I am an executive-level female leader and I agree with Mark Zuckerberg’s comments on masculine energy in the workplace. In this episode, I explain why!

Blitzscaling is a term coined by Reid Hoffman, founder of LinkedIn, which can be defined as “prioritising speed over efficiency in the face of uncertainty”.

I learned the true meaning of blitzscaling when I led Operations and later Product at TripADeal, an Australian online travel agency, during its period of exponential growth. We were the fastest growing company in Australia 2 years running (AFR) as we scaled from $2m to $20m to $80m in revenue.

Stress gets a really bad rap. But did you know it can actually be good for you?

Something that high performers share - whether a successful entrepreneur, Olympic athlete or superstar musician - is a high tolerance for stress and discomfort.

The good news is that this is a skill you can cultivate. In today’s episode we’ll unpack this topic from numerous perspectives, particularly drawing on Stephen Porges’ work on Polyvagal Theory to understand how you can use stress mobilisation to your advantage.

What is Tantra? Is it all about sex? How does it relate to kundalini energy and the practice of kundalini yoga? And how is any of this relevant to entrepreneurship?! These are the questions we’ll be unpacking in this episode. Tantra is an ancient Eastern spiritual tradition which seeks to “weave together” the polarities of physical and spiritual, masculine and feminine, dark and light. Unlike some spiritual paths which preach asceticism, Tantra is a gritty, embodied practice that works to clear mind-body blocks and open up the self as a channel for the divine. While sacred sexuality teachings are only a small component of the classical Tantric texts, learning to harness your own sexual life force energy is fundamental to this path.

Season 2 is coming in hot with my analysis of the Trump election victory and what it means for feminists. Please note: I am not a pro-Trump advocate, and this is not political commentary. This is cultural commentary exploring the broader ongoing tensions beneath the “shock” election result. I’ve been speaking for some time about the failings of neoliberal woke feminism, in the way it demonises men and the masculine, and drives women to a state of unsustainable burnout in our quest to do it all. Trump is a lightning rod for this cultural moment. The election result, clapback of all clapbacks, has brought all these gender dynamics which were bubbling away under the surface up to the light of day to be reckoned with.

Today’s conversation is deeply personal. I share my own journey with mental health and particularly my diagnosis with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder at age 12, which so dramatically shaped the course of my life and set me on the path of spiritual seeking. This is an on-ramp to discussing the limitations of our healthcare system and the biopsychosocial model of health. We also look at the nuances of victimhood mentality and the choices we can sometimes face: whether to identify as broken, weak and constricted - or whether to choose the path of power and personal responsibility.

Matrescence is one of the greatest initiations we can go through as women, carrying us into a new relationship with our body, our power and our divinity. It’s also an invitation into deeper layers of self knowledge and growth. This episode unpacks the many gifts of parenthood, with learnings from different spiritual traditions, poetry and my own experiences as a mother.

One of the unfortunate side effects of patriarchy is that many women have a wounded relationship with the masculine, and thus are unable to receive his gifts. And the gifts are profound. This episode is my love letter to the men of this world who are showing up, doing the work, and loving their women wide open.

Today’s episode unpacks key traits of  the distorted feminine, using the archetype of the Hollow Queen, who experiences an inner sense of emptiness and seeks to fill herself up using external sources. We layer this spiritual perspective with an understanding of the nervous system, polyvagal theory, the different states of hyperarousal and hypoarousal, the window of tolerance, and some common tools we use to artificially regulate ourselves.

This episode speaks to the longing many women feel that life was supposed to be more beautiful than this. That perhaps this relationship or this job is not big enough for us, or not the right shape for us. We might yearn to express ourselves more fully, or to follow the whispered desires of our soul. In this episode, we use story and mythology to explore the ways in which women become entrapped in lives that don’t quite fit, the danger and soul loss that can ensue, and how we can reckon with our own inner darkness and longings in order to break free.

Today’s episode journeys from energy work, to quantum physics, to entrepreneurship, to Taoism, in order to unpack many overlapping perspectives on how we call forth that which we desire, out of the darkness and into the light.

Female desire has been shrouded in mystery and fear for many hundreds of years. This episode traces the ways in which patriarchy has suppressed the wild feminine, her uncontainable power, her darkness, and her hunger. We explore the role of epigenetics which has many “liberated” modern women still shackled by internalised shame and misogyny.

Sexual and gendered violence remains a huge issue here in Australia and around the world. In the past few weeks new research has been published into the trend of sexual strangulation or choking, which is practiced by over 50% of young Australians aged 18-35, mostly consensually. This episode delves into this research, the media response to it, and my hot take on the conversation we’re not having and need to be.

This episode cracks open the concept of feminine leadership, particularly from the perspective of the corporate woman who is constantly negotiating power, implicitly or explicitly, within workplaces and leadership teams that are often dominated by men.

Our central theme today is vulnerability, and the power it affords us as artists, as leaders and as lovers. Great art helps us to reveal and connect to shared human truths. In leadership, vulnerability is also highly relevant as a more traditionally ‘feminine’ skill. We also consider the role that vulnerability has to play in intimate relationships.

Today’s topic is void leaping - the process of taking a leap of faith and stepping into the unknown, which can be empowering and terrifying in equal measure. We explore how this applies to entrepreneurship, and also some mythological and tantric perspectives.

Welcome to Season 1 of the Madeleine Eliza Show. Join me to explore feminine leadership and embodiment, sensuality and spirituality, as we weave together the ancient and the modern, the scientific and the mythic, the erotic and the divine.