In this episode, Rocky and Lucia dive deep into the complexities of leadership, personal growth, and the often invisible gender dynamics at play in professional settings. Lucia Simek joins Rocky for a vulnerable and candid discussion about the motivations behind life choices, drawing on personal anecdotes from therapy to explore whether you act to heal old wounds or to express our true selves.

They tackle the "soft skills" of leadership, reframing them as essential tools that are frequently undervalued, and provide a critical look at the subtle ways power is reclaimed through body language in mixed-gender environments. This episode is a call-to-action for a return to basic decorum and grace, emphasizing that the most toxic things lose their power once we find the courage to say them out loud.

Episode Highlights with Timestamps:

00:00:12 – The Drive of Personal History: Reflecting on how a desire to avoid the mistakes of past generations can subconsciously fuel current decisions.

00:02:10 – Filling Gaps vs. Authentic Action: Navigating the tension between acting to heal a personal deficiency and acting out of a true fulfillment of self.

00:04:21 – The Satisfaction of Being: Understanding why doing something to "be something" is more fulfilling than doing it just to "prove something."

00:06:15 – Leading with Righteous Anger: Using "fire" or "righteous anger" as a tool for staff advocacy, and how this internal heat is often missed by others.

00:10:32 – The Double Standard of Anger: A look at the misogyny women face when they deploy anger as a legitimate professional tool.

00:14:00 – Subtle Power Reclamations: How distracted body language—like shuffling papers or avoiding eye contact—is used to reclaim power in conversations.

00:16:04 – Radical Advocacy through Listening: How men can be better advocates simply by maintaining eye contact and giving "air" to women's voices.

00:17:31 – The Fallacy of "Soft Skills": Challenging the dismissal of empathy and listening as secondary skills when traditional "hard" leadership is failing.

00:21:26 – Decorum and Grace: Why effective communication requires a return to essential respect and basic manners for everyone involved.

00:24:25 – Say the Unspoken: Removing the "secret power" of toxic or hidden things by bringing them into the light through honest speech.

Get to Know Our Guest

Lucia Simek is an artist, writer, curator, and museum professional with an MFA in sculpture from Texas Christian University. She spent eight years at the Nasher Sculpture Center leading communications and international programs. In 2022, she joined Dallas Contemporary as Director of External Affairs and was later promoted to Deputy Director, overseeing public programs, publications, and education. She launched initiatives like DC Empty and the NTX Graduate Student Program to support regional artists. After serving as interim director, she was named Executive Director in February 2025. She stepped down in December 2025 to focus on her independent art, curatorial work, and writing, including her upcoming book Occiput through Deep Vellum Publishing.

Learn more about Lucia

Lucia as a museum curator:

Best in Class: Dallas Contemporary exhibit

Heni News: Lucia Simek

Glasstire: Lucia Simek to step down

Patron Magazine: Doomscrolling by Cheryl Donegan

Lucia as an artist:

Glasstire: Occiput at The Reading Room

Dallas Observer: From her eyes to yours

Dallas News: Artists tackle issues of identity in Cleaver

Join Rocky, LIVE on Zoom, in conversation about leadership, humanity, and everything in between: http://rockygarza.com/confidence