Stop Reacting, Start Responding

Under pressure, even strong leaders can default to habit instead of intention. In this episode, Dr. Leonie H. Mattison explores the internal movement that happens before every decision, email, or response. You’ll learn how reactive leadership forms under urgency, why speed often replaces wisdom, and how a simple five-second pause can shift you from reflex to intentional response. If you lead people, systems, or communities and want to move through pressure without losing yourself, this conversation is for you.

If this episode resonated, share it with a leader who is navigating high pressure or transition. Follow the podcast so you don’t miss future episodes and please leave a review to help others find this work.

For more leadership resources, visit: www.leoniemattison.com

Follow me on Instagram: @leonieh.mattison

If you’re starting 2026 with goals in mind but you’re already running on empty, this episode is for you. Before you set another plan or push for more discipline, you need restoration because you cannot build a new year on a depleted inner life.

In this Episode of Achieve Intentional Transformation, Dr. Leonie H. Mattison introduces The Lamp Check, a simple, memorable framework to help you restore yourself before you set goals. You’ll learn how to treat burnout as a messenger, not a personal failure, and ask the deeper questions that reveal what your system truly needs: Do I feel safe, seen, supported, valued? What is my body signaling about belonging—and under what conditions do I actually thrive?

In this episode, you’ll walk away with:

The 4 Lamp Check questions (Body/Base, Spirit/Oil, Soul/Flame, Boundaries/Shade)

4 outcome-driven practices you can use today to rebuild capacity, clarity, and steadiness

A restoration-first approach to goal setting that protects your light instead of consuming it

For more resources, visit www.leoniemattison.com

and follow @leonieh.mattison on Instagram.

In this brief follow-up episode, Dr. Lee returns to a question leaders have been asking since her recent Forbes Business Council article on Thinking Deeply: How do you actually embody depth when timelines are tight, pressure is high, and consequences are real?

This episode offers a practical path forward.

Here Dr. Lee shares a simple six-question guide designed to help leaders stay steady, strengthen decision quality, and protect trust before disruption creates costly repair.

If you are leading through uncertainty, this is a short, usable resource you can bring into your next meeting, decision, or moment of strain.

Resources mentioned in this episode

1) Download the Six Questions Guide (PDF):

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-7418654991260835840-l_Qs?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_android&rcm=ACoAAAFkPMABWT6Rfqa38z1GdVfk_l8VNKdIcUs

2) Listen to the Thinking Deeply episode:

https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-m6qzy-19e99cf

3) Read the Forbes article: https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbesbusinesscouncil/2026/01/07/the-thread-system-why-thinking-deeply-must-be-every-leaders-first-move/

4) Get the book on Amazon:

https://a.co/d/4Ft2G5G

5) Connect with Dr. Lee and explore more:

https://www.instagram.com/drleonieh.mattison?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==