Women's Leadership Success Podcast
Fiona McKay, founder of The Menopause Maze was beyond thrilled to be interviewed by Sabrina Braham on her Women's Leadership Success Podcast. This was a great honour as Sabrina's podcast is in the top 1.5% of rated podcasts in the world!
This is a MUST listen for any high performing, exec or C Suite female leader currently concerned about how to keep her career and manage menopause.
Fiona shared her menopause insights and experiences, her research findings and tools specifically for women leaders to help them keep their careers whilst navigating the menopause maze.
Show Notes
Navigating The Menopause Maze in The Workplace: Show Notes
Fiona talks about undergoing an abdominal hysterectomy, the aftermath of the surgery (including hot flashes), the reasons for taking up hormone replacement therapy later on, and how all of it inspired her to research menopause at work to help senior women and female founders keep their careers growing amid the challenges due to menopause. [01:34-04:34]
>> What is menopause? What does it look like for Caucasian women and women of color? [04:35-05:39]
>> The impact of menopause on men and why they must know its symptoms [05:41:06:35]
>> What are the symptoms of menopause? How long do they keep showing? [06:38-08:09]
>> How can female leaders succeed despite the challenges faced during menopause? [08:29-10:31]
>> Dealing with the prejudice of being “old” after reaching menopause. [10:32-12:25]
>> Rethinking your career goals and dreams during menopause: how to discover your goals, set new ones, and decide whether to move out from your current job and take up something new or continue to grow in it. [12:43-15:10]
>> On women being encouraged to take lesser jobs after menopause. [15:11-17:03]
>> What women should do to adjust to being in menopause. [17:04-19:47]
>> Making yourself a priority during menopause. [19:48-20:55]
>> Tackling the emotional challenges experienced during menopause. [21:55-23:03]
>> Why women can benefit from formal career planning during menopause. [26:15-32:07]
>> Why menopause is the perfect time for you to become a female founder. [29:28-31:39]
>> Managing a hot flash during a meeting + why organizations must prioritize better workplace temperature control. [32:19-33:19]
>> How to communicate your discomfort and seek help whenever necessary as a woman in menopause at work. [34:24-35:34]
>> Introducing the sparkle and color over your identity that often goes lost during menopause. [35:47-36:50]
>> The positives of menopause include being more intentional and choosing to choosing to opt-out of scenarios that don’t bring you joy anymore. [38:04-40:18]
>> The female leaders Fiona is inspired by. [40:44-43:14]
>> Fiona’s last piece of advice for you. [43:18-43:46]
Menopause and Women's Executive Leadership
Episode notes to leave with:
Menopause is the time in a woman’s life when her reproductive hormones start to deplete. An average woman’s body starts phasing into that change at around 42, with the average age for entering menopause being 51. Caucasian women or women of color are seen to reach that period seven years earlier on average.
Statistics show that by 2025, about a billion women in the workplace will be of menopausal age, making menopausal women the fastest-growing workplace demographic globally. Employers cannot overlook this fact with the ongoing talent crisis across industries.
Women leaders navigating menopause need to understand that menopause is a phase in their lives, and they can navigate it using the right tools, inspiration, and resources without impacting their careers.
Your career health is in your hands. Fiona shares,
“If you don’t craft and create a career plan that you want, as you move through menopause, you will end up with the career results that your employer thinks you should have on their terms and in their own timeframe.”
Employers should support senior women in their workforce by devising policies and providing specific career coaching for women leaders. A recent survey showed that 73% of senior women would actively welcome having a menopause career coach provided as part of company wellbeing offerings.
Women leaders navigating menopause must simultaneously look after their physical, mental, and career health. All of it needs to go in balance to ensure well-being.
Menopause often comes at the most inconvenient time in a woman’s life. For instance, if you’re a career-focused lady who started building a family only later in life, you’ll still have the demands of a growing family, the needs of aging and elderly parents, and much more. Another thing to note is that the highest rate of suicide for women is in the menopausal age. There needs to be no better reason to prioritize self-care during this period.
To begin with, a career plan is essential if you’re considering your options as a menopausal woman. The next step is formalizing it: thinking about where you want to be in the next ten years and the impact other parts of your life will have because of your career plan.
High-performing women tend not to share symptoms of menopause because they’re used to powering through. But this could become their Achilles heel if not taken care of. Even if you don’t want to disclose your state of mind and body publicly, it’s essential to have a support system during this period and be part of a like minded community of women leaders in menopause.
THE NOPAUSE!™ CAREER COACHING PROGRAMME
NOPAUSE!™ is a six hour fast-track and online career coaching programme for high performing and senior women to ensure that there is NOPAUSE!™ to their careers as they move through menopause.
With weekly live sessions by lead by award winning menopause career coach Fiona McKay, this exclusive programme equips you with the tools to maintain and maximise your career as you move through menopause.
Fiona McKay
Meet our founder
I'm Fiona McKay - The Menopause Career Coach™.
I'm an award-winning exec, business and career coach for high performing, high profile women and female founders who want to keep their careers and grow their companies as they move through all stages of menopause.
I am also a world renowned and award winning business strategist, transformation exec coach and keynote speaker.
And I'm a menopause campaigner, researcher, commentator, business influencer, award winning keynote speaker, conference chair and panel host, transformation expert and Top 250 Global Influencer in Fem Tech.
An evidence based menopause acceleration method that works!
Through my own experiences I have designed an evidence based and proven method, to help you maintain your career and continue to grow the divisions, departments or companies that you lead through all stages of menopause. But crucially, on your terms and in your own timeframe.
How do I help women in menopause globally?
Through my research and campaigning I'm on a mission to rid the world and the workplace of menopause bias for high performing working women, so they can increase their career health, improve their career wealth and keep their careers in menopause.
How can I help you?
I equip you with the transitions tools you need to have the career that you want on your terms and in your own timeframe, ensuring that there is no pause to your career as you move through menopause.
How can you work with me?
Book a 1-2-1 online career coaching session, become a member of my Menopause Maze community™, join my NOPAUSE ™ online group career coaching programme and book me to speak at events online, in the media and in print.
Click on the icons below to follow and contact me.