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Ever hire talented people, set up strong systems, and still feel like something in your team just isn’t clicking? We bring you into the messy middle of team building, the part no one warns you about. The part where miscommunication, awkward conversations, and unmet expectations creep in… even when you’re “doing everything right.” We share a real story from behind the scenes, one that every business owner will instantly relate to.

We break down why soft skills (not software) are the foundation of every successful team. We why communication gaps turn into frustration, why assumptions derail projects, and how simple shifts in clarity, boundaries, and emotional intelligence can transform your entire work environment. Whether you’re a team of one or leading a full department, this conversation will help you understand the human side of business and how it impacts performance, culture, and long-term growth.

What to Listen for in This Episode

Why your systems aren’t the problem; your soft skills are: Discover the real reason talented teams experience tension, missed expectations, and burnout even with strong SOPs, tools, and workflows.

Three shifts that immediately improve communication: Learn how clarity, psychological safety, and active listening can dramatically change how your team interacts and performs.

How soft skills shape culture, trust, and leadership: Hear how one business owner transformed her team by adding soft skills into her culture and why your leadership sets the tone for everything.

Reflection: Where is a lack of soft skills creating friction in your business or with your clients and what skill do you need to strengthen to lead with more ease?

Support the show

Whether you’re looking to grow your visibility through Pinterest Marketing or streamline your Podcast Operations and Team Management, we help business owners and creatives build sustainable systems that work for them, not against them.

Want to learn more about how this can work for you and your business, reach out to us!

Connect with Entrepreneur Encounter:

Newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/3azyca95

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/entrepreneur_encounter/

Host Sara Lowell:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/youarerembert/

Website: https://www.youarerembertllc.com/

Host Dana Johnson:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danas.desk.nc/

Website: https://ddvirtualmanagement.com/

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Have you ever had one of those days where something small sets the tone, your tech isn’t cooperating, you're behind schedule, and suddenly a simple question from someone feels heavier than it should? That’s exactly how we kicked off this episode. But instead of brushing it off, we leaned into the moment. Because if we’re honest, those little flashes of irritation or overwhelm often reveal something deeper: sometimes we are the ones creating the friction in our own business without realizing it.

We unpack how self-awareness quietly shapes the way we lead, communicate, and run our day-to-day operations. We talk about those unexpected emotional reactions—tightening up when a client emails, feeling bothered by a teammate’s question, or reading tone into a message that wasn’t there.

Together, we explore why these patterns show up, how they impact our relationships and results, and why developing self-awareness doesn’t require a personality overhaul, just small, intentional shifts. By understanding how we operate internally, we get to build businesses that feel lighter, smoother, and more aligned with who we want to be as leaders.

What to Listen for in This Episode

Self-awareness as a foundational leadership skill: How understanding our own patterns, energy levels, and triggers helps us lead with more clarity and confidence.

The ripple effects of our reactions: Why tone, tension, and miscommunication happen, and how they affect our clients, teams, and business growth more than we realize.

Simple shifts to become more grounded leaders: Practical ways we can pause, reflect, ask for feedback, and create open communication that strengthens trust and relationships.

A question for to reflect on:

Where is a lack of self-awareness creating friction in your business right now and what reaction do we keep having that we haven’t taken the time to explore?

Let’s sit with that one together. Our next level of leadership might start right there.

Support the show

Whether you’re looking to grow your visibility through Pinterest Marketing or streamline your Podcast Operations and Team Management, we help business owners and creatives build sustainable systems that work for them, not against them.

Want to learn more about how this can work for you and your business, reach out to us!

Connect with Entrepreneur Encounter:

Newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/3azyca95

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/entrepreneur_encounter/

Host Sara Lowell:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/youarerembert/

Website: https://www.youarerembertllc.com/

Host Dana Johnson:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danas.desk.nc/

Website: https://ddvirtualmanagement.com/

Send us a text

There’s a moment every entrepreneur knows too well, the instant when you realize the chaos you’re experiencing could have been avoided with one simple thing: clarity. We’ve lived it ourselves. Like the time one of us confidently marched toward a Friday deadline… only to find out the client thought everything was due on Monday. Cue the panic, the late-night scramble, and the unnecessary stress that stole time we’ll never get back. And the truth is, that moment didn’t happen because we didn’t work hard—it happened because we didn’t confirm what was said. That single disconnect changed everything, and it’s exactly why we wanted to have this conversation today.

In this episode, we dive deep into confirmation as a skill, one that touches every corner of our personal and professional lives. Together, we unpack how easy it is for “yes ma’am” moments, assumptions, and mismatched expectations to slip into our work and relationships and cost us time, money, and sanity.

We explore active listening, communication methods, boundaries with clients, systems that prevent miscommunication, and even how confirmation helps us build trust with ourselves as entrepreneurs. From parenting to project management to navigating big goals, we talk honestly about the moments we’ve gotten it right… and the many times we absolutely didn’t.

This episode is packed with stories, practical tools, and reminders that overcommunication isn’t micromanaging, it’s leadership. It’s clarity. And it’s what keeps us from having to clean up messes that never needed to happen.

What to Listen for in This Episode

1. Why active listening is the foundation of confirmation: We break down what it really means to listen (not just wait for your turn to talk) and how restating or clarifying what you heard instantly strengthens trust and prevents misunderstandings before they snowball.

2. Matching the message to the method: We talk about choosing the right communication channel for the situation, when something needs an email instead of a DM, why project management tools matter, and how written follow-up can save hours of cleanup later.

3. How confirmation builds trust with clients, teams, and ourselves: This episode goes deeper than communication strategy. We explore how confirming expectations helps us stay accountable to our goals, create more honest systems for ourselves, and avoid the overwhelm that happens when we rely on assumptions instead of clarity.

If you’ve ever had a client or team misinterpret instructions, found yourself repeating tasks, or felt overwhelmed because things weren’t cle

Support the show

Whether you’re looking to grow your visibility through Pinterest Marketing or streamline your Podcast Operations and Team Management, we help business owners and creatives build sustainable systems that work for them, not against them.

Want to learn more about how this can work for you and your business, reach out to us!

Connect with Entrepreneur Encounter:

Newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/3azyca95

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/entrepreneur_encounter/

Host Sara Lowell:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/youarerembert/

Website: https://www.youarerembertllc.com/

Host Dana Johnson:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danas.desk.nc/

Website: https://ddvirtualmanagement.com/