Travis Hopkins 95.9 KRFF “This Side of Country”
Ella Greenwood
Heather Monahan is a best-selling author, keynote speaker, TedX speaker, Executive Coach and has most recently been appointed to the Board of Directors of Healthlynked Corp. Having successfully climbed the corporate ladder for nearly 20 years, Heather Monahan is one of the few women to break the glass ceiling and claim her spot in the C-suite.
As a Chief Revenue Officer in Media, Heather Monahan is a Glass Ceiling Award winner, named one of the most Influential Women in Radio in 2017 and Thrive Global named her a Limit Breaking Female Founder in 2018.
Heather’s book Confidence Creator shot to #1 on Amazon’s Business Biographies and Business Motivation lists the first week it debuted on Amazon.
Heather’s show, Creating Confidence , debuted on the Top 200 shows on Apple podcast. Her guests include Sara Blakely, Gary Vaynerchuck, Ryan Serhant, Kaitlyn Bristowe among many other noteworthy celebrities and entrepreneurs.
Heather was named one of the Top 40 Female Keynote Speakers for 2020 by Real Leaders. Her TedX talk was promoted to TED and translated into 6 languages. Harper Collins Leadership is publishing her new book Leapfrogging Villains in 2021.
Heather’s has been featured in USA Today, CNN, Forbes, Fast Company and The Steve Harvey Show. Most recently adding Guest Professor at Harvard to her list of accomplishments. Heather and her son Dylan reside in Miami.
Q and A with Heather
What led up to you writing Confidence Creator?
Getting fired! After 20 years in Corporate America, I had finally made it to the C-suite. My job as Chief Revenue Officer was not an easy one. During my tenure at the company, I had more than doubled the annual revenues in excess of $200M annually when my position was eliminated. I had been promoted three times and had just been named one of the most influential women in radio when the CEO I worked for became ill and decided to elevate his daughter to replace him. She fired me immediately. That day was devastating. When I finally stopped crying, I realized I needed to take action and post that I had just been fired. That post went viral and landed me on the Elvis Duran Show. Halfway through that interview Elvis Duran said, “Heather, obviously you are writing a book!” The funny thing is I wasn’t writing a book at the time but his confidence in me transferred to me and I started writing Confidence Creator.
What challenges have you faced during covid-19?
I joke with my friends that people living in a big home with a boat and a spouse they like are living their best covid lives. However, my son and I live in a small 2-bedroom condo in a high rise. Living in a building during a pandemic is definitely challenging. The speaking business was my primary revenue stream when Covid hit. That was a tough hit however getting fired 3 years prior allowed me to have a different perspective. I knew if I took action and moved fast, I could reinvent myself. I jumped on my peloton and started asking myself what problem can I solve for people from my home and through my computer. That is when I began my virtual speaking career and my consulting and executive coaching business. I also pitched myself to an agent 14 times and was told no every time until the 15th pitch when I finally got a YES! My agent landed me a book deal with Harper Collins Leadership and my new book Overcome Your Villains is coming out in November. My son has been in virtual school since the pandemic hit which has been really challenging. I never wanted to be a zoom school lunch lady but somehow, we made it work.
What is your favorite quote and why?
Fire Your Villains! And yes, that is my quote.
The day that woman thought she fired me I realized I had just fired my villain. So many people don’t realize what a massive impact a negative person can have in your life. Having a villain in your space affects you mentally, physically and definitely impacts your confidence. Firing your villain is the key to set you up to take off!
Being a mother can be both challenging and rewarding – In what ways has being a mother changed you?
Motherhood has been the biggest blessing and gift in my life. Before my son was born, I was not very understanding as a leader. Being a mom taught me to see everyone as the child of a mother and see their potential. I began leading with empathy and vulnerability and that is when I really started to realize success in the workplace. Being a mother also taught me to put myself first. I realized if I didn’t do a great job taking care of me, I would be setting the wrong example for my son. If I wanted to have energy to play with my son, I would need to make my workouts a priority first. Deciding to care for myself as my top priority has been a game changer.
Out of everyone you have interviewed on your show, which interview stands out the most?
Having the opportunity to interview Sara Blakely and Jesse Itzler together was unbelievable! They are both incredibly strong, talented and funny and it was such a blast spending time with them. It was also so nice to see a couple so in love with each other.
Tell us about your 30-day accountability partner program.
After writing my book Confidence Creator, I had a lot of people asking me what is next. They wanted more. So, I launched my podcast Creating Confidence, and I launched my video course and accountability program. Everything that I have created is designed to help my community hold themselves accountable to achieve their goals and push themselves to the next level. The 30-day program is a daily email that challenges them to stop apologizing, overcome imposter syndrome and drop the idea that perfectionism is anything other than fear.
