Brilliant but Inconsistent: The Hidden Cost of Overperformance
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Have you ever been told you’re brilliant, but inconsistent? Or maybe you’re that high performer who looks completely put-together on the outside, but inside, you feel like you’re running a marathon just to stay at baseline. We’ve been taught to call this "burnout," but for so many women, it’s actually a neurobiological reality that a vacation just won’t fix. In this episode, I’m giving you the cliff notes on why undiagnosed ADHD is the hidden tax on your career—and why it shows up as unsustainable overperformance rather than a lack of talent. We’re moving beyond the jargon...
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The Hidden Cost of "Inconsistent" Talent: A 30-Day Audit
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Nobody is ever excited about an audit, but today I’m asking you to do one because we need to talk about the hidden tax on your organization: undiagnosed and unsupported neurodivergence. In this episode, I’m moving beyond the "why" and giving you a tactical, 30-day framework to measure exactly what you’re losing in turnover, productivity, and talent. We are going to dig into the data you likely already have - from voluntary turnover trends to coded language in performance reviews...to spot the high-performing women who are slipping through the cracks. I will walk you through a four-week...
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Squirrel: Why Your "Burned Out" High Performer Is Actually Undiagnosed
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Let me describe someone you probably manage right now: she’s brilliant, creative, and a pattern recognizer, but she’s also... a lot. She might have 17 browser tabs open, interrupt enthusiastically in meetings, or struggle with "simple" expense reports while crushing complex strategy. You might be thinking she just needs better time management or executive presence, but what if I told you that isn't a performance issue? In this episode—which I’m thinking of calling "Squirrel"—we are talking about late-diagnosed ADHD, the invisible disability hiding in plain sight among your highest...
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The $1.8 Million Resignation: Why Your Best Female Leaders Are Quietly Quitting (And How to Stop It)
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
What if I told you that 20% of your most experienced female talent is considering leaving—not for better opportunities, but because your workplace is making them choose between their health and their careers? Women aged 45-55 represent your most valuable institutional knowledge, your strongest leaders, and your most effective mentors. They're also navigating perimenopause and menopause in workplaces that were never designed for their needs. And they're walking away silently, one resignation at a time. In this episode, I'm pulling back the curtain on the women's health crisis that's quietly...
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The Trillion-Dollar Hole: Why Women's Health Is Not a Niche Issue
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Welcome to 2026 and a new evolution of the HX podcast. For years, I kept my own 30-year battle with endometriosis hidden because I didn't feel safe discussing it at work. I’ve realized we can’t treat mental health as separate from the rest of our bodies, yet we’ve designed workplaces for young, healthy men, leaving millions to "perform wellness" while managing chronic conditions in silence. This season, we’re peeling back the onion on why women's health isn't a niche issue—it’s a trillion-dollar hole in the global economy. We’ll explore why senior women are leaving at the peak of...
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2026: The Year We Stop Pretending (A New Direction for HX)
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Hey humans, Stacie Baird here. The truth is, nothing really changed in 2025—we just finally found the language for what has been true for a long time. This isn't a typical year-end review episode; it’s a moment of closure and an opening. For six years, we’ve been talking about burnout, compassionate leadership, and psychological safety. But every time we had those conversations, we kept running into the same wall: the reality of our bodies. We realized that the burnout crisis we’ve been documenting is, at least in part, a women’s health crisis that we haven’t been naming. In...
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The Ripple Effect: How Your Why Creates Aligned Culture and Contagious Boundaries
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Hey, humans, we’ve arrived at the final and perhaps most powerful part of our "Why" series! We started with personal excavation, learned how to apply it to decisions, and now we’re talking about the ripple effect. When leaders operate from their why, it changes everything. I'm going to show you exactly how one individual's clarity creates a collective wave, leading to aligned culture , higher engagement, and most importantly, giving permission for your team to bring their whole selves to work. I’ll share stories from my own career, from seeing a highly successful leader realize his life...
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Your Why as Your North Star: How to Say No to the Wrong Thing (and Yes to Your Next Big Move) Part 2 of our Series on Your "Why"
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Hey, humans! Last week we excavated our "why", and this week, we're talking about how to make it actionable. I’m sharing the most powerful lesson I’ve learned: your "why" isn't just a statement; it's your decision-making filter. It defines where you say yes and, more importantly, where you finally say no. I’ll walk you through how my why helped me walk away from a financially great opportunity because it demanded sacrificing the boundaries I teach you to protect. I’m also sharing the biggest professional decision I’ve made in years. I’ll show you why this opportunity was an...
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The Crisis That Defined Me: Stop Searching for Your Why (And Start Excavating It)
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
Hey, humans! This episode is where we start a three-part journey that I truly believe will permanently alter your outlook, because that’s what happens when you discover your "why". We all know the what and the how, but when you get clear on the purpose and the belief behind your work, everything gets easier. I’m opening up and sharing the crisis moments in my own life from sitting in Jocelyn’s hospital room and my daughter’s journey afterwards - that stripped away everything but what truly mattered, making my own why clearer than ever. This week, I’m giving you an assignment to start...
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From Tool to Coworker: The Rise of Agentic AI in Hiring
The HX Podcast with Stacie Baird
It’s not science fiction anymore; it’s Agentic AI. We’re moving past the era where AI just assists us. Now, we’re talking about a coworker that can run entire recruiting workflows from start to finish. Think of it like a Tesla: you set the destination, and it drives the car. But I don't want you to be left in the dust regarding what this looks like. We are talking about autonomous scoring, outreach, and screening that operates without human intervention so you can save your intervention for where it matters most. However, with great automation comes great responsibility. I know...
info_outlineIn this episode, Jenn and I are diving deep into something we know a lot about: being Gen X and hitting that phase of life that people used to call a 'midlife crisis.' We're calling BS on that and reframing it as what it really is... a reboot. With our kids getting older, we finally have the space to ask what we want, not just what our families need.
We get real about everything from navigating hormonal shifts and prioritizing sleep over everything else, to why I'm taking a whole pharmacy of supplements and have fully embraced my comfy, underwire-free wardrobe. It's about feeling our best, not turning back the clock, and being intentional about this next, powerful chapter.
We also get into how this personal reboot is unlocking a professional relaunch. For years, many of us, especially women, made career choices based on our kids' schedules and being the primary caregiver. Now, those doors are wide open, and our motivation has shifted from chasing promotions to finding real fulfillment in coaching and mentoring others.
We'll talk about why Gen X is consistently ranked the most stressed generation—stuck translating between Boomers and Millennials—and why it’s time for us to reduce the stigma, start talking, and redefine what this stage of life looks like for all of us.
Here are some interesting related articles:
- Reevaluation trend: Forbes (2025) reports Gen X engagement dropped from 35% to 31%, with active disengagement rising from 17% to 18% Forbes.
- Stress over time: Gen X has been the most stressed generation for over a decade; a 2012 study rated their average stress 5.8/10 vs. Millennials at 3.4 and Boomers at 4.4 Forbes.
- Population and workforce share: Gen X makes up 31% of the U.S. workforce and 19% of the global population—large, not fringe marshmma.com.
- Caregiving burdens by age create rethink moments (see Episode 2 stats) ResearchGate+.
Enjoy,
Stacie
More episodes at StacieBaird.com.