Susie Heath interview

Citation

O'Connor, P. (2015), "Susie Heath interview", Development and Learning in Organizations, Vol. 29 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/DLO-08-2015-0067

Susie Heath interview

Article Type: Leading Edge Interviews From: Development and Learning in Organizations: An International Journal, Volume 29, Issue 6

Patrick O’Connor is based at Nottingham, UK.

Susie Heath works with high-achieving executives, both men and women, particularly in the area of male/female dynamics in the workplace, communication and influence, and with relationship and intimacy issues. Bestselling author of The Essence of Womanhood – re-awakening the authentic feminine, author of Little Gems, The Potency of the Feminine in Business, and co-author of Written in the Rainbow – a woman’s secret to self-esteem, she is a qualified Executive Coach, Life Strategist, Relationship and Intimacy Coach, Clinical Hypnotherapist with neuro-linguistic programming, Biodanza teacher and facilitator and Corporate Psychotherapist focusing on stress. She is an International Speaker and facilitator of workshops, both in the corporate and private sectors, using the power of verbal language, movement and body language, mind technology and coaching, and is passionate about presence, creativity, communication and cooperation.

She recently hosted her own weekly Radio Show The Essence for 18 months. Rather than promoting assertiveness training and the empowerment of women, Susie encourages women to explore and embrace the true potency and intrinsic strength and presence of their feminine energy, and how to apply this in their personal and professional lives. She also teaches Conscious Feminine Leadership, creating and establishing a new way of working which is more balanced and in harmony with the environment and the future of the planet.

Susie specializes in working with professional women between the ages of 29 and 55, particularly in the corporate market, who are stressed, overwhelmed, exhausted and who have over adapted to a more masculine way of being, as well as women entrepreneurs who want to create a more fulfilling and balanced life by developing confidence as a woman. Previous clients include executives from BP, KPMG, Nat West, Credit Suisse and senior HR consultants. She has run workshops for Women in Banking and Finance (WIBF) and has worked with high-profile film stars, opera singers, pop stars and even royalty. Susie is a trained TV presenter and has recently been featured on several radio programs internationally and in a television program on divorce called What Would Sharia Do? Susie is currently co-creating and co-presenting The One Woman Conference with Dr Joanna Martin and Annie Stoker.

Is there still work to be done to achieve equal opportunities for women in the workplace and in the boardroom?

Absolutely. Unfortunately while men will put themselves forwards for opportunities whether they can totally fulfill all the criteria or not, women still hold themselves back thinking they have to be proficient in all areas. We need to accept that men and women are not equal – we are different, even though we’ve spent the last 20 years or so trying to prove that we’re not. We need more opportunities for women to shine and bring their extraordinary attributes into the workplace – often this can only happen if provision is given to childcare and the raising of the next generation, which is more often than not left in the hands of the mother. Companies who embrace this diversity of masculine and feminine dynamics tend to be more successful.

The title of your new book “Dance your way to the top” almost implies a playful element. Is that possible in such a competitive world?

Dance is a wonderful metaphor for life, relationship, work and leadership as demonstrated in many television programs and films. Dance necessitates relationships with others, understanding the steps to take; tempo – speeding up or slowing down when needed; an ability to keep in rhythm, yet flexible enough to flow into harmony with people and external circumstances; adjustment and movement, giving and receiving, creativity, collaboration, efficiency of energy and acute awareness, with self-confidence and trust, leading and following when appropriate, relinquishing and letting go of control, of moving into empty spaces and making your presence felt. You need a healthy physiology and mindset and a willingness to listen and learn, to take the floor and be willing to shine, to step into the unknown where the greatest potential lies and to take risks. Dancing together needs a conscious agreement from both sides. As for playfulness, why not? Surely business is supposed to bring enjoyment as well as fulfillment, because working in a job you hate is not going to benefit either yourself or your company. These qualities are needed more than ever in a competitive world as opposed to a static version of “This is just the way it is”.

You suggest that women are wired differently so what can men learn from reading your book, taking into account that male leadership is unable to change the traditional masculine hierarchy?

Women have a very different perspective on life from men, and I hope that by men reading this book, they will understand, honor and appreciate the female psyche more, when you get to see how beautifully we are designed to work together as a whole unit. Masculine energy is vital for women from time to time when getting work and projects out into the world – including pushing our babies out in childbirth. However, staying in that energy is literally killing us, altering our hormones, our fertility, our energy, our parenting and our ability to connect with others in a harmonious way. Women are extraordinarily capable and can turn their hand to almost anything – we just don’t have the stamina or physical strength to sustain masculine energy all the time because we are not designed to do so. So my request is that men find women who are passionate about what they are doing in the world and go offer to help them by applying masculine logic, strength and technology – not by taking over and controlling, but giving support where it is required. Can women do it all? Yes but at a cost to health, happiness, and intimate relationships. So it’s in men’s best interest too.

You make the point that young women are starting to burn out in their late twenties and early thirties. How does that manifest itself in the way they operate in the workplace and their decision-making?

Much of this is learned behavior – they don’t realize they have an option. Many have been brought up to never rely on a man so they think they have to do it all themselves. Women are competitive among themselves too, so there is constant fear about not being good enough and continually having to strive to be perfect along with Imposter Syndrome – fear of being found out. Signs of potential burnout include feeling run down and exhausted all the time, lacking in enthusiasm about their work, feeling picked on and misunderstood, isolation and frustration, where they become less aware of their own behavior, ignore self-care, and become harder and less sympathetic towards others. Burnout is way beyond stress. Under these circumstances, decision-making will be from a more negative position.

Is this “new model for leadership” appropriate for all sections of society and can it be a tool to change the world?

I believe it can. Women in indigenous tribes used to make decisions based on what would happen in seven generations time. At the rate we are going, there won’t be seven generations in the future because we will have run out of resources. Technology seems to take us further away from our humanness. We are literally running out of time. Much of this depends on the way we think, the way we are using our minds. I have only been able to scratch the surface in my book, but it is acknowledged that about 97 per cent of the thoughts we have are repetitive, many of which have been inherited from previous generations, society, religion, politics, while much is being programmed into us by the media. In other words our thinking is not conscious – we are acting on autopilot with what is foremost in our unconscious mind. When we learn to think in a better way using more of our mind instead of just running the same patterns of judgment, criticism, competition and conflict (which I refer to as being caught in the Matrix) we learn to look for solutions from a healthier perspective, looking at possibilities. Imagine being able to live in a world that doesn’t demand you to have “the answer” but instead nurtures your awareness of multiple opportunities? Some of the most successful companies have people who value creativity very highly. Learning how to be in the present moment, fully aware and also with an eye to the future and the implications of decision for generations to come is so important – many decisions are based on the past and history.

How would you counter the argument that grace and elegance have no place in a tough, ultra-competitive business environment?

Grace and elegance go a long way, as do common sense (which isn’t common!) and good manners. This is not about looks so much as presence. Both make business a more pleasant environment.

You encourage the reader to change how they are feeling. Can that be a very difficult process for some?

It is enormously difficult if you are just using the mind alone. The mind is a tool – it is not designed to be “on” 24 hours a day. There is enormous intelligence in the body itself but our busyness means we over-ride the signals it is trying to tell us. This is not so much about intuition but being quiet sufficiently long enough for the body to inform us – I call it our internal satellite navigation system. We all can recall when we overrode that signal in our body that told us that the deal we were about to sign was not going to work or that a person was not trustworthy. Your body actually gives you the signals – maybe a heavy feeling when things are not right, and an uplifted lighter feeling when things are good. Through the exercises in my book, you get to “feel” changes through your body so you make better choices.

Women, you say, tend to hide their femininity in a bid to appear more masculine and “capable” when they achieve a position of power of authority. Do you mean physically and as well as mentally?

Many women have copied men’s way of working out in the gym, of exercise and hard-nosed physicality. This alters our hormonal system and actually increases testosterone so we become more androgynous, losing touch with the sensitivity and intuition that women are known for. When they fail to acknowledge their own feminine attributes then the work force gets out of balance and results are also out of balance.

You quote figures which state that in England, over 70 per cent of businesses are being created by women and women account for over 85 per cent of all buying decisions. Are women given enough credit for this achievement?

This is an amazing contribution to society with women’s creativity and ability to generate coming to the fore. Many companies are missing a trick by being hard-headed and ultra- competitive. If every woman realized their buying power, and acted accordingly and ethically, the world would be transformed in a week! Women make brilliant leaders – they are definitely the way forward.