http://www.sherylkline.com/blog

In honor of International Women’s Day 2026, I’m sharing a series of research backed and proven processes that truly moves the needle for women in leadership and the organizations that rely on them.

In the coming weeks, we’ll focus on promotion velocity, retention protection, deepening the leadership bench, and avoiding lost productivity and lost revenue during disruptive times.

Given these proven tools, repeatable processes, and pressure proofed frameworks, companies can gain measurable progress, especially when the stakes are high. Today’s focus is on two underestimated levers with outsized impact:

• emotional resilience
• strategic sponsorship

As a two-time best selling author, speaker, and certified high performance executive coach, I help women leaders and rising leaders build Olympic level confidence and FBI grade strategic influence that will help them successfully deepen and manage key relationships (internally and externally) as well remain highly performing during disruptive or during times of change.First, let’s talk about the many times, invisible roadblocks.

Emotional tax is alive and well. The research tells us that it gets more expensive at higher levels AND for women who are further marginalized within our gender.

That matters because as stakes rise, the cost of carrying too much without the right tools and strategic sponsorship rises too. If organizations want to retain executive and high potential women, accelerate promotion velocity, and deepen their leadership bench, emotional resilience cannot be left to chance.

Neither can strategic sponsorships.

What if female leaders have both?

Three things.

1. Productivity holds under pressure ... and profitability improves
   During disruption, leaders who can anchor down and keep moving protect performance. When women leaders have the tools to stay grounded, organizations avoid costly drops in execution, momentum, and outcomes. This is not just leadership development. It’s profitable.
2. Leaders stop getting pulled into ego driven dynamics
   Ego and narcissistic behaviors exist in many workplaces, internally and externally. Without tools, these dynamics drain bandwidth, derail confidence, and create unnecessary conflict. With the right tools and partnerships, women learn to distance themselves from those behaviors, maneuver around them, and in some cases, get those personalities on their side to support outcomes. That is emotionally protective and tactically smart.
3. Trust and loyalty deepen ... and relationships weather the storm
   AI matters. And if we hit disruption, what carries organizations through is not technology alone. It’s trust, loyalty, and relationships. Leaders who deepen trust and build stronger relationships create stability during instability. That is how companies stay productive and profitable when things get noisy.

What can organizations give?

First, give proven strategies to sharpen Clarity from the third person.

If you’ve been in my community for a bit, you’ve heard me say....

Read more at: https://www.sherylkline.com/blog/promotion-velocity-and-retention-protection-via-emotional-resilience-and-strategic-partnerships

If you would like to learn more about the Fearless Female Leadership enterprise digital framework, please click below. I’m glad to share more. And if I can support you or your organization through speaking, coaching, or peer advisory mastermind work, I’d love to partner to help you help the leaders in your organization. Let's chat!

http://www.sherylkline.com/blog

One of the questions I’m asked frequently, whether I’m leading a mastermind cohort, working one on one with clients, or speaking from a stage, is this:

“What is the successful sequence of making a ‘big ask’ and receiving buy-in?”

And this applies internally ... asking for new scope, a title, compensation, or resources.

It also applies externally ... asking a client to commit, expand, renew, or say yes to a bigger engagement.

Most people think the ask is the moment that matters most.

It’s not.

The ‘ask’ is the fourth step.

If you want buy-in, you need the right sequence ... because the sequence is what makes the ask feel like a solution, not a request for the other to give something up.

So, the next time you commit to making a big ask, consider the following:

Step 1: Build a Trust and Safety Runway

Before you ask for anything, it’s important to build a trust and safety runway.

Not trust that you can get something done or competence trust.

Explicit communication that demonstrates rust that you understand and care about the other person’s perspective/condition.

Trust that you are paying attention to what they’re carrying. This creates safety for them to lean into what you’re asking.

This is a need, not a bonus. In our hierarchy of needs, we need to feel safe and cared for. And this step is often overlooked.

So what does it look like?

It sounds like an explicit concern. Keep in mind, to sound like you care it’s imperative that you do!

• “It sounds like this quarter is carrying a lot of weight for you.”
• “It sounds like you’re being asked to hold a lot of priorities at once.”
• “It seems like this issue is incredibly important.”

And here’s the beautiful part:

It is okay if you are slightly off.

If you say, “It sounds like XYZ is the main concern,” and you’re not perfectly right, people will correct you ... and most people actually love to correct you.

That correction creates clarity. And clarity creates connection.

Step 2: Name Their Loss Pain ... and Truly Care About It

Next is loss pain.

Loss pain is a huge driver of motivation, even more so than potential benefits. Before making an ask, it’s important to understand what the other person is trying to avoid losing.

It’s not enough to state someone’s loss pain though.

Again, it’s vital to genuinely care about it ... and you have to communicate that care.

How?

Slow your speaking down a little. Lean in a little. Be present.

If you’re talking about lost revenue, lost traction, lost progress, or losing momentum in the quarter ... do not rush past it. Do not deliver it like a bullet point.

Let it land with weight.

Because how you deliver it is part of how you build trust.

And if you do this well, the other person will feel something important:

“This person understands AND cares what I’m carrying.”

Step 3: Let It Sit ... Then End on a Crescendo

This is where timing becomes everything.

When you take someone low emotionally, it’s memorable which is good! However, the “last impression is the lasting impression” as a mentor of mine says, so we don’t want to end a conversation there. It is okay if there’s a pause.

To read further and gain more in-depth perspective viewing my video, visit my blog at: https://www.sherylkline.com/blog/the-sequence-of-a-big-ask

I’m cheering you on always. If I can support you, your team, or your organization in any way, please reach out to me directly.

- Sheryl

http://www.sherylkline.com/blog

A business mentor of mine used to always say, “New level, new devil.”

And it’s true.

Whether you are a rising leader or a seasoned executive, there is always going to be a bigger room, a higher stakes conversation, or a moment that rocks your confidence ... even if you consider yourself to have unshakable confidence.

And if you’re thinking, “I’m not really that confident ... I’m working on it,” this is for you too.

Because high stakes moments do not just test what you know. They test how you manage your internal state while you’re communicating which in turn impacts (greatly) how you’re perceived.

Here are a couple strategies that will help you not choke when the conversation really matters.

Strategy 1: Stop Fighting Your Emotions ... They Will Always Win

The fastest way to spiral in a high stakes moment is to try to minimize your emotions.

If you try to shove them away, ignore them, or talk yourself out of them, they usually get louder and therefore more distracting.

Instead, acknowledge and validate the emotion ... without letting it drive the steering wheel.

Here’s one simple shift that is incredibly powerful:

Save “I am” statements for the positive.

A lot of people approach high stakes conversations saying things like:

• “I am nervous.”
• “I am scared.”
• “I am worried.”
• “I am concerned.”

Those “I am” statements are labels which, if said enough times, impact your belief system AND your actions. Let’s practice something different, what world-class performers and Olympians use to uplevel performance when under pressure.

Use “I notice” for the negative.

• “I notice I feel nervous going into the meeting with my CEO/manager.”
• “I notice I’m worried about presenting to the board.”
• “I notice my body is tense.”
• “I notice my mind is racing.”

This creates distance. It turns you into the observer instead of the judge.

You are now on the bank of the stream looking at the rushing water rather than jumping into the middle of it and then trying to figure out how to get across. You have NOT self labeled and have time decide what’s in your control that is most important to focus on.

Acknowledgement defuses an emotion while denial adds oxygen to the fire.

Strategy 2: Take Control of the Controllables

One of the biggest drivers of anxiety and worry is uncertainty ... and specifically, uncertainty about what you cannot control such as:

• How will this be received?
• What will they think?
• How will it land?
• Will I gain buy-in?

What you do control is what you do ... and how you choose to think.

So the second strategy is to take control of the controllables.

And there are two layers to this.

Layer 1: Control What You Can About the Other Person

If you are having a conversation with one or two people, one of the smartest things you can do is be mindful of their communication and negotiation style.

Ask yourself:

• Are they direct and curt?
• Are they analytical?
• Are they people driven and relationship driven?
• Do they want bullet points and bottom line first ... or do they want context?

This matters because a lot of leaders lose influence in high stakes moments by communicating in a style that is mismatched to the person in front of them.

Get more in-depth perspective at https://www.sherylkline.com/blog/how-to-stay-grounded-when-the-stakes-are-high

I’m cheering you on always. If I can help in any way, please do not hesitate to reach out.
- Sheryl