86 - From Fear to Fearless: Unleashing Effective Leadership in Customer Success - Rachel Provan

Are you ready to unlock the secrets of effective leadership within customer success? Prepare for a transformative conversation with Rachel Provan, an accomplished customer success leadership coach, who brings her unique experiences from the performing arts to the table. We delve into Rachel's journey navigating leadership roles and the common pitfalls of new or struggling leaders - fear and micromanagement. Rachel generously offers invaluable advice on recognizing these signs and helping others discover solutions within themselves.We also confront the elephant in the room that plagues many CS leaders - perfectionism. Rachel and I dissect this challenge, discussing the anxiety of criticism, fear of failure, and the illusion of needing to know everything. We share how the pressures of perceived perfection can lead to disastrous mistakes and talk candidly about the toxicity that can pervade workplaces. Rachel's experiences with such environments provide a powerful narrative of how she evolved, becoming more discerning in her career choices.Our conversation broadens as we analyze the shifts from reactive to proactive customer success strategies. Rachel presents her four-phase framework that emphasizes the crucial role of data, team leadership, and overcoming imposter syndrome. We further delve into the psychological intricacies of leadership, discussing the importance of self-belief and understanding one's truth. We also highlight the significance of continuous learning and taking action rather than just consuming information. Be ready to be inspired as we wrap up discussing the benefits of integrating psychology mindset and strategy in customer success leadership. There's a lot to uncover, so let's get started!Episode chapters:(0:00:00) - Leadership in Customer Success Growth and Development(0:13:28) - Perfectionism and Fear Among CS Leaders(0:22:44) - Reactive to Proactive Customer Success(0:36:32) - Leadership Development and Action(0:42:21) - Teaching Psychology Mindset and StrategyFollow Rachel Provan and Provan Success!This episode is brought to you by Vitally.io. Visit vitally.io/women today to schedule your demo and get your Airpods.__________________________________________________About Women in Customer Success Podcast: Women in Customer Success Podcast is the first women-only podcast for Customer Success professionals, where remarkable ladies of Customer Success connect, inspire and champion each other. Follow:Women in Customer Success - Website - womenincs.co - LinkedIn - linkedin.com/company/womenincs - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womenincs.co/ - Podcast page - womenincs.co/podcast - Sign Up for PowerUp Tribe - womenincs.co/powerup Host Marija Skobe-Pilley - Website - https://www.marijaskobepilley.com/ - LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mspilley/ - Coaching with Marija: http://marijaskobepilley.com/programs - Get a FREE '9 Habits of Successful CSMs' guide https://www.marijaskobepilley.com/9-habits-freebie