Where Do You Think You Are Going?

Reading time: 3 minutes

There’s a moment almost every manager lives through. You’ve just come out of a bad meeting filled with conflict, tension, and disappointment. And now you have thirty seconds to reset before walking into the next one.

But you don’t actually reset. You carry the frustration with you. The stress builds up. Your tight jaw betrays your inner storm. Your silence becomes heavy, even intimidating. You walk in without thinking, and everyone in the room feels it.

I’ve done it myself.

Years ago, early in my tenure as a general manager, I stepped out of a tough session with some extremely demanding clients. I was drained, frustrated, and on edge.

And just like that, I had to walk into another room. A big one. A presentation to all company employees. I was expected to share fundamental changes in how the company would operate. I told myself I had no time to reset.

I arrived at the last possible minute. So did the majority shareholder of the company. He came from the same difficult meeting, but entered from a different corridor. He looked fresh. At ease. Smiling.

I was the opposite.

We were 10 m away from the conference room door, and nobody else was around. You could hear the murmur of people waiting inside. He looked me straight in the eye and asked:

“Where do you think you are going?”

It stopped me cold.

Because the answer was obvious. I was about to walk into that room completely misaligned. Wrong energy. Wrong mindset. And I was about to dump that weight onto people who didn’t deserve it.

That question woke me up.

It wasn’t a geographical where. It was about presence. About intention. It was about what kind of leader I was, and what kind of leader I was about to be.

From that day on, I trained myself to pause before I enter any room, physically or emotionally. I built a habit that resets my inner compass.

Here are the five questions I ask myself every time:

1. Where do I come from?

This question helps me acknowledge my current state of mind. What am I carrying with me right now? A lingering frustration? A conversation that went poorly? A stinging email? Or maybe too much adrenaline from something that went well?

You cannot walk into the next room as if it were your emotional dumping ground. A real leader learns how to recognise the baggage and leave it at the door.

2. What am I doing here?

This second question brings clarity to my role. Why am I in this room? What is the purpose of my presence? Is this just another meeting on my calendar, or am I here to lead?

Too many managers move through their day like passengers. They show up without truly showing up. They are physically present, but mentally elsewhere. Leadership cannot operate that way.

3. Where am I going?

Do I have a direction, or am I just reacting?

Leadership without direction is just noise. Meetings without clarity are just a waste of time. When you know where you are going, you stop performing and start leading. That changes everything.

4. What is my relationship with the people in this room?

Are these my allies? My team? My partners? Or just names on a slide deck?

People sense your energy before they hear your words. If you are disconnected, they will disconnect too. If you treat them like an audience, they will become spectators. But if you show up as a collaborator, they will rise with you.

5. What do I want to achieve?

Every room you enter is an opportunity. Not to impress, but to influence. Not to dominate, but to direct. So ask yourself: What does success look like right now? Not for your ego. For your team. For the mission.

Presence is not accidental. It is a choice. And leadership does not begin when you speak. It begins the moment you enter with intention.

That day, standing outside the room, I changed how I show up. Because that question — “Where do you think you are going?” — was not judgment. It was a gift.

So now I pass it to you.

Next time you are about to walk into a meeting, take sixty seconds and ask yourself these five questions.

You will walk in differently. You will lead differently. And everyone will feel it.

Which version of you is walking into the room today?

And which version of you is walking out after reading this article?

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If you’ve ever had a moment like this, a moment when you realised, right before entering a room, that your energy was off, I’d love to hear your story. What made you notice? What shifted in you? What did you do differently after that? Write me back and share that story, the moment that made you conscious of your presence and your intention. Remember, just naming that turning point helps others find their own.

And if you are someone who wants to work on this — on how you show up, how you carry yourself across thresholds, how you set the tone before you even speak — tell me about the challenge you’re facing. Book a free discovery session with me today. I’d like to understand what it’s like for you, and what you wish were different. Because there is no better environment to work on it than coaching.

I am looking forward to continuing this conversation with you.
  

Until next time, keep thriving!

Alina Florea

Your Management Performance Coach 

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