I help international schools fix teacher training, recruitment, and leadership.

With 25+ years in education across Asia, I know what schools, teachers, and unis really need. I connect the dots between policy, strategy, and people — and get things moving.

Let's talk if you want to grow your teacher pipeline, build smarter CPD, or expand in Asia
.
My passion is to drive educational innovation, harnessing technology to enhance online and offline learning experiences. I hold an NPQH, a PGCE, and an M.Ed in Educational Leadership and Administration.

We also provide academic support to students planning to attend boarding schools in the UK, US, and Australia and help UK schools enter and succeed in the Chinese market.

John Woodberry

Trump is loudly “standing up” to partners.
Tariffs. Threats. Public spats.
Meanwhile, Xi just removed visa fees for Brits visiting China.

No press conference.
No chest-beating.
Just a simple signal: We are open for business.

That’s what modern power looks like.

Not shouting strength — just making yourself easier to engage with.

Soft power beats noise more often than we admit.

And while American politics obsesses over looking tough,
China is busy looking reasonable.

China 1 – 0.

Founder @ Red Dragon Education | International Teacher Training

No alternative text description for this image

If you think leadership is about titles or authority...
You’re already missing the point.

Real leaders don’t pull rank.
They earn trust.

They protect people when no one’s watching.
They give credit, not commands.
They create safety, not fear.

The fastest way to lose followers?

Remind people you’re “the boss.”

The fastest way to gain them?

Act like a human first.

Leadership isn’t a position.
It’s a behaviour.

Be Human!

Agree or disagree? 👇

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Need to make a move?
Get in touch: https://linktr.ee/pgce

Not sure about your next move in 2026? 
Get in touch: https://linktr.ee/pgce

Want to lead others and get a great job? 
Get in touch: https://linktr.ee/pgce

Unsure where 2026 is heading for your teaching career? Internationally recognised teacher training might be the leverage you’re missing. https://linktr.ee/pgce

If 2026 feels vague, that's a signal, not a problem. 
Upskilling through international teacher training creates that. https://linktr.ee/pgce

Still seeking clarity on your next teaching move in 2026? 
QTS gives you control, not hope. https://linktr.ee/pgce

2026 won’t magically sort itself out. 
International teacher training is how smart teachers open doors globally. https://linktr.ee/pgce

Many teachers drift into 2026. The smart ones prepare. The International PGCE and QTS pathways matter. https://linktr.ee/pgce

Uncertain about your next step? 
Teacher training isn’t a detour; it’s a multiplier. https://linktr.ee/pgce

2026 rewards qualified, mobile teachers, not wishful thinking. 

International training changes the game. https://linktr.ee/pgce

If career momentum matters to you in 2026, invest in training that schools actually respect. https://linktr.ee/pgce

The question isn’t where you’ll be teaching in 2026. It’s whether you’ll be qualified to choose. https://linktr.ee/pgce

2026 rewards qualified, mobile teachers, not wishful thinking. International training changes the game. https://linktr.ee/pgce

PHASE Conference Presenter

TAE40116 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment

We offer a range of online courses designed to enhance the qualifications of aspiring teachers and leaders. In partnership with leading universities, we provide pathways for careers in international education.
IPGCE / IQTS / QTS / PGCE / MA Leadership / MA Education / NPQs

Helping teachers get qualified through the partner universities: IPGCE, IQTS, MA, QTS Assessment Only and IQTS. We've worked with over 1000 teachers to realise their dreams of finding a great job.

Co-Founder

Set up the company and worked with a range of local and international schools in providing education solutions including:

- Tutoring
- Academic support 
- Revision courses
- A-level lessons and examinations 
- Professional teacher placement 
- School tours
- Boarding school advice
- Entrance exam preparation

Founder

Director

My main focus was to help with the students' academic achievements across the secondary school. I was helping grow the school from 200 to 1200 students in 5 years of service. After joining the school I quickly assumed more responsibility and helped lead a tutor group team of 15 staff. 

Worked in both the secondary and primary section of the school in the following disciplines as a classroom teacher:
- Geography
- PE
- Science 
- Economics

Deputy Head of School

Working across the high school in Geography and PE

Head of Geography

You don't hire teachers based on CVs.
You hire them based on how they show up on a Friday afternoon.

After hiring and working with international teachers across different countries, one thing is clear:

The best ones share the same rare traits.

Here are eight things I see in every great international teacher we hire 👇

1️⃣ Grit
They push through language barriers, cultural shifts, and tough classrooms — without quitting.

2️⃣ Relentless Resourcefulness
Different curriculum? Limited resources?
They always find a way to make learning work.

3️⃣ Optimism
They bring calm, positive energy into the classroom — even on hard days.

4️⃣ Constant Learning
The best teachers are students first.
They ask for feedback. They adapt. They grow.

5️⃣ Respect & Empathy
Great teachers don’t just teach content — they care about people.

6️⃣ Fun to Be Around
Students feel it. Colleagues feel it.
Energy matters more than credentials.

7️⃣ Growth Mindset
They see international teaching as an opportunity, not a sacrifice.

8️⃣ Ownership
They treat the classroom like it’s their own mission — not “just a job.”

🚩 Red flags we avoid
• Blaming past schools
• No apparent reason for job moves
• More focused on benefits than impact
• Complains more than they contribute

Skills can be trained.
Character can’t.

If you’re an international teacher who sees yourself in this — or a school leader who agrees —

What trait matters most to you when hiring or teaching abroad?

The teachers who deserve the most attention usually ask for the least. By the time someone resigns, you lost them months earlier; the resignation letter is just the paperwork.

The teachers who deserve the most attention usually ask for the least.

They stay late.
They absorb more than they complain.
They stop raising their hand.

And by the time someone resigns, you didn’t lose them that day.

You lost them months earlier.

The resignation letter is just the paperwork.

If you’re a leader, here’s the uncomfortable truth:

Silence is rarely loyalty.
It’s often exhaustion.

The people who care the most don’t always make noise.
They quietly decide when it’s no longer worth it.

Pay attention earlier.

Could you imagine this being written by a UK education secretary today?
I read a piece in The Straits Times this week and had to pause.

Not because it was flashy.
Not because it was controversial.

But because it was calm, evidence-based, and long-term in its thinking about teachers.

The author argues a simple idea:
👉 Teaching cannot work as a revolving door.

If you want better outcomes for students, you invest in teachers’ growth — over decades, not election cycles.

More trust.
More professional development.
More respect for experience.

Reading it, I couldn’t help asking myself:

Would we ever see a UK equivalent of this kind of writing from someone like Bridget Phillipson?

Less slogan.
Less short-term reform.
More system memory.

Singapore understands something many systems forget:
You don’t scale education by burning out the people who deliver it.

You scale it by helping them get better every year.

Credit to Wei Li — and to The Straits Times — for publishing a piece that thinks beyond the next headline and toward the next generation.

If we’re serious about education reform, this is the level of thinking we should demand.

What would change if we treated teaching as a long-term profession again — not a policy experiment?

Everyone sees it.
Almost no one names it.

Meetings keep moving.
Slides keep changing.
“Next steps” keep getting refined.

And the real issue stays in the room.

Unaddressed behaviour.
Broken incentives.
Fear of conflict dressed up as professionalism.

In education, we’re especially good at this.

We talk about strategy
while avoiding culture.

We talk about leadership
while protecting titles.

We talk about improvement
while refusing to confront what’s actually failing.

The elephant isn’t ignorance.
It’s avoidance.

Because once you name the real problem,
someone has to act.

And leadership isn’t the title in the room.
It’s who’s willing to say the thing everyone else is thinking.

So what’s the elephant in your classroom—or boardroom—right now?

In much of Asia, international schools don’t have a strategy problem.
How can these be solved via the 80/20 strategy? 

We’re incredibly strong at structure.
Less strong at the challenge.

Here’s the 80/20 most leaders won’t say out loud:

Student outcomes
80% psychological safety and belonging 
20% programmes and pathways

School improvement
80% what leaders model under pressure
20% what leaders announce in meetings

Teacher effectiveness
80% permission to question and disagree
20% appraisal frameworks

Parent confidence
80% calm, honest communication
20% prestige signals and branding

Innovation
80% leaders make it safe to be wrong
20% “future-ready” initiatives

Leadership wellbeing
80% boundaries and moral courage
20% mindfulness sessions

The uncomfortable reality?

In many Asian contexts,
people wait for permission — not because they lack ideas,
but because leaders unintentionally train compliance.

We say we want initiative.
We reward alignment.

We say we want innovation.
We punish visible failure.

The highest-performing international schools in Asia don’t have more systems.
They have leaders who:

 Invite dissent without taking it personally
 Create safety without lowering standards
 Choose trust over control, even when reputation is on the line

If your staff are quiet, compliant, and “aligned”...
don’t assume buy-in.

Assume caution.

Nice list. Wrong focus.
This is not how hiring works in 2026.

Everyone memorises answers.
Very few demonstrate a signal.

“Tell me about a time...”
has become performance theatre.

Polished stories.
Tell-me-what-you-think-I-should-say answers.
STAR frameworks with no real stakes.

What actually matters now isn’t what you say.
It’s whether you can:

– Learn fast
– Think clearly
– Navigate ambiguity
– Work across cultures, tools, and time zones
– Adapt when the script breaks

In global, fast-moving workplaces,
there is no “perfect answer.”

There is only evidence.

Evidence you can solve unfamiliar problems.
Evidence you can communicate under pressure.
Evidence you can grow after feedback, not just talk about it.

If interviews still reward memorised stories,
they’re selecting for confidence — not capability.

And candidates know it.

The future of hiring isn’t better answers.
It’s better questions.

What do you think interviews should actually measure now?
👇 Curious to hear your take.

We're hiring experienced and passionate IB tutors. 
Know anyone who might be interested?
These opportunities span IB DP, MYP, and PYP, with roles matched by programme experience and phase.

Pressure doesn’t create failure.
It exposes preparation.
AFCON proved it.

Morocco.
Penalty in the 95th minute at 0-0.
A Panenka attempt.
Missed.
Not a talent issue.
A preparation issue.

We see the same thing in international school leadership.
When pressure hits, some leaders improvise.
They go for flair instead of systems.
That’s when things fall apart.

Great leaders don’t get creative under pressure.

They get predictable.
Because the work was done earlier.

Under pressure, leaders try a “T-cup” move:
• Improvising instead of planning
• Trusting instinct instead of systems
• Hoping experience will carry the moment

What in your leadership would break if real pressure arrived tomorrow?

International schools don’t need another strategy refresh in 2026.
They need focus.

• Keep good teachers instead of constantly replacing them
• Build leadership depth, not just titles
• Prioritise teaching quality over curriculum branding
• Take student well-being seriously. With structure, not slogans

Most schools already know this.
Very few will act on it.

That gap is where 2026 will be won or lost.

I didn’t plan to become an entrepreneur.
I accidentally fell into it back in 2009.

I followed the “right” path:
International schools.
Leadership roles.
Systems. Strategy. Structure.

From the outside, it looked successful.

Inside, I felt constrained.

I loved developing people and shaping culture.
I struggled with how slowly change could happen.

So I stepped off the ladder.

Not because I stopped believing in education.
But because I wanted to serve it differently.

Entrepreneurship gave me:
– Freedom to design solutions
– Speed to test ideas
– Impact across multiple schools, not just one

Here’s the truth we don’t say enough in education:

Leadership doesn’t end when the org chart does.
If you’re a school leader wondering, “Is there another way to lead?”

There is.
And it might look nothing like a straight career path.

👉 Have you ever considered leading beyond your school?

Be careful who you take advice from in 2026. 
They are probably an echo chamber.

Most school leaders don’t intentionally burn out their teams.
They do it by accident.

Especially in international schools.

Different cultures.
Different time zones.
Different expectations.

And suddenly... your best people are exhausted.

Here are 8 leadership mistakes I see burning out international school teams 👇

1️⃣ Expecting your team to be “always on”
Just because someone can reply at 10 pm doesn’t mean they should.

2️⃣ Being unclear about what you actually want
Vague priorities = constant stress. Clarity is kindness.

3️⃣ Ignoring your team’s strengths
When people are misaligned with their strengths, disengagement follows.

4️⃣ Avoiding tough conversations
Unspoken tension drains energy faster than well-handled conflict.

5️⃣ Punishing people for mistakes
Fear kills innovation — especially in diverse, international environments.

6️⃣ Keeping all decisions to yourself
Ownership disappears when trust does.

7️⃣ Ignoring stress and burnout signals
Silence doesn’t mean everything is fine.

8️⃣ Forgetting to show appreciation
Recognition travels further than you think — across borders and cultures.

The hardest truth?

👉 Most burnout isn’t caused by workload.
👉 It’s caused by leadership habits we never stop to question.

If you lead in an international school, this matters.

Because healthy staff = stable schools = better student outcomes.

Which one do you see most often in schools today?

I’m usually a fan of Simon Sinek.
But this one is a double fault.

Anyone who’s competed in sport at a serious level knows this:

You remember the wins fondly.
But the losses?
They burn themselves into your brain.

That’s not a weakness.
That’s how standards are built.

If Andy Murray were watching, he’d probably laugh.
He spent an entire career berating himself and poor mother — out loud — and still became world No.1.

High performers aren’t fueled by feel-good memories.
They’re sharpened by the moments they never want to repeat.

Pressure + self-criticism isn’t the enemy.
For some people, it’s the engine.

Curious — in your experience, what actually drives excellence in high-performing schools?

International education is heading into one of its most disruptive periods in years.

AI is changing how we teach, assess, and support learning.
Parents are behaving more like informed consumers than ever before.
Visa and regulatory environments remain unpredictable.
And affordability is becoming a deciding factor, not a secondary one.

What’s striking is that none of these forces exist in isolation.

AI accelerates expectations around value.
Cost pressures amplify parental scrutiny.
Regulatory shifts reshape demand almost overnight.

For schools, universities, and education providers, the challenge isn’t choosing which disruption matters most.

It’s building systems flexible enough to respond to all of them at once.

The institutions that will thrive in 2026 won’t be the ones chasing every trend.
They’ll be the ones that:

– Communicate clearly with families
– Design learning with integrity and adaptability
– Invest in people, not just tools
– Plan for volatility as the norm, not the exception

I’m curious to see where this community lands.

Which force do you think will have the biggest impact on international education in 2026? 👇

What will be the biggest disruptive force in international education in 2026? 

Looks balanced.
But are you actually a leader in deficit or surplus?

Most leadership models only show assets.
Vision.
Empathy.
Resilience.
Innovation.

Rarely do they show the liabilities.

Delayed decisions.
Micromanagement.
Avoidance dressed up as “being busy.”
Poor communication is hidden behind good intentions.

And that’s the problem.

Because leadership failure isn’t dramatic.
It’s cumulative.

Small withdrawals.
Unaddressed issues.
Energy taken from teams without reinvestment.

You can have strong values
and still be running a deficit.

You can inspire
and still exhaust the system around you.

The real question isn’t
“How good are my leadership assets?”

It’s this:

If your team audited you today, would you be in surplus—or quietly underwater?

👇 Worth an honest look.

This below on “setting boundaries” looks reasonable. But in international school leadership, boundaries aren’t about protecting comfort.

They’re about protecting standards.

You don’t set boundaries, so leadership feels lighter.
You set them so the school gets better.

Real boundaries in international schools look like this:

• Clear expectations that don’t shift with pressure
• Follow-through when it would be easier to let things slide
• Accountability that challenges people without humiliating them

Yes, leaders need rest.
Yes, burnout is real.

But schools drift not because leaders work too hard —
they drift because boundaries around quality, behaviour, and consistency become negotiable.

Strong leaders don’t avoid hard conversations.
They time them well.
They hold them respectfully.
And they don’t outsource them to policy documents.

The healthiest schools I’ve seen weren’t “low stress.”

They were clear.

Clear roles.
Clear standards.
Clear lines between support and excuse-making.

Boundaries aren’t about saying “no” more often.
They’re about saying “this matters” — and meaning it.

What boundary, when held consistently, has made the biggest difference in your school?

Nice story. Wrong lesson.
This is not how international education works.

For bamboo, patience is enough.

For international students, educators, and institutions?
Patience without power is just waiting.

Waiting for visas.
Waiting for recognition.
Waiting for policies to catch up.
Waiting while timelines, money, and futures are on the line.

We love telling people:
“Growth takes time.”

But in international education, growth takes systems.

Clear pathways.
Stable policy.
Institutional accountability.
Support that shows up before things break.

When success looks “sudden,” it isn’t magic.
It’s the moment the system finally worked.

If we keep praising patience,
we avoid fixing the structures that make patience necessary.

And that’s the real lesson we keep missing.

So what matters more in global education—patience, or better systems?

👇 I’d love to hear your take.

International schools don't have a teacher development problem. They have a problem with teacher alignment. PD days are packed. Budgets are spent. Certifications are collected.

And classrooms look... basically the same. 

If you're leading PD in an international school, try this instead of another "whole-staff training day":

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝟬–𝟲𝟬–𝟵𝟬 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝘆𝗰𝗹𝗲
Week 1: pick 1 micro-skill (e.g., checking for understanding)
Weeks 2–4: teacher rehearses it + gets one targeted observation
Weeks 5–8: peer walkthroughs + student work review (quick protocol)
Weeks 9–12: evidence of impact + share the "how" with the team

Same time.

More transfer.

Less fatigue.

Most women entrepreneurs work hard, hoping their talent will speak for itself.

But in leadership, visibility matters just as much as skill. How do I know?

Because I spent 27 years in front of the camera as a TV anchor for CNN, Bloomberg, and ABC. So I know what it takes to capture attention, tell stories that matter, and own the room.

Then in 2017, I decided to flip the equation and walk away from the steady paycheck.

But before I could, I had a hypothesis:

I believed that more women in leadership could benefit from raw and honest storytelling. Because I saw how time and time again, I could silence a room with nothing but my own story. 

Only problem?

Most women don’t know how to claim their expertise or use their voice. I’ve seen it happen all too often:

→ Women afraid to take up space
→ Brilliant executives unsure how to articulate their value
→ Entrepreneurs with incredible ideas who struggle to build authority

That's exactly why I built Women's Leadership Lab – to help women master public speaking, build a powerful personal brand, and become recognized leaders in their industry.

Here's how it works:

1. Uncover your signature story by crafting a compelling narrative
2. Master public speaking by learning to command any stage or boardroom
3. Amplify your visibility by leveraging storytelling for career growth, business success, and thought leadership

The women I work with have:

✔️ Keynote speaking gigs
✔️ Raised millions in funding & secured board positions
✔️ Built personal brands that attract high-value opportunities

Because you don’t need to wait for permission to lead. You just need to start owning your story.

So if you’re ready to turn your story into your most powerful asset?

Drop me a DM or click here to learn more: www.joyadass.com

Joya Dass

I've been promoting my services on my Instagram, but I've hit a plateau? How do I grow and monetize?

This was a question from a workshop I hosted last fall.
This person left their full time job and began a health coaching business.

Raw and honest take: I sit on sales calls all week long.
No judgment. Health is wealth, after all.

But she’s functioning in an attention economy. Every third woman has left a full time job in corporate and started a health coaching business.

Second raw and honest take: “I’m using my IG and email to promote my services.”

That’s the mistake.

Let me illustrate why:

Above my desk, above my vision board, sits a beautiful photograph of the Saint Germain neighborhood in Paris.

Black and white.
Large and in charge.

It may be one of the largest sized prints offered by a blogger named Rebecca.

When I first started following her blog, I was reading because she writes about all things Paris—a city I love and visit every year. I host client events there. I visit annually. I’ve been going since high school.

Rebecca photographs Paris a few times a year. She offers packing lists for every season (another obsession of mine —packing). She offers recommendations of Paris inspired tchotkes.

The point is this: She offered high value to my life. Consistently and first. She was conversational and natural in her writing. She lives in Chicago. She loves her dog Henri.

Much much later, I realized what she sells: She is a photographer. She photographs all things Paris. She sells her prints of Paris.

I bought one of her prints.

Point #1. You have to talk about one thing and one thing to the point of exhaustion. Boredom, even. In Rebecca’s case, it’s Paris.
Point #2. You have to offer your unique lens on that one thing. She shares Paris from a photographer’s and dog lover’s point of view.
Point #3. Once you have added enough research, recommendations, value to someone’s life, THEN you gain ‘buy-in’ from the reader for whatever you may be selling.

It’s that simple.

Holding forth with ‘just your services’ isn’t going to cut it anymore in an attention economy. Talking about 1,000 things isn’t going to cut it anymore.

BUT—Talking about 1 thing 1,000 creative ways—-will.

I’ll take myself as an example.

Last year, I started a series called “The Anatomy of a Good “No””

Daily, I noticed women struggling to set a boundary and deal with the guilt on the other side. I struggled with it too.

As I matured as a business owner, I realized, scripts were my lifeline while on television. Scripts are a critical lifeline in business. I collect them and squirrel them away in my Notion file. I whip them out and deploy them fiercely —and in real time —-when I need them.

As I shared more scenarios on how to say ‘no’ and preserve the relationship, the concept gathered moss.

Which brings me to Point #4.

Read on inside my newsletter here

I’m a former TV anchor helping 1 woman who just left corporate to create smart thought leadership that calls in paid clients.

This was a question from a workshop I hosted last fall. This person left their full time job and began a health coaching business. Raw and honest take

Open article: Business: Why I’m Going Back to My One Thing in 2026 by Joya Dass • 5 min read

Business: Why I’m Going Back to My One Thing in 2026

You have just left corporate and stood up your own advisory or consultancy.
Problem is: You have no clue how to call in clients.
You’re used to a paycheck depositing every 2 weeks.

I’ve been there.

One Story:

I remember waking up with dread in my Upper West Side bed, wondering how deeply in the red my bank account was one morning. I had left full time television and stood up my own documentary production business.

I’m not ashamed to tell you, that I was dumping out change from a metal Indian silver box to figure out how to take the subway that day.

I’m the product of immigrants who were absolute crap at money. Making it. Saving it. Spending it.

Fear informed every single part of their day. But let’s talk science for a second.
When your brain is in ‘survival’ mode, it’s activating the amygdala. The reptilian brain is responsible for the ‘fight or flight’ response. We, as primates, are designed such that, when there is a real threat to our well being, all other systems shut down. The ‘fight or flight’ brain is in charge.

Trouble is—It’s tough for the pre-frontal cortex, the part of the brain designed for rational thinking to do any ‘big picture thinking,’ if the ‘survival’ brain, fueled by fear, is in charge. And, frankly, you’re not hunting lions for dinner anyway anymore.

I’ve done the work to allow my brain to move out of ‘survival’ mode and put the ‘pre frontal cortex’ back in charge.

I’ve switched my business model to not only create lanes of security and safety, but I have created systems in my business that allow me to live in another country each quarter in order to do that strategic thinking.

I’m living in Rome all of February. But there is a reason for it and I write about it in this newsletter.

But let’s say for argument’s sake, I had to start all over again

One Word:
I’d figure out my one word.
Look if I dropped the word “Beyonce” you would say “singer.”

Not astronaut. Not cheesemonger. Not dental hygienist.
Singer.

If I dropped the word “Tom Brady” you know I’m talking about football.
Not hockey. Not slalom racing. Not fencing extraordinnaire.

You catch my drift.

So——What is the one word associated with you?

Let’s invoke some science.

The brain stores knowledge in something called “schemas.” Kind of like mental filing cabinets.

Beyoncé → Singer
Tom Brady → Quarterback
Oprah → Media mogul

A schema is a shortcut.

When someone hears your name, their brain asks:
“Which drawer do you go in?”
If it can’t find one quickly, it experiences friction—and keeps scrolling.

I'm a former TV anchor. Today I have built a business with systems that allow me to live out of country every quarter. If you have just left corporate and are standing up your advisory-- and have no idea how to create thought leadership that calls in clients, I'm living in Rome in February to build that course.

Join the waitlist here for that course: 
https://lnkd.in/eERN8N9G

You have just left corporate and stood up your own advisory or consultancy. Problem is: You have no clue how to call in clients. You’re used to a payc

Open article: Finding your 'one word' to hang your personal brand on by Joya Dass • 6 min read

Finding your 'one word' to hang your personal brand on

I want to talk money mindset for a minute because I had a conversation (several) this past recruiting season for the Mastermind. So much fear dominated that it’s impossible to have a larger strategic conversation around business.

Listen, I get it.

When I first left corporate (television) and was building my business, the fear was real.

But now that I’m 13 years in, here is my morning hymnal on this topic:

Let’s invoke science for a few minutes.

When you are operating from a place of fear, your amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for fight or flight, is in charge. It’s the part of the brain that takes over when your child runs into the street.

Your heart quickens.

The amygdala hits system override on everything so you can leap into necessary action.

You’re not standing back and thinking about how your stock portfolio is doing.
Conversely, when your body and brain are in ‘survival’ mode, it’s hard for you to think strategically. It’s hard to think ‘big picture.’ That’s the pre-frontal cortex’s job. It sits in the front of the brain and humans are the only mammals to have this part. It was the last part of the brain to evolve.

I’m smart enough to know this science, so even as an 18 year old on my own at Bucknell (college), I duked it out with the CFO of the college to secure ‘runways of security.’ Loans. Grants. Federal. State.

This way, I could have the mental bandwidth to think about laying ground for my future. Grad school. Network my way into television. Get a job.

So —If I had to start all over again in business and go 'gangster’ on my money mindset, I would do these 4 things:

read on in my newsletter

I'm a former tv anchor who has created systems in her business to live in another country each quarter. If you have just left corporate and need to create content that calls in clients (And have no blueprint for it) this is for you.  Join the waitlist here

https://lnkd.in/eERN8N9G

The 4 things I would do to turn around my money mindset today if starting in business again, my results from a quantum healing and hypnosis session, m

Open article: 1.11 What I Did Last Week (What I'm looking forward to) by Joya Dass • 9 min read

1.11 What I Did Last Week (What I'm looking forward to)

This week, I’ve bore witness to the same pattern.
“"Investing in building my personal brand ‘isn’t safe.’”

In both cases, the hesitation wasn’t theirs.
He said,
“The investment isn’t right right now.”

That sentence sounds responsible. Sensible, even.

But it’s based on a misunderstanding of risk.

I’ll deploy a stock market analogy as covering the financial markets for television was my former life.

A corporate salary functions like a bond.
It’s predictable.
It pays out on a regular schedule.
It supports the household.

And like most bonds, it does one thing very well:
It stays at one number.

There is nothing wrong with bonds.

The problem is when your entire financial future depends on one investment type.

Because when that bond disappears, so does the income.
Building a personal brand, on the other hand, is equity.

At first, it looks risky.

You begin writing. You don’t see the returns right away.
But over time, that daily content, that authorship creates something a salary never can:

options.

Publishing consistently is not “posting into the void.”

It is the slow construction of a portfolio.

Each piece of content is an asset.
Each idea compounds how you reach people. You are no longer speaking 1:1. You are speaking at scale.
Each story widens “the surface of luck” for opportunity.

If I were starting over today, I would do one thing immediately:
Read in newsletter

This week, I’ve bore witness to the same pattern. “"Investing in building my personal brand ‘isn’t safe.’” In both cases, the hesitation wasn’t theirs

Open article: My raw and honest take: Your corporate salary is not safety.
Publishing daily content is. Here's why it increases your "Surface of Luck" by Joya Dass • 3 min read

My raw and honest take: Your corporate salary is not safety.
Publishing daily content is. Here's why it increases your "Surface of Luck"

I’m writing this from the road.

Matt and I are on the 6 hour drive upstate for our annual weekend in Holiday Valley with my former clients and their families. (He’s driving, obvi)

This may be my favorite piece I write all week. It’s even more joyful to write from one of my adventures in progress.

I packed in 1 hour flat. In that process, I observed: I’m a better traveler this year

How so?
I cleaned out my closet.

I would work through the allocated time left to my own devices. So I hired my cleaning person Clementine one day for accountability. My closet has 9 foot ceilings. Given that I’m 5’1,” much of my closet exists in the liminal space that exists above my head. I was perched on a ladder. She was on terra firma.

We started sorting. Rapidly. Unapologetically. I didn’t have her all day. I had to be swift in my decision making.

We made 2 piles.
Donation
Keep

That’s it.

My rule was simple: If a piece didn’t represent who I’m becoming—future me—it went. 

Afterwards, I hired Aleksei from TaskRabbit to haul the ‘donate’ pile away swiftly before I had a moment of regret or ‘take back.’ (I make more money, delegating this task and paying for it. Not by hauling stuff to Housing Works myself).

So when it came to finding my ski pants, gloves, and my puffer for this trip, I found them instantly.

I don’t pack better now—I prepare better.

Afterwards, other systems thinking kicks in:
I write about them in this newsletter

_______

I’m living in Rome all of February to build a course to make the work I do in a 1:1 VIP day and 1:1 coaching accessible at a friendlier price point and more DIY. I want to be away from distraction and have big blocks of time to build.
I’ve built a business with systems that allow me to live in another country each quarter.  

BUT—-if you are keen to come over to Rome and do a 3 day intensive with me to figure out what story you want to tell and build your legacy, I’ve created this fantastic 3 day itinerary. Think working lunches over figuring out your ONE WORD. Visiting the Vatican before it opens to the public for morning inspiration.
The Borghese Gallery after hours.

Just you and me.

This is a really special itinerary and I had so much fun building it.
Register here: https://lnkd.in/eR49z7Dp

I’m writing this from the road. Matt and I are on the 6 hour drive upstate for our annual weekend in Holiday Valley with my former clients and their f

Open article: Why I'm a Better Traveller this Year | The Raw and Honest Take on my Closet, My Habits, My Podcasts by Joya Dass • 4 min read

Why I'm a Better Traveller this Year | The Raw and Honest Take on my Closet, My Habits, My Podcasts

"That feels really limiting," she said after we crafted her tagline sharing who she was, who she helps and how she helps them.

She was moving from a B2C to a B2B play.

In service of this, I shared a parallel example.

Apple, an already established brand like her, was being deliberately “narrow” to go wide later in 2008.

That year, it launched the MacBook Air for the first time. Keep in mind the Macbook pro, like her 'B2C play,' was already on the market and doing really well.

Apple knew the messaging had to be different. It didn’t lead with specific features. It went after "this product is for young designers, creatives" signalling identity. Someone who has

taste
discernment
mobility
future-forward thinking

You start with the people everyone else wants to be like.  There is a prestige associated with that title.

Designers and creatives:
are early adopters
influence office buying decisions later
signal “this is what the future looks like”

By winning this demographic first, Apple created desire with

-executives who later justified it as “lightweight for travel”
-students who saw it as the “cool but serious”
-corporations followed once it felt inevitable

Limiting the audience increased clarity, not exclusion.

If Apple had led with this message: “It’s thin, but not the most powerful, and expensive, but… versatile?” It's not specific enough.

Instead, Apple made a clean promise: This is the laptop for creatives who value elegance, portability,creativity.

That clarity created immediate differentiation from the MacBook Pro. It gave the product it's own identity.

The company wasn't saying with the MacBook Air “You need this computer.”

Apple was saying “You are the kind of person this computer was made for.”

Once that gets traction, the audience can safely expand.

She is already a strong brand in her market. I shared she start narrow on purpose with this new offering.

And once her service owns a story, everyone in your world finds their own reason to buy into it.

_________
I'm a former TV anchor who has created systems in her business to live in another country every quarter. I share those systems in my workshops.

I'm hosting a workshop this Friday at noon EDT. Register here.
https://luma.com/d0erotqr

“So —what exactly are you going to do by yourself in Rome?”

Melissa posed this question to me at the candlelit bar at Cosme Thursday evening as we chewed on pork filled flour tortillas for Restaurant Week.

If you know me a little, you know I’m writing about my ‘uplevel.’
That’s my word for 2026.

What you don’t know is that I spent $40,000 last year, studying and learning who I sell to and why. I’m gonna be honest, as I was filing my company taxes with my accountant this week, I gulped hard when I saw that number.

But with that line item on my P&L that reads “marketing and sales,” I also learned three more words:
Product.
Market.
Fit.

What the market will pay me for.

Years ago, I interviewed Sarah LeFleur, founder of the clothing brand, MM Le Fleur. [Interview in this newsletter]

Her sales were flagging, until this moment in 2016.

Donald Trump had just beat Hillary Clinton in the election.

M.M.LaFleur scrapped the “pant-suit email” they had planned to send clients.
Instead, the company opened up a conversation with women asking what they, as a brand, could do.

The responses started flooding in. “I think there were a lot of raw emotions,” Sarah recalls. “But the number one thing we heard is, ‘We need more women in politics, Republican or Democrat. So how are you going to help with that?’”
How?

MM Le Fleur launched a PR campaign promising to lend clothing to any female running for public office. “We will dress you for your campaign trail.” It went viral. “AOC tweeted about it, Hillary tweeted about it,” Sarah recalls, just as more women began running for public office.

That’s when she found her ‘product market fit.’

80% of startups fail in the first year. Why? Lack of ‘product market fit.’ Said another way,

What does the market want?
More importantly, what will the market would pay for?
How does that intersect with what you are selling?
Your friends and family may be very enthusiastic when you say, “Hey, I’m launching a food product.”

Yay!
Congratulations!
That’s a good idea

You spend thousands bringing the product to market—and those well meaning friends (and their wallets) are no where to be found.

Until people put money where their mouth is, you haven’t discovered “Product market fit.”

So, yes, I spent $40K last year. But it was a valuable education, sitting on 5 calls a day, learning what my customer will ultimately pay for. Who she is. What season of life she finds herself in.

Now I am so dialed into 
Where she vacations 
Where she hangs out (and does not) 
How urgent is it that she work with me 
How much agency she has over her own money
Is she raising young children? 
Does she have a full time corporate role or calendar space to give me?
What she has objections to.

Are you clear on these metrics?
Read on in this newsletter.

2.1.2026 Edition of "What I Did Last Week (and what I'm looking forward to)" I am back from the annual antiquities fair at the Park Avenue Armory this

Open article: The Raw and Honest Reason I'm Am Going to Rome for a Month Today by Joya Dass • 7 min read

The Raw and Honest Reason I'm Am Going to Rome for a Month Today

Mondays I share the Anatomy of a Good "No": Instead of saying "I have no idea," say this

A team member just said the dreaded four words: "I have no idea" 
It doesn't acknowledge the importance of your question
it kinda shuts down the conversation without any effort to engage or be curious about why you’re asking
it makes you feel unheard or undervalued

A kinder way to say the same thing:
Read this newsletter to get a break down of a script and why it works

________
Scripts were a lifeline while I was a news anchor on television.
Today, scripts are tucked away in my back pocket and deployed in real time in business:

Welcome to the 1.20.2026 Edition of my newsletter Scripts in this newsletter so you can be your own best advocate in business. Today at a glance: One 

Open article: Anatomy of a Good "No": Instead of saying "I have no idea," say this by Joya Dass • 1 min read

Anatomy of a Good "No": Instead of saying "I have no idea," say this

Today, stylist Tamara Gaudin came to my home.

What prompted it?

I had already whiteboarded all of my outfits for Rome (as I prepare to live there for a February to do deep work).

She took one look at it and simply said “It needs depth.”

I thought I had already built in depth, by my choice of fabrics (silk, cashmere, wool). I invited her to my closet to better understand what she meant.

Upward career strategist Avni Barman intentionally fashioned her wardrobe with the help of a stylist. She makes the case of the mere act of very intentional dressing opened up opportunities and tripled her income.

Psychologists Hajo Adam and Adam Galinsky coined the term “enclothed cognition” — the idea that what we wear influences how we think and behave. In controlled experiments, participants who wore a lab coat described as a doctor’s coat performed better on attention-related tasks than those who wore the same coat but thought it belonged to a painter. This demonstrates that the meaning we attach to clothing changes our cognition and performance.

My one word for 2026: Uplevel?

How do I mark that THIS season of life and business differently than last year? I’ve grown as a business owner. I’ve grown in quantum leaps from travel.

Read my newsletter to learn more

___________

I'm a former TV anchor who has built systems in her business in order to live out of country each quarter. I'm hosting a workshop this Friday at noon EDT on 1 key way I created that for myself. Register here: https://luma.com/d0erotqr

One Story: Today, stylist Tamara Gaudin came to my home. What prompted it? I had already whiteboarded all of my outfits for Rome (as I prepare to live

Open article: My 'One Word' for 2026 via a Stylist's Visit to my Closet Today
 by Joya Dass • 5 min read

My 'One Word' for 2026 via a Stylist's Visit to my Closet Today

When I launched my first public speaking Masterclass during the pandemic, I took a course on “course building” from Danny Inny. The first thing he had us do, was interview 30 people.

Thirty.
Thirty people who wanted public speaking help.

Why? Rather than divine in a silo what people need, I had to become a data scientist. I had to interview 30 people to understand exactly what was keeping them up at night about their public speaking needs. I recorded the conversations. I transcribed them. I categorized each interview on an Excel doc.
If you want my Excel doc, comment INTERVIEW below.

On a score of 1-10, what was the level of urgency to make change? I scored them. What was the category this person fell in? 

I categorized them.
Were they job searching?
Were they trying to kick imposter syndrome?
Were they desperate for a place to practice without judgment?
Were new categories I had not anticipated emerging?

Now—I could do two things: I could double down on what to talk about in my marketing. PRESENCE. I could regurgigate the exact words people were using to describe their pain. I WANT PRESENCE.

You see it in my LinkedIn banner today.

“Gosh, its like you are in my head,” people would say.

Well, I kinda was. Just not your head. Someone else’s.

My idea is this: When building something, I encourage building in public.
I’m re tooling my one word now. It seems like “raw and honest” but let’s see. The audience will tell me in real time, what is resonating and what is not.
Based on their likes, comments and engagement.

Use this to arrive at your catch phrase.
Use it ad nauseum.

But this post is about the ‘widgets’ people use to make it easy to access their book, course, product.

I studied how Amie and others with massive followings and even bigger earnings, socialize their e books, courses and products.

Below, I break down the three ‘widgets’ I’m enchanted with right now and how each one works:

One Story: She poured her heart and soul into building a course. Energy. A fair bit of money. Now she’s in despair. Nobody bought it. It didn’t gain t

Open article: The Raw and Honest 3 Apps You Need to Sell Your Course, E Book, Product on Instagram by Joya Dass • 6 min read

The Raw and Honest 3 Apps You Need to Sell Your Course, E Book, Product on Instagram

This past weekend upstate, “B” held a sketching class.

The ties that bind are the 4 women who became clients of my business in almost 10+ years ago.

Over the years, they grew in revenue and self assuredness. Over the years spouses, kids joined in.

We have travelled the world together. But an annual tradition is to gather at D’s mountain home each MLK weekend.

The weekend is full of activities: Yoga, snow boarding, snow hiking, LOTS of Indian food, wine. Everyone contributes. The sketching class was “B’s” idea this year. She brought boxes of pencils of varying softness — hard, soft, charcoal.

We sketched by the fire the last night. The kids. The adults.

Some sketched from photos of a travel memory. An elephant from Africa. An orchid from Jaipur.

Some sketched objects in the room. A wine glass. Some free-styled it.
We were on the floor. In pajamas and apres ski sweats. Phones nearby, but ignored.

No one talked about work, identity, or what’s next.

We drew.
 
_______
When I think back to some of the biggest things I have created out of my life.

I mean, created something out of nothing, it was a 7 day cruise of the Dalmatian Coast in 2022. It was 30 clients, friends and their families.

BUT--what you don't know is that I had an accountability partner everyday for weeks preceding. Each day, we met at 2:30pm to do this "Future me" exercise. I'm going to host it next Friday at noon EDT.

Selfishly, there are some things I want to create for 2026. Why not join me for accountability?

My partner in doing this in 2022 was unsuccessful in having a child --FOR YEARS. Her family had written her off. Her doctors had written her child bearing capacity off.

She now has a beautiful little girl whom she is travelling the world with.

This works.

But you just don't have the blueprint for it.

I'm sharing it next Friday. Register here: https://luma.com/d0erotqr

One Story: This past weekend upstate, “B” held a sketching class. The ties that bind are the 4 women who became clients of my business in almost 10+ y

Open article: Your 'uplevel' to finding your one word: Start with your core values by Joya Dass • 5 min read

Your 'uplevel' to finding your one word: Start with your core values

When asked how he carved “David” from the big ol slab of Carrara marble two other sculptors had abandoned in the church yard, the famous sculptor Michelangelo said,

“I just removed everything that wasn’t ‘David.’”

My clients love to tell me about the 58 things they are good at. But, see, 58 things aren’t repeatable by someone else in your network. The human brain, can, at most remember —maybe 4?

That person CAN, however, repeat one word associated with you. It’s up to you, like Michelangelo, to remove everything that isn’t that ONE WORD.

I know it’s constraining, but this is how great brands are built. You craft the narrative first. Your brand comes alive, when others start echoing the word back to you.

One of the experiences I am taking my VIP Day client is a tour of the Vatican before it opens to the public.

I’ve been talking about the importance of finding the ONE WORD your personal brand hangs on.

Once you have settled on your word, it’s time to build a culture around it.
How do you do that? Consistent content. The challenge is in saying ONE WORD, 1,000 creative ways. Not saying 1,000 different things.

Michelangelo’s Vatican work—especially the Sistine Chapel ceiling—was his next, HUGE “uplevel.”

When Pope Julius II called on Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel, he didn’t actually want the commission. Sculpting David was 1 figure. The chapel was going to be 300 figures! and he had to create basically an entire cohesive universe around it. It was hard. He had to paint on his back. The paint dripped in his eyes. It took him 4 years.

He HAD to let his old identity (sculptor) ‘die’ and embody a new one (painter) in order to paint the Sistine Chapel we know today.

Every commission he got since the Sistine Chapel (St. Peter’s Basilica, for example) —came because he proved he could:

handle scale
handle pressure
redefine himself publicly

Read on for how your one word relates to how I'm packing for Rome for a month.

______
I'm a former TV anchor who has created systems in her business that allow me to live in another country 4x a year. 

I'm hosting a powerful workshop of a mindset exercise I did for 30 days to create this Friday Jan 30th at 12pm EDT. Register here https://luma.com/d0erotqr

Joya’s Substack Jan 23, 2026 Story I told Keep your outfits to a maximum of three colors in order to look ‘put together.’ Here is what I’m packing for

Open article: I want to help you choose your ONE WORD with What I'm Packing for Rome for a Month by Joya Dass • 6 min read

I want to help you choose your ONE WORD with What I'm Packing for Rome for a Month

Everyone wants to build a personal brand. But few people actually know where to start. Here’s the 4-step “one word” framework I share with all my clients and have used to build my own personal brand to 17,000+ followers:

Identify your core values:

When I did this during the pandemic in 2020, my top two were clear as day — adventure and beauty. In fact, I built my entire business around those two words. Business is a marathon. So if it's not aligned with who you are or who you want to become, it's going to be hard to sustain.

But core values are just the entry point.

Time log exercise

The time log exercise is where you map out your life in three-year buckets, starting at age 14. Give each bucket a title and a theme. Then, you pinpoint the three seminal moments and what they all have in common.

First impression audit

Next, go to six people in your network (who will give you raw and honest feedback) and ask them, “What's the first word you think of when I walk into a room?” and “what do i do well?” and “where do you think I could improve?” This is likely one way you’ll end up finding your one word.

Go to market

Find 30 people that fit your ideal client profile and ask them what's keeping them up at night, specifically around your one word. Start with family and friends if you have to. Then expand from there.

Now, once you have your one word, it has to show up consistently. And I mean EVERYWHERE. Your headline, your tagline, everything you say, everything you do. Because when it does, your community starts echoing it back to you in rooms you’re not in.

Once I started sharing my one word everywhere, people I don't even know are reaching out to me cold, asking me to keynote. My audience is spiking and workshop inquiries are increasing.

All because of one simple (yet powerful) word.

If you want to learn how to do the same, I'm hosting a workshop on February 13th at 12pm EDT where I’ll break it all down, including the 3 fatal mistakes you’re making on LinkedIn that are costing you business and how to avoid them.

Register here: https://luma.com/2twzljrm

It was the first time I had stayed out until the sun came up.

I was hostessing at a Wolfgang Puck restaurant in the heart of Washington DC, right near the White House. I could sustain myself financially as I was interning with CNN, post-college.

Years later, I would walk that block.

The restaurant is long gone.

But back then, a whole new world —-the seedy underbelly of restaurant life I only read about it in “Kitchen Confidential”——-was opening up to me.

The wait staff.
The bus boys.
The bar backs.

“Behind you.” A phrase I still use today to let someone know I’m behind them so they don’t back up too fast and bump into me.

Family dinner before a shift (at least, I had at least one square meal a day).

Beers with the wait staff at the Old Ebbit Grill after a shift. A pint of beer.
That was sustenance too.


Now, when I tell that story, the emotional charge around it is gone.
I almost miss it. Life was so simple.

But—that identity was so steeped in survival and scarcity.

I had to let that identity ‘die’ in order to ‘uplevel’ over the years.

👉🏽As you craft a new season of life in 2026, I challenge you to consider these scripts on this Monday.

Your nervous system/your ego is designed to keep you safe, So if you are used to ‘doing,’ you’ll reject ‘being.’ If you are used to ‘caregiving’ you will reject ‘receiving’

Monday: Get specific. How will you treat your body this year?
Tuesday: What do you tolerate? What will you no longer tolerate?
Wednesday: How do you talk about yourself? What will you no longer say?
Thursday: How do you speak to yourself? How do you open yourself up to receive more?
Friday: What conversations are you having? What are you no longer available for?

Analogy: I couldn’t be on a Peloton exercising, while eating a donut. Both activities can’t be happening if a better body and better health are in my goals list.
________
Today, I've left my life in television behind. I write about the systems I've created in my business that allow me to live in another country each quarter.

When I think back to some of the biggest things I have created out of my life.

I mean, created something out of nothing, it was a 7 day cruise of the Dalmatian Coast in 2022. It was 30 clients, friends and their families.

BUT--what you don't know is that I had an accountability partner everyday for weeks preceding. Each day, we met at 2:30pm to do this "Future me" exercise. I'm going to host it next Friday at noon EDT.

Selfishly, there are some things I want to create for 2026. Why not join me for accountability?

My partner in doing this in 2022 was unsuccessful in having a child --FOR YEARS. Her family had written her off. Her doctors had written her child bearing capacity off.

She now has a beautiful little girl whom she is travelling the world with.

This works.

But you just don't have the blueprint for it.

I'm sharing it next Friday.

Register here: https://luma.com/d0erotqr

When I think back to some of the biggest things I have created out of my life.

I mean, created something out of nothing, it was a 7 day cruise of the Dalmatian Coast in 2022. It was 30 clients, friends and their families.

BUT--what you don't know is that I had an accountability partner everyday for weeks preceding. Each day, we met at 2:30pm to do this "Future me" exercise. I'm going to host it next Friday at noon EDT.

Selfishly, there are some things I want to create for 2026. Why not join me for accountability?

My partner in doing this in 2022 was unsuccessful in having a child --FOR YEARS. Her family had written her off. Her doctors had written her child bearing capacity off.

She now has a beautiful little girl whom she is travelling the world with.

This works.

But you just don't have the blueprint for it.

I'm sharing it next Friday.

Register here:

Open article: Imagine "Future You" · Luma by luma.com

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