Podcast Summary

Podcast: Creating Confidence with Heather Monahan

Episode: Confidence Classic: How to Unlock Your Full Potential in a Changing World with Julia Boorstin
Guest: Julia Boorstin, CNBC Senior Media and Tech Correspondent
Release Date: January 28, 2026

EPISODE OVERVIEW

This episode features an in-depth conversation between host Heather Monahan and Julia Boorstin, author, senior media and tech correspondent at CNBC, and creator of the Disruptor 50 list. They dive into Julia’s recent book, When Women Lead: What They Achieve, Why They Succeed, and How We Can Learn from Them. The discussion centers around leadership, diversity, overcoming gender biases, and practical strategies for unlocking potential both for women and men in a rapidly changing world.

KEY THEMES & DISCUSSION POINTS

1. The Gender Gap in Leadership and Funding

• Julia highlights the stark divide in venture capital funding, with only about 3% going to female CEOs, despite women comprising 8% of Fortune 500 CEOs.
• She notes: "How is 97% of financing not going to female CEOs? ... There is this pattern matching going on at every level... I'm used to CEOs looking like Mark Zuckerberg." (00:15, 26:40 - Julia)
• The issue is perpetuated not by overt discrimination, but by unconscious pattern recognition and lack of representation.

2. The Value of Diverse Leadership Approaches

• Boorstin’s research found that successful female leaders often employ contextual thinking, empathy, and humility—traits valuable for any leader, regardless of gender.
• "These strategies are just as effective for men as they are for women... We can all tap into our own superpowers and figure out how to amplify them." (05:06 - Julia)
• Monahan admits that empathy and gratitude were once seen as “weaknesses” in leadership, highlighting the need to re-evaluate traditional archetypes. (06:12 - Heather)

3. Breaking Away from Old CEO Stereotypes

• The classic image of leadership—authoritative, top-down, always confident—is increasingly less effective, especially in volatile and uncertain times.
• "All the data shows that [top-down leadership] doesn’t work that well anymore, especially when you need to be super adaptable." (07:07 - Julia)
• Adaptability, or "AQ," is cited as the new essential quotient alongside IQ and EQ. (13:07 - Julia)

4. Growth Mindset, Humility, and Building Superpowers

• Top leaders share a “growth mindset,” always seeking to improve.
• Boorstin emphasizes self-created benchmarks as a powerful way to foster continual improvement: "It's about creating your own benchmarks against ourselves, not against anyone else." (08:14 - Julia)
• Traits like humility, openness to feedback, and the ability to gather and amplify diverse ideas are common among the women she interviewed. (21:45 - Julia)

MEMORABLE STORIES & STRATEGIES

5. Pandemic Leadership Lessons

• The shift to remote work allowed more intimate, vulnerable conversations among high-powered leaders.
• In crisis, over-preparation and adaptability surfaced as vital, especially for women leaders.
• "Being prepared is key. And women actually have more of a tendency to over prepare and also being willing to adapt." (11:23 - Julia)

6. Strategic Decision-Making: Dial Down Confidence When Needed

• Julia advises leaders to “dial down” confidence when gathering information, then “dial up” when executing—embracing moments of vulnerability.
• "You shouldn't be super confident all of the time. ... In those moments of crisis, dial down your confidence, learn from everyone." (17:05 - Julia)
• She gives real-world nonprofit examples—Feeding America and CARE USA—where listening to feedback from the “front lines” transformed organizational response during COVID-19. (19:11 - Julia)

7. Ensuring All Voices Are Heard in Organizations

• Practical tactic: Encourage everyone to submit feedback or vote before open debate in meetings to prevent dominance by extroverted individuals.
• "When you get into a meeting, have people basically vote and give their opinion before the conversation and debate really started." (23:03 - Julia, example from Shan-Lyn Ma of Zola)
• Venture capital firms like First Round adapted similar methods to diversify decisions and investment opportunities. (24:59 - Julia)

8. Long-Term Vision, Gratitude, and Fire Prevention

• Boorstin highlights gratitude’s role in fostering patience and long-term planning over short-term wins.
• She cites a psychological study: those who practiced gratitude were more likely to wait for a greater reward, linking gratitude with resilience and vision. (35:23 - Julia)
• "Gratitude is a great feeling for everyone to practice... it makes people more willing to plan for the long term." (35:23 - Julia)
• Leaders like Julia Collins (Planet Forward) channel gratitude into mission-driven, sustainable business models with 100-year outlooks. (37:46 - Julia)

9. Overcoming Bias and Changing Systems

• By understanding bias, Julia has learned not to internalize it:
  "I have been able to identify bias when it's bias and to not let it bother me as much... this has nothing to do with me." (40:59 - Julia)
• She recounts a moment she was labeled as “mean” in an interview, realized it was a gendered expectation, and addressed the bias head-on with the critic. (41:48 - Julia)

NOTABLE QUOTES & MOMENTS

• Leadership Stereotypes:
  "There's an archetype of what a CEO is... either a man in a suit on Wall Street or it's a young guy in a hoodie in Silicon Valley... All the data shows that doesn't work that well anymore." (06:44, 07:07 - Julia)

• On Growth Mindset:
  "No one was like, I got this, I’ve always been good at this. Everyone had this approach of a growth mindset." (21:45 - Julia)

• Why Men Should Listen:
  "This is more important for men to listen to than it is for women... Men would be able to tap into a lot more value if they could understand how leadership is not just this archetype of one way to lead." (05:06 - Julia)

• On Long-Term Vision:
  "In the craziest times you're better off planning long term than trying to predict what's going to happen in a month." (40:17 - Julia)

• On Gratitude and Planning:
  "Gratitude makes people more willing to plan for the long term." (35:23 - Julia)

TIMESTAMPS FOR IMPORTANT SEGMENTS

• [00:15] — Gender gap statistics and ‘pattern matching’ in leadership
• [03:08] — The impetus for writing When Women Lead
• [05:06] — Why men need this knowledge, too
• [08:14] — Growth mindset and developing ‘superpowers’
• [11:23] — Lessons on adaptability in crisis
• [17:05] — "Dialing" confidence up and down: Leadership through uncertainty
• [19:11] — Feeding America & CARE: Success stories of adaptive leadership
• [23:03] — Ensuring introverts and all voices are heard in meetings
• [24:59] — First Round Capital: Objective voting increases diversity of investments
• [26:40] — Why the needle is slow to move on gender equality in leadership
• [35:23] — Power of gratitude and long-term planning
• [37:46] — Julia Collins: A case study in gratitude-driven leadership
• [40:59] — Personal transformation: Spotting and managing bias

CONCLUSION

Julia Boorstin’s insights, supported by data and real stories, offer a blueprint for more inclusive, adaptive, and effective leadership. The episode advocates for a departure from rigid archetypes, urging both women and men to adopt traits like humility, empathy, gratitude, and adaptive thinking. The actionable tips for engaging diverse perspectives and fostering a growth mindset are especially relevant for any listener seeking to unlock their potential in a rapidly changing world.

Explore more:
When Women Lead — Julia Boorstin’s website
Available at all major booksellers.