Yéwándé Faloyin highlights the problem of an all-too-common pattern leaders often experience when stepping into the role and explains how to address the issue.
There’s a leadership pattern I keep noticing.
From the outside, everything looks great.
From the inside, something feels… slightly unsettled…
This was the case for my client, Sami. She had just stepped into a CEO role, taking over from a founder.
On paper, she had exactly the right experience to lead the company into its next chapter.
But she’d inherited more than a title. She’d inherited a vision. A way of doing things. A LEGACY.
And because of this, she was hesitant, asking herself:
– Who was she to reshape what someone else had built?
– How far could she evolve it without betraying it?
There wasn’t a capability gap.
There was a confidence gap.
She was so focused on filling her predecessor’s shoes that she wasn’t fully stepping into her own.
The shift came when she realised this: Honouring the original vision didn’t mean disappearing inside it.
She could respect what had been built AND expand on it!
She could stay true to the purpose AND bring her own values, instincts and creativity into it.
The question changed from:
“What would the founder have done?”
to:
“What do I see? What is right for this organisation now?”
That didn’t dilute her leadership. It sharpened it.
Clarity replaced hesitation.
Conviction replaced over-caution.
And all it took was 30 minutes of real space and the right questions for that shift to happen.
High achievers are very good at stepping up into roles.
They’re less practised at fully owning them.
Consciously deciding:
“This is how I lead. This is the stamp I’M putting on this.”
That matters most in seasons of change – stepping into a bigger role, leaving corporate, or realising you’re still leading from an old version of yourself.
The leaders who navigate those seasons well create space to realign before they accelerate again.
That’s exactly why Rawan Gebran and I have designed a small, intentional gathering in the Swiss Alps (24–27 July) for women in seasons of growth, change, or quiet questioning.
Not to reinvent yourself, but to lead your way, with clarity, confidence and alignment.
If this resonates, you can find the details in the comments.
And if you’re in that in-between season, I’d genuinely love to hear about it.