TIME TO READ: 3 MINUTES

Welcome to The Sunday Shift.

I was sitting across from a global executive, someone who has led teams on multiple continents and built a career most people would envy.

I asked her one question, “What do you want?“

What came out was a split response. The executive in her had a crisp answer about new challenges and bigger scope. The person underneath wanted four ten-hour days, a city apartment she could walk to work from, her compensation intact, room to travel on her own terms, and a life that didn’t feel like a race with no win.

She looked at me like she’d never said any of that out loud before. Because she hadn’t.

That’s the thing about asking the right question. It doesn’t give you the answer. It shows you what you already know and have been afraid to say out loud.

I’ve been asking this question a lot lately. In my own life and inside client conversations. And what surprises me every time is how long it takes people to answer it. Smart, accomplished, driven people. Leaders who make decisions all day long. And yet when the question turns inward, there’s a pause that says everything.

We’re not used to it.

Most of us are better at knowing what we’re supposed to want. What makes sense. What looks right from the outside. What we’ve been pursuing for so long that we never stopped to question it.

That’s where the tension lives. Between what we want and what we’ve said yes to. What we value and what we’ve been doing on autopilot. The want and the will.

The D in my LEAD Framework is Drive.

But drive without self-knowledge can take you a very long way in the wrong direction.

Before confidence, commitment, or choice can matter, you have to know what you’re moving toward.

And that starts with one honest answer to one uncomfortable question.

What do you want?

Ideas to Ponder

• When you imagine your life working really well, what does that actually look like?
• Where are you committed to something you never consciously chose — you just kept going?
• What would you decide differently today if you weren’t afraid of disappointing someone?

This Week’s Focus

Block ten minutes this week. Put the agenda off to the side, and no to-do list. Just the question. Write it at the top of a blank page: What do I want? Don’t edit. Don’t justify. See what shows up when you stop performing the answer.

And if no one’s told you lately, you’re the most powerful person you’ll ever know.

To bold moves,
Jenn

P.S. The Sunday Shift exists because I asked myself that question in early 2025 and finally told myself the truth. Seventy-two weeks later, I’m still glad I did.

New here? Subscribe to get The Sunday Shift in your inbox every week.

​LinkedIn​, ​Instagram​, or ​Book a Complimentary Consultation

© Jenn Cloutier International LLC 2026. All Rights Reserved.