Corporate Lingo Decoded: Speak Up & Sound Strategic at Work (with Jessica Guzik)

S9: E20

Episode Summary

What if sounding “smart” at work isn’t about your IQ, but about learning a language that corporate never taught you? In this episode, Felicia sits down with leadership coach and host of The Art of Speaking Up podcast, Jessica Guzik, to unpack how Black women can show up with presence, clarity, and confidence in corporate spaces without losing authenticity.

Jessica and Felicia break down the mindset shifts and tactical phrases that help you stop downplaying your brilliance and start getting heard.

In This Episode, We Cover:

• Why struggling to speak up at work is about skills, not smarts
• The hidden “corporate lingo” that leaves many women feeling insecure
• STAR statements and other frameworks that make your stories land
• How internal processors can thrive in fast-moving meetings
• The difference between confidence and competence — and why confidence often wins
• Practical phrases to buy time, push back, and sound strategic
• How to show your thinking process so your expertise is visible
• Reframing self-promotion so it feels natural (your work can’t talk — you have to)
• Why asking “tell me more” is the ultimate leadership move

Jessica Guzik is a women’s leadership coach and host of The Art of Speaking Up podcast, where she helps high-achieving corporate women build confidence, find their voices, and become wildly effective leaders. Before becoming a coach, she worked as a corporate strategist at McKinsey & Company and held executive-level roles at major consumer brands, including The Walt Disney Company. Her work has been featured in The New York Times and Harper’s Bazaar UK.

Resources & Next Steps

• The Art of Speaking Up Podcast – Listen in Apple | Listen in Spotify
• Work with Jess: The Art of Speaking Up Academy 
• Free Resources from Jess Guzic Coaching
• FMLA Leave & Retaliation Tracker – Protect your job before and after leave. Document retaliation, track every move, and get paid if they play dirty.
• Career Coaching with Felicia – Book a personalized strategy session.
• Listener Letters – Send your questions to ask@trillmba.com (subject: “Listener Letter”).
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• Follow @TrillMBAshow – Stay updated on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Until next time, keep it trill!