EP 133 Self-leadership with Wani Manly

Wani is the first guest in the new format of the podcast and before we dig into the content of the episode, I wanted to give the behind the scenes of how she came to be a guest. On Friday the 20th of March, I decided to cancel all my future guests on the podcast. I was booked until November 2026. It was a bold move. Once I had messaged the potential guests, I wondered who I could interview for March as I always have one guest per month on the past Friday of the month. I reached out to a woman in a business Facebook community who specialised in burnout and waited.

On Monday at 2 am, which would have been Wani's Sunday, I received an email from Wani asking if I would consider her on the podcast. Her profile was perfectly aligned with the new feel of the podcast. Normally, I pre-interview my guests but I decided to go for it. The next day, we were recording the episode and it is EPIC.

Wani is an Intellectual Property Attorney from Miami, who left her career after receiving sign after sign, for a year, to move to Paris. She had already been on a spiritual journey for nine years, which started after September 11, 2001. After a year of those signs, she sold her home, her car and got rid of almost everything she possessed and moved to Paris. She didn't know the language and had only been there as a tourist once.

She says this is the moment she stepped into what she calls "Self-leadership" which she defines as self-awareness and the willingness to look within, including at our shadow. It requires us to do the work, which can be really hard at times. For Wani, what it looked like was to stop being so hard on herself and more open to life.

Even thought she had made the decision to fully pursue a career in public speaking and change management as a consultant, it was hard for her to let go of her lawyer identity.

To hear her share about what helps her stay centred when life gets overwhelming (how much more overwhelming than a move to a country where you don't speak the language?) and so much more wisdom, click here.

To find out more about Wani, check her website, her LinkedIn profile and her Instagram account.