Sabaidee, I’m Justin.

It’s the one where the people at the top decide who’s ready for more, and who’s next. Years later at Kinesso, I drove succession planning with our chief people officer, the CEO, and the rest of the C-suite: fewer than ten people talking about who could grow into bigger roles. Those plans went up to our holding company, Interpublic Group, and below that level we ran talent reviews and calibrations all the way down to directors. In every one of those rooms, I saw how much of a career can ride on a few sentences from people who may not know your work well. One false perception, and everything can change in a moment. So the question I’d ask any new leader is: who’s in that room to know you and fight for you? And since people don’t know what they don’t know about you, how will you make your strengths visible?

My path to that room wasn’t a straight line. My parents left Laos during a time of war so my sister and I could have a better life, and what it took them to get here still amazes me. I grew up in Tennessee with a scarcity mindset and a quiet belief that college wasn’t within reach for kids like us. I was often the only one who looked like me, and I was hiding part of who I was. That kind of hiding is quiet. When you don’t share your voice, people never learn what you think or how much more you want. It boxes you in, and it leaves no one in the room able to speak for you, even while the real you is aching to do more.

In late 2018 I was ready for more. I’d spent years working for a manager I loved, and we’d built a lot together. But good leaders can hold on too tightly without meaning to, and I felt boxed in. At the same time, my father was diagnosed with cancer, and within months he was gone. Grief and a stalled career, all at once. So I told someone I trusted what I’d been keeping to myself: I wanted more. That someone was our chief people officer at Kinesso. She knew my situation, and she needed someone to lead talent development. She saw me as that person. I raised my hand, though I wasn’t sure I was ready. She was, and together we made it happen. She could only back what I let her see, and that’s what it means to have someone fighting for you in the room.

From there I rose to SVP of Global Talent Development, through restructurings, reorganizations, and leadership changes. That’s the part I most want you to take from my story. A Lao American kid from Tennessee, who felt othered and didn’t expect college to be possible for him, ended up in the room where those decisions get made. If that’s possible for me, more is possible for you.

That’s why I coach. The first person who has to believe in your strengths is you, and the next is whoever’s in the room when your name comes up. I help emerging leaders and first-time managers see their strengths clearly, make them visible, and let go of the stories that hold them back. I’ve lived through a lot of change, and I can help you find your footing when the org chart moves under you. And when it’s your turn to lead, I’ll help you be the person who makes room for others to grow.