Leading Ladies Of...Podcast

In many industries, the change in % of women in the industry, especially in senior positions, is still painfully slow. By sharing our experiences, mentoring provides an opportunity to accelerate the numbers breaking through the ceiling. In this episode we discuss the importance of mentoring, the benefits of both formal & 'accidental mentoring, how to find a mentor, and the importance of looking outside of your existing circles.

Bianca's story is one of triumph. From almost being homeless, to being chosen to work on NASA's Insight Mars Mission, her story is one of amazing accomplishment despite early adversity. In this podcast we discuss how to ignore the labels given to us by ourselves and others, how what happened to you doesn't have to become your story, and why we must speak up to support others that are being labelled.

What can adults learn from this hard-working high school student? A TON! Gitkia Gorthi is our youngest ever podcast guest, but her advice is awe-inspiring. At age 14 she founded her own non-profit, Ignited Thinkers, and later completed an internship at NASA's Gene Lab. This inspiring young lady demonstrates how you can find the courage to build anything you want, regardless of age and lack of connections. She's built her very own network of industry leaders that are supporting her with inspiring the next generation through her endeavors.

You could never have predicted the trajectory of Christina's life as a singer and musician would lead to her managing astronauts and space events and experiences. But that unique background has given a much needed perspective to help connect the space industry and the mainstream world to remember why everyone loves space. In this episode, we discuss how even though it might not be easy to be the outlier, there is a tremendous amount of benefit it can bring – to individuals, to organizations, and even entire industries.

We've said it many times – we have to break our own glass ceilings before we can break THE glass ceiling. We can't change others' perceptions until we change our own. So how do we do this? Captain Erika Armstrong, author of A Chick In The Cockpit, believes it begins with understanding our own sterotypes that are holding us back, because this knowledge changes everything. In this episode we discuss how to stop holding back on ourselves, and how use our perspective to turn the barriers of today into little hurdles of the future – so with enough determination and momentum we can leap over them.

Matt Higa is the man behind 'The Top 62 Women In Aviation & Aerospace To Follow On LinkedIn List.' In this podcast you'll get to hear more about the man behind the list, his reasons for creating the list, his plan to get an all-female crew to Mars, and how managing mindset is critical to meeting big, audacious goals.

Men can be powerful forces when it comes to creating an equal playing field for women. From creating safe environments for women to speak up, to educating colleagues, to kicking down the doors that allow the real and needed work to happen, there are many roles a man can play. Learn from Rear Admiral Jim Macleod on how he has empowered his team to drive positive changes for gender diversity in the British Military and how this is lifting the entire organization.

Continuing with our theme of young leaders, in this Podcast we explore what it means to be a young business owner, and how to deal with potential clients that may making false assumptions about you based on what you look like. We mustn't be afraid to call out the elephant, and to stop and remind ourselves, ‘I'm capable, I've seen this before, I can overcome this. Resilience, facts and persistence can sway the most challenging of minds

We could all do with a little more badassery in our lives. But what is it and how do you develop it? In this epidose, Rachel McKay discusses the difference between bravado and badass, and the importance of both in our journey to increase our self confidence, enabling us to take a seat at the table, start to acknowledge our worth, and step into our full potential.

While experience can create great leaders, not all great leaders have decades of experience. So how do you handle being promoted to a leadership position when you are decades younger than your peers? In this podcast, Fiona and Emily discuss some of the hurdles young leaders face, how to overcome perceptions that you are not experienced to lead, and ways to keep going when faced with challenging situations.

Negotiation is a daunting concept for many, but if we aren't compensated for our true value, how can we get others to uphold it?  To break through the ceiling of the gender pay gap, we need to step up and remove the fear.  In this episode Fiona McKay interviews Angela Ambrose on how to ask for what you are worth, prepare for negotiations, and manage the fear associated with the process.

When it comes to our internal glass ceiling, Imposter Syndrome is a major contributor to people holding themselves back. And it's something we need to work on to prepare ourselves to break through the ceiling. Fiona McKay interviews Rachel Camarillo who shares her story of overcoming this. They discuss the the inner work that we can do for ourselves to tackle it, and how some of the uglier parts of our story are key to this.

Why are some workplaces so homogenous? What are the risks of only hiring ‘culture fit' candidates? In this episode, Fiona interviews Tiffany Nicolow on her experience of ‘like hires like' and what that's meant for women of color in the workplace. Together they will explore how we can challenge and change that, build strong relationships with people from other backgrounds, advocate for one another…and maintain grace for ourselves in the face of injustice.

We're More Than businesswomen, we're More Than co-workers, we're More Than wives, we're More Than mothers, we're More Than friends. We are so many things and we're really just More Than. In this episode, Fiona McKay interviews Gina Radke, CEO of Galley Support Innovations and author or More Than. They discuss how being ‘More Than' is embracing everything that we are and moving forward with it and saying, ‘I'm proud of this.'

So often we worry that our diversity holds us back. But what if we were to turn it on it's head? What if we were to view it as an advantage, how would things change? Fiona McKay interviews Dr Fariba Alamdari, a seasoned leader in aerospace, renowned TEDx speaker and advocate for diversity, about her journey and the power of viewing your diversity through a different lens.

It's often said that women shy away from power…but what if we changed what power meant to us? In this episode, Fiona McKay interviews guest speaker, Shelley Roberts, a people and performance expert, and CEO of Strategy Clicks, about how women can redefine their experience of power.

In this first “official” podcast, I introduce what the Leading Ladies Of…Podcast is about. I talk about the glass ceiling and how – even though it has changed – it is still preventing women from reaching higher levels in the workplace.