Therese Miclot's Linkedin Analytics

I’ve trained over 4,000 leaders in my career. And here’s what they taught me: The manager who hadn’t taken a real vacation in 3 years: → Doing everything yourself isn’t leadership—it’s a liability. The engineer who stayed late fixing her team’s work: → Letting go isn’t giving up—it’s the next step in growing up as a leader. The VP who said, “I don’t need coaching—my team does”: → Control feels safer than clarity. But it slows everything down. None of them were the problem. They just hadn’t learned how to lead in a way that scales. They were promoted for what they could execute— but no one showed them how to lead people who don’t work like them. Think like them. Need different things from them. That shift? It’s uncomfortable. And it changes everything. Because when they stop holding it all— their teams start rising. That’s what they taught me. If you’re starting to realize that what made you successful is now what’s holding you back, you’re not alone. You’re just ready for the next version of leadership. And I can help you.

I’m writing a newsletter. And it’s not for everyone. It’s for the technical expert who just got promoted… and suddenly realizes doing the work and leading people are two very different things. It’s for the leader who’s constantly in meetings but still ends the week feeling like nothing moved. It’s for the high performer who’s quietly wondering: “Am I the one holding us back?” It’s called The Shift. And every issue focuses on practical moves to help you lead with more clarity, influence, and ease. What actually helps from my 25 years of developing smart people through high-stakes growth. The first issue is live: The Super Doer Trap. What happens when your strengths start slowing you down. If you’re navigating that shift (or leading someone who is), I hope it helps.

You’re buried in deliverables. Your calendar's packed. You’re waiting for "the right time" to lead. It’s not coming. And it doesn’t have to. If you’re ready to lead, start here: 🔹 Teach what you usually just do. If it stays in your head, your team stays stuck. 🔹 Delegate before it feels efficient. Invest minutes today to save hours tomorrow. 🔹 Clarify your top priorities every week. Busy isn’t leadership. Results are. These aren’t just habits. They’re leadership mindsets. And they’re how you shift from technical expert → trusted leader. Not when it’s perfect. Not when it’s quiet. Right now. I had to learn this the hard way. You don’t have to. 👇 Follow for frameworks that help technical leaders scale without burning out.

Every leader you admire once wanted to quit. They just didn't. Every one of them. Not because they weren't smart enough. Not because they weren't talented enough. Because it felt too slow. Too invisible. Too full of tiny steps, no one seemed to notice. When I coach technical experts stepping into leadership, this is the first truth we face: Growth feels like it's not working right before it starts to. Small steps. Stacked. Daily. Leadership isn't a giant leap. It's a thousand invisible choices long before anyone sees your impact. If you're there now. Feeling stuck, invisible, unsure, you're closer than you think. Keep stepping. And if you want someone to help you walk that road, I'm here. 🔔 Follow for real-world leadership insights built for technical experts.

If you’re not the CHRO, keep scrolling. Good. Now that we’re alone. 😉 How many ideas have landed on your desk this quarter? “Let’s do more training.” “Maybe a motivational speaker?” “What if we did a team off-site?” All well-intentioned. None of them solve the real issue: Does your senior team agree on what good leadership actually looks like? Not values on a wall. Clear, observable behaviors you can hire, promote, and hold people accountable to. I was in an HR strategy and planning role earlier in my career—so I get what it’s like to juggle a dozen one-off requests while trying to build something scalable underneath. In the last year, I’ve helped three executive teams define leadership standards that are practical, behavioral, and built for real decisions. They shape direction. They drive consistency. They make talent and performance conversations easier. If you’re done reacting to random asks and ready to build something that actually scales, let’s talk. 🔔 And if you’re still fielding “what if we did a retreat?” Follow along. I post the stuff that moves the needle.

“The higher I go, the less truth I hear.” That’s what an engineering leader told me in a coaching session yesterday. Not because people are hiding it— but because they’re not sure it’s safe to tell him. I help leaders build that safety. Because real leadership starts there. If you’re leading technical teams and not hearing the hard stuff, let’s fix that. DM me.

You’re not bad at giving feedback. You’ve just never been taught how to give it without losing trust, time, or your team’s respect. Here’s the shift.

Leadership is 50% decision-making. 50% forensic linguistics. "Sure." "Okay." "Noted." Which one means "we’re good" and which one means "I’m about to light this place on fire"? Real leaders know: It’s not just what’s said. It’s what’s unsaid.

You’re great at what you do. So why does your CEO look confused every time you present? Here’s why: Most technical leaders were never taught how to translate expertise into executive influence. I’ve coached a VP of Engineering, senior product leaders, and over 25 high-potential technical experts in the past six months. All of them were brilliant. None of them were landing at the executive level and not because they lacked insight. Because they hadn’t learned how to lead in the rooms that matter most. Here’s where we focused: 1. Start with business impact. Lead with what matters to them. Then support it. 2. Communicate in headlines, not footnotes. Executives don’t need the full spec. They need clarity. 3. Adjust your delivery to match the room. Executive presence isn’t one-size-fits-all. The most effective leaders know their style and flex it based on who’s in front of them. This isn’t about becoming someone else. It’s about becoming more effective at your level of impact. If you’re a technical leader stepping into higher-stakes rooms—and you’re ready to grow faster and more strategically— I have one coaching slot opening in May. DM me and I’ll send you the details.

Most leaders kill trust with six words: “Let me just jump in here...” Silence makes people uncomfortable. So they fill it. Fast. Usually with themselves. Speaking first isn’t leadership. It’s insecurity dressed as control.

Some feedback doesn’t show up in your performance review. It shows up in the meetings you’re not invited to. I hear it behind closed doors: "Technically brilliant... but holds back." "Sharp... but second-guesses herself." "Smart... but not quite ready for promotion." I hear it in talent reviews. In CHRO debriefs. In senior leadership conversations, no one tells you about. And here’s the truth: It sticks. It slows you down. It boxes you in. It keeps you stuck in roles you've already outgrown. But here's what most people won’t tell you: Confidence isn’t born. It’s built in the conversations you don't feel ready for, but step into anyway. Authority isn’t a title. It’s the feeling you create when you stop waiting for permission. Executive presence isn’t about polish. It’s about staying steady when the answers aren't clear yet. The real shift isn’t believing you can lead. It’s becoming the leader your team already needs. You don’t have to wait until you feel ready. You have to lead differently. I've helped hundreds of technical leaders close this invisible gap — and you can too. 🔔 Follow for frameworks that help technical experts lead with confidence and credibility. 📩 Know it’s your time? DM me. Let’s talk.

They called it a promotion. But it felt more like a dare. No training. No support. Just new expectations and a calendar full of meetings. Now you’re leading the people you used to work alongside. Still handling the technical work—plus all the people stuff. Expected to “think more strategically”… but also to hit every deadline. And somehow, you’re supposed to know how to do all of it. This happens more than we admit. Especially in growing companies where technical skill gets rewarded—but leadership capacity just gets assumed. I work with folks who are in that middle space: Too senior to stay heads-down, but not yet equipped (or empowered) to lead at scale. If that’s where you are, you’re not doing it wrong. You’re just overdue for the tools that match the job you’ve already been given. Let’s talk. 🔔 I share practical strategies for technical leaders who are ready to lead with clarity, not just cope with chaos.

How to Lead When You’re Still the Doer You’ve been promoted—but your calendar didn’t get the memo. You’re still the expert. Still in the weeds. Still the go-to. Here’s how to shift—without dropping the ball: 👇 1️⃣ Let go of one task each week. Start small. Focus on how the handoff happens. 2️⃣ Skip meetings where you’re not the decision-maker. Unless you’re coaching someone else to lead—opt out. 3️⃣ Give feedback even when things are going well. That’s how you build trust before it gets tough. 4️⃣ Define what “good” looks like. Expectations, success, “done.” Make it clear. 5️⃣ Ask: Where am I most essential? If the answer is “everywhere,” your team can’t scale. This is the shift from doing → leading. 🔔 Follow along for strategies that help technical leaders grow with the business—not behind it.

Some of the most well-liked leaders I’ve worked with have caused real harm. Not because they didn’t care. But because they avoided the hard stuff. They canceled 1:1s and called it trust. Avoided feedback and called it compassion. Stayed quiet and called it professionalism. And often—they were rewarded for being “supportive.” But here’s the truth: Nice isn’t the same as good. Good leaders stay in the room when it gets uncomfortable. They hold the line. They tell the truth. They don’t confuse silence with safety. This is the shift I help technical leaders make— From being respected for what they know to trusted for how they lead. 🔔 Follow along if you’re building clarity, not just consensus.

Loud doesn’t equal effective. It never did. After coaching thousands of technical leaders globally through high-impact training and facilitation, I can tell you this: The best leaders don’t take over the room. They tune into it. Most were taught to lead by being louder. Take control. Push through. But pressure doesn’t need volume. It needs clarity. Presence. Courage. Here’s what high-trust leaders actually do: • Say what’s true, not just what’s easy • Give feedback early - and without ego • Coach instead of correct • Set the bar without raising their voice I’ve watched overwhelmed engineers become respected VPs, not by changing who they are, but by learning how to lead when it matters most. They don’t manage by fear. They lead with presence. They don’t dominate — they hold the room. 🔔 I coach technical leaders who want to be heard without raising their voice. If that’s you, hit follow.

Some days, leadership is 10% strategy and 90% deep breaths before you respond. Not because you don’t know what to say. But because you do.

You know this chair. You hate this chair. I’ve led leadership programs in hundreds of conference rooms and every single one has a version of this chair. You pull the lever. Nothing. You bounce a little—like that’ll magically fix it. Still nothing. So you spend the next hour slightly too low, elbows awkward, looking up at the table like a toddler at Thanksgiving. And here’s the weird part— every time, I end up thinking about leadership. Because I work with technical experts who are promoted into leadership roles without the tools or support to adjust. They’re smart. Capable. But the expectations shift—and nothing else does. So they do what most of us do with the chair: Shrug. Try to make it work. Stay slightly off. Hope no one notices. That’s why I do what I do. I facilitate leadership programs, run a peer group coaching program, and work 1:1 with technical leaders to help them show up with confidence, communicate with clarity, and actually feel like the leader they’ve been asked to be. If that's you—and you're ready to stop wobbling and start leading—DM me.

What if the best thing you build this year… doesn’t even have a name—at first? (It starts with who’s sitting at your table.) We thought we were just catching up. Turns out, we were building something entirely new. It started with a simple idea: What if this wasn’t just another dinner? What if it was a beginning? We said yes to curiosity. Yes to glass blowing. Yes to astronomy class, candle making, flower arranging, jewelry making. Yes, even to bad knitting and worse cooking. We call ourselves THAI: Therese Has An Idea. Because I’d throw something half-baked into the air and they would catch it. Not the activity itself. But the spirit behind it. They kept saying yes. Not to glass blowing. Not to candle making. But to something much bigger: Yes to being beginners again. Yes to looking a little foolish. Yes to trusting that learning together would be worth it. It still amazes me. Real growth isn’t polished. It’s messy. Uncertain. Built in the moments when we show up before we’re ready. I see it now in every leader I coach. In every leader standing at the edge of something new. You don’t build growth alone. You build it with people willing to sit at the table beside you—and lean in, even when the map is missing. Ninveh Neuman, Jodie Schroeder, Trish Dunn Tiffany Zaba, Michele Matthai, Michelle Young (Dintemann), Lori Glawe 👉 If you could start one small thing this year, who would you trust to sit at your table?

I know something they don’t. They are arriving now-60 women, most of them strangers. By Friday? They’ll have learned leadership skills that transform their careers. They will form long-lasting bonds with each other. They will let go of limiting beliefs. Set boundaries they’ve been avoiding. And see themselves through someone else’s eyes and recognize their own strength. That’s the The WICT Network’s Rising Leader program. Five days. Facilitated. Focused. Unforgettable. We kick off Monday and I’m thrilled to be part of the Proteus International team facilitating it. If you’re a Rising Leader alum—what changed for you between Monday and Friday? Drop it below.

I never got to show my dad the work I do now. But every time I hit post he’s there. Norman Mlachak. Newspaper reporter. Cleveland Press. He covered city politics. The stories that shaped a community. And he did it with clarity. Courage. And deep respect for the people at the heart of it all. Writing wasn’t just words to him. It was a responsibility. A way to hold power accountable. A way to make people feel seen. He died when I was 13. He never got to see me find my voice. But every time I pause to ask: Am I being clear? Am I being honest? Am I honoring the people this is for? That’s him. And it’s the same standard I bring to my work now. Helping leaders communicate with clarity. Lead with courage. And never lose sight of the people they serve. I write (and lead) not for the algorithm, but for the real leaders. The ones trying to do the right thing, even when it’s hard. That’s him too. I think he’d be proud. And every time someone says, “It felt like you were speaking directly to me,” I feel a little closer to him. I still write for him. And now, for you. 🔔 Follow if you’re building the kind of leadership someone would be proud of. 💬 Who shaped the way you lead? I’d love to hear.