how to deliver more impact

and stay sane

My story

In 2025, I found myself grappling with the weight of high expectations — both those set by others and the ones I put on myself.


Chasing the next milestone and trying to keep up with the pace around me left me drained, off balance, and disconnected from the work I used to love. My energy was spent reacting to urgent asks, and I was losing sight of the bigger picture. I worked longer hours but felt less fulfilled, missing out on time with my family and watching my sense of balance slip away.


I took time off to recover, but returned with lagging confidence and momentum. I couldn't get my rhythm back.The turning point came when I realized the problem wasn’t how much I was working, it was how I was working. I wasn’t living my values. I had to ask myself — What do I value? What kind of impact do I want to have? Not just for the business, but for myself and my team?


Prioritizing values over velocity helped me reset, find my footing, and come back stronger and more true to myself.

The problem with today’s performance model

We all want to perform at our best, especially in an environment full of talented, ambitious people. It’s easy to fixate on the performance equation:

Performance = Prioritised execution × Company performance axis

But when all we do is chase company performance axis impact, it becomes harder to stay grounded. The constant drive to “do more” can disconnect us from what matters and slowly push us toward burnout.

A more sustainable model

Instead of letting company performance axis drive us, we can anchor ourselves in values and let our behaviour flow from there:

Sustainable performance = Prioritised execution × Lived values

Working too hard isn't the only thing that can lead to burnout, it can come from working in ways that compromise our values. The good news is that we can succeed because of our values, not despite them.

the

playbook

Your manager helps make sure you're pointed at meaningful opportunities. Your opportunity is to bring your values into how you approach them. This only works when it becomes part of your actual workflow, not just a mindset.


This list is an example of I’m choosing to show up and what they mean for my projects. In a separate doc aligned with my manager, I have each of these behaviours mapped to actions across all my projects. For me, this is my focus and how I evaluate my performance.

When we lead with our values, we unlock a more sustainable way to deliver impact — one that drives better results and protects our well-being.

Download the Google Doc

Clarify roles

Checking early who should own which parts of the work before kicking off

  • Be explicit about roles and responsibilities.

  • Be proactive and reach out quickly before actioning, give POCs a heads up. It can always wait.

  • Use RETROs to reset, grow, clarify and move forwards with positive intent.

Pace that includes others

Choosing clarity and alignment over raw speed

  • Ensure the ask is clear for yourself and others before investing time.

  • Push and prioritise the creation and refinement of 1 pagers.

  • Seek out face to face time to clarify and reduce feedback loops and read tone.

Boundaries as strength

Flagging and managing up early, and escalating through the right channels

  • Every yes is a no to something else—make sure your yes is worth the trade-off.

  • In manager 1:1s flag early friction and the impact it might have. Use the “Progress last week, Priorities this week, Flags” format for structure.

  • Be supportive but proactive about holding POCs responsible.

Implicit to explicit values

Having direct, values-based conversations even when they’re uncomfortable, and accepting that not everyone will meet that courage with the same maturity

  • Have open and vulnerable discussions about what you want from workstreams.

  • Have open and vulnerable discussions about what you want with leads.

Sustainable energy

Making sure my capacity and recovery isn't compromised by or compliments performance

  • Bring XFN in early.

  • Find more and leverage XFN sponsors to move work forward and elevate its successes.

Psychological safety

Being intentional about creating environments where feedback flows both ways, respect is modeled, and everyone can do their best work without fear of dismissal

  • Ask collaborators “how could we work together better next time?”. Use lived scenarios as discussion points, not leverage.

  • Set up more IRL time with my direct product team.