The Impact List
014: Leadership Isn't Loud: The Case for the Quietest Person in the Room | Jillian Perkins
You know the person who changed the direction of your career without ever raising their voice. That is quiet leadership, and it works through listening rather than volume. Most workplaces still reward whoever speaks first and loudest, which means the people quietly redirecting careers rarely get named for it, rarely get promoted for it, and often do not see themselves as leaders at all. Jillian Perkins is one of them, and she still resists the word. Laurie Fainer, Founder and CEO of Dynamic Alchemy Advisors, sits down with Jillian Perkins, an alumni career counsellor at McMaster University’s Student Success Centre with a master's in counselling psychology and more than twenty years spent across the table from students and alumni at the exact moment they are deciding what comes next. Twenty years ago Jillian was across that table from Laurie in a Starbucks, and that conversation is part of why Laurie went and did her master's. Learn how she unlearned the belief that leadership has to be loud, how her listen first approach turns introversion into an advantage, what she does when she misses her turn in a room full of louder voices, and how she uses planned happenstance theory to help people choose when the future will not hold still. In this episode, you'll discover: What introversion actually gives a leader, including the pattern recognition that comes from observing a room first. The real cost of staying quiet at work, including missing your turn in a meeting. Planned happenstance theory made practical: the traits of optimism, flexibility, persistence and reasonable risk taking. The difference between managing a room and caring about the people in it. We talk about: 00:00 Why quiet leadership changes careers 01:28 The moment this week that gave her pause 04:27 Why she won't call herself a leader 06:50 Unlearning that leadership has to be loud 08:17 The first manager who changed everything 12:34 What does listen first actually mean 14:48 How introverts lead in loud rooms 17:11 The real cost of staying quiet 19:43 From career counsellor to career instructor 22:25 The student who finally felt cared about 31:26 Advice for anyone at a crossroads If this conversation surfaced the gap between how you are leading and how you want to be leading, that is the conversation worth having. Reach out to Laurie at https://amplified-authenticity.com/contact Connect with Jillian: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillianmperkins/ Website: Student Success Centre | McMaster University Connect with me Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dynamicalchemyadvisors LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/dynamic-alchemy-advisors/ Personal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauriefainer/ Website: https://amplified-authenticity.com/ Music created and produced by Riley Fouchier, DarkSky Productions
