Hala Batainah 
The day you become a CEO, you don’t just get the big office, the executive assistant, and the awkward LinkedIn messages from people who suddenly want to “grab coffee.” You also inherit three circles of community. Whether you like it or not, you are building them every single day. Ignore one, and the whole thing … Read more
When you think of a CEO, what image comes to mind? Is it a solitary figure in a corner office, signing off on deals and occasionally emerging for a “town hall” speech no one remembers? Or is it someone who actually knows what is happening in their own corridors: walking the floors, listening carefully, and … Read more
In my last post, I talked about why meetings often drain us rather than energise us. This week, I want to show you how to change that and how to design meetings that actually matter. Meetings do not have to be soul-draining marathons where everyone pretends to look engaged while secretly planning dinner. They can … Read more
Same characters, same punchlines, same sense of regret at the end. We show up, shuffle papers (or mute ourselves on Zoom), and wonder why we even bothered. Ok, maybe not all meetings, all the time, but most of them are. But meetings don’t have to be this way. In fact, they could be the exact … Read more
Last week we talked about the maverick mindset, that spark that can jolt you out of autopilot and helps you question the defaults and help you reset. And like all good things, sparky, this can have a catch: disruption, if done badly, does not inspire. It irritates. Safe to say, we have all seen it. … Read more
If you are a leader, CEO, or someone others look to for energy, clarity, and direction, you already know this: even the best leaders hit ruts. Sometimes you are in the flow. Making decisions, seeing opportunities, inspiring people. And sometimes? You are sitting in yet another meeting that feels like déjà vu, quietly wondering if … Read more
So here we are at the end of the limiting beliefs series. Or perhaps more accurately, we have arrived at a turning point. Because when it comes to limiting beliefs, you don’t really reach “the end.” It is less of a tidy bow-on-top moment and more like a lifelong unravelling. That might sound discouraging, but … Read more
Last week, I wrote about the outdated beliefs that quietly run in the background, long after we have outgrown them. This week, I want to slow down and explore how those beliefs feel in the quiet in-between moments. This is not circling the drain on the same topic. It is taking the time to get … Read more
There is a moment, often in between the noise, after the client call, during a long drive, in that quiet five minutes between one meeting ending and another beginning, when something flickers. And no, it not your brain resetting. It is that fleeting, uncomfortable question that surfaces when the noise dies down: “Why am I … Read more
And the sooner you stop trying to make it so, the better leader you will be. As we approach the end of the month and the final post in this series on rapport, I wanted to share a perspective on something I am hearing frequently from senior leaders. Sometimes in coaching sessions. Sometimes in the … Read more