Quiet Power: Because Busyness Is Not a Badge of Honour

Last week was International Women’s Day.

And I had the privilege of co-hosting a small, intimate gathering.

A room filled with brilliant humans, mostly women, plus one exceptional man who is a constant ally and cheerleader.

Some were longtime friends, others LinkedIn acquaintances made real, and some complete strangers before that first hello. We weren’t there to tick a box. We were there to connect back to ourselves and our sense of true wellbeing.

In that space, we were pausing on the doing. And instead focused on the being.

It’s easy to roll our eyes at another round of corporate platitudes and stock-image campaigns on IWD. We all know the stats, the gaps, the relentless work still ahead. And for those reasons, this event was different. It was designed to give busy humans - brilliant, successful, impact-driven humans - permission to pause.

Because there is power in the pause.

We rise by lifting others. And that starts with lifting ourselves.

Leading Well starts with embodied leadership in action

💡 Lead yourself - Model the well-being, boundaries, and growth you want to see.
💡 Lead your people - Empower, support, and create space for others to lead too.
💡 Lead the system - Advocate for real, lasting change. No more surface-level fixes.

You can’t fix the whole system alone. But you can start with yourself.

The Cost of Constant Doing

What struck me most in that room was how hard it was for so many of these remarkable women to stop. To put their phone down. To breathe and just be for a moment.

In a world where AI churns out content and screens mediate every interaction, we cannot afford to lose the quiet power of human connection, or the connection to ourselves.

Too often, I see brilliant leaders and teams forget the basics:

✅ Space between meetings so the brain can reset and make better decisions.
✅ Time to eat, drink water, and (radical concept) go to the bathroom during the workday.
✅ Presence - creating dedicated and focused time by really listening to their teams instead of multitasking or mentally skipping ahead to the next conversation.
✅ White space in their diary for thinking, not just endless doing.
✅ Showing up as a leader who is whole and well—and therefore Leading Well.

Where Are We Rushing To?

Real change isn’t in grand gestures. It’s in the everyday choices to champion, encourage, and create space, for others and for ourselves.

Busyness is not a badge of honour.

Last week’s event wasn’t about performative pledges. It was about presence. About reminding each other that we are seen, heard, and valued, not just today, but every day. And that our own mental, physical, and emotional well-being must come first.

Because without it, we can’t do our best work, be our best selves, or make the kinds of decisions that truly move us forward.

Leadership is a choice. And a challenge. It starts with us. With how we embody it fully.