Matt Carle

Main Ascent Business Brokers & Advisors

Business Broker & Advisor

Matt Carle, Business Coach

Business Coach

Eastside Timbers

Program Director

Valentis Athletica

Non-Profit company founded to operate value-based youth soccer club in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Board Member

Portland Timbers

Ticket Services

United Soccer Leagues

Youth League Operations Intern

Colorado Rapids

Rapids Academy Intern

Helping you grow your business, and still make it home for dinner. │ Business Coach │ Business Broker │ Former soccer coach turned business coach

I help business owners who are stuck and struggling to make the right move.

Most of my clients come to me because:

- They feel trapped, they know they need changes, but don't know where to start
- Nothing happens in the business without their input
- They lack systems, accountability, & predictability

I coach them to build a business that delivers:

- More freedom & flexibility for the Owner
- Repeatable systems that drive predictable results
- Results that help increase the value of the business, so it's ready to sell when you are

We use a tailored approach to:

- Build repeatable systems so the business works for the Owner (not the other way around)
- Empower their teams, drive accountability, systematize operations, and reduce stress
- Build a business that is “exit ready,” whether that’s next year or years down the road

Here’s a few of the outcomes clients have experienced:

- Packaging company that went from $1.5M per year to $1M per month
- Manufacturing Co. owners who went from overworked to never missing an appointment or a game
- Insurance agent who saw 20% YoY growth in his book of business & increased commissions

Why I do this:

- I’ve spent more than half my life as a coach. First on the soccer field, now supporting business owners
- 9+ years as a business coach, and 3+ years as a business broker supporting owners
- I value time with my wife and two kids outside Denver, Colorado, and I want my clients to enjoy the same freedom

If you’re ready to build a business that is easier to run, more fun to own, and ready to sell when you are...

Click the “Book an appointment” link at the top of my profile to apply to work with me.

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

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.

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.

Most clients don’t come to me because they want more hacks, tips, or tools.

They reach out when life feels loud - inside and outside.

When the noise in their mind is heavier than the work on their plate.
When they’ve been holding it all together for so long… that it starts to show in their energy, their sleep, their confidence, their decisions.

They choose to work with me when:

↳ They are overwhelmed and long for a space of Calm, a space where they can finally breathe, slow down, and think clearly again.

↳ They’re stuck in decision fog because they’ve been “strong” for everyone else and can’t see through the mist for themselves anymore.

↳ They’re procrastinating… not because they’re lazy, but because an unseen fear or imposter voice keeps challenging every step they take.

If you’re reading this and something inside you whispered, “This is me,”, I want you to know this:

↳ You don’t need to “fix yourself.”
↳ You don’t need more strategy.
↳ You don’t need another motivational push.

You need a safe space, one where your nervous system can settle, your truth can surface, and your clarity can return.

That space exists.
And when you’re ready… I’m here.

Book a clarity call to explore working with me.

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

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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.

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.

If you’re delivering great work but still feel invisible…you are missing this.

Most careers don’t stall because of poor performance.

They stall because no one powerful is saying your name in the room where decisions are made.

Yesterday, I had an interesting conversation with an IT Leader.

Hard-working. Smart. Delivers on every project.

Yet, his efforts are not getting the visibility and recognition, they deserve. 

And he can’t put his finger on why.

This happens far more than we like to admit.

High performers think career growth is a straight line:

✔ Do great work
✔ Be reliable
✔ Be consistent

They are important, but then, it’s not enough. 

Your career can survive without a mentor for years.

But you will NOT rise without a sponsor.

A mentor advises you.

A sponsor advocates for you in the important rooms you are not in. 

A mentor gives you insight.
A sponsor gives you opportunity.

One builds your skill.
The other builds your visibility.

Most professionals work hard, collect good feedback, win awards…but still get stuck because no one with power is speaking their name when decisions are made.

Years back I heard a TED talk by Carla Harris and I believe every high performer must listen to it. 

Link is in the comments below. 

Hope this helps! 

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

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

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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);}Mallika Rao's LinkedIn Performance

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