I Used to Wear Heels to Work. Now I Stomp into Strategy.

There was a time when I wore stilettos to work.

Not kitten heels. Not sensible blocky compromises.

Stilettos.

The kind that made an entrance three seconds before I did.

The kind that whispered, “I will dominate this pitch deck and leave without smudging my lipstick.”

But something changed.

Maybe it was the lockdowns.

Maybe it was turning fifty.

Maybe it was the slow realization that I could still command a boardroom without risking a stress fracture.

Now?

I wear these.

Cue image of Naomi’s beloved Stella McCartney platform brogues—sawn-tooth soles, wood-meets-space-age, quietly ridiculous in the best way.

They’re not elegant.

They don’t make my calves look like Naomi Campbell in 1996.

But they do make me feel like a woman who could kick down a glass door, then run for the train without rolling an ankle.

And when I walk into my office across from the Freedom Tower—four days a week, in 90-degree heat, with subway eyes and a Q3 campaign in my brain—these shoes are the only thing standing between me and collapse.

I’ve bought backup pairs on eBay.

I’ve scoured the resale sites like a woman searching for a discontinued antidepressant.

Because they’re that important.

Not as fashion.

As armor.

These shoes have seen things.

They’ve been in pitches where the client “forgot” to invite the female strategist.

They’ve paced subway platforms where safety feels more like a negotiation than a guarantee.

They’ve walked me through grief, growth, and more Monday mornings than I care to count.

I used to dress to impress.

Now I dress to endure.

To create. To show up—in body and brain, blister-free.

And here’s the thing:

I don’t miss the heels.

I don’t miss the pressure to pretend my feet weren’t killing me.

I don’t miss the version of myself who thought pain was part of the uniform.

Because when you’ve spent 20 years building brands, you start to realize something:

You are the platform.

The shoes are just along for the ride.

And just like that, I stomped into the meeting—taller, wiser, and blessedly comfortable.

#PowerPlatforms #StellaSaves #FootwearWithFeelings #NaomiWoreThis