Hey Friend,

Last week, some of you were referred to by your full names because I didn't update the "personalization" greeting properly. When I read the email that was sent to me, I heard my parents scolding me ("Marissa Faith Badgley, come here right now!") soooo I figured I'd acknowledge the issue and make it clear that I wasn't using my discipline voice. All of my emails are sent with gentleness and love.

Okay, so today I want to talk about liberation in the context of leadership and work. As we get closer to America's 250th birthday, I am seeing and hearing the word "freedom" a lot. And it's hard not to think about what that actually means, for whom, and at what cost. Especially in a cultural and political moment where freedom continues to be fought over, stripped away from some, piled on others, and litigated in ways that truly baffle me.

But I've also been thinking a lot about the intersection of liberation and leadership, and what keeps us "unfree" in our roles, careers, and professional lives. Of course, there are systemic factors that hold us back — laws, policies, paradigms, and mindsets imposed on us from the outside. And of course, we should be doing everything possible to challenge and dismantle these things in pursuit of freedom and justice for all (and for real).

AND I think it's also critical to explore the prisons we build and the inherited, internalized, and automatic chains we impose on ourselves.

I've been talking a lot about the concept of Invisible Contracts in my workshops this year. These are the unspoken deals you’ve made with yourself to justify your actions (even actions you know aren't good for you). They live in the background, shaping how much you give, what you tolerate, and what you believe you have to do to be worthy or enough.

Here are some of the invisible contracts I had with myself in my last job:

• "The cause is more important than my health."
• "If I don't do this, no one will."
• "If I take care of everyone, they’ll appreciate me.”
• "If I rest or slow down, it means I’m not capable and not a team player."
• "When I overdeliver, it proves I am a good person."

Oof. Yep. Just reading those things makes my insides squirm.

My Invisible Contracts were the fuel for my burnout and compassion fatigue, and as long as I carried them, I was bound. I was tethered. I wasn't truly free.

We all have Invisible Contracts, and leaders tend to have more of them. We absorb burdens and stress that are outside of our control. We run our teams on urgency and scarcity because that's just "how things are." We tell ourselves (and our teammates) that we'll rest when the work slows down. But it never slows down. And we remain stuck in cycles of desperation, burnout, and impossible choices.

True liberation begins when we can name the contracts we hold for ourselves and others, and then actively, intentionally, and courageously renegotiate them.

Here's what that has looked like for me:

• "The cause is more important than my health." --> "I cannot serve this cause from a broken body or a depleted spirit. My health is not a sacrifice I am willing to make because the cause matters too much for me to burn out now."
• "If I don't do this, no one will." --> "If I am the only thing standing between this work and complete failure, that is a systems problem, and not a personal responsibility. My job is to do my part, not carry the whole."
• "If I take care of everyone, they’ll appreciate me.” --> "I can give generously without requiring appreciation as payment. And I deserve to be valued for who I am, not just what I produce for others."
• "If I rest or slow down, it means I’m not capable and not a team player." --> "I have to rest to be a team player. I have to rest to show the team that it is okay and necessary to rest."
• "When I overdeliver, it proves I am a good person." --> "My worth is not something I have to earn through output. I am already a good person. What I produce is an expression of that, not the evidence for it."

It's easy to put this on paper for you because I've been practicing for YEARS. But let me be super duper clear: I AM STILL PRACTICING. And more than that, I'm still noticing, interrogating, and unraveling new or differently-presented Invisible Contracts every day. I've (annoyingly) figured out that it's part of my life's work.

You too? You're clearly not alone. And if you're reading and realizing you need to do this kind of work too, I have good news!

This is exactly the kind of exploration we're going to be doing in Unbound, the 2026 manifestation of our signature Leadership Renewal Retreats.

We've built this experience because you can't build free teams or organizations from an unfree self, you can't model psychological safety while white-knuckling through unsafe expectations, and you can't lead with humanity if you've stopped treating yourself as human.

Join us in DC, NY, or San Francisco this summer to unbind yourself from the status quo, free yourself from beliefs that no longer serve you, and find liberation in your heart and work!!!

And in the meantime...

I invite you to name and renegotiate one Invisible Contract you're holding for yourself. Start by finishing one of these sentences:

• Good leaders always ___ before themselves.
• If I do ___, then others will see me as ___.​
• If If I don’t ___, then people will think ___.
• I should/must do ____, in order to be liked/accepted/appreciated/good.

Then, spend a few minutes exploring and reframing the contract:

• Where does this contract come from?
• How is this contract serving me?
• How is this contract harming me?
• What would it take to release this contract?
• What does the liberated reframe sound like?

Bonus points for sending me your reframes!! I'll celebrate every renegotiated contract that comes through my inbox!! Because truly, this is the work of liberating us all.

***

Interested in attending the Unbound Leadership Renewal Retreat this summer?!

We'll be in Washington, DC (June 12), Hudson Valley, NY (July 10), and San Francisco (July 28). And in addition to naming and renegotiating our Invisible Contracts and redefining liberated leadership in 2026, you'll also have the opportunity to:

• Realign your priorities with your values
• Cultivate your well-being and replenish your leadership reserves
• Build practical knowledge and tools you can take back to your work
• Find solutions to your biggest challenges alongside others who truly get it
• Reconnect with your sense of purpose and what freedom actually means for you

Get all the details at https://bit.ly/leadership-renewal-2026 and register here.

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You are not broken for being tired. You are not weak for needing rest. You are not failing for asking what it would look like to lead from a place of genuine freedom (for yourself and others).

If you're asking these questions, you're on your way. Keep going! But not in a self-sacrificing way (read above!). We're cheering you on!

With love,
Marissa