Personal Note from Rachel
Demonstrates Ethical Practice – Leading with Integrity, Energy, and Intention
November 2025 Edition — The Value of Positive Practice | With Rachel Dungan, The Pharmacist Coach
Welcome
A Season to Pause, Reflect, and Realign
As Samhain marks the end of harvest and the beginning of the darker season in the Celtic calendar, nature invites us inward. It’s a time of transition—of letting go, lighting candles in the dark, and reconnecting to what matters most.
For many leaders I work with, this mirrors their inner landscape:
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The year’s been full.
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The pressure hasn’t let up.
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And somewhere deep inside, they’re craving pause, purpose, and perspective.
That’s why this month’s theme is a powerful one: ethical practice.
Not just in theory—but in the everyday choices we make under pressure, the energy we bring to our teams, and the courage it takes to course-correct when things no longer feel aligned.
What’s Inside This Edition
🧭 What ethical leadership can look like (and what gets in the way)
🔥 Burnout stats and stories from pharmacy and beyond
💡 A real-life turnaround from the edge of selling to renewed purpose
🌸 Random Acts of Kindness to energise you and your team
👨👦 Celebrating men and boys as role models for wellbeing
🎯 Opportunities to reset, reflect, and re-align for 2026
Theme of the Month: What Does It Mean to Lead Ethically?
In coaching, ethical practice goes far beyond rules or external codes. It means being attuned to power, purpose, presence, and impact—in every conversation, every choice, every leadership moment.
At its heart, ethical leadership invites courageous reflection:
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Are we doing the right thing—for the right reasons?
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Are we acting from fear, habit, or conscious alignment?
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What’s the cost of ignoring our own needs and values—and who else pays that price?
At Lead With Coaching Institute and 4Front Pharmacy, we believe ethical leadership begins by turning inward. Burnout, over-functioning, people-pleasing, and chronic over-responsibility aren’t just personal struggles—they’re systemic signals.
When leaders don’t pause to reset, the ripple effects can be felt across teams, cultures, and communities.
❝ Ethical dilemmas often begin with good intentions—left unchecked. ❞
— ICF Theme of the Month
What Gets in the Way?
In coaching, we explore the saboteur dynamics that cloud decision-making:
🧼 The Stickler who demands perfection
🤝 The Pleaser who avoids conflict to stay liked
🎮 The Controller who fears letting go of responsibility
These inner voices may have once protected us—but when left unexamined, they become blind spots.
Even actions rooted in care can damage trust, wellbeing, and long-term impact when driven by fear or pressure.
That’s why self-care is an ethical imperative.
Because when saboteurs are running the show—driving decisions, communication, and energy—we don’t just suffer personally.
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We affect the people we lead
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We shape the culture around us
- And we risk abandoning the legacy we’re meant to leave
Want to identify your top Saboteurs?
Saboteurs are the voices in our heads that generate negative emotions as we handle life's everyday challenges. They represent the automatic patterns in our mind for how to think, feel and respond. Our Saboteurs cause all of our stress, anxiety, self-doubt, frustration, restlessness and unhappiness. They sabotage our performance, well-being and relationships. The Saboteur Assessment is our first step to conquering our Saboteurs - identifying and exposing their stories and limiting beliefs & strategies.
I can send you a free Saboteur Assessment via my PQ Coach Dashboard—a first step in building greater self-awareness and resilience in your leadership.
📩 Simply email me your name and email address to: rachel@racheldungan.com
🧭 Once you’ve completed your assessment, you’ll have the option to book a:Sage Leadership Session.
✨ Sage Leadership Session
A 90-minute strategy call to:
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Map what’s draining your energy
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Explore how saboteurs show up in leadership
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Clarify what needs to shift so you can lead with clarity, confidence, and alignment
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Click here to book your 90-min Strategy Session 💳 €299 once-off investment
You don’t have to keep over-functioning, second-guessing, or carrying it all alone.
Together, we can uncover what’s really going on—and give you back the energy and perspective to lead well.
Real-Life Reflection: From Burnout to Reconnection – A Leadership Turnaround Story
A pharmacy owner came to coaching on the verge of collapse.
“I’m not sure I can keep going another month—let alone another 10 years.”
They were having nightmares about dispensing errors.
Snapping at their children.
Struggling to sleep.
Feeling disconnected from family, team, and self.
There had been no space to recover since COVID.
Locums were impossible to find. Every day felt like survival.
Their reason for coaching? To explore selling the business.
But before making a life-altering decision, we paused.
With their GP’s support, they ruled in/out medical causes—and then committed to 8 weeks of mental fitness coaching.
They completed the Saboteur Assessment, which revealed Restless and Hyper-Achiever dynamics.
This explained a lot.
Their relentless drive to do more, say yes, and keep going at ALL costs was draining them—mentally, emotionally, physically, and relationally.
Coaching Outcomes at a Glance – 12 Months On
✅ Reconnected with their “why”
✅ Completed 1:1 coaching + Lead With Coaching Foundation (LCIF) programme
✅ Began coaching their team
✅ Shifted team culture
✅ Reclaimed energy, clarity, and joy
“Last year, I was at a -4 or -5. Just existing. Resentful. Worn out.
This year, I’m at a +6 or +7—even though the challenges are bigger.
Coaching didn’t change the world around me—it changed how I meet it.”
November Observances
World Kindness Day (13 November)
“Kindness is loaning someone your strength instead of reminding them of their weakness.”
— Brené Brown
Leadership kindness begins with self-kindness.
When we lead ourselves with empathy, we model it for our teams.
When we nurture the Sage thrive brain and calm the Saboteur-driven survive brain, we create cultures where people—and ideas—can thrive.
Kindness is not a soft skill. It’s a leadership strategy.
It increases psychological safety, reduces stress, and strengthens relational trust—cornerstones of a healthy team and a healthy leader.
🧠 Research consistently shows that kindness boosts oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin—for both the giver and the receiver. It improves physical health, emotional wellbeing, and workplace satisfaction. Even witnessing kindness can have a ripple effect, improving mood and connection.
But in over-stretched teams, kindness can feel like “one more thing.”
So let’s simplify it—by making kindness a practice, not a project.
Here are some Random Acts of Kindness we can easily include in our everyday:
💬 For your team or colleagues
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Send a quick message of appreciation
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Offer to cover a task without being asked
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Begin meetings with a moment of gratitude or a light check-in
💗 For your patients, customers, or clients
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Greet them by name
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Slow down to truly listen
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Leave a hand-written thank-you note
🏡 At home or with loved ones
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Say “thank you” for something small but often unnoticed
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Do a chore or errand for someone without being asked
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Spend 10 minutes of intentional, undistracted time
👀 With strangers or people in public service
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Smile or say hello to someone in the street or shop
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Acknowledge a bus driver, delivery person, or someone in a call centre
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Let someone ahead of you in traffic or the queue
🧘♀️ And most importantly—be kind to yourself
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Take a slow walk with no agenda
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Give yourself permission to rest
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Speak to yourself like you would to a dear friend
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Choose a nourishing meal or glass of water over caffeine-fuelled autopilot
🎁 This month, we invite you to choose just one act of kindness—to yourself, to your family, to your team, to a stranger—and notice the ripple.
Kindness costs little. But it can change the trajectory of someone’s day.
Please share! If you witness or receive a random act of kindness this month—or offer one—email us or tag us on LinkedIn. We'd love to celebrate with you.
Let’s make kindness a norm—not a novelty.
👨👦 International Men’s Day (19 November)
Theme: “Celebrating Men and Boys”
🔗 https://internationalmensday.com/
November is a powerful month for the masculine soul—a time to honour the often-unspoken emotional world of men and boys.
In many cultures, men are taught to be providers and protectors—yet rarely given space to express vulnerability, seek help, or speak openly about burnout, mental health, or emotional needs. As leaders, colleagues, parents, and partners, it is an ethical imperative to challenge harmful stereotypes and create environments where everyone can bring their full selves to the table.
🧔 This year’s theme, “Celebrating Men and Boys,” invites us to:
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Recognise the positive value men bring to families, workplaces, and communities
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Raise awareness of men’s wellbeing across all domains—mental, physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual
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Reflect on the roles we all play in shaping a more inclusive, compassionate, and equitable society
As a mother of two young men, this is personal for me.
I want to live in a world where all people—regardless of gender identity—feel seen, valued, and cherished for who they are, not who they are told to be.
This month, let’s celebrate a man or boy who inspires you—someone who embodies positive, healthy masculinity. Perhaps it’s a father who listens deeply. A brother who steps up. A manager who models humility and empathy. A son who shows courage in simply being himself.
✨ When we acknowledge positive masculine role models, we:
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Reinforce what healthy leadership looks and feels like
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Reduce isolation and shame
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Promote self-care and emotional expression
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Strengthen the fabric of families, teams, and communities
📢 Please share with us—Who is one man or boy you’d like to celebrate this month?
Let’s make the invisible visible.
🌱 Because kindness, equity, and inclusion are not only values.
They are acts of leadership—and practices of healing.
Burnout: The Hidden Epidemic in Leadership
Burnout is not an individual failing—it’s a systemic signal.
📊 Global & Local Stats:
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The WHO defines burnout as a workplace syndrome caused by chronic, unmanaged stress
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2024 IPU data: 65% of Irish pharmacists reported burnout symptoms; 28% considered career change
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UK: 75% of pharmacists reported workplace stress affecting mental health
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HBR: Middle managers have the highest burnout rates across sectors
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Gallup: Women leaders experience more burnout—often due to dual burdens of work + care
🧭 Ethical leadership means tending to your own energy.
Because:
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🌱 Healthy leaders create healthy teams
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🏢 Healthy teams shape healthy organisations
- 🌍 Healthy organisations nurture healthy ecosystems
Professional Development Opportunities
These offers are intentionally designed to facilitate growth by providing the safe, structured, and supportive environment needed to think clearly, reconnect to purpose, and take aligned action:
For Pharmacists
For Coaches
For Leaders
Ready to Finish 2025 Strong - and Start 2026 Aligned?
You don’t have to carry it all alone.
And you don’t have to keep leading in ways that leave you behind.
If you're a senior leader, founder, or healthcare professional who wants to:
✔️ Lead with clarity, courage, and energy
✔️ Make aligned decisions with confidence
✔️ Navigate complexity without burnout
✔️ Invest in your long-term growth and wellbeing
Then now is the time to invest in Premium 1:1 Executive Coaching.
Just 3 spaces are currently available.
🔎 First step? Book your 90-minute strategy session (€299):
This stand-alone session will give you clarity and insight—and the opportunity to explore whether ongoing coaching is a fit.
📅 Book now: 90-min Strategy Session
📩 Or email: rachel@racheldungan.com | 📱 WhatsApp: +353 86 602 5584
Want to grow your team’s capacity to think, learn, and lead?
If you're serious about building a thriving learning and growth culture in 2026—where leadership is shared, and challenges are solved together—then the next step is enrolling in:
🎓 LCI Certificate in Coaching for Leaders (Feb 2026 Cohort)
✔️ ICF-international gold-standard accreditation
✔️ Cross-industry peer learning
✔️ Real-world coaching skills for team leaders
✔️ Helps your organisation thrive, sustainably
Join other forward-thinking leaders who are ready to stop managing alone—and start building teams with the capacity to lead from within.
📨 institute@leadwithcoaching.org
🌐 Learn more: www.leadwithcoaching.org
Let's Stay Connected?
➡️ Join the LCI Leadership Community
If you're a leader navigating complexity, carrying a heavy load, or simply seeking to grow in a way that honours your values, you’re in the right place.
We’d love to walk alongside you.
With warmth, wisdom, and hope,
Rachel & the LCI Team
Lead With Coaching Institute
Let’s keep growing together.
📩 rachel@racheldungan.com
📱 WhatsApp: +353 86 602 5584
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