Mindset for female Founders
No one tells you how much of this happens in your own head. You can have the strategy, the clients, the plan, and still sit there at 3pm wondering if you're actually any good at it. The doubt. The pressure to look like you've got it together. The strange loneliness of building something on your own. This is where we talk about all of it honestly, because you're not the only one finding it hard, and it helps to hear from someone who's been exactly where you are.
EDITOR'S PICKWhy Confident Women Still Doubt Themselves
Nobody rings the Nasdaq bell in year one. Six female founders on the quiet, unglamorous middle years, when nothing's working yet and quitting would be the sensible thing, and why those are the years that count.
Most of us set the goal, then promise ourselves we'll celebrate once we've hit it. But the goalpost keeps moving, and the celebration never comes. Bose Akadiri makes the case for flipping that: work out what actually brings you joy first, then build goals that amplify it.
Ambitious women don't fear failure, they fear success. Jennifer Davy on why, and how to stop playing small.
After 18 years in a marriage that quietly eroded her confidence, Emily Keltz had to rebuild herself from the inside out. On why reinvention after divorce isn't starting over — it's starting informed.
Burnout isn't a skills problem. Organisational consultant Claudia De Silva on containment — the capacity rooted in psychoanalytic theory that every leader needs and almost nobody is taught.
Veena Giridhar Gopal has worked across four countries, six functions and three decades before arriving at the question: what would it look like to build something of my own? On the career audit practice that has guided every major move.
After 25 years working with brain-injured patients, Natalie Mackenzie can't treat her own brain as expendable. On cognitive load, delegation, rest and why the strategies that once carried her through eventually stopped working.
Boundaries & Burnout
Putting the out of office on for a week feels impossible when the business is you. Fiona McCoss, women's mentor and founder of Wild Feminine Retreats, argues that stepping away is a leadership decision rather than an indulgence, and sets out what to check before you book one.
You leave feeling worse than when you walked in, but nothing happened you could point to. That's not oversensitivity. It's your radar doing its job.
Most of us set the goal, then promise ourselves we'll celebrate once we've hit it. But the goalpost keeps moving, and the celebration never comes. Bose Akadiri makes the case for flipping that: work out what actually brings you joy first, then build goals that amplify it.
We optimise our calendars and workflows, but rarely ask whether our surroundings are helping or hindering us. Rachel Clacher, Co-Founder of Coertze + Clacher, on why environment is never neutral and what it means for the way you build.
Evening routines tend to slip the moment work gets busy. Psychotherapist, author and yoga instructor Eloise Skinner explains why winding down properly matters for your sleep, your mood and your nervous system, and shares three gentle yoga poses you can add to your evening tonight.
Mia Hadrill co-founded an off-grid retreat in the Welsh wilderness with no WiFi, no phone signal, and no mains electricity. Not as a business idea. Because she needed it herself. Here, the Aim Agency founder makes the case for why switching off isn't a luxury for leaders, it's a responsibility.
Burnout isn't a skills problem. Organisational consultant Claudia De Silva on containment — the capacity rooted in psychoanalytic theory that every leader needs and almost nobody is taught.
Veena Giridhar Gopal has worked across four countries, six functions and three decades before arriving at the question: what would it look like to build something of my own? On the career audit practice that has guided every major move.
After 25 years working with brain-injured patients, Natalie Mackenzie can't treat her own brain as expendable. On cognitive load, delegation, rest and why the strategies that once carried her through eventually stopped working.
Anna Hutton spent years in survival mode before applying her behaviour change expertise to her own working life. On the five tactics that made her calmer, more productive and less burnt out.
Every year, full of intention. By 9th January, most of it has unravelled. Karen Thom on why the problem isn't willpower — it's the internal filing cabinet that's been quietly running your life.
Sleep is the first thing to go when life gets full. Sleep therapist Denise Iordache on the five research-backed strategies she uses with clients and why protecting your rest is one of the most strategic things you can do.
Busy work. Builder work. Breakthrough work. Claire Bartlett on why most founders are spending 60% of their time on the wrong category — and what actually moves a business forward.
The pressure to always finish strong is everywhere. But for most women who've been carrying everything all year, it isn't motivating — it's just more weight. Danielle Thompson on finishing resourced, rested and ready instead.
Most goal-setting advice focuses on logic and structure. Dr Rana Al-Falaki on why that's only half the picture — and the four questions that help you set goals that actually energise you.
When the pace stops feeling sustainable and something has to give. Protecting your energy, and building something that doesn't cost you your health.
Confidence & Self-Doubt
Between hybrid working and school runs, most founders have quietly stopped getting dressed properly. Samantha Harman, personal stylist and author of Just Get Dressed, makes the case for putting your wardrobe back to work, and shares the three-step method she uses with clients to get out of a style rut.
Ambitious women don't fear failure, they fear success. Jennifer Davy on why, and how to stop playing small.
Being yourself is a start — but it's not a strategy. Marketing strategist Giada Nizzoli on what high-ticket clients actually need to see before they trust you with their money.
Burnout isn't a skills problem. Organisational consultant Claudia De Silva on containment — the capacity rooted in psychoanalytic theory that every leader needs and almost nobody is taught.
She spent years treating her creative, idea-driven brain as something to manage and suppress. Then she stopped — and her business grew faster than it ever had. Danielle Thompson on creativity as a business input, not a personality flaw.
Metrics, milestones and dashboards only tell part of the story. Coach and author Jessica Silva on the quiet wins — the boundaries held, the hard conversations finally had — and why they're the most important measure of a good year.
Lisa Johnson hit every financial milestone she set herself and still felt nothing. On why money makes a terrible target — and what impact-driven business actually looks like in practice.
When you work alone, there's no manager telling you you're doing well. No colleague saying it looks great. Just you, your ideas, and silence. Shannon on why solo founders doubt themselves more — and what actually helps.
You've hit the milestone. You're standing on the stage. And something feels completely wrong. Health strategist Nicole Brûlé-Walker on why so many female founders feel detached from their own success — and three shifts that actually help.
146 pitches. 22 yeses. Tricia Duffy on why she gamified rejection — and how chasing a hundred nos before Christmas led to podcast awards, playlist placements, and a completely different relationship with putting herself forward.
The best leaders don't have all the answers. Lawyer-mediator Leah Brown on why getting out of your own way, listening to understand, and asking the right questions is more powerful than any leadership framework you'll read.
You're doing all the right things — working hard, showing up, putting your heart into it. So why does something still feel stuck? Trauma expert Anu Verma on the hidden patterns that look like productivity problems but run much deeper.
Impostor syndrome doesn't discriminate — even Michelle Obama has talked about it. Jo Self on why strengths-based leadership gives women something self-doubt can't argue with: proof.
The confidence you're waiting for won't arrive before you act. Shannon Kate Murray on why self-belief is built through evidence, not preparation — and what that means in practice for female founders.
The doubt turns up even when you're good at this. ESPECIALLY if you’re good at this. Here's how other women have carried on regardless.
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Decisions & Direction
Nobody rings the Nasdaq bell in year one. Six female founders on the quiet, unglamorous middle years, when nothing's working yet and quitting would be the sensible thing, and why those are the years that count.
Most of us set the goal, then promise ourselves we'll celebrate once we've hit it. But the goalpost keeps moving, and the celebration never comes. Bose Akadiri makes the case for flipping that: work out what actually brings you joy first, then build goals that amplify it.
Veena Giridhar Gopal has worked across four countries, six functions and three decades before arriving at the question: what would it look like to build something of my own? On the career audit practice that has guided every major move.
Lisa Johnson hit every financial milestone she set herself and still felt nothing. On why money makes a terrible target — and what impact-driven business actually looks like in practice.
Most goal-setting advice focuses on logic and structure. Dr Rana Al-Falaki on why that's only half the picture — and the four questions that help you set goals that actually energise you.
When you're building something, there's no shortage of people with opinions about how you should do it. Here's how to listen without losing yourself in the process.
In a world rewarded for instant success and viral launches, Sarah Dusek makes the case for something more enduring — and explains exactly how to stay focused on it.
Stuck at a fork with everyone offering an opinion. How to make the call, trust yourself, and work out what you actually want from all this.
Doing it Alone
The overthinking, the second-guessing, the days it feels like nobody quite gets it. You're doing this on your own. You don't have to do it alone.
You leave feeling worse than when you walked in, but nothing happened you could point to. That's not oversensitivity. It's your radar doing its job.
Not a list about tech upgrades or new planners. The list that lives between the final email of the day and the moment the laptop clicks shut. Shannon on what female founders actually need.
Metrics, milestones and dashboards only tell part of the story. Coach and author Jessica Silva on the quiet wins — the boundaries held, the hard conversations finally had — and why they're the most important measure of a good year.
The economy is unpredictable, costs are rising and audiences are distracted. Emily Hatton on the five things that actually matter when building feels hard.
When you work alone, there's no manager telling you you're doing well. No colleague saying it looks great. Just you, your ideas, and silence. Shannon on why solo founders doubt themselves more — and what actually helps.
A broken engagement, a solo trip to Dubai, and the slow discovery that solitude isn't something to escape. Shannon on learning to trust yourself, and what becomes possible when you do.
When Shannon left a director-level role to build High Flying Design full-time, she didn't expect how much she'd need to unlearn. On bridge jobs, transition identity and giving yourself permission to let what you've built be enough.
The people you expected to be your biggest cheerleaders are conspicuously quiet. Executive coach Maureen Adams explains why this happens and what to do about it.
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The latest articles in MINDSET:You leave feeling worse than when you walked in, but nothing happened you could point to. That's not oversensitivity. It's your radar doing its job.
Nobody rings the Nasdaq bell in year one. Six female founders on the quiet, unglamorous middle years, when nothing's working yet and quitting would be the sensible thing, and why those are the years that count.
Most of us set the goal, then promise ourselves we'll celebrate once we've hit it. But the goalpost keeps moving, and the celebration never comes. Bose Akadiri makes the case for flipping that: work out what actually brings you joy first, then build goals that amplify it.
Ambitious women don't fear failure, they fear success. Jennifer Davy on why, and how to stop playing small.
After 18 years in a marriage that quietly eroded her confidence, Emily Keltz had to rebuild herself from the inside out. On why reinvention after divorce isn't starting over — it's starting informed.
Burnout isn't a skills problem. Organisational consultant Claudia De Silva on containment — the capacity rooted in psychoanalytic theory that every leader needs and almost nobody is taught.
Veena Giridhar Gopal has worked across four countries, six functions and three decades before arriving at the question: what would it look like to build something of my own? On the career audit practice that has guided every major move.
After 25 years working with brain-injured patients, Natalie Mackenzie can't treat her own brain as expendable. On cognitive load, delegation, rest and why the strategies that once carried her through eventually stopped working.
She spent years treating her creative, idea-driven brain as something to manage and suppress. Then she stopped — and her business grew faster than it ever had. Danielle Thompson on creativity as a business input, not a personality flaw.
Every year, full of intention. By 9th January, most of it has unravelled. Karen Thom on why the problem isn't willpower — it's the internal filing cabinet that's been quietly running your life.
Not a list about tech upgrades or new planners. The list that lives between the final email of the day and the moment the laptop clicks shut. Shannon on what female founders actually need.
Metrics, milestones and dashboards only tell part of the story. Coach and author Jessica Silva on the quiet wins — the boundaries held, the hard conversations finally had — and why they're the most important measure of a good year.
The pressure to always finish strong is everywhere. But for most women who've been carrying everything all year, it isn't motivating — it's just more weight. Danielle Thompson on finishing resourced, rested and ready instead.
Lisa Johnson hit every financial milestone she set herself and still felt nothing. On why money makes a terrible target — and what impact-driven business actually looks like in practice.
The economy is unpredictable, costs are rising and audiences are distracted. Emily Hatton on the five things that actually matter when building feels hard.
You leave feeling worse than when you walked in, but nothing happened you could point to. That's not oversensitivity. It's your radar doing its job.