Victoria Canham • 01 October 2025 • 3 min read
"Leadership is not a person or a position. It is a complex moral relationship between people, based on trust, obligation, commitment, emotion, and a shared vision of the good." — Joanne Ciulla
I remember a time when I was so deep in the role of senior manager that I started to believe that leadership meant having all the answers. The weight of my team's performance felt immense, and the pressure to be the rock for everyone left me feeling completely alone. I felt a profound sense of isolation, not just from my team, but from myself. It was as if I was always on, always performing, with no space to admit that I was struggling. The emotional toll was a heavy, silent burden that I carried every day.
This is a challenge that so many senior managers face, but few talk about. You’re expected to be both the strategic visionary and the compassionate coach. You’re the one who has to have the difficult conversations, navigate internal conflicts, and take ultimate responsibility when things go wrong—all while dealing with your own professional pressures. While your team can turn to you for guidance and support, who do you turn to? This constant absorption of pressure, if left unchecked, can lead to a deeper sense of isolation and, eventually, to burnout. It can make you feel like a fraud, a person who is losing the very purpose that led them to the role in the first place.
Many managers try to solve this by simply working harder. They believe if they just put in more hours, attend more meetings, or read one more book, they can outrun the feeling of being overwhelmed. Others bottle up their emotions, putting on a brave face to avoid showing any weakness. You may have even attended a generic leadership workshop, created by a textbook-only” leader”, only to find that the advice given felt disconnected from the real, messy challenges you face every day. These are not solutions; they are simply band-aids. They might address a symptom, but they do nothing to heal the root cause of the emotional and psychological toll your role is taking. You can’t solve a profound emotional drain with a technical skill or a one-size-fits-all approach.
The real answer lies not in working harder, but in building a sustainable system of resilience. This starts with a single, crucial step: admitting that you don't have to carry the burden alone. The most resilient leaders aren't the ones who are unbreakable; they are the ones who know how to build a strong support system.
1️⃣ Give Yourself Permission to Be Human: It's a fundamental shift in mindset. You are not a machine. You can admit when you don’t have all the answers. By showing vulnerability and authenticity, you model the very behaviours you want to see in your team.
2️⃣ Build Your Support System: This is a mix of internal and external resources. You need a trusted confidant—a peer, a mentor, or a coach—with whom you can speak honestly without fear of judgment. This is a person who can provide an objective perspective and help you work through challenges.
3️⃣ Master the Art of Strategic Delegation: Stop believing you have to fix every problem. Empower your team by delegating responsibility and giving them the space to find their own solutions. This not only builds their confidence but also frees you up to focus on the strategic work that only you can do. It’s a powerful antidote to feeling overwhelmed.
4️⃣ Embrace Emotional and Psychological Health: Your wellbeing is not a luxury; it is the foundation of your leadership. You must have a strategy for your own mental and emotional health, whether that's through meditation, exercise, or simply setting clear boundaries around your time.
This is where a professional partnership becomes invaluable. You need an objective, external perspective that can guide you through these changes and provide accountability. You need someone who has been in the trenches and understands the unique pressures you face.
That's the core of what Victoria Canham Consultancy provides. I've been there. I've felt that isolation and built my way out. I work with senior managers to build your resilience and leadership capabilities so you can thrive, not just survive. This isn’t about quick fixes; it’s about a professional partnership that helps you develop the personal and professional strategies you need to lead with purpose and love your role again.
For those moments when you're caught between meetings, facing a sudden challenge, or simply need an objective sounding board to talk through a difficult decision, there's Your Pocket Performance Partner. This unique service provides flexible, on-the-go support via voice and text. It's not AI; it's a direct, one-on-one coaching relationship that allows you to get support exactly when you need it, helping you navigate issues as they arise without the pressure of a scheduled call.
If you’re a senior manager who feels the weight of leadership without the support you need, it's time to build your resilience. Let’s talk about how we can build a strategy that works for you and your team.
For a deeper dive into leading with courage and vulnerability, I highly recommend Dare to Lead by Brené Brown.
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Hi. I'm Vicki, and I help businesses build high-performing, loyal teams by mastering the employee journey. I partner with leaders to drive tangible change, transforming company culture from a pretty promise on a slide deck into a daily reality. My approach goes beyond outdated HR strategies and gets to the heart of what truly motivates and retains your people.
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Victoria Canham is an ICF-accredited Certified Professional Coach and the founder of Victoria Canham Consultancy. We are a specialist performance consultancy partnering with senior leaders and HR teams to elevate culture, leadership, and employee experience. Rooted in behavioural insight and change expertise, we diagnose what's truly holding performance back, co-creating practical, strategic interventions that drive sustainable business results and build workplaces that work—for people and performance.
💸 Your people don’t leave for money. 💣 They leave for culture. 🔧 I fix that. 🏆 Retention & performance strategy that works.
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