Resilience & Stress - Lisa D. Foster, Leadership Coaching & Training

Why Doing a Lot Right Isn’t Enough to Signal Senior Leadership Readiness

February 4, 2026

Senior leadership readiness is about understanding how your presence, decisions, and relationships shape your impact. As senior leadership readiness becomes the differentiator, many capable leaders hit a confusing plateau. What makes this moment so unsettling is that nothing is obviously wrong. Leadership still looks successful on the surface—but it starts to feel harder to generate momentum. They’re doing a lot right.They’re respected, deliver results, and have earned real trust and responsibility. And yet, progress slows.Opportunities don’t materialize.Influence feels harder to…

How Early Wins Create Leadership Blind Spots: The Misleading Comfort of Past Success

The most dangerous phase of leadership is often not early struggle, but sustained success when assumptions become leadership blind spots. Leadership blind spots arise because success is reassuring. It tells leaders that their judgment is sound, their instincts are reliable, and their approach works. But at senior levels, past success can quietly become a liability. Many of the leaders I work with are accomplished, capable, and respected. They have succeeded beyond what they once imagined. Yet they find themselves surprised…