TOP 1% GLOBAL PODCAST for People-First Leaders
Formerly the "improve it! Podcast." #9 in BEST 100 SELF LEADERSHIP PODCASTS.
I’m Erin Diehl, keynote speaker, business improv edutainer, and founder of improve it! (AKA your work bestie). Every Wednesday, Workday Playdate with improve it! helps HR professionals, people leaders, and culture-driven humans bring more laughter, levity, and purpose to their workdays. Because work is better when you play.
This is not your average leadership podcast. You’ll get research-backed strategies, improv-inspired tools, and candid conversations with top leaders, speakers, improvisers and authors who are rethinking how we work and lead.
Our promise is to give you tangible takeaways you can use immediately, plus a few laughs along the way.
Interested in partnering with us? Workday Playdate reaches thousands of people-first leaders who care about workplace culture, leadership, and team development.
Contact info@learntoimproveit.com to learn more about sponsorship opportunities. We promise laughs, impact, and zero awkward small talk. Think ROI with a side of LOL’s. Let’s make it happen!
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Données mises à jour le 14/07/2026
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Score global : 69%
339: Innovation Without the Corporate Headache with Rich Braden & Tessa Forshaw
Épisode 339
mercredi 22 avril 2026 • Durée 51:04
In this Workday Playdate, Erin brings together innovation experts Rich Braden and Tessa Forshaw to challenge everything you thought you knew about creativity at work. This episode proves that innovation is not reserved for a select few, but something everyone can access through mindset, play, and small, intentional actions.
If you’ve ever thought “I’m not the creative type,” this conversation will expand your definition of innovation and give you practical ways to bring more curiosity, experimentation, and whole-brained thinking into your day.
About the Guests:
Rich Braden is an innovation strategist, educator, and global speaker who helps organizations unlock creativity through human-centered design, play, and experimentation. With experience spanning corporate, startup, and academic environments, Rich is known for making innovation accessible, actionable, and energizing.
Tessa Forshaw is a creativity and innovation expert, educator, and consultant focused on helping individuals and teams activate their innate creative capacity. Her work blends research, facilitation, and playful practice to challenge limiting beliefs and build cultures where innovation thrives.
Inside This Episode:
Innovation Isn’t Exclusive: Why the biggest barrier to creativity is the myth that only certain people (or roles) are “allowed” to innovate.
Whole-Brained Thinking Wins: How blending analytical rigor with creative exploration leads to better problem-solving, smarter decisions, and more innovative outcomes.
The Play Advantage: Why improvisation, curiosity, and experimentation aren’t “nice to have”—they’re essential tools for unlocking new ideas and embracing failure.
Mindset > Talent: How small, intentional mindset shifts can reignite creativity and help you move from “right vs. wrong” to “what’s possible?”
Diverge, Then Converge: The airplane metaphor for brainstorming that helps you generate bold ideas and actually land them.
Innovation in Action: Practical ways leaders can lower the bar, model experimentation, and create cultures where risk-taking is rewarded (not punished).
Small Moves, Big Impact: Why innovation isn’t about big breakthroughs—it’s about consistent, everyday experimentation.
What to Do Now:
Try “Yes, And” Today: In your next meeting, build on someone’s idea before critiquing it. Watch how quickly energy and creativity shift.
Run a 10-Minute Diverge/Converge Sprint: Set a timer. Generate as many ideas as possible (no judgment), then switch modes and narrow to your top 1–2 actions.
Lower the Bar for Innovation: Pick one small experiment you can run this week.
Model the Behavior You Want: As a leader (or future leader), openly share a risk you took or a failure you learned from to create psychological safety for others.
Your Freebie
You already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.
Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.
In this Workday Playdate, Erin flips the script on productivity culture and makes the case that your energy at work matters more than your to-do list. This episode is a wake-up call for high performers who’ve been measuring success in checkboxes instead of presence, connection, and impact.
If you’ve been optimizing your calendar but still feeling off, this conversation will challenge how you define a “good day,” and give you a practical way to shift it.
Inside This Episode:
Energy > Activity: Why your internal state is the real driver of performance, influence, and outcomes.
Your Energy Is Contagious: How your mood, presence, and mindset shape team dynamics, client relationships, and workplace culture (whether you realize it or not).
Science of Better Thinking: What research says about positive emotional states and their impact on innovation and decision-making.
The 5-Step Energy Shift Framework: A simple, repeatable process to reset your energy and lead your day with intention.
Lead With One Word: How choosing a daily intention anchors your mindset and guides your actions.
Measure What Matters: Why ending your day by reflecting on your energy—not your output—leads to more fulfillment and long-term success.
Presence As a Power Skill: Especially early in your career, curiosity, intention, and how you show up matter more than having all the answers.
Who This Episode Is For:
High achievers tired of living by their to-do lists
Leaders who want more impact without more burnout
HR and people leaders rethinking performance and engagement
Early-career professionals who want to stand out (without burning out)
Teams craving more connection, creativity, and motivation
Anyone ready to feel better and perform better at work
337: Overachievers, Pause! Process Before You Push
Épisode 337
mercredi 8 avril 2026 • Durée 41:25
In this Workday Playdate, Erin sits down with Jane Chen to challenge the “always-on” mindset and invite overachievers into something radically different: pause, process, and thrive. Jane is a best-selling author, leadership coach, and social entrepreneur best known as the co-founder of Embrace Global.
If you’ve been sprinting toward success at the cost of your well-being, this episode is your reminder that slowing down is exactly how you move forward with intention.
Inside This Episode:
Pause Before You Push: Why high achievers need to interrupt the cycle of constant doing to reconnect with themselves and avoid burnout.
The Hidden Cost of Achievement: How chasing impact, success, and validation can quietly deplete your energy, identity, and joy.
From Impact to Inner Work: Jane’s journey from building a global health company to finding healing through surfing, stillness, and self-reflection.
Compassion Over Grit: Why resilience isn’t about pushing harder—it’s about practicing self-compassion and emotional awareness.
Healing Is a Strategy: Exploring powerful modalities like internal family systems (IFS), therapy, and slowing down as tools for sustainable leadership.
Letting Go of External Validation: Why chasing approval is a losing game—and how anchoring in your values creates lasting fulfillment.
Ride the Wave: The ocean as a metaphor for life, timing, surrender, and trusting what you can’t control.
Vulnerability = Strength: How embracing imperfection, fear, and faith can unlock confidence in leadership and public speaking.
From Burnout to Breakthrough: Why moments of crisis or failure might actually be invitations to realign with your purpose.
Joy Is Not Optional: How play, nature, and small daily moments of joy are essential for thriving at work and in life.
Who This Episode Is For:
336: It’s Not That Serious: Play More
Épisode 336
mercredi 1 avril 2026 • Durée 21:59
In this Workday Playdate, Erin flips the script on hustle culture with a bold reminder: it’s not that serious. If you’ve been stuck in overthinking, overworking, or over-perfecting, this episode is your permission slip to loosen your grip and lead with more play.
Inside This Episode:
Play is Strategic: Why true play fuels creativity, innovation, and better problem-solving at work.
The Cost of Taking Work Too Seriously: How rigidity kills connection, limits ideas, and keeps teams stuck.
Loosen Up to Level Up: Practical ways to bring more lightness, curiosity, and flexibility into your leadership style.
Celebrate the Ridiculous: How “bad” or wild ideas often lead to breakthrough innovation.
From Perfection to Experimentation: Letting go of fear and embracing messy, imperfect starts.
The Daily Fun Check: One simple question—“Did I have fun today?”—that can transform your energy and performance.
5 Ways to Play More (Starting Today): Notice, say yes, lower the stakes, invite others, celebrate ridiculousness.
Who This Episode Is For:
Leaders who want to boost creativity, engagement, and innovation
HR and people leaders focused on human-centered workplaces
High achievers ready to ditch perfectionism and unlock more joy
Teams craving stronger connection and collaboration
Anyone feeling stuck, burned out, or taking work way too seriously
Humans who want to work better by playing more
Your Playdate Practice
Schedule 10 minutes of intentional play and watch what shifts in your mindset, creativity, and connection.
335: AI Tools: When HR Should Say Yes or Nope
Épisode 335
mercredi 25 mars 2026 • Durée 38:44
In this Workday Playdate, Erin sits down with AI expert and trainer John Rood to tackle how to actually implement AI at work without breaking trust, compliance, or culture. If you’ve been overwhelmed by AI hype or unsure where to start, this episode gives you a clear, actionable path forward.
Inside This Episode:
AI at Work, the Reality Check: What organizations are actually doing with AI today and where most are getting it wrong.
HR as AI Gatekeeper: How HR can lead the charge in building smart, scalable AI policies that fit your organization.
Adopt Too Fast or Too Slow: The hidden risks on both ends of AI adoption and how to find the sweet spot.
AI Literacy for Everyone: Why AI skills aren’t optional anymore and how to train teams from beginner to advanced.
From Prompts to Productivity: How structured prompting unlocks real business value even for non-technical teams.
Everyday AI Use Cases: From building PowerPoints to automating onboarding and internal research – what AI can actually offer you.
Culture > Tools: Why experimentation, collaboration, and psychological safety determine whether AI succeeds or fails.
The 3 AI Archetypes: How to engage early adopters, skeptics, and everyone in between.
Red Flags to Watch: Shadow AI, data security risks, and governance gaps that can derail your strategy fast.
Your First Steps: How to assess current AI usage, gather insights, and build a baseline policy that actually works.
Who This Episode Is For:
HR leaders navigating AI policy, compliance, and culture
Small business owners ready to implement AI without the chaos
People leaders balancing innovation with responsibility
Teams looking to boost productivity with practical AI use
Organizations that want to adopt AI without losing trust
334: Human Skills > AI: The Joy Advantage
Épisode 334
mercredi 18 mars 2026 • Durée 19:41
In this Workday Playdate, Erin dives into a timely leadership truth: in a world obsessed with AI, your real competitive edge is your humanity. This episode unpacks why joy at work is fuel and how leaders who prioritize human connection, energy, and play are the ones building cultures that actually perform.
If you’ve been wondering how to lead in an AI-driven workplace without losing the human spark, this episode is your playbook.
Inside This Episode:
Joy as a Performance Strategy: Why joy is a catalyst for productivity, creativity, and team engagement.
Psychological Safety = Innovation: How feeling safe, seen, and energized unlocks experimentation, speaking up, and bold thinking.
AI’s Role (and Limits): Where AI enhances efficiency and why it will never replace culture, connection, or leadership presence.
The Joy Advantage: A fresh leadership framework for building high-performing, human-centered workplaces.
Human Skills > AI Skills: Why communication, empathy, adaptability, and presence are becoming the ultimate power skills.
Leadership Playground: The value of practicing leadership in real time through community, feedback, and play.
Irreplaceably Human: How to stand out in a tech-saturated world by doubling down on what machines can’t replicate.
Who This Episode Is For:
Leaders navigating the rise of AI while protecting team culture
High performers who want to lead with energy
People leaders focused on engagement, innovation, and retention
Coaches, facilitators, and culture builders shaping human-first workplaces
Humans who want to future-proof their careers by becoming more human
Your Playdate Practice
Bring one moment of intentional joy into your work. Whether that means celebrating someone publicly, asking one curious question, or pausing before you react, choose joyful presence over speed.
333: Is Your Unconscious Making You Sick? Here’s How to Heal with Dr. Moshe
Épisode 333
mercredi 11 mars 2026 • Durée 44:30
In this Workday Playdate, Erin sits down with psychologist and author Dr. Moshe Frenkel to unpack a powerful truth many high-achieving leaders quietly wrestle with: the belief that their worth is conditional. Together, they explore how the emotional stories we form in childhood shape the way we show up at work, in relationships, and in leadership.
Dr. Moshe shares a refreshing perspective on self-worth and the courage it takes to detach from limiting beliefs that no longer serve us. If you’ve ever felt like you needed to earn your value, this episode offers a liberating reframe.
Because here’s the truth: who you are is already enough.
Inside This Episode:
Unconditional Self-Worth: Why your value is something you recognize rather than achieve. Dr. Moshe reframes the idea that we must prove our worth to feel loved, respected, or successful.
The Childhood Blueprint: How early experiences of feeling unheard, unseen, or not fully loved shape the beliefs we carry into adulthood, leadership, and relationships.
Conditional Love vs. Real Acceptance: The illusion many of us internalize—that love, approval, or belonging must be earned through performance.
Limiting Beliefs in Leadership: How subconscious childhood narratives show up in the workplace as perfectionism, people-pleasing, imposter syndrome, and overachievement.
Detach From Old Stories: Practical ways to identify and separate from the beliefs you absorbed growing up so they stop driving your adult decisions.
Inner Healing as Leadership Work: Why self-awareness and emotional healing aren’t “soft skills”—they’re foundational leadership capabilities.
Rewriting the Narrative: How recognizing your inherent worth can transform confidence, relationships, and the way you lead.
From Proving to Being: What changes when leaders stop striving for validation and start operating from a place of internal security.
332: How to Build a Community that Builds You
Épisode 332
mercredi 4 mars 2026 • Durée 23:03
In this Workday Playdate, Erin explores a leadership truth that’s impossible to ignore right now: leaders are more connected than ever and lonelier than ever. Erin shares practical frameworks and personal stories to help you cultivate authentic community that strengthens your leadership, boosts resilience, and fuels sustainable confidence.
If leadership has felt isolating, this episode is your reminder: you were never meant to do this alone.
Inside This Episode:
The Loneliness Paradox in Leadership: Why high achievers often feel the most isolated—and how social connection reduces burnout, increases engagement, and strengthens resilience.
Leadership Is a Team Sport: The “buddy bench” metaphor that reframes leadership growth as something you practice with others, not in silos.
The 4-Step Community Framework: A clear, actionable process to build a community that aligns with who you’re becoming.
From Spectator to Participant: Why passive membership doesn’t build confidence and how contribution, visibility, and real-time sharing accelerate growth.
Normalize Honest Feedback: How vulnerability + peer coaching deepen trust, psychological safety, and real leadership skill-building.
Audit Your Energy: The simplest question to curate stronger relationships: Do I feel energized or drained after this interaction?
Treadmill Friends vs. Couch Friends: Why some relationships stretch you and others soothe you, and why you need both (but in the right balance).
Intentional Community > Accidental Proximity: Why mutual investment is the foundation of meaningful leadership support.
Practice in Public: How spaces like Leadership Playground give leaders a monthly rep to test ideas, receive feedback, and build social confidence.
Confidence Is a Community Byproduct: Why resilient leaders focus less on doing it alone and more on surrounding themselves with people who reflect their growth back to them.
331: Stop Dodging Hard Talks with Henna Pryor
Épisode 331
mercredi 25 février 2026 • Durée 47:19
In this Workday Playdate, Erin dives into the discomfort of “good awkward” with Henna Pryor. Henna is a workplace performance expert, keynote speaker, and author who helps teams build social fitness in a world that’s forgotten how to human. Together, they unpack why our social muscles have atrophied (thanks, tech + pandemic isolation) and how leaning into micro-discomfort can radically improve leadership, communication, and team cohesion.
This episode is your permission slip to stop polishing and start connecting.
Inside This Episode:
Social Muscles Are Flabby: Why hyper-connectivity is sabotaging real connection—and what it’s doing to workplace communication and confidence.
Micro-Disagreements, Major Growth: How low-stakes conflict and social repetition build trust, resilience, and stronger teams.
Asking for Help Without Spiraling: The surprising stat: 1 in 3 employees would rather clean a toilet than ask for help. Let’s fix that.
The Neuroscience of Shared Moments: Why laughter, eye contact, and shared awkwardness boost psychological safety and belonging.
Normalize the Awkward: How naming “good awkward” in real time reduces fear and strengthens authentic leadership.
Language Builds Safety: Practical scripts to express discomfort, validate emotions, and create space for real dialogue.
Humor as a Leadership Strategy: Why playfulness lowers defensiveness, reduces conflict anxiety, and makes feedback easier to hear.
Good Enough > Perfect: Ditching perfectionism to build faster recovery and stronger comeback rates in tough moments.
Recovery Rate > Failure Rate: Why resilient leaders focus less on avoiding discomfort and more on how quickly they bounce back.
Make Work a Playground Again: Micro-exercises and small social reps teams can use immediately to rebuild connection and confidence.
330: How to Not Suck at Being a Boss
Épisode 330
mercredi 18 février 2026 • Durée 29:18
In this Workday Playdate episode, Erin delivers a no-fluff leadership reset in How to Not Suck at Being a Boss. Erin breaks down how reactive habits quietly erode trust (hello burnout and disengagement) and replaces them with a five-step framework rooted in emotional awareness and clear communication.
Inside This Episode:
Autopilot Leadership: Why reactionary management drains morale and how to interrupt it
Energy Sets the Tone: How your emotional state shapes culture, creativity, and results
Listen to Understand: Stop fixing. Start hearing. (Yes, it changes everything.)
Clear Expectations: Saying it out loud + writing it down = fewer misunderstandings
Psychological Safety: Celebrating effort, learning, and growth to build real trust
Lead Yourself First: Self-awareness, reflection, and owning mistakes like a pro
The Five-Step Framework: Erin’s simple roadmap to becoming a more effective boss
Improv at Work: Why “blocking the scene” kills connection—and what to do instead
Yes-And Check-In: A practical exercise to deepen presence in daily team moments
Embrace Imperfection: Leading with humanity beats leading with control
Who This Episode Is For:
New managers and seasoned leaders who want to level up
People leaders building emotionally safe, high-performing teams
Humans navigating burnout, disengagement, or workplace uncertainty
Remote and hybrid leaders craving deeper connection
Anyone ready to lead with more empathy, clarity, and play
Your Playdate Practice
The “Yes, And” Check-in: This week, when a team member comes to you with an issue, listen to understand, not to respond. Once they finish sharing, say, “Tell me more.” When they tell you more, say, “Yes I hear you, and here's how I can support you through this.”
Your Freebie
You already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.
Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.
Leaders ready to trade burnout for sustainable success
HR and people leaders focused on well-being and human-centered performance
High-performing parents and professionals seeking balance without guilt
Anyone navigating burnout, identity shifts, or a season of rebuilding
Humans who want to achieve and feel whole while doing it
Your Freebie
You already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.
Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.
You already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.
Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.
Humans who know AI is here and want to use it wisely
Your Freebie
You already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.
Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.
You already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.
Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.
Leaders working to untangle their relationship with self-worth
High achievers who feel the pressure to constantly prove themselves
People navigating perfectionism, people-pleasing, or imposter syndrome
Coaches, facilitators, and consultants who guide others through personal growth
Humans ready to lead from authenticity rather than approval
Your Freebie
You already have strengths that make you a powerful leader. But chances are, one of them is doing more heavy lifting than you realize.
Enter your free resource: The Human Leadership Edge Quiz. In just 10 quick questions, you’ll discover the leadership strength that sets you apart in the age of AI and how to use it more intentionally with your team.
Entrepreneurs and founders building something bold
Humans ready to move from polished to present
Your Playdate Practice
First, write down the people who you interact with the most in professional settings. Second, ask yourself, “Do they challenge me? Do they support me? Do they inspire me?” Third, reach out to one leader and say something along the lines of, “Hey, how are you? I’m genuinely interested in your answer. Also, could you help me with X? I’m feeling like I need a little more help in this area.”
Your Freebie
You want to support your people the same way you want to be supported—but in fast, emotionally charged moments, the right words can be hard to find.
Enter, your free resource - Human Leadership in the Age of AI: An Empathy Playbook. It gives you a simple, 3-part list of human-first phrases you can use in meetings, emails, and one-on-ones.
Empathy isn’t extra anymore. It’s essential. Download your Empathy Playbook here.
Leaders who want to build psychological safety without the corporate fluff
People managers craving stronger team connection and communication
High achievers unlearning perfectionism
Remote and hybrid teams rebuilding social confidence
Humans ready to trade polished for present
Your Freebie
You want to support your people the same way you want to be supported—but in fast, emotionally charged moments, the right words can be hard to find.
Enter, your free resource - Human Leadership in the Age of AI: An Empathy Playbook. It gives you a simple, 3-part list of human-first phrases you can use in meetings, emails, and one-on-ones.
Empathy isn’t extra anymore. It’s essential. Download your Empathy Playbook here.
You want to support your people the same way you want to be supported—but in fast, emotionally charged moments, the right words can be hard to find.
Enter, your free resource - Human Leadership in the Age of AI: An Empathy Playbook. It gives you a simple, 3-part list of human-first phrases you can use in meetings, emails, and one-on-ones.
Empathy isn’t extra anymore. It’s essential. Download your Empathy Playbook here.
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