I had a dream the other night that I was carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders.
Not metaphorically—at least not in the dream. It was literal. Atlas-style. Full tilt. And as strange as dreams can be, this one landed squarely in the center of my waking thoughts. Because as an event professional working on projects with massive scale and complexity, that’s often how it feels.
And I know I’m not alone.
If you’re someone who leads in high-stakes environments, especially in events, you’ve probably had your version of that dream, too. The kind where your brain replays the pressure, the timelines, the expectations, and somehow makes it even heavier. But the real question is: what do we do with that weight?
Why That Dream Felt Familiar
Event professionals are used to spinning plates. We orchestrate people, resources, logistics, and emotions across timelines that sometimes feel more like accelerators than calendars. And when you’re at the center of that storm, carrying the plan, the risk, the expectations, and the very real fear of letting people down, it’s not just a job. It’s an identity.
The pressure doesn’t always come from external sources. Often, it comes from within. The internal drive to get it right. To hold it all. To be the calm in the chaos.
That’s what the dream was tapping into. It wasn’t about stress in the traditional sense. It was about the belief that I had to carry it all. That’s how I knew I was doing my job well.
But is that actually true?
The Myth of the Heroic Leader
There’s a narrative in our industry, and frankly in a lot of leadership circles, that the best leaders are the ones who shoulder everything. Who don’t flinch. Who carry it all without breaking stride.
But the longer I do this work, the more I realize that model isn’t sustainable. Or even particularly effective.
Humble leadership isn’t about silent endurance. It’s about knowing when to carry the weight, and when to share it. It’s about pausing to ask: Is this mine alone to carry? Or am I just afraid to let it go?
That’s not weakness. That’s wisdom.
Reframing the Role
When you’re deep in project delivery, especially something with huge public expectations or visibility, it’s easy to feel like you are the project. But you’re not. You’re one part of a team, a structure, a system. And your role isn’t to hold it all, it’s to help the whole thing move forward.
The weight doesn’t go away. But when it’s distributed, when it’s talked about, planned for, shared, it becomes manageable. Healthy teams are built around that kind of distribution.
That dream was a reminder: I’m not Atlas. I don’t need to be. And I’d bet I’m not the only one on this project team having that dream or carrying that weight.
And that’s why I’m incredibly grateful to be part of a delivery team that’s not just skilled and committed—but collaborative, thoughtful, and generous in how we support each other. There’s no way this work happens without the hundreds of individual contributions, late nights, quiet wins, and shared problem-solving that go unseen but make all the difference. If you’re one of those people: thank you.
Making Space in the Middle of the Storm
So how do we carry the load differently?
For me, it starts with small habits that create space. Mental space. Emotional space. Strategic space.
- I take moments to zoom out, even if it’s just a deep breath before the next meeting.
- I ask myself regularly: what actually matters today? What’s noise, and what’s signal?
- I name the weight, with my team, my peers, even here in writing. Because calling it out reduces its power.
- I ask for help, and not just at the breaking point. That’s a muscle I’m still building.
Humble leadership means making room for others, and for yourself.
If You’re Carrying Too Much
If you’re reading this and feeling that familiar pressure, here’s what I’d say to you:
You are not alone in that dream.
And you don’t need to earn your leadership stripes by carrying more than is humanly reasonable. The weight of the world isn’t meant for one person. It’s meant for teams. For structures. For a shared effort built on trust.
It’s okay to carry what’s yours. Just remember you’re not required to carry all of it.
Final Thought
That dream may return. I suspect it’s part of how my brain processes the magnitude of this work.
But next time, I hope I recognize it sooner, not as a warning that I’m overwhelmed, but as a cue to step back and remember: my role isn’t to carry the world. It’s to lead within it.
And that starts by leading myself with a little more humility, and a little less weight on my shoulders. And if you’re part of a delivery team like I am, maybe it’s worth checking in on your colleagues. Chances are, someone else is carrying more than they need to as well.