The CEO Sage

Hosted by Kris Plachy

Business

Website RSS feed

Episodes

375

Latest episode

Aug 2026

Language

About the show

You're vitally important and completely invisible. You're performing in what you once dreamed. The thing you built to free you has become the thing you're trapped inside. You've built something real. A business that works. A reputation that precedes you. By every measure, you're succeeding. And something is wrong that you can't quite name. You've tried the frameworks. You've bought the courses. You've followed the gurus. And on some level you know that none of it is going to give you what you're actually looking for, because what you're actually looking for is yourself. This is The CEO Sage—a podcast for the woman who is ready to stop looking outside herself for the answer. Kris Plachy doesn't offer you recipes or tactics or the "real way" to scale your business. She offers you something more rare: permission to listen to what you already know. In intimate, unflinching conversations, she names the truths you've been waiting to hear aloud. That your wisdom matters more than the strategy. That your self-trust is the asset worth protecting. That what feels like failure might actually be an invitation to something better. If you've achieved the success everyone told you to want and discovered it wasn't what you were looking for, this is for you. If you know something needs to change but can't see the path, this is for you. If you're ready to stop performing and start revealing—to yourself first, then to the world—this is for you. The CEO Sage. Where the work of becoming begins with the work of remembering who you already are.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

September 7, 202616 min

Break Patterns & Cycles

You say you want it. Then you spend all your energy explaining why you can't have it. Kris has been working on breaking her own cycles, and she's watching this pattern everywhere. Women tell her they want more revenue, more freedom, a better team, less responsibility. Then the moment she asks what needs to change, they argue about why it's impossible. How expensive it would be. How hard. How much time it would take. Why it won't work. Here's what she's noticing: we get on treadmills and we stay on them. We believe we can't break out because the pattern feels so true to us. We tell ourselves stories about what's possible and what isn't, and we defend those stories like they're facts. I can't eat cauliflower. I can't change my business. I can't leave. I can't do it alone. I can't, I can't, I can't. But the only thing stopping you is that you haven't decided to do it yet. What you'll learn: How we self-assign ourselves to categories that don't actually exist Why arguing about difficulty is really just avoiding action What difference makers do that everyone else doesn't Why your ideas for yourself are your answers How visionaries get derailed by everyone else's approach What it actually takes to get what you want The amount of time you waste talking about why you can't do something is the time it would take to just do it. Connect with Kris · If you want to know more about The Shift that's coming up, subscribe to the Sage Letters to be informed: www.thevisionary.ceo/le t ters · If this is you, let's work together. Explore SAGE at www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation · Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

August 31, 202618 min

The Shift

You built the dream. Now the ground underneath it is changing. Kris is experiencing it. She's talking to women whose businesses are soaring but they don't want to run them anymore. Women whose businesses are falling apart and they're not sure they want to rebuild. Women who sold and are asking, now who am I? This is the shift. It can be external (the market, the team, the industry) or internal (something changing inside you) or both. And what makes it uniquely hard is that you know exactly what you're capable of. You know you could build something new. You just don't know if you want to, or if you're willing to risk it, or what that new thing even is. She's been thinking about what this moment requires. Not more strategy. Not more content. Just space. Space to be confused. Space to dream a little. Space to not do it alone. What you'll learn: • Why this shift feels so disorienting even at the top of your game • How every major move in your life has been about creating what you needed • Why your immediate circle probably can't understand what you're experiencing • What it means to be closer to finishing than starting • How to hold both the practical reality and the dream at the same time If you're in this moment, you're not alone. Kris is talking about it so tune in. Connect with Kris If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: www.thevisionary.ceo/le t ters Interested in joining the live event in September? Visit https://www.thevisionary.ceo/septemberwithkris for the details and to register. If this is you, let's work together. Explore SAGE at www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

August 24, 202613 min

Your Confusion Is Telling You Something

Your confusion isn't a problem. It's a tell. In her years of coaching women, Kris keeps seeing the same pattern. Women say they're confused about what they want, whether to keep an employee, or what their next move should be. But confusion isn't the real issue. Confusion means you actually know what you want, or what needs to happen. You just don't like the consequences. So instead of choosing, you stay stuck in confusion, waiting for other people to change or circumstances to shift in your favor. She walks through how to move through confusion. The takeaway method: remove an option and notice how you actually feel. Get another brain: someone objective who isn't invested in your choice can see solutions you can't. Or just take action: action creates clarity in ways confusion never will. What you'll learn: Why your confusion is really about not wanting to deal with consequences How to tell the difference between not knowing and not wanting to choose The takeaway method for revealing what you actually want Why you need someone outside your story How action dissolves confusion faster than thinking ever will Stop mistaking discomfort for confusion.

August 17, 202617 min

Why I've Closed My Business

If you recognize there's a bottleneck between where you are and where you want to be, this is for you. Kris has closed her business and opened her practice. The difference matters. A practice isn't about reaching thousands through funnels and content calendars. It's about working directly with women who are ready to actually change. Not women who want to learn more. Women who want to execute differently. Not women who are curious about personal growth. Women who are willing to do the uncomfortable work to get a different result. Women who know something has to shift but can't figure out what. She's looking for women at different stages. Some are trying to grow their companies but know their confidence or competence is the bottleneck. Some have built the life they dreamed and are asking who they are now. Some are close to selling and unsure who they need to become in that process. Some are drowning in masterminds and group programs when what they actually need is someone to help them remember who they are. What you'll learn What kind of woman is actually ready for private coaching Why group masterminds and programs might not be what you need How to know if you're in learning mode when you should be in integration mode What happens when you stop exposing yourself to everyone else's ideas About a 2-day live event happening in September If you're listening to this and thinking "that's me," it probably is. Connect with Kris Interested in joining the live event in September? Visit https://www.thevisionary.ceo/septemberwithkris for the details and to register. If this is you, let's work together. Explore SAGE at www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: www.thevisionary.ceo/le t ters LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

August 10, 202615 min

The Topic We All Must Talk About

Every business has an ending. The question is whether you're going to plan for it or let it happen to you. Kris is thinking about something that doesn't get talked about nearly enough. Aging. Exits. The reality that your business, no matter how successful it is, will not last forever. And if you're waiting until you're ready to leave to start planning, you're already too late. She's watched it happen too many times. Women in their 50s and 60s realize they need to exit and discover they've built a business that cannot operate without them. They cannot delegate. They cannot step back. The business needs what's in their head to function. And now they're stuck. Here's what you need to know: it takes 12 to 36 months to get a business ready to sell. If you're already wondering about it, you should start now. Not because you have to sell tomorrow, but because getting ready invites opportunity. What you'll learn: Why most women never think about exit strategy the way men do How building a business as if you could sell it changes everything What happens when you become too enmeshed in your own business The tipping point where it becomes too late to exit easily How to shift from founder to custodian of what you've built What to ask yourself if you're staying past your expiration date The sooner you start thinking about this, the more choices you'll have. It's time to get honest about what comes next. Connect with Kris Build a business you can actually leave. Explore SAGE at www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: www.thevisionary.ceo/le t ters LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

August 3, 202619 min

Self-Acceptance & Leadership

What if the person judging you the most isn't anyone else? It's you. Kris has noticed something that shows up in almost everything her clients struggle with. They feel judged. They don't fit in. They're doing it wrong. They're not enough. And so they build their lives around trying to hide the parts of themselves they believe are unacceptable. Here's the truth: it's not actually judgment from the outside. It's what you believe about yourself on the inside. She walks through the difference between negative patterns worth changing and traits that are just who you are. Between things that prevent you from getting results and things that don't matter at all. Between needing to grow and needing to accept. And then she gets real about leadership. You cannot hold a vision for what you want to create while simultaneously believing you're not the right person to create it. The moment you lack self-acceptance, you become defensive. You take things personally. You lose it over things that have nothing to do with you. What you'll learn: How to know the difference between patterns to change and traits to accep Why your fear of judgment is actually a signal of self-rejection What lack of self-acceptance costs you in leadership How to stop hiding yourself and start being all in on who you are Why retelling painful stories is keeping you stuck How to set a boundary without apologizing for being yourself The real work isn't becoming someone different. It's accepting who you already are and leading from there. Connect with Kris · Stop apologizing for who you are. See how SAGE can help at www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation · Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. · If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: www.thevisionary.ceo/le t ters LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

July 27, 202613 min

Stop Living the Default

What if the life you're living right now is based on definitions you never questioned? Kris has been thinking about home. Not just the physical structure, but what it means. She and her husband are considering selling their custom-built house to rent, to travel, to redirect their money toward experiences instead of a mortgage. And in the process of looking at options, she's realizing that the definition she chooses will determine everything about how she actually lives. But this isn't just about real estate. This is about how you define yourself in every role. How you define being a business owner. How you define being a mother. How you define what's possible for you. The definition you choose is what drives the result you get. What you'll learn: • How the definitions you're operating from shape every outcome you create • Why your choices are always choices, even when you tell yourself they aren't • How to deliberately redefine something instead of accepting the default • What happens when you decide to define your life on purpose • That you can change your definition and change everything The invitation is simple. Stop defaulting to how things have always been defined. Start choosing. Connect with Kris Ready to stop living the default? Explore SAGE at www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episode If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: www.thevisionary.ceo/le t ters LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

July 20, 202613 min

What Holding On Is Really Costing You

What if the anger and resentment you think you're supposed to keep is actually what's keeping you trapped? Kris is on a walk thinking about grief, anger, loss, and what we do with it. 2026 has handed her several hard things. But this episode isn't about surviving them. It's about what happens after. Most of us believe we're supposed to hold onto our anger forever. Like letting it go somehow means we're creating permission for what happened. Like we're minimizing the people we lost or the pain we endured. Kris is offering a completely different way to think about it. What you'll learn: • Why holding onto negative emotions actually strips you of your agency • How acknowledging your role in circumstances is different from blaming yourself • The permission you're not giving anyone by letting an emotion move through you • How to honor what happened without carrying it forever • What "taking your agency back" actually means in practice There's vulnerability in this episode. There's also a quiet invitation to stop carrying things that aren't serving you. Connect with Kris Want to know about Sage? Visit www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation to learn more and schedule a call with Kris. If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: www.thevisionary.ceo/le t ters Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

July 13, 202614 min

In Pursuit of Greatness

What if admitting you want more isn't selfish? What if it's actually the point? Kris has been thinking about greatness. Not achievement. Not goals. Greatness. And she's noticing that most women don't think of themselves as being in pursuit of it. They think of themselves as trying to achieve goals or make something happen. But not as women pursuing greatness. She's wondering what would shift if you actually claimed that. The women she works with know there's more to pursue, more to experience, more to become. And that hunger doesn't turn off. It doesn't take a break. It doesn't have an off button. Which means if it's not well-directed, it has consequences. In this episode, Kris is asking you to get honest about where you're still pursuing something. Not in a frantic way. In an expansive, invigorating, curious way. What you'll learn: What happens when your pursuit of greatness isn't directed How your superpower can become your poison if it's not directed What happens when you acknowledge that you want to be great Where greatness might be calling to you that you haven't named yet How to know if you're pursuing something real or something that isn't aligned About two opportunities opening up if you're ready to pursue your next level The question she leaves you with is simple. Where else is greatness calling to me? Connect with Kris Ready to pursue greatness for yourself? Visit www.thevisionary.ceo/sageinvitation to learn more about Sage. If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: thevisionary.ceo/letters Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest

July 6, 202615 min

The Difference Between Wanting and Believing

The only thing separating you from what you want is belief. Kris is in the car on her way to pick up her daughter from the airport during peak rush hour traffic on the Bay Area bridge. She hates that drive. She has anxiety about it. And yet she just knows she's going to do it. Not hopes. Knows. That's the difference she's naming in this episode. Most women spend their energy attached to why something is hard. Why they can't figure out where to start. Why they need to do all the research first. Why the goal is confusing. And somewhere in all that noise, they lose the simple fact: they already know what to do. They just don't believe it yet. What you'll learn: • The difference between wanting something and knowing it will happen • Why belief is the only variable that actually matters • What someone who already has what you want thinks about it (spoiler: different than you do) • How your story about why it's hard is keeping you stuck • What you would do differently today if you just knew it was happening • What's changing in her world and who she's working with going forward Stupid simple, she says. But simple means you actually have to do the uncomfortable thing. Connect with Kris · Know what you want but are spinning in the confusion? You can stop all that by joining Kris for Hot Seat Summer. Go to www.thevisionary.ceo/hotseatsummer to register for four Fridays of coaching to get what you want. · If this episode landed for you, subscribe to the Sage Letters to go deeper: www.thevisionary.ceo/letters · Be sure to hit the Subscribe button for this podcast so you don't miss new episodes. LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Pinterest