Did you know August is Professional Speakers Month, Black Business Month, and American Adventures Month?
Three very different observances on the surface, but here’s the message they all have in common:
Being willing to take up space.
To use your voice.
To build something of your own.
To go somewhere you haven’t been before.
And for many high-performing Women of Color, that can require more than confidence.
It can require unlearning.
Because leadership conditioning can teach us to be excellent without being visible.
To be successful without being fully seen.
To build everyone else’s vision while putting our own on hold.
To stay where we’re comfortable because we’ve already learned how to succeed there.
But sustainable success asks something different of us.
It asks us to expand.
To speak.
To be seen.
To create.
To explore.
To stop treating the familiar as the only place where we can thrive.
You don’t have to abandon who you are to become who you’re becoming.
You can bring yourself with you.
That’s part of what S.O.F.T. Leadership™ makes possible:
Redefining leadership culture beyond survival mode.
Not so long ago, the start of August would have had me feeling the weight of the end of summer and the start of the school year – K-12 and college – even though I love my work.
I love teaching undergraduate students and managing youth development programs. But every August, I could feel myself shift into a deeper level of responsibility, intensity, and sacrifice.
I would consistently kick into overdrive – squeezing in a quick vacation, creating long task lists, and running from here to there trying to get ahead of everything.
Back to school felt like the end of something good because of my relationship with work.
And I know I’m not alone.
Leadership conditioning has taught many high-performing Women of Color to mistake survival strategies for leadership strengths.
The overfunctioning.
The overpreparing.
The carrying.
The constant sense that there is always more to do.
No more.
That time has passed.
The way I approach leadership has changed.
Because I now practice S.O.F.T. Leadership™, I started August with joy and ease.
I had a fun-filled weekend playing in the park with a group of amazing women and strolling through sunflower fields with two of my best friends.
And guess what?
I didn’t ignore my responsibilities.
I ignored the unrealistic pressure to do and carry all the things – even the things that didn’t belong to me.
Years ago, I began to breathe.
To delegate.
To play.
To rest.
To prioritize.
To systematize.
And to see August as a beginning instead of an ending.
I reclaimed my true identity.
Restored my authority.
And liberated my leadership practices so I could experience sustainable success.
This is what S.O.F.T. Leadership™ looks like in real life.
Not doing less.
Not caring less.
Not lowering the bar.
Leading differently.
Professional sovereignty allows us to lead from ownership instead of obligation – making decisions that honor our values, affirm our authority, and protect our capacity.
And honestly?
I’m really enjoying this version of August.
I invite you to join me on this journey.
Nicki Sanders, MSW is the Founder and CEO of Nicki Sanders Leadership Consulting and the creator of the S.O.F.T. Leadership™ framework – a liberation-centered approach to people-first, aligned leadership. With over 20 years of professional experience including nonprofit leadership, organizational development, and higher education, she works passionately with high-performing Women of Color leaders and values-driven organizations to build cultures rooted in wholeness, purpose, and lasting impact. Nicki is a nationally recognized thought leader, professor, coach, and facilitator proving that sustainable success does not require self-sacrifice.
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