Transcript

Emma:
Hello everyone. Welcome to the very first episode of Menopause, Meltdowns and Magic. I'm just going to invite my co-host Tanya and our guest Lisa Corduff to join us.

Hi Tanya! How are you?

Tanya:
Good! I just had a crazy run picking up my kids from school. Isn’t that just part of life?

Emma:
Exactly! And then I lost my phone… so that was also fun.

Tanya, do you want to start by introducing what we’re doing here while I bring Lisa in?

Tanya:
Welcome everybody to Menopause, Meltdowns and Magic, our new podcast which will be airing every Wednesday. This is our very first episode and we're live. If you have questions for Lisa, Emma or myself, pop them in the comments and we’ll answer some at the end.

Emma, I’ll hand it back to you to introduce Lisa.

Emma:
Hi Lisa! Thank you so much for being here and for being our very first guest.

I was reflecting today about why I really wanted Lisa to be the first person we spoke to. Back in 2019 I joined Lisa’s program Ready for Change. At that time I was in a very low place. I had lost my job and felt embarrassed and ashamed. I didn’t know who I was anymore or where I wanted to go next.

Joining Lisa’s program completely changed my life. It allowed me to dream about a different future and it challenged a lot of beliefs I held about myself and about the world.

One of the biggest beliefs was this idea that I had to appear perfect, organised and in control all the time. As a child I had felt chaotic and disorganised, so as an adult I tried very hard to be the opposite.

During Lisa’s program she shared a phrase that stayed with me: “Everything gets done in perfect time.”

That idea changed everything for me. I realised I had been living with this constant pressure to look like I had everything together. At one point someone even said to my husband that they found the state of our house confronting. Learning to be okay with other people’s disapproval has been a huge part of my journey.

That message from Lisa helped me become more present and realise that right here, right now, things are actually okay.

Lisa has recently been talking a lot about momentum and how we create it without falling into frantic productivity culture. So I thought it would be amazing to bring her on and talk about how she approaches life and work now.

Lisa, thank you for being here.

Lisa:
Thank you for having me. Listening to what you shared Emma really moved me.

That phrase “everything happens in perfect timing” is something I used to believe deeply. But after my husband Nick died, I actually got really angry at a lot of those personal development sayings. When you’re deep in grief, hearing that everything is meant to be can feel incredibly invalidating.

It completely flipped my perspective on a lot of the spiritual and personal development ideas I had taught in the past.

At the same time, learning about neurodivergent brains also made me step back for a while. I felt like I didn’t fully understand myself anymore. So I pulled back. I shut things down for a few years.

Now it’s been about six years since Nick passed away and I’m finally feeling like we’ve found a new normal as a family. My psychologist described it as rebuilding my inner scaffolding.

For a long time I felt like I couldn’t get momentum behind anything. I wanted things but couldn’t move forward. Then recently something shifted. I realised I was in a new phase again.

Because I understand behaviour change and I understand my own brain better now, I started thinking about what actually works for me.

I realised something important: if my life doesn’t feel fun, I don’t move forward.

Fun is not a luxury for me. It’s a strategy. I never knew that before. But when I’m excited about something, anything becomes possible.

So lately I’ve been deliberately building fun into my life.

Emma:
I love that. But how do you actually figure out what fun is?

Lisa:
That’s the problem. Most women have no idea. We’ve become so disconnected from fun because our lives revolve around responsibilities and caring for others.

As a sole parent, I understand that deeply. But after losing Nick at 40 I realised something very clearly: we don’t have forever.

So why are we burning ourselves out trying to meet unrealistic expectations?

I refuse to accept a life where I don’t get to enjoy myself. That’s why rest and fun are now non-negotiables for me.

Emma:
I completely relate to that. Even after doing a lot of work on myself I still struggle with that productivity culture — that push and force energy.

Lisa:
Exactly. Our culture teaches us to optimise everything. But that approach burns me out. If I follow traditional productivity advice I end up exhausted and angry at home.

So instead I’ve gone back to principles that work for my brain.

For me, being trapped in something feels like death. I need freedom to explore ideas. When something excites me I go all in. Then eventually I move on to something else. And that’s okay.

For a while, when I received my ADHD and autism diagnosis, I questioned everything. I wondered if I had embarrassed myself by speaking publicly so much or sharing so much.

But eventually I realised something important. Maybe I was made this way for a reason. Maybe my willingness to speak openly and share honestly is exactly why my work helps people.

Emma:
I really love hearing you talk about this because there is so much shame around being different. Even with my autistic teenager, when they get really excited about something you can see some adults rolling their eyes. But honestly, it’s wonderful when someone is passionate about something.

Lisa:
I completely agree. Recently my daughter was on the morning news because the Today Show was visiting her school. They told the kids to smile for the cameras and my daughter held the biggest, brightest smile the entire time. The other kids got distracted or awkward, but she stayed completely committed.

I loved it. I loved her confidence and her willingness to fully show up as herself.

I want my kids to know that being unique is actually the key to life. Not trying to fit in.

Emma:
We also talk a lot about how hard it is for adults to deal with disapproval. Many neurodivergent people spend years masking just to be accepted.

Lisa:
Absolutely. Even as a parent I still question myself sometimes. But when I step back and look at my life, I realise we’ve actually done okay. My kids are okay. We’re here. We’re getting through.

But women rarely allow themselves to acknowledge that.

Emma:
Yes, we’re almost conditioned not to celebrate ourselves.

Lisa:
Exactly. And yet by midlife most women have survived incredible things. Divorce, grief, burnout, parenting challenges — we’ve been through so much.

Women are extraordinary.

Emma:
One of the biggest teachers for me has actually been my children. They constantly challenge everything I thought I knew about life.

Lisa:
How lucky we are to learn from them.

Emma:
I’m really conscious that we’re coming up to the end of our hour. Lisa, I know you have a webinar tonight. Do you want to tell us a little bit about it?

Lisa:
Sure. I’m sharing the things that are helping me rebuild momentum in my life right now. After spending several years in what I call maintenance mode, I’m starting to feel that second wind again.

So I’m sharing five simple things that are helping me move forward without burning out. It’s not a formula for success — it’s just what’s working for me.

And I realised a lot of women are feeling the same way. They want to move forward but they feel tired or stuck.

Sometimes the most important thing is giving ourselves permission to rest. To retreat. To be in winter for a while.

We’re not meant to be “on” all the time.

For me, those years of stepping back were necessary. Now I’m starting to feel ready to move again.

Emma:
I love that. Before we finish, Tanya and I wanted to ask one final question that we’ll ask all our guests.

What was something magical that happened for you this week?

Lisa:
My magical moment was celebrating my mum’s birthday. I hosted lunch and had everyone around the table — my mum, my kids, the grandchildren.

There’s something really special about people gathering around food you’ve cooked with love. Watching my mum feel surrounded by her family… that felt really magical.

Emma:
That’s beautiful.

For me, the magic this week has been witnessing the women I coach supporting each other. Seeing their breakthroughs and the connection between them has been incredibly powerful.

Tanya:
Mine is similar. I coach mums whose children are recovering from burnout, and this week some of those mums started sharing small signs of recovery in their kids. Seeing those little shoots of progress felt really magical.

Lisa:
That’s beautiful. And well done to both of you for the amazing work you’re doing in the world.

Emma:
Thank you so much for joining us today, Lisa. We’re really grateful you gave us your time.

Lisa:
It was an honour to be asked. Thank you for having me.

Emma:
Thank you everyone for joining us for our very first episode. We’ll get this published and shared soon.

Take care everyone.

All:
Bye!