Unmuted & Unabashed: The Podcast

Why do smart, capable women suddenly sound like a corporate memo in meetings? This episode breaks down the “corporate accent” — the learned behavior of masking your true voice with polished, vague, and often meaningless language in professional settings. From early career conditioning to survival instincts, we unpack why it happens and why it’s so hard to unlearn. 🔑 Key Topics 1. What is the “Corporate Accent”? 2. Masking vs Authenticity at Work 3. Early Career Conditioning 4. The Gender Bias 5. The Confidence Shift Over Time 6. The Privilege of Being Direct 7. Why Women Do This 8. The Problem with “Bring Your Whole Self to Work”   🔥 Standout Moments “Take the corporate out of your mouth and tell me what we’re actually doing.” “I don’t think anyone is hiring us for the filter words.” “People are desperate for authenticity.”   🎯 Actionable Shift Next meeting, try this: 👉 Say the thing you were about to soften 👉 Replace one buzzword with plain language 👉 Speak earlier than you normally would   Small shifts. Big impact.

Feeling stuck but ready for more? You don't have to blow up your life to move forward. In this episode, Margaret, Lisa and Brooke discuss "Reinvention Mode" — not a dramitc shift, but micro moments and small strategic shifts that lead to personal and professional breakthroughs. They share personal stories of burnout, imposter syndrome and the power of reflection, plus practical tools for women who want to quietly evolve without quitting everything they have today. Key Topics The "Is this it?" moment and why so many women experience it Why staying still isn't neutral — it's stagnation Imposter syndrome: why women struggle with it (and why mediocre men don't) The importance of failure as a growth tool How to identify what you want vs. what society tells you to want Timestamps 00:00 — Introductions: Meet Margaret, Lisa and Brooke03:26 — What is reinvention mode?05:07 — The "Is this it?" feeling and why failure matters09:57 — Why there's no "perfect age" for women12:06 — Imposter syndrome: Why we struggle (and mediocre men don't)13:58 — Brooke's pre-meeting mantra: "I am Brooke (bleeping) Salazar"16:58 — Centering practices: Meditation, coloring and creating space23:47 — The "What I Want / What I Don't Want" exercise25:45 — Recording your wins (and why it builds confidence)28:47 — Tracking failures and lessons learned32:13 — Homework and takeaways34:02 — Closing: How to connect with UnabashedTakeaways & Homework Name one reinvention moment — a small breakthrough, past or recent. Acknowledge it as a win. Reflect on flow vs. friction — What brings you joy? What weighs you down? Write it down. Identify one skill your future self needs — and start working toward it. Update your LinkedIn — Change something that signals who you're becoming. Record your wins and failures — Write them like resume bullets. Track the lessons. Resources Mentioned Flow vs. Friction Tracker — Free download on the Unabashed website Your Career Era Workbook — Free download on the Unabashed websiteConnect Find Margaret, Lisa and Brooke on LinkedIn. Share your reinvention moments with the hashtag #Unabashed Tag @Unabashed on LinkedIn — Share your wins and the community will celebrate you  

You don’t have to be a Swiftie to learn from the Queen of Reinvention. In this energizing episode, Margaret, Brooke, and Lisa unpack what Taylor Swift’s evolutions can teach ambitious women about owning their story, aligning their careers and stepping unapologetically into their power. From bold pivots and values-based leadership to the branding genius of naming your career era, this episode is part strategy, part pep talk... and full of Unabashed energy. Whether you’re in your Reputation, Reinvention or Palm Beach Grandma era (yes, we said it), this conversation will have you rethinking what success looks like and how to claim it your way. 💥 Takeaways: Reinvention isn’t a crisis; it’s a strategy. Authenticity is your superpower (and your brand). Aligning your values with your work changes everything. Storytelling isn’t fluff; it’s connection, credibility and clarity. Naming your era brings focus and direction. Surround yourself with people who see you and hype you. 📝 Extras: 🎯 Take the “What’s Your Career Era?” Quiz and create a plan of action to own your era and your narrative using our free Career Eras Workbook.  https://www.be-unabashed.com/career-era-lp   ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 — Intro: Taylor Swift's Influence 04:45 — Reinvention as a Strength 10:19 — Authenticity and Values in Work 19:24 — The Power of Storytelling 28:56 — Bold Leadership and Ownership 39:22 — Naming Your Era & Personal Growth Subscribe to Unmuted and Unabashed on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your dose of bold. And don’t forget to tag us on LinkedIn when you name your era. We want to celebrate it with you.  #BeUnabashed #UnmutedAndUnabashed #CareerEra #ReinventionEra #TaylorSwiftLessons #BoldLeadership #AuthenticityAtWork

In this powerfully raw and inspiring episode, the hosts of Unmuted and Unabashed continue the conversion about what it truly means to live unabashedly — especially as women navigating midlife, motherhood, career, and identity. Margaret reflects on rediscovering the boldness of her 10-year-old self and questions why so many women have learned to censor themselves over time. The conversation explores how society conditions women to shrink, apologize, and sacrifice their authenticity—and how that affects not only us, but the next generation of girls watching. The hosts share deeply personal stories about their daughters, childhood journals, career experiences, and the guilt that often comes with silence. They challenge listeners to think about the roles they’ve played, the voices they’ve silenced, and the version of themselves they’ve abandoned. This episode isn’t just a conversation, it’s part of a movement. One that encourages women to be bold, speak up, and model what it means to live authentically and unapologetically for themselves and for those coming after them. Topics Covered: What it means to be unabashed The roles women play and lose themselves in Rediscovering your younger, unfiltered self Speaking up in professional spaces Modeling authenticity for daughters and peers Emotional intelligence in leadership Creating safe spaces for women’s voices Redefining success in your 40s and beyond Whether you’re just starting to reclaim your voice or have been living boldly for years, this episode reminds you: you deserve more.

This episode features Margaret Osborn, the founder of Be Unabashed, and Co-Founders Brooke Salazar and Lisa Jacobson Brown. You’ve heard it before: employees don’t leave companies, they leave managers. But what happens when organizations set managers up to fail in the first place? In this episode, we get real about the imbalance of management, the broken cycle of promoting people with zero leadership skills and why the word empowerment doesn’t always land the way it’s intended. Inside this conversation: Why “empowered” can feel like a backhanded compliment The emotional toll of negotiating pay in biased workplaces The leadership gap created by promoting technical experts into people-leadership roles with no training How to recognize when a workplace will never value what you bring Why silence at work isn’t always a choice — and the cultural cost of speaking up And you’ll hear a story that stopped us in our tracks: a compensation request met with laughter. Yes, laughter. We unpack what that moment taught us about power, vulnerability and the lasting impact of a manager’s response. This episode isn’t just venting (although there's a fair share of that) it’s about shifting the conversation. If we’re going to talk about empowerment, we need to face the reality of the systems stacked against women at work and start demanding more of organizations, not just individuals. 💡 Free Resource: We created a downloadable guide to help you navigate tough pay conversations with clarity and confidence. More resources at https://www.be-unabashed.com/store. SUBSCRIBE

Welcome to the very first episode of Unmuted and Unabashed — the podcast for every woman who’s done performing, done people-pleasing, and so ready to live out loud. In this candid debut, Margaret, Brooke, and Lisa — co-founders of Be Unabashed — introduce themselves and share the real stories that brought them here. From corporate HR to marketing to law, these women have taken the long, winding, and often muted path to finally finding their voices. You’ll hear our most unmuted moments, those times we decided “not today” to being talked over, undervalued or underestimated. And we hope they inspire you to start doing the same. In this episode, we cover: Why we started this podcast (and why “unmuted” matters) Career plot twists, reinventions, and existential detours Sugar-free apology chocolates: accepted or trashed? The compliment that could have gone very, very wrong (yes, really) and how to flip the script Getting interrupted by colleagues and what we did about it in the moment Female bosses who dim your light (and why we won’t accept that anymore) Ready to "go off mute"? Join the Be Unabashed community to get email updates on podcast releases, new content and courses. Subscribe to this podcast wherever you choose to listen. Follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Substack (Margaret) and Substack (Lisa). Spread the word -- please help us grow the community by sharing content with others.   Join Be Unabashed and receive updates on future podcast releases and more. 

Hosted by Margaret Osborn, Founder, Be Unabashed This isn’t just a podcast. It’s a movement. For every woman who’s ever lost herself in being everything to everybody else—this is your reminder:You were someone before the titles.Before the expectations.Before the world convinced you to dim your light to keep the peace. 🎙️ Unmuted & Unabashed: The Podcast is your invitation to remember who you are, reclaim what you want and rise. 💥 Bold conversations💥 Raw truths💥 Actionable tools to help you stop shrinking and start showing up; fully, fiercely and without apology Because playing small is exhausting.Because your voice matters. Because it's your damn turn.