There is a kind of professional exhaustion that cannot be solved with better tools.
The Art of High-Performance Leadership Without Burnout, by Paige McPheely.
Released October 27, 2026
The breath cycle
The book is built on a simple cycle.
We take work in, we hold it, and at some point it should leave our hands. Most of us are good at the first two and skip the third.
Inhale
The goalpost keeps shifting farther away, even as we inch forward.
From the inside it feels reasonable. Success is supposed to cost this much.
Hold
Our role is to be the net, catching what others miss before it slips through.
Most of it has just been ours long enough to feel like the work itself.
Exhale
We delegated, set boundaries, and downloaded the apps, but none of it lasted.
We were solving the wrong problem: the belief that we must be there.
The five levers
The system that got us here will not carry us forward.
The book calls them the five levers: trusted support, honest perspective, clear rhythms, intentional systems, and thoughtful use of technology. Each one changes something around us rather than asking more of us. We can start with any of them today, and getting one in place usually makes the rest easier.
About the author
Paige McPheely is the Founder and Executive Chair of Base and the author of Built to Breathe. She lives in Valencia, Spain, with her husband and their three sons.
Praise for Built to Breathe
Paige McPheely has written a wise and deeply important book for driven people who have learned to endure more than they should. Built to Breathe challenges the false choice between ambition and wellbeing, showing that we do not need to want less in order to live more fully. Through personal insight and practical wisdom, Paige reminds us that sustainable leadership is not about holding everything together; it is about creating the conditions that allow us, and those around us, to breathe, grow, and flourish.
Built to Breathe identifies the silent crisis of modern leadership: a professional exhaustion that better tools will never solve. Paige McPheely challenges the illusion that success must hurt to count, offering permission to lead with clarity instead of frenetic motion. Built to Breathe is an invaluable guide for those who want to live more fully without wanting less out of life.
Conventional wisdom says you can't build a breakout career without breaking yourself. In Built to Breathe, Paige shows you how to build better. I've sat across the board table from her and marveled at how she runs hard without running herself into the ground. The tenets in this book aren't self-care platitudes. They're the working methods of leaders who want to build a life that allows them to go the distance.
We are exhausted. The better we get at our calendars, the more our calendars win. Paige knows the gauntlet and shares a calmer way through. I wish Built to Breathe existed when I was running my company.
Many leadership books focus on what and why to delegate. Built to Breathe tackles something much harder: why successful leaders struggle to let go in the first place. If you're serious about untangling your identity and self-worth from your work, this book is for you. Built to Breathe gives leaders permission to exhale without sacrificing their ambition or long-term success. Letting go isn't the opposite of great leadership; it's what makes it possible.
High performers in the workplace can be among the last to truly care for themselves, and can fail to see how when they do it is good for everyone and everything around them. Paige has written a wonderful book on the why, what, and how of all of this, backed up by over a decade of supporting leaders through her own enterprise.
Book details
- Format
- Hardcover
- Trim size
- 5.5 x 8.5 inches
- Pages
- 175
- Publication
- 27 October 2026
- Retail price
- $30.95 USD
- ISBN
- 978-1-64687-310-4
- Distribution
- Simon & Schuster
Launch team
Join the launch team.
A focused, coordinated effort from a small group of early readers can move a book more than any ad campaign. If you’ve ever been the reliable one, juggling more than any one person should, this book was written for you. Add your name and I’ll be in touch as we get closer, with clear asks and no time wasting.