In this episode, Geraldine Gallacher discusses coaching women for systemic change and achieving gender equality. She highlights the challenges women face in relation to motherhood, career progression, and leadership roles. Geraldine emphasizes the need for inclusivity and engaging men in the conversation. She believes true authenticity in coaching requires understanding the coach's perspective. Throughout the conversation, she encourages listeners not to lose hope in achieving a more inclusive society.
Providing coaching interventions earlier in women's careers can help address the challenges they face in relation to motherhood, career progression, and leadership roles, emphasizing the need to fix the system, not the person.
Engaging men in conversations about systemic change and gender equality not only benefits women but also enriches men's lives, promoting a vision of inclusive leadership and a more equitable society.
Deep dives
The importance of coaching for women in early careers
The podcast episode discusses the significance of coaching for women in the early stages of their careers. It emphasizes the need to support women early on to prevent them from opting out of leadership tracks and addresses the resistance that some women may have towards participating in women-only coaching programs.
Understanding the concept of the system in coaching
The episode explores the concept of the system or systemic and its relevance in coaching. It clarifies the meaning of the system as the environment in which individuals operate and how it impacts coaching women. The host and guest speaker discuss the need to recognize and address the systemic factors that hinder gender equality.
The challenges of balancing career and motherhood
The podcast delves into the challenges women face in balancing their careers and motherhood. It highlights the impact of becoming a mother on a woman's career trajectory and the need for organizations to provide support and flexibility for working mothers. The episode also introduces the concept of the "broken bridge," illustrating how motherhood can disrupt women's careers.
Engaging men in advancing systemic change
The episode underscores the importance of engaging men in the conversation on systemic change and gender equality. It emphasizes that gender equality is not a zero-sum game and that working towards a more equitable society benefits men as well. The guest speaker suggests a vision of leadership that is inclusive and aims for a richer personal life alongside a rewarding career.
Welcome to our new podcast series: Coaching Women. In this episode, our host, Dr Julie Scanlon is joined by Geraldine Gallacher, CEO of the Executive Coaching Consultancy and author of "Coaching Women: Changing the System, Not the Person." They discuss coaching women in the context of advancing systemic change and achieving gender equality.
Geraldine shares her experiences in coaching women and highlights the challenges they face, particularly in relation to motherhood, career progression and leadership roles. She reiterates her belief that it is about fixing the system, not the person, by providing coaching interventions earlier in women’s careers. Geraldine emphasizes the need for inclusivity, and the power of engaging men in the conversation for the benefit of enriching their lives too. She discusses the role of coaches in systemic change and believes that true authenticity requires clients to have some sense of who the coach is and the perspective they bring to the conversation. Our conversation underlines her belief that a more inclusive society is achievable and encourages listeners not to lose hope in the face of what feels like the last gasps of totalitarianism happening globally.
“Until we see it, we don’t see, and we swallow the idea we are living in an equitable society.”
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