Jo embarked on her journey as a certified nutritional therapist in 2006, establishing her own private practice dedicated to enhancing women’s health and optimising hormonal balance. With a wealth of experience spanning over two decades, Jo passionately champions the transformative potential of nutrition, holistic wellness, and complementary health practices.
Having held prominent roles as a leader and CEO within the media industry, Jo brings a unique perspective to her work. She witnessed firsthand the profound influence that investing in one’s well-being can have on both professional performance and personal happiness.
Prior to founding The Better Menopause, Jo’s professional experience included a remarkable tenure of over twenty years in market leading media businesses. Notable leadership positions at Brainlabs, Freeda Media, and Mindshare attest to her strategic acumen and visionary leadership. Presently, Jo extends her expertise as an advisor to startups and digital media enterprises, contributing to their growth trajectories.
Jo’s holistic approach to health, coupled with her extensive leadership background, underpins her commitment to revolutionising women’s experiences through The Better Menopause. Her multifaceted journey continues to inspire positive change and empowerment in individuals and businesses alike.
Can you introduce yourself to us?
Hello I am Jo, Founder of The Better Menopause. I am Mum to two boys, Josh and Theo and live in Wandsworth London with my husband and children. I am a nutritional therapist, investor and marketer.
I love great food, travel, yoga, fashion, beaches, cities and a good book. Being married to a pilot certainly helps fulfil the travel and beach passions! I do love living in London but also I crave time in open spaces, especially the beach. Standing on the shore line always gives me a sense of freedom and a huge energy boost.
Can you take us through your journey to where you are now?
I left school at 18 and made a fairly big decision at the time not to go to university and instead went to work to pursue a passion in media. I joined Mindshare (a media agency) at 19 and worked my way up to becoming Managing Director and ended up staying for 20 years! During my time there I wanted to feed my desire to keep on learning and stretching my brain to do new things so over 3 years I studied Nutrition at the college of naturopathic medicine at the weekends. I qualified as a Nutritional Therapist in 2006 and have been nurturing a private practice and passion for women’s health and wellness ever since.
After 20 years at Mindshare I made my next life altering decision to leave my fairly safe and successful career to go and join a startup as the first UK employee and country manager at Freeda media. My final media role was CEO of Brainlabs, a digital media agency.
In early 2023 I decided to make a change and bring nutrition front and centre to my everyday work. Being in perimenopause myself was a big trigger for this change and also for the creation of the business.
Since starting, have you made any changes to your business model?
We have only been trading for 8 weeks so it is early days for any major changes but due to demand we have also added a corporate product for businesses to access our training and expert speakers on menopause at work. We are providing the biology lesson everyone should have had at school and live clinics for employees to access expert advice from Menopause Doctors and Nutritionists.
Have you ever had a mentor? If so, how has this benefitted you either personally or professionally?
I haven’t had a mentor as such but I always choose to spend my working days with people who inspire me. I have built many teams over the years and I always learn from them and try to listen to their feedback to be a better leader. Periodically, I have worked with coaches which has always been transformational for me. I love having someone to ask the tough personal questions and encourage me to be really honest with myself and to stay close to my values.
What outlets do you use for marketing?
We use social media, podcasts and sector relevant webinars and events. We are exhibiting and speaking at ‘Pause Live’ in November. We are also part of the GenM collective.
What or Who has inspired you most recently?
I am so inspired by all the women that start their own business. When you bring personal passion and experience together it can be so powerful. I am also inspired by how generous women are to each other with sharing experience and ideas.
What is the best piece of business advice you have received to date?
I try to collect up new snippets of advice all the time but here are three that feel very relevant at the moment.
- Keep focused and do what matters most
- Have relentless belief and passion for what you do
- Work on your resilience to keep bouncing back from the challenges!
How do you create an evenly balanced work and personal life?
My current business is in the early startup phase so balance is a little harder because there is so much to do with little resources. However, I always make time for exercise each morning and make social plans to look forward to. My big focus for this year is to do things that bring me joy and I am always assessing what is filling up my joy bucket vs just going through the motions and essentials.
Name a seminal point in your career so far?
When I chose to leave a 20 year tenure at WPPs Mindshare to go to Freeda Media to launch the UK business as the first employee. I took a risk and jumped in with all my heart and energy.
What gives you ultimate career satisfaction?
Making an impact on others. Whether it be a customer or an employee. If I can make one person’s day better and leave them feeling better for time spent with me then that brings a lot of satisfaction.
Are there any leading entrepreneurs or SME leaders that you admire and if so, why?
Marcia Kilgore – her repeated success and innovation is inspiring
How do you define your own success?
When I achieve more than I thought possible. I hold myself to really high standards of output and sometimes I have to remind myself that done is better than perfect
Finally, what can we expect from you next?
To grow The Better Menopause into a global business that makes a positive impact on midlife women’s health and wellbeing….
https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannalyall/
https://www.instagram.com/thebettermenopause/ https://www.instagram.com/jolyallnutrition/
https://www.tiktok.com/@thebettermenopause?_t=8feaMz2WBOb&_r=1
