What happens to your leadership identity when the title, team, structure, and external validation are no longer there?

In this episode of 33 Conversations, Michael Abney sits down with Dr. Julie Armstrong, Doctor of Strategic Leadership, leadership development coach, and consultant, for a grounded conversation about career transition, self-leadership, and rebuilding identity after decades inside organizations.

Dr. Julie shares what it has been like to move from 30 years of organizational leadership into independent consulting, including the unexpected emotional weight of losing the structures that once reflected her value back to her.

Together, Michael and Julie explore external validation, vulnerability, learning in public, relationship-building, local influence, structured reflection, and the difference between excellence and performance.

This episode is for executives, consultants, founders, coaches, solopreneurs, and leaders navigating a transition where the old identity no longer fits but the new one is still forming.

It is worth listening to if you are learning how to lead yourself when no one else is watching.