Coaching | Self-Awareness | Career Development | Bring Your Whole Self to Work | Career Progression | Reflection | Mindfulness | Women in STEM | Role Model | Our guest is a former Latvian diplomat with more than 21 years of experience in stakeholder management, negotiation, advocacy, and communication. Inese Podgaiska is the Secretary General of the Association of Nordic Engineers, ANE, and previously worked for the European Environment Agency.  She received the 2019 Women Economic Forum Award for Women of the Decade in Science Leadership and was included in the 100 Brilliant Women in AI and Ethics list 2021. She is a mentor and certified mindful coach and advocates for engineers’ role in advancing responsible AI and achieving sustainable development goals. We’re discussing bringing your whole self to work, and how we can combine our professional aspirations with our personal development plans and not divide the two instances of our life.  Follow Inese on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/inesepodgaiska/  Check out Inese’s coaching practice: https://beyoumindfulcoaching.dk/index-en.html  Episode Timeline: 02:00 Inese, tell us more about your work on empowering women.  04:50 What made you decide to start a coaching practice on the side? 09:25 What is your opinion on ‘bringing your whole self to work’?  15:50 What is your inspiration for hosting workshops on assertive communication? What can we learn from you?  18:48 Example of assertive communication in practice.  23:20 What were 3 important career lessons you learned in your career? 27:25 What is your view on career progression? 31:32 How do you tackle work-life balance? 35:10 Looking back, is there anything you would change about your career? 37:15 Final 5 Fire Questions.  The podcast is available on all major streaming platforms. More details on www.femmeleadpodcast.com