Case Study: From Firefighting to Strategic Leadership
When Sam (real name changed to protect confidentiality) stepped into his first C suite role, it was everything he had worked towards for more than a decade.
He was capable, respected and deeply committed. The promotion made perfect sense. He understood the business, had strong relationships and had consistently delivered results. This was the role he had long worked towards.
But within months, something didn’t feel right. Sam found himself constantly in the weeds. The days were full of meetings, check ins and status updates. He was working long hours, often early mornings and late into the evening, trying to stay on top of everything. His intention was simple. He wanted to make sure nothing went wrong.
Yet despite all of this effort, he felt he was falling short of the very expectations that had led to his promotion.
He had imagined spending time shaping direction, thinking strategically and contributing at a higher level. Instead, he was firefighting. Reacting. Carrying a constant sense of pressure and responsibility. He was exhausted.
His team, capable and experienced, had started to rely on him heavily. Decisions flowed upwards. Progress slowed. Without meaning to, Sam had become a bottleneck.
His boss began to ask questions. Not about Sam’s commitment or capability, but about his strategic contribution. Where was the bigger picture thinking they knew Sam was capable of?
Sam could feel it too. He was working harder than ever, yet further away from the leader he wanted to be.
In our early coaching conversations, we created space to step back and understand what was really driving his behaviour.
It became clear that this was not about capability. It was about belief.
Sam shared a story from early in his career. He had been managing a small team when one of his team members made a mistake. It was not catastrophic, but it mattered. The organisation’s senior leader at the time had made it clear that the responsibility sat with Sam.
He had carried that moment with him ever since.
Without consciously realising it, Sam had formed a belief. If something goes wrong, it is my fault. My job is to make sure nothing goes wrong.
This belief had served him well for many years. It had driven high standards, attention to detail and personal accountability. It had helped him progress.
But in his new role, it was holding him back.
The very belief that had made Sam successful was now preventing him from being strategic. It kept him too close to the detail, too involved and too responsible for things his team were capable of owning.
Through coaching, we worked to examine this belief. Not to dismiss it, but to understand whether it was still serving him.
Sam began to see that his role had fundamentally changed. His responsibility was no longer to control everything. It was to provide clarity, direction and trust, and to focus his time on the areas where he could add the greatest value.
Together, we developed a replacement belief - ‘My role is not to prevent every problem. My role is to create clarity, empower others and focus on what matters most.’
Sam began to step back. He became more intentional about where he spent his time. He stopped attending meetings where his presence was not essential. He gave his team clear ownership and trusted them to deliver, rather than staying constantly involved.
At first, this felt uncomfortable. Old habits do not disappear overnight. But with clarity came confidence.
His team responded quickly. They stepped forward, took ownership and began making decisions with greater confidence. The organisation moved faster.
Most importantly, Sam began to reclaim the space he needed to think.
He started focusing on strategic priorities. He contributed more meaningfully at executive level. His energy returned. The constant pressure eased.
Six months later, his boss reflected on the shift they had seen. Sam was now operating as the strategic leader he had always believed he could be.
The capability had always been there. What he needed was the space to get clear, to let go of a belief that no longer served him and to step fully into the leader he had become.
This is the impact of helping leaders get clear.
