--- title: Leadership, Culture, Impact | Active Choices, Inc. | Anese Cavanaugh | The IEP Method® | Presence description: Presence | Featuring articles and resources from the founder of the IEP Method®, Anese Cavanaugh, and the team at Active Choices, Inc. Subscribe today and tap into thought leadership, culture optimization tips, and best practices for organizations dedicated to creating authentically Positive Energy Workplaces and maximizing performance and impact. --- [![Active_choices_horiz_wh (1)](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/Active_choices_horiz_wh%20(1).png "Active_choices_horiz_wh (1)")](http://www.activechoices.com/) - [ABOUT ACI](https://activechoices.com/about/) - [OUR COMPANY](https://activechoices.com/about/) - [THOUGHT LEADERSHIP](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/) - [CULTURE & ENERGY INSIGHTS](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/) - [ACI IN THE MEDIA](https://activechoices.com/media/) - [CLIENTS & TESTIMONIALS](https://activechoices.com/about/clients/) - [THE IEP METHOD®](https://activechoices.com/iepmethod/) - [IEP METHODOLOGY](https://activechoices.com/iepmethod/) - [IEP METHOD® TRAINING](https://activechoices.com/work-with-us/#training) - [INTRO TO THE IEP METHOD®](https://activechoices.com/introtoiep/) - [IEP METHOD® FOR TEAMS](https://activechoices.com/team-iep/) - [IEP METHOD® IMMERSION](https://activechoices.com/iep-performance-immersion/) - [SPEAKING](https://activechoices.com/speaking/) - [KEYNOTE SPEAKING](https://activechoices.com/speaking/) - [BOOKS & GUIDES](https://activechoices.com/writing/) - [CONTAGIOUS YOU](https://activechoices.com/contagious-you/) - [CONTAGIOUS CULTURE](https://activechoices.com/contagious-culture/) - [THE LEADER YOU WILL BE](https://activechoices.com/lywb) - [IEP SURVIVAL GUIDE](https://activechoices.com/writing/#survivalguide) - [PRESS KIT](https://activechoices.com/contact/press-kit/) - [WORK WITH US](https://activechoices.com/work-with-us/) - [PRIVATE WORK WITH ANESE](https://activechoices.com/consulting/) - [KEYNOTES & WORKSHOPS](https://activechoices.com/speaking/) - [IEP METHOD® TRAINING](https://activechoices.com/work-with-us/#training) - [MEMBERSHIPS](https://activechoices.com/memberships/) - [PRESENCE & IMPACT COMMUNITY](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/presence-subscription) - [PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP](https://community.activechoices.com/plans/1963254?bundle_token=08fde9318f4afab26ea82a9cb1ad6534&utm_source=manual) - [SHOP](https://activechoices.com/store) - [CONTACT US](https://activechoices.com/contact/) - [MEMBER LOGIN](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/community.activechoices.com) Search - [![Follow Anese on YouTube](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/Images/youtube_2.png)](http://www.youtube.com/anesecavanaugh) - [![Follow IEP Method on Facebook](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/Images/facebook.png)](https://www.facebook.com/IEPMethod) - [![Follow Anese on Twitter](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/Images/twitter.png)](https://twitter.com/anesecavanaugh) # The Positive Energy Workplace [![](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/LinkedIn%20Article%20Cover%20Images%20(17).png)](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/sustainable-leadership-with-alignment) January 9, 2026  by [Anese Cavanaugh](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/author/anese-cavanaugh) ## [Why Alignment Is the Foundation of Sustainable Leadership](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/sustainable-leadership-with-alignment) As leaders, we’re often taught to focus on strategy, performance, execution, and outcomes. And while those things matter, they are not where sustainable leadership actually begins. At ACI, after more than two decades of working with leaders across industries — from Fortune-level organizations to founders, physicians, educators, and creatives — we’ve come back (again and again) to one core truth: **Alignment is the foundation of sustainable, life-giving leadership.** Not effort. Not pushing harder. Not fixing everyone else. Alignment. [Read More ›](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/sustainable-leadership-with-alignment) In [Engagement](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/engagement)/ [Energy Leadership](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/energy-leadership)/ [Authenticity](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/authenticity)/ [Effective Leadership](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/effective-leadership)/ [Leadership Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/leadership-presence)/ [Virtual Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/virtual-presence)/ [Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/presence) [![](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/LinkedIn%20Article%20Cover%20Images%20(13).png)](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/2025-leadership-pause) December 22, 2025  by [Anese Cavanaugh](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/author/anese-cavanaugh) ## [A Leadership Pause — Reflecting Before You Move Forward](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/2025-leadership-pause) *AI Transparency: This article was supported by AI to assist with organization and clarity. The content is based on Anese’s original work and was reviewed and approved by Anese.*   As the year comes to a close, there’s a familiar pull to rush ahead — to reset goals, plan next steps, and push forward into what’s next. But before you do, there’s value in an intentional pause. Not to judge the year or rush to meaning — but to *honor* it. When leaders don’t take time to reflect, we often carry unfinished energy with us into the new year. Lessons go unnamed. Wins go unacknowledged. Depletion goes unnoticed. And without realizing it, we begin again already tired. A pause — even a short one — creates space to reconnect with yourself, your leadership, and the way you want to show up moving forward. Below are a few reflection prompts you can sit with over the next few days or weeks. You don’t need to answer them perfectly. Just honestly. [Read More ›](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/2025-leadership-pause) In [Engagement](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/engagement)/ [Energy Leadership](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/energy-leadership)/ [Authenticity](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/authenticity)/ [Effective Leadership](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/effective-leadership)/ [Leadership Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/leadership-presence)/ [Virtual Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/virtual-presence)/ [Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/presence) [![](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/LinkedIn%20Article%20Cover%20Images%20(11)-1.png)](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/ai-presence-leadership) December 12, 2025  by [Anese Cavanaugh](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/author/anese-cavanaugh) ## [The more work becomes automated, the more human connection becomes a competitive advantage.](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/ai-presence-leadership) *AI Transparency: This article was supported by AI to assist with organization and clarity. The content is based on Anese’s original work and was reviewed and approved by Anese.*   Most conversations about AI focus on what the technology can do. But the part we can’t afford to ignore is the leader behind the tools — their confidence, clarity, presence, and ability to create real human connection in an increasingly digital landscape. Because right now, many organizations are feeling it: *Trust is thinning. Teams are taxed. People are moving fast — and still feeling behind.* And one of the biggest risks we’re seeing isn’t AI itself… it’s what happens when leaders use AI **without presence**. [Read More ›](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/ai-presence-leadership) In [Engagement](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/engagement)/ [Energy Leadership](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/energy-leadership)/ [Authenticity](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/authenticity)/ [Effective Leadership](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/effective-leadership)/ [Leadership Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/leadership-presence)/ [Virtual Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/virtual-presence)/ [Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/presence) [![](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/Mastering%20Presence%20IEP%20for%20practitioners.png)](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/iep-client-success) June 13, 2025  by [Anese Cavanaugh](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/author/anese-cavanaugh) ## [Mastering Presence: How the IEP Method® Helps You Serve and Retain Your Clients](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/iep-client-success) There’s a space that so many practitioners — coaches, consultants, therapists, facilitators, service professionals — are hungry for… A space where they can talk about the *real* challenges of holding space for others. The energetic drain. The boundary confusion. The subtle, often-invisible ways presence (or the lack of it) impacts every client outcome. This past week, we created that space. In our live webinar, **IEP for Practitioners and Service Professionals: How to Authentically Serve and Keep Your Clients**, we invited this community to take a closer look — not just at their technical skills, but at how they *show up energetically* to serve. It’s a conversation many didn’t even realize they were missing. *View a quick clip kicking off the session:*   [Read More ›](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/iep-client-success) In [IEP Method](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/iep-method)/ [Anese Cavanaugh](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/anese-cavanaugh)/ [Practitioner](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/practitioner)/ [Client Retention](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/client-retention)/ [Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/presence) [![](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/hubfs/Energy%20for%20Practitioners.png)](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/energy-for-practitioners) May 30, 2025  by [Anese Cavanaugh](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/author/anese-cavanaugh) ## [Why The Energy You Show up With Is the Service You Provide](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/energy-for-practitioners) **What your clients are really paying for — and what happens when you’re not fully there.** The “quality of the container” we hold for each other determines how far we can go, how much trust we build, and the results we achieve together. This is true in any relationship — personal and professional. But in service work especially — coaching, facilitation, consulting, healing, leadership, therapy, and more — the presence we bring to that container becomes **everything**.  Your clients may *think* they are hiring you for your expertise, credentials, or methodologies. But what they’re *actually* paying for… is your **presence**.  They’re paying for how safe, seen, and supported they feel with you. They’re paying for how clearly and genuinely you hold space for them.  They’re paying for how intentional and energetic and “clean” you are in your leadership — especially when things get messy. They’re paying for the container you hold — and your ability to hold your own energy. This is the difference between good work and great work. Between short-term results and deep, sustainable transformation. And yet… energy and presence are often the last thing people think about when they are “doing their thing,” providing their services, or interacting with another human being.   [Read More ›](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/energy-for-practitioners) In [IEP Method](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/iep-method)/ [Anese Cavanaugh](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/anese-cavanaugh)/ [Practitioner](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/practitioner)/ [Client Retention](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/client-retention)/ [Presence](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/topic/presence) [All posts](https://blog.anesecavanaugh.com/all) This is a search field with an auto-suggest feature attached. - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 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