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Leadership isn’t about managing time. It’s about making better choices.
That is the central message from Christina Olivier, co-founder and Managing Partner of Excelerant, whose thoughtful conversation on Discover Lafayette challenges many of the assumptions we make about work, productivity, and success.
Christina co-founded Excelerant in 2003 with business partner Elise Bouchner after realizing that growing companies needed more than legal advice or technical expertise, they needed leaders who knew how to develop people. What began as The Training Source evolved into Excelerant, an award-winning, woman-owned leadership development and organizational consulting firm serving organizations throughout Louisiana and beyond through executive coaching, leadership development, succession planning, team building, and organizational effectiveness. Excelerant quickly grew to include partners Jill Adcock, Phyllis Arceneaux, and Jill Meaux.
Our conversation moves well beyond business coaching. Christina offers practical wisdom for anyone feeling overwhelmed by competing priorities, struggling to say no, or wondering why there never seems to be enough time.
One of the first ideas she reframes is the phrase “time management.”
Referencing Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Christina explains that she prefers the term “time effectiveness.”
“We all have the same 24 hours in our day. It’s how we spend that time, and if we spend it as effectively as possible, that makes the difference.” Rather than trying to squeeze more activity into every hour, she encourages people to become intentional about where their energy is invested.
“What I’ve noticed is that most people don’t stop to think about how they are spending their time,” she says. “You wonder why you’re tired, or you wonder why you’re burnt out, or you wonder why you’re not getting to those things that you want to do.”
Throughout our discussion, Christina repeatedly returns to the importance of self-awareness. Before any planner, productivity system, or coaching exercise can help, people must honestly examine whether they’re spending time on what matters most—and whether those choices actually bring them joy.
As an executive coach credentialed through the International Coaching Federation, Christina works with successful professionals who want to become even more effective. She explains that coaching isn’t about giving answers.
“In coaching, we hold that our clients are whole and resourceful. We’re just helping them find their own answers.”
That process begins by helping clients identify what success would actually look like six or twelve months into the future and then removing the obstacles standing in their way.
Christina shares one of her favorite coaching analogies involving a small airplane that is too heavy to stay safely in the air. Every passenger must throw one “role” overboard to survive. Those roles might include committee chair, volunteer, employee, spouse, parent, or community leader.
The exercise forces people to identify which commitments truly deserve their limited time and which have simply accumulated over the years. The lesson naturally leads to one of the most powerful themes of our conversation: learning to say no.
Drawing again from Stephen Covey, Christina introduces the concept she and her team use regularly: “Integrity in the moment of choice.” “Every no you’re saying is because there’s a bigger yes inside.”
That “yes” may be spending more time with children or grandchildren, caring for aging parents, protecting personal health, or simply creating space to think. The challenge is recognizing that every commitment carries an opportunity cost.
Christina also speaks candidly about perfectionism, particularly among professional women. She questions the belief that “if it has to be done right, it has to be done by me.”
Instead, she encourages leaders to lower unrealistic standards where appropriate, delegate more intentionally, and invest the time necessary to develop others.
Her advice to leaders is straightforward: “You can’t be too busy doing the work to train and develop others.” Otherwise, organizations become dependent on one individual while employees never have the opportunity to grow.
Another recurring theme is presence. In today’s distracted world, Christina believes one of the greatest gifts leaders can give employees, colleagues, friends, and family members is their complete attention.
“Putting down the device when someone walks in… there’s also a great benefit and maybe a stillness that you receive by not multitasking.”She distinguishes between efficiency and effectiveness with a memorable observation: “With people, you can’t be efficient. You can only be effective.”
That perspective extends into how organizations communicate across generations. Rather than criticizing younger employees for preferring text messages, Christina recommends “co-designing” communication expectations—meeting people where they are while establishing mutually beneficial ways of connecting.
The discussion also explores practical ways to slow down in a fast-paced world.
Although Christina once believed meditation wasn’t for her, she now incorporates grounding, centering, and intentional breathing into her daily routine. She emphasizes that meditation doesn’t have to be complicated. Sometimes it is simply placing both feet on the floor, taking several intentional breaths, and allowing yourself to become present before moving into the next activity. She also recommends what she calls a “transition pause”:
Finish what you’re doing. Put down the device. Take three intentional breaths. Then arrive fully present for whatever comes next. That simple practice, she believes, helps leaders become more thoughtful, more connected, and ultimately more effective.
Our conversation also explores succession planning, an increasingly important issue for Louisiana businesses. Christina describes Excelerant’s work helping family-owned companies, financial institutions, and publicly traded organizations identify future leaders through assessments, coaching, mentoring, and leadership development. Rather than assuming who should lead next, Excelerant helps organizations objectively evaluate strengths and prepare the next generation for success.
Toward the close of our interview, Christina shares one final reminder that resonates long after the microphones are turned off.
Sometimes the greatest productivity tool isn’t another app, another meeting, or another committee. It’s simply becoming aware.
As Christina says, “The first step…is to be self-aware.”
Whether you’re leading a Fortune 500 company, managing a small business, serving on nonprofit boards, or simply trying to create more balance in your own life, Christina Olivier offers practical insights that remind us success isn’t measured by how busy we are, but by how intentionally we choose to spend the time we’ve been given.
To learn more about Christina Olivier and Excelerant, visit https://exexp.com/ or connect through their LinkedIn and Facebook pages.
Discover Lafayette would like to thank Christina Olivier and Excelerant team members for all of their support throughout the years! You continually give back when requested!
