This season, we’re diving into something deeply personal, often misunderstood, and wildly powerful: creativity for women in midlife. The theme is inspired by my own observations and the voices of so many women I've worked with as a women's empowerment coach. There’s a narrative tension in this chapter of life: a deep, almost primal hunger to make, express, and reinvent… right alongside physical symptoms like brain fog, emotional reactivity, night sweats, anxious insomnia, and a creeping sense that you’re not as fired up as you used to be. You wonder: What the heck is going on inside of me? What do I need to express—and why is it so hard to get it out? Add in the cultural messaging that a woman’s midlife brain is in decline, and you’ve got a potent mix of doubt, confusion, and disconnection from your power.

So I wanted to begin this season with something grounding. Not just inspiration—but the science. The “under the hood” truth of how our brains evolve as we do. To help us, I’m joined by Dr. Sarah McKay, a neuroscientist, author, speaker, and unapologetic brain nerd, who’s spent the last decade unpacking the wildly misunderstood world of women’s brain health.

About Dr. Sarah McKay:

Dr. McKay is an Oxford-educated neuroscientist who lives on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, where she writes, teaches and translates brain science into real-world tools for clinicians, coaches, and curious minds. Her books include:The Women’s Brain Book (2018) second edition due September 2025); Baby Brain (2023), on how pregnancy and motherhood rewire the brain for the better; Brain Health For Dummies (2025). And she also gave a TEDx talk on the power of naps—a woman after my own heart.

Sarah’s journey began with a viral blog post on “baby brain.” Instead of brushing off the stereotype, she got curious. That spark turned into a decade-long exploration of how the female brain transforms across life stages—from matrescence to menopause. When she started researching menopause and the brain, it was niche—barely a blip in mainstream science. Now? It’s everywhere. And Sarah helped lead the way.What makes her work powerful is how she breaks the science down—dissecting, decoding, and making it useful. She shines light on what’s long been hidden, creating a hunger for understanding, agency, and more.

In this conversation:

• We explore what really happens to the brain during hormonal transitions—not the myths, but the messy, magical, science-backed truth.
• We talk matrescence, connection, sleep, and why midlife might be your most creatively fertile season yet.
• Why midlife isn’t a crisis but a creative recalibration
• The truth about hormones
• The neurological shift of motherhood
• Sleep as a creative superpower
• Social connection as brain medicine
• How purpose and play keep the brain alive

So, whether you’re foggy, fired up, or somewhere in between, this episode will reframe how you see your midlife mind—not as decline, but creative rebirth.

Connect with Me:

•Book a discovery call at www.zevabellel.com

•Subscribe to my Substack: On Becoming

•Email me: [email protected]

•Leave me a voice message on Speakpipe

P.S. If you love this episode, share it with a friend, leave a 5-star review, or drop me a line. I love hearing from you!

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Hey there, it’s Zeva Bellel—career and leadership coach for women—and I’m thrilled to welcome you to Season 4 of On Becoming.

This season, we’re diving headfirst into a topic that’s been stirring in my heart, in my coaching work, and in nearly every honest conversation I’ve had with women lately:

Midlife and the Creative Reckoning.

If Season 3 was about how women lead, Season 4 is about what fuels that leadership—and for many of us, it’s creativity.

But I’m not talking about creativity in the narrow, elite, paint-in-a-studio sense. I’m talking about creativity as life force. As inner knowing. As rebellion. As a return to the wildest, most vital parts of who we are.

In this season, I’m exploring what happens when women at midlife feel the creative urge rising, and how many of us have lost the map to our own expression.

Here’s what you can expect this season:

• Intimate conversations with extraordinary women—artists, coaches, storytellers, culture-makers—who are reimagining what it means to live, lead, and create in midlife.
• Juicy solo episodes where I’ll dig into topics like creative shame, desire, fantasy, self-trust, and the cultural conditioning that keeps women small.
• A peek behind the curtain of my own creative reckoning—and what I’ve learned from coaching women through theirs.

We’ll wrestle with questions like:

🎨 What happens when we stop expressing ourselves creatively?

🌀 Why do so many women feel a quiet ache for “more”—but have no idea where to start?

🔥 How do we move through the fear, shame, and perfectionism that block our creative power?

🌿 What’s the link between creativity, vitality, and personal agency in midlife?

And we’ll hold tight to this truth from Clarissa Pinkola Estés:

“A woman’s creative ability is her most valuable asset, for it gives outwardly and it feeds her inwardly at every level—psychic, spiritual, mental, emotive, and economic.”

If you’ve ever felt the hum of something inside you asking to be heard, expressed, made real—this season is for you.

Midlife isn’t a dead end. It’s your next masterpiece in motion.

So subscribe, follow the show, and share this episode with someone who needs a creative jolt. You’ll want to be part of what’s coming: powerful conversations, creative experiments (yes, a creative camp is happening!), and a collective reclaiming of the parts of ourselves we’re finally ready to honor.

—

Connect with Me:

•Book a discovery call at www.zevabellel.com

•Subscribe to my Substack: On Becoming

•Email me: [email protected]

•Leave me a voice message on Speakpipe

P.S. If you love this episode, share it with a friend, leave a 5-star review, or drop me a line. I love hearing from you!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is a solo episode—a personal reflection on the biggest insights, toughest truths, and most electrifying moments from this season on fierce female leadership. When I started this season, I wanted to peel back the curtain on women’s power—to understand the unique ways we lead, the gifts we bring, and the impact we make when we show up fully. The moment felt hopeful. Kamala Harris had a real shot at sitting in the most powerful seat on the planet. But now, just a few months later, the backlash against women in leadership is intensifying and the exhaustion is real.

So, as this season comes to a close, I want to pause and reflect—not just on what we learned, but on the one question I keep coming back to:

How do we nurture and grow our unique power—and use it for the collective good—when the world seems dead set on stopping us?

I connect the dots between my guests’ powerful stories and this cultural reckoning:

• Rha Goddess on why women are wired for collective power—and why that threatens traditional leadership models.
• Ida Tin on redefining leadership by centering women’s health and creating systemic change.
• Cindy Gallop on rejecting the male gaze, reimagining power, and breaking outdated systems.
• Colleen Curtis on emotional intelligence as a strategic advantage, not a liability.
• Jessi Klein on expanding our definition of power—because sometimes, the strongest thing we can do is simply endure.
• Anna Polonsky on leading with authenticity, and why embracing softness can be an act of radical strength.

And I dig into the core themes that emerged this season:

•The ways women are wired for collective power—and why that threatens outdated leadership structures

•Why emotional intelligence is not a soft skill but a strategic advantage

•The tension between ambition and backlash—and how we redefine success on our terms

•The hard truth about women hurting other women in leadership—and why that’s not the full story

•The power of embodied intelligence—how women’s lived experiences shape innovation, leadership, and creativity.

Connect with Me:

•Book a discovery call at www.zevabellel.com

•Subscribe to my Substack: On Becoming

•Email me: [email protected]

•Leave me a voice message on Speakpipe

P.S. If you love this episode, share it with a friend, leave a 5-star review, or drop me a line. I love hearing from you!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does feminine energy look like in tech, one of the most masculine sectors in the world? This week on On Becoming, I’m joined by Ida Tin, the visionary Danish entrepreneur demonstrating what leadership and innovation looks like with feminine intelligence at its center. Ida is the co-founder and former CEO of Clue, the groundbreaking menstrual health app used by millions, and the creator of the term “femtech,” a $28 billion industry transforming women’s health and lives globally. Since leaving her post as CEO of Clue, Ida’s written a book about her entrepreneurial journey and has recently launched Femtech Assembly, a think tank that explores the link between Femtech, economy and planetary health.

Ida’s story is as bold and unconventional as the solutions she’s built. Growing up on motorcycles, traveling the world with her family, she witnessed firsthand how childbirth and childcare profoundly shaped women’s futures. These experiences sparked a question that would guide her life’s work: What if we created tools that truly supported women—on their terms?

In a tech world dominated by linear, competitive, masculine energy, Ida offers a radical counterpoint. Her approach is cyclical, relational, and deeply intuitive, drawing on the intelligence that comes from living in a woman’s body. Ida challenges the cultural blindness toward women’s needs and shows us what’s possible when we innovate from a place of connection, care, and inclusion.

In this episode, we explore:

•The profound connection between women’s health and planetary health—and why empowering women could save the global economy $1 trillion every year.

•How Ida’s global travels shaped her mission to build Clue and pioneer the femtech movement.

•What feminine leadership looks like in action—grounded in cycles, intuition, and emotional intelligence—and why the world needs it now more than ever.

•How to move past fear and radically reimagine systems that include and serve everyone.

Ida’s story is not just inspiring; it’s urgent. She reminds us that breaking the silence around women’s health is revolutionary work—that it’s not just about individual empowerment but about transforming systems, economies, and ecosystems.

Ida’s story will leave you inspired to think differently about leadership, bold enough to tap into your own unique wisdom, and hopeful about what’s possible when we center women’s voices and needs in our world.

Links and mentions:

• Ida Tin's LinkedIn
• Clue
• McKinsey report

Connect with Me:

•Book a discovery call at www.zevabellel.com

•Subscribe to my Substack: On Becoming

•Email me: [email protected]

•Leave me a voice message on Speakpipe

P.S. If you love this episode, share it with a friend, leave a 5-star review, or drop me a line. I love hearing from you!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does it take to lead with heart—even when it's shattered into smithereens? In this episode of On Becoming, I sit down with Colleen Curtis, a powerhouse in community leadership and a woman who’s redefined what it means to lead with a strong back, and soft heart.

Colleen was my boss for four years at Yelp, and she’s the one who had to let me go during a massive company-wide layoff back in 2016. But here’s the thing: I don’t just respect her—I absolutely adore her. Because the way she handled that impossible moment taught me what true leadership looks like: thoughtful, human, and deeply invested in the people she serves.

Over her impressive career—from rising to VP at Yelp to leading community at The Mom Project, Miro, and now Reddit—Colleen has championed the idea that community isn’t just a buzzword. It’s about creating spaces where people can connect around a common interest or cause and "become the best versions of themselves." Whether it’s writing LinkedIn testimonials for laid-off team members or rallying her network with “Let’s Get People Hired” campaigns, Colleen has never stopped building bridges and empowering others to step into their full potential.

What We’ll Explore:

• How to balance empathy and decisiveness when faced with the hardest leadership moments.
• The messy middle of career pivots, and how falling flat can lead to a better path.
• What truly separates a community from an audience.
• The power of women’s natural inclination for care and connection as a leadership strength.
• Learning the liberating power of saying no as a lifelong people pleaser.

Questions to Consider:

•What does leadership with heart and humanity look like in your life?

•How do you create community in a way that fosters true connection and belonging?

•What role does self-realization play in your professional and personal growth, and who's supporting you on that journey?

Colleen’s story will inspire you to think differently about leadership—how you show up when things get messy, how you balance strength with softness, and how you create spaces that lift others up. If you’ve ever wondered how to turn tough moments into transformative growth—for yourself and the people around you—this is the episode for you.

Connect with Me:

•Book a discovery call at www.zevabellel.com

•Subscribe to my Substack: On Becoming

•Email me: [email protected]

•Leave me a voice message on Speakpipe

P.S. If you love this episode, share it with a friend, leave a 5-star review, or drop me a line. I love hearing from you!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What happens when empowerment is only half the equation? In this season dedicated to the feminine edge of leadership, a sobering reality hit me post-election: empowering women is vital, but what about the work needed to address the fears that keep men (and women!) from embracing strong female leaders? In this solo episode of On Becoming, I’m diving into the silent fears, old narratives, and cultural barriers that keep true gender equality at bay. We’ll explore how stories—whether in advertising, literature, or personal relationships—can shape a culture where power isn’t a zero-sum game but something we all benefit from sharing. Along the way, I’ll unpack lessons from coaching, insights from historians, and even a viral ad that flips gender stereotypes on their head.

What We’ll Explore:

• What I accidentally unearthed as the #1 fear holding women back from expressing themselves & their power fully.
• Why equality often feels threatening to men—and how we can address those fears without judgment.
• How storytelling, from midlife feminist memoirs to ad campaigns, can challenge deeply held beliefs about power and gender.

Questions to Consider:

• What unconscious fears or beliefs have shaped how you think about power and equality?
• What kind of stories do we need to create a world where equality doesn’t feel like a threat, but an opportunity?

Links and Mentions:

• Misogyny: The World's Oldest Prejudice
• Metro Shoes Ad
• Episode #17 with Cindy Gallop
• Episode #18 with Jessi Klein
• Deborah Levy
• Miranda July

Connect with me:

• Book a discovery call
• Subscribe to my Substack
• Leave a message on Speakpipe
• Follow me on Instagram

Credits: Artwork Jessie Kanelos Weiner; Editing Matthew Jordan; Music © Fabrice Fortin; Photo: Virginie Faucher

P.S. Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share this episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What happens when life doesn’t call for a hero, but a sense of humor? In this episode of On Becoming, I’m joined by Jessi Klein—Emmy-winning writer, comedian, and one of the funniest people I know—to remind us that sometimes, survival isn’t about grand heroics but finding humor in the middle of motherhood, midlife, and all the “what in the actual f*ck” moments we never saw coming. In a time when women’s rights and bodies are still up for debate (and sometimes outright denial), Jessi shows us how laughter can be our greatest tool for resilience, connection, and yes, even protest.

About Jessi Klein:

Jessi Klein is an Emmy and Peabody Award-winning writer, comedian, and producer known for her work on Inside Amy Schumer, Big Mouth, and Dead to Me. She’s also the author of two bestselling books, You’ll Grow Out of It and I’ll Show Myself Out, where she brings the unvarnished, laugh-out-loud truths about womanhood to the page.

In this episode, we’ll explore:

•The quiet courage it takes to stay present through motherhood’s hardest moments, and why Jessi calls it the “ultimate hero’s journey.”

•How Jessi uses humor to confront the emotional shifts of midlife and keep herself grounded (or at least laughing) through it.

•Why unfiltered storytelling about womanhood—complete with underwear sandwiches and other intimate details—helps us connect over experiences we rarely share.

•Her journey to realizing that comedy is more than just jokes—it’s a powerful way to make people feel less alone.

As you listen, consider these questions:

•How might laughter help you face the big, messy challenges in your own life?

•What would it mean to see your own struggles as a hero’s journey, where the courage lies in just showing up, day after day?

•How can humor help us feel less alone in the experiences we usually keep quiet about?

Links and Mentions:

•You’ll Grow Out of It, I’ll Show Myself Out

•Jessi's IG

Connect with me:

•Book a discovery call

•Subscribe to my Substack

•Leave a message on Speakpipe

•Follow me on Instagram

Credits: Artwork Jessie Kanelos Weiner; Editing Matthew Jordan; Music © Fabrice Fortin; Photo: Virginie Faucher

P.S. Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share this episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What happens when you stop playing by the world’s rules and start living unapologetically on your own terms? For my next guest on On Becoming, it’s not about “breaking the rules”—it’s about smashing the outdated systems that were never built for us in the first place. Whether she’s rethinking how we view sex, reshaping power dynamics, or fighting to overhaul outdated payment systems, Cindy is rewriting the world through a female lens. In this episode, Cindy opens up about her radical journey from the male-dominated world of advertising to becoming a pioneering voice in sextech, and why she believes the world will be a better place when it’s 50-50 equally led, managed, and designed by women.

About Cindy Gallop:

Cindy Gallop is a British-Chinese entrepreneur, advertising veteran, and fearless leader in the fight for sex positivity and gender equality. After founding the U.S. office of ad agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH) in 1998, she went on to win Advertising Woman of the Year in 2003. Her career took a major pivot after a TED Talk in 2009 that went viral, launching her groundbreaking platform MakeLoveNotPorn, which promotes real, consensual sex as a counter-narrative to mainstream porn. But MakeLoveNotPorn is just the start. Cindy’s ecosystem has grown to include MakeLoveNotPorn Academy for sex education, a FinTech solution to ensure fair payment systems for sextech businesses, and an ad tech platform for ethical advertising. She’s even working on an AI tool to visualize and model real consent—something the world desperately needs!

In this episode, we’ll explore:

•The birth of MakeLoveNotPorn and how dating younger men casually opened Cindy’s eyes to the real impact of porn as sex education.

•Why she’s pushing for a 50-50 world where women lead, manage, and design systems of power.

•The roadblocks Cindy faces trying to fund MakeLoveNotPorn and how she’s tackling systemic barriers with radical solutions.

•Why Cindy believes that open, honest conversations about sex can change everything from relationships to power dynamics in the workplace.

• Why Cindy’s recipe for self-care will make every married mom weep with envy. :)

This conversation is not just about sex or power—it’s about flipping the system, breaking down barriers, and living unapologetically in a world designed through a female lens.

Links and mentions:

•Cindy’s Instagram

•MakeLoveNotPorn

•WeFundHer

Connect with me:

•Book a discovery call

•Subscribe to my Substack

•Leave a message on Speakpipe

•Follow me on Instagram

Credits: Artwork Jessie Kanelos Weiner; Editing Matthew Jordan; Music © Fabrice Fortin; Photo: Virginie Faucher

P.S. Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share this episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special solo episode of On Becoming, I dive into a topic that’s been on my mind lately: the environments we choose to live, work, and grow in. Are they nurturing us, helping us thrive and evolve? Or are they neglecting our growth, keeping us stuck in places we’ve outgrown?

After a transformative retreat in the South of France, I began reflecting on how the spaces we surround ourselves with—from our homes to our workplaces to our broader communities—play a crucial role in shaping our development. I share stories from my own journey, from Vassar College in upstate New York to my life in Paris, and how each environment either nurtured my voice or constrained it.

In this episode, I explore:

•How the environments you choose impact your personal and professional growth

•The difference between nurturing and neglecting spaces

•How to identify when your space no longer supports your evolution

•Practical tips to start shifting your environment, one small step at a time

Why listen:

•If you feel like your environment no longer supports your growth

•If you want to learn how small shifts in your space can lead to big changes in your life

•If you’re curious about how environments impact leadership, creativity, and personal evolution

•If you want to hear personal stories of transformation with actionable insights to create change

Listen now and explore how the spaces you choose can unlock your potential.

Links and mentions:

Madame de la Maison's The Good Life Retreat

Vassar College

Episode #15 with Rha Goddess

My Vision Board Workshops

Connect with me:

• Book a discovery call
• Subscribe to my substack
• Leave a message: speakpipe.com/onbecoming
• Follow me on Instagram

Credits: Artwork Jessie Kanelos Weiner; Editing Matthew Jordan; Music © Fabrice Fortin; Photo: Virginie Faucher

PS: Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share this episode far and wide!

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What does it take to finally start listening to yourself? For some of my clients, their wake-up calls have come via the creeping signs of burnout, increasingly frequent panic attacks on their daily commutes to the office, or even and cracked rib from a slip down the stairwell during a rare vacation break! But for my next guest on On Becoming, it took something far more sudden and terrifying: a near-death experience that erased any room for doubt. In this episode, Rha Goddess opens up about what that terrifying moment taught her about trusting her inner voice, leaning into joy as power, and embracing women’s hidden strengths.

About Rha Goddess:

Rha Goddess is a soul coach, speaker, author, and CEO/Founder of Move The Crowd, a leadership collective that guides entrepreneurs, cultural creatives, and change-makers to find their purpose, make money, and do good. She’s coached some of today’s most influential figures—Gabby Bernstein, Reshma Saujani, and even Halla Tómasdóttir, the new President of Iceland. She’s the author of the bestselling book The Calling: 3 Fundamental Shifts to Stay True, Get Paid, and Do Good and has delivered a TED Talk titled “4 Ways to Redefine Power at Work to Include Women of Color." She’s currently working on her next book, The Great Renegotiation, which explores how we’re all redefining our relationship with work in a post-pandemic world.

In this episode, we’ll explore:

• Rha’s near-death experience: How it completely transformed her ability to trust herself and the universe.
• Women’s hidden strengths: Rha reveals why compassion, intuition, and community—traits often labeled “soft”—are the very skills the world needs right now.
• Joy as a source of power: Rha explains how choosing joy can revolutionize the way we lead and live.
• Move The Crowd: Learn how her community helps individuals align their work with their purpose to create real impact.
• Vassar days: We take a nostalgic trip back to our shared time at Vassar College, reflecting on how it shaped our journeys of self-discovery.

This episode is about listening, trusting, and leaning into the joy that makes us whole and ties beautifully into this season's theme of peering into the blueprints of successful women leaders to understand how they do power differently.

Links:

• Rha’s Instagram
• Rha’s Book, The Calling

Connect with me:

• Book a discovery call
• Subscribe to my substack
• Leave a message: speakpipe.com/onbecoming
• Follow me on Instagram

PS: Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share this episode far and wide!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.