Helen Mason is a passionate Women’s Leadership and Working Parent Coach, dedicated to helping professional women thrive in both their careers and family lives – on their own terms. Her journey to becoming a transformative coach for women, particularly mothers, is deeply rooted in her own personal experiences of navigating the challenges of corporate life, motherhood and gender equity. After nearly two decades in corporate marketing, Helen recognised the profound impact societal expectations have on women, especially mothers, and set out to create a supportive space for women to challenge these expectations, reclaim their power, and build fulfilling, balanced lives without sacrificing themselves along the way. Here she talks to The Natural Parent Magazine about the inspiration behind what she does, the challenges she has overcome, and her hopes and dreams for the future.
The passion: What inspired you to set up your business?
The societal expectations around what women, and mothers in particular, should be are still deeply ingrained. While gender parity has come a long way over the past few decades, there’s still so much further to go. Progress doesn’t mean we should settle; it means we have an even greater opportunity to strive for more.
Throughout my life, I’ve seen so many brilliant women hold back on their potential, held captive by self-doubt. I’ve also seen countless mothers who appear to have it all together – the so-called “supermums” – but are quietly overwhelmed, juggling it all while battling guilt. They feel they’re not giving enough to their children or their careers, endlessly caught in a cycle of “not enough”.
This inspired me to create a space with my coaching business where mothers can reclaim their power and learn to amplify their voice – whether that’s in their traditional career or as an entrepreneur. Seeing a mother embrace her full potential, thriving as both a parent and a leader, is what fuels me. It’s about working with them to stand strong and confident without sacrificing themselves – and watching them do so is what truly lights me up.
The launch: How did you start out in the beginning?
I spent nearly two decades working in corporate marketing, progressing through various roles until I was leading teams and eventually became the Marketing Director for a billion-pound veterinary company.
While my career was thriving, I first became aware of the “double-bind dilemma” during a women’s leadership training program. This concept highlights the impossible tightrope women often walk: being told to be more confident and bold to succeed, only to face criticism for being “too much” when they do. It’s a no-win situation that resonated deeply with me and sparked a fire – a passion for helping women own their worth and use their voices authentically, rather than conforming to what others expect.
When my son was born in 2020, another layer was added – the challenges of balancing a demanding career and motherhood. I often felt like I was falling short in both roles – never quite “good enough” as a parent or a leader. It forced me to confront the myth of women “having it all” (spoiler: they don’t) – and to rethink how I wanted to live and lead.
I had trained as a coach in 2019 and was already working as an internal coach and facilitator, leading workshops for women’s networks. By 2024, I finally took the leap into full-time coaching and facilitation. Now, I combine working with my own private clients and partnering with established leadership development and team coaching organisations to help more women embrace their potential.
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
There have been several lightbulb moments that have shaped my journey and brought me to where I am today. The first was realising just how unlevel the playing field is when it comes to gender equity. I had always felt like I was being judged differently to my male counterparts, but it wasn’t until I completed my training in women’s leadership that I fully understood the depth of the issue. That validation ignited a fire in me – I knew I couldn’t accept the status quo and had to do something about it.
Over the years, as I’ve worked in the field of gender equity, I’ve also come to recognise the extent of my own privilege – and the responsibility that comes with it. As a white, straight, cisgender, non-disabled, neurotypical, and educated woman, I face far fewer barriers than many others who contend with racial, homophobic, ableist, or other biases. This awareness pushed me to move beyond being a bystander and to take more intentional, meaningful action.
Becoming a mother was another transformative moment, as it is for so many women. A few years after my son was born, I came across the term matrescence – the profound physical, emotional, and psychological transformation women go through when becoming mothers. It hit me how little society acknowledges this shift. Instead, we’re expected to “bounce back” – not just physically, but in every aspect of our lives – while simultaneously taking on the immense additional expectations of motherhood.
This realisation, layered on top of the gender inequities I was already passionate about addressing, led me to focus specifically on working with mothers. Supporting women in navigating this complex, transformative journey – and helping them take control of their life and career – has been the biggest breakthrough for me and my business.
Yin and Yang: How do you balance work and family?
Balancing work and family is an ongoing challenge, and for me, the most important – and hardest – part is letting go of the social narrative around the “perfect mother” myth. So many mothers, myself included, wrestle with fears of disapproval or not being “good enough”. Every day, I have to check in with myself and consciously challenge those unhelpful beliefs. For instance, I remind myself that it’s okay to get angry or snap at my kids sometimes – I’m human! And it’s perfectly natural to want and need time away from my son. Those breaks are vital; they refresh me and make me a better, more present mum when I’m with him.
I’m also a firm believer in fairness when it comes to the domestic load. This isn’t just about the physical tasks – it’s about the cognitive load, the mental effort it takes to manage family life. Take mealtimes, for example: cooking dinner is one thing, but planning the menu, coordinating around events like kids’ parties, checking the fridge for what’s close to its sell-by date, and ensuring everyone’s getting enough veggies – all that thinking can be exhausting but also invisible.
To address this, my husband and I use the principles of the “Fair Play” method to split the domestic responsibilities more equitably. It’s not always 50/50, because life isn’t perfectly balanced, but we regularly discuss the tasks (including the mental ones) and divide them based on our other commitments. It’s been a big mental shift for me, and I still catch myself wanting to interfere, but this approach has been transformative. Not only does it give me more time and mental space to focus on my business, but it also allows my husband to enjoy the caregiving moments, like organising my son’s birthday party and seeing his joy when he saw his amazing chocolate cake.
I should also say that we’re lucky enough to have paid support. We have a cleaner and dog walker to lighten some of the load. It can feel taboo to mention these things, and I recognise it’s a huge privilege and luxury, but in my view not being honest about the extra support you have can further drive the harmful ‘supermum’ myth.
