Wola Joseph-Condotti 
We live in a world where motion is mistaken for meaning. Where the calendar is full, the inbox is flooded, and the accolades are loudest for those who never seem to stop moving.
Leadership, too, has not been spared. We have glamorized burnout. We wear exhaustion as a badge of honour. We measure our worth in back-to-back Zooms and late-night emails.
But at what cost?
There is a quiet revolution happening among leaders who are choosing pause over pressure. Who are learning that rest is not weakness. It is wisdom. It is strategy. It is stewardship.
When Rest Becomes a Leadership Discipline
The higher you go in leadership, the more your decisions matter. And decision fatigue is real. When we lead from depletion, our vision blurs, our empathy thins, and our creativity suffers.
I have learned (sometimes the hard way) that rest is not the opposite of productivity; it is what makes productivity sustainable. Pausing does not mean you are behind. It means you are intentional. It means you are willing to step back so you can see clearer, lead deeper, and act smarter.
As one mentor once told me, “Clarity does not always come from pressing in. Sometimes it comes from pulling away.”
The Spiritual Power of Stillness
As a woman of faith, I find comfort and challenge in the words of Psalm 46:10: “Be still and know that I am God.” Not do more, not run faster. Be still.
That verse has recalibrated me in seasons where the pace of life threatened to drown the voice of God. In the stillness, I have heard strategies. In the quiet, I have found peace. And in the pause, I have rediscovered purpose.
Jesus, the greatest leader to ever walk the earth, often withdrew to lonely places to pray. Not because He was weak, but because He understood the strength that comes from alignment, not activity.
The CEO’s Soul: What Is It Really Costing You?
The truth is, many of us are leading on empty. We are running brilliant organizations and broken lives. We are celebrated in the marketplace but silently drowning in fatigue, anxiety, and the unrelenting pressure to perform.
I have seen what it looks like when leaders do not pause: Quick tempers. Sloppy decisions. Broken relationships. And often, a slow erosion of joy and meaning.
But I have also seen what happens when we learn to honour rhythm over hustle: We become sharper, kinder, wiser. We stop reacting and start responding. We stop surviving and start leading.
Redeeming Time by Reclaiming Rhythm
Pausing is not about doing less. It is about doing what matters, with clarity and conviction. Rest does not steal time. It redeems it. Think of it as strategic stillness. Moments to:
- Reflect on what is working and what is not
- Reconnect with your “why”
- Rebuild inner alignment so you are not just moving. You are moving with purpose
For some, the pause looks like a day off. For others, it is a morning of journaling, a weekend retreat, a sabbatical, or even a firm “no” to one more obligation. Whatever form it takes, it is holy. It is necessary. And it is leadership.
December: A Divine Invitation to Slow Down
Now, as we enter December, the final month of the year, I believe God is giving us all a gentle invitation to pause.
Not out of failure. But out of faith.
This month is not just a countdown to the holidays; it is an invitation to reset. To breathe. To release what did not go according to plan. To reflect on what you have stewarded well. To listen in for what 2026 will require of you, not from a place of hustle, but from a place of discernment.
The world will still spin when you pause. But you will return more grounded, more centred, and more aligned.
Final Thoughts
To every executive woman reading this: you do not need to earn your rest. You are not lazy for slowing down. You are not failing because you need a break. You are wise enough to know that what you carry is too important to lead on fumes. Let us normalize the pause. Let us honour the rhythms that sustain brilliance. Let us lead (not just with our minds full) but with our souls whole. Because in the stillness, we remember who we are. And more importantly, we remember who God is.
Wola Joseph-Condotti is the Group Managing Director/CEO of West Power & Gas Limited. A Harvard-trained lawyer and passionate advocate for faith-driven leadership, gender equity, and energy transition in Africa, she writes from the intersection of power, purpose, and personal growth.