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474-The Self-Led Woman Pyramid: 6 Pillars for Real Confidence with Rita Palumbo

28 Jul 2026 · 44 min · Episode 474

Rita Palumbo, an aerospace engineer at the European Space Agency, joins me to explain why real confidence and authority start in the body before they’re skills.

But here’s what really makes her story land. During her PhD, Rita nearly burned out.

Brain fog, exhaustion, unable to think clearly or lead her own research.

And it sent her searching for the thing no one had ever taught her: how to actually take care of herself. She became a yoga teacher and a coach, left engineering for a season, then made the intentional choice to come back, this time whole.

Now she teaches women to be self-led. And that word is the heart of this whole conversation.

A self-led woman, Rita says, shows up from an inner point of authority rather than external expectation

And she walks us through her entire 6-Pillar Self-Led Woman Pyramid.

If you’re hyper-competent and still freeze in the moments that matter most, this conversation explains why, and what actually changes it.

What You’ll Learn

• What it means to be self-led: showing up from inner authority instead of external expectation • How to catch yourself performing confidence, the subtle body cues most women never notice • Why hyper-prepared, capable women still freeze, and why the fix is in the body

Resources Mentioned

• Rita’s Website

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Links in the notes 2

• https://ritapalumbointernational.com/free-resources/the-return/
• https://michellegrosser.com/quiz