Why High-Achieving Women Lose Confidence — and How to Reclaim It

In this episode of to Founders, Future, with host Zach Young, we’re joined by Anne Hill, a certified executive coach and founder of Ann Hill Coaching, whose journey from microbiology and medical science to executive leadership and coaching offers a powerful perspective on transformation. Anne shares how her early career as a scientist during the height of the HIV pandemic shaped her understanding of people beyond data, ultimately pulling her out of the lab and into leadership, business transformation, and coaching. Working with senior leaders, executives, and high-performing women, Anne recognized a recurring challenge facing women in midlife — a profound loss of confidence and identity often driven by hormonal and life transitions that traditional leadership models fail to address.Anne breaks down how her coaching integrates science, psychology, somatic awareness, and leadership strategy to help clients move beyond burnout, perfectionism, people-pleasing, and imposter syndrome. She introduces her signature frameworks, including Stop Being Stuck and the Empowered Transition Blueprint, explaining how deep self-trust, insight, and practical action create lasting change. The conversation explores why transformation can begin in a single moment of realization, how safe and intentional coaching spaces accelerate growth, and why community, identity, and self-belief are essential to sustainable leadership in midlife and beyond.