The Sandwich Metaphor
A way to think about the impact that feeds you
Hi! I’m Molly. I write about what it actually takes to lead inside growing, changing companies: the frameworks that help, the honest truth about what it feels like, and the messy work of shaping a career that actually fits.
Lessons is where those ideas live — both the writing and the conversations around it. (If you want to learn more about how Lessons and the community work, you can read more here.)
Have you ever been told you’re “living the dream” while secretly wondering why you feel so hollow? I’ve been there. On paper, my résumé reads like a manifesto for impact — jobs that promised “life-changing” missions, teams that spoke in terms of “changing the world.” And yet, I was exhausted. Deep down, I couldn’t shake one question: why was I drained by work everyone else told me should be energizing?
Enter my coach at the time, Maggie Hensle (who is the best, by the way, if you’re looking for an exceptional, empathetic, thoughtful executive coach). She gave me an analogy I’ve carried with me ever since.
“Picture yourself in a soup kitchen,” she told me. “And today’s special is sandwiches.”
At first, I laughed; it sounded like a quirky volunteering story. But as she laid it out, something clicked.
Some people get lit up by handing out sandwiches on the street — the face-to-face connection, the gratitude, the instant feedback loop. Their energy comes from seeing the direct result of their effort.
