Sonya Weigle spent 25 years in biotech leadership, performing the way the workforce required her to. Then two years ago, watching her youngest daughter plan her future, she realized she had her whole life ahead of her too.

Sherry and Sonya talk about what happens when you stop performing and start recentering. From putting yourself on a shelf to protect your career, to creating non-negotiables around time, energy, and freedom. From breaking generational patterns of women who "handle everything" to defining soft power as water: quiet, persistent, and capable of reshaping anything.

This conversation goes somewhere grounded and real.

0:00 - Trusting the voice within
1:13 - Intuition in a data-driven world
3:06 - The heart inside biotech
5:07 - Organizational DNA and scaling
7:05 - Why 80% of mergers fail
9:41 - HR is not an afterthought
13:52 - Women in biotech leadership
18:53 - Centering yourself after decades
22:51 - Soft mornings and non-negotiables
25:32 - My energy will not be harvested
29:04 - The moment with her daughter
31:24 - Breaking generational patterns
36:12 - Women reclaiming their power
41:55 - Soft power is like water
46:31 - Advice for the boardroom

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
The Catalytic Collective: https://thecatalyticcollective.com/
NextStageBio Advisors: https://nextstagebioadvisors.com/

ABOUT SONYA WEIGLE:
Sonya Wilford-Weigle is the founder of The Catalytic Collective, a membership community for executive women in life sciences redefining success on their own terms. She has spent 25+ years advising biotech CEOs through scaling, M&A integration, and organizational transformation.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonya-wilford-weigle/
Website: https://thecatalyticcollective.com/

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