Leadership Is Hard

The idea of leadership is complex because leadership is hard. A quick search can take you down an endless rabbit hole about leadership, management, behaviors, traits, books, courses, skills, approaches, definitions, examples, models, theories, personality tests, and a host of other topics. So how do we get "good" at leadership? Not just as a senior executive, but at every stop along the way. From humble beginnings at the start of your journey to the highest levels of leadership. We need to step away from pop-psychology leadership and look at the big picture. By exploring what academia has to offer and translating that information into something practitioners can actually use. This podcast (and the associated website https://leadershipishard.com/) will tackle topics ranging from mental fallacies, principles and effects to ideas about why self-help books don't solve all our problems, current academic theories, construct proliferation, context, and what you can do to become a more effective leader today. We will also have guests on the podcast to talk about a wide variety of topics such as gender and race impacts on leadership, some takes on pertinent news stories, and even explore how leadership impacts other facets of our lives. We aim to present these topics in an unbiased, entertaining, and understandable way. Nobody has all the answers, but we look forward to simply sharing some knowledge and having a conversation with you. There is also an opportunity for our listeners to contribute, by sending questions, comments, and concerns for us to discuss. It's time to realize we don't know what we don't know and do something about it. Join us on this journey as we try to solve the riddle of leadership. Leadership is hard, but it doesn't always have to be.

Contributors

Host

Carl A. Zunker

Hello, my name is Carl Zunker. I am a 26-year Air Force vet with expertise in leadership, logistics, and aircraft maintenance. I am a PhD candidate from the Air Force Institute of Technology (logistics with a focus in industrial organizational psychology). I started my leadership journey by being involved with many community projects throughout my childhood. Even though I grew up in poverty, I have always had a passion to give back. I enlisted in the Air Force when I was 18 and worked my way up to Technical Seargent (E-6) before I earned my bachelor's degree and commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant through Air Force Officer Training School. I finished my master's degree in Professional Aeronautics with minors in Safety and Management while continuing to hone my leadership skills in the Air Force. I am now using my academic and practical skill to help answer fundamental questions about leadership, because leadership is hard!

https://leadershipishard.com/

Co-host

Kimberly C. Zunker

Kimberly Zunker, MBA, MLS (ASCP), CAPM is the Consulting Manager in a leading national healthcare improvement organization. She has worked in the laboratory field for the last 15 years. She was a commissioned officer in the US Air Force for four and a half years, where she honed her leadership and laboratory management skills. After the Air Force, she returned to laboratory bench work while pursuing her master's degree from the University of Dayton. In the process of earning her MBA, she realized that she loved the business aspect of the lab. Her passion is Change Management, Process Improvement, Quality Management, and Lab Design. She wants to help every lab excel in every aspect, from test utilization and lean space design to supply chain optimization and outreach decisions. She believes that by improving efficiencies throughout the lab, we can optimize the business of the hospital laboratory while improving the quality of results for patients and providers.

https://leadershipishard.com/