Narrative Identity for Founders
Federico Malatesta on the stories we tell ourselves
The Stories we tell Ourselves
Federico Malatesta on narrative, identity, and change
In this conversation on Founders Future's Ammar Elm, Federico Malatesta discusses how founders and senior leaders often become constrained by stories that once enabled success but later undermine clarity, authority, and judgment. The dialogue challenges common self-help assumptions about motivation and goal-setting, and reframes transformation as a process of narrative revision rather than behavioral control.
A core focus of the episode is the distinction between surface-level change and identity-level change. why meaningful change in leadership and adult life rarely comes from habit optimization or performance tactics, and instead depends on the narratives that quietly govern identity and decision-making. Rather than asking how to perform better, the conversation explores how outdated internal narratives shape risk tolerance, leadership presence, and long-term decisions, particularly at career and life inflection points.
The episode also addresses equine-assisted coaching as a practical methodology for leadership development. Horses are presented not as metaphors but as responsive systems that reveal pressure responses, relational patterns, and authority gaps in real time, offering feedback that is difficult to access through reflection alone.
This conversation is relevant for founders, executives, and professionals navigating complexity, uncertainty, and second-half career transitions, where progress depends less on acquiring new tools and more on understanding and revising the stories that shape action.
Reimagine what is next.
Transformational and Executive coaching for leaders navigating high-stakes transitions - when the old narrative no longer fits the facts.
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