Redefining Leadership Through Authenticity, Imperfection, and Truth.

Welcome back to The Unworthy Leader Podcast! In this episode, host Kendra Dahlstrom sits down with Kristine Genovese—former corporate turnaround strategist turned healer, and creator of the Soul Intelligence® Method.


Kristine rose through the high-stakes world of corporate America, guiding Fortune 500 companies through crisis and change. But beneath her leadership roles was an overachiever driven by unhealed trauma and self-doubt. After health and career setbacks forced her to pause, she embraced a more authentic path. Today, her Soul Intelligence® work blends strategy with energy, helping leaders release subconscious blocks and lead with presence, accountability, and heart.


This conversation is raw, practical, and deeply human. Kendra and Kristine shine a light on the mistakes in leadership that so often go unspoken—like powering through stress, confusing vulnerability with weakness, or ignoring the quiet wisdom of our bodies. Together, they explore how subconscious beliefs can sabotage even the most accomplished leaders, and how reconnecting with intuition can transform not only your career but also your health and relationships.


💡 Key Topics & Takeaways


✨ When Overachievement Hides Old Wounds
Kristine shares how growing up with an alcoholic parent wired her for “never enough,” fueling both her corporate success and her eventual breakdown.


✨ The High Performer’s Trap
Why cross-functional teams and even the most ethical leadership models falter when leaders are running on autopilot and self-doubt.


✨ Leadership Accountability Through Vulnerability
Kristine explains how embracing imperfection and asking for help strengthens—not weakens—our leadership, even with unpopular teams.


✨ Soul Intelligence® in Action
How her unique coaching style helps high performers identify root causes of imposter thoughts without needing to relive trauma.


✨ From Corporate Crisis to Human Connection
Why celebrating entrepreneurs and leaders as humans first is the foundation of authentic, sustainable leadership.


🎧 Tune In & Take Action


If you’ve ever wrestled with imposter syndrome, pushed through burnout, or wondered why success doesn’t feel like “enough,” this episode will remind you that leadership isn’t about performance—it’s about presence.


👉 Listen now on your favorite platform, subscribe to The Unworthy Leader Podcast, and leave a review so more leaders can join us in redefining what it means to lead with honesty, courage, and humanity.


Connect with Kristine: Website (https://soulintelligencemethod.com/) | Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/kristinemgenovese/) | Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/gcimpactgroup/)


🧠 Curious what’s driving your leadership—inner wisdom or imposter thoughts?
Take our free self-assessment to uncover whether you're leading from grounded emotional intelligence or quiet self-doubt.
👉 Take the quiz now (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdWyYFA22AzGc0ruur4zn9BeWmUgxqk0d8fZ-GIhlMLAPh_tA/viewform)


Note: This quiz is for self-reflection and informational purposes only. It is not a diagnostic tool or substitute for professional mental health care.


2025 Copyright of The Unworthy Leader Podcast and Kendra Dahlstrom Leadership, LLC

https://youtu.be/Cbrqqy6e3mA?si=GPR3OgCMOh66xRnD

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Professional speaking requires adaptability.
I am in ❤️ with @[153139406273]'s analogy on this one!

As the founder and CEO of The Speaker Lab, Grant unpacks a lot of wisdom and truths about the speaking industry in the latest episode of The Unworthy Leader Podcast (listen on Spotify or your preferred platform).

#podcast #leadership #speaking #thespeakerlab

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You can get paid for speaking gigs fast, but you need to know this! What you need to know about speaking that no one tells you!
Keynote speaking, public speaking - it doesn't matter.
Listen to learn what Grant Baldwin of #TheSpeakerLab says about building a thriving speaking career.

#podcast #keynotespeaking #speaking #professionalspeakers #publicspeaking #entrepreneurship #leadership

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I don’t believe success is measured by your work, your wealth, or your awards. 🏆

I know that goes against everything we’ve been taught—especially in corporate cultures where titles, metrics, and external validation often define our worth.
But hear me out. 🔊

I’ve coached leaders at the top of their game—on paper. And behind closed doors? Many are burned out, disconnected, and quietly asking, “Is this it?”

Success, to me, is feeling aligned with your values.

☑️ It’s having the courage to show up as your whole self.
☑️ It’s knowing peace when no one’s watching.
☑️ It’s being proud of how you lead, not just what you produce.

Because the truth is, performance without presence is a trap.
Let’s start measuring success by wholeness—not hustle.

#TheUnworthyLeaderPodcast #RedefiningSuccess #AuthenticLeadership #InnerWork #LeadershipMindset #SelfWorth #EQLeadership

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From Wound to Wonder (A Sonnet on Pain to Purpose)

The wound once raw, a silent, aching cry,
Now whispers truths I never dared to know.

In darkest nights where hope would barely try,
A seed was sown—through grief, it learned to grow.

What once was shame now steadies others' fall,
A bridge built from the weight I used to bear.

Where pain had sealed me in a shadowed hall,
I’ve lit a lamp to guide them through despair.

This scar is not a flaw—it is a door,
A compass drawn in blood and grit and grace.

Through hurt, I found what I was searching for:
A way to meet the world with soft, strong face.

So now I rise, not in spite of the pain—
But grateful that my purpose has a name.

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When the imposter voice gets loud—telling me I’m not ready, not good enough, not that kind of leader—I’ve learned to pause."

#TheUnworthyLeaderPodcast #ImposterThoughts #SelfDoubtIsData #EQLeadership #InnerCritic #AuthenticLeadership #ExecutiveCoaching #SelfCompassion

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Is imposter "syndrome" more prevalent, or are we just being more honest about it?

The Unworthy Leader Podcast with Kendra Dahlstrom and Johnny Anderson of The Impodsters Podcast discuss imposter phenomenon, their experiences, and how to overcome it by reframing your thoughts and decision making processes. #podcast #leadership #impostersyndrome #selfconfidence

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🌿 The Power of Spaciousness 🌿

What happens when we stop trying to prove ourselves and start giving our thoughts space to breathe?

In this clip from The Unworthy Leader Podcast, we talk about something leaders rarely get—room. Room to not know. Room to pause. Room to stop performing and start listening to what’s actually happening inside.

🌀 Spaciousness isn’t laziness. It’s leadership.
🌀 It’s the space between stimulus and response—where integrity, clarity, and grounded decision-making live.
🌀 It’s where your truth has time to surface, beyond the noise of urgency and ego.

If you’ve ever found yourself chasing worth through busyness, or confusing pressure with purpose, this one's for you.

👉 What would happen if you gave yourself just a little more space?

🎧 Tune in to the full episode at on your favorite podcast platform.

#TheUnworthyLeader #SpaciousnessIsPower #ImposterSyndrome #AuthenticLeadership #SelfWorth #ExecutivePresence #PodcastClip #LeadershipDevelopment

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🏃 Body movement is good for healing.

I didn't realize how much tension in my body I had, until I started practicing yoga. There was so much suppressed emotion from decades of "life."

I had all the excuses, and sometimes they were valid.

☑️ Inappropriate context to process the feelings
☑️ Too busy at work and with other things in life
☑️ Not enough energy to "deal" with it

The problem was that I never did make the time to deal with it. And, by the time I did in my mid-thirties my nervous system was a wreck, leaky gut had set in, auto-immune was flaring up, and it was a snowball of mess. 💣

As, I allowed for this discomfort to occur I realized that I was able to release the long-suffering and transform it into creating the life I want.

You see, I was able to take all that energy it was taking me to subconsciously suppress all the bad feelings and triggers, into something I actually want in my life.

💬 DM me "FREEDOM 🚀" if you want me to send you my personal step-by-step process to unlock suppressed emotions so you can be your most authentic and powerful self!

With love,
Kendra

#theunworthyleaderpodcast #theimposterfiles #podcast #leadership #healing

You can listen to the podcast here on YouTube or at: https://open.spotify.com/show/4yXxXkHjoY35KaSKykVSsW?si=XKJGLsFRRmGrwJNwu-11JA

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Why Your Body is Smarter Than Your Brain 🧠

We’ve been conditioned to prioritize logic, intellect, and mental toughness—especially in leadership.
But here’s the truth: your body often knows the truth before your brain catches up.

It’s not weakness—it’s wisdom.
And when we ignore it, we miss the data our nervous system is trying to give us.

🧠 Society rewards thinking.
💥 But leadership—real leadership—requires feeling.
It requires presence.

Here’s my theory on why we ignore the body:
Because of 6 key learnings we absorbed:
📌 Be strong.
📌 Don’t cry.
📌 Achieve more.
📌 Don’t be too sensitive.
📌 Keep going no matter what.
📌 Emotions aren’t professional.

And because of 2 hidden liabilities:
Feeling is inefficient.
Vulnerability is unsafe.

These beliefs train us to distrust our body and worship our brain—even when the brain is running scripts rooted in fear, trauma, or someone else’s expectations.

💡 So what do you do about it?
Here’s what I teach leaders to do in 4 steps:
✅ Pause – Interrupt the auto-pilot hustle.
✅ Scan – Ask: “What’s my body trying to tell me right now?”
✅ Trust – Don’t dismiss discomfort. Get curious.
✅ Respond – Make a choice that honors both your logic and your intuition.

And your body? It’s your most honest data source.

💬 Comment below: When was the last time your body told the truth before your brain did?
🔗 Listen to this full breakdown on the latest episode of The Unworthy Leader Podcast
🎧 Available on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4yXxXkHjoY35KaSKykVSsW?si=XKJGLsFRRmGrwJNwu-11JA


#TheUnworthyLeader #SelfTrust #ImposterSyndrome #SomaticLeadership #PresentLeadership #EQ #BurnoutRecovery #AuthenticLeadership #TraumaInformed #LeadershipRevolution #BodyWisdom

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I had no idea how much shame I was carrying and how much it was holding me back until two life events occurred.

☑️ I started relationship recovery therapy to address unresolved inner child issues from childhood and young adult trauma and abuse. This uncovered layers upon layers of deep shame and blame of myself for past experiences.

☑️ I nearly died last Summer as a result of strep bacterial pneumonia and septic shock. Nothing gets you to face your truth - good, bad, and ugly - like a life review as part of a near death experience.

Both showed me that I had death inside of me. 🙈

Parts of myself that I was letting die, voluntarily or not, because I was being who everyone else expected me to be. This is a coping strategy that started as a child to blend in and not cause any more chaos.

By denying my own self, I was denying:

My feelings
My needs
My boundaries
My dreams
My voice
My truth

The list goes on.

What I learned is that when we deny ourselves of these things, we lose part of ourself. It, essentially, dies.

❓ What parts of yourself are you letting die?

✍️ It's time to speak up, take action, and follow the calling God has put on your heart.

You don't want to end up in a hospital bed pleading with God to live another day to do the "thing" you think about doing every day of your life.

Thank you to Rod Francis for having this very real conversation about how to work with clients when shame is present, so they can focus on what is beneath the performance vs. the surface (the easy stuff!). #podcast #leadership #shame #interactualizer #rodfranciscoaching #theunworthyleaderpodcast #theimposterfiles #healing

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When I first started coaching I was failing at this one thing.

The crazy part is that I didn't even know it.

A mentor of mine, Steve Chandler, and his former client and globally recognized coach, Rich Litvin, called it out in their book The Prosperous Coach.

And even after reading it, I didn't know I was missing it.

That's because it was the part of the iceberg that is beneath the surface of the water.

It was in the "I don't know what I don't know" category.

In this video I share the tip Steve and Rich gave in their book that continues to expand me as a person and my practice.

What lessons have you learned in your career and life that were "beneath the surface?"

Would love to hear yours!

#learning #failure #leadership #podcast #theunworthyleaderpodcast #theimposterfiles #leadershipmistakes #leadingtheway #healing #stevechandler #richlitvin #theprosperouscoach

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You have great ideas! 🧠

😖 But, if you are honest, do you ever feel like you just want to stop "thinking" so hard...and so much?

Recently on @[urn:li:organization:18155871] I sat down with Rod Francis of @[urn:li:organization:70094113], a former high-performance athlete and GQ model turned embodiment coach for elite executives, and we discussed some of the root causes of our "overthinking."

What are your theories? ✍️

🎧 Tune into the entire episode on Spotify [link in bio and episode link in comments].

#podcast #leadership #overthinking #embodiment #bodywisdom #selfimprovement #selfhelp #theunworthyleaderpodcast #theimposterfiles #rodfranciscoaching #interactualizer #overthinking #bodywisdom

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📣 Shout out to Diary of a CEO and Steven Bartlett for being real about imposter thoughts.

We all have them and they are a normal part our human and leadership journey!

This is the whole premise behind my new podcast, so the timing couldn't be better!

♥️ Love Steven's vulnerability, humanity, and ability to serve the greater good by sharing. 🙏
#podcast #leadership #impostersyndrome #stevenbartlett #ceos #diaryofaceo #overcomingselfdoubt #leadanyway

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