“Holy sh*t. I’m actually doing it.”
That’s what Elspeth Rae said, sitting in her garden one quiet morning – not just reflecting, but realising that she was finally working on her business, not in it.
But this moment of clarity came after a long, raw, and deeply transformational journey.
In late 2019, Elspeth made a personal decision to get sober. What followed was a cascade of self-discovery. Unprocessed grief, anxiety, severe menopause symptoms, and long-standing patterns of self-doubt and burnout all surfaced.
At a business level, she was powering through. Running a company, caring for others, doing what needed to be done. But emotionally? She was barely holding on.
“My GP told me I’d have to give up my job.”
She didn’t. Instead, she challenged every assumption about what was possible for her body, her mind, and her leadership. Bit by bit, she rebuilt. From working with a menopause specialist to buying out her brother in the business. But the real shift came when she walked into a room that changed everything.
Enter: the One Woman Conference.
Front row. Eyes wide. And suddenly, she wasn’t alone. For the first time, Elspeth heard a language for the exhaustion she’d been carrying. Superwoman mode, burnout, martyrdom, scarcity. And with that came the invitation to join Lead the Change.
She didn’t know how she’d afford it. But she felt it in her body. A full-body yes.
From there, the work deepened. Elspeth uncovered core fears that had been quietly ruling her life – fear of judgment, abandonment, scarcity. She moved through releasing and awakening work that shifted not just how she felt, but how she led.
And when her business demanded hard decisions – letting go of a long-standing team member who no longer aligned – she didn’t numb. She didn’t avoid. She stepped up.
“Queen goes into the office. Mother stays in the car.”
Elspeth’s story is more than a personal win. It’s the story of a woman reclaiming agency in her business and her life.
Through Lead the Change and Dr Joanna Martin’s Catalyst Mastermind, she’s become the kind of leader who…
- Makes brave decisions grounded in values, not fear
- Invests in herself, even when it’s uncomfortable
- Models what it looks like to lead with clarity and conviction
And perhaps most powerful of all – she’s proof that it’s never too late to evolve.
Author of the Amazon best-selling book, Superwoman: Escaping the Myth, she has explored the hidden pressures women face in leadership and offers a roadmap to sustainable success without burnout.
As the founder of One of many, a global community supporting women in leadership, she is committed to equipping leaders with the tools they need to create sustainable impact, without compromising well-being. Her work integrates neuroscience, behavioural psychology, and emotional intelligence to help individuals lead with confidence and authenticity.
Dr. Joanna's insights have been featured in major media outlets, and she is a renowned speaker on leadership, resilience, and high-performance coaching. When she’s not speaking or coaching, Dr. Joanna enjoys exploring new research in human potential, spending time with her family, and championing initiatives that support women in leadership worldwide.
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