We talk a lot about embodied leadership around here—about growing your business in a way that aligns with your values, energy, and voice. But today, I want to zoom out and ask a bigger question:

What if we didn’t wait till adulthood to develop strong leadership skills that allowed us to show up to all parts of our lives authentically and in our power.

What if we stopped trying to fix burnout, perfectionism, and people-pleasing in our 30s and 40s…
…and started giving girls the tools to lead, speak up, and trust themselves before they ever lose that connection?

This week on The Soulful CEO Path, I had a conversation that lit a fire in me.

I sat down with Lauren MacKinnon, leadership coach and founder of superpowHER, to talk about the confidence gap, the impact of early mentorship, and how we can empower girls—now—to lead themselves before the world teaches them to shrink.

The Confidence Drop Starts at Age 8

Lauren shared a stat I haven’t stopped thinking about:
By age 8, girls’ confidence drops by 30% compared to boys.
By age 14, the gap widens even more—impacting how they speak up, take risks, and see themselves as leaders.

Let that sink in.

These aren’t just numbers. These are ripple effects we’re all feeling.

We’ve all seen it in clients, peers, and ourselves:
→ Second-guessing our brilliance
→ Waiting to feel “qualified enough”
→ Burning out in a sea of overgiving and under-receiving

What if we didn’t have to spend decades unlearning those patterns?
What if we never learned them in the first place?

Early Intervention > Adult Unlearning

Lauren’s work isn’t about “fixing” grown women—though she supports them too.

It’s about giving young girls emotional fluency, leadership tools, and identity awareness before they hit middle school.
It’s about teaching them that their voice is important.
That their authentic self is welcome.
That leadership doesn’t mean being the loudest—it means being in integrity with yourself.

And here’s the kicker:
They’re watching us.

How we lead ourselves—how we speak, rest, say no, show up, regulate—teaches them more than anything we could ever say.

Legacy in Real Time

You’ve heard me say it before:
Legacy isn’t something we leave behind.
It’s something we live into now.

Supporting the next generation of women in leadership isn’t a nice-to-have.
It’s part of what it means to lead like a Soulful CEO.

Because this work we do—building scalable, soul-led businesses—isn’t just for us.
It’s for the daughters, nieces, mentees, students, and little girls watching us redefine what leadership looks like.

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🎧 Listen to the Full Episode:

🎙 Activating the Next Generation of Leaders: Confidence, Voice & Vision with Lauren MacKinnon
→ Apple Podcasts
→ Spotify

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✨ Know a girl who needs this?

Lauren is running a giveaway to win a free spot in her SuperpowHER leadership program.
Enter the contest here:
👉 https://www.laurenmackinnon.com/superpowher/podcast-contest

And explore the full program here:
👉 https://www.laurenmackinnon.com/superpowher

Let’s be the women we needed when we were 12.