How to Become an Intentional, Resilient Leader

by | Jul 16, 2025

How to Become an Intentional, Resilient Leader

You’re about to explore three practical moves that transform heavy-duty pressure into high-impact performance. 

First, you’ll see why pressure, when framed well, is a vote of confidence, not a threat. Next, you’ll learn a simple map to sort every demand on your plate and spot where support or stretch is needed. Finally, you’ll try a 60-second reset, grounded in curiosity, empathy, and accountability, that turns derailments into momentum for your team. 

All of this stems from my conversation with sports psychology expert Dr. Haley Perlus. Let’s dive in.

Pressure Is a Privilege

I asked Dr. Haley, “Tell us about yourself and your leadership journey.” She whisked us to a ski start gate at age twelve. Her coach waved a Canadian hundred-dollar bill, announced he was betting on her run, then stepped aside. The air crackled with two possibilities: crumble or convert pressure into fuel. We’ll circle back to how that moment shaped everything she teaches today. 

For now, hold this scene in mind as you picture the project deadlines, market swings, and head-count cuts inside Financial Services and STEM organizations, each one a modern version of that start gate, a signal that someone believes you can deliver.

The Pressure Map

When I asked her, “What pressures and complexities are you seeing with the leaders you coach?” Dr. Haley offered three distinctions.

Not all pressures are created equal. Here’s how she described them:

Normal Pressure: wash-rinse-repeat tasks that keep the lights on, like inbox triage and daily stand-ups

Training Pressure: stretch projects just above today’s skill, such as leading a cross-functional pilot or presenting to the board

Excessive Pressure: demands that truly outstrip resources, often because “we’re telling ourselves the story that everything is mission-critical”

Her follow-up question seals the lesson: “How have I earned this pressure?” 

When you ask yourself this question, you have an opportunity to anchor in prior accomplishments and deliverables that validate and build your confidence to do it again, even when you don’t know all the specifics of how to do it yet.

It’s also a signal that someone, and the environment, believes in you enough that you’ve ended up in this high-pressure situation. This is the perfect time to lean into your support system and utilize the available resources for guidance, mentorship, and strategic alignment, setting yourself up for success.

Leveraging our C.A.R.E.S. Leadership Success System, we see a similar shift occur for the leaders in our leadership development cohorts, i.e., ExecutiveBound Elevate: once leaders connect demands to proven strengths, their unique value proposition, and personal values and needs, overwhelm dissipates and they focus on creating a strategic and intentional action plan.

Bounce Back with Intention

As our conversation deepened, I asked, “What are organizations doing to build genuine resilience?” Dr. Haley answered with a clear definition: 

Dr. Haley’s reply was crisp: “Resilience is not just bouncing back; it’s bouncing back with intention, being the best recoverer you can be.” 

We discussed a real scenario where, due to downsizing, teams may find themselves stretched thin, with three members having to cover the workload of five, for example. 

Instead of spiraling, we recommend this approach: Call it out: “This is going to be a tough six months.” Acceptance, she explained, is not resignation; it clears space for smart preparation.

As a team, you can then map deadlines, eliminate duplicate meetings (“we will never put two people on the same call”), and reassign tasks so no energy is leaked through redundancy. By removing “unnecessary emotions” that drain focus, the team reclaims time and momentum.

Remember our twelve-year-old at the start gate? In the instant after her coach’s challenge, she took one intentional breath, trusted her training, and skied exactly as practiced—proof that a mindset reset, not a lengthy retreat, converts pressure into forward motion.

Curiosity, Empathy, Ownership

When I asked Dr. Haley, “Which competencies do leaders need most today?” she pointed to three essentials:

  • Speak less, and do it more strategically.
  • Master the art of deep listening.
  • Maintain consistent energy so your team can mirror your presence.

Our conversation deepened into how curiosity becomes a gateway to growth. The moment we replace judgment with the question, What can we learn here?, we unlock fresh insights and invite our teams to do the same.

Empathy flourishes when we allow ourselves to be learners again. Even if we’re often the subject-matter expert in the rooms we lead, stepping outside our comfort zone and diving into something unfamiliar gives us the beginner’s lens. That shift in perspective strengthens our ability to support new team members who are still finding their footing.

Ownership and grace are powerful travel companions. There will be days when we’re not at full capacity. Maybe we’re only operating at 70 percent. Dr. Haley’s advice? Deliver 100 percent of today’s 70 percent, and encourage your team to do the same.

One key takeaway: giving yourself grace doesn’t mean letting yourself—or others—off the hook. Acknowledging that you or someone else is having an “off” day isn’t a hall pass. It’s a call to be honest about our current capacity and take ownership of what we can give. That’s where real confidence comes from, not from praise, but from the results we deliver with integrity.

Where Do We Go from Here?

This brings us to the end of our empowering conversation, ‘How to Become an Intentional, Resilient Leader,’ with the brilliant Dr. Haley Perlus.

Here are the truths we explored:

  • Pressure, when mapped and reframed, becomes fuel for growth.
  • Practicing resilience with intention turns setbacks into springboards.
  • Curiosity and empathy keep influence deeply human, while ownership builds trust and credibility.

At ExecutiveBound, we specialize in guiding mid- to senior-level leaders and organizations in Financial Services and STEM through transformation. We accelerate leadership growth, team performance, and workplace well-being by helping our clients gain and apply the critical leadership skills that drive measurable business results. 

Our tailored solutions, rooted in our C.A.R.E.S. Leadership Success System, support leaders in connecting to their unique value and purpose, aligning where they are now with where they want to be, overcoming their challenges, envisioning their ideal future, and seeking support as they serve others.

Throughout the year, we host leadership development cohorts to help individual leaders and partner organizations achieve their 12-month vision and success indicators.

If you or your leaders are feeling the weight of “sustained pressure” and want support creating a tailored plan of action, let’s connect over a strategy session. In this complimentary call, we’ll clarify what’s working, what’s not, and build your leadership roadmap for the year ahead.

You always have options. Waiting is one. However, waiting may cost you your well-being, momentum, or key opportunities as an individual leader or organization. There’s no time like the present. 

Lead with purpose, live with joy!
Coach Ginny

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Dr Ginny Baro

DR. GINNY A. BARO, Ph.D., MBA, MS, CPC, CEO, ExecutiveBound.com, immigrated to the U.S. at age 14 with nothing more than a dream. Today, she is an award-winning international transformational speaker & leadership coach, career strategist, and #1 bestselling author of Healing Leadership and Fearless Women at Work. Named one of the Top 100 Global Thought Leaders, Dr. Ginny Baro has successfully delivered keynotes, leadership training, and coaching programs for organizations, ERGs, and Fortune 500 companies. She’s been a Leadership Coach for the McKinsey & Company’s Hispanic/Latino Executive Program since 2021. Leveraging over 20 years of corporate leadership experience, in 2020, Dr. Ginny Baro created the Fearless Leadership Mastermind™ to help high-potential female leaders advance and gain critical leadership skills to lead, engage, and influence their teams confidently and deliver business growth and personal well-being. She earned a Ph.D. in Information Systems, an MS in Computer Science, an MBA in Management, and a BA in Computer Science and Economics, and she is a Certified Professional Coach (CPC). To learn more, please visit https://drginnybaro.com/.

 

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