What Happens When We’re Not Wholehearted?
How Energy and Awareness Shape Leadership
There’s a quiet cost to disconnection. It’s not always visible in the day-to-day, but it accumulates. We feel it in our bodies as tiredness that doesn’t shift. We see it in our teams as a dip in trust, creativity, or collaboration. We notice it in ourselves when we start going through the motions, rather than leading with intention.
When we’re not wholehearted, we’re not fully present.
And over time, the cost of this disconnection can look like burnout, misalignment, and emotional withdrawal. It’s a slow erosion of the very energy that fuels authentic, emotionally intelligent leadership. Our leadership edge dulls, not through lack of effort, but through a lack of presence. The spark dims.
Energy is the fuel of wholehearted leadership.
Without it, our awareness narrows. We make quicker decisions, but not always better ones. We lead from habit rather than heart. We lose the deeper relational connection that builds trust. The moments where insight and innovation might emerge are missed because we’re rushing, reacting, or retreating.
What are you noticing about your energy right now?
The way we manage our energy matters as much as how we manage our time. For senior leaders, whose influence ripples widely, this isn’t simply about personal wellbeing but collective culture. When we disconnect from ourselves, others feel it. When we recharge and realign, that too is felt.
Our Collaboration Equation™ reminds us that high-performing teams are built not on process alone, but on the quality of relationships. It’s a model that speaks deeply to the kind of leadership we need now - collaborative, emotionally intelligent, and grounded in mutual respect. But that equation only works when leaders are resourced and self-aware. Without energy and presence, the relational foundations falter.
And at the heart of our Collaboration Equation™ lie three essential leadership qualities: Curiosity, Care, and Courage. These are not soft skills. They are vital capabilities that allow leaders to navigate complexity, foster connection, and create psychological safety. Curiosity invites open-mindedness and learning. Care deepens empathy and relational trust. Courage enables the honest conversations and bold decisions that move teams forward. Together, they shape cultures where people feel seen, heard, and valued.
Wholehearted leadership begins within.
Before we can show up wholeheartedly in our teams, we must come home to ourselves. This is where energy and awareness become leadership tools. Not performative practices, but deeply felt ways of being.
Simple practices to support reconnection and relational presence:
Begin your day with a moment of stillness. A breath. A stretch. A look out the window.
End your meetings with a check-out: How are we leaving this conversation?
Walk outside between commitments. Even five minutes shifts the energy.
Try a Walk & Talk with a colleague to refresh a conversation and gain perspective.
Reflect weekly: Where was I wholehearted? Where did I disconnect?
Ask your team: What do we need more of to feel more connected?
When we give ourselves permission to pause, we begin to notice what truly needs attention. When we root our leadership in awareness, energy, and relationships, we cultivate cultures where people can thrive.
This is not about adding more to already full plates. It’s about leading from a different place - a place of grounded clarity and relational courage - a place where trust is built not through perfection, but through presence.
Leadership happens inside relationships, and those relationships flourish when we lead with our whole hearts.
Reflections from the beginning of the year
At the beginning of this year, I chose to start slowly, honouring the natural pause of January. I held the word emerging as a quiet companion, a reminder to listen for what wanted to unfold, rather than pushing forward with urgency. I made space for daily writing, for reading words that nourished, for walking and noticing, and for exploring creative practices that gently reawakened my focus. These weren’t resolutions, but invitations to return to presence, to energy, and to a more grounded way of leading. What quiet intentions began the year with you? And how might they still be guiding you now?
