🎙️ Behind the Episode: She’s Ready—The World Isn’t

This week on the UpLift Women’s Wellness Podcast, Bethany and Auria dive into the uncomfortable truth that women are more than ready for leadership… but the systems around them still aren't.

If you missed the episode, you can listen here:
👉 Podcast: https://www.head2toestrength.com/podcast

This conversation explores the gap between women’s readiness and the world’s willingness to open the door—whether in hiring, leadership, or the spaces that still gatekeep power.

🚫 The Leadership Gap Isn’t Competence—It’s Access

One of the hardest stats from the episode?
Women hold only 10.4% of Fortune 500 CEO roles (2024).

Not due to lack of ability—
but due to lack of access.

Inside Head 2 Toe Strength, we see this every day: women who are overqualified and still overlooked. That’s not a personal failing. That’s a structural one.

Learn our approach to rebuilding from these pressures:
👉 Our Philosophy: https://www.head2toestrength.com/our-philosophy

💼 Competence vs. Character: The Bias Split

Here’s the truth the episode names clearly:

  • Men are judged on competence.

  • Women are judged on personality.

Women still field interview questions about:
✔️ Children
✔️ Stress
✔️ Attendance
✔️ “Fit”

Meanwhile, men are evaluated on:
✔️ Experience
✔️ Performance
✔️ Skill

And yet the Harvard Business Review (2023) reports that women-led companies deliver higher employee satisfaction and profitability.

But bias persists—even coworkers telling Bethany,
“Women just aren’t designed for leadership.”

Explore how we coach women through confidence recovery:
👉 Strength Coaching: https://www.head2toestrength.com/strength-coaching

📉 The Confidence Gap: Why Women “Wait”

This episode highlights a stat that hits hard:

  • Women apply for promotions only when they meet 100% of qualifications.

  • Men apply at 60%.

That’s not about bravery.
That’s about how boys and girls are conditioned differently from childhood.

Confidence is not innate.
It’s learned—and unlearned.

If you’re rebuilding internal permission to take up space, explore:
👉 Mental Health Therapy: https://www.head2toestrength.com/mental-health-therapy

🧱 The Glass Ceiling Isn’t Cracked—It’s Reinforced

The episode breaks down the enduring weight of the glass ceiling—the invisible barrier that blocks women (and especially women of color) from rising into upper leadership, no matter their qualifications.

The higher the level, the fewer the women.
Not because they don’t exist,
but because opportunity narrows on purpose.

Auria brings incredible clarity to this topic—learn more about her work:
👉 Auria’s Approach: https://www.head2toestrength.com/aurias-approach

🌱 When Women Lead, Workplaces Change

Auria shares a powerful memory of working for a female COO who built culture through:

  • collaboration

  • inclusivity

  • transparency

  • psychological safety

Her leadership wasn’t the exception—it’s the model women bring when they’re allowed to lead.

More stories from our community:
👉 Testimonials: https://www.head2toestrength.com/testimonials

🔥 Entrepreneurship Isn’t an Equal Starting Line

Bethany opens up about her path to entrepreneurship—built without:

❌ family money
❌ generational wealth
❌ financial safety nets

Just work, sacrifice, school, certifications, and more work.

Her story is a counter-narrative to the myth that success is just “hustle.” Some people start at zero. Some start with a cushion.

Learn who we are behind the mic:
👉 Who We Are: https://www.head2toestrength.com/who-we-are

💬 Final Word: Don’t Dim a Woman Who’s Fighting to Rise

The episode ends with a message that resonates deeply:

Don’t squash someone’s passion because you don’t understand it.
Don’t underestimate the woman who built herself from nothing.
And don’t mistake exhaustion for inability.

Women are ready.
They’ve always been ready.
It’s the world that needs to catch up.

Continue exploring these conversations:
👉 Blog: https://www.head2toestrength.com/blog
👉 Contact: https://www.head2toestrength.com/contact

UpLift Women’s Wellness Podcast — Show Notes

In this episode of the UpLift Women’s Wellness Podcast, Bethany and Auria take a direct, honest look at the frustrating gap between women’s readiness to lead…and the world’s reluctance to let them.

We dig into the data, the lived experience, the bias, and the emotional toll that comes from constantly being told you’re “too much,” “not enough,” or “not designed for leadership.”
Spoiler: none of that is true — but these narratives still shape careers, confidence, and opportunity.

🔍 What We Talk About in This Episode

1. Women Are Qualified — the Systems Aren’t Ready

  • Only 10.4% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women.

  • Women continue to face hiring bias, promotion bias, and different standards of “competency.”

2. How Bias Shows Up in Everyday Workplaces

We share real stories of:

  • Being evaluated on personality instead of performance

  • Interview questions centered on marriage, children, and attendance

  • Coworkers claiming women “aren’t built for leadership”

  • The gap between how women lead and how they’re perceived

3. What the Research Actually Says

Studies show women-led companies:

  • Have higher employee satisfaction

  • Outperform on profitability

  • Demonstrate stronger collaboration and long-term stability

4. The Confidence Gap

Why women wait to meet 100% of qualifications before applying — while men apply at 60%.
And how those messages begin far earlier than the workplace.

5. The Glass Ceiling Isn’t Invisible — It’s Structural

Especially for women of color, the barriers compound.
We break down what this looks like, emotionally and professionally.

6. Entrepreneurship, Privilege, and the Fight to Build Something

Bethany shares her path building Head 2 Toe Strength without financial backing, family support, or generational wealth — and why telling women “just work harder” is dismissive and dishonest.

💛 If This Episode Hit Home…

Explore more about our integrated approach to women’s wellness and leadership readiness:

📩 Want to Work With Us?

You can always book a consult at
https://www.head2toestrength.com/contact