Karren Brady’s career advice on how to deal with menopausal symptoms at work
APPRENTICE star and West Ham United vice-chair Karren Brady answers your careers questions and meets an inspirational CEO.
Here she gives a reader advice on how to approach menopause and its symptoms with a new boss, while still giving a good first impression.
Q) I’ve been experiencing menopausal symptoms for the last few months, but thankfully my boss has given me time off when I’ve needed it and understood I haven’t been at my best because of brain fog.
The company has had a restructure though, and now I have a new boss.
I really want to make a good first impression on him and don’t want to have to immediately tell him about my symptoms as, if I’m honest, I’m a bit embarrassed – he is a man in his 30s and I would feel uncomfortable talking about hot sweats with him! How should I approach this?
Anne, via email
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A) I fully understand how hard brain fog and hot sweats are! The best thing you can do is face this head-on.
I know it’s not the most comfortable topic to talk about, but remove the awkwardness by being practical and honest.
Any new boss wants to know their team are dedicated, that they strive to succeed and that they are going to deliver what is expected of them. Explain that while you may not always feel at your best, that you always give 100% and try to do a good job.
Make some suggestions as to how he can manage and work with you – for example, clarity when setting objectives and timelines – but also reassure him that you will massively value his leadership, openness and understanding.
Research shows one in 10 women leave work due to menopause symptoms*, which is totally unacceptable in 2022.
More companies now have policies and employee assistance in place to help their female workforce, so don’t be afraid to ask for help.
- Got a careers question for Karren? Email
A Day In The Life Of…
Marisa Peer, 64, is a therapist and author. She lives in Notting Hill, west London, with her business partner husband John, 66.
I wake up at…
About 6.30am. I make a cup of tea, return to bed, and check my emails. Once I’ve spoken to my PA, I get up and do some Pilates or yoga. I’ll have a coffee, but won’t eat until 11am, when I have something like eggs and spinach. I start work in my home office at 8am.
A normal day involves…
I’m working on a new book about the mind, so words always need writing or editing. I often do interviews, either with journalists or for podcasts, or I’ll speak to experts for my Master Your Mind With Marisa podcast.
Much of my day involves filming online content. My audience wants to hear about confidence, how to be healthy and how to deal with change. I’ve trained 10,000 therapists since launching my Rapid Transformational Therapy (RTT) school in 2015.
It teaches neuro-linguistic programming principles for use with cognitive behavioural therapy, psychotherapy and hypnotherapy, helping people overcome issues.
This month, I’ve got a training event in LA, as well as a speaking engagement in Peru, so I spend half my year in the UK and the rest in the States. If I still have emails to deal with after 5pm, I move to my sofa and pop on the TV.
The best part of my job is…
Last year I introduced RTT online resources to 600 schools in the UK and 700 in the US, helping primary-age children to overcome anxiety and build up confidence. It’s had phenomenal feedback, which is so rewarding.
And the worst…
There’s no start and stop time. John runs the company, while I turn up and teach. When we finish work around 6pm, we never discuss business.
Women feel the need to do stuff all the time, but we’re human beings, not human doings!
I wind down by…
After work, I go for a walk. Sometimes John and I eat at Soho House, or we’ll have people over for dinner, or I hang out with friends or my artist daughter Phaedra [32]. I can fall asleep within five minutes, as I use positive affirmations to tell my mind that sleep is easy and immediate.
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