The Alignment Table

Sharon Preston
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Sharon Preston is a British entrepreneur, executive mentor, strategic advisor and keynote speaker. She has over two decades of experience shaping leaders and scaling luxury brands. The Alignment Table is where she explores the real psychology of identity, clarity and the next era leadership. These are conversations that help you pause, think deeper, lead stronger, and step into the person you are becoming. Website: https://www.sharonpreston.com IG: https://www.instagram.com/_sharonpreston_ LI: https://www.linkedin.com/sharonpreston1

  1. Identity Lag: When Your Life Moves Faster Than You Do

    4 DAYS AGO

    Identity Lag: When Your Life Moves Faster Than You Do

    Why success can feel unsettling, even when everything looks right on paper. In this episode, executive mentor Sharon Preston explores identity lag — the psychological and leadership phenomenon that occurs when your external growth outpaces your internal self image. Many high performing professionals, founders, and senior leaders experience unexpected discomfort, self doubt, or emotional fatigue during periods of expansion, promotion, or increased responsibility. This conversation unpacks: Why growth can feel destabilising before it feels empowering The difference between identity lag and imposter syndrome How rapid success impacts nervous system regulation and leadership clarity Why over performing often masks outdated self image patterns How to update your identity without forcing reinvention You’ll hear a grounded discussion on leadership development, self leadership, personal growth, confidence, and sustainable success, with practical reflections to help you integrate expansion rather than fight it. If you have ever achieved something significant and quietly wondered why it doesn’t feel as comfortable as you expected, this episode will help you understand why. Growth is not just external progression. It is internal integration. And sometimes, your life moves faster than your self image can adjust.

    10 min
  2. You’re Not Unmotivated. You’re Overloaded.

    5 FEB

    You’re Not Unmotivated. You’re Overloaded.

    If you’ve been telling yourself that you’ve lost motivation, this episode offers a different explanation. In this conversation, executive mentor Sharon Preston explores why what looks like a lack of drive is often a sign of nervous system overload rather than a failure of discipline, ambition, or focus. High performing professionals, founders, and leaders frequently misdiagnose mental fatigue, emotional flatness, and loss of clarity as motivation problems, when in reality their system is managing too much sustained demand. This episode unpacks: Why motivation drops when the nervous system is overloaded How constant decision making, responsibility, and stimulation erode clarity The difference between discipline and regulation, and why discipline alone eventually fails How meditation and attention training support focus and leadership clarity without spiritual language Why calm leadership and internal steadiness restore momentum more effectively than pushing harder You’ll hear a grounded explanation of how nervous system regulation affects decision making, leadership presence, and sustainable success, alongside practical insights into why stillness often feels uncomfortable before it becomes restorative. This episode is for anyone navigating leadership, growth, responsibility, or transition and wondering why they feel flat, foggy, or disconnected despite caring deeply about what they do. You haven’t lost motivation. Your system is overloaded - and clarity returns when capacity is restored.

    15 min
  3. When Momentum Arrives Before You Feel Ready

    29 JAN

    When Momentum Arrives Before You Feel Ready

    There are moments in leadership and life when momentum shows up before confidence does. Opportunities appear. Decisions accelerate. Visibility increases. And instead of excitement, you feel hesitation, pressure, or an unexpected sense of discomfort. In this episode of The Alignment Table Podcast, Sharon Preston explores why feeling “not ready” is often not a problem to fix, but a signal to understand. This conversation unpacks what really happens when external demand begins to outpace internal readiness, particularly for high performing professionals, founders, and senior leaders. You’ll hear a grounded discussion on: Why waiting to feel ready often keeps capable people stuck The difference between fear and intuition, and how to tell them apart in real time How momentum affects the nervous system, even when change is positive Why hesitation is often misread as doubt or lack of confidence How to stay present and self led when life begins to move faster This episode reframes readiness as presence rather than certainty, and explores how leadership becomes sustainable when you can stay connected to yourself while moving forward. For those drawn to deeper work, Sharon also shares how this kind of reflection continues inside The Alignment Table Community, a private space for thoughtful, like minded women, with opportunities to step out of daily life and into deeper perspective through curated international retreats. This conversation is for anyone navigating growth, responsibility, or transition, and wondering why the next step feels heavier than expected. You don’t need to feel ready. You need to stay with yourself while you move.

    14 min
  4. Why 2026 Rewards Prepared Leaders

    22 JAN

    Why 2026 Rewards Prepared Leaders

    As momentum begins to build toward 2026, many leaders are already feeling it. Decisions feel heavier. Pace feels faster. What once felt tolerable no longer does. In this episode of The Alignment Table Podcast, Sharon Preston explores why the coming year will favour leaders who are internally prepared rather than externally busy, and why this season is less about reinvention and more about integration. You’ll hear a grounded, practical conversation on: Why fast years amplify misalignment rather than create it What the final weeks of the Year of the Snake are really about, and why shedding now matters How the Fire Horse energy of 2026 shows up in real life through increased pace, visibility, and pressure Why 2026 is a numerology 1 year and what that means for leadership, identity, and decision making How to work with momentum without burning out or becoming reactive Sharon also introduces the ALIGNED Method, a practical leadership framework designed to help high performing professionals regulate their nervous system, sharpen clarity, and lead with steadiness rather than strain. The episode includes real world examples of how to integrate ALIGNED into everyday life, without rigid routines or spiritual language. You’ll also be guided through Sharon’s Triple 4 breathing technique and hear a clear, evidence informed explanation of how breathwork and meditation support focus, emotional regulation, and better leadership decisions. This episode is for founders, executives, and ambitious professionals who sense that the pace is increasing and want to move forward with clarity, confidence, and calm authority. Fast years do not ask you to heal everything. They ask you not to carry what’s already complete.

    19 min
  5. January Doesn't Need a Reinvention

    15 JAN

    January Doesn't Need a Reinvention

    January Doesn’t Need a Reinvention. January often arrives with pressure. Pressure to reset, overhaul, and reinvent your life before you have even had time to land. In this episode of The Alignment Table Podcast, Sharon Preston challenges the idea that the start of a year requires force, urgency, or dramatic change. Instead, she offers a grounded, leadership centred approach to beginning gently, with clarity, honesty, and nervous system awareness. This conversation explores: Why so many people feel behind before the year has even begun The real timeline of meaningful change and why 30 day transformations rarely last How gentle clarity outperforms forced motivation Why peace is not a reward, but a practice cultivated alongside uncertainty The ALIGNED Method: a practical framework for steady, embodied leadership without rigid routines How breathwork, meditation, and nervous system regulation support better decision making and focus You will also be guided through Sharon’s Triple 4 breathing technique, a simple, evidence informed practice to calm the nervous system and restore clarity in moments of pressure. This episode is for founders, executives, and high performing professionals who are tired of urgency driven growth models and are ready to lead from steadiness rather than strain. You do not need to reinvent yourself. You need a way to meet yourself honestly and begin from there.

    30 min
  6. Rest As a Power Strategy

    14/12/2025

    Rest As a Power Strategy

    Most women in leadership do not burn out because they are weak. They burn out because they have been taught to perform through pressure rather than lead through presence. In this episode of The Alignment Table, Sharon Preston breaks down why rest is not a luxury for leaders - it is infrastructure. When women operate without physical, emotional, or cognitive recovery, performance deteriorates. Decision making weakens. Authority dilutes. Communication becomes reactive instead of intentional. Sharon explores the seven types of rest every woman in leadership needs - from emotional and sensory rest, to creative, social and identity rest - and how each one directly shapes your clarity, confidence, nervous system, and leadership effectiveness. You will learn: • why rest is a power strategy, not a personal indulgence • how nervous system regulation expands strategic decision-making • the cost of depletion on influence, culture, and executive presence • the relationship between identity, leadership behaviour, and capacity • practical micro-rest rituals you can integrate immediately This conversation is direct, science backed, deeply human, and designed for women navigating high-pressure environments in tech, luxury, and corporate leadership. Your next era of leadership will not be created through hustle. It will be built through clarity, alignment, and the capacity to think, feel, and lead at a higher level. This episode invites you to reclaim rest as a strategic advantage, one that fuels influence, improves performance, and strengthens the future woman you are becoming. Listen now. Your next level requires a regulated, resourced, and rested you.

    24 min
  7. Fuelling Your Leadership

    04/12/2025

    Fuelling Your Leadership

    Fuelling Your Leadership: The High Performance Nutrition No One Talks About Most women in leadership are unintentionally running million pound responsibilities on energy levels that could barely power a desk lamp. In this episode of The Alignment Table Podcast, Sharon Preston breaks down the truth behind leadership performance, burnout, decision making, energy and why your biology is the foundation of your leadership identity. Drawing on her experience of mentoring leaders, Sharon explores how under-fueling affects clarity, emotional regulation, confidence, communication, and authority. This is not a conversation about dieting. It is a conversation about capacity, cognitive performance, nervous system regulation, and sustainable leadership. You’ll learn: • Why the prefrontal cortex is your “leadership HQ” • How blood sugar, hydration, and protein impact decision-making • The connection between nutrition, burnout, and emotional resilience • Why women leaders often ignore their basic needs, and how to break the cycle • The Leadership Plate Method for high-performance days • How food influences confidence, authority, presence and communication • Practical habits that elevate clarity, stability, and long-term leadership success Whether you’re a founder, senior executive, or emerging leader navigating fast growth, this episode helps you understand the biology behind your brilliance, and how fueling yourself intentionally strengthens your influence, impact, and long-term success. Tune in to elevate your energy, sharpen your decision-making, regulate your nervous system, and lead with the clarity and capacity your next era requires.

    16 min
  8. A.I. for Leaders: The Internal Intelligence System You’re Not Using Yet

    27/11/2025

    A.I. for Leaders: The Internal Intelligence System You’re Not Using Yet

    A.I. for Leaders: The Internal Intelligence System You’re Not Using Yet Most leaders think their next breakthrough will come from better strategy, better systems, or better productivity. In reality, your greatest competitive advantage is your internal operating system - the A.I. no one talks about: Aligned Intention™. In this episode of The Alignment Table Podcast, we dive into the psychology, neuroscience and leadership behaviours that quietly sabotage high-achieving women. You will learn why identity drives behaviour, why your nervous system shapes your leadership presence, and why overwhelm, indecision and people-pleasing are not time issues but internal alignment issues. We explore: • The hidden cost of running your career on outdated leadership identity • Why high performers stall when their internal bandwidth collapses • Nervous system regulation as a strategic leadership skill • How fear, overthinking and emotional labour dilute decision-making • The A.I. Leadership Loop™: Awareness, Intention, Integration, Identity, Navigation, Execution and Direction • Practical steps to create clean decisions, stronger boundaries and clearer authority • Why leaders who master aligned intention outperform those who focus on external strategy alone This episode is for women in tech, luxury, leadership and executive roles who want sharper clarity, stronger influence, improved decision-making, healthier capacity and sustainable success. Listen now and upgrade the internal intelligence system that shapes everything you build next.

    17 min
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About

Sharon Preston is a British entrepreneur, executive mentor, strategic advisor and keynote speaker. She has over two decades of experience shaping leaders and scaling luxury brands. The Alignment Table is where she explores the real psychology of identity, clarity and the next era leadership. These are conversations that help you pause, think deeper, lead stronger, and step into the person you are becoming. Website: https://www.sharonpreston.com IG: https://www.instagram.com/_sharonpreston_ LI: https://www.linkedin.com/sharonpreston1

Information

  • Creator
    Sharon Preston
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Sharon Preston
  • Show Website
    The Alignment Table