Leading Thru the Middle

An 8-week self-leadership program for mid-career women

You carry a lot at once: a bigger role at work, more responsibility at home, and expectations that keep adding up. This program helps you step out of default mode and lead yourself with intention, at work and at home. Each session ends with something you write, decide, or practice, so the change shows up in your week, not just in your notes.

Program at a glance

  •  Format: 8 weekly live sessions, 90 minutes each. Virtual, with in-person cohorts available in the Portland, Oregon area.

  • Time between sessions: About 60 minutes of reflection and preparation.

  • 1:1 session: One 50-minute private session with Ana before Week 4, to review your stakeholder input, if you invited it, and choose the behaviors you will work on.

  • Group size: Up to 10 participants per cohort.

  • Support: A WhatsApp group for questions, accountability, and peer support.

  • Language: English or Spanish.

  • Who can join: Individuals, or a group sponsored by their company.

  • Facilitator: Ana Pedraza, certified Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Coach.

The approach: five steps

  1. Clarify. Define what success looks like for the next 3 to 5 years, on your own terms.

  2. Confront. Name the behaviors that keep you on autopilot, and the triggers and beliefs behind them.

  3. Choose. Pick one priority for the next 12 to 18 months and decide what will wait.

  4. Change. Set boundaries, prepare for important conversations, and track your effort every day.

  5. Connect. Build the support around you, so you are not doing it alone.

What you leave with

  • A written definition of success for the next 3 to 5 years

  • One behavior to change at work and one at home

  • A signed trade-off contract naming one focus priority

  • Daily Questions you score every day, based on Marshall Goldsmith's book Triggers

  • A practiced script for a pay or role conversation

  • Boundary scripts in use at work and at home

  • A 3-year roadmap and a personal Middle Stage Compass

  • 2 to 3 named growth allies and an accountability partner

Input from the people around you
Optional, and strongly recommended

Before the program starts, you can invite a few people who know you well, at work, at home, or both, to complete a short online survey. They share when you are at your best, when you are at your worst, and one area of behavior that would make the biggest difference.

I summarize their responses and we review them together in your 1:1 session, before you choose one behavior to change at work and one at home in Week 4. After the program, a short mini-survey asks the same people whether they have seen a change.

“People remember what they notice, not what you did.” — Brandon Mergard, CEO, Marshall Goldsmith Stakeholder Centered Coaching

Week by week:

  • What we cover: the pressures of this stage, a reflection on where your current path is heading, your ideal day and ideal year, and your success statement.


    You leave with: a written 3 to 5 year definition of success, one area where your life and goals are out of line, and an accountability partner for the program.

  • What we cover: mapping your roles and the expectations attached to them, separating "shoulds'" from "wants," and writing a personal identity statement.


    You leave with: an "I am" statement to use when deciding what to say yes or no to, at work and at home.

  • What we cover: an inventory of your autopilot behaviors, the situations that trigger them, and the beliefs behind them.


    You leave with: 3 to 5 autopilot behaviors named, the triggers and beliefs behind them.

    Before Week 4: your 1:1 session with Ana to prepare your behavior choices.

  • What we cover: strengths that have become costs, moving from pleasing to leading, and moving from solo hero to system builder, and choosing the behaviors you will change.

    You leave with: one behavior to change at work and one at home, the two that will make the biggest difference, chosen with input from your stakeholders if you invited them.

  • What we cover: a review of each area of your life, choosing a 12 to 18 month focus, writing a trade-off contract, and building your Daily Questions.

    You leave with: a signed trade-off contract naming one focus priority and what will wait, plus 6 to 10 Daily Questions, including your two behaviors, that you score every day through the program and the 90-day follow-through.

  • What we cover: a career path canvas, what ambition means to you now, and scripting a negotiation or strategic ask.


    You leave with: a 3 to 5 year career path map and a practiced script for a pay or role conversation.

  • What we cover: a boundary review at work and at home, mapping your key relationships, practicing boundary scripts, and a Daily Questions check-in.

    You leave with: 1 to 2 boundary scripts in use to decline over-commitments and ask for support.

  • What we cover: a letter from your future self (written before the session), feedforward circles, your personal board of directors, your 3-year roadmap, and your Middle Stage Compass.


    You leave with: 2 to 3 named growth allies, a 3-year roadmap with next steps, and your personal Middle Stage Compass.

Next: After the eight weeks

Three monthly follow-through sessions, progress check-ins at 3, 6, and 12 months, and an alumnae community with quarterly reset sessions. If you invited stakeholders, they complete short mini-surveys during this period so you can see whether they have noticed a change.

Ready to lead the middle on purpose?
Book a complimentary 20-minute discovery call to talk about your goals and the next cohort.

Interested in a cohort for women leaders at your company? Use the same link and mention it when you book.

Book a discovery call