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A degree may be the reason you begin the journey, but what you learn along the way can shape you just as much. Dr Udaya Rathnayake reflects on resilience, family, financial realities and the lessons he gained while pursuing his PhD in Australia.

Some seasons of growth don't look like growth at all. Like the caterpillar, we may not recognise what we are becoming while we are in the middle of the transformation.

How much of what you call success is actually yours? Sometimes, leading your shift means questioning the expectations you've carried for years and giving yourself permission to define success on your own terms.

In this episode of Lead the Shift Conversations, I sit down with Chale Dodge, a Business Analysis Practice Lead and passionate advocate for professional communities, to explore the experiences that have shaped his approach to career growth, leadership, and service. Chale's journey into business analysis wasn't one he originally planned. An unexpected opportunity opened the door to a career that would eventually see him move from Business Analyst to Senior BA, Lead and Practic

Sometimes the things we learn to hide about ourselves are the very things others experience as our strengths. This is a reflection on the stories we carry, the power of words, and learning to question the labels that were never ours to keep.

In this episode of Lead the Shift Conversations, I sit down with Dr Victoria Lister, a researcher, workplace coach, and organisational practitioner, to explore the journey behind her remarkable career. From hospitality and advertising to consulting, coaching, and academia, Victoria shares how every career transition, planned or unplanned, contributed to her understanding of voice, purpose, and meaningful work. This conversation is a reminder that we don't always need to have

In the first episode of Lead the Shift Conversations, I sit down with Associate Professor Dr Levi Osuagwu to explore the journey behind his remarkable career. From navigating migration and embracing his cultural identity to becoming a globally recognised researcher, Levi shares the lessons that shaped his leadership, purpose and impact. This conversation is a reminder that success is rarely accidental. It is built through preparation, service, resilience and making the most o

What happens when you are always the person everyone turns to, but rarely let anyone know when you need support too? I spent years wondering why people didn't ask how I was doing, until I realised they could only respond to the version of me I allowed them to see.

After I submitted my PhD, I realised something I hadn't expected; I had become so good at doing that I'd forgotten how to simply be.

I stopped writing because I convinced myself I didn’t have anything meaningful to say. Then I realised that the “not ready yet” story is exactly what keeps us stuck in waiting.

Humility should keep us grounded, not make us invisible. Yet many of us have learned to downplay our strengths, achievements and contributions so we don't appear arrogant or “too much.” At what point does humility become shrinking?

An international student in Australia recently reached out to me, feeling discouraged and overwhelmed. Before coming to Australia, they had built years of professional experience and a solid career. Yet after almost a year of applying for jobs, they had been unable to secure work, even in roles well below the level they had previously held. The repeated rejections were starting to erode their confidence and make them question their worth. We arranged a time to talk. During ou

This Mother’s Day feels especially meaningful for me because, for the first time, I truly feel like I am embracing motherhood without the negativity and constant voices telling me I am not enough. There was a time when I questioned my worth as a mother every single day. I carried the weight of hurtful words, criticism, and the belief that I was failing. But over the past year, with God’s help, I have grown in ways I never imagined. I’ve made difficult but necessary decisions,

A few months ago, my kids’ cousins had just started at a new school. During their first week, I asked if they had made any friends. One of them, just 10 years old, said something that stayed with me: I have people I talk to but I wouldn’t call them friends. I paused. Hearing that from a 10-year-old stopped me in my tracks. There was so much awareness in that simple statement. I remember thinking, wow… kudos to the parents for raising a child with that kind of discernment. At

You don’t always notice when you’re shrinking. It’s subtle. Gradual. Easy to explain away. For a few years, I lived in a small town. At the time, it made complete sense. I was raising my kids as a single mum, working full-time, and completing my PhD. I needed a setup that allowed me to manage everything, and it worked. But after a while, something started to shift. From the outside, it looked like I was holding it all together, but quietly, something in me was changing. I los

A few days ago, I listened to a podcast by Oprah Winfrey, “Oprah & Tech Leaders on What AI Means for Your Job, Health, Family & Future.” She was in conversation with leading voices in artificial intelligence, exploring what this moment means for our work, lives, and future. It caught my attention because this is an area that has quietly shaped much of my work and thinking. For the past six years, I have been researching how emerging technologies reshape jobs, organisations,

Years ago, during marriage counselling, we were told: “ Don’t go into marriage with expectations. That’s where disappointment begins .” It sounded wise. Lower the bar. Avoid the hurt. I believed it at the time. And recently, when a friendship I thought was deeply mutual didn’t hold, I heard that familiar explanation again: “ Maybe you expected too much. ” But that didn’t sit right. Expectations weren’t absent; they existed on both sides, just unspoken and misaligned. Expectat

Resilience keeps us standing, but perseverance carries us forward. Inspired by Late Eric Dane’s Netflix interview, I explored the difference between surviving setbacks and intentionally moving toward your next chapter. Where in your life are you simply resilient and where are you choosing to persevere?

The older I get, the more I realise that most relationship breakdowns don’t start with bad intentions; they start with miscommunication. Not explosive arguments, betrayal, or dramatic endings, but small gaps. A message interpreted differently, a silence held for too long, an assumption made instead of a question asked. Over time, those small gaps create distance, and distance, if left unattended, quietly reshapes relationships. Here are 10 things life has taught me about comm

There’s a saying we all know. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade . But what no one tells you is that sometimes the lemons come by the truckload. My marriage ended, but that was never what I planned when I said, ‘I do.’ I then had to navigate the challenges of single motherhood, the emotional residue of a broken marriage, the guilt, the questions, and the loneliness that followed. At the same time, during my PhD, as an international student with no real support from my