Project Joyful

In this episode, Tracy continues the series on The Hidden Costs of High Performance with a powerful and deeply personal exploration of what it means to be "The Reliable One."

High-performing women are often the first to show up, the last to flinch, and the ones everyone depends on. But what's the hidden cost of holding it all together?

Tracy unpacks how this identity forms, why it persists, and how it can quietly erode your presence, intuition, and connection - both with your team and yourself.

What You'll Learn: 

• Why being dependable became your identity - and what it might be costing you now

• The subtle signs of emotional disconnection and self-suppression 

• How reliability can morph into a quiet, unconscious script 

• Why the strongest leaders do flinch - and what they do with it 

• How your presence can reset your team's culture and unlock deeper trust

This episode is for you if: 

• You pride yourself on being calm, capable, and composed - but feel quietly disconnected

• You've noticed a flattening of joy, creativity, or clarity in your leadership 

• You want to feel as good on the inside as you look on the outside

If you're ready to lead from presence - not just performance - this conversation will meet you exactly where you are.

Resources & Next Steps: 

• Ready to explore a different kind of leadership? Learn more about working with Tracy at https://www.tracytutty.co.nz/WorkWithTracy

• Share this episode with a fellow high-performing woman who might need to hear it 

• Subscribe for more conversations on identity, leadership, and embodied power

High-performing women often hold the emotional weight of their teams and organisations - quietly, constantly, and at great personal cost. In this episode, Tracy Tutty dives deep into the hidden world of emotional labour at work.

You'll discover how hyper-empathy, people-pleasing, and unconscious caregiving patterns may be shaping your leadership more than you think. Tracy reveals how this often-invisible emotional load can dull your edge, drain your presence, and distort your boundaries - not just with others, but with yourself.

We'll explore: 

• Why emotional attunement makes you a powerful leader (until it doesn't) 

• The real cost of "If they're okay, I'm safe" 

• How mothering instincts leak into professional spaces and limit team growth 

• Why boundaries are a nervous system recalibration, not a mindset hack 

• What leadership looks like when emotional labour becomes a choice, not a compulsion

This isn't about fixing you. It's about freeing you.

So you can lead with clarity, connection, and a presence that feels fully yours.

Resources + Links: To learn more about working with Tracy, visit https://www.tracytutty.co.nz/WorkWithTracy

Subscribe & Review: If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who leads from the heart.

Are you using your strategic brilliance to hide?

In this episode of the Project Joyful podcast, Tracy Tutty explores how high-level thinking can quietly become emotional avoidance - especially for high-performing women in leadership.

We often think strategy keeps us on track. But when strategy becomes our default response, it can disconnect us from our instincts, our people, and even ourselves.

Tracy shares: 

• Why strategic thinking sometimes masks deeper emotional fatigue 

• How common leadership habits like overplanning or skipping one-on-ones reveal subconscious self-protection 

• The hidden cost of living in your head and the energy leaks you might not even notice

• A personal story of when her strategic strengths began to cost her joy and presence

• How to reclaim your power without losing your edge

If you've ever felt like your mind is sharp but your energy is low, this episode is for you.

🎧 Listen now to reconnect with the part of you that doesn't need to perform to lead powerfully.

🔗 Links: 

Book a free clarity session: https://www.tracytutty.co.nz/Clarity
Subscribe to the Project Joyful podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/project-joyful/id1571076049

Connect with Tracy Tutty: 

Website: www.TracyTutty.co.nz
Instagram: @tracyctutty
LinkedIn: https://nz.linkedin.com/in/tracytutty

Join our bi-monthly newsletter, The Executive Sanctuary. Subscribe on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/build-relation/newsletter-follow?entityUrn=7352191057578680320

In this episode of Project Joyful, Tracy Tutty, Neuro-Identity Coach and Medical Herbalist, explores the adaptogenic power of Schisandra chinensis.

Traditionally known as the "five-flavour berry," Schisandra has long been used to enhance vitality, endurance, and stress resilience. Now, science confirms what folklore always knew: this berry supports liver detoxification, mitochondrial energy, emotional balance, and mental clarity.

You'll learn:

• What makes Schisandra an elite adaptogen
• How it regulates cortisol and supports HPA axis function
• Why liver detox phases matter if you're taking medication
• How it boosts immune, lung, and cognitive performance
• The leadership lens on using herbs strategically - not just symptomatically

Plus, Tracy shares key safety considerations and how to use Schisandra wisely, especially if you're on prescription medication.

 💌 Free Resource:
Join our Herbs for Health email series.
Each month, discover how one simple herb can support your leadership and wellbeing - without supplement aisle overwhelm.

Sign up at tracytutty.co.nz/Herbs4Health

What if your sharpness didn't have to come at the cost of your sanity? What if your power didn't have to spike, crash, and burn?

In this episode, we're reimagining what high performance actually looks like - beyond the sprint-recover-repeat cycle. Tracy unpacks the invisible cost of leading from pressure, the emotional toll of bringing overdrive home, and the subtle cues that reveal when your nervous system is stuck in performance mode.

You'll hear:

·         The lived moments when work pressure quietly reshapes home dynamics

·         Why leadership from overdrive isn't sustainable - and how it shows up in your body

·         What changes when you no longer lead from adrenaline, but from presence

·         The energetic shift your team and your family feel when you stop overfunctioning

This episode isn't a call to action. It's a call to resonance.

You don't have to prove your value. You don't have to perform your leadership. You get to remember who you are when you're not bracing for the next thing.

LISTEN NOW to reconnect with your power - the kind that doesn't cost you everything.

Resources and Links
Want more episodes like this? Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss a drop of clean power wisdom.

If you've ever found yourself holding back in meetings, hesitating before giving feedback, or wondering why praise feels more awkward than affirming… this episode is for you.

Today, we're talking about the quiet identity split that happens when you're promoted from within and suddenly you're not "one of the team" anymore. You're their leader. And even though your title has changed, your nervous system might not have gotten the memo.

We explore:

• Why being seen in your authority can feel uncomfortable (even threatening)
• The subconscious trade-off between connection and command
• How ancient wiring still influences your leadership presence
• What it really takes to feel safe and steady in your new role

This is not a "fix yourself" conversation. It's a call to resonance. A chance to pause and ask:
What would it feel like to belong without blending?
To lead without the inner split?

If you've ever felt the tug-of-war between visibility and safety, this episode will land.

🎧 Listen now and start coming home to the leader you already are.

 Resources + Links:

• Learn more about Neuro-Identity Coaching with Tracy: https://www.tracytutty.co.nz/WorkWithTracy
• Connect on Instagram: @tracyctutty
• For episode transcripts, visit: https://projectjoyful.com/podcasts/

You said you trusted them.
You handed over the work.
And yet - there you are, rewriting the Board paper or adjusting the PowerPoint "just a little."

This episode is for the high-achieving woman who can't stop touching what she's already delegated - and knows it's costing more than just her time.

Inside, we explore:

• How the Re-Do Reflex sneaks in under the guise of "standards"
• Why redoing your team's work is sabotaging their confidence (and your leadership)
• What a real high-performance team looks like - and why it's not always easy to manage
• The subconscious safety strategies that keep you proving instead of leading
• What it would actually feel like to lead with trust, clarity, and ease

✨ This isn't about doing less.
It's about leading differently.

If your brilliance is burning out under the weight of "fixing everything," it's time to clear the reflex and reclaim your presence.

💬 Want to explore what this shift could look like for you?
Book your free Clarity Call today. [https://www.tracytutty.co.nz/Clarity] We'll talk about where you're holding it all, what's keeping you stuck in the Re-Do Reflex, and what it would take for your leadership to feel lighter, more confident, and truly supported.

If your leadership edge feels dulled by constant overdrive, you're not alone. In this episode of Project Joyful, medical herbalist, Tracy Tutty, introduces you to one of her favourite herbal allies - Gotu Kola. Known for centuries as a rejuvenator for the mind, and now confirmed through modern research, Gotu Kola supports mental clarity, stress recovery, and even long-term brain health.

We'll explore:

• How Gotu Kola calms the startle reflex so you can respond instead of react.
• Why it's a powerful nervous system tonic for long-term resilience.
• Its role in memory, focus, and neurological repair - without overstimulation.
• How its collagen-boosting magic benefits skin healing and radiance.

Tracy also shares why Gotu Kola is the herb for leaders who are overwhelmed, overextended… just over it - and how its cooling, calming nature resets your system for sustainable clarity.

Whether you're leading a team, a company, or a vision, herbs like Gotu Kola can be a foundational leadership strategy - quietly working in the background to keep you steady, sharp, and ready for the long game.

🎧 Listen to Episode 202 now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app

Resources & Links:

• Herbs for Health  - Each month, discover how one simple herb can support your sleep, stress, mood, or immunity - without supplement aisle overwhelm.
• Connect with Tracy on LinkedIn for leadership and herbal wisdom: LinkedIn — Tracy Tutty 

You're sleeping, but you're not resting. You're performing, but you're not leading. This is the exhaustion your to-do list can't fix.

In this episode, we're unpacking a version of tired that goes far deeper than sleep debt. We'll explore:

• Why cortisol spikes are waking you at 3am
• How high-functioning hyper-responsibility drains your leadership edge
• The quiet cost of over-preparing, over-performing, and over-caring
• What your body is actually asking for when you reach for that glass of wine
• How to track and work with your energy - not against it

This isn't about burnout. It's about the hidden depletion high-performing women don't talk about - because they're still showing up, still achieving, still holding it all.

✨ Join me for a free masterclass: When You Feel Better, You Lead Better

📅 Wednesday, August 21st
🕙 10am NZT

We'll go deeper into:

• The science of clean energy and unshakeable presence
• Why coping well is not the goal
• How to lead from clarity instead of compensation

When you shift, everything shifts - from your team to your family to how you feel in your own skin.

🔗 Register now: https://www.tracytutty.co.nz/FBLB

Welcome to Project Joyful's 200th episode! 🎉

Whether you've been here from the start or just tuned in - thank you.
We're celebrating this milestone with a conversation that hits at the core of high performance: why switching off is harder than it should be.

If you've ever logged out, ticked the boxes, even scheduled rest time… and still felt "on"? This one's for you.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why your nervous system resists relaxation (even when you crave it)
• The leadership myths keeping you over-available
• The science behind why joy and rest feel harder to access
• What constant interruptions are really costing you
• And how identity work creates the conditions for true rest

Join me for a free masterclass:
When You Feel Better, You Lead Better - happening 21 August
We'll connect the dots between nervous system health and sustainable leadership - and you'll walk away with practical tools to shift from coping to clarity.

👉 https://www.tracytutty.co.nz/FBLB

If you found value in this episode, please subscribe, rate, and share it with a fellow high performer who needs to hear it.