Sara Sheehan’s guest in this episode is Robin L. Owens, PhD, a tenured professor in religious studies at Mount Saint Mary’s University in LA and host of the podcast ‘Leadership Purpose with Dr. Robin’. Dr. Robin shares the childhood drive that led her to her third career in religious studies and why she focuses on helping high-achieving women find their leadership purpose through passion, values, and their zone of genius.
Dr. Robin can trace her interest in contemplating the meaning of life right back to when she was six years old, but religious studies wouldn’t become her focus until her third career. Her whole life, however, is motivated by faith. She believes we are all created with a purpose and that it’s our life goal to express that purpose. Some of us express it through life or in big sweeping events, but most of us express it through work and finding our true selves.
In this episode, Sara Sheehan learns why Dr. Robin wrote her two books, how our lives give us clues to the values we possess and what our purpose might be, and how Dr. Robin uses her leadership coaching to guide other women in finding their true purpose and expression of self. Dr. Robin shares moving examples of client successes and she explains the process through which she encourages authors to turn their books into courses to reach a wider audience. The conversation is inspirational and full of beautiful examples of true transformation and leadership.
About Robin L. Owens, PhD:
Robin L. Owens, Ph.D. is a college professor and who spends her time outside of the classroom fulfilling her mission to support high-achieving women leaders.
She describes high-achieving women leaders this way. “They are women who are ambitious, goal-oriented, professional, in official leadership roles or unofficial leadership roles. They are often highly responsible at work and at home… and are doing all the things. They are the ones that are always supporting others. They rarely get support because others think they don’t need it.”
In service to her mission to support high-achieving women leaders–
Robin is the host of the popular podcast “Leadership Purpose with Dr. Robin,” creator of the Purpose-Based, Decision-Making System, founder of MASTERFUL Course Creations, LLC, and author of the forthcoming book – Making Purpose-Based Decisions: An Inspirational Guide to More Meaning and Purpose in Your Business or Career”— and the newly released book “My Faith in the Constitution is Whole: Barbara Jordan and the Politics of Scripture” which is about the unique way Barbara Jordan lived out her leadership purpose.
Robin has over 20 years of experience in researching, teaching and studying meaning and purpose in the lives and work of women leaders. She combines her experience in business, social work and higher education to bring a powerful and personable perspective to her mission of empowering high-achieving women leaders.
Resources discussed in this episode:
- New book waiting list: “M.A.K.E Purpose-Based Decisions” by Robin L. Owens, PhD
- “My Faith in the Constitution is Whole: Barbara Jordan and the Politics of Scripture” by Robin L. Owens, PhD
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Contact Sara Sheehan | Sara Sheehan Consulting:
Contact Robin L. Owens, PhD:
- Website: RobinLOwens.com
- Podcast: Leadership Purpose with Dr. Robin
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Transcript
Sara Sheehan: [00:00:02] Hi there, I’m Sara Sheehan and welcome to my podcast, Transformational Thinkers with Sara Sheehan. Today I’m talking with my friend Doctor Robin Owens about her focus on leadership purpose in all that she does in her work as a tenured professor in religious studies at Mount Saint Mary’s University in LA, on her podcast Leadership Purpose with Doctor Robin and in her books. Doctor Robin, I am so glad to get to spend time with you today and you are such an interesting, interesting person and you have such a warm heart that I’m so glad to be able to share you with our listeners.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:00:50] Thank you Sara, I’m just so glad to be here. I consider it an honor. I know, I can tell your commitment to this work and how important it is to you to get this message out, so it’s a joy and a privilege to be here. Thank you for having me.
Sara Sheehan: [00:01:03] Absolutely. I’m thrilled to have you here today. And so tell me a little bit about what led you to get a PhD in Religious Studies from Claremont Graduate University.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:01:15] Pursuing a PhD was a third career move. I’m guessing some listeners might understand something about a third career move, but if I really look back and reflect on it, I think it’s at the core of who I am to always pursue the big questions of life. And that’s what the PhD in Religious Studies helped me to do: pursue the big questions of meaning and purpose. And when I have a distinct memory of being about six years old, and when I look back, I think this is where it all started. And it took me three careers to get there. But that’s where it started. Six years old, summertime, out of school for the summer, sitting on the front porch of my family’s home, it has a big front porch, three story family home in Connecticut, and I think a lot of the homes in the northeast are like this looks like a big house on the outside, but there are three family units in the inside. So my parents owned the home, my cousins lived on the second and third floor. There are about eight cousins and siblings and all of us. But I was not with them, i was sitting on the front porch quietly, having some time to myself, looking across the street into the trees, and I hear my father inside with the other, my siblings and cousins, they were playing and about to come out onto the porch, and he said to them, Don’t go out there and bother Robin, she’s out there contemplating the meaning of life. And they laughed and they thought that was so funny. And I felt embarrassed because I was not like the other kids, you know, they were all playing together and I was out there by myself. And so I felt weird. I felt like I was the weird one and the strange one. But when I became an adult and I started thinking, reflecting on that, I was like, oh my goodness, my father knew, he was right. I was doing that and he was protecting me. He wasn’t shaming me. He was protecting my time. And so–
Sara Sheehan: [00:03:32] — that’s beautiful.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:03:33] I’ve always been that person since then until now. So I believe that’s at the crux of pursuing a PhD in religion.
Sara Sheehan: [00:03:40] Excellent. So you are always contemplating the deeper meaning in life, even at six years old.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:03:47] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:03:47] That’s excellent. And so what role would you say that your faith has played in creating your current career foundation in publishing and speaking, in teaching, obviously in higher education, in writing and podcasting and more?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:04:08] Yes. My whole life is motivated by faith. I believe, for me and for everyone, but I’m talking about for me, I believe we are all created with a purpose. And I believe it’s our life’s work to then express that purpose, whether it’s in the job, a career or not. We are created to express what that is, and I believe it is not always what people tend to think. Generally, they think it’s a big, you know, huge, monumental thing like curing, curing cancer. It could be that. But for most people, I believe it is to express the best of who you are, who you were created to be. Your true self. Now these sound all kind of vague words like who is that? But for me, I have a way of understanding and have learned to teach others how to get at who they are. And then the purpose is to just express that, whether you express it on your job or somewhere else. And I tend to focus on expressing it through work. But that’s a spiritual principle that guides me. And so based on my faith that we are created to express our purpose.
Sara Sheehan: [00:05:29] And so essentially what our foundational design is.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:05:33] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:05:34] Is what we’re talking about here. And so talk with me a little bit more about what you think leadership purpose is and how passion, values, natural abilities, and service play into it.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:05:49] Yes, that is everything I just said in a nutshell, right? I believe, like I said, we’re called to express ourselves. That’s our purpose. And when you do that through your vocation, through your career, through your work, that’s what I call leadership purpose. Now, some people might not work, they might express their purpose in other ways. For example, a parent at home with children expressing that as their purpose. So my focus is specifically when people express their purpose through their work and the way they get at their purpose. Remember I mentioned being who they truly are, I believe our life gives us clues and the clues takes the form of our passions, those things we really love, our values, those things that really matter to us. Our natural abilities, gifts, strengths, zone of genius. And when we combine those things not in and of themselves, only when those, all three of them are combined, some aspect of all three of them are combined in service to someone beyond yourself, then you’re in your purpose.
Sara Sheehan: [00:07:06] And so it’s combining that zone of genius–
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:07:10] — values and passions.
Sara Sheehan: [00:07:13] Mmhmm, and that audience, essentially.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:07:18] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:07:18] The person that you’re supposed to be serving.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:07:21] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:07:22] It may be a persona or a type of individual or a type of business.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:07:27] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:07:27] Or an actual ideal client.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:07:29] Or a cause or something that’s significant to you.
Sara Sheehan: [00:07:33] That’s beautiful. I love that. And so talk with me a little bit about the books that you have written so far. And I say so far, because I’m pretty confident there’s going to be more.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:07:50] You must be reading my mind.
Sara Sheehan: [00:07:52] There’s going to be more. And so the two books that I’m aware of, ‘Making Purpose-Based Decisions: An Inspirational Guide to More Meaning and Purpose in Your Business and Career’, and the other book, ‘My Faith in the Constitution is Whole: Barbara Jordan and the Politics of Scripture’. I commend you for beautiful titles–
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:08:17] — oh, thank you–
Sara Sheehan: [00:08:18] — by the way.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:08:19] Thank you. I appreciate that. You know, I enjoy doing that. So to hear you say that means something to me.
Sara Sheehan: [00:08:25] Excellent. And so I’d love to hear a little bit about the through-line, essentially what the main message is for the two books that you have brought into the world so far.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:08:40] The through-line is what we’ve been talking about already. It’s my understanding and interpretation of leadership purpose. And the Barbara Jordan was a a leader, a woman leader back in the 1970s, and she used her purpose and expressed it through her work in politics. And so that was her, she was on a mission. She happened to be Christian, but she explicitly expressed her purpose without preaching religion, but using the avenue of politics to make a difference. So that was her leadership purpose. And the other book you mentioned is on its way to be published. So it’s coming out into the world soon, and that chronicles my own career journey and the lessons I’ve learned and how I’ve taught people to now discover and then express their leadership purpose.
Sara Sheehan: [00:09:40] And so a natural extrapolation of this discussion for me is if so much of your work is around leadership purpose, and you’re talking with so many people in the world, whether it’s a student in a classroom environment or a potential client out in the world, you, I assume, are also trying to get the people that you’re working with, whether it’s students or clients, to help them to tune in to what their true leadership purpose is and understand that zone of genius. Is that correct?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:10:27] Yes, that’s absolutely correct. And to help them with the end goal of expressing the best of who they are, because when they tap into their natural abilities, which we were calling zone of genius, combined, like I say, with the values and the passion in service, it’s the only way to express the best of who you are. Which, by the way, is also your purpose. And so yes, I do that everywhere I go for whoever will listen, I shout it from the mountaintops.
Sara Sheehan: [00:10:58] Excellent, excellent. And so if you’re helping a client outside of a higher education environment, you’re working with a client professionally, you do that through coaching and what other modalities might you employ in that engagement?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:11:19] Yes. In addition to coaching, which takes a form sort of executive leadership coaching, there is workshops. The teacher in me, as you know, I teach at a university, so the teacher in me loves to teach. I have online courses and I do, I speak, you know, keynote or whatever kinds of presentations. And it’s always about this message and the transformation and confidence that could come in people’s lives when they have this experience.
Sara Sheehan: [00:11:50] Excellent. And don’t you also help someone, if they have created a book, turn that into a course? Isn’t that one of the things, one of the many things you do.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:12:02] It is, again the teacher in me can’t help but teach. And those authors mostly so far they’ve been women. They’ve written a book because they have a message. They have something that can help others, and I consider it an honor and a privilege to be able to help them put that book in the format where they can reach so many more people. And with such, with a drastically reduced amount of time, effort and energy through a course. Of course the book has its place, but you can do more with the course. So I feel like that’s part of my way of making a difference by helping them get their message out into the world in a broader way. So it’s still all connected to purpose and helping them live their purpose and deliver their message.
Sara Sheehan: [00:12:52] Mhm. Let’s say someone comes to you tomorrow, a new client. How long does that take? What’s the time frame of a project for you when someone knocks on your door and says, Doctor Robin, I really need your help. I have a book I know I could have a course. How long will it take me to create and stand this up?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:13:23] Now of course, that depends on the work the person does.
Sara Sheehan: [00:13:27] Of course, of course. Let’s say they are an amazing achiever. They’re very focused and they set aside an acceptable amount of time on a daily basis five days a week.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:13:44] Yeah, if they did it five days a week, they could have it probably done within a month, 30 days, I would say. But the average high achieving woman in the busyness of it all, 90 days is a better time frame with all this thing came up, I’m traveling here and doing all that.
Sara Sheehan: [00:14:01] That sounds reasonable.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:14:02] 90 days is, but I mean, when you think about it, when the book is done and doing the work to transform it into a different format, take some work and some time. But when you have a book, you have a head start on those who don’t have a book, so to speak. When you’re creating a course.
Sara Sheehan: [00:14:20] Well, I can certainly understand the completeness of thought, the extents that the amount of thinking that you put into the outline, follow through on major thoughts, areas that you might want to focus or dive into. Areas for additional inquiry as well as discussion or engagement.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:14:49] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:14:51] Might come out once you already have a book.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:14:54] You’re absolutely right. And often authors hear from their readers so they know what the next steps are, what people want, what the readers want to be your point. A deeper dive, so to speak, and moving into more of the implementation now that they have a general understanding of whatever their particular topic is.
Sara Sheehan: [00:15:14] Excellent. Well, I really appreciate you letting me double click a couple of levels down into the work that you do specifically with clients. I’d love to hear a couple of examples that you might be able to share of client engagements where you’ve actually worked with a client one on one, and the transformation that you’ve actually achieved based on your work with the individual, not only to highlight the individual and what they’re able to do, but how you are engaging with the client and making a difference.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:15:57] Yes, and as you mentioned earlier, I have two lanes, two lanes of clients. One we just talked about. Basically, my clients are high achieving women. Authors. And so for those who want to broaden their message and create a course based on their book, that’s one lane. The second lane are women who are high achieving women who have moved up the career ladder in one way or another, only to get to the top to find that they’re at the top of the wrong ladder. Something is missing. They’ve been working for others’ expectations and doing all the things and making all the achievements and then they get there and they find that they are missing in the equation. So those are the two lanes. Which would you want to hear? You asked about the transformation, which was your question directed toward?
Sara Sheehan: [00:16:59] You are, this is totally what you would like to share. And so you could share one of each, or you could share two of one lane. It’s totally up to you.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:17:10] Okay, I’ll do one of each. In the course, we’ll start there, in the course creation. I distinctly remember a client who was passionate. She knew, she knew that she had a message that she wanted to get out there, but she had so much information. And even being a high achiever, she had a great level of doubt. Often times it’s not the material, it’s not organizing it, which I do help them do. I, like, this is the way you structure it and this is the way you can do it. But often is the question behind it is this good enough? Is this the right way? And looking for validation, which certainly is understandable. If that’s not your background, you would have those concerns. So in addition to the step by step process of organizing her content and how to deliver it, because often these women who have written books are also good speakers, and so that even, that’s not even the issue. It’s just like, what part am I going to say when? So I saw her transformation from having what she thought was a lot of information, didn’t know what to do with it, and having a, I don’t want to say a crisis of confidence because that might be too strong, but really having some real confidence issues, to, at the end, not only having the course that she put out into the world with glee and joy, but she had the confidence that this was her message and that it was what she was intended to do, which was help people. And so I could see her blossom right before me, which ties back to my belief about purpose. The best of who you are. So now she’s operating in the best of who she is, because she has the confidence to go forth and do her work in ways that she didn’t have.
Sara Sheehan: [00:19:12] That’s beautiful.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:19:13] And on the other side of it, for the woman who is at the top of the wrong career ladder, I’m thinking of a client who had already raised her children, taking care of her husband, high ranks in her company where she’s been for years, and looking back to say, where am I in all this? And interestingly enough, as I work with her, she had a book inside of her, but she didn’t want to call it a book. She had all these notes and things that she had collected, these brilliant thoughts, and she said, I have a writing project. Because she too was afraid, that was their confidence issue, to call it a book, because she hadn’t done a book yet and she was uncertain about are these thoughts good enough to call a book? Although she had been working with people throughout her career, coaching and counseling within the job context. So we walk through those, I helped her understand what I said to you before – passions, values, natural abilities – and how to use those in service in a way that works for her. And this is for clients whether they want to do that still within their job, or if they decide that they want to leave the job and do it elsewhere. But getting really clear about who that is and how your purpose has been calling you your whole life to be expressed. And it’s a beautiful transformation to see.
Sara Sheehan: [00:20:52] And so in that, in that particular case, that particular client, did she make the choice to step out of the business context?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:21:03] No, she did not.
Sara Sheehan: [00:21:04] Or did she stay she in the same area but just started to formulate her book?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:21:12] Yeah, I love that. I love that question. It’s very astute. I love that question. She stayed. However, she proposed a new role. There was, she was doing a little side project that really lit her up. You know, it energized her, was a little, that’s really where her passion was. But that was only like 25% of the role. She proposed to do 75% in that role and 25% in the other while she’s still working on this writing project, which I’m guessing one day will be a book out into the world. Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:21:51] That’s fascinating.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:21:52] Yeah, she got clear on really the work that she wanted to do within the company and how she felt she could make a difference.
Sara Sheehan: [00:21:59] And so that’s a true example of leadership coaching, leadership and executive and leadership coaching.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:22:05] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:22:06] That’s wonderful. And so do you help people through the process of publishing a book if they want that expertise?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:22:15] I don’t, my company doesn’t do that. But I partner with another company that takes that piece on because I have to do what I preach. So I stay in my zone of genius.
Sara Sheehan: [00:22:26] Perfect, perfect. That’s wonderful. Those are really powerful, very powerful and wonderful case studies in my opinion. And so I’d love to hear what your big aspirational goals are right now and where you see yourself going in the future.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:22:48] Yes, I have a goal. Well, it’s more of a vision, right? This big aspiration to see so many women, high achieving women, whether they’re in official leadership roles or unofficial leadership roles, are experiencing what I just mentioned to you from both lanes, both sides, this confidence, this, you know, their confidence in some areas of their life and work, but other areas because they don’t have that purpose or this idea of something missing. I would, I imagine myself leading a movement of millions of women who did not have purpose, who are now living out their purpose and living from who they truly are and spreading their message out into the world. That’s my big grand vision.
Sara Sheehan: [00:23:43] That’s beautiful. I love it, it’s quite luminous.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:23:46] Yes. Yeah, and imagine thinking about what they could be doing, what they’re already doing, and to have so many more women doing that. I mean, just the thought of it just makes me smile.
Sara Sheehan: [00:23:57] That is a beautiful vision. And so that tells me there’s something bigger that you see yourself doing to bring that vision to life.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:24:08] Yes, and I do, I do what I tell others. Stay in the moment. Right? Because a lot of times if we get ahead of ourselves, that’s when we talk ourselves off, you know, talk ourselves out of it. I don’t know what it, what that vision, how it will come into fruition. However, I do know for now the people who come to me, having conversations with you, on my own podcast, writing my books, speaking, teaching, coaching, that it will reveal itself as time moves on. But for me to continue to do the work and that’s what I would say to others, do what you know where you are now, bloom where you’re planted.
Sara Sheehan: [00:24:54] That’s lovely. I see you taking the things that you’re doing now, and it’s almost like turning the aperture of a camera lens so that it may open a little bit more and let a little bit more light in, and you might have a new frame on what it’s supposed to be.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:25:20] Yes, I love that.
Sara Sheehan: [00:25:22] Yeah. I think it won’t take very long for you to see what that is, and it may just be a shade different from what you’re currently doing or adding something in.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:25:35] I’m excited.
Sara Sheehan: [00:25:35] It’d be fascinating to journal on that for 30 days and see what reveals to you, what you learn.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:25:45] Yes. Yeah. You know, and I’m a person who likes to reflect, so I will do that.
Sara Sheehan: [00:25:52] Excellent. Is there anything else that you have on your heart that you want to share about what you’re working on right now? Concerns that you have, desires in your heart that you’d love to see people reflect on and consider for themselves?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:26:15] Yes. I’d like to just reiterate in a different way what I’ve been saying, really, but to kind of tie it up in a bow and put a bow on it. We’ve gone through some tough times in recent years with the pandemic and all the societal and world situations. And we’ve gone through a collective trauma, most of us. I’d love to, whoever’s listening or the message to get out to say, it is good and right to take some time to think about yourself. It is good and right to do the things you love. To do the things that matter to you, the things you’re good at. Because we feel like we don’t always have permission to do it. And if that didn’t teach us anything, that those years of that crisis and chaos, it’s calling us to question what really matters. So I encourage people, take time. Think about it. Because I’m imagining lots of people are thinking about it, but still not ready to take a move. Not only is it okay to do, back to my belief, if it’s on your mind like that, you’re being called to do it from your best self to be your true self. You may not be the same person you were when you started, whenever you started your career. This is your life calling you forward. Listen to it and follow it.
Sara Sheehan: [00:27:59] That is so heartfelt and absolutely speaks to my soul. And I think it is a wonderful thing for anyone that’s lucky enough to listen to this episode, to sit and reflect on and think, is there anything that I’m not currently doing that I feel called to do.? Because when that small voice speaks to you and calls you to write or make music or do something creative, and you keep trying to stuff it down, you’re not showing your own light or living out your foundational design.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:28:49] Yes.
Sara Sheehan: [00:28:50] That is beautiful. I think the world would be a much kinder place if more people were living out their purpose.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:28:56] I believe so too.
Sara Sheehan: [00:28:58] That is amazing. And so what other things are you working on, Doctor Robin?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:29:05] Well, that sounds like quite a bit already.
Sara Sheehan: [00:29:09] It is definitely. You have a lot going on. There’s no question about that. I’m very impressed with how productive you are, but I figured there’s something else in the back of your mind that you’re working on.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:29:23] Yeah. One thing I think, I don’t think we talked about my podcast. We kind of mentioned that I do host a podcast. So I do want to just highlight that as an avenue.
Sara Sheehan: [00:29:33] Let’s talk about Leadership Purpose with Doctor Robin. And I was so blessed to be part of your podcast, and I personally can’t thank you enough for that opportunity.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:29:49] Well, I’m so grateful to have your voice join us in the podcast. And the podcast stems from my heart’s compassion and call for high achieving women, women who are responsible, ambitious, goal-oriented, good at a couple things. People come to them for questions at work, in business, at home, whether it’s their area of expertise or not, people tend to come to them or want to, you know, pick their brain for one thing or another. And they’re doing all the things. So the podcast is a direct result of my questioning who supports them while they’re supporting everyone else? So the podcast is an opportunity for high achieving women to come together and support each other, to be the, they are always the leaders, so where do they get support? And I started the podcast later in my career, living out this thing that I teach of following my passions. Because when I was in high school, I had a secret fantasy that I never told anyone because I didn’t think it was possible. I said, you know, I’d really love to be on the radio – because back then there weren’t podcasts – but it was always sort of in the back of my, I was like, oh, that would be wonderful to be on the radio. And then when podcasts became a thing, I thought, ah, here’s my opportunity to follow a long-held passion.
Sara Sheehan: [00:31:22] That’s fantastic, I love it. You know, I’ve never, I love the extrapolation there because I hadn’t even thought about the radio. I really hadn’t even thought about it because I’ve been so focused on the medium in a different way. And so that’s, that’s really special for me. That’s very special.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:31:47] And I hear your voice and you have a radio voice, now podcast, radio podcast voice, something that I think draws in the attention of the listener.
Sara Sheehan: [00:31:58] That’s very touching. Thank you, very – that’s a very nice compliment. And you have an amazing voice as well.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:32:05] Thank you. And I’m drawn to voices. I’m a bit of an audiophile. You know, some people really listen to, you know, music in a certain way. I listen to good speakers and good voices. Speaking voices.
Sara Sheehan: [00:32:18] That’s, that’s wonderful. And so are there favorite icons that you have from radio or television, from other mediums? Favorite voices?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:32:34] Not, not particular voices. But here’s an interesting tidbit, because if they’re good, I like them. Like if they’re on the news, if they’re on C-Span, even the sports announcers. So this is the tidbit: I love how the sports announcers, especially like in basketball because they’re moving so fast, how they can keep up with the movement of ten people and speak the movements at the same time so the listeners and the watchers could have their perspective in real time. And when they do it with a nice, clear, strong voice, this is what I’m listening to like people are listening to music.
Sara Sheehan: [00:33:11] Yeah. I think it takes a lot of training, honestly, for the sportscaster, especially when they’ve been an athlete first to take on that role, I think it takes a long time to learn. I think it would be very hard. You definitely have to be a student of the game outside of being a player to take that on and do it well.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:33:38] Yes. And the ability, the thing that I’m so struck by, the ability to communicate what your eyes see out of your mouth in real time, quickly like that, with a nice flow.
Sara Sheehan: [00:33:47] There’s definitely individuals that are more talented than others.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:33:53] Yes, like with everything. Right?
Sara Sheehan: [00:33:55] Exactly.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:33:57] Like with every craft, there’s someone.
Sara Sheehan: [00:33:59] Exactly. And I definitely think that we can all get better at anything that we want to improve on if we work at it every single day.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:34:10] Absolutely, absolutely.
Sara Sheehan: [00:34:12] Doctor Robin, tell our listeners how they can find you.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:34:18] I would love for them to listen to my podcast since they like podcasts. And you can find my podcast wherever you listen to audio podcasts. And it is Leadership Purpose with Doctor Robin, Leadership Purpose with Doctor Robin. And if you want a video component we are also on YouTube, so I’d love for you to come on over, listen to the podcast, be encouraged, inspired, and motivated. And if you want to follow me on social media, I’m on LinkedIn primarily at Robin L Owens, PhD. @RobinLOwensPhD. And I’d love to hear from you.
Sara Sheehan: [00:34:59] Perfect. Our listeners will certainly be checking you out, and they can find detailed information in the show notes as well. Excellent. Well, we’ve had a fascinating discussion today, Doctor Robin. Is there anything else that’s on your mind or heart that you want to share?
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:35:18] I want to thank you for doing the work that you’re doing. It’s important work. It’s meaningful. I could see your passion and your commitment for it. So I want to thank you for that and encourage you to keep up the good work.
Sara Sheehan: [00:35:31] Thank you so much.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:35:33] Perfect.
Sara Sheehan: [00:35:34] Thanks so much.
Dr. Robin Owens: [00:35:35] Thank you.
Sarah Sheehan: [00:35:36] Thank you for listening to episode 12, Harnessing Your Leadership Purpose with Doctor Robin L Owens. There are three big takeaways from today’s session for transformational thinking. First, purpose-driven leadership. Learning to integrate your passions, values, and natural abilities to create meaningful impact in your work and service to others. Second, embracing change. Hear how collective experiences such as the pandemic can serve as a catalyst for self-reflection and embracing new opportunities in line with your life’s calling. And third, transformative guidance. Discover the resources and support Doctor Owens provides to women who seek to project their true selves more confidently in their professional lives. Thanks so much for tuning in. As always, subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify so you never miss an episode.
