We don’t always talk about leadership in terms of safety, but we should. The leaders I trusted most weren’t perfect. They were steady, honest, and human. They made it safe to show up fully, and that changed everything.

Burnout doesn’t always look like breaking down. Sometimes it looks like doing everything right—while quietly falling apart. This piece explores the hidden signs of quiet burnout, why it happens even when your workload seems manageable, and what we actually need to recover.

In this post, we explore why emotional intelligence is the hidden superpower of standout program managers—and how to develop it to lead with intention.

When we think about program management, we often picture timelines, tools, and task lists. But the best program managers know the real magic happens between the lines—through emotional intelligence. It’s not just about managing the work. It’s about understanding people, building trust, and navigating complexity with clarity and care.

Sometimes you have to dig through a lot of rubbish to find valuable nuggets in hard feedback.

Two things can be true.