Frances Powell: Executive, Presentation & Performance Coach, Speaker

Nobody actually manages stress.

They just tolerate it at a level they've normalized.

That's a different problem.

Tolerance means your threshold rises.

You need more rest to feel rested.
More wins to feel okay.
More certainty before you can make a call.

For leaders, the slow creep of that looks like:

→ Taking longer to decide simple things
→ Replaying conversations that don't matter
→ Waking up exhausted before the day starts

Nobody flags this.

Because the work still gets done.

But you are not performing at your ceiling.

You are performing at the ceiling stress allows.

So the audit is simple:

1️⃣ What are you tolerating right now?
2️⃣ What decisions are you avoiding?
3️⃣ What's costing you more than it should?

The stress doesn't have to disappear.

You just have to stop mistaking tolerance for fine.

💌 P.S. This is a topic I share more deeply in my weekly newsletter.

→ https://f.mtr.cool/zapweykwqh

🔔 Follow for more on building real executive presence.

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In a world that celebrates hustle culture, I take a trip to France.

Not whenever I want. 😆 When I can.

And yes, I see the irony of a leadership coach who teaches regulation also needing to actually go somewhere to regulate.

But every time I do, I come back more grounded, more present, better resourced for my clients and my life.

Rest isn't a reward for finishing everything.

It's part of staying effective.

So whatever brings you back to yourself, do that. 💫
Travel. Walk. Journal. Switch your phone off.

Your work doesn't need a more exhausted version of you.

It needs you whole. 😉

(Dropping some more Paris throwbacks! 📸)

You've failed at something? Good.
You've been rejected? Even better.
You've started over from scratch? Perfect.

Most people never get there.

Not because they lack talent.

Because they never risked being wrong.

Self-confidence isn't built by playing it safe.

It's built by doing the thing.
Especially when the outcome isn't guaranteed.

I've failed more times than I can count.

Since the start of my career:

→ I lost my train of thought in front of 50+ people
→ Launched a program that didn't land
→ Had a year with almost no revenue

None of it disqualified me.

All of it built me.

Every failure you're carrying?

It's not evidence that you can't.
It's proof that you tried.

That's already more than most.

What's the failure you're most grateful for?

P.S. This is a topic I share more deeply in my weekly newsletter.

→ https://f.mtr.cool/zotllqcwmy

🔔 Follow for more on building real executive presence.

You don’t need to shrink to be accepted.

You need to trust that you can hold your ground, even when it feels uncomfortable.

That’s the shift most people avoid… and the one that changes everything. 💫🤍

P.S. This is a topic I share more deeply in my weekly newsletter.

→ https://f.mtr.cool/hdwuwhyvod

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“When I know enough, I’ll feel confident.”

No, you won’t.

If knowledge created confidence, the most qualified people would always speak up first.

But they don’t.

The pattern is predictable:

1. You learn more
2. Your standards rise
3. Your definition of “enough” expands
4. You still hesitate.

That’s not growth.

That’s just avoidance.

Confidence isn't built by accumulating more.

What actually works:

→ Sharing the point before it’s perfect
→ Speaking with 70% certainty, not 100%
→ Letting the room respond, not your fears.

If you keep waiting to “know enough”, you’re not protecting your credibility.

You’re delaying it.

Act earlier.
Refine in public.

That’s how confidence is built.

P.S. This is a topic I share more deeply in my weekly newsletter.

→ https://f.mtr.cool/auslabkdit

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I don't travel often. But I never miss a chance when I can! 🌍

Most of my weeks look like this: early starts, back-to-back calls, coaching sessions, strategy, writing. Screen. Screen. Screen. Eat somewhere in between. One more thing before closing the laptop.

By Thursday, I've forgotten what slow feels like. 😅

I love my work, genuinely! But even the things you love can fill you up to the point of overflow.

That's why I travel.

France does something to me that nothing else does! 🇫🇷 Something about sitting in a Parisian bistro with a glass of Sancerre makes the noise go quiet.

I've been to 20+ countries now, and every single one gave me something I didn't know I needed.

You cannot keep pouring without refilling.
Find what genuinely restores you.

Then protect it like it's non-negotiable. 😉

Because by the time you feel empty, you've already been running on fumes for a while.

Drop your go-to place below 👇

Stress is destroying your body.

You just can't see it yet.

Here's what's actually happening inside you every time pressure hits:

1. Your heart races

→ Blood pressure climbs instantly.
→ Your body treats pressure like a physical attack.

2. Your hormones go haywire

→ Cortisol spikes. Adrenaline follows.
→ Your immune system takes the hit.

3. Your muscles brace

→ Shoulders lock. Jaw clenches. Chest tightens.
→ Your body doesn't forget.

3. Your gut shuts down

→ Stomach knots. Appetite disappears.
→ Most leaders ignore this signal for years

4. Your sleep suffers

→ Exhausted but completely wired
→ 3 am and your mind won't stop.

5. Your brain goes offline

→ Clear thinking drops. Reactions spike.
→ Strategy disappears. Survival takes over.

This is your body under stress.

Now you know what to listen for.

📌 P.S. If stress is affecting how you show up, let's talk.

→ https://f.mtr.cool/qiqxzmotdg

🔔 Follow for more on building real executive presence.

"Fake it till you make it" gets you far.

What it doesn't tell you is that getting there is the easy part. Knowing who you are when you arrive is the actual work. 😉💫

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Everyone notices the burnout.

Nobody catches what's beneath it.

Not even the person living it.

You see the exhaustion.
The overworking.
The skipping breaks.

You think that's the problem.

It isn't.

Below the surface is what's actually running the show.

→ The fear of letting people down
→ The boundaries you never set
→ The priorities that were never clear
→ The cynicism you wore off as being realistic
→ The emotional numbness you mistook for professionalism
→ The motivation that disappeared

That's what nobody is looking at.

Not your team.
Not your organisation.

Sometimes not even you.

High performers are the hardest to catch.

Because they keep functioning.
They keep delivering.

Right up until they can't.

Burnout recovery isn't just rest.

It's getting honest about what you've been carrying beneath the surface and why.

What's one thing below your waterline you haven't looked at yet?

P.S. This is a topic I share more deeply in my weekly newsletter.

→ https://f.mtr.cool/kfvljnseny

🔔 Follow for more on building real executive presence.