Leadership Reflections: Leading from lived experience

Leadership does not always begin in a formal setting, with a title. Sometimes, it begins in an honest conversation, with curiosity and creativity.

My dialogue with MoonTing Li on the Fem Renaissance Podcast was one of those moments. What began as an exploration of women’s leadership in institutions like the United Nations became something deeper — a reflection on what it means to lead when authority and impact no longer align.

From the outside, institutions such as the United Nations can appear prestigious and purposeful. Yet those of us who have worked within them understand the tension that arises when ideals and institutional realities diverge. On the podcast, I spoke openly about my decision to take early retirement from the United Nations — a decision rooted not in disengagement, but in alignment. Leaving authority behind was not stepping away from leadership. It was redefining it.

During our conversation, MoonTing’s curiosity extended far beyond hosting an episode. She interrogated the very systems she had worked within. Our discussion moved beyond titles and positions to questions of purpose, integrity, and the cost of remaining silent when values are compromised.

Leadership, in that moment, required modelling vulnerability without losing clarity. I demonstrated that influence does not depend on institutional power.

After the episode aired, our exchanges continued, and what I witnessed was the evolution of something more intentional. Through our reflection and strategic dialogue, MoonTing began to recognize that our leadership conversations were laying the foundation for a brand. That evolution became MoonTing Studio. She did not abandon her lived experience within global institutions; she transformed it into her own creative practice, now offering strategic communications service to leaders and projects. She evolved from questioning systems to strategically shaping purpose-driven narratives and brands that influence them. That is leadership in action.

From my lived experience, leadership is about helping others see that they can build what does not yet exist. The Mindset-to-Output Mentorship Programme is grounded in this belief: lived experience is an asset. When reflection is paired with structure, conversation becomes direction and direction becomes output.

As a leader, my mentorship is not about giving answers. It is about creating the conditions for emergence. MoonTing’s journey — from our dialogue on the Fem Renaissance Podcast to the launch of MoonTing Studio — demonstrates that when women trust their voice, align with their values, and act with intention, they do not simply pivot. They build.