Hit Send Anyway
Recently, I feel like I have so much to share…
but I can’t quite figure out how to just get it into the world.
There’s tech to deal with.
Apps to navigate.
People to approve.
My manager. Social media teams.
Speaker bureaus that will judge it.
As I write this, I still haven’t updated the bureaus that represent me, because I’m waiting on a new speaker reel.
That reel is weeks away. I still need to upload more stage footage to the team, and that platform and the file size have me stuck there...
And apparently… so is my willingness to - just go!
Yesterday, I did something small.
And for some reason, it felt huge.
I sent an email to thousands of people on my list.
And as soon as I hit send, I felt like I might puke.
I usually have my team handle that stuff. They are better at it than me, but yesterday, I just wanted to reach out myself - quickly, directly.
So I opened Mailchimp…
and just started typing.
Immediately, my brain went to work:
What if it’s not perfect enough?
What if it looks weird when it hits inboxes?
What if I messed up a setting and it all goes to spam?
You know… it’s all the thoughts in our heads when we push the norm…
That moment?
That’s not insecurity.
That’s my biology.
It’s my amygdala, the brain’s threat detector, lighting up.
It’s constantly scanning for risk, asking:
Is this safe? Could this go wrong?
And when it can’t predict the outcome - like sending an imperfect email to thousands of people -
it flags it as a potential threat.
So it releases stress chemicals like cortisol,
fills my head with worst-case scenarios,
and nudges me to hesitate.
Not because I’m not capable.
But because my brain is trying to protect me.
And hey reader - you have this same protective system in place. We all do!
This is the problem…
Our brains are using ancient wiring
to navigate our very modern world.
There’s no saber-toothed tiger chasing us.
For me, I was safely sitting at my desk, it was just… Mailchimp.
I am actually proud that I hit send anyway, because the message felt too important to wait for perfect. I talk about it on stages… I know the goal isn’t to silence that protective voice. - It’s to recognize it… and not let it drive.
For those not on that mailing list, Here’s the gist of what I shared:
We’re pouring energy into learning new AI tools, but what I’m seeing, over and over again, is the best and brightest don’t just need new skills, they need a better way to handle change.
Right now, a lot of high performers are…
Keeping up on the outside… but quietly unraveling on the inside
Navigating constant change with no real pause
Performing under pressure… on a playing field that won’t stop shifting
And many of them think it’s just them.
They think everyone else has it figured out.
They don’t. Its mid-March, and this year (2026) I have already spoken at a large leadership event, a mid-size organizations, a small company and a women’s conference, then last week I was hired by a leadership group at Google to do my 2-hour workshop on ‘Leading Through Change’… my first time to get to work with a team at Google and these folks were in person, from all over North America. Talk about thinking at scale and moving fast!
The message on Getting Good at Change, was right on target. They leaned in, and even asked me to stay a bit longer, past our scheduled endpoint. A few pushed back meetings to stay in the room. The fact that this message hit home with them told me all I needed to know.
This isn’t a niche issue.
This is a moment we’re all in.
… The email I sent wasn’t perfect.
The blog links I included, they likely weren’t perfect either.
The formatting?
Who knows. And I got about 50 out-of-office replays (it is Spring Break for many – I didn’t even think about that when I hit send)
But waiting…
Waiting for everything to line up
for the tech to cooperate
for the timing to feel just right
for someone else to polish it.
That’s not working for me anymore. We are all figuring this out in real time.
There’s a quote by Arthur Ashe I’ve always loved:
“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.”
Simple.
Clear.
Uncomfortable… if you’ve been hiding behind “not ready yet.”
Because here’s what I know for sure:
Getting good at change doesn’t start when things get easier.
It starts when things are messy.
When it’s imperfect. When it feels different.
When your hand is hovering over the button.
When your brain is screaming, wait.
So… yes, I am bragging here that I hit send.
And I’m sharing it here - because I can’t be the only one who feels this way.
This is me, practicing what I preach.
Not waiting.
Not over-polishing.
Not holding back something that might help someone -just because it’s not perfect yet.
Because the people who thrive in this world?
They’re not the ones who wait until everything is ready.
They’re the ones who move anyway.
So this is your push, my friends!!
Hit send.
Raise your hand.
Post the thing.
Have the conversation.
Start where you are.
Use what you have.
Do what you can.
And then… do it again tomorrow.