When Something Feels Off
Changemakers rise.
My dearest Changemakers,
Something feels off, does it not?
It is subtle at first. Easy to dismiss.
It challenges that quiet optimism we carry. The belief that the places that we leave our babies, our families for, are truly on our side. That they see us fully. That they care about the whole of our being. That it is worth our heart being in two different places.
It starts as a passing thought. Something you brush aside in the middle of a meeting or while scrolling through yet another polished company message or initiative…
It. just. feels. off.
Changemakers, this feeling is real. You know it.
What you are seeing…
and what you are feeling…
do not quite match. They never really have—for us, and for women across the workforce.
There is a deep-seated disconnect.
And once you notice it, it becomes harder to ignore.
And I am here to say this: as Changemakers, it is our calling to name it—and to change it.
At times, being a woman in today’s workforce can feel eerily similar to The Truman Show.
Everything looks right on the surface.
The messaging is polished. The language is intentional. The initiatives and systems appear supportive.
You hear:
“We support women.”
“We believe in flexibility.”
“We value families.”
“We want moms to work with us.”
And yet, something does not land.
This is something I have been reflecting on recently:
But here is the thing…when you talk to women—really talk to them—the story shifts.
Underneath the messaging, you hear something else:
“I am exhausted.”
“I am carrying too much.”
“I do not actually feel supported.”
“I feel like I am navigating a system that was never built for me.”
The issue is not always visible. Not always acknowledged.
Oh, but it is felt.
On paper, all the right buzzwords are there:
• Support
• Flexibility
• Inclusion
Words that suggest we are heard, understood, even prioritized.
But words are easy.
They become copy-and-paste placeholders for meaning, stripped of the depth required to reflect something as complex as the human experience.
And when the focus is people—
their lives, their families, their capacity, their well-being—
that lack of depth matters more than anything.
Action is harder.
Much harder.
But we were not looking for easy anyway.
Changemakers, I truly believe that most organizations are not getting it wrong on purpose. They do not mean to have their words fall short.
But here’s the thing, intention is not the same as impact.
And this is where trust begins to erode.
It shows up as disengagement.
As burnout.
As frustration that has nowhere to go.
As talented women stepping back.
Stepping away.
Or never returning at all.
And once you see it, you cannot unsee it.
And once you acknowledge it… you cannot forget it.
Which means something else is required of you.
And this is where the conversation shifts:
So the question becomes:
What do we do with this awareness?
Because awareness alone is not change.
This is where Changemakers rise.
We do not stop at recognizing the gap.
We take responsibility for closing it.
Not through better messaging.
Not through more polished language.
But through alignment.
Through building environments where what is said…
and what is experienced…
finally match.
This is not surface-level work. For us, it never is. #micdrop
It requires rethinking how support shows up in daily operations.
It requires challenging policies that were never designed with women in mind.
It requires acknowledging that caregiving, capacity, and leadership are deeply intertwined.
Not as a talking point.
As reality.
Remember…real support does not need to be announced.
It is felt.
In how work is structured.
In how leaders show up.
In how people are actually able to live their lives.
And Changemakers, we do not have time for empty words.
Experience is where truth lives.
Our spark—our collective calling—is to close this gap.
The Spark
Pay attention to the gap.
Notice it. Name it. Close it.
Because when support becomes real, you do not have to convince people it exists.
They can feel it.
Now doesn’t that sound nice.
