IN THIS EPISODE KARAN FERRELL-RHODES INTERVIEWS KRISTIN MALLON . . . .
In a landscape riddled with complexities and contradictory information, it comes as no surprise that a fog of confusion envelops both women seeking guidance and the practitioners aiming to assist them. My guest today has undoubtedly impacted the lives of the women she serves through her various roles and initiatives.
Kristin Mallon is a trailblazer in the field of women’s health and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience that transcends conventional boundaries. Join us as we delve into a diverse array of topics, ranging from the fascinating realms of longevity and health all the way to empowering women to feel their absolute best. In this episode, Kristin takes us on a journey through her unique approach to helping women attain a sense of optimal well-being. Her perspective is a testament to her dedication to fostering a deep understanding of women’s needs and the intricate connection between physical and emotional wellness!
Posted by
SDL Media Team
Rather view our video podcast?
WHAT TO LISTEN FOR:
- What is the relationship between longevity and health?
- How do you work towards helping women achieve optimal well-being?
- What is the role of telemedicine in providing tailored solutions for optimal well-being?
- How do you go about educating women about menopause?
- What strategies can be employed to get people to buy into your vision?
- How can individuals develop the ability to master stakeholder savvy across different industries and roles?
“The way we think about aging and the mindset we have about aging doesn’t have to be the way it is, going forward.”
FEATURED TIMESTAMPS:
[04:30] Entrepreneurial Roots and Healing Hearts: Journey from Childhood Entrepreneurs to Compassionate Healthcare Innovator
[07:03] Revolutionizing Women’s Health: The Evolution of Telemedicine and Hormone Care
[15:34] Unveiling the Connection Between Well-being and Professional Success
[17:11] Kristin’s entry into the LATTOYG Playbook
[19:36] Exploring FEMGevity’s Personal and Corporate Health Solutions
[23:49] Fostering Understanding and Support: Menopause Conversations with Compassion and Knowledge
[28:20] Signature Segment: Kristin’s LATTOYG Tactics of Choice
[30:18] Elevating Leadership: Embracing Flow, Passion, and Synergy for Peak Performance
[34:14] Signature Segment: Karan’s Take
ABOUT KRISTIN MALLON:
Kristin Mallon is a remarkable individual with a diverse range of expertise in the healthcare field. With a solid educational background and extensive experience, she has significantly contributed to women’s health, particularly in midwifery, menopause, feminine longevity, and breast health.
Kristin’s educational journey began at the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a degree in Psychology. Her curiosity and commitment to understanding human behavior shaped her compassionate approach to patient care. Following her time at Berkeley, she pursued her passion for nursing. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in nursing from the prestigious Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. This solid foundation laid the groundwork for her subsequent accomplishments in healthcare.
Continuing her pursuit of knowledge and specialization, Kristin completed her Master’s degree in Science & Midwifery at New York University (NYU). This advanced education gave her the skills and expertise to become a board-certified nurse midwife. Her dedication to women’s health and the birthing process led her to practice as a board-certified nurse midwife, providing comprehensive care to expectant mothers during the transformative experience of childbirth. Her practice was based in Brooklyn, NY, where she offered services to women needing personalized and supportive care.
In 2022, Kristin co-founded Femgevity, a pioneering telemedicine company focusing on menopause and feminine longevity. This venture showcases her commitment to addressing women’s health needs during various life stages, particularly emphasizing menopause and its related challenges. Through Femgevity, she offers concierge care to women seeking personalized healthcare solutions, aiming to enhance their quality of life and overall well-being during the menopausal transition.
In addition, Kristin has also shared her expertise and insights through published works, making valuable contributions to the healthcare field’s body of knowledge. Her multidimensional expertise as a nurse midwife, menopause specialist, breast health expert, and telemedicine entrepreneur showcases her dedication to advancing women’s health and well-being.
LINKS FOR KRISTIN:
Website: https://FemGevityHealth.com
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/kristin-mallon/
Facebook: https://facebook.com/FemGevity
Instagram: https://instagram.com/femgevity/
PEOPLE AND RESOURCES MENTIONED:
Article: Menopause by the Mayo Clinic
Article:Forbes Article on Ageism
CBS News Story “No Right Age”: Women face age bias at work no matter how old they are
Overview: The Lead at the Top of Your Game Leadership Development Experience
Episode Sponsor
This podcast episode is sponsored by Shockingly Different Leadership, the leader in on-demand People, Talent Development & Organizational Effectiveness professional services, all designed to up-level leader capability and optimize workforces to do their best work.
Click the plus button on the tab to access the written transcript:
Episode 42 | Leading Telemedicine for Women of a Certain Age with Kristin Mallon
Kristin Mallon 00:00
And so it’s no wonder that women and practitioners are confused. And so I really looked to kind of solve the problem for my patients and then patients were just like, wow, this is a huge problem. And there was just there were so many that I realized that it really, there was an opportunity to kind of reach more women on a bigger scale. And so then we went, we went to telemedicine.
Voiceover 00:23
Welcome to the “Lead at the Top of Your Game” podcast, where we equip you to more effectively lead your seat at any employer, business, or industry in which you choose to play. Each week, we help you sharpen your leadership acumen by cracking open the playbooks of dynamic leaders who are doing big things in their professional endeavors. And now, your host, leadership tactics, and organizational development expert, Karan Ferrell-Rhodes.
Karan Rhodes 00:58
Hey there superstars This is Karan and thanks for joining another episode designed to help you better lead at the top of your game. You know, it’s no secret that experience leaders are of huge value to their organization. But with age can come additional complexity both on a professional and a personal level, especially for women leaders. A secret that is not talked about a lot is that tenured women leaders rarely talk about how their health concerns evolved after age 35. And on top of it, they are expected to flawlessly lead their teams and initiatives without anyone being the wiser. Now fellas, don’t you dare skip this episode because this is a safe space for you to better understand what many of your women leaders who are age 35 Plus are going through. And to help us dig deeper into this topic is our guest today, Kristin Mallon. She’s the co founder and CEO of FemGevity health a concierge telemedicine I’m sorry practice with a deep focus on women’s long term health on topics such as menopause and feminine longevity. Kristin is a leader in founding this type of practice, which extends access to a variety of medical and holistic experts to those in need. All of these experts are focused on keeping more mature women healthy, productive and happy. Now be sure to stay tuned for just two minutes after the episode to listen to my closing segment called Karan’s tape, where I share a tip on how to use insights from today’s episode to further sharpen your leadership acumen. And now enjoy the show. Hey there, superstars, this is Karan and thanks for joining another episode of the elite at the top of your game podcast. We have a very special guest with us today. We always talk about you know people who are doing big things in their business or industry. And boy, is this a trailblazer that I’m super excited to bring to you all today. And specifically for my female leaders out there. What do we have some tips for you but don’t worry my male leaders, there’s something for you to learn and listen and be sensitive to as well. So you can definitely get some tidbits so do not turn off this episode. But we’re honored to have on today’s show Miss Kristin Mallon, co founder and CEO of FemGevity health and FemGevity health is a concierge medicine, telemedicine practice with a deep focus on women’s long term health on topics such as menopause and feminine longevity. And we’re gonna pull back the layers of the onion to her practice in just a moment. But let’s welcome to Kristin into the podcast. So welcome Kristin.
Kristin Mallon 03:53
Thank you, Karan, thank you so much for having me. I’m so excited to be here.
Karan Rhodes 03:57
Oh, we’re very honored to have you definitely honored to have you. So we’re really excited to delve into your own personal leadership play but of life. I know you’ve had a multitude of experiences but the work you’re doing at some devotee, you and your co founder is when you talk about serving the world you really are what you’re providing are definitely doing that. But before we go deep into food devotee for as much as you feel comfortable, we’d love to get a sneak peek into your personal background of it.
Kristin Mallon 04:30
Yeah, sure, no problem. I grew up in California in Southern California. I grew up with a single mother. And business was just really always kind of a part of my life. My mother went to business school when I was really young. She worked for Ford aerospace, and she kind of worked on like, they’re really like high tech projects. And my uncle started his own business. My father started his own business. So I always was just kind of around entrepreneurs. I always thought that was like, the way that things are done. And that’s kind of how we do it. You just kind of think give an idea and you put one foot in front of the other. I remember I even started a business with my friend when I was in second grade, we made barrettes out of comics from the paper.
Karan Rhodes 05:09
Really?
Kristin Mallon 05:10
And we would sell them at the local flea markets on the weekends, we’d like beg our parents to take us to the local flea markets, and you could set up, you know, back then it was the ad. So it was a little bit more lenient, and you didn’t have to get permits or anything. And, you know, you could just pop up a shop and sell things for cash. So I remember doing that at a really young age. And then going on to college. I really loved health. And I thought it was so interesting. And I went to nursing school, and I went to midwifery school. And I thought it was so interesting how so many of my colleagues were very altruistic, but didn’t see medicine as a business. And I think that there was kind of something about, we’re not allowed to see medicine as a business. That means that we don’t feel compassion for our clients that, you know, like, they can’t be they can’t coexist together. And I think that they don’t have to be mutually exclusive. I absolutely think we can help people and we can make money at the same time. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. And actually, I think it’s a good thing, because it’ll encourage other people to kind of follow the same path and continue to encourage innovation in medicine.
Karan Rhodes 06:15
Oh, absolutely. And so you worked as I understand as a nurse for a while worth nursing and midwife. Is that correct?
Kristin Mallon 06:25
Yeah. So I, I worked as a nurse, I worked in research and I worked in radiology, I love science, and I then worked as a labor and delivery nurse. And then I became a midwife in 2006. And went into private practice and then I haven’t looked back ever since.
Karan Rhodes 06:41
Oh, that is amazing. Well, congratulations on your success so far.
Kristin Mallon 06:44
Thank you.
Karan Rhodes 06:46
And so if you don’t mind and we delve into them devotee and what how that came to be, and what, what needed you see in the market that prompted you all to to devise the tellement medical practice.
Kristin Mallon 07:03
Yeah, so I started my practice in 2006 midwifery practice, and I delivered a lot of patients, you know, sometimes even 344 pregnancies of the same woman in the same family and these women started to get older and their needs changed. They weren’t so much focused on reproductive longevity and reproductive health. They were more focused on long term longevity, but also very specifically perimenopause, menopause, and the hormone changes that go that go along with this time in woman’s life. And you know that we didn’t get a lot of education about it in midwifery school, I think that we actually got more probably than her physician counterparts. A lot of physicians feel that they’re not adequately, adequately trained. And I really don’t blame them, they have to be experts. I mean, in women’s health, we expect OB GYN to be experts in GYN gynecological surgery, and pregnancy. And I think that’s already quite a lot for them to take on as it is, for men to expect them to also be experts in an endocrine part of, you know, the hormonal or a totally separate system. You know, there are parts of endocrine and in pregnancy, but it makes sense to me why there’s a significant gap here in medicine. And so I didn’t feel like I knew exactly where all the pieces were. So I was looking to refer and there really was just no one to refer these women to. So then I was like, Okay, I gotta figure this out. We got to figure out what to do consulted with a lot of different types of practitioners, Allied practitioners, endocrinologist, cardiologists, osteo, bone doctors, so many different types of allied health professionals, physician and non and I kind of started to put the pieces together understand what was going on in the bio identical community, the compounding community, the pharmacological community, what happened with the whi study in 2002, where we used to think estrogen was good, and we thought estrogen was bad. And we thought that she was gonna have you know, this kind of yo yoing that went on. And so it’s no wonder that women and practitioners are confused. And so I really looked to kind of solve the problem for my patients, and then patients were just like, wow, this is a huge problem. And there was just, there were so many that I realized that it really, there was an opportunity to kind of reach more women on a bigger scale. And so then we went, we went to telemedicine.
Karan Rhodes 09:21
And I think this is so genius. And maybe I’m just not in the world. And I mean, I know there’s some individuals that specialize with this, more seasoned individuals and their health care, but but there this is such a need. But it’s not something that I found that women talk about, freely except for maybe their best friend if that. And it’s funny in the world of work. And this is no matter if you own a business or if you’re an employee for someone, for women as leaders, we you know, we struggle through our childbearing years you know, with your child trying to be everything to everybody right to the heavy to the kids or your partner and kids, and you’re struggling to try to be the best you can be while juggling. And then as you grow your career or business and you start getting a little bit older in life, then you start having longevity, topics of focus. And this another one, I want to say another complex thing we’re having to deal with as women to still be stronger in advance and more senior leaders while also having to deal with that health. So you are so spot on in that having a medical partner or resource to help someone guide you through that is so important. And I’m just curious, what do some of your clients this far? What is some of their feedback that they have been given? Or why have they even come to you once they found you?
Kristin Mallon 10:59
Yeah, for unfortunately, women feel very lost in this time in their lives. They and and I think physicians are lost also. Women don’t know, should they go to their primary care doctor? Should they go to their OB GYN should they go to an endocrinologist. And really, what they need is they need a menopause specialist or a a 45 plus specialist. I always think of women because I’m a midwife. And so I really had the advantage of having a physician’s education just in pregnancy and reproductive health. And really, in the adolescence through menopause kind of conception of normal health care and holistic health care for women and with our education isn’t really focused on gynecological complications or pathologies or surgery. And that gave me this opportunity to kind of see women I’ve always seen women, as really transition through decades, that you’re zero to 10 is one way hormonally, emotionally, physically, spiritually, you’re 10 to 20 is another way 20 to 30. And I think you can follow along and kind of understand like where I’m going with this. So 40 to 50 is one kind of decade for a woman 50 to 6060, to 70. And what I found when I started to kind of put all the pieces together and get information from all different sources, and all different physicians and all different nurse practitioners, was that the way a woman goes through these decades from 4050, and 60, into longevity affects so profoundly her cardiovascular health, her bone health, and her mental health on the other side. And I found that to be just absolutely fascinating. And something that I just feel is so important to share with women all over the like all over the world as much as I possibly can. Because it’s really like investing how we invest in our finances, we put money in our 401k, or we put money in a Roth, and then we were gonna withdraw that money when we’re retired. So it’s the same idea with health, we’re banking, bone mass, we’re banking, muscle mass, we’re banking, arthroscopic and cardiovascular protection, even cancer protection, metabolic disease protection in our 40s 50s and 60s, that we’re then going to withdrawal in our 70s 80s and 90s. And we’re going to be able to avoid what I call that marginal decade that last decade of our life, where we have disability. So we think so much about like, well, what age did your grandparents die? Or what age did your great grandparents die, but really what was the last 10 years of their life like, because they might have died at 92. But they were disabled and living in a nursing home for 15 years leading up to that. And so the way that we can kind of what Germany is really aiming to do is to really help women have fantastic marginal decades, because those are the gravy years, those are the years where we have these adult kids that are probably our friends or, you know, nieces and nephews that are our friends or friends of friends, kids that are our friends, we have probably a little bit more money we’re able to travel, but we if we don’t have our health, what good is it? Or what does it really mean? And so that’s what we really kind of are aiming to do. And then what’s happened is because hormones are so and so different from men to you know, men really kind of go down gradually, and women have these significant shifts decade to decade. And so what we’re finding is that when women are supported in the right way, with the right treatments and the right therapies, they have profound changes. And it’s so fun to be able to help a woman in her 40s and 50s. Because I think sometimes she’s like, Well, my best years are behind me when that’s not narrow. And it’s cool to see women kind of come to that realization and it’s so fun and it’s a very fulfilling job.
Karan Rhodes 14:43
And you know you’re so right is that’s not so not true. And even those that are in their 40s 50s and 60s, and I come from the corporate America world, so I kind of have a corporate slant in my mind, but I always think of business owners as well but in corporate, those are your prime earning years. That’s when you have climbed the ladder, if you will, and have gotten it advanced type of roles. And it’s such a critical stage. Because if you don’t have your health, you know, you don’t have anything and there’s no way you can be the best leader you can be when you have a huge amount of health concerns, but when you have tackled them, and you have that peace of mind, that you’re doing the right things, or you’re addressing things that you might need to work on. From my perspective, it makes you so much more productive, happier, healthier, holistically, and I think about it the right way?
Kristin Mallon 15:34
Absolutely. And actually, you bring up this really interesting point that so the Mayo Clinic in this year 2023 released a study about the billions of dollars that are lost in health care to women taking time off work for menopause, billions with a B, billions with the be I think it was 1.6 billion, but I don’t want to I don’t want to get quoted incorrectly, when we go look up this the study, then, you know, it came it trickled through all the publications was published published in the New York Times published in Time Magazine, which is a pretty significant and profound finding. And I think the one thing that was really missing from these articles is that there’s something that can be done that it’s 2023. Now, so what we the way we think about aging, and the mindset we have about aging doesn’t have to be the way that it’s going to be going forward. Well, that’s just how it is I’m getting older, well, oh, my my joints are aching. I’m just getting older, it absolutely 100% doesn’t have to be that way. And with the right tools and the right techniques, we can actually enhance life and move to a more optimal, a more optimal feeling and a more optimal vibe in general because we’re now having we actually have the time the money, the resources to put into these, these really important components of our of our health.
Karan Rhodes 16:52
That’s amazing. So for FemGevity are do you work with those different? Do you work with the partner specialists in those different areas? You mentioned earlier, to refer individuals to them for conversations or how does that work? If?
Kristin Mallon 17:11
Yeah, so it’s a telemedicine based platform. It’s mainly run by nurse practitioners, advanced practice nurse practitioners, we have made our own training program because there really wasn’t anything out there. There wasn’t any book to follow. There wasn’t any course to create it yourself. Oh, exactly. And so we have educated all of our advanced practice nurse practitioners, about all the pharmacologic ‘s that are available for hormone replacement that are available for supplements, we do a lot of precision medicine testing in our you know, it’s it’s all mail order. So it’s it’s interesting, what COVID has done for healthcare is it’s made so much so much healthcare available at home. Yeah. And we are able to collect a lot of really important laboratory data, and then come up with these customized treatment plans to help women feel optimal. So we’re really moving away from sick care and healthcare in general. So a lot of what we have in healthcare is, you go to the doctor, are you sick? Yes or no? No, okay, come back when you’re sick, right? You go to the house, we go to the doctor, are you on your way to being sick? Like, do you have pre diabetes? Or do you have pre hypertension? Oh, you’re not on your way to being sick? We’ll come back when you’re sick. But we don’t want to ask that question anymore. At some Jeopardy, we really want to ask the question is your health optimal? And optimal and normal aren’t the same thing. And so we’re trying to let women know that there’s a lot of things they can do preventatively now, especially in the 40s 50s and 60s, to have this really fantastic marginal decade, in addition to not suffering through, you know, not just saying like, Okay, well, hot flashes. That’s just how it is. It doesn’t have to be that way. So there’s lots of options. And sometimes women want to do therapies want to do supplements want to do treatments, and sometimes they don’t, but at least they should be educated to know that they have options and they don’t have to do it one way. It’s not a one size fits all.
Karan Rhodes 19:11
Knowledge is power. Just knowing the options, you can make a more informed decision based on you know, your desires, your values and how you’re focusing on your health. You’re so right about that. So I’m just curious is FemGevity something that individuals go and can speak to you all, are you including it as like a benefits option for companies?
Kristin Mallon 19:36
Yes. So that’s a really good question. So we have to we have two options. We do have what we call the direct to consumer option so you can Femgevityhealth.com You can sign up for a an initial health consult and health assessment. You’ll have your telemedicine visit with your nurse practitioner, you’ll decide what type of testing you want to do or maybe you just want to have a conversation and you just want under And what your options are. But you know, most women are looking to feel better. They want to get some test laboratory information on themselves. The labs are shipped to the homes, they do the testing at home. Then once we get the results, we give them a customized treatment plan and we follow them monthly. So it’s monthly telemedicine visits, especially during this perimenopause. menopausal time in a woman’s life, she’s still cycling. And so there’s a lot of changes that happen month to month. And so, adjustments and titration, a lot of times need to be made. And we’re always with a lot of women, not all but a lot of women kind of want to be on a minimal a minimal amount of dosage of whatever it is they decide to be on. So sometimes it’s supplements, they’re like, you know, I just want to take the supplements that are absolutely necessary. Sometimes it’s bio identical, sometimes it’s hormone replacement. And so we’re always kind of monitoring, adjusting and tweaking to make sure that we’re not over medicating women, when they’re kind of going through this, through this through that’s kind of like the FemGevity direct to consumer interfacing platform that we have. We also do offer bulk visits. So we have some companies that will buy bulk visits a bulk like they’ll buy like 100 visits. Because exactly what happened with that Mayo Clinic study finds that women are missing work because they’re having menopausal symptoms. And they want to, again, give them an option of someone that they can talk to and say like, okay, or is there a therapy? Is there a treatment? Is there something I can do here? And so we have some providers, we have some, some companies that buy those bulk visits, and then those visits are available to the women at no cost. Unfortunately, there aren’t any CPT codes or health insurance reimbursement codes, because menopause isn’t really recognized. So right now, all of our consultations on the direct to consumer side are cash pay, even though we do offer a super bill, if someone has a PPO insurance, they can a lot of times submit that to their insurance. And we do you can pay with FSA or HSA because it still is a medical visit.
Karan Rhodes 22:02
Medical visit. That’s awesome. I can really see where more and more companies may end up trying this. Yeah, because there’s a, you know, immense focus on, you know, women in the workplace and keeping and retaining them, supporting them. And this is one way that they could do that, you know, and show that they’re very sensitive to, you know, all needs of women, especially their female leaders. I guess I’m also curious about is there any aspect of this? And it’s okay, if the answer’s no, but is there any aspect of this, that women that helps women have conversations with their significant others, or their bosses like if they have symptoms that are really, to your point, they’re having to call him from work because it’s, it’s really crazy. I have a friend who is in menopause right now. And she, you know, of course, everybody, you know sweats. But she is just like a, you know, she just came out of the shower, she presents in front of key executives, and when a moment hits, it just looks like you know, she just jumped out of the pool. And so she’ll call in on those days that she is not feeling at her best, because she felt embarrassed to be with her colleagues around that. So I’m just curious, is there any kind of support structure to help women deal with or approach or have talking points for their male counterparts who may not fully understand all what they’re going through?
Kristin Mallon 23:48
Yeah,, absolutely. So we do a lot of online education and videos a lot on our social platforms. We have a lot out there about talking about the menopause taboo, not just in the workplace, but everywhere. It’s very similar, I think, to what women went through when they were experiencing, needing to be out of work for menstrual cycle changes, and then also kind of what happened with pregnancy symptoms. And we’ve come a long way on both of those fronts, that now I think it’s time for menopause to kind of have the same moment in the sun, so to speak, where we’re going to be able to kind of have these conversations. The thing that I think is great about the employee health programs that you mentioned, too, is that there’s so many employee health programs now for lots of things in women’s health, including surrogacy and pregnancy and bonding, and even now paternity leaves for partners. And I do think that we’re going to start to see because the this large group of women is getting older and they’re still in the workforce. They’re leaders in the workforce, like you mentioned, and they still have needs which include this So you know, this menopause, this menopausal need. So we do a lot of that education on on our on our website and on our social channels. And we work with different community organizations. And so we have a lot of that linked on our website, we also have a lot of that linked on our LinkedIn pages and through our socials. So that if women want to connect into a community, there’s lots of different options for them to kind of get in a community and talk about kind of like, what their what they’re experiencing and what they’re going through. And really at FemGevity, we want to let women know that there are treatment options available for them. And again, not not every woman is comfortable with that some women aren’t interested in treatment options, but there is someone who can hold your hand and walk you through it and guide you and kind of let you understand what’s going on what’s happening, why it’s happening. And what what you can do about it, I use the analogy of like a plane landing. So what’s happening in menopause is like, our hormones are coming down. And we want to have this like nice, soft, you know, like, you know, 747 like a big landing. But sometimes you’re kind of coming in, like the Wright Brothers, you know, like, the plane is kind of tweaking and then like the each wing is going up and down. And so just sometimes having a little bit of support during that time can make all the difference in the world and can have a really significant impact on long term longevity. For example, with certain bioidenticals in certain hormones, it can actually increase a woman’s lifespan by up to three years from a cardio protection perspective, a bone loss protection perspective, and then also an Alzheimer’s and dementia and a cognitive impairment prevention because like, I’m sure you’ve heard women, a lot of times they talk about the vasomotor symptoms or the hot flashes, but they also talk about night sweats. And they talk, they talk about loss of sleep, and insomnia, which can a lot of times lead to brain fog, and then also irritability and mood changes, which then can sometimes lead to having outbursts at work or with their partner or getting more upset about things rather than kind of keeping their normal, even keel personality that they’ve had all the decades leading up to this moment. So there are things that can be done and, and recognizing when those things happen, that maybe maybe I should get my hormones check. Maybe this could be perimenopause or menopause, even just that awareness of like, maybe something’s up here is I think going to make all the difference in the world,
Karan Rhodes 27:32
I can see that I can see that. In just hearing your story. And your your and your co founders focus on this very niche area of women’s health. It doesn’t surprise me that you had mentioned that one of the leadership tactics that really resonated with you from my book was stakeholder savvy. And because you are if you’re the epitome, and you and your businesses the epitome of really, truly understanding, though, that you’re your target audience for those you’re collaborating with and pivoting based on the needs that they have at the moment in time. So can you share in your own words, what leading with stakeholders seven means to you all?
Kristin Mallon 28:20
Yeah, absolutely. I think I love this. I love this idea. Because I think it’s probably, you know, one of the most important things when it comes to business, not just on a consumer side, but also on a co worker side. And I think it was Henry Ford that said, if I asked everybody what they wanted, they would have told me a faster horse. Yes, but still, he was able to get eventually get buy in. And so he took this very foreign and very complex and complicated idea to people that were driving around in horse drawn carriages, and explained to them and got them to buy into his vision of a car. And I think that that’s so important that you when you’re working with coworkers and colleagues, if you just kind of change course and change vision and move them all around, and you don’t have buy in from them, then it’s gonna be a much harder train to kind of move around the stadium. But if everybody’s kind of bought into your vision, and everyone kind of understands where the trains going, they’re okay to switch directions quickly. And then I think another cool thing about stakeholder savvy is I can’t remember who said it, but it was, you know, we have the golden rule like treat others the way you want to be treated, but really we we could think about treating others the way they want to be treated. And I think that’s so important that especially in healthcare because sometimes even especially in birth and and pregnancy, we think we know the best way and we know how to avoid a C section or we know how to you know help someone with hyperemesis for example, but if they don’t agree with the plan of care, then it’s not really a good plan.
Karan Rhodes 30:00
You’re so right, you’re so right. And I’m just curious, because you’re in such a new area, and you’re really expanding FemGevity’s reach. How do you stay on top of your game? What do you did to lead on top? Elite at the top of your game?
Kristin Mallon 30:18
That’s a really good question. I also really like, you know, your ideas of, of mindset. I think mindset is so important. And, you know, I always tell my co founder, Michelle, that everything happens for us, there’s always a reason why this is happening. So let’s just find the good in it. And, and there always is, there always is some silver lining, or there’s always some kind of crack there. That’s, that kind of lets me see, like, Okay, this happened for this reason. And so I often let things happen. I don’t, my big thing in business is not having so much resistance, I think, insistence is a form of resistance. And I let myself go with the flow as much as possible. And I really believe in following my highest excitement, I think that passion is a direct link to our higher power, or God or the divine. And so passion is the communication to the heart. And so the heart is communicating with God, without the filtration of the mind, so that the mind and the ego we can sometimes get in our way, right, we just follow what we’re excited about and what we’re passionate about. A lot of times, everything works into place. And I find that’s true with people that I work with. So Jim Collins writes this great thing, this great book about getting the right people in the right seats. Sometimes you know, you’re working with someone you’re passionate about working with them in the interview really good, you can feel that there’s the synergy and the connection, and then they start working for you. But it’s not, it’s not kind of working well. And so instead of forcing or insisting, I feel like that’s a form of resistance. So I’ll engage them with what they’re passionate about. And then that kind of I feel like helps me to move them into the right seat, and never really having someone do something that they feel resistant about or they don’t have passion for. Because I feel there’s always a every, every puzzle piece fits perfectly. And so it’s just kind of like making not forcing them into the wrong spots. But making sure that we have the right right pieces to fit together.
Karan Rhodes 32:16
Wow. Well, I’m passionate about making sure that everybody knows about FemGevity and this amazing resource that you all have transformed into a business and helping to get the word out about it. And so I just want to say thank you, Kristin, for all of this great information. I was feverishly writing down notes as you were talking, you know, even to share with some some friends I know because I’m in that stage where folks are Peri menopausal, you know, and kind of thinking about their health. And so I know it’s a much much needed service. And, and so thank you so much for bringing this information to our listeners.
Kristin Mallon 33:01
Thank you so much, Karan. It’s been so fun to talk to you. I really enjoyed it so much. Thank you.
Karan Rhodes 33:06
Same here. All right, listeners. Well, I know you really enjoyed this episode as much as I did, please make sure that you visit the show notes and get all the links because you know, I’ll have all the information on how to get to Kristin, FemGevity site, and a few extra resources for you. So don’t miss out on that. And then please, if you could take this two seconds to like or subscribe to our podcast and share with at least just one friend that will help us expand our reach and also help us to make our own impact on bringing stronger leaders to the world. Thanks so much and see you next week. Take care. Well, I hope you enjoyed our conversation today with Kristin Mallon, co founder and CEO of FemGevity help links to her bio her entry into our leadership playbook. And additional resources can be found in the show notes both on your favorite podcast platform of choice and on the web at leat, your game podcast.com. And now for Karan’s take on today’s topic of mature women leaders. Now hope this episode was an eye opener for my male listeners out there. And a bit of a comfort for my female listeners out there that you’re not alone. Agent is a fact of life that we all have to mentally and physically handle. But for women, we have to manage it at the same time when many of us are in significant leadership positions. This means that we have to lead at the top of our game while also fighting forces trying to knock us off our game. Gendered ageism in the workplace affects women’s job security and financial viability. According to your research cited on Forbes, starting at age 35, women began to experience gendered ageism at increasing rates and the percentage peaks among those who men between the ages of 59 to 64, with 88% of them stating they have experienced some form of a gendered ageism. The research also highlighted that women felt there was nowhere for them to go for help. And that DEI initiatives…diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that their companies are not making the cuts. And when older women are passed over for jobs or promotion, it has a compounding effect on their earning ability and retirement savings. So, my goal of this particular segment is to bring awareness of this issue to the airwaves, I encourage everyone to read more about ageism in this dynamic, and become a better ally for women leaders in the workplace. I’ve even provided some additional resources and articles in the show notes, so definitely check them out. And if you or your team are interested in learning more about effective leadership action and how to turn your skills into differentiators, be sure to check out our signature leadership, assessment and workshops on developing your game.com Thanks so much for listen to this episode. And see you next week. And that’s our show for today. Thank you for listening to the lead at the top of your game podcast, where we help you lead your seat at any employer, business, or industry in which you choose to play. You can check out the show notes, additional episodes, and bonus resources, and also submit guest recommendations on our website at leadyourgamepodcast.com. You can follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn by searching for the name Karan Rhodes with Karan being spelled K a r a n. And if you like the show, the greatest gift you can give would be to subscribe and leave a rating on your podcast platform of choice. This podcast has been a production of Shockingly Different Leadership, a global consultancy which helps organizations execute their people, talent development, and organizational effectiveness initiatives on an on-demand, project, or contract basis. Huge thanks to our production and editing team for a job well done. Goodbye for now.
Want to be a LATTOYG Podcast Guest?
Want Karan to be Your Podcast Guest?
Want to be a Podcast Sponsor/Advertiser?
Like the Show? Please Leave a Review
#KeepInTouch
via our podcast alerts
Subscribe now to discover why thousands of monthly listeners who are passionate about doing their best work prioritize time each week to listen to the Lead at the Top of Your Game podcast.
#AboutSDL
Shockingly Different Leadership is a human capital professional services consultancy that provides organizations access to the best consulting expertise in the areas of Talent Development, Organizational Development, and Human Resources – on an on-demand, project, or contract basis.
#WhereToFindUs
MAILING
4480-H South Cobb Drive
PMB 219
Smyrna, GA 30080
PHYSICAL
2121 NewMarket Parkway
Ste. 108
Marietta, GA 30067
#ContactOptions
Customer Service Email:
service@shockinglydifferent.com
Call or Text:
770-384-1103
#Office Hours
MON-FRI
8:30 AM – 6:30 PM
Weekends By Appointment