--- title: "Karen Hayward: Leadership with Empathy" description: This show is about creating the life that you want, starting with surrounding yourself with the people you’d want to spend a day with, in a canoe. --- [Insights](https://planningalt.com/insights) # [Karen Hayward: Leadership with Empathy](https://planningalt.com/insights/day-in-a-canoe-karen-hayward-leadership-with-empathy) Written by [Planning Alternatives](https://planningalt.com/insights/author/planning-alternatives) | November 30, 2022 | | | | | --- | --- | --- |   In this episode, Nathan and Karen discuss: - How the marketing landscape has become complex - Why empathy is critical as a leader - Finding a mentor and looking for personal growth opportunities - The importance of dreaming big Key Takeaways: - Marketing has evolved and companies have complex problems that need specialized solutions. Find an expert that can help you solve your specific marketing problem and take action.  - Lead by example. Don’t ask anyone to do anything you wouldn’t do. Lean on your empathic ability. Make an effort to really understand the other person and walk in their shoes.  - As a leader, you must find the balance between driving performance and displaying empathy in your team. Be consistent and communicate consequences, both negative and positive.  - Find a mentor and look for opportunities to advance your career and mission.    > “Dream big – and then when you thought you’ve dreamed as big as possible, dream bigger.” > *— Karen Hayward*   About Karen Hayward Karen Hayward is an author, international speaker, and a Managing Partner and CMO with Chief Outsiders, where she is responsible for building and supporting a team of world-class marketers. Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, Karen matches mid-market CEOs and Private Equity Portfolio managers with the best-fit Chief Marketing Officers to help accelerate top line growth.  Her book “Stop Random Acts of Marketing” takes the learnings from her previous experience as a VP in both Sales and Marketing and shows mid-market CEOs how to build a strategic growth plan in the digital age to deliver compelling ROI. Check out Karen’s Book: [https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Random-Acts-Marketing-Deliberate/dp/1544502532](https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Random-Acts-Marketing-Deliberate/dp/1544502532)  Connect with Karen Hayward:  Twitter: [https://twitter.com/HaywardKG](https://twitter.com/HaywardKG) Website: [https://www.chiefoutsiders.com](https://www.chiefoutsiders.com/) LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenhaywardcmo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenhaywardcmo/)   Connect with Nathan Mersereau:  Phone: 248-645-1520 Website: [www.dayinacanoe.com](http://www.dayinacanoe.com/) Email: [nathan.mersereau@planningalt.com](mailto:nathan.mersereau@planningalt.com) Twitter: [@NathanMersereau](https://twitter.com/nathanmersereau) LinkedIn: [Nathan Mersereau](https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-mersereau-cfp%C2%AE-a984761/) Address: 255 S Old Woodward, Suite 310 Birmingham, MI 48009 Show notes by Podcastologist: Justine Talla Audio production by[ Turnkey Podcast Productions.](https://www.turnkeypodcast.com/) You’re the expert. Your podcast will prove it.  [View full post](https://planningalt.com/insights/day-in-a-canoe-karen-hayward-leadership-with-empathy) ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Planning Alternatives" }, "dateModified" : "2024-09-24T21:50:12.067Z", "datePublished" : "2022-11-30T13:00:00Z", "headline" : "Karen Hayward: Leadership with Empathy", "image" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 672, "url" : "https://23129617.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/23129617/PA_Podcast_KarenHayward1200-min.jpg", "width" : 1200 }, "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://planningalt.com/insights/day-in-a-canoe-karen-hayward-leadership-with-empathy", "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "height" : 60, "url" : "/hs/hsstatic/content_shared_assets/static-1.4092/img/default-amp-logo.png", "width" : 60 }, "name" : "Insights" } } ```