Get to know
Heidi Kasevich, PhD, founder of Kase Leadership.
Heidi Kasevich, PhD is an educator, leadership coach, and the founder of Kase Leadership. She began her career as a high school history teacher. During her years in the classroom, Dr. Kasevich saw herself reflected in many of her introverted students. They sat back, let their classmates take the lead, and rarely spoke up or shared their opinions. She knew they had brilliant ideas and strong points of view. So, she dedicated herself to empowering these students while honoring their personalities. She worked to educate quiet leaders.
Now, Dr. Kasevich coaches leaders of both large and small organizations to harness the power of their introverted nature. She provides professional development to help organizations to become introvert-inclusive. She consults with schools to build leadership cultures that value all personalities equally and ensure all voices are heard. Her forthcoming book, published by Bloomsbury Publishing Inc, Silent Talk: Setting the Stage for Introverts to Thrive in the Classroom and Beyond, offers research-based strategies to create inclusive classrooms where introverts are as valued as their extroverted counterparts for their potential to learn and lead.
In addition to her work with Kase Leadership, Dr. Kasevich is the Director of the gcLi School Certification and Virtual Programs, two programs offered by the Gardner Carney Leadership Institute, an organization founded to educate teachers to teach leadership to students. In her programs, she is dedicated to training educators to nurture the next generation to be self-aware, humble, resilient and compassionate leaders.
She formerly served as Director of Education at Susan Cain’s Quiet Revolution, during which she launched a national introvert-inclusivity professional development program. She is also the coauthor of The Introverted Actor: Practical Approaches, a Palgrave Macmillan textbook written to empower quiet performers to leverage their strengths and navigate all aspects of the profession.
Dr. Kasevich’s Strength-Stretch-Restore Method
How can we set the stage for introverts to thrive as leaders?
Dr. Kasevich’s approach is threefold:
Strength: A 2014 Quiet Revolution study done with the Values in Action Institute revealed that there are correlations between temperament and character strengths. Introverts tend to have humility, perspective, prudence. Framing these characteristics as strengths is the first step.
Stretch: In cultivating quiet leadership, we must also be attentive to helping introverts to step outside of their comfort zones and do seemingly risky things, such as giving speeches, advocating for themselves, or interviewing for a coveted position. We can scaffold meaningful and comfortable stretching and reduce anxiety around behaviors that do not come naturally to introverts.
Restore: When we stretch, it is imperative that we take time to recharge. For an introvert, knowing when “alone time” can occur is critical. Set up time to recharge after a comfortable stretch, with no pressure to socialize.