
When the idea finally clicks
My book didn’t start with an outline. It started with fear. A talk I over-prepared for. And one drawing I couldn’t stop thinking about. That was the moment it became a book I had to write.
Build practices that sustain creative energy and joy
Move from burnout and grinding to sustainable breakthrough energy
You rely on adrenaline and urgency to stay engaged.
You finish most weeks feeling depleted, not energized.
You often feel like passion for your work has faded.
You push through when energy is low instead of protecting recovery time.
Without practices to sustain passion, even the most driven leaders burn out.
You can't create breakthrough results from exhaustion.
Sustainable passion isn't about working harder, it's about building practices that maintain breakthrough energy despite constant firefighting.
Build practices that maintain breakthrough energy despite constant firefighting. Create systems that renew and sustain passion over time.
Building systems and practices that renew and sustain passion over time. Creating boundaries that protect recovery and strategic recharge time.
Use these questions to assess your current state and identify opportunities for growth:
What recharges you most effectively?
What boundaries protect your best energy?
How do you signal to your team that rest is strategic?
This skill develops through three levels of mastery: low (incremental), medium (emerging), and high (breakthrough). Below are the common patterns leaders experience at each stage:
You have built endurance through effort, but intensity alone is not sustainable.
Energy management, not effort, will determine your long-term effectiveness.
You are learning to protect your energy and set boundaries.
The next opportunity is designing recovery as a consistent leadership habit rather than an occasional reset.
You lead with sustainable energy.
Clear boundaries and recovery rituals keep you creative, focused, and calm.
Your steady energy gives your team confidence and space to perform.

My book didn’t start with an outline. It started with fear. A talk I over-prepared for. And one drawing I couldn’t stop thinking about. That was the moment it became a book I had to write.

Autopilot doesn’t look like failure. It looks like plateaued growth, endless meetings, and a calendar so full of escalations you can’t remember the last time you shaped the market instead of reacting to it. You’re not broken. You’re not failing. You’re not even underperforming. You’re hitting quarterly targets. Your team respects you. Stakeholders know they can count on you. […]

Most senior product leaders are one promotion away from losing the passion that made them successful. In over 100 leadership coaching sessions, I’ve seen the same shift: more meetings, less making. Here’s how to break that cycle. When I was a first-time founder learning about venture capital, I dove into pre-money and post-money valuations, cap […]
Take the full assessment to see how you score across all 9 breakthrough skills.