Shifting from Survival Mode to Self-Trust in Business

From a small office in India to a multi-million global B2B Brand & Performance Marketing Agency 17 years ago, I was just trying to keep the business alive. Now, we’re a multi-million revenue company with 600+ people across the globe. The contrasts between then and now? — 1. I went from survival mode to strategic growth. Back then, every decision was about staying afloat. Now, decisions are about scaling, innovating, and long-term impact. It’s not just about winning deals anymore, it’s about building something that lasts. — 2. I’m away from the details and more in the strategy. I used to be involved in every detail. Every client, every process, every hire. Now, I focus on high-level strategy while empowering my team to lead. Because if you don’t trust your people, you become the bottleneck. — 3. My mindset shifted from local to global. I used to see business through a single lens Then a move to a new environment changed everything. New demographics. New culture. New mindsets. It forced me to adapt, learn faster, and scale beyond what I thought was possible. What’s the biggest contrast in your career from where you started to now?

I used to say yes too much. Yes to jobs that paid little. Yes to timelines that crushed creativity. Yes to projects that did not align with my values. At the time, I told myself it was survival. I thought saying yes to everything meant more opportunities, more connections, more growth. But in reality, it only left me drained, undervalued, and distracted from the work that truly mattered. Today I had a conversation with some creative friends about this very thing. They asked me for advice, and I shared what I had to learn the hard way. The truth is this: survival mode tricks us into believing that every opportunity is worth taking. But not all opportunities are good ones. Some of them chip away at your confidence. Some of them make you doubt your worth. Some of them bully you into thinking that you should be grateful for being underpaid or overlooked. The shift came when I started seeing my value differently. I realized that every “yes” I gave to the wrong project was actually a “no” to focus, growth, and building something lasting. Now I choose differently. I say no to work that does not appreciate my value. I say no to projects that only want to use my time without respecting my expertise. And by doing so, I create room for better work, better clients, and better growth. To anyone reading this who feels stuck in that cycle of saying yes out of survival, here is my advice: See more value in yourself. Protect your focus. Say no when you need to. You are not losing opportunities, you are creating space for the right ones. Because focus builds. Respect builds. Alignment builds. That is how you grow. And if you are a founder or business owner looking to build a brand with clarity, focus, and trust, I am available for branding projects. Let us create something meaningful together.

The CEO Confidence Trap: Why Smart Leaders Still Feel Like Frauds 🌍 New CEOs and board members don’t often talk about it, but imposter syndrome is real—even at the top. Why? Because: - You suddenly realize how much you don’t know. - You’re making million-dollar decisions with imperfect information. - People expect you to have all the answers—when deep down, you’re still figuring things out. 🎯 The truth? Even the most successful leaders feel this. The key isn’t avoiding it—it’s learning how to own your space even in uncertainty. Recently, I was coaching a new CEO who had just transitioned into the role. It was a move she thought she was fully prepared for. But as we dug deeper, she admitted feeling unsure and even second-guessing herself. Some legacy stakeholders—used to the old guard—were clearly testing her mettle. She began to wonder: “Am I really ready for this? Do I have what it takes to lead this organization through uncharted territory?" She was wrestling with decision paralysis, especially when faced with a major contract negotiation. She worried constantly about whether she was making the right move. How We Worked Through It 1️⃣ Normalising the Uncertainty I reminded her that feeling unsure was perfectly normal —as long as she didn’t stay stuck in that state. Leadership isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about making bold decisions with confidence, even in the face of uncertainty. 2️⃣ Leaning Into Her Experience. We explored her reservoir of experiences —years of accomplishments, skills, and expertise that had prepared her for this role. While no two situations are alike, she realized she had the ability to adapt, negotiate, and trust her instincts. 3️⃣ Practicing Self-Trust We worked on mindset strategies to help her lean into self-trust. She learned that she may never have all the facts or unanimous support, but her ability to assess risks, draw on past wins, and act decisively was enough to navigate this new reality. By the end of the session, she approached the contract negotiation with renewed confidence, knowing that her leadership wasn’t about perfection—it was about progress and strategic courage. 🎯 ACE CEO Reflections: The takeaway? Feeling like a fraud doesn’t disqualify you from leadership—it’s a sign you’re growing. The key is learning to lean into your strengths, trust your instincts, and act boldly even when the path is uncertain. This week ahead, I want you to know- You’ve got this! With Purpose and Joy, Your Chief Igniter. ##CSuiteSuccess #LeadershipConfidence #ExecutiveEdge #BoldLeadership #ImposterSyndromeTruths #ACECEOSeries

In the past two decades, startups and new business models have dazzled the world. Stories of rapid growth fueled by quick decisions and pivots captivate us. But behind the glamour lies a sobering truth—a darker, more precarious side to this growth. Operating in untested terrains, many decisions fall under "emergent strategy," which is largely reactive. In hindsight, patterns may emerge, but in the moment, these strategies focus on survival, looking no further than a few months or a year ahead. The familiar questions driving this mindset are: What’s the immediate problem? Who are we solving it for? How can we fix it now? How will we measure success quickly? While these are critical, they trap organizations in survival mode, prioritizing short-term wins at any cost. This often leads to frantic, multi-directional growth and steep rises that can quickly turn into falls. But this issue isn’t just organizational—it’s societal. Organizations shape more than profits; they influence social behaviors and norms. When companies prioritize speed and shortcuts, this mindset seeps into society, normalizing transactional behaviors: crash diets over sustainable health, endless scrolling instead of meaningful connection, surface-level wins over long-term growth. The real problem isn’t just the hustle; it’s the mindset. Take reading a book. It’s not just about consuming content—it’s a discipline: "I will commit an hour to this process, regardless of how I feel." This builds patience, resilience, and the capacity to bounce back. I call this the "Thrive Mode." Similarly, rituals like family dinners or quiet reflection may not yield instant results, but they create a steady foundation. They’re commitments to processes, not outcomes. Back to business. Short-term reactions are sometimes necessary. But alongside them, it’s vital to develop a reflective, process-oriented approach: 💡 What assumptions guide your strategy? 💡 How do these shape your culture and societal influence? 💡 How often do you reflect, adjust, and prepare for change? Viewing strategy as a commitment to a process builds resilience, alignment, and culture while planting seeds for societal impact. Companies that model patience and long-term thinking set standards society mirrors. The assumptions organizations act on become the norms society lives by. So yes, react when needed, but also invest in the unseen—processes that shape the future in ways no shortcut ever could. Thriving isn’t just a business imperative—it’s a social one. Wishing you invincibility, Shweta PS: How do you transition from survival mode to thrive mode? Share your process or rituals! PPS: If this resonates, follow me for weekly leadership reflections or tag someone who might find this helpful.

Our role as leaders is not to play the hand we’ve been dealt. It’s to fundamentally change it.    The most consistent blindspot I’ve observed among those transitioning into senior leadership roles is that they automatically accept whatever premise is set for them by their CEO, boss, or Board without questioning whether:   1️⃣ it's a realistic and achievable premise to begin with, and 2️⃣ they are set up for success with the conditions they need to deliver.   We do this for a number of reasons, but the most common and unspoken one is fear. We think "if my CEO thinks it's possible, it must be possible; if I can't crack it, it must be a problem with me or my capabilities.” It takes a huge amount of courage and self-trust to raise your hand and voice that you’re not on a workable path. Despite your work ethic and excellence, the situation may simply not be set up for success. In other words, you may have been dealt a losing hand.   But instead of raising this, many leaders attempt to brute-force their way into achieving the impossible, usually resulting in frustration, underperformance, or burnout. They suffer and the business suffers.    I feel passionately about solving this cycle! Your gifts and talents have immense potential to make their mark, but instead, I've seen many leaders unable to maximize their impact, or worse, put their own health at risk. And fundamentally, it’s because they have been trying to play with a losing hand. It happened to me once in my early career, but since then, I’ve learned to shape each subsequent hand I’ve been dealt for greater success. As leaders, we must develop self-awareness and influencing skills to ensure we're setting ourselves and the business up to succeed. We need to shift our mindset away from “my value is based on how well I can deliver whatever is asked of me in the short-term” to “my value is based on how well I can identify and deliver sustainable value for the business in the long-term.”    Our skillsets must evolve from getting things done at all costs, even if it’s a losing strategy, to diagnosing what is needed to win and influencing those around you to make that a reality. Perhaps most importantly, our self-talk must evolve from: “I’m worried others will think I can’t do it” to “I trust myself enough to know what I need to succeed.” Instead of resigning yourself to the hand you’ve been dealt, how can you look for new cards, advocate for new rules, or change the game that’s being played entirely? In my next post, I’ll share some tactical examples that have worked for me on how to do this :)

Self-trust isn’t something you either have or don’t... It’s built. Through experience, feedback, reflection, and even failure. When you’re building something from scratch, uncertainty is inevitable. But real self-trust means backing yourself even when you don’t feel fully confident. It’s the decision to stay in the arena, learn from feedback, and refine your discernment as you grow. It’s not about perfection. It’s about knowing you can hold yourself through discomfort and still make decisions in alignment, even when the outcome isn’t guaranteed. Just last month, a founder I work with faced a high-stakes choice: stick with a familiar launch strategy or pivot to something that felt more aligned but untested. They weren’t fully certain, but they trusted their judgment. They made the pivot and landed a key customer who’s now become a powerful early advocate. That’s what self-trust looks like in action. It’s not about always knowing the answer. It’s about backing your ability to respond. Human By Design #selftrust #HighPerformanceLeadership #highachiever #performancecoaching #EntrepreneurLife #businessgrowth