Mandy Lehto

Why do some leaders in high pressure jobs and lives burn out (often repeatedly), while others don’t?
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Nick Petrie researched 1,000 leaders over 5 years.

We talk about what old beliefs are often driving outsized drive.
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He also talks about “opposite worlds” as one of the habits that seems to help people manage pressure.

How might quilting, or Argentine tango help you not to burn out? Find out.

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Type Nick into the comments, and I’ll DM you the link.

He shares 3 habits that people tend to have who manage pressure, which prevents it from becoming stress.

So good. 💕
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Nick

Have you ever had a moment when someone compliments you sincerely, and even though you’ve done so much healing work, that nasty voice of disbelief jumps out of nowhere?
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Wow. Where did that come from?
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The not-enoughness voice never goes away (at least not in my experience).

But I’m at choice to believe it.

What’s your experience?
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My inner critic hates it when I hold things lightly and don’t take her too seriously.

What are you WANTED for? 🤠

Maybe your inner critic has been doing the maths over the last week too.
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Maybe this long weekend was quietly reclassified as “Catch Up Days,” by which the critic means days you will be “billed” for the unscheduled napping.

There’s undone laundry. Unanswered emails. She is preparing the invoice for those days off.

Here’s what I keep trying to tell her: rest you have to pay back isn’t rest, it’s a loan.

A long weekend you have to earn back on Tuesday wasn’t a long weekend.

The voice that tells you Tuesday is going to be brutal because you rested…maybe you have that voice too.

You can rest. The work will be there. The work is, in fact, an extremely committed long-term partner that will not leave you for failing to think about it for 72 hours.

If you have spent your Bank Holiday weekend quietly negotiating with a small internal accountant about whether you’ve earned the nap/dessert/time out (while the laundry drums its fingers) — this post for you.
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Some high achievers aren’t actually driven by passion.

They’re driven by panic dressed up as ambition.

The fear of slowing down.

The fear of being ordinary.

The fear that if they stop achieving… they might have to actually feel what’s underneath all the motion.

This conversation with Cory Allen cracked something open for me.

We talked about obsessive achievement, hypervigilance, nervous system survival patterns, and why success can still leave you feeling strangely empty.

If you’ve ever wondered why you can achieve something huge and still feel restless, flat, emotionally itchy, or immediately obsessed with the next thing… this episode might explain more than you expect.

If you want the episode link sent to your DMs, make sure you’re following me and comment: Cory
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Cory

There’s a particular kind of exhaustion that comes from constantly living at the edge of your own capacity.

Not because anyone asked you to.

Because somewhere along the line, “I can handle it” quietly became “I should handle it.”

And high achievers are especially vulnerable to this.

We confuse capability with obligation.

Maybe this is the season where you stop treating your own limits like something that need to be constantly pushed.

Curious:

Does this thought even occur to you?

Or is your default setting still:

“Well… technically I could fit one more thing in.”

Drop a comment if this one hit a nerve...
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If you’ve ever caught yourself thinking…
“Honestly, a minor injury would be easier than saying no right now” — this episode is for you.
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In this conversation, we unpack that exact moment:
• why your brain starts scrambling (and your thoughts won’t land) 🧠

• the quiet fantasy of being forced to stop

• and the “hot little motor” underneath it all — the thing driving you to keep saying yes when you’re already at capacity

This isn’t about time management.

It’s about what’s actually running you.

Type CLAIRE in the comments and I’ll DM you the episode.
(And make sure you’re following me so I can send it.)

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Claire

3. You’re waiting for the kettle to boil… and instead of standing still, you open a cupboard, look at something for no real reason, close it again, then wipe toast crumbs off the counter.
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4. You sit down on the sofa, pull a blanket over your legs…
then get straight back up because you’ve just remembered the bin goes out tomorrow and you will not be the person who forgets
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5. You’re already in bed… eyes closed…then remember the washing machine and get back up to empty it—because you are not waking up to clothes that smell like dank mittens.
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6. You open your laptop to send an email… send it…
then sit for a second longer, scanning your inbox seeing what else you could deal with since you’re here.
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7. You walk into a room, stop halfway, forget what you came in for…and instead of going back, you do something else useful so the trip still counts
🤷‍♀️ (just me?)

8. You’re loading the dishwasher… move one mug so it fits better… then another… then end up shifting half the top rack.
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9. You’re about to sit down… notice one thing slightly out of place—a book, a cushion, something small—and fix it, then adjust something next to it before you actually let yourself sit
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10. You’re about to get into bed…
spot something small on the floor—a sock, a receipt, something that shouldn’t be there—
and pick it up because it will bother you just enough not to sleep.

Which one resonates?
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There is a very specific moment where I start thinking:

I am behind.

I am never going to be able to catch up.

I am failing at basic adulthood.

And then — crackers & nut butter.

It is humbling how often what I label as a character flaw is actually low blood sugar.

Before you torch your self-worth, send the dramatic email, or re-evaluate your entire existence… eat something.

Be honest — how many “I’m-a-disaster-meltdowns” have turned out to be hunger? Or thirst, or tiredness?

And what’s your go-to crisis snack? 👀

Sometimes the edge doesn’t look dramatic.

You’re still delivering.

Still replying.

Still holding everything together.

It just feels thinner inside.

It’s subtle.

And that’s why it’s easy to miss.