Root Bound
What My Peace Lily Taught Me About Depletion, Capacity & Leadership
Last week, I bought a peace lily. She was beautiful, radiant, full of life. But within 24 hours, she collapsed.
I’d placed her in the sun — not realizing peace lilies prefer the shade. Thinking I was doing the right thing, I overexposed her. The next day, her leaves fell limp. So I watered her. She perked up. Crisis averted — or so I thought.
But the day after that, she collapsed again.
And I got frustrated. I told my mom she could take the plant because clearly, this peace lily didn’t like me. I was doing everything I knew to do, and still, she was wilting.
Then my friend said:
"She’s probably root bound."
And just like that, the metaphor rooted itself in my soul.
Root Bound = Depleted
If you’ve never heard of the term root bound, it means this: the plant has outgrown its container. Its roots are tangled, tight, and there’s no room for new growth. No matter how much water or light you give it, it stays depleted — not because the nourishment isn’t there, but because there’s no capacity to receive it.
Read that again:
Depletion isn’t always about lack. Sometimes it’s about limits.
And this is exactly what the plant revealed to me:
I wasn’t failing her. Her container was.
The Same Is True for Women in Midlife Leadership
How many of us are doing all the “right things” — hydrating, meditating, journaling, leading, stretching — and still feel like we’re wilting?
We are not undernourished because we’re not trying.
We’re depleted because we’ve outgrown the systems, identities, and roles that once held us.
We’re leading from containers that are too small for our vision.
We’re operating with tools that can’t hold the weight of our lived wisdom.
We’re still expected to produce, perform, and push — even when our roots are screaming for expansion.
And the scary part? Depletion doesn’t always look like burnout.
It often looks like competence. Smiling. Leading well.
Until one day… you fall over. Just like the plant.
This Is Why The Nourished Leader Summit Exists
This October, we’re gathering for a summit designed to name — and transform — this exact experience.
The Nourished Leader Summit is a live, transformational, invitation-only experience designed to address one of the most urgent leadership challenges of our time: how to lead without depletion.
This year’s theme is simple, powerful, and overdue:
👉🏽 Depletion.
We’re naming what so many of us have been carrying in silence:
The weight of invisible labor.
The quiet betrayals we’ve endured in leadership.
The exhaustion of staying small when our roots are ready to grow.
We’re not fixing anyone.
We’re not bypassing the pain.
We’re creating the space — the bigger pot — for your leadership to finally breathe, expand, and receive again.
So I’ll Leave You With This:
Where in your life are you still pouring water into something that can’t absorb it?
What would it mean to repot your leadership — and reclaim your capacity?
Your collapse is not a failure.
Your depletion is not your fault.
Your body, your spirit, your calling — they’re asking for more room.
Come be repotted with us this October.
Come see what happens when you no longer carry it alone.
More details about the summit are coming next week. For now, just know this:
You are not dramatic.
You are not too much.
You are root bound — and ready to grow.
I am a Nourished Leader.
And so are you.
Natalie
Exceptional post.