Show notes
Subject: women leaders navigating menopause.
Menopausal challenges are what the majority of females would call an open secret: we all seem to know it, but no one talks about it. There are plenty of challenges to vocally addressing them in organizations, starting with not being reasonably considered for promotions and senior roles. Along with it comes the fear of being called "too old" for new responsibilities. So, how do women leaders navigating menopause maintain (and prove) their efficiency at work despite the rushing hormonal changes? And with the conversation on women's mental and physical anguish during menopause getting louder by the day, what can companies do to become more welcoming towards them?
Tune in to this episode of the Women's Leadership Success podcast to find out.
Women Leaders Navigating Menopause: WLS 118 Episode Highlights:
What is Menopause? Why should men and women (even those not in menopause) care about this topic?
Why do senior women have unique workplace requirements as they move through menopause? How can organizations address them?
Why is it important for senior women and female founders to redefine their networks as they move through menopause?
Why are senior women in menopause dropping out of the workforce?
Why does every woman need a career plan in menopause?
How can women increase their career health and wealth and maintain career momentum through menopause?
And more!
On today’s Women’s Leadership Success Podcast, Sabrina Braham and her guest Fiona McKay lead conversations on embracing menopause to create more equitable workplaces for women. They discuss leadership development, career growth, and personal development for senior executive women and female founders. Having undergone a severe abdominal hysterectomy, Fiona explains the extreme physical, mental, and emotional struggles senior women can experience during that period. She also shares how they could use that phase for positive self-reflection, goal-setting, and planning, treating it as a new beginning in their lives, and how companies can create better work environments and devise work methodologies that allow women to speak about their health struggles openly.
Women Leaders Navigating Menopause: Fiona McKay’s Interview on Navigating The Menopause Maze in The Workplace
Fiona McKay is a world-renowned speaker, career and business coach for females, gender acceleration strategist, and the Founder of The Menopause Maze™, a method, and company that focuses exclusively on career acceleration for senior women. She is an award-winning entrepreneur and is recognized as one of the top 250 influencers in FemTech.
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]
Women Leaders Navigating Menopause: Women’s Leadership Success Summary: Menopause and Women 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 could support senior women in their workforce by devising policies that allow them the space to navigate the challenges during menopause. This could start with simple gestures such as reducing the working hours from 40 to 30 hours, giving time off of work, or mental support, among other things.
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.
Action for Traction: Women Leaders Navigating Menopause
Listening to this podcast is a good start. But the way you will change and grow yourself is to take a small action every time you have an aha from what you have heard or read.
Lifestyle changes ease symptoms of Menopause:
Keep your body weight at a healthy level
Mediterranean Diet has been shown to reduce hot flashes by as much. As 40%
Get enough calcium (1,200-1,500 milligrams) and vitamin D (400 IU) a day
Avoid consuming caffeine.
Quit smoking, which can cause hot flashes
Avoid drinking more than one alcoholic drink per day.
Exercise most days of the week, including exercise that elevates your heart rate, and weight-bearing exercises such as weightlifting or walking.
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