Episode 118: A Year for Women?

“I think changes will be tectonic. We’ve had another movement of a tectonic plate and things are going to settle out and we’ll say, OK, where are we here? ”

— Anne Libby

“I think what might happen is two to three years of hard conversations and unpleasant dynamics. But you need to get that out of the way. ”

— Nastaran Tavakoli-Far

Nastaran Tavakoli-Far 

Anne Libby

Will 2018 be a good year for women at work? After the explosive, high-profile revelations of workplace harassment that snowballed towards the end of 2017, a lot of us are excited about this year. We're hopeful that the momentum created by the #MeToo movement can lead to fairer workplaces with less harassment and more equal pay.  But are we naive?

My guests are US-based Anne Libby, consultant and coach on all things management, and Nastaran Tavakoli-Far, or Nas, who lives and works in London and hosts The Gender Knot podcast. Each talks about her hopes and fears for the year ahead. 

You can also read a transcript of the show. 

Further reading/listening:

You can sign up for Anne Libby's monthly newsletter On Management here.

You can check out The Gender Knot on iTunes and on the show's website.

This is the letter former BBC China editor Carrie Gracie wrote to the BBC audience, explaining her decision to leave her post in China and return to the UK. She found she was vastly underpaid compared to two male foreign editors, and that the BBC would not consent to pay everyone equally.

Episode 117: Behind the Scenes at The Broad Experience

My desk in Brooklyn while I was working on this episode

This time, a short show in which I'm the interviewee. Sara Holtz (below) of the Advice to My Younger Me podcast talks with me about how I came to start The Broad Experience, what goes into making it and why production tends to be seat-of-the-pants.

I also talk about the difficulty of marketing when you're an independent podcaster wearing multiple hats. Below you'll find a picture of my 'studio', otherwise known as my clothes closet, where I record all my parts of the show (except the interviews, when I am sitting at my desk or with the other person). Every time I go in to record I have to move several pairs of boots out of the way, kneel down, and prop my laptop on a shoe shelf to read my script. It's a glamorous life!

It's a squeeze, but it's the only quiet place in the apartment - The clothing acts as a sound buffer

Episode 116: The Reckoning

“Hopefully this idea about shaking up the very foundations of male power, I think it potentially will lead to more women being successful at the top, but in new ways.”

— Linda Betts

Photo by Tomwang112/iStock / Getty Images

“Women have been resisting over-generalization for a century, so why would we want to turn and generalize men in the same way? ”

— Laura Linnaeus

Linda betts

Sexual harassment at work used to be something everyone knew about but no one talked about. Now everyone is talking about it. Scores of women are publicly naming prominent men as harassers. Many of those men have lost their jobs. But what does the reckoning mean for women in the workplace, and the power dynamic between the sexes?

This show features two guests, Laura Linnaeus from the US and Linda Betts from Australia. Each has a different idea of what #MeToo and the current climate will do for women's careers.

You can also read a transcript of the show.

Further reading: Here's Amber Tamblyn's New York Times Op-Ed, I'm Not Ready for the Redemption of Men.

The BBC wrote a piece about why there's a flood of sexual harassment allegations in the US, and only a trickle in the UK. 

This piece about what #MeToo has raised for Swedish women is fascinating. Just as my guests pointed out in the show I did called Better in Scandinavia, not everything in the Scandinavian countries is as equal as it seems.

Episode 115: Putting Yourself First

“As women we’re particularly resistant to want to give ourselves even a minute’s break. We are servant leaders, we’re so good at taking care of others.”

— Leigh Stringer

“Self-care has never been part of the narrative for African-American women in this country.”

— Theresa Thames

Theresa thames

For many women, looking after after ourselves in the midst of work and family life can feel like a stretch. In this show we meet two women who ignored what their bodies were telling them before switching tack and putting themselves first. 

A series of crises forced Theresa Thames to take her health seriously. So did discovering the organization GirlTrek. 

Leigh Stringer

Workplace strategist Leigh Stringer was determined to find a better way to live and work after a particularly grueling project. That led to her writing the book The Healthy Workplace. 

I made this show because listeners wanted an episode on self-care - but only if it felt real. I hope this fits the bill. 

You can also read a transcript of the show. 

Episode 114: My Answer is No (If That's OK with You)

“You really can only say no when you have a clear sense of your priorities. ”

— Nanette Gartrell

Photo by EvgeniiAnd/iStock / Getty Images

A lot of women have trouble saying no to requests at work and in the rest of life. We don't want to let people down, and many of us enjoy helping others. But too many women are withering under the weight of tasks and favors they've taken on because they couldn't bring themselves to say no. In this show I talk to psychiatrist and author Nanette Gartrell about how to set boundaries with bosses and colleagues without damaging your relationships.

Nanette Gartrell

Her book is My Answer is NO...If That's Okay With You.

You can also read a transcript of the show.

Bonus Episode: Unpacking Sexual Harassment

“Documenting it is really, really important, if even just for your own sanity, keeping careful notes and records of what happens.”

— Jennifer Berdahl

Jennifer Berdahl

Before the revelations about Harvey Weinstein, Bill O'Reilly, Roger Ailes and Donald Trump, Jennifer Berdhahl and I sat down to talk about sexual harassment. Jennifer is a professor at the University of British Columbia who studies harassment and power in organizations. In this show we look at what motivates sexual harassment, why anti-harassment trainings don't work, and what we can do about all of it.

Further reading: Tolerating Sexual Harassment - A Personal Reckoning is Jennifer's tale of her own harassment in academia.

The original show's page contains a lot more links to articles. You can read a transcript of the show here.