Feb 24, 2025
I first discovered Dr. Mira Brancu’s work through her November 2024 essay in Psychology Today, where she explored the weight of emotional labor in the workplace and offered strategies to help women and marginalized employees navigate these challenges. Her clients are high-performing women seeking practical tools for building and leading high-performing teams.
Dr. Brancu is a psychologist who writes extensively about navigating the workplace, both as a peer and as a leader. One of her key concepts is the idea of “emotional contagion.” Positive contagions can create an uplifting atmosphere, where contagious energy drives motivation and teamwork. However, negative contagions—such as low energy, constant complaining, and pervasive dissatisfaction—can drain the workplace of its potential for productivity and enjoyment.
Dr. Brancu describes how an emotionally intelligent peer or leader can step in to address negativity by leveraging emotional labor. This involves digging deeper into the root causes of discontent, naming the problem, and setting a clear intention to resolve it. She also emphasizes advocating for individual contributions and fostering trust through the creation of interpersonal operating principles. Her approach underscores the importance of emotional intelligence in transforming workplace dynamics.
One particularly valuable resource from our conversation is Dr. Brancu’s Yes/No Audit, a fun and insightful free download available on her website. This tool helps us examine why we say “yes” to the wrong things, empowering us to prioritize what truly matters and avoid being sidetracked by obligations that don’t serve our goals. It’s a practical guide for unlearning unhealthy habits that can keep us stagnant as leaders.
Bio: Dr. Mira Brancu is a consulting and coaching psychologist who specializes in women’s leadership identity development and building adaptive, high-performing teams. She is also an Associate Professor, author of the Millennials Guide to Workplace Politics and companion workbook, Psychology Today columnist of the series, A New Look at Women’s Leadership, and host of The Hard Skills live show and podcast. Her award-winning social impact firm, Towerscope, empowers and elevates women in leadership within disrupted, complex learning and innovation systems.
Website: www.gotowerscope.com
Longer bio on website: https://gotowerscope.
Leadership Academy: https://gotowerscope.
Company Social Media Handles:
-
https://www.linkedin.com/
company/towerscope/ -
https://www.linkedin.com/
company/towerscope-leadership- academy/ -
https://www.facebook.com/
towerscope
Professional Social Media Handles:
-
https://www.linkedin.com/in/
MiraBrancu -
https://www.facebook.com/mira.
brancu.31/ -
https://www.instagram.com/
MiraBrancu -
https://bsky.app/profile/
mirabrancu.bsky.social
The Hard Skills show and podcast:
-
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/
podcast/the-hard-skills/ id1706366751 -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=0xENmagP4Us&list= PLBRIDM9zFt53CbF8-Y_LiHx_ 12xdIQpT1
Millennials Guide to Workplace Politics book:
https://www.amazon.com/
Millennials Workbook for Navigating Workplace
Politics: https://www.amazon.
Recent Articles:
https://www.linkedin.com/