Where Soul Meets Strategy

Reimagining Success Inside Conscious Corporations

You’re doing a lot. Writing business plans, managing growth, nurturing culture, staying visible, chasing the newest trend… But it still feels like you’re stuck on a treadmill. You’re moving, working hard, but the traction just isn’t worthy of the constant effort.

So you take a beat to breathe.

As soon as you pause to catch your breath, poof: your momentum disappears, and that hard-earned inertia gets sucked into the vortex of pressure-based productivity.

And that quiet friction you’re feeling? It’s not just exhaustion. It’s a tap on the shoulder telling you something’s off, either in your direction, your foundation, or your fuel.

This is when high-performing leaders instinctively double down.
Add another meeting. Launch another initiative. Keep things moving at all costs, because that’s been the model for as long as memory serves. Where being busy became a badge of honor.

But that kind of strategy isn’t the roadmap to move from survival to thriving.
It’s a symptom of misalignment.

The Real Cost of Misalignment

It’s time to reimagine how we show up in business. And the numbers don’t lie.

In 2024, Gallup found that 77% of employees were disengaged, or, in today’s terms, “quiet quitters.” Even more alarming, 23% of managers say they’ve become disconnected. These are the people plotting the course, and they, themselves, have zoned out (Titanic, anyone?).

We’re seeing a rising tide of checked-out teams, unseen exhaustion, and strategic plans that fall flat. Not because people aren’t capable, but because something deeper isn’t aligned.

The old systems aren’t working.
And the cost? $8.8 trillion in global productivity loss. Not to mention the burnout, lost innovation, and diminished culture that it leaves in its wake.

This isn’t a talent issue.
It’s a fundamental disconnect between purpose and prosperity. A sign that the building has separated from its foundation.

Mission statements aren’t meant to be aspirational quotes decorating your office walls, enchanting on day one and wholly ignored a month later. They need to be embodied in your policies, your workflows, your culture, and your people.
I know you’ve seen this, because I have.

How many meetings have you been in where leadership unveils a brilliant new initiative, only to be met with eye rolls and silent groans by those tasked to implement it?

Right?

It’s not that the strategy is broken. It’s the disconnect between the vision and its embodiment.
Because when strategy isn’t grounded in something deeper, it eventually loses the very people it’s meant to support.

The Moment the Tower Tilted

Let me share a lesson I learned the hard way. One that helped shape my leadership philosophy.

My incredible VA was brilliant, capable, and fast, but behind the scenes, she was burning out. I was so caught in the momentum that I failed to notice something was off. She could handle anything I threw at her. So I kept throwing. Deadlines, deliverables, launches. She said yes. I said more.

But, just because we could, did it mean we should?

We were moving fast, crazy fast, but not in alignment with our bigger vision.
We skipped foundational steps and assumed progress meant we were on the right path. But the moment we took our foot off the gas, the momentum evaporated in an instant because it had been built for speed, not sustainability.

That experience taught me one of the core principles I now bring into the Soul-Led Business Program:

Before you act, ask: Is this aligned?
Not just “Can we?” But “Should we?”

That kind of discernment keeps you from scaling dysfunction or rushing into unsustainable growth. It’s the difference between short-term sprints and long-lasting success.

Recalibrating Your Core

Before you focus on productivity, output, or profits, you need a foundation that can actually hold the structures you’re building.

That’s why inside the Soul-Led Business Program, one of the first steps is reconnecting with your inner compass: your vision, your values, and your energetic presence. Because when those are clear, every strategic choice becomes easier to make and implement.

From that place, your business doesn’t just become a well-oiled machine.
It becomes one that’s actually fun to drive.

A Powerful Leadership Reset

There will always be fires.
But racing from fire to fire doesn’t make you a great leader.
It makes you a firefighter with a really nice office.

Sometimes, the wisest thing to do to contain the blaze is to let it burn.

When you zoom out, you can ask better questions. Ones that get to the heart of what’s really needed.

Here’s a reset I walk my clients through when they’ve lost the plot:

• Step 1: Ground.
  Pause for 2 minutes. Breathe. Connect inward before responding outward.
• Step 2: Reflect.
  Ask: What actually brings us closer to our long-term vision, values, and vitality?
• Step 3: Discern.
  Choose one next step rooted in clarity, not panic.
• Step 4: Release.
  Let the rest burn with grace. Some fires are here to set you free.

This simple practice is one of the most effective tools I’ve seen to help leaders get clear on what to keep and what to cut as they step into a new chapter of growth.

(I shared more about this in last month’s article, “Where Heart Meets Hustle,” and included a downloadable Soul-Led Productivity Toolkit if you’re looking for a place to start.)

Make It Count

No matter where you are, starting a business, scaling a mission, or leading inside a growing team, the work begins by coming home to what matters most.

Because building a soul-satisfying business doesn’t start with strategy and systems.
It begins with aligned leadership, where your values, presence, and strategic clarity ripple through the entire organization.

The Soul-Led Business Program was created to support that process. Not by adding more to your plate but by helping you build from the inside out.

Because when you’re aligned at the core, the rest doesn’t just grow.
It thrives.

Where soul meets strategy, you’ll find strength, not the type you struggle for, but that excitement of effortless progress.

Connect with Anik on The Wellness Universe and follow her on Facebook and YouTube.

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Anik Malenfant

Anik guides soul-led professionals by merging cutting-edge science, spirituality, and proven strategies to fuel the growth they crave. Through inner work, intuition, and inspired action, she empowers clients to expand into deeper alignment and fulfillment—always without compromise.