Little Moves, Big Careers
High-performance careers that fuel high-performing teams.
This podcast is for ambitious people and the organisations smart enough to keep them. It's served with bite-size bold moves you can use straight away.
I’m Caroline Esterson, co-founder of a learning consultancy working with clients from start-ups to global brands, leadership coach, and the person leaders call when they need their people firing on all cylinders.
For over 25 years, I’ve helped individuals go from overlooked to impossible-to-ignore, and I’ve helped organisations turn quiet potential into standout performance.
Now I’m pulling the curtain back.
You’ll get sharp insights, quick wins, and the little moves that create big careers, plus an arsenal of toolkits, conversation guides, and cheeky extras to help you put it all into action.
This isn’t theory.
It’s high performance, with a sense of humour. We call it enterTRAINment
And if you’re ready to get noticed for all the right reasons… you’re in the right place.
#careeradvice #highperformance
Little Moves, Big Careers
Episode 7: Messy Action; Magic Results
Progress over perfection. Movement over manicured.
Ever spent hours watching webinars, highlighting your notes, colour-coding your to-do list… and still felt stuck? That’s planning disguised as progress, and it’s one of the sneakiest ways we stall our careers. In this episode, we call out perfectionism for the joy-thieving con it is, and champion messy, scrappy, unpolished action that actually gets results.
Caroline spills some of her most cringe-worthy (but career-defining) moments, including mismatched shoes at a pitch, a coffee-soaked disaster, and the reply-all apocalypse and prove that magic doesn’t come from polished plans… it comes from movement. Even wobbly ones.
Key Takeaways
- Messy action beats perfect planning every time, especially when it comes to career momentum.
- Perfectionism is productivity in a tuxedo, it looks smart but gets you nowhere.
- Procrastination isn’t laziness, it’s emotional self-protection. Understand the brain science behind why we stall.
- Every cringe is a clue. Mistakes aren’t failure, they’re intel.
- Clarity is earned through action, not overthinking.
Sound Bites
- “Planning is not progress. It’s just delay in disguise.”
- “You don’t need a blazer and a lanyard to belong. You need guts, strategy and a wobbly first move.”
- “Perfection is a con. Movement is magic.”
- “Messy doesn’t mean mindless. It means moving anyway.”
- “Clarity’s not a prerequisite — it’s the reward for starting.”
Quickfire Career Moves You'll Learn
- Act before you’re ready – Clarity comes from doing, not dithering.
- Build your career reps – Every awkward step is career gym for your future self.
- Treat mistakes as data – Use the mess as your map and move smarter next time.
Tools + Extras
- Show notes, bold moves brief, big starter conversation kit and 'Your Messy Moves Tracker':
Ready to ditch the pressure to be perfect?
Hit play and take the messiest little move you’ve got. It might just be the one that changes everything.
Ready to make your next bold move? Grab the free Bold Move Audit and join the insider crew.
Stuck, simmering, or onto something juicy? I want to hear it. Drop me a line at caroline@inspireyourgenius.com - I read them all.
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