IgnitedNeurons

Our Mission is to inspire & ignite your spark & be part of your journey as you discover your true self.

We are an organization driven by a sense of purpose and a clear focus on delivering impact with every life we touch. The three values are a part of our DNA and are expressed in our every interaction, every action.
> Excellence श्रेष्‍ठता - the quality of being very good
> Empathy समानुभूति - the ability to imagine how another person is feeling
> Equality समानता - everyone has the same rights and advantages

We truly believe that each one of us has greatness within us. Our objective is to be with you on that journey to discover who you are and who you can be.

We provide the following services - 
1. Executive and Leadership Coaching
2. First Time Manager Coaching Journeys
3. Happiness Coaching
4. Sessions on Well-being, Finding Purpose
5. Co-create Journeys to Help Each One be their Best Self

Founder

The IgnitedNeurons Podcast

I am the host of The IgnitedNeurons podcast that aims at humanising leadership by building conversations with guests and amplifying their stories globally!

Podcast Host

Can We Talk

Learning and Development Manager

BetterUp

BetterUp partners with global enterprise customers to bring transformation experiences to their people and measurable growth to their organizations. At BetterUp, I coach executives from Fortune 500 companies across the globe to help them navigate workplace challenges and achieve professional goals for career success. The BetterUp experience brings together world-class coaching, AI technology, and behavioral science experts to deliver change at scale - improving individual resilience, adaptability, and effectiveness.

Fellow Coach

Associate Coach

Torch

Torch is an integrated platform for Learning and Development leaders to deliver, manage, and measure employee growth at scale. In this role, I will be an Executive Coach to the clients that Torch onboards onto their platform.

Executive Coach

Mentora

In this role, I am heading the India Office for the organization & working closely with clients in the Asia-Pacific region. I enjoy the challenge of keeping pace with the changing external conditions while staying authentic to who I am as an individual and we are as a team.

Director Of Operations & Client Development

Director Of Marketing

Director Of Photography

Production Manager

Narang Healthcare and Wellness

Director & Founder

Executive Coach | Your Copilot to a Fulfilling Life and Career Growth | Powered by the Ignite Life Method™ | Coached 1,200+ Leaders at Dropbox, Salesforce, Coinbase | Take the Quiz to See What Needs to Shift — Now

Do you feel that you are stuck in your career,
life overwhelmed with busyness, 
and you are disconnected from yourself... 
then we need to talk.

Most high achievers I coach aren’t broken — they’re just disconnected.

🚨 Disconnected from their purpose.
🚨 Disconnected from the work they once loved.
🚨 Disconnected from the life they truly want to live.

It shows up as: STUCK, FRUSTRATION, LOST.

❌ Career stagnation
❌ Constant firefighting
❌ Burnout masked as busyness
❌ Imposter syndrome despite success

I help ambitious professionals — founders, product leaders, and emerging executives — reignite clarity, rebuild courage, and create conscious impact using The Ignite Method™.

You don’t have to choose between growth and fulfilment. You can have both.

🔥 The Ignite Method™

1. Clarity Journey — Rediscover who you are and what truly matters.
2. Courage Building — Move through fear and start acting boldly.
3. Conscious Impact — Create a career and life that actually feels like success.
4. Cohesive Action — Align what you think, feel, and do every single day.

🎯 What My Clients Gain

✅ Unshakable clarity on what’s next
✅ Courage to make big, aligned decisions
✅ Confidence to lead teams or businesses with purpose
✅ Energy and ownership to thrive at work and at home

📍 A Bit About Me

- PCC Certified Coach (ICF)
- 1,200+ leaders coached in 18+ countries
- Clients from Google, Coinbase, Dropbox, Salesforce, Intel, EA Sports, Rubrik, Visa, Zynga and more
- TEDx Speaker: Can Fear Push Us to be Courageous? Google it!
- Founder, IgnitedNeurons — a platform helping build a culture of high performance, growth mindset and based in values!
- Building the IgnitedNeurons Podcast to extract lessons you and I can apply in everyday life

💼 If You’re Leading a Team or Organisation:
I also partner with founders, HR heads, and L&D leaders to design bold cultures, build values-driven teams, and humanise leadership.

📩 Ready to Take the First Step?
Take the free 5-minute Ignite Life Quiz to discover what’s holding you back.

Let’s ignite your next chapter.

Utkarsh Narang

Stuck isn’t a place. 
It’s a mindset.

At the start of 2025, I thought clarity would just show up.

Spoiler: it didn’t.

What worked instead? 
Courage. 
Curiosity. 
Imperfect action.

Now as the year closes, ask yourself: Am I where I want to be?

If not, don’t wait for January 1. Change begins the moment you choose.

Here are 25 ways to get unstuck before 2026 begins:
1.	Reconnect with your values.
2.	Follow curiosity.
3.	Reach out to old peers and mentors.
4.	Test-drive skills through side projects or volunteering.
5.	Build something of your own.
6.	Learn: courses, books, workshops.
7.	Shadow someone in a role you admire.
8.	Refresh LinkedIn and your CV.
9.	Explore a new industry.
10.	Start small, aim consistent.
11.	Join inspiring communities.
12.	Reflect: what’s working, what’s not?
13.	Protect your energy.
14.	Ask for feedback.
15.	Attend events,online or offline.
16.	Embrace imperfection.
17.	Find a mentor or coach.
18.	Tap into online resources.
19.	Research company cultures.
20. Sharpen soft skills.
21.	Track and celebrate wins.
22. Stay open to surprise paths.
23. Try coaching for clarity.
24. Take the risk you’ve avoided.
25. Keep going.

Progress is rarely perfect but it is possible.
And sometimes, one small step is all it takes to open the next big door.

💬 What’s one step you’ll take before the year ends?

♻️ Share this with someone who feels stuck right now.

👋🏼 I’m Utkarsh Narang, Executive Coach and lifelong learner. I share ideas on leadership, growth, and living courageously. Follow along for more.

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Talks about #personalgrowth, #bebettereveryday, #leadershiplessons, #utkarshbrainspark, and #leadershipcoaching

Executive Coach Helping Ambitious Professionals Breakthrough Stuck Careers & Inner Frustration | Ignite Life Method™ | Coached 1,200+ Leaders at Dropbox, Salesforce, Coinbase | Take the Quiz to Reignite Yourself

Your past doesn’t define you.

Your next choice does.

We spend so much of our lives replaying old memories: 
the job we left, 
the words we wish we hadn’t said, 
the version of ourselves we can’t seem to forgive.

Yes, your past shaped you.
Yes, it taught you lessons.

But it doesn’t decide who you become now.

The future? It’s a man-made illusion.

Will you or I even be here for it? No one knows.
And that’s the whole point. The only thing that truly exists is this moment, and the choice you make in it.

Viktor Frankl once said:

“Between stimulus and response, there is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”

That space is where life changes.
It’s where courage replaces fear.
It’s where awareness turns into action.

Every time you choose with awareness, you rewrite your story.
You move from reacting to responding.
From surviving to living consciously.

If you’re at that point where you’re ready to choose differently, to build a life rooted in clarity, courage, and conscious impact, that’s exactly what we do through the Ignite Life Method.

Because your next choice can change everything.

💬 What’s one choice you’re ready to make, consciously, today?

Are you winning in life? I am. 
And yes, I don’t have the CXO title or a billion dollars in my bank.

If you want to win in life, 
you need to know what it actually means to win.

Here are 4 hard truths most people learn the hard way 👇

I promise that if you can put these into practice, 
You will get closer to winning life, and very few are lucky enough to achieve this.

1️⃣ You won’t be liked by everyone.
The moment you start choosing yourself, someone will call you selfish.
Let them.
You’re not here to be universally liked. You’re here to live truthfully.

2️⃣ Not everyone deserves access to you.
Your time, energy, and attention are currency.
Spend them on people who expand you, not those who drain you.

3️⃣ Growth means leaving people behind.
You’ll outgrow circles, habits, and even versions of yourself.
It’s not betrayal. It’s evolution.

4️⃣ No one is coming to save you.
Not your manager. Not your partner. Not luck.
The day you stop waiting for rescue is the day you start leading your own life.

Winning isn’t about having it all.
It’s about having the courage to let go 
of validation, approval, and old identities 
so you can finally become who you’re meant to be.

💬 Which one of these truths hit you hardest today?

If this resonates:
♻️ Repost it to help someone who needs this today!
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more.

“Utkarsh, I just don’t think I’m doing enough.” If I were paid a $ for every time I heard this, I would be a billionaire.

We’re all terrible at seeing our own gifts.

We focus on our flaws.
We dismiss our strengths as “just normal.”
We compare our struggles to everyone else’s highlight reels.

A few months ago, one of my coachees, a senior marketing leader, came to me and said:

“Utkarsh, I just don’t think I’m doing enough.”

She had built a high-performing team, led major launches, and earned deep respect across her organisation.

But all she could see were the gaps, what she hadn’t done, what she could’ve done better.

Through our coaching, we worked on rewriting her lens.
Every session, I asked her one simple question:

“If your best friend achieved what you did, how would you describe them?”

Slowly, something shifted.
The tone changed. The self-talk softened.
She began to see what had always been there. 
Her own brilliance.

Three months later, she didn’t just show up differently at work.
She showed up differently for herself.

Most people don’t need motivation.
They need a mirror, someone who helps them see what they’ve stopped recognising.

That’s what I do through The Ignite Life Method and help people move from self-doubt to self-trust, from noise to clarity.

If you’re constantly questioning your worth despite everything you’ve built,
DM me IGNITE, and let’s help you see yourself clearly again.

💬 When was the last time you gave yourself credit for how far you’ve come?

If this resonated with you, 
♻️ Repost it help someone who needs this today.
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more such insights!

Over the last 40 years, I have grown.
And that growth has come at a cost.

That's what makes growth so scary.
So painful.
So hard.

I have lost relationships, careers, opportunities, and more.

In pursuit of growth that aligns with who I am.

The new you will cost you the old one.
This is how I pay the price.

No one talks about what you’ll have to let go of to grow.
The habits that kept you safe.
The people who preferred your smaller version.
The identity that gave you comfort.
The validation that made you feel seen.

Growth isn’t about adding more.
It’s about shedding everything that no longer fits.
And in that shedding, you’ll lose applause. You’ll lose belonging. You’ll even lose yourself for a while.

But then…
One day, you’ll wake up lighter. Clearer.
And you’ll realise, you didn’t lose anything.
You just outgrew what was never meant to come along.

So if it feels lonely right now, that’s okay.
You’re not breaking down.
You’re breaking through.

🧠 Question for you:
What part of your “old self” are you finally ready to outgrow this season?

When I had 4,000 people in my LinkedIn community, I dreamed of 10,000. At 10,000, I started imagining 20. Now, at 23,000… 

I’ve realised the number was never the point.

There’s a past version of me, sitting behind a clinic desk, or staring at a blank screen, or doubting if my words mattered, who would be amazed to see what I get to do today.

Not because it’s perfect.
But because I kept showing up even when no one was watching.

I kept writing when the likes were low.
I kept coaching when clients were few.
I kept believing that impact begins long before attention arrives.

And that’s what I remind my coachees, too.
The goal isn’t to only scratch the surface,
it’s to go deeper.
To become someone your past self would be proud of.

If you looked back right now,
you’d probably see the same thing,
a younger you who’s stunned you made it this far.

Don’t rush past that version.
Honour them.
Because they’re the reason you’re here.

And you’re not done yet.
Not by a long shot.

💬 What would your past self thank you for today?

If this resonated with you:
♻️ Repost it to help someone who needs it.
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more such insights!

LinkedIn

Most professionals give everything to a job that would replace them in a week.

I am not against that. Hear me out.

82% of professionals say they live with the constant fear of being laid off.

If you are lucky enough to find the sweet spot between your passion, profession, 
And a culture that values it…
Don’t let go.

But if you are someone who 
‼️Dreads Monday morning
‼️Feels that the weeks are long and the weekend is a myth
‼️Does not know what they ‘really’ do at work

Then you must pause. 
Pause and ask yourself…

Who are you?

We’ve tied our identity to our job title.
Our self-worth to our performance review.
Our security to a company that can change its mind overnight.

This is why it hurts so much when people lose jobs,
because they don’t just lose income,
they lose who they thought they were.

Work is important.
But it’s not your oxygen.

You existed before your job.

You’ll exist after it.

If you’re reading this and feeling the weight, 
start investing in yourself, not just your company.

Learn. Reflect. Build something that no layoff can touch,
your clarity, courage, and capability.

Because if you don’t define who you are beyond work,
someone else will.

➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more content that hits hard.

Last weekend, I had the joy of coaching my 11-year-old son’s basketball game. Before tip-off, I told the boys something simple…

 👉 “That’s the basket you’re scoring in.”
They laughed, of course, they knew that.
But in the second half, something happened.

In all the excitement, one of our players sprinted across the court, dodged defenders beautifully, and scored in the wrong basket.

The crowd gasped. 
The kid froze.
He’d done everything right… except one thing.
He’d lost sight of direction.

And that’s when it hit me - we adults do this all the time.
We sprint through life,
chasing goals we didn’t choose,
burning energy in the wrong direction.

Imagine Cristiano Ronaldo celebrating after scoring in his own net.

Or Serena Williams smashing the perfect ace on the wrong side of the court.

Ridiculous, right?
Yet, that’s what so many of us do every day
moving fast, 
going nowhere.

Speed feels good. 
Progress looks good.
But if you’re not clear on where you’re headed,
you’ll end up exhausted, not evolved.

So here’s my reminder:
If you’re moving fast but going nowhere, slow down.
Because in the long game of life,
direction will always matter more than speed.

If this resonates with you,
♻️ Repost it to help someone who might need this today.
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more such daily posts!

___

On Dec 12, I’m hosting a 90-minute masterclass “Unapologetically You.” It’s for anyone ready to stop living the default version of themselves and start leading, creating, and living with their signature.

Save your spot – link is in the comments.

We live in a world where everyone is talking…
but almost no one is telling the truth.

We message, reply, react, “circle back,” drop emojis, soften edges, and avoid anything that might create discomfort.

We communicate constantly.

But honest conversations?

Rare. Painfully rare.

We need to bring truth back.

Truth with empathy.
Truth with courage.
Truth that builds, not breaks.

Because when people start saying the real thing… cultures transform. Teams breathe again. Leaders become human. And individuals feel free.

This week, try asking yourself:
✨ What honest conversation have I been avoiding?
✨ What truth (with kindness) could change everything?
✨ What reality am I finally ready to acknowledge?

Honesty isn’t the risk. Avoidance is.

Follow Utkarsh Narang and subscribe to the newsletter!

Welcome to another beautiful week. When an idea sparks that I think is worth sharing, it becomes this weekly newsletter. If something hits home, write

A world full of communication but starved of conversations

'A-Players' are not born. They are made. 
The world needs more A Players.

Here’s what the research says 👇🏽

Harvard and McKinsey found that the top 20% of people create nearly 80% of results.

They’re not just more talented.
They’re more intentional.

When I watch a Roger Federer, an Usain Bolt, a Serena Williams... I wonder, what is different about them and I think it comes down to their insatiable appetite for growth.

A Players:
 ✅ Own outcomes, not excuses.
 ✅ Seek feedback, not comfort.
 ✅ Compete with their potential, not their peers.
 ✅ Turn pressure into progress.

But here’s the truth most people miss -
Being an A Player is a choice.
Not everyone wants to go there.

But if something inside you whispers, “I was made for more,” then staying in your comfort zone will always feel like betrayal.

Because a few decades from now, 
you’ll meet one of two versions of yourself:

Your default self or your designed self.

Which one will it be?

Answer in the comments and let's have a conversation.

Follow Utkarsh Narang for more!

What It Takes to Become an 'A' Player

7 costs of entry you must pay to get the life you want
(most people quit at #3)

1️⃣ Rejection — Airbnb
Rejected by investors 20 times. They turned cereal boxes into cash to survive.

2️⃣ Embarrassment — Howard Schultz (Starbucks)
His idea was laughed at 242 times. He kept pouring the coffee anyway.

3️⃣ Uncertainty — Netflix
They offered to sell to Blockbuster for $50M and were turned down.
That moment of uncertainty birthed a $200B empire.

4️⃣ Discipline — Jeff Bezos
Every year he writes the same shareholder letter: “It’s still Day One.”
Boring consistency beats bursts of brilliance.

5️⃣ Loneliness — Sara Blakely (SPANX)
No one believed in her idea for women’s shapewear.
She sold door-to-door with a smile and grit.

6️⃣ Faith — Walt Disney
Bankrupt twice. Rejected hundreds of times.
Still believed in the magic he wanted to build.

7️⃣ Ego Death — Steve Jobs
Fired from Apple. Built Pixar. Came back stronger.

Sometimes you must lose what you built to rediscover who you are.

The cost of the life you want?
A true belief in who you are and what you aspire to build.

Everything fake, easy, or familiar.
But on the other side of that payment… is freedom.

If this resonates with you,
♻️ Repost it to help someone who might need this today.
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more such daily posts!

___

On Dec 12, I’m hosting a 90-minute masterclass “Unapologetically You.” It’s for anyone ready to stop living the default version of themselves and start leading, creating, and living with their signature.

Save your spot – link is in the comments.

7 costs of entry you must pay to get the life you want 

Don’t preach what you can’t practice.
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
 
Ralph Waldo Emerson said that.

I lived that.
Most people don’t know this, but my career didn’t move in a straight line.

It looked more like a crash course in starting over.
✅From Physiotherapy - three clinics, full house, “successful” by every measure.
✅To Video Production, where I filmed 400+ hours of leadership content, with no roadmap, just curiosity.
✅To Sales, where I learned the art of rejection and resilience.
✅To Coaching, where I finally found alignment between who I am and what I do.

Every chapter felt like burning down an old version of myself, with family, kids, bills, and responsibilities whispering, “play it safe.”
But something louder inside said, “You were not born to play small.”
Reinvention isn’t about being fearless.

It’s about being honest. Brutally, unapologetically honest,
about the fact that comfort kills dreams.

And every time I chose growth over fear, I found a deeper version of me waiting on the other side.
If you’re in a season of doubt, remember this…
The world benefits nothing from your pretending.

Your kids, your team, your future self, they’re all watching you choose.

On Dec 12, I’m hosting a free 90-minute masterclass: Unapologetically You

It’s for those who are done hiding behind titles, roles, and expectations and ready to build an unapologetic mindset.
Because the greatest accomplishment is not success.

It’s becoming yourself and staying that way.
👉 Register now. Don’t wait for life to force you into clarity. Choose it.

—

If this resonates with you,
♻️ Repost it to help someone who might need this today.
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more such daily posts!

Everyone has a signature.
Few ever live it.

A thumbprint. A voice. A rhythm.

Even that scribble at the end of your email — uniquely yours.

And yet, somewhere between fitting in and growing up,
most of us became templates.

Every time you mute your truth to please the room,
you erase a line from that signature.

The goal isn’t to be perfect —
it’s to be distinct.

To bring your flavour, your courage, your weirdness, fully alive.
Because nobody remembers the photocopy.

They remember the original.

On Dec 12 at 12 PM, I’m hosting a 90-minute masterclass “Unapologetically You.” It’s for anyone ready to stop living the default version of themselves and start leading, creating, and living with their signature.

Save your spot – link is in the comments.

Why Be Ordinary When You Can Have Your Signature?

An engineering manager I worked with once told me,

“Utkarsh, I’ve been trying to move into people leadership for 5 years, but nothing’s shifting.”

He was smart, capable, and respected.

But he couldn’t move upward because he couldn’t influence
not stakeholders, 
not decisions, 
not outcomes.

Through our coaching, we discovered something powerful:
He already knew how to influence.
He did it everyday, with his friends, with his family, in his personal life.
He listened deeply. He understood others. He made people feel seen.

But the moment he walked into work, that shifted.
He feared judgment.
He tried to sound “smart” instead of being real.
He started performing instead of connecting.

That’s what most people get wrong about influence.
It’s not about talking louder, dressing sharper, or being in every meeting.
It’s about creating space for others to succeed around you.

Once he broke through that fear and showed up the same way at work as he did outside it.
He was unstoppable.
Within three months, he’d built trust, led with empathy, and earned the leadership role he’d been chasing for years.

If you’re reading this and you’ve been:
•	Stuck in the same role for years
•	Doing great work but still unseen
•	Unsure how to influence upward

Then it’s time to stop trying to “act” influential and start becoming it.

That’s exactly what we do through The Ignite Life Method.

We help leaders build clarity, courage, and conscious impact - the real foundations of influence.

DM me IGNITE, and let’s unlock your next level.

If this resonates with you,
♻️ Repost it to help someone who might need this today.
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more such daily posts!

___

On Dec 12, I’m hosting a 90-minute masterclass “Unapologetically You.” It’s for anyone ready to stop living the default version of themselves and start leading, creating, and living with their signature.

Save your spot – link is in the comments.

Facebook Fitness Fanatics.
That was the first community I ever built, more than a decade ago.

I had no playbook. 
No followers. 
No clue what “content strategy” even meant.

Just a deep desire to share, connect, and grow.

We posted workouts, motivation, messy progress photos,
and in that small corner of the internet, I learned what creation really feels like.

Since then…
 🎥 I’ve made YouTube videos.
 💬 Written hundreds of LinkedIn posts.
 🎙️ Launched a podcast.

Different hats. Different platforms.
But one thing stayed constant — I kept showing up.

There were days it felt pointless.

Posts no one read. 
Videos no one watched.

But I kept going.
Because creation, for me, was never about applause.
It was about aliveness.

Looking back, I realise…
What you see today started in silence, not success.

It started with a habit, not hype.

So whatever you’re building today 
do it with joy and consistency.

Because in the long run,
systems will always beat emotions.
And consistency will always beat luck.

If this resonates with you,
♻️ Repost it to help someone who might need this today.
➕ Follow Utkarsh Narang for more such daily posts!

___

On Dec 12, I’m hosting a 90-minute masterclass “Unapologetically You.” It’s for anyone ready to stop living the default version of themselves and start leading, creating, and living with their signature.

Save your spot – link is in the comments.

Why be ordinary when you can have your signature?

Each of us is born with a unique pattern that no one else has.
A thumbprint.
A voice.
A rhythm.
Even that scribble at the end of your email that says PFA, your signature, is uniquely yours.

And yet… most of us live templated lives.
We work like everyone else.
Speak like everyone else.
Even dream within the same safe boundaries.

Somewhere between fitting in and growing up, we lost our originality.
We started seeking validation instead of expression.

But here’s the truth…
Your signature is your story in motion.
It’s your way of saying,
“I was here. I mattered. I left a mark.”

Every time you suppress your ideas to please the room,
you erase a line from that signature.

The goal isn’t to be perfect.
It’s to be distinct.
To bring your flavour, your truth, your weirdness - fully alive.

Because nobody remembers the photocopy.
They remember the original.

On Dec 12 at 12 PM, I’m running a 90-minute masterclass “Unapologetically You.”
It’s for those tired of living the default version of themselves,
ready to reclaim their signature, at work, in life, in impact.

Your signature isn’t what you write.

It’s how you live.

👉 Save your spot. Be remembered for being you.

If I had one thing to tell my 25-year-old self, it would be this:

You don’t need a perfect plan.
You just need to be aligned.

At 25, I was already a father.
A physiotherapist with one clinic.
Hungry to create impact but unsure what success even meant.

Back then, I thought the answer was in doing more.
More clients. More credentials. More work.

But over the last 15 years, I’ve learned something far simpler and far truer.
You don’t need to know where life will take you.
You just need to know who you are and what feels true inside.

Because when you act from alignment,
your path unfolds, step by step,
without a master plan.

If I hadn’t learned this,
I’d still be living someone else’s life.
Still avoiding conflict.
Still mistaking success for validation.

Today, I’ve changed 
not because I figured it all out,
but because I found peace in not knowing.

Have I achieved everything I want to?
No.
Do I have regrets?
None.

Because the moment you start building from who you are,
not what you should be,
life becomes blissfully, beautifully yours.

⸻

💬 If you could tell your 25-year-old self one thing, what would it be?

Most people don’t have a technology problem.
They have a self problem.

We keep asking:
 “How do we make AI better?”
 
But rarely ask:
 “How do we make ourselves better so AI can actually help us?”

This week on the IgnitedNeurons Podcast, I sat down with Barbara Wittmann — an IT leader turned philosopher and the founder of the Digital Wisdom Collective.

And this conversation shook me.

We spoke about:
 🔸 Why freedom is an inner state, not a career choice
 🔸 How limiting beliefs sabotage our potential
 🔸 Why self-image can be dangerously misaligned
 🔸 The “cleanup of the self” and why it must happen before we build better machines
 🔸 How to identify your unique superpower
 🔸 And why the future belongs to the wise, not just the smart

Barbara’s take is simple but profound:
 If we don’t upgrade our inner operating system, AI will only amplify our limitations.

If you’ve ever felt stuck, overwhelmed by the future, or unsure how to navigate the world we’re stepping into, you’ll want to hear this one.

🎧 Listen to the full episode on Spotify 
 
If it resonates, please support the podcast by following IgnitedNeurons and sharing the episode with one more person who needs it.

Let’s build wiser humans for a wiser future.

Award-Winning Author & Interim CIO | Pioneer of Digital Wisdom — the OS for AI and Transformation Success

Most people don’t realize how fragile the world really is until someone explains it with clarity.

This week on the IgnitedNeurons Podcast, I sat down with Irina Tsukerman, one of the most fascinating voices in human rights, national security, and information warfare.

From childhood curiosity to becoming a globally recognized attorney, Irina’s journey is a reminder that the world is shaped not just by power but by people who choose to think critically.

We spoke about:
 🔸 Why geopolitical fragmentation is accelerating
 🔸 How social media quietly manipulates our perception of reality
 🔸 The balance between human rights and national security
 🔸 Why dialogue matters more than ever
 🔸 The importance of empathy in disagreement
 🔸 And the one thing we still underestimate: our personal agency

Irina’s insights are sharp, honest, and much needed in a world drowning in misinformation.

If you’ve ever wanted to understand what’s really happening behind the headlines, this episode will open your mind.

🎧 Listen now on Spotify

 If the conversation resonates, please support the IgnitedNeurons Podcast by following, sharing, and sending it to one person who needs to hear it.

Your support goes a long way.
Let’s build a world where nuance still matters.

A national security & human rights lawyer, Fellow at Arabian Peninsula Institute, Fellow at Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. Board Member at The Washington Outsider Center for Information Warfare

Mallika Rao

Navigate High Stakes Transitions without Burnout | Award-Winning Coach | Neuroscience-backed InnerEdge™️ Method | 650+ Breakthroughs | Trusted by Leaders at Google, IBM, IKEA | DM to inquire

There’s no manual for when life guts you.

No strategy deck. No spreadsheet. No mindset hack.

🜂 Work Transitions - Navigating workplace change & Complexity. Promotions that feel like pressure cookers.  
🜂 Life Transitions - Divorce, Identity Crisis & Parenting Challenges.

And you’re expected to perform.

Let’s be honest,
Hard work won’t save you. 
Logic won’t hold you. 
Positive thinking won’t make it.  

What will is?

Radical Clarity that cuts through the noise. 
Emotional Mastery to make the right decisions. 
Inner Alignment - When your values, your vision, and your energy all point in the same direction.

That’s the work I do with The InnerEdge™ Method, designed for high-functioning individuals.

For 14+ years, I’ve walked with 630+ leaders at the edge of breakdown.

Here’s what I help create:

✅ Stillness that cuts through the noise. 
✅ Emotional power that doesn't crack under pressure. 
✅ Harmony between who you are and what you do. 
✅ A way to rise, without burning down what you have worked so hard to build.

Real Lives. Real Shifts.

🚨 IT Director – 3.5 yrs in a bitter divorce → exited with grace & restarted his life with peace. 
🚨 Senior Manager – toxic politics + marriage mess → work-life balance, landed a 30% higher role. 
🚨 Founder – was ready to close business → resolved co-founder conflict, scaled revenue 40%. 
🚨 VP – grieving loss of parent → regained peace → got promoted + finished executive certification.

I work with:

→ Founders who’ve built empires but are bleeding inside. 
→ Executives stepping into high-voltage roles. 
→ Leaders who look good on paper, but are silently unraveling.

Transitions I walk you through:

→ Divorce 
→ Parenting or caregiving during peak career years 
→ Navigating workplace change & complexity 
→ Self-discovery, meaning & purpose 

🎓 Credentials

✔ Tony Robbins & Cloe Madanes Trained Coach 
✔ Certified Happiness Coach, Berkeley Wellbeing Institute 
✔ 10,000+ hours | 67+ spiritual + psychological modalities
✔ Mindfulness & Energy Psychology

Trusted by leaders at: 
Google | Salesforce | IKEA | IBM | Genpact | Accenture 

🎯 What I’m building now:

✨ 1:1 Premium Mentorship — for life’s toughest transitions 
✨ InnerEdge™ Keynotes — for workplaces navigating change & complexity 
✨ The InnerEdge™ Podcast — Leading with Peace, Presence & Purpose

If you’re in the middle of a personal or professional storm and feel like you’ve lost your edge, book a RESET call.

https://bit.ly/discoverycallwithcoachmallikarao 


🌐 www.coachmallikarao.com 
📩 coachmallikarao@gmail.com

Life Coach, Mindfulness Teacher & Speaker

Life Coach & Wellbeing Mentor since 2016, helping leaders achieve their personal and professional goals with CALM, CLARITY & CONFIDENCE. Worked with over 600 professionals and entrepreneurs across 3 continents through 1:1 and Group Coaching.

As a Mindfulness speaker and workshop leader, I have helped over 120000 professionals overcome anxiety and practice holistic well-being. I work with organizations in creating and implementing Employee wellness programs that improve teamwork and productivity.

Mindfulness & Meditation Teacher since 2012: I teach Mindfulness and Meditation in groups and also offer 1:1 sessions.

Do you ever feel like you’re constantly “on alert”, even when nothing is actually wrong?

Most high-performing professionals won’t say this out loud…but they live with a subtle, daily tension inside.

→ Not panic.
→ Not burnout.
→ Just a quiet, persistent readiness to react.

A colleague’s tone.
A client’s message.
A partner’s comment.
A team member’s silence.

You notice everything.
And your mind instantly starts analysing, interpreting, and preparing for what may come next.

It’s exhausting, isn’t it?

This “hyper-awareness” once helped you succeed.

It made you sharp, dependable, and ahead of the curve.

But somewhere along the way, it turned into a habit of micro-reacting.

→ Internally. 
→ Silently. 
→ Constantly.

What if I told you…
You don’t have to attend to every thought that knocks on your door?

You don’t have to respond to every emotion the moment it rises.

You don’t have to decode and fix everything you sense.

There is immense power in simply observing without responding.

→ Not suppressing.
→ Not avoiding.
→ Just… pausing. Witnessing. Letting it settle.

Because when you stop reacting to every inner ripple, you start responding from truth, not from fear or habit.

Leadership today isn’t about speed of reaction.

It’s about the depth of awareness.

Try this today:

When something triggers you - a comment, a tone, a situation- instead of reacting, take a breath and ask:

“Is this mine to respond to, or can I just observe and recalibrate?”

Your inner world doesn’t need more reaction.

It needs space.

And that space is where clarity, strength, and grounded leadership begin.

#leadership #mentalhealth #mindset #emotionalintelligence #careergrowth

Helping Leaders Navigate Transitions without Burnout |Mindfulness Teacher | Neuroscience-backed InnerEdge™️ Method | Mindfulness Teacher | Trusted by 650+ Leaders - Google, Salesforce, IKEA & more

When you pause before responding, 


…..you give yourself the gift of space, the same way decluttering a room creates space for peace.

That small pause is where your leadership lives.

That pause is where your dignity lives.

That pause is where your power resets.

The more you practice this, the more you’ll notice:

↳ Conversations soften.
↳ Conflicts dissolve.
↳ Your energy stays intact.
↳ Your clarity returns.

You become less reactive… and more intentional.

Less scattered… and more centered.
Less drained… and more present.

Peace isn’t found in controlling your environment.

It’s found in controlling your attention.

What’s one place in your life today where choosing non-reaction would bring you more calm, clarity, or confidence?

#emotionalintelligence #mindset #leadership #transitions #selfleadership #coaching

Pic Credit: Internet

Helping Leaders Navigate Transitions without Burnout |Mindfulness & Meditation Teacher | Neuroscience-backed InnerEdge™️ Method | Corporate Speaker | Trusted by 650+ Leaders - Google, Salesforce, IKEA & more

We often underestimate calm.

The space, where there is 

↳ no rush,
↳ no noise,
↳ no force

More so, when we are leading:

↳ Goals
↳ Projects
↳ People
↳ Ourselves

This keeps coming up in my coaching conversations, and the clearer it becomes:

In an AI-driven world overflowing with information, calm is the new competitive advantage.

Knowledge is everywhere.
Insights are instant.
Analysis takes seconds.

So what becomes the leadership edge?

A calm mind.

A mind that can cut through noise, see what others miss, read between the lines,
tap into intuition, and make high-quality decisions.

Calm accelerates Clarity. 
Stillness brings intelligence to the surface.

And in a world moving at breakneck speed, the leader who knows how to pause, will always see more.

Hi,

I am Mallika, I am the founder of the “InnerEdge™ Method”, helping leaders navigate tough transitions with Calm, Clarity & Confidence.

If you are in a season of life where you could use coaching support, write to me. 

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate tough transitions with calm clarity.

graphical user interface, text, application

You know that moment when you catch yourself negotiating with yourself?

“Should I do it now… or later?”
 “Maybe tomorrow… I’m not in the mood.”

I was speaking to a friend who trains marathon runners.
He invited me to join an upcoming run.

My response was, “I’m not a runner.”

That was a moment of epiphany. 

And suddenly it made sense why so many high performers struggle with achieving their goals, & struggle with taking consistent action.

It’s not a motivation problem.
It’s not a time problem.

It’s an identity problem.

If I keep identifying as “someone who isn’t active”…
I will negotiate every workout.

If you keep identifying as…

“I’m not a leader.”
“I’m not good with people.”
“I’m not creative.”
“I am an introvert”

…you will negotiate every behaviour required to grow beyond that.

Because, discipline is simply, having an identity so clear, that you stop negotiating with yourself.

I identify myself as a meditator and meditating everyday comes naturally to me.

I identify myself as a taichi practitioner and doing my daily routine becomes easy for me.

I Identify myself as a book lover and reading is a pleasure for me.

When you know who you are,
 
Your actions have direction.
Your decisions get quieter.
Your consistency becomes natural.

Not forced. Not dramatic. Just aligned.

So here’s a gentle reflection for you…
Who are you still telling yourself you are or not?

And what would change if you reintroduced yourself to your own life?

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate tough transitions with calm clarity. 

🔔 Follow Mallika Rao for more strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

Helping Leaders Navigate Transitions without Burnout | Mindfulness & Meditation Teacher | Neuroscience-backed InnerEdge™️ Method | Corporate Speaker | Trusted by 650+ Leaders - Google, Salesforce, IKEA & more

Why Most Goal-Setting Fails, And How to Do It Right
Every December, people write new goals with fresh excitement.

By February… most of it has quietly fallen apart.

It’s not because they’re lazy.

It’s because they’re using a broken system.

Here are the 5 most common mistakes I see leaders, founders and high performers make when setting goals:

1. They choose goals from pressure, not clarity

They set goals based on what others expect - titles, income targets, “shoulds.”
Not what actually matters to them in this season of life.

What works:
Start with an inner scan of your values, energy, priorities and emotional bandwidth.

Your goals must match your life, not someone else’s timeline.

2. The goals are too vague

“Get fit.”
“Grow my career.”
“Improve relationships.”

These goals are fuzzy. There’s no definition, no metrics, no emotional reason behind them.

What works:
Make them specific, observable, and emotionally meaningful.
If the goal doesn’t move your heart, your mind won’t follow.

3. They don’t account for their capacity.

People write goals as if they have unlimited energy.
They ignore sleep, burnout, parenting, caregiving, transitions, stress.

What works:
Set goals based on your real capacity, not fantasy capacity.
A regulated nervous system is your biggest productivity tool.

4. They focus on outcomes, not identity
People obsess over the end result, not the person they need to become to achieve it.
So they rely on motivation… and motivation fades.
What works:
Shift from “What do I want?”
to
“Who do I need to become to sustain this?”
Identity creates consistency.

5. They skip building the system
A goal without a system is wishful thinking.
You can’t hit a target with no process.
What works:
Create a simple weekly system:
– what you’ll do
– when you’ll do it
– how you’ll track it
– how you’ll reset when you fall off
This is what makes your goal inevitable, not inspirational.

So what’s the right framework?

I teach a simple, grounded process called the InnerEdge™ Alignment 
Framework:

Clarity: What truly matters this year?
Capacity: What can you realistically hold?
Identity: Who must you become to embody this?
Systems: What weekly structure makes this sustainable?
Review: How will you reflect, reset and adjust without guilt?

This is how you set goals that stick - not for 6 weeks, but for 12 months.

If you want 2026 to be the year your goals actually happen, start with alignment, not ambition.

If you’re done setting goals you abandon by February…and you want a process that actually works with your mind, your energy and your real life, 

On Dec 13, I’m teaching the exact framework that helps high-functioning individuals set goals they can finally follow through on.

DM Goals & Ill send you the link.

If Your Success Feels Heavy, It’s Time for an Inner Audit.
You don’t need to change your life. You need to re-choose it, consciously.

Sometimes, everything in your life looks like a success story, except how it feels.

That’s when you know it’s time for an inner audit.

Ask yourself:

Am I proud of how I’m showing up, or just proud of what I’m achieving?

Am I building this out of inspiration or obligation?

Am I still aligned with the reasons I started?

Most people skip this audit until life forces it, through exhaustion, illness, or emotional breakdown.

But you don’t have to wait for that.

The Inner Audit is simple:

 1️⃣ Check your Peace: How’s your nervous system doing?
 2️⃣ Check your Presence: Are you actually here when you’re working, loving, living?
 3️⃣ Check your Purpose: Is your energy moving in the right direction?

When these three are off, success turns into strain.
When they’re aligned, work becomes sacred again.

If you’re feeling the weight of success and craving lightness again, it’s time to pause and re-choose.

Follow Mallika Rao for strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

I work with many leaders who struggle with overwhelm and anxiety.


They’re brilliant problem-solvers.

They’ve spent years scanning for risks, preparing for crises, fixing things.

So even when there’s no problem, their mind is actively waiting for the other shoe to drop. 

They don’t mean to, it’s just a learned pattern. 

One of my clients admitted, “This is how I’m wired, Mallika”

This was causing him overwhelm, anxiety & insomnia. 

I taught him a meditation with visualisation technique.

A 20 minutes morning practice imagining the best-case scenarios.

Everything that could go right.
Every version of the situation ending well.

One week later, he came back smiling.

He said, “I didn’t realise I could train my mind this way.”

If your mind is going to run anyway,
why not let it run in a direction that supports you?

Try this:

↳ Picture the best-case scenario.
↳ Picture yourself showing up with confidence.
↳ Picture things unfolding better than you expected.
↳ Picture the version of you who trusts your own decisions.

When you change the direction of your thoughts, the nervous system softens,
and your whole energy changes.

If you are struggling with overhwhelm & anxiety that is slowing your progress and spinning you in negative loop, I can help. 

Book a free clarity call and let’s talk. 

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate tough transitions with calm clarity. 

🔔 Follow Mallika Rao for more strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

#highperformancecoaching #leadership #mindset #meditation #stressreduction

Presence isn’t passive.
It’s the difference between reacting to life and leading it.

When you understand the weight of your energy, you stop scattering yourself.

You choose your spaces.

You choose your conversations.

You choose what deserves your attention, and what doesn’t.

That’s when life starts moving differently.

Not because you’re trying harder, but because you’re showing up with intention.

Your presence is your strength. 
Use it wisely

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate life & work transitions with ease & grace.

🔔 Follow Mallika Rao for more strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

#leadershipdevelopment #mindset #highperformance #selfleadership

67% of high achievers say they don’t feel fulfilled even when they hit their goals.

As per McKinsey, “The Inner Work of Leaders,” 2022. 

We are living in a world obsessed with movement.

→ Next goal.
→ Next milestone.
→ Next improvement.
→ Next version of ourselves.

Somewhere along the way, “progress” got equated with constant forward motion, and if we weren’t advancing, we assumed we were falling behind.

But here’s a truth most high achievers learn the hard way:

Life isn’t only lived in the doing.
It’s lived in the noticing.

Growth isn’t just about how far you go, it’s about how present you are as you go.

The moments that change us the most don’t always happen in action.
They happen in the pause… the breath… the quiet… the space between two steps.

When we slow down:

→ We hear ourselves again
→ We reconnect with what matters
→ We realise we weren’t “stuck”, we were simply disconnected

I’ve seen brilliant leaders, professionals, and parents move so fast that life becomes a blur - a series of tasks completed, not experiences lived.

Progress without presence can feel strangely empty.

So if you’ve been moving non-stop, carrying the weight of what’s next… here’s your gentle reminder today:

→ You’re allowed to pause.
→ You’re allowed to feel.
→ You’re allowed to be here, not just get there.

Because a life that’s only measured in achievements will always feel incomplete.

A life that’s experienced - deeply, consciously, presently, is the one that feels whole.

Slow down enough to notice:

Life isn’t passing you by.
It’s happening right now.

Most people don’t lack ambition.
They lack commitment.

And when you don’t commit to something that truly matters, everything else starts to look urgent… tempting… distracting.

You know this feeling:
You start the week with clarity.

But by Wednesday, your attention is scattered across 20 micro-priorities that never add up to meaningful progress.

High performers don’t burn out because they’re lazy.

They burn out because they’re overcommitted to everything and undercommitted to the one thing.

So here’s a gentle reframe for this week:

↳ What are your goals this week?

↳ What is the one priority that will make everything else simpler?

↳ What is the one commitment that deserves your full presence?

Because once you choose, life becomes quieter.

Your mind becomes clearer.

And distractions lose their power.

Have a mindful week!

#mindfulness #highperformance #productivity #mindset #goals

When you’re doing everything right and still struggling to feel in control of your days… 🤯

Raise your hand if you’ve been showing up, hitting deadlines, taking responsibility, and you’re good at getting work done even under pressure.

You’ve always had

✓ discipline
✓ drive
✓ the ability to push through

And you’ve never struggled to perform.

But now? 
In this season of life… a whole different story.

You’re already

✓ waking up early
✓ drinking the coffee that barely touches your exhaustion
✓ managing teams
✓ navigating personal transitions
✓ handling family responsibilities
✓ showing up like the “strong one”
✓ solving everyone else’s crises
… and holding it all together with sheer willpower.

You’re doing ALL the things, and it leaves you burnt out, frustrated, and oddly disconnected from your own life. 💔

So what the hell is going on?

Let’s assume it’s not a discipline problem.

Not a productivity problem.
Not a “try harder” problem.

Because if you could perform so well in your earlier years, that ability should translate now too… right?

So what is it then?

It’s a nervous system problem.

You’re doing the right things, but from the wrong state.

Your mind is racing, your body is in survival mode, and your system is overloaded.

And no amount of new planners, apps, or hacks can override a dysregulated internal state.

Look, productivity isn’t just about getting things done.

It’s not just structure and routine.

It also needs calm, presence, and emotional bandwidth to sustain high performance without fracturing you.

Your “performance routine” isn’t just a checklist.

Its real purpose is to help you

✓ cut the noise & focus
✓ respond instead of react
✓ make better decisions, faster & efficiently

so you can perform like yourself again, consistently.

So next time you “try to be productive,” don’t just open your laptop and start sprinting.

Instead, 

✓ reset your breath before you begin
✓ create a 2-minute pause between tasks
✓ bring your body back to calm before making decisions

Presence first.
Performance naturally follows.

This is the InnerEdge™.
This is how leaders rise without burning out.

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate tough transitions with calm clarity. 

🔔 Follow Mallika Rao for more strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

Do you fear making mistakes? 


In my experience of coaching high-performers and leaders, one truth emerged constantly. 

Achievements impress.
Mistakes transform.

Because achievements can feed the ego.
Mistakes feed your evolution.

Think about it…

↳ The promotion that made you feel invincible?

It may have taught you less than the failure that made you rethink your patterns.

↳ The deal you closed easily?

It didn’t stretch you the way a conflict conversation did.

↳ The applause you received?

It faded faster than the humility you gained from getting something wrong.

Success can seduce you into believing you’ve arrived.

Mistakes quietly remind you to keep growing.

High performers get this wrong:

They chase achievement as identity
instead of growth as identity.

But the leaders who rise the fastest…
are the ones who ask after every stumble:

“What is this moment teaching me about myself?”

Humility isn’t a weakness.

It’s an advantage in an AI-driven, uncertain world.

Humility keeps you adaptable.
Mistakes keep you honest.
Growth keeps you relevant.

Choose the lesson over the label.

That’s the real InnerEdge.

If you are in a season of rediscovering yourself, and want help, write to me.

Most people don’t fail because they’re not capable.
They fail because they hesitate.

If you’re a high performer, you already know this.

You’re not short of intelligence.
You’re not short of opportunities.
You’re not short of potential.

But you pause.
You overthink.
You delay the action that would change everything.

And the truth is uncomfortable:

More potential is wasted through inaction than incompetence.

Every day you tell yourself…

“I’ll decide next week.”
“I’ll message them when things settle.”
“I’ll start once I feel ready.”
“I’ll take the next step after I fix XYZ.”

But next week becomes next month.
And readiness never comes.

And life doesn’t slow down, if anything, it gets louder.

Here’s the real question to sit with today:

What is the cost of your hesitation?

Not in theory, in your actual life.

↳ Opportunities that quietly expired
↳ Relationships that drifted
↳ Careers that plateaued
↳ Health that declined
↳ Dreams that dimmed
↳ Confidence that eroded

High performers don’t get stuck because they’re incompetent.

They get stuck because they’ve built a habit of waiting.

So let me ask you directly:

What’s the one action you already know you need to take, that you’ve been postponing out of fear, fatigue, or perfectionism?

Not ten.
Not five.
Just one.

Take it today.

Clarity comes from action.
Confidence is built in motion.

And your potential?

It’s waiting on you, not the other way around.

Coach M
High Performance Coach for Leaders 

Pic Credit: Alex Hormozi

No alternative text description for this image

AI is here. And it’s evolving faster than most professionals can upskill.

That’s not fear-mongering.
That’s data.

↳ Entire industries are being restructured.
↳ Roles are being rewritten.
↳ Certainty is dissolving.

But here’s what won’t go obsolete, 

Socio-Emotional Intelligence.

Because when technology scales knowledge, what remains rare is wisdom.

The ability to:

↳ Regulate your emotions under pressure.
↳ Lead humans through fear and friction.
↳ Build trust in rooms full of uncertainty.

AI can process data.

It can’t hold space for doubt.

It can’t calm a panicked team.

It can’t sense the emotional undercurrents of a deal.

The leaders who’ll thrive in the AI era are not the ones who know everything.

They’re the ones who can stay steady when everything changes.

Socio-Emotional Intelligence is the new edge.

And it’s one no machine can replicate.

There’s a conversation that comes up almost every time I work with someone navigating a big transition, 

.....a promotion, a career shift, or even a personal rebuild.

It’s rarely about strategy.
It’s rarely about talent.

It’s almost always something far more human:
The quiet pain of being misunderstood.

Most high performers carry this silently.
They show up, do the work, keep moving…but inside, there’s a question they don’t know how to name.

This week’s newsletter is about that hidden experience, and the emotional maturity it takes to move through it without losing yourself.

If you’ve ever felt unseen in your intentions…
or misread in your sincerity…
This one will speak to you.

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate tough transitions with calm clarity. 

🔔 Follow Mallika Rao for more strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

#transitions #leadership #emotionalintelligence #calmclarity #selfleadership #wellbeing

There’s a conversation that comes up almost in every self-discovery journey. I see it with leaders stepping into bigger roles. I see it with individua

Open article: Fear of being misunderstood by Mallika Rao • 3 min read

Purpose isn’t personal.


We often think purpose is about our own growth, joy, or success.

But what I’ve learned is that purpose becomes real the moment it stops being only about you.

When what you do elevates someone else’s life.

When your success contributes to another’s wellbeing.

When your gifts ease someone’s fear.

When your voice helps someone find theirs.

Purpose is the courage to look beyond your own ambitions and ask a bigger question:

How am I contributing to make someone’s life better?

This year, as Project Annapurna completes another year of fighting hunger - serving nutritious meals to underprivileged communities, building bridge schools in tribal hamlets and organising medical camps. My heart feels full.

I’m deeply grateful to every volunteer who shows up with love…and to every person who allows us the honour of serving them.

The purpose of this post is “ In 2026, may you step into a purpose that extends beyond you.”

May your success ripple outward.

May your gifts become someone’s hope.

Because the key to a meaningful life is contribution.

Your Nervous System Decides Your Success.
Why clarity beats discipline every time.


When your nervous system believes:

“Everything is urgent, everything could go wrong, and I must hold it all together…”
…your brain physically shuts off the part that creates long-term focus.

The prefrontal cortex, the place for clarity, strategy, big-picture decisions, goes offline.
And the amygdala, the survival monitor, takes over and says:

“Forget the future. Survive today.”

This is why:

✔ You keep changing your goals
✔ You second-guess every decision
✔ You burnout before momentum begins

You can’t future-plan from a survival-state brain.
It will keep pulling you back to “right now” and “what if?”

So here’s the only shift that actually changes the game:

Stop forcing your brain to commit to goals
before you help your body feel safe.

Not safe as in comfortable.

Safe as in:

“I’m not in danger if I slow down.”
“I don’t have to constantly perform to be okay.”
“My worth doesn’t depend on this next achievement.”

When safety returns, something remarkable happens:

Your system moves from threat → possibility.

Your brain stops firefighting and starts designing.

Not because of motivation.
Because the right neural circuits come back online.

That’s when leaders finally say:

🟢 “I know what matters.”
🟢 “I know exactly what to do next.”
🟢 “I trust myself again.”

That is clarity, and clarity outperforms discipline every single time.

Most people write goals from fear:

“I can’t afford to fail next year.”
High performers who thrive write goals from safety:

“I have the capacity to build what I desire.”
Those two lines create two completely different lives.

If you want to step into 2026 with a nervous system that actually supports your goals, not fights them.

Comment “GOALS” and I’ll share the details.

Calm is not soft.
Calm is strategic.

Most high performers don’t collapse.
They slowly unravel - silently, elegantly, and invisibly.

On the outside, everything looks fine: promotions, deadlines met, family photos, polite smiles.

Inside, something starts to fray.

It begins with small things, waking up exhausted, feeling heavy in the chest, second-guessing simple decisions.

You tell yourself it’s just a phase.
But it’s not a phase. It’s a pattern.

High-functioning exhaustion happens when you keep performing without pausing to realign.

You’re operating on the same inner software that once helped you rise, but now it’s outdated.

Here’s the real cost:

 ↳ Your body stays on alert even when the day ends.
 ↳ You stop celebrating wins.
 ↳ You disconnect from joy.
 ↳ You confuse rest with guilt.

Most burnout isn’t from doing too much.

It’s from carrying too much for too long.

Try this tonight:
Before you open another tab or answer another message, sit still for 60 seconds.

Ask: “What am I actually carrying right now?”

You don’t need to fix it. Just notice.
That simple awareness starts the reset.

If this message feels close to home, take the Silent Burnout Scorecard. Link is in the comments below.

It will help you see your stress pattern clearly, because awareness is the first step toward peace.

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate tough transitions with calm clarity. 

🔔 Follow Mallika Rao for more strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

If there’s one thing that could set you up for 2026, it’s this:

Most high performers don’t struggle because they don’t know enough.

They struggle because they’re carrying beliefs, habits, identities, and patterns
that no longer fit the life they want.

We glorify new skills, new habits, new systems.

But we rarely talk about the layers we must shed before any real growth happens.

You can’t build a new life on old patterns.

Unlearning is uncomfortable, subtle, and deeply powerful.

Think about this past year:

How many times did you

↳ push through when your body needed rest?

↳ hold back because you didn’t want to disappoint someone?

↳ carry pressure alone because “that’s what strong people do”?

↳ chase goals that didn’t even feel like yours?

These aren’t productivity problems.

Old beliefs don’t disappear with willpower.

They create friction - mental, emotional, and physical - until you’re exhausted from carrying who you used to be.

If you want a different 2026, ask yourself:

“What do I need to unlearn to move forward?”

Maybe it’s…

↳ Unlearning urgency
and embracing calm decision-making.

↳ Unlearning perfection
and embracing progress.

↳ Unlearning self-sacrifice
and embracing boundaries.

↳ Unlearning emotional suppression
and embracing inner clarity.

↳ Unlearning the identity of “the one who fixes everything”, and embracing shared responsibility.

When you unlearn what no longer aligns, your next step becomes obvious.

If you want 2026 to be the year of clarity and aligned success, reply with “UNLEARN”, and I’ll share a powerful worksheet, that helps every leader I coach, step into their next chapter with calm clarity. 

♻️ Repost to help your network navigate tough transitions with calm clarity. 

🔔 Follow Mallika Rao for strategies on High Performance and Wellbeing.

3 biggest mistakes high performers make when setting goals, and how to avoid them in 2026.


Another year. Another big planning session on your calendar.

More goals. More spreadsheets. More colour-coded milestones.

Because consistency is key when you want to grow… right?

You push yourself to map out Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4…

You plan revenue. Workouts. Family time. Learning. Travel.

You write down the habits you want to build.

… and within weeks?

Work gets chaotic.
Boundaries blur again.
Your calendar starts owning you instead of supporting you.

Your heart sinks. Stress creeps back in.

And you start wondering:
“I know how to achieve goals, so why does this feel so hard now?”

Here’s the real problem:

High performers plan the year from ambition, not alignment.

They push. They stack. They assume their energy will magically hold.

And that’s the first mistake.

⸻

Mistake 1️⃣ : They plan from pressure

They set goals based on expectations, not their real priorities, their season of life, or what they truly want now.

Result: Clarity crumbles by February.

⸻

Mistake 2️⃣ : They plan without capacity

They write goals for the best version of themselves…on the best day…
with zero interruptions, zero emotion, zero life.

Result: Exhaustion hits first, goals break next.

⸻

Mistake 3️⃣ : They plan outcomes, not identity

They focus on what they want to achieve
instead of who they need to become to sustain it.

Result: Motivation fades. Old habits return.

⸻

So what actually works for 2026?

You must build a plan that aligns with:

✓ your nervous system
✓ your real energy
✓ your current values
✓ the identity you’re stepping into

Alignment > Ambition.
Capacity > Hustle.
Identity > Motivation.

That’s how you create a year you don’t abandon by February, a year you feel proud of in December.

On Dec 13, I’m doing a 2hrs Goals setting workshop to help you plan 2026 without pressure, using a proven framework that helped 660+ leaders. 

Link in the comments below.

taplio

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The Battle

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Utkarsh Narang's LinkedIn Performance

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