Xeila FernandezCEO and founder of Elevate88an exclusive club for entrepreneurs that combines mentoring, networking and strategic retreats in destinations such as Morocco, Bali and Tanzania, leads a proposal that challenges the most common narrative of business leadership in the digital age: that an exhausted CEO continues making decisions of millions of euros in technological investments and digital transformation as if nothing were happening.
From her experience, Xeila Fernández has observed leaders with expanding businesses but without harmony between financial success and personal well-being, brilliant executives but disconnected from themselves. From that reality Elevare88 was born; the idea that true change begins from within, that a leader who operates from clarity and peace of mind makes profoundly different decisions than one who manages from permanent urgency.
In this interview with MCPRO, And, above all, how “strategic disconnection” (retreats, spaces for reflection, deliberate pause) becomes the most powerful tool for making wise decisions on issues such as AI, cloud or technological complexity.
What emerges from their responses is a veiled criticism of the leadership model that we have normalized: that fatigue is compatible with decision quality. Xeila Fernández presents the opposite thesis: that the emotional health of the leader directly impacts the health of the business, that the CEO’s self-care is a cultural model that descends throughout the organization, and that humility and internal clarity are today more valuable than the speed of response.
(MCPRO) How does CEO burnout influence the quality of technology and digital transformation investments a company makes? Have we normalized an exhausted CEO making decisions worth millions of euros?
(Xeila Fernandez) The analysis of the impact of CEO burnout cannot be approached from a superficial view. The well-being of the leader has gone from being a personal matter to a strategic business factor, and this is particularly true in making strategic decisions about high-profile investments such as technology and digital transformation.
A leader who operates from fatigue and imbalance tends to lose long-term perspective and systemic vision. This internal disconnection inevitably translates into reactive, impulsive and often short-term decisions, focused on putting out fires or the need for control as a defense mechanism, which is counterproductive for a technological investment that requires coherence and sustained vision.
It is a fact that, in today’s business culture, we have normalized that a CEO leads from exhaustion, assuming that hyperactivity is synonymous with productivity and effectiveness. However, the quality of a decision worth millions of euros is inversely proportional to the level of stress or fatigue of the manager who signs it.
The emotional health of the leader directly impacts the health of the business; When inner clarity is lost, the strategic vision is contaminated. Investment becomes a meaningless expense if it is not based on the peace of mind and lucid perspective that allows us to discern which technology is a lever of purpose and which is simply noise or an anxious response to external pressure.
(MCPRO) How does hyperconnectivity and “always-on culture” affect a manager’s real ability to lead organizations in the era of AI and technological complexity? How do you see “strategic disengagement” (retreats, reflection spaces) allowing a CEO to really understand what is going on in their technology organization, without being caught up in operational noise?
(Xeila Fernandez) Hyperconnectivity and “always-on culture” are the root of executive fatigue, generating a frenetic loop that confuses permanent urgency with real effectiveness. In the era of AI and technological complexity, the most powerful leadership does not lie in the speed of response, but in the ability to adapt, focus well and see with perspective.
Paradoxically, while technology requires an advanced strategic vision, hyperactivity prevents us from stopping to reflect, listen and understand the real impact of what we are implementing. The result is a mechanical and reactive management, which reduces clarity and enthusiasm, and which becomes totally inadequate for the complexity imposed by the new era.
In this context, strategic disconnection stops being a luxury and becomes a critical management tool. Our retreats and reflection spaces are not a waste of time, but an act of focus and self-management. They allow the leader to release control, listen to the silence where the most thoughtful decisions arise, and reconnect with their own essence. Only when the CEO slows down, and observes himself, can he gain the perspective necessary to understand what is really happening in his technological organization, transcending the operational noise and internal tension to make decisions with a clarity that transforms the environment.
(MCPRO) From your perspective of working with multinationals and companies in transformation, how do you observe that retreats and “executive reset” spaces impact not only the health of the CEO, but also the culture and retention of talent in technical teams? Is CEO well-being a downward “waterfall”?
(Xeila Fernandez) Of course. The CEO’s well-being permeates every layer of the organization, in the same way that his emotional coherence functions as the thermostat of corporate culture. If the manager lives in a state of over-demand and disconnection, that “vibration” filters throughout the organization, generating tired teams, low motivation, distrust and high turnover. This is especially critical in technical and digital transformation teams, where creativity, adaptability and commitment are vital and suffer in the face of an emotional climate of tension and fear.
By integrating these principles through “executive reset” spaces, the impact goes beyond the CEO’s personal health. A leader who allows himself to pause transmits stability, security and fosters a space of trust and collaboration where people, including technical teams, can fully develop. Leader self-care becomes a cultural model of sustainable performance, attracting and retaining high-value talent, as people seek more humane and resilient cultures. True business sustainability begins when managers learn to balance their performance with their health.
(MCPRO) A CEO disconnected from his purpose tends to see IT as a cost center, not as a strategic lever. From your work at Elevare88, how does the process of “elevation” and deep reflection that you offer allow a CEO to reconnect with the purpose of their company and, therefore, make technological decisions aligned with that purpose, not with anxiety or external pressure?
(Xeila Fernandez) A CEO disconnected from his personal purpose loses the deep meaning that gives direction to his management, turning it into a mechanical exercise. In this state of disconnection, technology, innovation or even the IT team are perceived through anxiety and pressure, and therefore are treated as mere cost centers that must be controlled or reduced, not as strategic levers that shape the future of the business. The leader does not ask why he is investing or transforming, but rather how much it is costing him, which shows a lack of vision and meaning.
At Elevare88, the “elevation” process focuses on self-awareness and reconnection with the deep purpose of the company, which is a natural extension of the leader’s personal purpose. By restoring this internal coherence, management stops being a battle of resistance and becomes a conscious and sustainable commitment. This allows the CEO to make technological decisions aligned with the true why of their organization. When purpose is synchronized with action, the energy is positive and clarity is generated, allowing the manager to calm his mind and use technology to build, not to react to pressure.
(MCPRO) What is the new type of leadership skill that a CEO must develop to make wise decisions about AI implementation, when he himself does not have time to really understand what AI is? How do you see the “conscious leadership” process you propose in Elevare88 allowing a CEO to develop enough humility and clarity to surround themselves with the right advisors, ask intelligent questions about AI/digital transformation, and recognize what not to implement? Is rest a better decision-making tool than frenetic work?
(Xeila Fernandez) The new type of skill that the CEO must develop is not technicalization, but humility and mental clarity to lead in what he does not know. A conscious leader understands that his strength no longer lies in imposing or having all the answers, but in inspiring, surrounding himself with the right advisors and asking the smartest questions.
In the complexity of AI, exhaustion drives the exercise of control and impulsive decision-making, while the leader’s internal coherence allows him to recognize what he does not know and what he should not implement, avoiding existential fatigue that distorts the strategic vision.
The conscious leadership process that we propose at Elevare88, which cultivates pause and reflection in everyday life, is the most powerful tool for making wise decisions. Rest is not a waste of time; It is an act of focus that strengthens leadership from within.
It is in that silence where sufficient inner clarity arises to discern the noise of value, allowing the CEO to develop the courage to slow down and the vision to move forward. Calm and lucidity become the true tools of sustainable performance and, therefore, the best engine to decide correctly.
