4 Voices Redefining Calm Leadership, Creative Confidence, Community Insight & Workplace Well-Being in Thanksgiving Week

As we close out November and move into a season of gratitude, thanksgiving invites us to slow down, notice what matters, and honor the people and ideas that move us forward.

This week’s Emerging Voices Unite Recap brings together reflections that shape leadership at every level—from Devinder Sodhi’s clarity under pressure, to our community poll on creative visibility, to repurposed community insights, and to Jeddy Wellness’ Workplace Wellness 2025 Year-End Recap.

Whether you're scaling a vision, leading teams, or preparing for the year ahead, these ideas offer the grounding—and the gratitude—you need to thrive.

Why Calm, Clarity & Presence Still Win Under Pressure

In this week’s Thursday Recap of EVU Live: Ideas That Scale, Episode 8, Devinder Sodhi brought forward a message that fits perfectly with the spirit of Thanksgiving:

“Clarity under pressure creates teams that don’t just survive complexity—they thrive in it.”

Great leaders don’t accelerate in chaos—they slow down, stabilize the room, and guide with intention.

4 Leadership Lessons to Be Grateful For:

1. Calm is a strategic advantage.
2. Compliance fuels innovation.
3. Leaders set the emotional tone.
4. Systems built on trust scale sustainably.

His message is a reminder that in a season of gratitude, clarity becomes both a gift and a leadership act.

Your turn: What was your biggest takeaway from Devinder’s episode? Share your reflection here ➜ EVU Live Recap – Episode 8 with Devinder Sodhi

What Creative Leaders Need Most to Scale With Confidence

Our community poll asked one simple question:

“What stops most creatives from scaling with confidence?”

And your top answers were clear:

• No Clear Positioning
• Lack of a Visibility Plan

And these two challenges appear consistently across creative and brand-building conversations outside Emerging Voices Unite.

Many branding experts emphasize that when positioning is unclear, audiences struggle to understand what someone actually does — a point explored deeply in Harvard Business Review’s work on customer clarity.

Similarly, marketing leaders continue to highlight the importance of visibility in today’s digital landscape. A report featured by The Drum & Ogilvy noted that visibility creates brand memory — and brand memory drives opportunity.

Creatives rarely struggle with talent. They struggle with being clearly seen — and consistently remembered.

Check out the poll to know your pulse: What Stops Creatives From Scaling With Confidence?

How Community Voices Shape Leadership, Confidence & Momentum

Thanksgiving is a season of reflection—of looking at the people, lessons, and moments that helped us grow.

"This week’s community highlights honor two voices whose insights reminded us of the courage, clarity, and gratitude that move leaders forward."

Anna Rooney — “It’s Not the Square. It’s the Move You Make Next.”

Anna’s message felt especially meaningful this Thanksgiving:

Life gives us light squares and dark squares. But gratitude reminds us that every square teaches us something—and every move is a fresh chance to grow.

Her reflection becomes even more powerful in this season. Thanksgiving invites us to pause, breathe, and appreciate:

• The square we’re standing on
• The lessons it taught us
• And the courage it takes to choose our next step

Anna’s words remind us that progress isn’t about perfection—it’s about presence, humility, and one honest move at a time.

• Connect with Anna Rooney to learn how the power of your next move shapes your momentum.
• Read Anna’s full quote highlight to reflect on leadership, clarity, and gratitude this Thanksgiving.

Justin Oberman — “Creatives Don’t Need More Talent. They Need Visibility.”

Justin’s story—a blend of resilience, reinvention, and rediscovery—hits differently during Thanksgiving.

At a time when we reflect on the year behind us, his message is a gentle but powerful reminder:

Your voice isn’t just something you use. It’s something you honor. And honoring it means letting yourself be seen.

Thanksgiving encourages us to look back with appreciation:

• For the moments we almost gave up—but didn’t
• For the people who saw our potential before we did
• For the opportunities that arrived because we chose to show up

Justin’s philosophy—creating digital spectacles—isn’t about ego or performance. It’s about gratitude for your own gifts… and giving others the chance to benefit from them.

Because visibility isn’t self-promotion—it’s service.

• Follow Justin Oberman to understand why creatives don’t need more talent—they need visibility.
• Explore Justin’s full post and poll-inspired highlight to learn how digital spectacles create impact and attention.

How to Build Healthier, More Human Workplaces Through Gratitude, Recovery & Trust

This Thanksgiving, our community gathered for a reflective and research-backed conversation with Sumana Jeddy, MPH, and the Jeddy Wellness Ambassadors— Jason Roeder MS, CPT, Hannah Nease , and Jackson Newton.

Their Workplace Wellness 2025 Year-End Recap wasn’t just an event. It felt like a Thanksgiving table—one filled with insight, honesty, and wisdom about how to build workplaces that honor people first.

1. How Recovery Helps Us Return to Ourselves (and Perform Better Because of It)

Jackson grounded the conversation with a reminder supported by data and lived experience:

“Recovery is the top factor in high-performing teams.”

Thanksgiving is, at its heart, a season of recovery—of rest, reconnection, and renewal.

Why this matters:

• Cognitive recovery strengthens decision-making.
• Emotional recovery improves self-regulation.
• Social recovery reinforces belonging and psychological safety.

An article in PMC notes that recovery practices—microbreaks, detachment, and reflection—directly improve performance, well-being, and creativity.

Recovery is not the luxury we think it is. It’s the quiet act of gratitude that tells our bodies and minds:

“You deserve a pause.”

2. What Workload Teaches Us About Self-Compassion and Boundaries

Hannah introduced one of the most resonant lessons of the year:

The stress we feel often comes not from workload itself—but from the story we attach to it.

She shared how entering open enrollment suddenly created overwhelm, even though the workload hadn’t changed.

Burnout can begin internally—long before it appears on the calendar.

Why this matters:

• Prescribed workload: what’s assigned
• Perceived workload: what we believe we must carry
• Actual workload: what is realistically manageable

A post in LinkedIn shows that burnout is driven by lack of control and internal pressure, not total hours worked.

This season reminds us that boundaries are not walls—they are gifts that protect our peace.

3. How Trust Becomes the Emotional Currency of Effective Teams

Jason broke down five trust-building behaviors essential for human-centered teams:

• Sharing honestly
• Reflective listening
• Micro-communications
• Asking better questions
• Expressing gratitude

His message was simple and deeply aligned with Thanksgiving:

“Gratitude isn’t extra—it’s one of the pillars of trust.”

Trust grows wherever gratitude is practiced consistently—not occasionally.

4. Why Strengths Are the Key to Sustainable Performance (Not Just Productivity)

Sumana highlighted the growing crisis of disengagement, emphasizing that the greatest buffer against burnout is not discipline—it’s alignment.

“Managers are the key buffer against burnout—through strengths-based alignment.”

Why this matters:

When people work from strengths, they:

• gain energy rather than lose it
• feel purpose, not pressure
• stay engaged, even in difficulty

Gallup’s global strengths research shows a 15% decrease in burnout and a 23% increase in engagement when employees use their strengths daily.

Recognizing someone’s strengths is an act of gratitude. It communicates:

“I see what makes you unique—and it matters here.”

Well-being is not a perk. It’s a practice rooted in gratitude, clarity, and human connection.

When leaders honor people—not just outcomes—teams become communities. And communities become places where people can thrive.

• Connect with Sumana Jeddy, MPH and the Jeddy Wellness Ambassadors, Jason Roeder MS, CPT, Hannah Nease, and Jackson Newton to learn how gratitude, recovery, and strengths-based leadership can reshape workplace well-being in 2026.
• Listen to the Part 1 and Part 2 of Workplace Wellness 2025 Year-End Recap to explore the insights, stories, and strategies shared during this powerful Thanksgiving conversation.

Part I: https://www.linkedin.com/video/live/urn:li:ugcPost:7397061993913860096/

Part II: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jeddywellness_workplace-wellness-highlights-2025-year-end-activity-7397066860917104640-Gax3?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAEE6mikBF5Ie5yPu84srelRZ_dEGvPxCLjs

A Thanksgiving Season Built on Gratitude, Clarity & Community

Thanksgiving reminds us that growth isn’t built on speed or scale alone. It’s built on the quieter things—the clarity that steadies us, the gratitude that grounds us, and the relationships that help us rise.

This week’s insights from EVU Live, our community poll, our emerging voices, and the Jeddy Wellness Year-End Recap all pointed to the same truth:

• Leadership becomes stronger when it becomes more human.
• Creativity becomes bolder when we allow ourselves to be seen.
• Teams become healthier when we choose trust, recovery, and compassion.

And communities—like ours—become transformational when every voice is valued.

As we head into the holiday week, we want to thank you for showing up the way you do:

For your ideas. For your honesty. For your courage. For your generosity. For your presence in this community.

Your voice doesn’t just matter— your voice makes this community a place people are grateful to return to.

From all of us at Emerging Voices Unite: Happy Thanksgiving. May your week be filled with rest, clarity, connection, and the kind of gratitude that deepens every step forward.

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