Episode #23
How leaders lose trust without noticing: Leadership, Bias & the Cost of Hearsay
Send us Fan Mail It takes years to build a high trust team and one hallway conversation to break it. In this episode of Naked at the Top, a leadership coach and L&D Manager at a University in New Zealand shares the moment he believed hearsay from someone senior over his own team member, and what it cost them both. We also go back to a 2am arrival at Christchurch Airport, where two and a half hours in an immigration room taught him what it feels like to be "just a number in a system, not an actual human" and how that moment shaped the way he gives people his full attention today. You'll learn: Why "I don't know" is the biggest lie coaching clients tell, and the two questions that unlock the answer How hearsay from someone senior can undo a high trust team, and the warning sign it's already happening What admitting a mistake does for a leader, and what dodging one costs you The spotlight effect: why nobody is watching you as closely as you think How to tell when giving to everyone else has started taking from you By the end, you will have a sharper read on where your own bias hides, and a reason to go and ask before you decide. Chapters 00:16 New clothes: the last time he felt naked 01:34 Two and a half hours in a Christchurch immigration room 05:51 The assumptions and biases leaders carry 07:45 Coaching, speaking and all the hats Prajesh wears 08:59 Mirror Mirror: Marina's voice note 12:16 Hearing how someone else sees you 15:57 The spotlight effect 16:32 Staying in your own lane 17:38 Between the lines begins 18:16 The most overused word in coaching 22:06 If you did know, what would you say? 23:57 The passion his workplace doesn't know about 26:45 Leaving twenty years of Otago behind 31:29 The hearsay that broke his own trust rule 36:53 The part of his own life he's still asleep to 40:04 Fill your cup, full stop 42:45 Where to find Prajesh Thanks to YourHR for sponsoring this episode. YourHR works with 100s of businesses to cut the jargon, simplify the systems, and build workplaces where people genuinely want to be. Find out where your business stands with their free HR Health Check in minutes: https://www.yourhrsystem.com/health-check/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/your-hr-team-and-system/ Thanks to AIXFamily for sponsoring this episode. AIXFamily is the parental control platform built by a dad of three after a decade in network security couldn't turn up a tool that met his own family's needs. It runs at the network level, so deleting the app or switching on a VPN gets your kids nowhere, and every block comes with an explanation for them. Join the waitlist for founding-member access before it launches: https://www.aixfamily.com Follow Prajesh Chhanabhai: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prajesh-chhanabhai/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phambilicoaching STORIES FOR BUSINESS NEWSLETTER: https://storiesforbusiness.substack.com/ FOLLOW NAKED AT THE TOP Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nakedatthetop/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/naked-at-the-top/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nakedatthetop/ YouTube – https://youtube.com/@NakedAtTheTop?sub_confirmation=1 Apple Podcasts – https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/naked-at-the-top/id1822169203 Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/show/1lCQJthCpq39LkWXDlkwCf?si=9ef0f76a91cd4bd0 CONNECT WITH ALEYX LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aleyxward Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aleyxfward/
