There is a quiet moment in every leader’s journey when achievement no longer feels like enough. The calendar is full, the results are solid, the responsibility is real. Yet inside, something begins to shift, to evolve. 

That space is what many of us find ourselves standing in today. The messy middle.

It is not the beginning. It is not the end. It is the in-between where identity, purpose, and direction begin to demand deeper attention. It is also where many leaders find themselves as organizations continue to evolve, expectations shift, and familiar structures change.

That is exactly the space I explored with our honored guest, Lisa Parda, in this insightful conversation. She’s the author of the upcoming book, My Love Language is Food, a weekly radio show co-host, and a real estate broker who specializes in candid conversations on food, wellness, and finding joy in the messy middle of life.

When Success Shifts and So Do You

Lisa shared how she spent more than twenty years in real estate developing properties, managing assets, and helping others build wealth. Real estate was not only her profession, it was part of who she was. 

Over time, the pace intensified, and when COVID arrived, everything accelerated at once. Supply chain disruptions, constant uncertainty, and the unrelenting pressure eventually led to burnout, and the way she had been working simply became unsustainable.

Can you relate to this pressure?

She asked herself a question many high performers eventually face. 

Do I no longer love what I do, or do I no longer love how I am doing it?

That question became her doorway to reinvention.

Lisa realized she could honor her expertise without remaining in the parts of the work that drained her. She shifted from daily property management into a brokerage and advisory role focused on strategy and value creation. The work remained meaningful, and the way she delivered it changed.

That is a lesson many senior leaders need right now. We do not always need to abandon what we have built. Sometimes we need to redesign how we show up inside of it.

Evolution in leadership is not about leaving what you built. It requires reshaping how you lead within it.

The messy middle is not only about reinvention. It is also a moment of reckoning and opportunity. Many leaders today are navigating shifting organizational structures, evolving expectations, and constant change within the enterprise. 

Even when a role remains intact, the environment around it rarely does. This season invites us to pause, question, and reflect with intention. It is a window of opportunity to ask not only what is changing around me, but what is changing within me.

That is also the heart of our work at ExecutiveBound. Through our tailored solutions and the C.A.R.E.S. Leadership Success System, we help leaders connect to their truth, align with their next chapter, rise above real and fictitious constraints, envision what is possible now, and seek the support that allows sustainable growth without burnout.

The Messy Middle Is Where Unlearning Begins

Lisa defines the “messy middle” as any season of transition. A career shift. An empty nest. A health reckoning. A new life chapter that does not come with a playbook.

We spoke openly about how many high achievers, especially those of us from the Baby Boomer and Generation X generations, myself included, were raised to believe that pushing through everything was the only way forward, that working harder always came before resting, and that our worth had to be proven again and again. 

What so many of us are discovering now is that those rules no longer serve our bodies, our families, or the kind of leadership we genuinely want to embody.

Today, science supports what experience has already taught us: sustainable leadership requires rest, self-compassion, and holistic well-being. According to Gallup’s 2024 State of the Global Workplace report, stress among managers remains at record highs, with 44% reporting feeling “a lot of stress” daily.

This level of chronic stress directly impacts engagement, focus, and performance across organizations. Sustainable leadership today requires recovery, reflection, and renewal as essential practices, not endless output.

Lisa shared that her path into wellness began with exhaustion. She spoke candidly about unlearning outdated beliefs around food, experimenting with what truly works for her body, and becoming her own case study. What works for one person may not work for another. Awareness and intention become the new authority.

We also talked about creativity and the value of becoming a beginner again. The courage to try something with no guarantee of mastery. Lisa rediscovered that courage through writing her upcoming book, My Love Language is Food, blending nourishment, storytelling, and self-care.

As I listened to Lisa share her journey, I reflected on my own evolution and recent transitions, including my son leaving for college this year, the house growing quiet, and my two-year relationship ending abruptly. Those shifts arrived close enough together that I did not have the luxury of avoiding the deeper questions about who I was becoming as a mother, a woman, and a leader.

Through these shifts, I have been integrating even more reflection, more meditation, stillness, and intention into my activities and leadership. That is what I encourage you to experiment with as a result of this conversation. What does it look like for you?

Who Are You Without the Role

One of the most powerful questions from our conversation was this: 

Who am I without this ____ (blank, e.g., your role, your label)?

So many of us unconsciously become our titles. The label becomes our identity. For years, it works. Until one day, the role shifts or the energy behind it changes.

Lisa shared that asking ‘Who am I without this (blank)’ removes the ego from the equation and opens space for reinvention. Not reinvention as abandonment, rather reinvention as integration. I found that question confronting and liberating at the same time.

I am an executive coach, a speaker, and a leadership partner to organizations charged with shaping what comes next. And I am also a woman who deeply values creativity, quiet moments, reflection, movement, and growth that extends far beyond performance alone. Holding both with intention and grace is the work of this season of my life.

The messy middle is not a failure. It is a recalibration.

It invites us to unlearn what no longer fits and to choose what now aligns. It invites us to lead with more humanity, not less. And it allows us to design a future that honors who we have been and who we are becoming.

What’s Next?

If you find yourself in a season of transition, whether it happened by circumstance, by choice, or through involuntary organizational change, please know that this is not a setback. 

It is a pause that invites deeper clarity. It is a moment to look at what has shaped you and decide, with intention, what will shape you next. Sometimes what once defined us is not lost; it is simply being refined.

Ask yourself:

Who am I without the role I perform every day?
What am I being invited to question and reflect on right now?

What am I ready to release?

And if this conversation resonates with you and you are navigating a transition inside your role, your organization, or your own sense of direction, please know that we are here to support you and the team you lead. 

While navigating constant change happening around us, I see how much leaders and their teams carry. We all need moments to pause, reflect, and regain our footing so we can move forward with greater clarity and intention. I would love to connect with you. 

Let’s set up a 15-minute Cafecito. You can also reach us directly at info@executivebound.com.

Lead with purpose, live with joy!
Coach Ginny

About Lisa Parda
Our honored guest, Lisa Parda, is the Author of “My Love Language is Food,” a Weekly Radio Show Host, & Real Estate Broker who specializes in candid conversations on food, wellness, and finding joy in the “Messy Middle” of life. To connect with Lisa, visit her website, https://www.guestsonair.com/profile/lisa-parda, and follow her on LinkedIn.