E91 — Julia Korn — Trading "Just Getting By" for a Career You Actually Want

What if the ladder you've been climbing is leaning against the wrong wall? Most of us were handed a blueprint for success. Climb the ranks, check the boxes, keep moving. But what happens when you're excelling on paper and still feel completely hollow inside? According to Gallup, 79% of professionals are operating on autopilot, present in body but absent in purpose. For high-achieving professionals in leadership, that disconnection rarely looks like falling apart. It looks like crushing every goal while quietly burning out from the inside. In this episode of The Fuqua Show, host Aaliyah Brown sits down with Julia Korn, Executive Career Coach, Business Insider "Most Innovative Career Coach," and founder of the Women's Leadership Accelerator, for a conversation that challenges everything you thought you knew about ambition, success, and what it actually means to thrive. Connect with Julia:  LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliakorn/  Women's Leadership Accelerator: https://juliakorn.com/wla  Speaking reel: Julia Korn Speaker Reel 2025  What we unpack in this episode:  Breaking Up with "Should" How one word quietly hijacks your mental health, your decisions, and your sense of self, and what to replace it with. The Burnout Myth Why you don't have to set yourself on fire to rise. Julia reframes what sustainable, skyrocketing career growth actually looks like.  Your Internal Board of Directors Mentors versus sponsors: why the distinction matters more than most people realize, and how to strategically build both into your network. The "Team Fuqua" Mindset How genuine human connection, not just networking, becomes the most powerful career accelerator you're probably underusing. Whether you're early in your career, mid-pivot, or leading teams while secretly wondering is this it? Julia's framework for finding your "magical zone of genius" will challenge you to stop optimizing for other people's definitions of success and start designing a career that's unmistakably yours. If you've been waiting for a sign to stop living by internalized obligation and start leading with intention, this is it. Host: Aaliyah Brown Subscribe: [Apple Podcasts] | [Spotify] | [YouTube] Follow The Fuqua Show: [Instagram] | [LinkedIn] For more information on the Duke MBA experience, visit fuqua.duke.edu/admissions.  This is a student-run production. The opinions expressed are the speakers' own and do not reflect the views of Duke University or the Fuqua School of Business.