Leadership Flows in ALL Directions

Nailah Blades Wylie is the guest on this week's episode and we reminisce about our experience in Dr. Adrian Popa's class "Leadership and Hardiness" when we were at graduate school at Gonzaga University. Nailah expands upon the lessons we learned from that class with great insight and examples to illustrate how important it is to create a safe space where people can be their authentic selves. She runs an incredible organization to help women of color rediscover their joy through activities in the outdoors in a way that she describes as "coming home to ourselves" that highlights the need for each of us to create a space to understand our own authentic selves as we work to help others bring their full selves to our organizations. We had a great example from Dr. Popa who showed us what an impact you can have on people when you create a safe space that challenges them in a way they never thought possible. This invites curiosity and experimentation and although sometimes you might fail at an initial goal, the outcome will be far more profound and it shows people that they can do hard things and are more resilient than they realize. 

Nailah Blades Wylie is a Life & Leadership coach who helps leaders tap into their power to build personal and professional lives that are whole, good, and full of possibility. Through high touch coaching that integrates the outdoors, Nailah teaches her clients how to go from feeling invisible to imitable in every area of their lives. She also consults with brands and organizations on how to create inclusive organizational cultures that allow all individuals to shine authentically at work and facilitates professional development programs for Black, Indigenous, and people of color employees.

Nailah began her career in the Consumer Packaged Goods industry, which gave her invaluable experience in marketing and strategic planning. She then went on to start and run a digital marketing agency that focused on creating impactful, inclusive content for lifestyle brands. She earned her Master’s in Communication and Leadership Studies from Gonzaga University and holds a Bachelor’s in Communication from the University of Southern California.

Her work centers on the belief that when we stand in the truth of our authentic selves, we can live and lead in a way that creates real change in our world. When she's not coaching or speaking you can find her hiking with her husband or playing intense games of hide-n-go seek with her two tiny kids.

Resources:

Nailah Blades Wylie - Color Outside: https://coloroutside.org

Nailah Blades - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nailahblades/

Gonzaga University - Leadership and Hardiness: https://www.gonzaga.edu/online-graduate-programs/online-programs/m-a-organizational-leadership/domestic-immersions/leadership-and-hardiness