Leadership Story Talks | Jerome & Julienne Discuss Challenged Values

“Go back to your own experiences, your own stories, and see where your values were reinforced, where they were challenged, and what happened.” — Jerome Deroy

In this debrief episode of Leadership Story Talks, Jerome Deroy and Julienne Ryan reflect on their conversation with Giovanna Rossi and explore what happens when the demands of everyday life begin to pull us away from what matters most.

They dig into Giovanna’s observations about burnout, competing priorities, and the disconnect that can emerge when our actions no longer align with our values. As Julienne points out, this can be especially visible at pivotal moments in life, when professional responsibilities intersect with caring for children, aging parents, relationships, and our own needs.

Jerome and Julienne also explore why values can feel abstract until they are tested. It’s easy to say that we value family, integrity, trust, or wellbeing when things are going smoothly. The harder—and perhaps more revealing—question is what happens when circumstances put those values under pressure. Jerome suggests looking back at specific experiences when a value was reinforced or challenged to better understand what it actually means to us.

The conversation turns to the stories and expectations we carry with us: assumptions about what success should look like, the pressure to “do it all,” and what Julienne calls the “press release” version of our lives—the polished story that leaves out what it really takes to make everything work. Challenging those scripts can help us recognize when we're living according to someone else’s expectations rather than our own values.

Ultimately, Jerome and Julienne make the case for using our own stories as a tool for self-awareness. By examining moments of overwhelm, conflict, or burnout with curiosity, we can begin to understand not only what happened to us, but the choices and patterns that contributed to it—and where we might want to course correct.

You’ll Hear

- Why other people’s urgent priorities can gradually overwhelm our own
- What happens when our actions and values fall out of alignment
- How pivotal experiences can reveal what our values actually mean
- Why stories are essential to understanding people’s experiences before creating policies or organizational change
- How cultural scripts around success, perfection, and “doing it all” shape our choices
- Julienne’s idea of the “Greek chorus” we carry with us—and why some of those voices may need to be sent offstage
- How reflecting on moments of burnout can reveal patterns, assumptions, and choices
- Why transparency about what we’re experiencing can create connection and remind others that they’re not alone

Resources

Listen to the full conversation with Giovanna Rossi for more on her work around women, families, workplace policies, reclaiming time, and creating lives that better reflect what matters to us.

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