Tuesday Mar 11, 2025

EP31: The Assignment I Didn’t Want That Led to a Career in Leadership Communicatio

Milestones rarely announce themselves in the moment. They often look like assignments you did not ask for, skills that felt ordinary, or opportunities that seemed off-track. Only later do you see how they shaped your career.

As Speaker Dynamics marks its first anniversary, Karin Reed reflects on the moments that led her into a career focused on leadership communication, executive presence, and coaching professionals to strengthen their effective communication skills.

From an unexpected newsroom assignment that led to an Emmy Award, to sketching a communication framework on a legal pad in an airport terminal, to teaching virtual communication skills long before they were mainstream, each milestone quietly built the foundation for her work today.

This episode explores:

How early career assignments can build executive presence
Why communication skills that feel natural to you may be your greatest leadership advantage
How leadership communication became mission critical in 2020
What it takes to coach leaders in effective communication across in-person, virtual, and hybrid settings
Why executive presence on video is developed over time, not overnight

Karin shares the turning point when she realized she could help C-level executives communicate more confidently on camera, which ultimately grew into books, global training programs, and a coaching practice centered on leadership communication and executive presence.

If you are building influence, presenting to senior leaders, or refining your executive presence on video, this conversation invites you to reflect on your own communication milestones. The experiences you once questioned may be preparing you for the next chapter of your leadership journey.

Episode Breakdown:

00:00 Introduction

03:06 First Communication Milestone: Tuesday’s Child

05:37 Impact of Tuesday’s Child Assignment

06:48 Emmy Award for Special Needs Adoption Documentary

07:02 Lesson from Tuesday’s Child Experience

07:03 Second Communication Milestone: Teaching On-Camera Communication

08:58 Developing the MVPs of On-Camera Success

10:13 Expanding Workshops and Writing a Book

10:45 Lesson from Teaching On-Camera Communication

11:07 Third Communication Milestone: 2020 and Virtual Communication

12:13 Webinar with Dr. Joe Allen