The High-Heeled Leader: Embrace Your Feminine Power in Life and Work

The High-Heeled Leader: Embrace Your Feminine Power in Life and Work

Never in history has there been a better time for women to embrace and celebrate their femininity in business, because... There will always be more power in being a woman than there will ever be in trying to behave like a man. This book is for you. You might be working within an organization and want to progress. You could be running, or want to run, your own business. You are a woman who wants to finally get rid of the demons that have been holding you back and once and for all step into your true power and glory. The old way of blame and the "lack" mentality is over-enter the new way of "being." Let Katie take you on the journey and see what you discover about yourself. Find out how brilliant, fabulous, talented, and gorgeous you are. Take that first step-explore the possibilities, learn new skills, celebrate being a woman, and join the collective tipping point. Together, women can change their world.


Katie Day
is a sought-after speaker and consultant who leads self-development programs on confidence, assertiveness, self-belief and other topics important to women around the world. She is a trainer and business coach as well as a personal style consultant. She lives in St. Leonards-on-Sea in England. She is a member of The Association of Style and Image Professionals as well as Cambridge Who's Who. Katie recently released her first book, The High-Heeled Leader: Embrace Your Feminine Power in Life and Work.

The High-Heeled Leader: Embrace Your Feminine Power in Life and Work

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Author: Katie Day

Flexible Hours For a Flexible Life - Tips For The Returner?

-Written by Katie Day

Just over 20 years ago, I had a brief period when I wasn't working. My marriage had broken down and I had run a company with my husband, so within 24 hours I was on my own, homeless and without a job. I did get myself back on my feet again, but I can still remember how that period affected my level of confidence and also just how quickly that self-doubt crept in when I wasn't looking!

It is very easy to forget just how good we are and how many skills we have. Any period of not working, for whatever reason, will have given us the opportunity to acquire new skills that we can transfer back into the workplace.

What do I mean by that? Well, if you have been on maternity leave for instance, you will have fine-tuned your non-verbal communication skills to the highest level. Your ability to pick up on the merest nuances of body language displayed by others will be second to none; a new mother's ability to know everything about how her baby is feeling is so acute. Your hearing will have changed. As women we have evolved to pick up high pitch noise (a baby crying) and this will have been increased, leading to the ability to hear differently in the workplace, and being able to notice changes in people's tone of voice and emphasis of message in a way your other colleagues are unable to do as effectively. Most of us are naturally good at multi-tasking, but that seriously comes into play with a new baby! Juggling is the only way to function. As children grow up our negotiation skills are honed to perfection too, together with conflict management expertise and an ability to coach and empower people to be the best they can be.

If your absence from work has been due to an illness, then consider the amount of positive thought processes, determination and resilience you have had to call on to get you through and back to the position of being able to return to work. Never underestimate the huge learning you have acquired through this experience in your life.

Perhaps you have been made redundant and have used the time to retrain or increase existing skills. This shows a huge amount of foresight, focus and ambition than any employer would see as a huge benefit.

With all of this newfound energy, enthusiasm and focussed determination, it is quite possible your priorities may have changed too. Perhaps you no longer wish to return to full time, office based hours. It could be that a more flexible working pattern works more effectively for you now. There are companies out there that still, wrongly, put a greater emphasis on presentee-ism rather than productivity. The long hour culture that is prevalent in many organisations is not conducive to consistent productivity at the same high level and will eventually have a negative impact on not only an individual but potentially the company too.

So, can you come up with a business case for a more flexible working pattern? If you are less stressed and less tired, you are likely to be hugely more productive and effective, which in turn will have a direct positive impact on the company's bottom line. They are getting more of you for the money. You are less likely to be taking time off for stress/ill health, which will also have a positive impact for the company. The business case for flexible working is now so robust it is virtually impossible for a company to argue against a realistic proposal by an employee.

If the company you work for, or would like to work for, does not already have a flexible working policy, then you may have to produce a strong business case. But, the company will have to come up with a very good reason not to listen to you.

What does flexible working look like? There are a variety of options. With the advent of remote working and the gift of the Internet, it is no longer necessary to be office present every day. More and more cafes are operating free Wi-Fi making it possible for everyone to work anywhere at any time. I live in the UK, a lot of my clients are in the US, so my working day has shifted as a lot of my email and phone exchanges happen between the hours of 2pm - 10pm UK time. Much of my work is done on the go, when I'm on a train to London for example. There is really nowhere we cannot work nowadays. With Skype and video conferencing opening up the opportunities further, not only does it not matter where you work as regards office space, but where you are globally too has ceased to matter. The world is getting smaller and smaller. I live on the South Coast of England, recently I was working at St Andrews in Scotland, staying in a hotel, on the phone to a radio station in Connecticut, USA for a live radio interview! We have no restrictions upon us in this 21st century business arena. So, however you want to work, wherever you want to work, anything is possible. The portfolio career is building influence and the entrepreneur revolution is gathering speed.

Flexibility is the key word for businesses who want to expand, grow and flourish in the future. There is no excuse for not adopting flexible working options. The old way of 9-5, Monday to Friday, office based working is dying out. If you present a proposal for flexible working to your employer, you are part of the new breed of employee, the group who will take business forward to a sustainable future. There is no longer a 'job for life'. That was the old model. The new model is: flexibility, adaptability, vision, creativity, portfolio career, entrepreneur mindset and joint venture working. Be a part of the exciting business future, and move away from the negativity of those stuck in the old mindset.