We have just lost the amazing Iris Apfel at the age of 102 years, a woman who remained active, attractive, and highly visible all her life (,a). Most women around the age of 50+ will tell you that at some point in time they have in fact felt invisible. It might be in a meeting, at an event, or in a bar or restaurant. It’s that feeling that you are not being recognised, are being overlooked, or not brought into the conversation in quite the same way as others around you are.  Do older women imagine this or is it really a ‘thing’? The "Beauty Premium" One explanation as to why women become ..read more

As a coach, I spend much of my time talking with potential clients about ways in which they can develop and grow, and the role that coaching might play. Often the language used about what they may be looking for can vary; am I looking for a mentor or a coach? Are these the same thing - and does it really matter who I work with? To answer some of these questions we can explore both the purpose and features of each. What is coaching? Coaching is a developmental intervention that empowers an individual to set their own objectives or goals for progression and growth. Coaching is a process through ..read more

With much of my coaching, I work alongside women who are building their businesses. I have had the good fortune to support women entrepreneurs in quite diverse industries including technology, talent development, health and wellbeing, photography, and the arts.   Leveraging their knowledge, experience, specialist skills, or talent, women often launch out into the relative unknown with a belief and conviction about what they can do and how they can serve others. These women are inspirational to me because they are highly talented and determined that they have something to offer to their po ..read more

Nobody likes making mistakes. They make us feel bad about ourselves and can lead to low self-confidence and self-efficacy. Making mistakes is about getting something wrong perhaps via a deliberate decision or through error of judgement. Sometimes we know immediately something is wrong but on other occasions, we only realise we have made a mistake when we look back over time. Either way, mistakes are part of the human experience, and no matter how experienced, skilled, or practiced we aim to be, mistakes will occasionally happen. Embrace mistakes But rather than feeling bad about making mistake ..read more

Leaders come in all shapes and sizes. So much research has explored different styles and approaches to leadership and what makes for a ‘good’ leader. If we replace ‘good’ with ‘effective’ then measuring how effective someone is as a leader has to be based on some expected outcome of leadership. One outcome of effective leadership is that it should motivate, encourage, and inspire those who look to them for direction and guidance. What makes an effective leader? Many traits or characteristics have been ascribed to effective leaders. One that is perhaps less often discussed is that of empathy. W ..read more

Enter the term ‘imposter syndrome’ into Google and you get 8million+ results. The term is ubiquitous these days and seems to pop up in most discussions about women and their confidence levels. There is research into it, papers and books written on it, programmes to combat it, and numerous articles most of which at some point position it as a female ‘problem’. Where does the term 'imposter syndrome' come from? The origins of the term are quite old now. Imposter Syndrome, or Imposter Phenomenon as it was first called, was originally identified by Clance & Imes in 1978 who recognised the inci ..read more

It is always great when women come together and share ideas and experiences. A coming together of minds happened at the Modern Woman Show on 21st June in London and I was fortunate enough to be a speaker on one of the panels covering the topic of: “The Power of Inclusivity and Leadership”. The panel discussion ranged across a number of topics including the link between female leadership and profitability; the benefits organisations gain from having a strong ED&I culture and the important shift from policies and rhetoric to action in the workplace. Male allyship A particular shift that the ..read more

The drive to increase the number of women in senior leadership positions in business today is growing at pace. Setting targets such as the Hampton Alexander Review 2016-2020, which set out to increase female representation on Boards, helps to make this a reality. The percentage of women serving on FTSE 100 Boards increased from 27.7% in 2017 to 36.2% in 2020 and FTSE 250 Boards increased from 22.8% in 2017 to 33.2% in 2020. Where gender diversity is now... We are moving forward but progress is very slow. Figures still show very poor performance by leading companies in improving the gender bala ..read more

‘Not enough left in the tank’. This was how Jacinda Ardern, the outgoing Prime Minister of New Zealand described herself when she recently made her shock announcement that she was stepping down from her role. As a 37-year-old woman with a young child and partner, the pressures and stresses of a high-profile political career must have created tensions and challenges for her both physically and mentally. She has often been held up as a global icon for women and their ability to challenge existing leadership styles, bringing with her a very different empathetic and compassionate approach to the r ..read more

Last week I had two opportunities to share my thoughts on female leadership. On Tuesday I attended the IGPP ‘Progressing Women in Leadership’ conference which saw some leading names (including Caroline Noakes MP and Jess Phillips MP) talking about both the barriers and actions needed to improve the situation. Then on Thursday I was on the panel of a Client Talk ‘Women and Transformational Leadership’ lunchtime webinar. Supporting women in the workplace Both events aimed to raise awareness of the importance of progressing women into leadership roles and ways organisations can support this. Impo ..read more