At the end of 2024, I was laid off. It was the moment I realized that my journey in revenue and leadership enablement needed a new direction. Business restructuring. My skills were no longer the right fit for what was needed next. I’d heard that line before—usually delivered to someone else. This time it was mine.
For months, I applied for jobs. I sat across from VPs of RevOps, VPs of Sales, VPs of Growth. I got close. Several times. Then nothing.
From Strategy to Intensive Learning
In the middle of all that, I did something that felt a little crazy: I enrolled in a 5-hour-a-day German intensive course. Six months. A2 to B2. Got the certificate.
Why? Because when everything feels uncertain, learning something with a clear finish line helps.
But underneath the job applications and the German grammar drills, I was reflecting on what authentic leadership really looks like. I was thinking about my last job. Not the layoff — the years before it. The slow drift from “I love this work” to exhausted, unclear, and burned out.
Overcoming the Absence of Clarity
When I finally got honest about what went wrong, it wasn’t the company or the restructure. It was the absence of clarity. About my role. My impact. Who I was actually serving. What success even looked like.
I mapped it out and realized: there are 6 types of clarity that matter at work. I was missing most of them.
How Leadership Brings Clarity to New Managers
They just got promoted. They were great at their job. And suddenly nothing works the same way. The skills that got them here are the exact skills that are holding them back. Nobody told them what the new game looks like. Nobody gave them a map.
I never had a great manager in my entire career. Not one. And I know what that costs — not just in performance, but in confidence. In wasted years. In people quietly deciding leadership isn’t for them.
I want to change that. One manager at a time.
- That’s why I built the 5-Pillar Leadership Framework.
- That’s why I write this leadership newsletter every week.
- That’s why on April 15th at 16:00 CET, I’m running a free 30-minute live session: The 5 Shifts That Change Everything.
No slides full of theory. No generic advice. The 5 things I wish someone had told me before the first 90 days go sideways.
If you’re a new manager who feels like you’re drowning in fires you didn’t start — this is for you.
If you’re a VP of Sales watching a great rep struggle in their first leadership role — send them this.
👉 Secure your spot here — it’s free and it’s 30 minutes.
See you on the 15th.
Sonia Pupaza
Founder, Empower Value | Sales Leadership Transformation Expert
