OK OK, I GET IT!!
My girlfriends, business coach, husband, and tarot cards all told me the same thing this week.
And it's like, OK OK I f*cking get it.
They reminded me why Like a Leader exists. And I realized I've never actually told you the origin story.
It's pretty simple…
I'm SO OVER watching brilliant women get failed by a broken system.
I'm sitting on the couch watching mediocre men lead companies (and countries) into the ground while knowing damn well me and my besties could do better. *See group chat for evidence.
And the thing that really makes me want to throw my phone across the room?
The leadership development that's supposed to help women rise is completely failing you. Here's the BS you're dealing with:
Confidence boosts that feel good but don't actually teach you skills
Training built for men that ignores what actually makes a good leader AND conveniently leaves out the part where being direct as a woman gets you called a b*tch
Tips and tricks that solve today's problem but leave you stranded tomorrow
And THEN? It all costs a bloody fortune. Which is ridiculous when we're literally trying to get MORE women into leadership, not fewer.
On top of all of that, the women's leadership development industry feels so... performative. Like you need to show up in a blazer with a blowout and a full face of makeup to prove you can learn to be a better leader?
As if.
You don't have time for that. You're busy actually leading—juggling your team, the work of three people, everyone else's crises, your own development, the mental and emotional load of leadership, and keeping your houseplants alive—and the last thing you need is more pressure to perform some polished version of success you saw on LinkedIn.
So I got to thinking, what do women actually need?
Leadership development that meets you where you are (on your couch in PJs with wine, maybe a face mask) AND where you want to be (in that role you absolutely deserve).
You need actual skills and strategies grounded in science, not someone's opinion about what worked for them one time. Because let's be honest: Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants doesn't work IRL, and neither does one-size-fits-all leadership advice.
You need to be surrounded by other smart, ambitious women who get it. Women who want the promotion because they'll make an impact AND because groceries are expensive and that pay bump would be nice, k thaaaanks.
And you need a space where your career is serious, but you don't have to be. Where you can ask the "dumb" questions, be silly, crack jokes, and show up as yourself—messy bun and all.
That's Like a Leader.
Science-based, not BS.
Affordable, not gatekept.
Real, not performative.
It's a place built for the couch, the wine, the messy bun and the woman who's going to change everything.
…okay, maybe not everything. But her team, her trajectory, and the ratio of competent women in leadership? Absolutely.
Let's go, girls!
xoxo
Kels
This Week's Thing
We're drowning in male leadership examples, and it's making it harder to see ourselves in those roles. Your thing this week: pick one woman in leadership and actually learn about her. How does she lead? What does she prioritize? What was her path?
Easy places to look: this week's Call Her Daddy episode with Michelle Obama, grab a coffee with a woman at your company whose career you admire, pick up a new book, or honestly just Google women CEOs in your industry and go down a rabbit hole.