Melina Panetta

One of my clients was a CFO with 28 years in finance. He was intelligent and had great credentials, the kind of person who could walk into any boardroom and command the room instantly. Every time he thought about building his own advisory practice, he stalled. He spent 14 months planning, saying “I’ll leave after the next board meeting.” He had more than enough skills but struggled because he kept waiting for the perfect moment. You’ll recognize the excuses; waiting for a lighter month on the...

A client came to me recently with a question I hear more than almost any other. "How do I price this?" He had over 20 years of experience in senior roles at major companies. Pivotal decisions and big budgets were familiar to him. He knew his field better than almost anyone in it. When it came to putting a number on his advisory work, he froze and defaulted to an hourly rate. It's a very common pricing mistake among executives who go out on their own. For your entire career, someone else set...

At 44, I had an unexpected thought. "Is this all there is?" I had the title, the salary, and the respect. I’d spent years building it all. From the outside it looked like I had momentum, but on the inside I felt finished. I was done being available all the time for something that didn't fully reward me for the commitment. It took me three years to move from thinking about it to actually doing something about it. I left at 47. People put so much importance on age when they think about making a...

Your credentials won't close the deal. I've watched hundreds of senior executives leave corporate with stellar resumes with titles like VP of Sales and Director of Strategy. I’ve also seen many of them make the same mistake when they try to land their first consulting client. They list their achievements like bullet points on a resume. What their prospects really need is a story that shows them you understand their world and can help them succeed in it. Today, I'm going to show you how to...

Nobody tells you what success is supposed to feel like when you stop wanting it. You spent years chasing the title, the comp package, and the seat at the table. You got all of it. You should feel proud, or at least grateful. Instead, you feel numb. You exist somewhere in the middle, too detached to quit and too hollow to stay. Everything looks right on the outside. Nothing feels right on the inside. That's the version of your life nobody sees, the one you don't mention at dinner parties or in...