WE ARE THE BOARD

Most people think alignment is something you find. I don't. I think it's something you learn to feel, and then intentionally create. Last week I had the opportunity to lead a workshop for an incredible group of founders, CEOs, CMOs, fractional executives, and leaders across beauty, wellness, fashion, technology, and AI for WE ARE THE BOARD. One of the ideas I shared is that alignment isn't a destination. It's more like conducting a symphony. Every area of your life is an instrument: your work, relationships, health, finances, creativity, purpose, rest. Depending on the season you're in, one instrument naturally takes the lead while another becomes quieter. One season it's a concerto, another it's a sonata. The goal isn't perfect balance all the time. It's harmony. And that harmony is uniquely yours. One thing I've seen is that many people don't actually know what alignment feels like in their own body because they've spent years responding to expectations, achievement, and everyone else's definition of success. But alignment? That's much harder to describe. So I shared some of the frameworks and practices that have shaped my own work over the years: • Understanding your nervous system. Your brain is designed to keep you safe, not necessarily aligned. If your nervous system doesn't feel safe, it becomes much harder to make courageous decisions, access creativity, or step into a new chapter, even when you know it's the right one. • Examining your values. We explored the difference between your stated values, what you say matters most, and your lived values, what your calendar, energy, and bank account actually reflect. The gap between the two is often where misalignment begins. • Listening to the wisdom of the body. Your body often knows before your mind does. We talked about mindfulness, somatic awareness, and simple practices, including muscle testing, that help you tune into the quieter signals before your body has to shout through stress, burnout, or illness. Underneath every framework was the same question: What does feeling fully alive actually feel like for you? Because your answer won't look like mine. And that's the point. What also struck me was that, beneath all the conversations about AI, careers, leadership, and what's next, we kept coming back to the same truth: our humanity. Our greatest advantage isn't becoming more productive. It's staying connected to our creativity, our curiosity, our capacity for play, and the courage to be authentically ourselves. Those aren't distractions from meaningful work. They're the foundation of it. Grateful to The Board for inviting me to lead this conversation, and to everyone in the room who shared so openly. April Uchitel Lynn Casey Jean Batthany Kirsten Ludwig Josh Levine Christopher Ritter Christina Glickman Emine ErSelcuk Natalia H. Lane Timian and so many more.

I had always liked myself. But I didn't fully love myself without career conditions. That realization changed my life. For years, my sense of worth was tied to my career, my title, my productivity, my accomplishments, and my ability to keep achieving. I didn't realize how deeply those things had become intertwined until burnout and depression forced me to step away. I remember sitting on the floor of my living room one morning after meditating, and I couldn't ignore the question any longer: If I wasn't producing or creating for others, if I wasn't building other people's businesses or achieving success... WHO WAS I? Because underneath it was something much bigger. Somewhere along the way, I'd unknowingly made my career a huge part of my identity instead of simply one expression of it. And once I saw it, I couldn’t unsee it. Learning to separate my worth from my work has been incredibly liberating. And, ironically, it wasn't until I stopped chasing my worth through achievement that I found the courage to pursue the dreams I'd been carrying for years. To speak. To teach. To build brands that felt aligned with the person I'd become. To find my authentic voice and stop worrying how sharing all of me might change the way people saw me as a marketer. To create a life that feels as good as it looks. A life of joy, depth, impact, full bodied yesses, and clear and distinct no’s. And the more I stopped defining myself by what I did, the more successful, and fulfilled, I became. And the meaning of success to me, radically shifted altogether. It was my version, not some version society or my previous experience rations had forced upon me. So many accomplished women feel trapped by the lives they've worked so hard to build. They know they're ready for something different. But the thought of stepping beyond the identity they've built feels terrifying, even though, deep down, they know it's exactly what they need to do. My friend and executive coach, Jennifer Shaw, ACC has experienced this too, and it's one of the reasons we created The Expansion Room. It's a place for women to rediscover who they are beyond the title, reconnect with what truly brings them alive, and intentionally create what's next. If you've been feeling called toward a different way of living and working... If you've built a successful life but know there's another version of you waiting... Or if you've spent so much time investing in everyone else that you know it's time to invest in yourself... Come spend time with us in the Expansion Room. More in comments.

"The 2020’s were a freaking mess." Last week, I got to help a room of execs imagine the future of work, longevity, and humanity. But there was a problem: the room was full of the same tightness that's everywhere—worry and fear for our collective futures. Yikes. Not a great mindset with which to be creative. So, in the moment, I decided we desperately needed to do some mental flips. Here’s what I did: ❶ Startled the room with a surprising statement. (See above, 2020s) ❷ Established the stakes: "We’re going to do some time travel this morning." ❸ Forced them into a new perspective: “It’s the year 2037, and we can now see how crazy the previous decade was.”  ❹ Explained their role: Your job is to imagine yourself and the world in the future. You’ve made it through the 2020s. What are you seeing? These inspired moments come from my gut—I don’t exactly know what I’m about to do. 😬 But I realized afterwards that I gave these leaders permission to leave their today-selves, so they could be more free to see what their future-selves might experience. It was a wonderful day—and I was thrilled to take part. Thank you to WE ARE THE BOARD and all the amazing luminaries in the room including April Uchitel and Christina Glickman. 

Ideas need playdates too. Seriously. Left alone in your head, they stay small, flying around like soft little birds whose wings have been clipped. Without space, without air, they cannot soar. And in fact, like any caged bird, after too much time spent without that magical lift, they close down, sit still, and stop even trying. So take them out, feed them fresh air, give them a staggeringly aerial view. Find the rooms and people who are willing to toss them back, shake them up, and add a little spin. I know this first hand. As a solopreneur, I can sometimes live in that icy echo chamber. It gets a little quiet, a little chilly, a little isolating. Claude is a great amplifier - but a wild and crazy sidekick?? Someone to smash open a few windows and push me out into a free fall? Not so much. Humans are the antidote. So put yourself in the places and spaces where other creative thinkers are ready to play. Last week, I found myself in not one but two rooms full of lightning, laughter, and a veritable wind machine of support for the wildest and woolliest luminations. People ready to play, to push, to not let me play small. All with a sense of joy. Not pressure, but pleasure. And that's where the magic happens. That's our power in this age of AI. Human inspiration, unhinged thinking, unbarred abandon. So get out there - find your rooms, lean into your people. It's NOT about networking; it's about being fully and completely ALIVE. It's about being HUMAN. This is truly what is needed to shape our biggest, brightest future. Each other, dreams, and the space to make them real. Go forth!!! Many many thanks to WE ARE THE BOARD, April Uchitel, Christina Glickman, Lesley Holmes, Jean Batthany, Kirsten Ludwig, Josh Levine, Christopher Ritter, David Stern, Chiko Scozzafava, Amy Blackman, Rena Kokalari, SHRM-SCP, Elaine Bogart Alissa Finerman, Amy Smith, Lauren Cantor, Heather Sit, and everyone else who lit up my world. Let's keep HUMANING!!