Healthy Body, Healthy Mind, Healthy Business – HR, Menopause and Holding Space with Kim Woolner

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, Dr Brtenda Hector is joined by Kim Woolner, an independent HR consultant, founder of Holding Space, certified menopause coach and part-time team member at the Russell Anderson Foundation in Aberdeen. With more than 25 years in HR across energy, construction and other male-dominated industries, Kim brings a powerful mix of professional expertise and lived experience to the conversation.

Kim talks about juggling multiple roles – HR consultancy, wellbeing work, a charitable foundation, board positions and professional bodies – while navigating menopause and protecting her own energy. She shares why her motto is “healthy body, healthy mind, healthy business,” and how women so often drop self-care first when life and work get busy.

We dig into confidence, intuition and authenticity at work: from masking in tough cultures to learning to trust your own voice, even when it shakes. Kim explains how women can stand in their own way, talk themselves out of opportunities and wait for permission, while men will apply for roles when they only meet a couple of the criteria. She offers practical ideas for owning your worth, building a trusted circle and using your network well.

With her HR hat on, Kim shares honest insight into menopause in the workplace – what it really costs businesses when experienced women leave, and how leaders and line managers can respond better. From flexible working and simple physical adjustments to normalising conversations about feelings and energy, she shows how small, thoughtful changes can transform retention, performance and culture.

We also explore Kim’s entrepreneurial journey with Holding Space: combining Bach flower remedies, essential oils, emotional wellbeing, meditation and mindfulness. She talks about learning not to over-give, setting boundaries, charging properly and recognising that “failure” is usually just information that shapes your next step.

In this episode, we cover:

1. Kim’s 25+ year career in HR and why she moved into independent consultancy
2. How she juggles HR work, Holding Space, the Russell Anderson Foundation, board roles and professional commitments
3. Why “healthy body, healthy mind, healthy business” underpins everything she does
4. The internal stories women tell themselves, and how they can block confidence and progress
5. Working in male-dominated industries and the pressure to wear a “mask” at work
6. Intuition as a business asset – learning to listen to your gut before hindsight kicks in
7. The gender difference in applying for jobs and opportunities, and what women can learn from it
8. Menopause in the workplace: symptoms, stigma, loss of confidence and the real cost to organisations
9. Practical ways businesses can support menopausal employees: awareness, flexible working, line manager training, small environmental changes and real policy in action
10. Emotional culture at work – why feelings drive behaviour, actions and ultimately business results
11. The role of coaching, leadership development and supporting “managers in the middle”
12. Kim’s Holding Space business: Bach flower remedies, essential oils, menopause groups, meditation and mindfulness
13. Boundaries, pricing and protecting your energy when you are the engine room of your business