    What You Will Learn
    • What emotional programming means in leadership
    • Why high achievers can still feel deeply stuck
    • How perfectionism quietly limits growth
    • What IPO pressure teaches about identity and success
    • Why slowing down can strengthen performance
    • How emotional intelligence shapes stronger organizations
    • The daily shifts that help leaders create internal alignment

    Chapters

    (0:00) The hidden chaos behind success
    (1:22) What happens at leadership inflection points
    (4:24) The cost of internal misalignment
    (5:28) Why perfectionism is hard to define
    (6:24) What emotional programming really means
    (9:05) Lessons from taking companies public
    (12:14) What surprised her most about IPOs
    (13:31) What she would tell her younger self
    (14:15) How success can distort identity
    (16:44) Energy leadership and thought patterns
    (20:19) How to handle stressed-out leaders
    (22:11) Shifting energy in hard conversations
    (23:53) Reprogramming the inner CEO
    (26:33) Why leaders fear slowing down
    (28:31) Daily shifts that create internal change
    (33:02) Why emotional intelligence matters more now
    (37:04) Rapid-fire leadership truths
    (39:42) Final advice for women in reinvention


    Guest Bio

    Zaina Orbai is an executive coach and former senior leader with more than 20 years of experience in high-growth companies. She helped guide both Yelp and The RealReal through the IPO process and now works with accomplished women who are navigating reinvention, leadership growth, and deeper internal alignment. Her work focuses on emotional awareness, identity, and helping leaders move beyond old patterns that no longer serve them.


    Connect with Zaina Orbai

    Website: https://zainaorbai.com/
    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zainaorbai/


    Connect with Executive Connect

    Website: www.executiveconnectpodcast.com
    YouTube: Executive Connect YouTube Channel
    LinkedIn: Melissa Aarskaug
    Instagram: @executiveconnectpodcast
    TikTok: @executiveconnectpodcast
    Facebook: Executive Connect
    Más Menos
    41 m
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