I Stopped Trying to Be the Smartest Person in the Room
Letting go of needing to “have the answers” helped me find clarity, purpose—and impact.
The performance trap
For a long time, I thought I was doing everything right.
I ran strategy workshops. Built frameworks. Published consistently.
Tried to position myself as the expert - someone who always had the answers.
From the outside, it looked impressive.
But it wasn’t working.
Clients liked my work - I often did have the answers - but I wasn’t getting the traction I wanted.
I was putting in the effort, but it wasn’t translating to the results I wanted, nor having the impact I hoped for.
Worse, it felt like I was playing a role.
Trying to be something - an executive, a thought leader, a guru - instead of actually helping.
What changed?
Coaching.
Not just doing it: receiving it.
Working with coaches helped me unpick the version of leadership I’d internalised.
I realised I didn’t need to perform confidence or hold all the answers.
And I didn’t need to build my business around who I thought I should be.
Instead, I could build it around who I really am.
For me, that means coaching: being present, curious, committed to someone else’s growth.
That’s where I do my best work. That’s where I help people make the biggest shifts.
So I’m going pro
I’ve enrolled in the Professional Certificate in Executive Coaching at Henley Business School, on the path to ICF certification as a coach.
I’m shifting my work to focus on coaching—and I’m all in.
As part of my training, I’m offering a limited number of discounted 6-month coaching engagements to product leaders, founders, and execs who are ready for their next level.
This offer is only available while I build my client book.
Once my calendar is half full, the price goes up—and it won’t be coming back down.
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What coaching with me unlocks
Recent client results include:
A Series C CEO clarified their strategy and fixed a critical growth bottleneck, leading to a successful Series D
A VP Product went from almost being fired to driving company-wide initiatives as a trusted executive partner
A Series A CEO transformed their leadership model, ending their role as decision bottleneck
A Seed CEO aligned diverging co-founders around a focused strategy and got back on track for Series A
A VP Engineering overcame impostor syndrome and became a strategic contributor - he’s now CTO
Leadership doesn’t come from having all the answers
The best leaders I work with aren’t trying to perform leadership.
They’re trying to lead with clarity, courage, and intent—on their own terms.
If that’s the kind of leader you want to be, coaching can help.