Jackie Insinger - Spark Brilliance Spark Memos
Your weekly boost of practical leadership wisdom - rooted in neuroscience, backed by data, and crafted for real-world results. Each memo offers a spark of insight to help you lead with clarity, empathy, and purpose - especially when things get messy.
This Is What Growth Actually Feels Like
It wasn’t about the laptop Hey Spark Family, This week we are on Spring Break. On paper, it’s an exciting trip. We’re visiting incredible schools. Exploring new cities. Walking campuses that could shape Miles’s future. One of them is Duke, my alma mater, which makes it feel even more full circle. And yet, if I’m honest, I feel sick to my stomach. Not dramatic sick. Quiet, constant, in-the-background sick. Because this trip is not just a trip.It’s a marker. A reminder that in only a year and a...
The feedback leaders stop getting (and what it costs them)
The feedback leaders stop getting (and what it costs them) Hey Spark Family, I’ve watched this happen in real time more times than I can count. A leader starts their career surrounded by honest input. People challenge their thinking. Push back on decisions. Offer ideas that sharpen the work. The conversations are direct, sometimes messy, but incredibly useful. Then something changes. They get promoted. And the feedback gets softer. More careful. More filtered. Not because the problems...
Your Greatest Strength Might Be Holding You Back
Your Greatest Strength Might Be Holding You Back Hey Spark Family, Think about the last time something broke down at work. A deadline slipped. A client escalated. A decision stalled. A relationship got tense. Who fixed it? If the honest answer is “usually me,” this one is for you. Being the most reliable person in the room feels good. It builds trust. It builds credibility. Over time, people start to breathe a little easier when you’re there because they know you’ll catch what might fall. But...
Why Psychological Safety Is the ROI You Can’t Ignore
Why Psychological Safety Is the ROI You Can’t Ignore Hey Spark Family, If you want to know whether a strategy will succeed, don’t start with the plan. Start with the level of trust in the room. I’ve been in too many executive sessions where the strategy was solid. The talent was strong. The goals were clear. And still, progress stalled. Why? Because people didn’t feel safe enough to challenge ideas, admit risk, ask hard questions, or disagree openly. Psychological safety is not a...
It wasn’t about the laptop
It wasn’t about the laptop Hey Spark Family, On Friday morning, I cried over a laptop. A brand new one. The kind that is supposed to signal progress and growth. A fresh chapter. Instead, I was staring at a screen that said my data transfer would take 118 hours. One hundred and eighteen hours. At first, I actually laughed. It felt absurd. And then I felt the tightness in my chest. The heat rising up my neck. That familiar surge of panic that doesn’t come from the thing itself, but from what...
When There’s Nowhere to Promote a Star Employee
When There’s Nowhere to Promote a Star Employee Hey Spark Family, So many leaders I talk to right now are carrying the same quiet tension. They have a star employee.Someone capable, committed, and clearly ready for more. And yet, there’s nowhere for them to go. No open role above them. No obvious next step. No clean promotion path.Just a growing gap between what this person is ready for and what the organization can offer. This moment is becoming more common. Flat structures. Slower...
The Leadership Disconnect: Why Engagement Isn’t Enough
The Leadership Disconnect: Why Engagement Isn’t Enough Hey Spark Family, If you’ve noticed your team’s energy dipping lately, you’re not alone.Across industries, engagement is falling - again. According to Gallup’s 2025 Global Workplace Report, only 21% of employees are actively engaged at work, and just one in three say they’re thriving in their overall wellbeing. At the same time, leaders are reporting record levels of burnout, pressure, and disconnection. Here’s the reality:We’ve measured...
Your Values Are Your Leadership Operating System
Your Values Are Your Leadership Operating System Hey Spark Family, As the first month of 2026 comes to a close, I’ve been thinking about something that doesn’t make many leadership headlines - but quietly shapes everything: values. Most leaders can list their company’s values. Fewer can name their own. And even fewer can point to where those values show up in their calendar, their decisions, and their culture. Your values are the anchor of how you lead. They determine what you protect, what...
The Moment My Body Told Me What Mattered Most
The Moment My Body Told Me What Mattered Most Hey Spark Family, Yesterday was one of those days. The kind where everything feels heavier than it should. Very little sleep, too many things going sideways, and work piling up faster than I could keep up with it. My anxiety was high, and my nervous system felt shot and on high alert at the same time. You know the feeling. Swimming against the current, trying to keep your head above water. My husband was out of town, and by early evening I was...
The Leadership Energy Equation: Why Motivation Isn’t Enough
The Leadership Energy Equation: Why Motivation Isn’t Enough Hey Spark Family, January is supposed to feel energizing.But for many leaders, it already feels draining. Motivation peaks for a week or two - then meetings, deadlines, and decision fatigue take over.Because motivation runs on emotion.And emotion burns fast. Leaders don’t need more inspiration.They need an energy system - one that sustains performance long after the spark fades. The Research Is Clear Leaders who intentionally manage...
Your weekly boost of practical leadership wisdom - rooted in neuroscience, backed by data, and crafted for real-world results. Each memo offers a spark of insight to help you lead with clarity, empathy, and purpose - especially when things get messy.