Impact with Ease

Why do so many driven, successful professionals burn out, even when they're doing everything "right"?

In this episode of Impact With Ease, Blake reveals the hidden reason why high performers are silently struggling with exhaustion, overthinking, and loss of clarity.

What's really happening is misalignment.

You'll learn how misalignment quietly infiltrates your work, belief systems, and daily environment, and why working harder only makes things worse. Blake breaks down the brain science of burnout, explains why you can't override your natural wiring, and shares the critical first step to move from depletion to sustainable energy.

If you're running on fumes or just know deep down there has to be a better way, this conversation will shift your entire perspective.

Episode Highlights

Clarity Through Alignment, Not Just Process

[01:19] - What alignment really is and why it's not a fluffy concept

[02:28] - What alignment feels like in daily life

[03:18] - Why leaders miss the signs of misalignment

[04:32] - Understanding functional survival mode

The Neuroscience of Alignment

[05:32] - How your brain operates when aligned vs. misaligned

[06:13] - Why your wiring will always win

The 3 Core Forms of Misalignment

[07:03] - Doing work that fights your natural wiring

[09:44] - Misaligned beliefs and conditioning: the invisible patterns we form

[11:42] - How to shift beliefs without years of therapy

[12:28] - Why leaving isn't always the answer

[14:06] - How stressed leaders unintentionally create negative cultures

What Alignment Looks Like in Action

[15:13] - Client story: Evan's transformation from burnout to reclaiming 20 hours per week

[16:23] - The one simple shift to get more in alignment

Powerful Quotes

"You burn out because you've been trying to succeed while working against the very way you are naturally wired to thrive." —Blake Schofield

"Alignment is where your peace, purpose, and progress finally meet. It's the shift from just living to fully being alive." —Blake Schofield

"Your wiring will always win. You can push against it for a season or even years...but in the end, your wiring will always win." —Blake Schofield

"Every single moment of friction, stress, or anxiety is data and a lesson to be learned." —Blake Schofield

Resources Mentioned

Creating Career Safety: Future-Proof Your Career & Leadership skills

The old rulebook said: work hard, deliver results, stay loyal, and your career will be safe. But that rulebook? It's obsolete.

Today, even the best leaders are getting blindsided by layoffs, burnout, and change they didn't see coming. Target, Amazon, Meta, consulting firms—massive waves of restructuring are reshaping how organizations operate.

The question isn't "How do I keep my job?" anymore. It's "How do I create safety, clarity, and growth no matter what changes around me?"

In this episode, Blake reveals why the traditional model of job security no longer works and introduces the five essential skills that will define the next decade of leadership. You'll discover how to build real career safety in a world where certainty no longer exists, not by working harder, but by learning to optimize your energy, align with how you're wired, and navigate change with confidence.

If you're a high-achieving leader feeling the weight of uncertainty, this episode will help you move from survival mode to strategic leadership.

Episode Highlights

The New Reality of Work

[00:45] - Why the old career safety model is obsolete

[01:15] - What's happening across corporate America

[02:30] - The most significant transition in the history of work

Building Career Safety from the Inside Out

[03:45] - What career safety really means

[04:20] - The three foundations of career safety

[05:10] - Why you can't future-proof your career from survival mode

[06:15] The Torchlight Framework: 5 Skills to Master

Playing Offense, Not Defense

[10:00] - Skating to where the puck is going

[10:45] - Moving from protection to creation

Powerful Quotes

"When you're aligned with how you're wired to work best, stress becomes fuel. When you're not, it becomes exhaustion. And that's the invisible line between leaders who adapt and those who burn out." -Blake Schofield

"The leaders who thrive in this next decade won't be the ones who push harder. They'll be the ones who learn how to optimize their skills, their energy, and their path, and realign faster when things get off track." -Blake Schofield

"What used to make you successful was endurance. What will make you successful now is alignment." -Blake Schofield

Resources Mentioned

The Psychology of Leadership: Turn Stress into Peak Performance, with Sebastien Page, a $500 billion fund manager

How do top leaders and athletes use stress to boost performance instead of burning out?

Most high-achieving leaders believe they have to eliminate stress to perform their best—but sports psychology reveals the opposite is true.

The real problem isn't stress itself; it's operating too close to the edge without understanding your optimal performance zone, leading to burnout, lost creativity, and goal-induced blindness.

In this episode of Impact with Ease, Blake talks with Sebastien Page, Chief Investment Officer at T. Rowe Price and author of The Psychology of Leadership, about the neuroscience and psychology of peak performance.

Sebastien shares insights from 25 years as a leader in high-pressure finance, revealing how research from elite athletes like Simone Biles and Roger Federer can transform how you lead. You'll learn why zero stress isn't the goal, how to turn stress into energy, and the framework for sustainable success that helps you thrive at work while protecting what matters most in life.

Episode Highlights

Turning Stress Into Peak Performance

[00:04] – Why zero stress isn't the goal for optimal performance

[06:33] – The "second layer" of stress that leads to burnout

[08:15] – The performance curve: when stress helps vs. harms your leadership

Sports Psychology Meets Executive Leadership

[11:18] – Zone pacing: finding your optimal speed as a leader

[13:47] – Flow state and the balance between challenge and capability

[15:20] – What Simone Biles teaches us about overtraining, rest, and coming back stronger

Deep Work, AI, and the Future of Leadership

[23:35] – Deep work vs. shallow work for high-performing leaders

[27:28] – The optimistic case for AI

[30:00] – Why burned-out leaders can't innovate in the AI era

[32:29] – Eric Hoffer's wisdom: "Learners inherit the earth"

Rethinking Success and the Psychology of Goals

[34:15] – You're not burned out—you're addicted to the wrong goals

[36:30] – The Harvard happiness study: what really predicts long-term fulfillment

[38:48] – Achievement doesn't fix a misaligned life

Resilience, Failure, and Sustainable Success

[48:23] – How small daily misalignments drain your energy

[50:07] – Addressing small stressors

[51:06] – Roger Federer and learning to lose well

[55:31] – The one habit that predicts thriving

Powerful Quotes

"What sports psychologists found is that optimal performance isn't at zero stress — it's at the point of healthy activation." – Sebastian Page

"Achievement doesn't fix a misaligned life. How you feel day to day is what matters most." – Blake Schofield

Resources Mentioned

Connect with Sebastian Page:

Leading Through Fear — How to Guide Your Team (and Yourself) Through Uncertainty

Have you been asking yourself, "How can I lead when everyone, including me, is afraid?"

We're living in a time of extraordinary change, and with change often comes fear. It's felt at every level of organizations, from executives making tough decisions to employees wondering what tomorrow will bring.

Layoffs, restructuring, and constant change have left many anxious, disengaged, and uncertain about the future. But here's what leaders often don't realize…

Pushing harder when fear is high doesn't create results. It creates burnout.

So, how should leaders respond when employees are scared or feeling unsettled?

In this episode, Blake shares how to lead effectively when fear and uncertainty are high so you and your team can move from survival mode to sustainable success. Learn how fear impacts the brain, why survival mode kills innovation, and practical strategies for leading through change with trust, calm, and clarity.

Episode Highlights

Why Fear Shuts Down Your Team's Best Thinking

[02:15] - How uncertainty triggers survival mode in leaders and teams

[03:45] - What happens in the brain when people feel unsafe

[04:30] - Why pushing harder amplifies the problem

Four Practical Leadership Moves for Navigating Uncertainty

[06:20] - Why honesty builds credibility

[08:15] - The importance of acknowledging fear

[09:45] - How to spot your survival mode triggers

[11:30] - Rebuilding trust daily through micro moments

[13:00] - Creating psychological safety and clear micro goals

Real-World Example: Leading Through Layoffs

[10:15] - Blake's experience navigating 1,700 layoffs at Target

[11:45] - How acknowledging fear transformed team performance

Powerful Quotes

"You can't calm a room if you're in chaos. Your calm is contagious — and so is your chaos." -Blake Schofield

"Most people prefer the certainty of misery to the misery of uncertainty." —Virginia Satir

"When people feel unsafe, their nervous system reads it as a threat, not leadership." -Blake Schofield

"Trust isn't a one-time action. It's built in micro moments." -Blake Schofield

Resources Mentioned

Drained at the end of the day & want more presence in your life? In just 5 minutes, learn your unique burnout type™ & how to restore your energy, fulfillment & peace at www.impactwithease.com/burnout-type/

Turning Insight into Tangible, Real-World Change

Alignment Accelerator (part 2) Inside Jaime's private coaching session

What does real transformation look like?

Just two weeks after her first call with Blake, Jaime was maintaining her energy, honoring her personal routines, and creating more balance than ever before- during her busiest season at work. The clarity she gained around her work relationships also deepened her understanding of what she truly wants in her personal life—and how to ask for it without compromise.

This is what alignment looks like in motion. Real, sustainable change that helps you work smarter, strengthen relationships, and show up with more energy for what matters most, at work and beyond.

She was also facing another challenge that so many high-achievers can relate to: daily interactions with her boss that left her drained, second-guessing herself, and spinning in frustration.

In this episode, you'll hear how we transformed what looked like a personality conflict into more effective leadership communication strategies. Through small shifts in awareness and communication, Jaime learned how to lead "up" more effectively, reduce unnecessary rework, and turn draining meetings into collaborative partnerships.

If you've ever wondered about finding clarity and energy for meaningful relationships while succeeding in your career, or what executive coaching actually looks like in practice, this conversation is for you.

Episode Highlights

Small Changes, Big Impact

[03:00] - How two daily breaks transformed Jaime's energy

[06:00] - Grouping tasks and protecting focus time

Transforming Draining Relationships

[10:00] - The real reason why your boss might be draining you

[17:00] - Understanding visionaries vs. implementers

[23:00] - The one-page recap that changed everything

Leadership Communication That Works

[29:00] - Being specific vs. staying vague when workload is unrealistic

[37:00] - How to have the conversation that changes the dynamic

[45:00] - Leading with humanity instead of blame

From Career Clarity to Personal Clarity

[52:00] - What do you really want in a partner?

[58:00] - The power of not compromising

[1:05:00] - Trusting what your body tells you: calm vs. chaos

Key Wins & Takeaways

[1:14:00] - Jaime's biggest transformations

[1:16:00] - The underlying pattern of it all

Powerful Quotes

"The best leaders I know know how to lead the people around them." — Blake Schofield

"Longer hours doesn't mean that I'm being efficient with my time." — Jaime

"How we do one thing is how we do everything. The lessons that we get always show up in multiple places." — Blake Schofield

"The right person for you will feel calm, peaceful. You will not feel confused or chaotic or any of those things." — Blake Schofield

"I truly believe everyone is doing the best that they can. Usually when we're having the biggest issues, it's because somebody is in survival mode or they're just lacking awareness of how what they're doing has impacts on other people." — Blake Schofield

Resources Mentioned

Drained at the end of the day & want more presence in your life? In just 5 minutes, learn your unique burnout type™ & how to restore your energy, fulfillment & peace at www.impactwithease.com/burnout-type/