The Surprising POWER of Awkwardness & How You Can Harness It with Henna Pryor
In this episode of the Influence Anyone podcast (previously Legend Effect), host Howie Chan interviews Henna Pryor, a Workplace Performance Expert, a 2x TEDx speaker, a regular expert columnist for Inc. Magazine, and a best-selling author. They delve into what embracing awkwardness really entails, the skills now being lost in the modern era that we need to recreate in the workplace, and what it looks like to make big career pivots.
The discussion emphasizes how feeling awkward is not something to fix but something that can actually be your biggest asset for professional and personal growth. Henna provides tips and insights into how to successfully navigate awkward moments and situations, build deeper connections, get better at selling, and become more confident.
Episode Breakdown:
02:21 The Helen story: navigating extreme awkwardness at work for the first time
05:41 Making a choice between two risks
08:25 A real-life awkward moment
09:52 A crazy travel schedule
11:10 Taking aligned action over avoiding discomfort
13:32 Awkward confidence
14:53 How to get good at navigating awkward moments
21:09 Practical tips to help you face awkward situations
25:38 The cultural shift toward being less perfect
27:47 Awkwardness and vulnerability
30:12 The decision to leave an explosive 14-year career in staffing
33:54 An exercise for high achievers to overcome the fear of career change
35:41 Telling Henna’s South Asian parents about her career pivots
36:54 The blessing of starting from scratch during the Pandemic
38:25 How difficult it was for Henna to pivot throughout her career
40:31 A hard-earned but transformational lesson
42:08 A tactical sales hack
45:02 How awkwardness became Henna’s banner
47:32 The value of placing a small bet
51:13 Awkward conversations are what will help heal humanity
53:50 A letter to Henna’s younger self
55:28 Henna’s current definition of success
From Our Guest:
Get the book, Good Awkward.
Watch Henna’s 2 TEDxTalks Want to get ahead at work? Risk the awkward moments and The new way to brag in the modern world - and feel good doing it.
Want 75 hacks to become more charismatic?
Get your FREE copy of my Charisma Tactical Toolkit.
Quotes:
“The truth is the most confident people do not get to avoid awkwardness. They just have a very fast comeback rate.” – Henna Pryor
“ Awkwardness grows in the dark and shrinks in the light.” – Howie Chan
“ We have to be willing to withstand our awkwardness to be in service of the people that we serve.” – Henna Pryor
The Influence Anyone Podcast
The #1 podcast on applied influence psychology. Each episode, Howie Chan, a veteran brand and behavior strategist sits down with world experts and practitioners to uncover the hidden psychology that helps you influence yourself (mastering your mindset, habits, and decisions) and get buy-in from others (your team, clients, and audiences.) Together, we turn science into playbooks you can apply to lead, persuade, and create extraordinary success.
New episodes weekly. Subscribe and start influencing with intention.