Someone asked me what habit helped me survive being the first in multiple organizations.
I wish I had some inspiring morning routine to share. Some perfectly structured ritual that made it all manageable.
The truth is that it was messy.
When you are the first woman, the first AI executive, the first Chief Data Officer, you are operating without a playbook. You are inventing as you go.
And I did not realize until much later how badly I needed structure. How important it was to be grounded and to slow down to go fast.
I knew relationships mattered and I had to show up, but I did not know how to protect myself in the process.
And I burnt out very hard.
But there was one thing I never sacrificed. Not once.
Exercise.
Not because I had some disciplined wellness routine, but because I needed it to survive.
For all that charged energy.
All that frustration from being told to slow down when I wanted to move fast.
All the restraint required in boardrooms where I had to contain what I really wanted to say.
All the alignment meetings that felt like pulling teeth.
That energy had to go somewhere:
Long walks.
Fast runs.
Heavy weights.
It was the only outlet I had. The only way my body could release what it could not express in those strategic meetings. So I could show up the next day and do it all over again.
Without exercise, I do not know if I would have made it through. I certainly would not have been as effective.
Now, my routines are more established and more structured.
And because of that foundation, I can take on more. I do take on more.
Here is what I want you to take away:
If you are the first anything, or if you are navigating pressure that feels relentless, you do not need a perfect system.
You need something, one thing you protect. One outlet that keeps you functional when everything else feels impossible.
For me, it was movement.
For you, it might be something different.
But find it, protect it, and do not sacrifice it.
What is your survival habit? I would love to hear it.
Until next time,
Sol