What if success didn’t require sacrifice?
What if you didn’t have to choose between the boardroom and the beach, the executive seat and emotional wellbeing, the ambition and the alignment?
Welcome to Have It All—my new podcast and personal mission to prove that you don’t need to compromise who you are to achieve everything you want. In this post, I want to share the story behind this journey and give you three practical tools to start building a life that truly fits you—starting today.
The Lie We Were Sold: Success Requires Sacrifice
For years, I believed that in order to be successful, I had to choose.
Be respected or be rested. Be a top performer or be present in my personal life. Be strong or be soft.
As a cardiac surgeon, I was literally mending hearts by day while trying to hold mine together by night. I chased milestones, led operating room teams, and made life-or-death decisions on the clock. But something was missing.
I started a fashion blog.
I signed up for CrossFit.
I changed cities.
I changed schedules.
And still… something felt off.
Eventually, I realized: the problem wasn’t my job. It was the belief that I had to split myself into parts to succeed.
You Don’t Have to Choose Between Success and Self
That realization changed everything.
I walked away from surgery three days after realizing in the OR: I just don’t want to do this anymore.
No plan. No next job lined up. Just clarity, conviction—and a belief that if I could survive cardiac surgery, I could figure out anything else too.
Today, I help other high-achieving professionals—especially those in transition—do the same: build careers and lives that don’t ask them to compromise. And while “having it all” looks different to each of us, here’s what I know:
You can be powerful and playful.
Ambitious and aligned.
Resilient and well-rested.
You can have it all. Or at least close to it.
So What Does “Having It All” Really Mean?
For some, it’s a corner office.
For others, it’s time for school pickups.
For you, maybe it’s health, leadership, longevity—or simply a life that feels like your own.
Whatever your definition, one thing’s clear: it won’t come from following the default playbook. Especially not for women in male-dominated fields or high-stakes careers.
We’ve been taught that leadership means hustle.
That being taken seriously means saying yes.
That success means self-abandonment.
Let me be the first to say: that model is broken. You don’t need to work harder. You need to work smarter—by leveraging your strengths, mastering strategic communication, and building career resilience that makes you truly unstoppable.
Want to Start Right Now? Try These 3 Tools:
1. Say No—So You Can Say Yes to What Matters
No is a complete sentence.
Every “yes” to something misaligned is a “no” to what truly matters.
Start protecting your time like the high-value asset it is.
Visualize this: If you try to carry every toy, you’ll drop them all. Choose what matters.
2. Embrace Mistakes—Perfectionism is Not a Prerequisite
You don’t learn to ride a bike without falling.
Same goes for building a business, redefining your brand, or reinventing your career.
Mistakes aren’t a failure—they’re feedback.
Reminder: Resilience isn’t just about bouncing back. It’s about bouncing forward.
3. Speak Up—Your Voice is Your Power
You don’t need to be the loudest in the room to lead.
But you do need to be in the room. And speak.
Your perspective is one-of-a-kind. That’s your edge.
Mantra: You can’t change the world if no one hears you.
Ready to Build a Life That Feels Like Yours?
If you’re done with outdated definitions of success—and ready to lead, live, and love your career on your terms—you’re in the right place.
Subscribe to Have It All on your favorite podcast platform. Follow me on Instagram. And if you’re ready to go deeper, book a 1:1 Power Session with me—where clarity meets strategy, fast.
Because your life isn’t a checkbox.
It’s a masterpiece.
And it’s time to paint outside the lines.
