Career Identity + Growth Conversations for Professional Women: Exposing the Hidden Reality

Annette Garsteck, Master Professional Career Coach + Sandra Wint, Trauma-Informed Leadership Coach
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Bias, burnout, self-worth, and breaking barriers are not just buzzwords — they are the lived reality of women navigating leadership, workplace dynamics, and workplace culture every single day. Women's experiences take center stage here, exploring intersectionality, identity, and the invisible forces shaping professional visibility, belonging, and psychological safety at work.  Annette Garsteck, MBA, MPCC, is the author of Own Your Career: Take Control + Accelerate Your Professional Growth, a Certified Senior Professional Résumé Writer, and a former Fortune 50 hiring leader. She guides women to take ownership of their careers, increase their visibility, expand their influence, navigate workplace dynamics with confidence, and accelerate their growth while staying true to their values. Sandra Wint, GPCC, Human Design practitioner + Gestalt-certified coach integrating shadow work, mother wound healing, nervous system regulation, emotional safety, astrology, and frameworks like the Karpman Drama Triangle to support deep personal transformation and self-awareness. Delivering these in Women’s Circles + leadership retreats, she helps women better understand themselves, their relationships, and the systems they navigate. Each episode goes deep into trauma-informed leadership, the unspoken rules of power for women, and the influence women already hold but are rarely given permission to use. If you are a woman in leadership, or becoming one, who is done shrinking and ready to claim her space, this is your community.  On Exposing the Hidden Reality, we cover topics such as: Why do high-performing women stay in abusive relationships?  Why do women burn out faster than men at work? How does gender bias show up as "culture fit" in the workplace? How can women overcome imposter syndrome and people pleasing at work? What are the hidden barriers women face in leadership roles? How do working women balance personal and professional identity? Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com/ LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality 

  1. 1d ago

    060: Who Will Step In? The Responsibility to Recognize, Interrupt, and Respond to Harm

    What does stepping in actually look like when someone is in danger, or when someone trusts you enough to tell you they have been harmed? Sometimes it looks like two students who refuse to walk past something wrong. Sometimes it looks like a stranger who sits beside someone at the hospital, without trying to take control. And sometimes it is a colleague who calmly says, “That was Sandra’s idea,” when a woman’s contribution is overlooked. Sandra Wint and Annette Garsteck ask what changes when responsibility moves beyond the person harmed. How do we listen without interrogating? How can bystanders intervene without escalating danger? What do leaders and mentors teach through the behavior they allow or challenge? This final conversation in their three-part series explores the practical choices that can help people feel supported and change what a community tolerates. This discussion contains sexual assault, drugging, and trauma. Please take care as you listen. For confidential sexual assault support in the U.S., visit https://rainn.org/. Join our newsletter to continue the conversation at https://www.exposingthehiddenreality.com. Access resources from the three-part series, Episodes 058 — 060 at https://www.exposingthehiddenreality.com/episode-058. Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

  2. Oct 9

    059: When Silence Enables Harm: Culture, Power, and Speaking Up

    The joke everyone laughs off. The colleague someone quietly warns you not to meet alone. The talented employee who walks away because saying why feels riskier than leaving. What do those moments have in common? They help teach a group what is normal. Sandra and Annette ask a harder question than whether an organization has rules: Who gets to define acceptable behavior, and what happens to the people who challenge it? From a kindergarten lesson about peer pressure to the uncomfortable realities of speaking up at work, the conversation traces the gap between knowing something is wrong and feeling able to act. This discussion also references sexual assault cases, including allegations in a Cornell matter that was under investigation when the episode was recorded. We are examining cultural patterns, not determining guilt. Content note: sexual assault, drugging, and trauma Resources named - RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network): National Sexual Assault Hotline, 1-800-656-4673; rainn.org/hotline; text HOPE to 64673. The episode identifies these as routes to support for survivors and loved ones. Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

  3. Oct 5

    058: Who Does the System Protect? When Harm Meets Power

    What does a system reveal when serious harm is reported? Not only through the policy it follows, but throughwho is asked to absorb the disruption that follows. Using the recent allegations involving a former Cornell student as a starting point, Sandra and Annetteexamine universities, law enforcement, workplaces, healthcare, and culture as different systems withdifferent responsibilities and different forms of power. The question that stays with them is the oneunderneath the procedures: whose future becomes most important, and who is left carrying the financial,professional, emotional, and physical consequences? This is the first conversation in a three-part series about systems, power, privilege, and harm. Subscribe atexposingthehiddenreality.com to receive the resources that informed the conversation and to be notifiedwhen Parts Two and Three are released Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

  4. Oct 1

    057: Who Are You When You Don't Have to Perform?

    What if the things people once told you to tone down are some of the clearest clues to who you actually are? Sandra and Annette usually talk careers, leadership, growth, and the hidden realities underneath them. This time, they turn the questions on themselves. The result starts with pasta, sharp pencils, comfort rituals, introversion, books, and dogs, then quietly becomes a conversation about authenticity, natural strengths, respectful disagreement, and the people who give us enough room to be fully ourselves. One of the most telling moments comes when Annette imagines what her ten-year-old self would find surprising. The very things teachers once told her to stop doing, talking, helping, engaging, are now woven into the work she is naturally good at. If you have ever wondered which parts of yourself are preference, performance, adaptation, or genuine strength, this conversation gives you a different way to notice the answer. Listen, then tell us: Which question from the conversation would you have answered very differently five years ago? Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

  5. Sep 24

    056: How Do You Know A Coach Is Right For You?

    You’ve decided you need outside support. Maybe you’ve even decided coaching is the right place to start. Now comes another question: How do you know which coach is right for you? A coach can look perfect on paper and still not be the person you can actually grow with. Sandra and Annette explore what happens after you decide to seek help, from identifying the problem you want to solve to evaluating expertise, lived experience, credentials, ethics, referrals, working style, boundaries, and rapport. They also get into a harder question: What happens when the right coach challenges you and growth starts to feel uncomfortable? The goal is not simply to find a coach. It is to find the kind of support that can help you move forward, and to recognize when that support may need to come from more than one person. Join the conversation at exposingthehiddenreality.com, subscribe to the newsletter, and reply with the questions this series has raised for you. Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

  6. Sep 17

    055: Professional Vulnerability Be Careful Who You Open Up To

    How much of yourself should you reveal when you need help with something happening at work? A trusted partner may care deeply about you, but they also have a stake in what happens next. An internal mentor may understand your organization better than almost anyone, but that person could someday become your boss, your peer, or even your direct report. A manager, HR professional, coach, and therapist each bring different responsibilities and boundaries to the conversation. Sandra and Annette explore the less-discussed side of professional vulnerability: before you open up, understand the relationship you are opening up inside. The goal isn't to become guarded or stop asking for help. It's to become more intentional about the kind of support you need, the level of vulnerability it requires, and what the person sitting across from you can realistically hold. Join the conversation between episodes at exposingthehiddenreality.com and subscribe to the Exposing the Hidden Reality newsletter. Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

    055: Professional Vulnerability Be Careful Who You Open Up To

  7. Sep 10

    054: Passed Over for a Promotion? What Kind of Support Do You Actually Need?

    Getting passed over for an internal promotion can send you searching for an answer: Was it the company, the manager, the strategy, the skill gap, or something you still cannot see from inside the situation? Sandra and Annette both know the slow erosion that can happen after hearing no again. Annette stopped telling people when she was applying. Sandra eventually stopped putting her hat in the ring at all. But the more complicated question begins when you finally ask for feedback and your body reacts before your mind can make sense of what you are hearing. AI can help you prepare questions, script a conversation, or role-play a manager's response. It cannot recreate the trust, vulnerability, nervous system response, and pattern recognition that happen inside a real relationship. Sometimes the support you need is information. Sometimes it is accountability, perspective, a mentor, a coach, therapy, or simply a place where you can show up imperfectly long enough to see what is actually going on. Join the EHR newsletter at exposingthehiddenreality.com to keep the conversation going between episodes. Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

    054: Passed Over for a Promotion? What Kind of Support Do You Actually Need?

  8. Sep 3

    053: When You Need an Outside Perspective at Work

    Have you ever talked through the same workplace problem with three different people and still ended up in exactly the same place? Sometimes the issue is not that we need more advice. It is that we have not stopped to ask what kind of help we are actually looking for. A difficult boss, an uncomfortable conversation, a decision we cannot make, or a meeting we keep replaying can take over far more of our attention than the original moment deserves. And the people closest to us may love us deeply while still reinforcing the perspective we already have. Sandra and Annette explore what changes when we get more intentional about outside perspective: when we need someone to listen, when we need a witness, when we want problem-solving, when expertise matters, and when the issue may belong with a coach, consultant, therapist, or another kind of support. They also look at the role AI can play, and where its limits become important. Because the most useful question may not be, “Who can I talk to?” It may be, “What do I need from this conversation?” Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality Connect with Annette Garsteck: https://www.annettegarsteck.com Connect with Sandra Wint: https://www.me-her-us.com Photography of Sandra Wint + Annette Garsteck taken by Katie Garlock, Portrations

    053: When You Need an Outside Perspective at Work
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5
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About

Bias, burnout, self-worth, and breaking barriers are not just buzzwords — they are the lived reality of women navigating leadership, workplace dynamics, and workplace culture every single day. Women's experiences take center stage here, exploring intersectionality, identity, and the invisible forces shaping professional visibility, belonging, and psychological safety at work.  Annette Garsteck, MBA, MPCC, is the author of Own Your Career: Take Control + Accelerate Your Professional Growth, a Certified Senior Professional Résumé Writer, and a former Fortune 50 hiring leader. She guides women to take ownership of their careers, increase their visibility, expand their influence, navigate workplace dynamics with confidence, and accelerate their growth while staying true to their values. Sandra Wint, GPCC, Human Design practitioner + Gestalt-certified coach integrating shadow work, mother wound healing, nervous system regulation, emotional safety, astrology, and frameworks like the Karpman Drama Triangle to support deep personal transformation and self-awareness. Delivering these in Women’s Circles + leadership retreats, she helps women better understand themselves, their relationships, and the systems they navigate. Each episode goes deep into trauma-informed leadership, the unspoken rules of power for women, and the influence women already hold but are rarely given permission to use. If you are a woman in leadership, or becoming one, who is done shrinking and ready to claim her space, this is your community.  On Exposing the Hidden Reality, we cover topics such as: Why do high-performing women stay in abusive relationships?  Why do women burn out faster than men at work? How does gender bias show up as "culture fit" in the workplace? How can women overcome imposter syndrome and people pleasing at work? What are the hidden barriers women face in leadership roles? How do working women balance personal and professional identity? Connect with Exposing the Hidden Reality: https://exposingthehiddenreality.com/ LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/exposingthehiddenreality Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/exposingthehiddenreality Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/exposingthehiddenreality 

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