Go your own way: Transforming beliefs into breakthroughs

About this episode

Leena Dattani discusses overcoming limiting beliefs and redefining leadership while promoting gender equity.

Leena Dattani, FCMA, CGMA, discusses how limiting beliefs affected her professional growth, the small steps she takes to overcome them, and the realisation that changed her idea of what it means to be a leader. "I had a vision that in order to be a great leader, you have to be loud," Dattani said. "I think because I felt that that needed to be the case, I was almost imitating what I thought a leader should be rather than being myself." Dattani also discusses how one organisation achieved the buy-in to improve gender equity, some ways women can start to back themselves professionally, and what International Women's Day means to her. What you'll learn from this episode: Small steps for overcoming poor self-confidence. The importance of building a supportive network. One realisation that helped Dattani become her own leader. How one organisation created a business case for gender equity. One trick for challenging limiting beliefs. What International Women's Day means for Dattani.

People in this episode

Guest: Leena Dattani

Topics covered

• leadership
• gender equity
• self-confidence
• professional growth
• supportive networks
• International Women's Day

Keywords

• limiting beliefs
• leadership
• gender equity
• self-confidence
• professional development
• support network
• International Women's Day

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: AICPA & CIMA

More episodes of Financial Management (FM) magazine

• Reframing retirement: A 4-part formula for relevance after work · April 21, 2026 · 18 min
• April FM: Assessing your worth, board recruitment, and AI governance · April 1, 2026 · 9 min
• 5 types of imposter syndrome and strategies to manage self-doubt · March 18, 2026 · 17 min
• Don't hit send: Ethical considerations in social media use · February 25, 2026 · 18 min
• February FM: AI use cases, fractional CFOs, maximising LinkedIn · February 3, 2026 · 8 min
• Why the 'best strategy in the world' will fail without strong culture · January 28, 2026 · 16 min