FINE is a 4-Letter Word

·E247

The Pause Is the Work with Jobert Abueva

October 1
40 mins

Episode Description

On September 6, 1997, the day of Princess Diana's funeral, Jobert Abueva couldn't get out of bed. He was in a Hong Kong hotel room, paralyzed for the better part of 48 hours, unable to touch the club sandwich or hot tea he'd ordered, crying from exhaustion, loneliness, and homesickness. It was, he says, the lowest point of a career that from the outside looked like nothing but success.

For most of his thirties, Jobert had been living the frenzied pace of a global marketing career, opening new markets for Herbal Essences across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, jumping from country to country in a matter of months, taking calls with U.S. headquarters at all hours. He got the raises and the next plum assignment. He also got the lack of sleep, the overeating, the overdrinking, and the signals he kept ignoring, until his body simply stopped.

In this conversation, Jobert tells Lori how a childhood memory of Janus, the two-faced Roman god of beginnings and endings, surfaced in that hotel room and became the seed of a framework he now calls the Janus Plan. It's a conversation about what happens when you finally stop outrunning burnout, why looking backward is what makes it possible to move forward, and why boundaries only stick the second time you build them on purpose.

What You'll Take Away

  • Why ignoring burnout signals for years eventually catches up with even the highest performers
  • How a childhood memory of the Roman god Janus reframed Jobert's understanding of endings and beginnings
  • Why 'ponder the past' before 'frame the future' makes goals more sustainable than New Year's resolutions
  • How setting boundaries the second time around, including turning down future expat assignments and developing a team instead of doing everything himself, reshaped his second corporate career
  • Why any personal threshold, not just January 1st, can be the start of a meaningful new chapter

Guest Bio

Jobert E. Abueva grew up between four Asian countries and went on to a three-decade global marketing and philanthropy career, including launching Herbal Essences into international markets. He is a TEDx speaker, a Lambda Literary Prize recipient, and the author of The Janus Plan: A No-Resolutions Path to Begin Your Year with Intention. He lives in New Hope, Pennsylvania.

Chapters & Key Timestamps

00:00 Opening and episode premise

00:39 The nomadic childhood that shaped a global career

07:09 Launching Herbal Essences across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia

10:55 The signals he ignored: exhaustion, overwork, and a frenzied pace

12:00 September 6, 1997: the Hong Kong hotel room he couldn't leave

15:48 A childhood memory of Janus reframes everything

20:15 Ponder the past, frame the future: leaving corporate to write

24:13 Setting boundaries the second time around

26:05 The Janus Plan: a no-resolutions path to a new year

34:24 His hype song and the moment it found him

36:17 Where to find Jobert and the invitation to 'be like Janus'

Resources Mentioned


Connect With Jobert Abueva

Website: https://joberteabueva.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jobertabueva/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joberteabueva/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joberteabueva/

Book: https://amzn.to/477VkA7

Continue With Lori

Website: https://zenrabbit.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorisaitz/

Email: Lori@ZenRabbit.com

Invitation From Lori

Zen Rabbit

This episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. Trust is the foundation of all great workplaces, and in today's hybrid, fast-moving work culture, it's built through consistent, clear, human communication.

Quarterly town halls, Slack messages, or team-building events are rarely enough to create the connection employees need. That's why forward-thinking companies are hiring Lori to create internal and private podcasts that bring leaders and employees together through authentic stories and real conversations.

Think of it as the old-school company newsletter reinvented for the modern workplace.

If your company wants to strengthen communication, connection, community, and culture, connect with Lori at Lori@ZenRabbit.com or on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorisaitz/

About FINE is a 4-Letter Word

FINE is a 4-Letter Word is the show for leaders who are tired of pretending everything is fine.

We explore what it takes to lead with empathy, vulnerability, gratitude, and courage, especially during the seasons when life and leadership feel anything but fine.

Listen for honest conversations about how human connection influences innovation, retention, leadership, and real impact. New episodes every week.

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