Patricia Taylor Kennedy With Kennedy Effect

Intro: [00:00:04] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s time for Atlanta Business Radio, brought to you by on pay. Atlanta’s new standard in payroll. Now, here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:25] Lee Kantor here another episode of Atlanta Business Radio, and this is going to be a good one. But before we get started, it’s important to recognize our sponsor on pay. Without them, we couldn’t be sharing these important stories. Today on Atlanta Business Radio, we have Pat Kennedy with the Kennedy Effect. Welcome.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:00:44] Thank you so much, Lee. I’m so excited to be here today.

Lee Kantor: [00:00:47] Well, I am excited to learn what you’re up to. Tell us about the Kennedy effect. How you serving folks?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:00:52] Yeah. So basically, I help women with their careers, and a lot of times women get stuck and we all do, right? Everybody does. And but I specialize in helping women who are stuck in their careers, maybe stuck in life to help them move forward so that they get the jobs that they want, the salary they deserve and things like that. And I also wrote a book, The Game of Life A Woman’s Game Plan for Success.

Lee Kantor: [00:01:23] So what’s your Back story? How did you get involved in this line of work so well.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:01:29] I have been in the corporate world most of my career, and my two daughters are grown up now and not much has changed. Women still get $0.82 on the same dollar that men earn. And so I want to start to change that. But how it came about over time, I’ve been doing mentorship programs, coaching programs for women. I coach women in leadership and things like that. So it’s all culminated into my private practice and in this book that I’ve written.

Lee Kantor: [00:02:03] So who is your ideal client? Is it the person in the corporate world that wants to move up the ladder? Is a person that’s starting an entrepreneurial adventure? Who who do you serve the most?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:02:15] Well, I can serve both. And I think the ideal client is somebody who is stuck in their career. And so it can go either way. It could be where they’re stuck in a career and maybe they have tried to look for something at the same job that, you know, the same company that they’re in, but they don’t know exactly what to do. Nothing they’ve tried has worked. I help them to move forward and to think about how to make that next move. And if it’s somebody who’s looking already for another job, I help them get clear on what they want to do. I help with salary negotiation and all the things you would think about in terms of what a person needs to have in their arsenal in order to get the best offer that they can get. And then there’s times when I do work with women who during the process realize that, wait a minute, I want to start a company, Here’s what I really want to do. So I help them to think about all of the different ramifications of what that entails and help them navigate that as well.

Lee Kantor: [00:03:25] So let’s take this one at a time. Let’s look at the woman that is in a corporate role or has joined a corporation, a large company, and is maybe frustrated at the speed in which her career is progressing. What are some mistakes you see women making that maybe be there might be holding them back?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:03:48] That is such a great question. Thank you for asking that. And I hope I hope there’s a lot of women listening to your show that this can help. What happens is women are were socialized differently than men. Men are socialized differently than women. And all of that sometimes prevents us from communicating effectively. And so maybe we don’t speak up or maybe we take on things that really don’t help further our career. So let me give you an example. A lot of times women take on tasks instead of opportunities that could drive them forward. So an example of that might be, Oh, we want to do this kind of training. Can you set that up for us? They’ve done studies on this. There’s research to back me up. Men. If it doesn’t serve their careers, they won’t raise their hand. But women always raise their hand, and there are several studies that support that statement. So I’m helping to teach women to think about looking at what they’re being asked to do. Are they focused on more task oriented things, or are these truly opportunities that can lead to the promotions, to the salary increase, to furthering their career more quickly? So that’s one one sort of example, I think. And then the confidence as well is important. Women, a lot of women don’t have the same, you know, the necessary confidence and communication. Skills in some cases. And so there’s help that I provide in that arena as well.

Lee Kantor: [00:05:30] Now, over the years, I’ve gotten to interview a lot of women leaders and mentors of women. And one of the things that I learned from doing having these conversations that I wasn’t aware of, that it was just I mean, maybe it’s just a male bias of me not seeing what was in front of me. But I was told that when an opportunity arises, a man is more likely to apply for it. Even though they may not have all of the credentials, they will think, Oh, I could do that. So then they’ll apply where the woman is looking for exact matches. So if they they’ll self select out of an opportunity. If they are not a perfect fit and they know they could do every element of the job. Are you seeing that as well?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:06:17] Yes, there’s a lot of research on it. You know, we all I don’t know if you’re familiar with LinkedIn, right. Everybody should be. Linkedin is our business kind of social media. And a lot of times, well, what they’ve done, LinkedIn actually did a survey as well because they they have all the data because there was a survey that was done where they found this to be true, that men will apply if they only meet 60% of the job criteria, whereas women have to have 100% of the criteria, they’ve got to have the exact experience. So this is what they think themselves. This is not necessarily what the employer is thinking and they women won’t apply. And so LinkedIn did their own survey and they found the same thing is still happening. And so what I try to do is to help build confidence in women that were lacking. I’m tired of waiting for the world to change, and we’re not going to catch up unless we ask for it ourselves. So my goal is to help change this paradigm in women and help us to get to equality. I mean, I want to just that’s all we’re looking for, right? But yeah, so that is unfortunate. And so I hope that a lot of women are listening today, are hearing this and stop to reflect and realize that they don’t need to have but 60% of the job criteria before they apply.

Lee Kantor: [00:07:44] Right. Because the person that’s putting out the application, that’s just their wish list. It’s not mandatory. This is what they would like. So it’s silly to self select out before you even have a chance to have conversation with the person making the decision.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:08:02] Exactly. And I think that when you say it’s silly from your perspective, it’s silly. But what women go through in a lot of our life experiences shape how we look at the world and we look at the world through a different lens, and it happens through our social conditioning and all the things, right? So when when women are looking at these jobs, they’re they’re thinking, Oh, they’re not going to hire me. I have to have all of this criteria because maybe they’ve been told that in the past for whatever reason. But this is we’re in 2022. This doesn’t count anymore. Just go and apply. It’s really important. So there’s mindset work that needs to shift. And that’s why having a coach is so important to help make those leaps and think of things that they hadn’t thought about before and to build point them out and help build confidence in women.

Lee Kantor: [00:09:01] So you think that it’s confidence that is at the heart of this or lack of confidence that is holding women back?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:09:09] Mistaken beliefs and lack of confidence. We believe that we have to have 100% of everything before we even get considered. So that is a mistaken belief. And how did we get there? Well, we you know, from the ages of zero and to seven, we’re told, don’t get dirty, you know, go out and play, but keep your dress clean and don’t mess up your hair and whatever. And boys and I’m just generalizing here. I realize that a lot of families are different, but this pervasiveness of how women have to behave is shaped when we’re between the ages of zero and seven and it shows up in things like this example of when we tried to go and apply for jobs and we self select ourselves out, we don’t even try because we feel like it’s stacked against us. So remove the mistake and beliefs so that you feel more confident and you go for those jobs. It’s not as easy as it sounds, but it is very simple concept.

Lee Kantor: [00:10:10] Now, something else I learned when it comes to negotiating for a salary or for a job opportunity, this woman recruiter was telling us that if she offers a guy a job, he will almost always push back and ask for something additional 10%, some more time off, some just there will be an ask of some sort where a lot of times when the woman is presented with the job opportunity, if she’s interested, she says, Yes, thank you. And then that goes from there. Are you finding that as well, that women are less likely to negotiate?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:10:55] Yes, there’s a lot of statistics on that, unfortunately, as well, and that’s part of the confidence boosting. So it’s really important to understand and know what your value is and know that you have the right to negotiate, that you have the right to ask for more, you know, and not not being really wild with your offer or what you’re countering with, but being realistic, but always asking for something more. Don’t take the first offer. So again, we’re we’re sort of conditioned to to really just, oh, be grateful and thank you and all of those kind of polite things. But in the real world, it’s important to stand up for yourself and ask for more. And here’s another thing that happens to women. So let’s say you didn’t negotiate for an extra, let’s say 10,000, because it’s easier for me to do the math on when you when you lose out and leave money on the table. In a situation like that, $10,000 when you’re early in your career, at the end of your career, if you save that same 10,000, you would have 500,000 in your 401 K. And I know I can do a lot with that 500,000. So women do not leave money on the table. Men too, don’t do that. But it does happen to women more often than men. And it is conditioning and it’s training and it’s also boosting self confidence to believe you’re worth asking for that extra those extra funds.

Lee Kantor: [00:12:31] Now, do you think that some of this is also that guys tend to talk with each other and kind of learn best practices and tips from other guys that have been there and done that where women just because there’s less numbers of them and these positions, they don’t have that network to learn these little tricks of the trade. And that’s where a coach is so important and helpful to accelerate their career.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:12:58] Absolutely. Absolutely. You know, that is such a great point. There is a lot of research about that companies are trying to change now. So let me talk about the way it is. There are there are a lot it’s a lot easier for men to have those conversations. A father has the conversation with his son. Here’s what you need to know. And for daughters, for some reason, they don’t always get that kind of information. And then you’re right. When we go into the corporate environment, men do talk about that and they learn from their mentors and their buddies and women. If they’re not if there aren’t mentors that are women or even men, they’re hesitant to go to those men to get mentorship. And, you know, there we talk about the olden days when when there weren’t as many women. There’s a lot more women now, but they still don’t have these skills. So how do we help them to ramp up? Having a coach is really important, a career coach. And then that’s why I started all the mentorship programs that I started in all the places. Is where I’ve done it and do coaching for women in leadership to help them remember how, you know, these are the things you need to know. But companies are starting to pay attention. There’s a lot of press about it. We’re talking about it on the radio today, which I’m so grateful for. And there are, you know, a lot of changes that companies are taking to make sure that there is equal access mentorship. So that’s a great point.

Lee Kantor: [00:14:38] Now, are you finding that the the business of today sees coaching as kind of part of the benefits package, whereas maybe five, ten, 20 years ago that was something only for either the highest leadership team to bring the most value out for them, or it was kind of to help that person that’s having problems kind of get over a hurdle where now it’s more democratized, where more and more people may be lower on the totem pole or able to benefit from coaching.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:15:15] Oh, absolutely. Companies have been investing in coaching in their senior leadership teams for for a while now. And if you want to rise to a higher level just in your personal life, just for your mental wellbeing, even, it’s always it’s always going to bring you great rewards To have someone in your corner and a coach is a great way to go and the coaches help people to see what they haven’t maybe seen before, but also hold their clients accountable. Hey, you know, we’re going to we’re going to work on this that you said you wanted to work on this particular thing and, you know, X, Y, Z, and it’s just like a trainer. Like if you have a sports coach, right? Everyone knows and it’s logical. You wouldn’t expect an elite athlete to not have a coach. The same could be said for your job. When you have someone in your corner who helps you, who knows the ropes and understands how to move you forward because they understand human psychology, then you’re going to excel and do it much quicker than you would do it on your own. If you ever even found that information on your own.

Lee Kantor: [00:16:30] If you were going to give advice to a woman in the corporate workplace, are there any things you would recommend? Are there any habits you would recommend them kind of leaning into in order to accelerate up that ladder?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:16:46] There is so much that I would like to say to do that. But I think the main point that I you know, the main thing today that I’d like to say is to remember all of the amazing things that you’ve done. So what happens for men and women, for all of us humans, we focus on the negative and women do this really well, unfortunately. So. Right. I call it a swank bank, right? Your book of awesome. But every day start to journal about all the things that you did and that you did well and it helps you to have more confidence. It seems like a simple thing and it’s, you know, but when you’re feeling a little self doubt or whatever, you can go back to your book of awesome to your swank bank and really remember what you have accomplished because our brains are wired to remember the negative things. And so we have to really overcome that and remember the very positive things. And that’s one way to do that, to boost confidence. Also identify if you’re taking on an opportunity or you’re taking on a task and try to negotiate with your boss, hey, I’ll take on this task. If you say that I get that next amazing project or something like that, because and learn how to say no. So I guess I came up with three things I could go on all day about that.

Lee Kantor: [00:18:07] Yeah, I’ll tell you, that Swank Bank is a great idea, that that makes it kind of simple to accumulate those nuggets of gold that you helped in and that you’ve helped others. And then you put it in one place. And then when it’s time for your annual review, you just pull that folder out and you have dozens of examples rather than you going through your calendar trying to remember back what that was, you know, eight months ago that you thought you worked on to help somebody achieve something. Exactly. If you could do it every time that somebody, you know, wrote a note thanking you or you accomplish something and you have stats to back it up and you just drop it into a folder and you just kind of just leave it in there and forget about it. When it’s time to do those reviews, they’re all be there and you’ll overwhelm them with success stories that’ll help you get that raise.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:19:04] Absolutely. That’s a great point. And that can be used to further beef up your résumé. And when you’re going for interviews and all kinds of things, as well as confidence. So that’s a great point.

Lee Kantor: [00:19:17] Lee Now, let’s talk about your book a little bit. For those who are interested in the book, what would they glean from getting him?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:19:28] Yeah, so it talks about it’s it’s called The Game of Life A Woman’s Game Plan for Success. And it’s really to help women understand where we are, you know, so not just talk about $0.82 on the dollar. Oh, my gosh, isn’t that horrible? But wait, here’s what’s really happening. This is the landscape you’re in and here’s why we got here. So I talk a little bit about the social conditioning and all the different examples, and then I talk about finding your purpose. And when you find your purpose, it helps to make everything clear and then go make up your own rules of the game, right? And then go find mentors and coaches and people to help support you and go out and and have great success.

Lee Kantor: [00:20:13] So it’s very not only is it there’s a high concept behind it, but it’s very tactical and practical and gives them actionable items to do.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:20:21] Absolutely. And there’s a lot of things on my website too, so that when they click, they get the book, there’s links that they can go to to download worksheets and that sort of thing. So it really is tactical as well as, like you said, very. It just helps to know the landscape you’re in because a lot of women are like, Oh, I’m not discriminated against. Well, not overtly. Always, you know, and maybe not, maybe you haven’t. I find that hard to believe. But there are small nuances, right? And learning to to recognize them. And here’s what you do. And it’s not to point fingers or blame. It’s just if we can work on ourselves, we can make the world more equitable.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:04] So if somebody wants to learn more, get a hold of the book, get a hold of you. What’s the website?

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:21:09] It’s Kennedy effect dot com.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:12] And that’s Kennedy y f e FT.com.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:21:17] That’s it. And they can also buy the book on Amazon or any of the booksellers out there.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:23] Good stuff. Well, Pat, thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Patricia Taylor Kennedy: [00:21:29] Thank you, Lee. I appreciate this opportunity.

Lee Kantor: [00:21:31] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you next time on Atlanta Business Radio.