广西：创建旅游发展新高地 推进旅游跨越式发展

You’ve led the team, fixed the crisis, kept the project on track.

You’ve made your boss look good—maybe even done their job for them.

And still, you’re stuck.

In mid-level leadership. In a job that used to feel exciting—but now drains you. In a system that applauds your competence but ignores your potential.

You’re not imagining it. It’s not just you. You’re not broken.

You’re facing something real. And it has a name: The Broken Rung.

The Hidden Trap in Your Career Climb

The corporate world doesn’t just have a glass ceiling. It has a missing rung.

According to the 2023 McKinsey & LeanIn Women in the Workplace report, women—especially in mid-level roles—are being stalled at critical promotion points. For every 100 men promoted to manager, only 87 women are. And for women of color, the numbers are even lower.

This is the broken rung.

It happens early. But it doesn’t stop there.

Even at the director and VP levels, women are leaving faster than companies can retain them. Not because they’re failing—but because they’re exhausted, undervalued, and overlooked.

You’re not stuck because you’re not capable. You’re stuck because the ladder you’ve been climbing was never designed to support you.

And yet—you’ve been expected to keep climbing.

My Story: The Burnout Behind the Performance

I led global tech teams. Delivered multi-million-dollar results. Put out fires no one else could. I was flown in to fix what others broke—and I did it with precision and heart.

I raised my son. Cared for my mother. Managed over 100 direct reports at one point—with no hiring support in sight.

I was everything to everyone. But when it came to my own advancement?

Crickets.

I was tired. And worse—I felt stuck and invisible.

I did what we’re told to do:

• I networked.
• I upskilled.
• I said “yes” more than I should have.

Still stuck. Still exhausted. Still wondering if maybe I just wasn’t cut out for the next level.

But I was. I just needed a new path—one based on alignment, not exhaustion.

The Truth About Why High-Achieving Women Stay Stuck

Here’s what most leadership advice gets wrong:

Competence makes you indispensable. It doesn’t make you promotable.

Women in mid-level roles carry more emotional labor, more invisible responsibility, and more self-doubt than most organizations realize. You’re managing up, managing down, managing life.

And when you finally pause to look around, you realize:

• You’re not aligned with your values anymore
• You’re saying yes when you want to scream no
• You’re too tired to think about what’s next

And still—you’re expected to smile, show up, and “keep going.”

Sound familiar?

You’re not alone. In fact, Harvard Business Review says staying in a job you’ve outgrown, just because it feels safer, can be one of the most emotionally costly decisions high performers make.

What to Do When You Feel Stuck—but Can’t Just Quit

You don’t have to blow up your career. You don’t need to walk away from everything you’ve built.

But you do need to do something different.

And that “something” is realignment.

That’s what I guide women through inside the Aligned Leadership Mini-Mastermind—a high-touch, intimate space for high-performing women who are ready to rise without burning out.

Here’s the framework that changes everything:

The 6 Pillars of SoulFire Aligned Leadership

1. Establish Your Baseline Get clear on where your energy is leaking and why burnout keeps coming back. Map the misalignment.

2. Clarify Your Core Values Leadership without values is performance. This pillar brings you back to what actually matters—so you can stop chasing goals that don’t belong to you.

3. Mindset & Resilience Release old patterns—perfectionism, imposter syndrome, people-pleasing—and build emotional stamina for high-stakes environments.

4. Visioning & Goal Setting No more SMART goals that drain your soul. You’ll create a magnetic vision and set goals that pull you forward, not push you to exhaustion.

5. Authentic Expression You don’t need to “act” like a leader. You need to lead like yourself. This pillar helps you claim your voice, your truth, and your presence.

6. Integration & Expansion This is where we lock it in. You don’t just learn—you lead differently, live differently, and build your next chapter from wholeness.

Want to dive deeper?

Watch the Free On-Demand Aligned Leadership Masterclass and discover how high-achieving women are rising—without burning out, selling out, or starting over. ?? Watch it here

Related Reads You’ll Love:

• ??How Burnout Became Normal - And Why High-Achieving Women Are Paying the Price
• ?? Women Leadership: You Weren’t Hired to Check a Box - Own Your Power & Lead Boldly

Let’s start a real conversation.

What’s the one thing you’ve been telling yourself you’ll do “once things calm down at work”? Drop it in the comments—or message me. I’d love to hear your story.

Because if you’ve read this far, Brave One—this is your sign.

You don’t need fixing. You need realignment. And you deserve a leadership path that finally fits you.