Burnout is not caused by too much work.

That's the argument at the heart of this episode — and Yana Carstens has earned the right to make it. After 12 years in the design and tech space, and her own burnout behind her, Yana shifted into executive coaching, where she now focuses on burnout prevention and authentic leadership for women in tech.

In this conversation, Yana and Toni get into what taking radical responsibility for your own wellbeing actually means — and why most of what we call "wellness" is polishing the car while nobody looks under the hood. They dig into hyper-responsibility, the reflex that makes everything your fault; why rest is a prerequisite for success rather than a reward for it; and how leaders who model genuine wellbeing quietly reset the culture of everyone around them.

If you're stepping into a new role, carrying everyone around you, or wondering why the vacation didn't fix it — this one is for you.

What we cover:

◾ Why tech-native executive coaches are so rare — and why coaching skills spread naturally through teams

◾ The three reasons wellbeing is a leadership issue: modeling, leading from your center, and preventing burnout

◾ Burnout is not caused by too much work — the root causes nobody talks about

◾ The Ferrari analogy: you're built for speed, but without the pit stops you break down

◾ Why unlimited PTO and spa days are polish, not maintenance — and what "under the hood" work looks like

◾ Rest is a prerequisite for success, not a reward for it — and how that belief shapes team culture

◾ Hyper-responsibility: the high-achiever trait that makes everything your fault

◾ Observe, don't absorb — and Toni's version, hold, don't carry

◾ The client story: the boss's bad mood that had nothing to do with her

◾ Moving from hyper-responsible to "response-able": pause, clarify, build the internal boundary system

◾ The honest truth: this pattern comes back under stress — and that's okay

◾ Worst advice Yana ever received (from another coach): "you need to put on an act"

◾ Best advice: if you believe things will work out, you see opportunities — if not, you see obstacles

Useful Links

Connect with today's guest, Yana Carstens, on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/yanacarstens/) and sign up for her monthly newsletter at https://realignandthrive.com/newsletter.

Ready to learn to coach — for your self-coaching, your leadership toolkit, or a business of your own? Ignite Coach Academy is open for enrollment. Doors close September 11: https://tonicollis.com/ignite-coach-academy

This episode was sponsored by our guest, Yana Carstens. Thank you Yana for helping to bring Leading Women in Tech to this community!