Don’t Become the 11th Rep: The Leadership Mistake that Makes Everything Worse

/ Susan Hendrich / Leave a comment

YOUR TEAM DOESN’T NEED ANOTHER PERSON TO COMPLAIN WITH.

They need someone who can help them move forward.

Imagine you’re leading a team of ten people. They’re frustrated. A new policy makes no sense to them. A decision feels unfair.

Everyone has an opinion. And you agree with them. So you sit down and say: “I KNOW! Can you believe they’re doing this?”

Congratulations. You just became the 11th rep. You’re no longer helping ten frustrated people navigate a difficult situation.

You’ve become the eleventh frustrated person, and now you’re making things worse.

Here’s a leadership lesson that’s hard to hear: Validation is not amplification.

You can acknowledge people’s feelings without fueling their frustration.

You can stand beside your team without getting stuck with them. And you can challenge decisions without turning your team into a complaint department.

That’s why we developed FLIP:

F — FACE the frustration without fueling it.

L — LISTEN to understand, not just respond.

I — INVITE people into the conversation and the solution.

P — PROGRESS toward constructive action.

Sometimes progress means moving forward with a difficult decision.

Sometimes it means challenging the decision itself. But it always means doing more than complaining.

Infographic titled “Don’t Become the 11th Rep,” explaining the FLIP leadership framework for turning team frustration into constructive action.

On imPERFECT: Better After Broken, executive coach and leadership consultant Jeff Servello, PCC, RBLP-T, and clinical psychologist and executive coach Susan Hendrich, PsyD, explore the difference between empathy and enabling, validation and amplification, and being part of a team versus leading one.

Here’s our question for you:

Have you ever worked for a leader who became the 11th rep?

Or have you ever caught yourself doing it? We’d love to hear your experience. https://youtu.be/Ozm2tZgTMzA?si=zPyLVLWghiLByrxJ

🎙️ imPERFECT: Better After Broken #Leadership #FLIPFramework #LeadershipCoaching #EmotionalIntelligence #imPERFECT

When Care Becomes Control: LET THEM GROW

/ Susan Hendrich / Leave a comment

If your team can’t succeed without you, have you really empowered them?

It’s an uncomfortable question.

Many leaders genuinely believe they’re helping when they step in, correct the work, take over a decision, or prevent a mistake.

But good intentions don’t always produce good outcomes. Sometimes the leader becomes more indispensable while the team becomes less confident.

In our latest episode of imPERFECT: Better After Broken, executive coach and leadership consultant Jeff Servello, PCC, RBLP-T, and clinical psychologist and executive coach Susan E. Hendrich, PsyD, explore the difference between care and control—and why creating the conditions for success matters more than controlling every step.

We talk about psychological safety, productive struggle, clear expectations, the anxiety underneath micromanagement, and the courage it takes to let someone learn.

A question worth asking yourself this week: Who’s getting stronger because of my leadership—me or the people I lead?

Watch the conversation, follow imPERFECT for more practical leadership insights, and share it with a leader who believes in developing others.

#LeadershipDevelopment #ExecutiveCoaching #Empowerment #LeadershipEffectiveness #imPERFECTPodcast

What You Carry: The Invisible Load

/ Susan Hendrich / 2 Comments

What are you carrying that nobody at work can see?

We talk a lot about workload. Meetings. Deadlines. Emails. Expectations.

But we don’t talk nearly enough about “the load.” Grief. Caregiving. Health concerns. Financial stress. Relationship strain. Parenting. Uncertainty.

The emotional weight of being the person everyone else turns to.

And leadership can add another layer: you’re carrying your own backpack while people are handing you pieces of theirs.

In this episode of imPERFECT: Better After Broken, executive coach and leadership consultant Jeff Servello PCC, RBLP-T, and clinical psychologist and executive coach Susan Hendrich, PsyD, explore what happens when workload sits on top of everything else we’re carrying.

We talk about the difference between being busy and burdened, the hidden emotional labor of leadership, why capable people often become very good at appearing fine, and how to care about people without absorbing what belongs to them. We also revisit the powerful Cleveland Clinic video, “Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care,” and the reminder behind it: we see people’s behavior, but we rarely know the whole story behind it.

So instead of immediately asking, “What’s wrong with this person?” What if we asked: “What might this person be carrying?” Compassion doesn’t mean lowering standards. Empathy isn’t the absence of accountability.

Understanding someone’s context can change how we enter the conversation while still being clear about what matters. And there’s another person whose load deserves our attention: ourselves. What are you carrying quietly? What has gotten heavier lately? Where might you need support? And what are you pretending is fine that isn’t?

NEW EPISODE: The Invisible Load of Leadership: What You’re Carrying That Nobody Sees.

Because nobody walks into work empty-handed.

Watch on YouTube: @imPERFECTBetterAfterBroken

#imPERFECT #Leadership #ExecutiveCoaching #LeadershipDevelopment #Empathy #EmotionalLabor #WorkplaceCulture #InvisibleLoad

Executive Coaching & Leadership Credentials

/ Susan Hendrich / 1 Comment

Unlocking the clarity, capability, and confidence to lead more intentionally.

I’m Susan E. Hendrich, PsyD — a leadership and organizational effectiveness strategist, executive coach, psychologist, speaker, and host of Human Being with Dr. Susan.

Across more than two decades of working with leaders, teams, and organizations, I’ve become convinced of something: People rarely need someone to tell them who to become. They need the space, insight, challenge, and support to see what is possible — and the courage to move toward it. That belief sits at the center of my work.

I help people strengthen how they lead themselves, how they show up for others, and how they navigate the moments that ask more of them — greater responsibility, change, uncertainty, conflict, transition, growth, or simply the realization that the way they have always done something may no longer be the way forward.

My approach draws from psychology, organizational behavior, behavioral science, executive coaching, leadership development, and decades of real-world experience inside complex organizations. And I continue to learn.

The credentials below represent some of that ongoing development — additional tools, disciplines, and perspectives I can bring to the people I work with. But they are only part of the story. If you’d like to know more about my background and the work that shaped my perspective, read my full bio.

And if you’re interested in the more human side of leadership, growth, relationships, resilience, and becoming, join me on YouTube for Human Being with Dr. Susan.

I’m glad you’re here.

The credentials below represent part of that continuing development.

Coaching Fundamentals Certificate

iPEC Coaching

The certificate represents 30 training hours, a portion of iPEC’s Level 2 Coach Training Program.

Participants learn and practice 20+ specific, powerful coaching skills; gain a thorough, working understanding of the 7 Levels of Energy and how to leverage them to transform the way someone approaches their life, work, and relationships; and learn the four main types of energetic blocks to help clients work through obstacles and tap into their greatest potential.

Issuing Date: 11/25/2025

Expiration Date: This credential does not expire

Credential ID: 92339397-f5b5-4055-a17b-b0c730fce391

Credential URL: See Badge Details Page 

Energy Leadership™ Index Master Practitioner (ELI-MP)

iPEC Coaching

Earners of the Energy Leadership™ Index Master Practitioner (ELI-MP) certification have completed the Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (iPEC) training necessary to coach and debrief clients utilizing this researched, proprietary tool. Earners are proficient in the training, experience, and skills to analyze and interpret the data from the ELI Assessment results and partner with clients to uncover opportunities for deeper awareness, optimal performance, and growth.

iPEC’s Energy Leadership™ Index (ELI) assessment is a research-backed assessment that provides insights into how you show up in various aspects of your life. The assessment measures your ability to lead yourself and others to take positive, productive, and sustainable action.

The ELI produces a tangible result, giving you awareness about who you are and your level of engagement in the world. You’ll also be able to see your energetic reaction to stress so that you can recognize—and if you choose to, consciously modify—that response utilizing the 7 Levels of Energy.

Issuing Date: 8/14/2026

Expiration Date: This credential does not expire

Credential ID: 8d4f8957-001b-4e92-a0d2-7e7666df8444

Credential URL: See Badge Details Page 

I’m Done Being Nice

/ Susan Hendrich / Leave a comment

But, I’m not done being kind. Hear me out…

I’m Done Being Nice.

Not done being loving.
Not done being generous.
Not done being thoughtful.
Not done caring about people.

But I am done with the kind of nice that says “Yes,” while exhausted.

The kind of nice that avoids truth and calls it peace.
The kind of nice that apologizes for having needs.
The kind of nice that abandons itself to keep everyone else comfortable.

In this episode of Human Being with Dr. Susan, we’re talking about the difference between being nice and being kind.

Nice often protects comfort.
Kind protects dignity.

Nice says, “I don’t want to ruffle any feathers.”
Kind says, “Sometimes love has to ruffle some feathers.”

We’ll talk about fawning, people-pleasing, boundaries, self-abandonment, the cost of being too nice, and how kindness can be warm, honest, brave, and clear.

Because kindness is not weakness.
As Robert Herjavec says, “I’m a very nice guy, but don’t mistake my kindness for weakness.”

Join me as we unpack why I’m done being nice — but I’m not done being kind.

Human Being with Dr. Susan
Live on Sandcastle Radio
Saturday at 10 AM

And don’t miss my special announcement about Rachel Goldman, Ph.D., FTOS, FASMBS-IH joining Jeff Servello PCC, RBLP-T and me on @imperfectbetterafterbroken, Sunday, July 12.

https://youtube.com/@susanhendrich?si=SWNoBfmlIM6xcfv9