Have you ever walked into the room and brought whatever was heavy for you into the space? Perhaps you are beefed out with your partner, didn’t get enough sleep, or a board member is making a request that is not mission-aligned. You walk into the room or enter the Zoom call, and within minutes, everyone has adjusted. Not to a plan or an agenda but to the leader's energy.

When you're good at managing other people's crises, people learn to bring their crises to you.

Being responsible doesn't mean being responsible for everything. It means being clear about what is and isn't yours to carry.

This is harder than it sounds in mission-driven spaces, because so much of our work feels urgent.

Leadership as Resistance (and why it matters)

My small act of resistance? Big hoops, cadenas, and sneakers when I step on a stage. It grounds me in who and whose I am. Your version might look different. The point is to choose one thing that brings you closer to yourself.

Photo Credit: Split by Rodrigo-Vega

Leadership is at a crossroads. Some are doubling down on dignity, equity, and belonging building workplaces for human beings, not human doings. Others are “snapping back” to control-heavy, fear-based practices that erode trust and harm our people, especially in the swirl after the 2024 elections.