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The podcast focuses on fiercely empowering women in business, as entrepreneurs and women in male-dominated industries, featuring guests who embody strength, resilience, competence, and a touch of sass as they navigate business and life.
Looking for guests who are willing to bring a wealth of experience and knowledge but also possess the strength, resilience, and sass that align with the tone of my podcast.
I want their stories and insights to provide immense value to my audience, helping me to establish a powerful podcast as a must-listen for women looking to empower themselves in business. The goal is to build competence and discover how brave women can be in business.
Welcome to Superheroes in Heels, the podcast where powerful women rise, lead, and own the room. I'm Kimberley Borgans, your host, fellow trailblazer, and unapologetic advocate for women in the world of business. With over thirty years of experience building success in a male dominant industry, I'm here to empower you to do the same. Each week, you'll hear bold conversations with inspiring guests who embody strength, resilience, a little dash of sass, and a little bit of grace. Together, we'll challenge the status quo, break through barriers, unlock your confidence, and unleash your inner superhero.
Kimberley Borgens:You ready? Let's go.
Kimberley Borgens:Hello. Hello. Welcome, fabulous superheroes. Welcome to another episode of superheroes in heels, the show where we trade in our capes for stilettos. Okay.
Kimberley Borgens:Maybe not stilettos, but we get down to the real adventures and misadventures of being a woman in business. I'm your host, Kimberley Borgans. And today, I wanna talk to you about something that's really close to my heart, safety for women safety for women in business. You know, as a woman in, private security and private investigations for over thirty plus years, you know, I've seen firsthand how important it is to be aware and be proactive, not just in the workplace, but in everyday life. And so today, I really wanted to share some safety tips.
Kimberley Borgens:You know, part of, having this podcast is not just about, you know, interviewing people, telling you all about stuff, but also informing you and letting you know some things that maybe you weren't even thinking of and being more aware. Because, you know, for me, my biggest mission in life is to keep people safe. Right? Create safe communities to to make sure that women know that they're safe enough to do business, that they're safe enough to be able to take care of their family, that they're smart enough and more capable than they've ever thought that they they were. Because that's really my goal with my podcast here.
Kimberley Borgens:And so I wanted to share with you some safety tips that, you know, I want you to keep in mind as you move forward in your business, when you're traveling, in your life, with your family. And so today, I'm that's what today's episode is all about. Some safety tips, safety safety hints, things like that. And, hopefully, you'll find it powerful enough that you want to share it with friends. You know, share the episode.
Kimberley Borgens:Subscribe to the episode, but make sure that you're getting it out to other people so other women that you know can feel safe and do the right things to stay safe no matter what part, whether they're in business or they work for somebody else, these tips are gonna help all along the way. So let's dig into some of the tips that I have for you today. The first tip that I would really say to you when it comes to safety and making sure that you keep safety in mind is to, ladies, trust your instinct. Trust your intuition. Right?
Kimberley Borgens:Not everybody in business is doing business with good intentions. I mean, seriously. Okay? We wanna make sure that we're always doing business with good intentions, but make sure to also know that not everybody is like that. If a situation or a person makes you feel uneasy, pay attention to those feelings.
Kimberley Borgens:Look. Don't hesitate to remove yourself from the situation or seek some help. And, yes, ladies, let me be very clear. It is not a bother. Let me repeat that.
Kimberley Borgens:It is not a bother, okay, to call a friend, to get you out of an uncomfortable situation. And it's also not a bother to call the police if you feel that you need them. If you're thinking, oh, I should oh, I'm scared and I need to call the plea then do it. Okay? Like, ladies have this tendency to think that it's a bother to call people for help, and I'm telling you to get over that because you have to trust your instincts.
Kimberley Borgens:You have to know what it is that's important for you and know how to keep yourself safe. And if you think that it's a bother to call somebody else, imagine the bother what it would be if you didn't call somebody else. I'm just being real. So trust your instincts. Pay attention.
Kimberley Borgens:I, you know, I talk about, I do training on situational awareness. Pay attention to the situation around you, being aware of the those things. By trusting your instincts and paying attention, help keep you safe. Okay. That's tip number one.
Kimberley Borgens:The next thing I wanna say is, you know, keep your information private. Look. I have seen people give out everything. They almost vomit all of their personal information. I guarantee you with today's, technology, you know, back in the day when we did investigations, we had to go through certain organizations, brokerages that could help us find information about people.
Kimberley Borgens:Do you know, we almost never use that those brokerages anymore, and many of them have gone out of business. Why? Because it's all over the Internet. I can find some things out. I mean, here's the situation.
Kimberley Borgens:We were driving up to our son's house one day, and a man fell right next to our car driving down the street on his bicycle. My husband pulled over right away. The gentleman, was injured, slightly injured. We're able to get his bike up. He was a little out of sorts.
Kimberley Borgens:We got him to a location. He called his wife. She's coming. But, he'd given my husband his landline to try to get ahold of his wife. It was an older gentleman.
Kimberley Borgens:They still had a landline. Yes, ladies and gentlemen. Those things do still exist. So, anyway, after we had left the scene and he was, taken care of, my husband said to me, was never able to get ahold of the wife through that landlord. I'd love to follow-up about this guy, and I didn't get his cell phone number.
Kimberley Borgens:What did I do? I went on the Internet. I googled a few things. Popped out. We called her cell phone number.
Kimberley Borgens:My husband and my daughter were in the vehicle at that time, and my husband says, man, you are nosy. You're a stalker because I can find information like that, ladies and gentlemen. Don't think that I can't. Alright? And don't think bad guys can't.
Kimberley Borgens:When you have the right skill and you know what you're looking for, you can find out information. So you wanna keep your information as private as possible. Be cautious about what you're sharing personally, your personal details, especially on social media and with new contacts, new people. Right? Look.
Kimberley Borgens:I've had a PO box for more than twenty five years. It's the same PO box. And when I go to the doctor's office or something like that, they'll say, oh, you're still living at that address? I'm like, yep. We all shove right into that box.
Kimberley Borgens:Right? Like, I just play with it at this point. Right? I have that that PO box on my business card, social media, all over my website. I do that not for because I'm some hoity toity person who doesn't need to show my physical address, but because it's about personal safety for women.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? For a man, it's not a big deal. But for us women, we need to have that extra layer of personal safety. So that's how I do it. Never give out your Social Security, your credit card, your bank account numbers to anybody that comes to your doors.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? Go to their place of business. Contact their place of business. Do an inter net research. Right?
Kimberley Borgens:Pay attention. You don't wanna hand that information out to just anybody. And I know some of y'all are going, yeah, Kimberley. We already know that. But some of y'all, like, may have forgotten about that, especially this holiday season.
Kimberley Borgens:I don't know about you, but we have people come knocking on the door to sell me this Saturday or the next day. And I'm just like, I'm good. Thank you. I just that's not where I'm gonna buy. Okay?
Kimberley Borgens:Also, when throwing away things, especially junk mail, stuff like that at your personal address, destroy the personal information on that document before discarding them into the trash or the recycle. You know, use a shredder or an ink device. You know, there's these little simple ink devices. You roll the ink right over the top of your address. They can't see it.
Kimberley Borgens:You can throw it into your recycle bin or your trash and move on. You know, it'll it just destroys your personal safety. If you get your credit card statement in the mail still, yes, some of us do. Right? Make sure that before you throw it away that you, ink it out or shred it.
Kimberley Borgens:And don't fall for things that sound too good to be true. I mean, seriously. We all want easy money, but the reality is is it's not true. Right? It's not that easy because sometimes there's a later effect that makes it really hard.
Kimberley Borgens:You know, think about, you know, vacations that sound too good to be true. You might get scammed on that. Sweepstakes prizes, health cures. Right? Low risk, high yield investments.
Kimberley Borgens:Right? These these can all be schemes that you wanna protect yourself from. Have a good financial adviser to help you out, in that way, but, you know, do your best to to not be an easy target or to be scammed. Don't agree with any home improvements or sales contracts until you verify the existence and the reputation of that business. Look.
Kimberley Borgens:Be sure all contractors that you hire are licensed, they're bound, and they're insured. Seriously. If you're having people come into your home to to or your place of business, right, to do things, then you wanna know that you can trust them. If you don't trust them, if you don't know who they are, and somebody's referred them to you, ask them why they referred them to you. Oh, it's just a name I you know, whatever.
Kimberley Borgens:Oh, it's somebody I've known for a long time. Right? You wanna build that credibility. And the other thing to help you not get scammed, is don't give money to charitable organizations until you verify that they truly are a nonprofit business. Okay?
Kimberley Borgens:I know that sounds crazy, but people give money away. They well, I donated this to charity. Well, they weren't a charity. Okay? So make sure that you're paying attention to that as well.
Kimberley Borgens:Alright. Next safety tip. Stay alert and aware. Whether you're at the office, traveling, or attending events, always be mindful of your surroundings. It's very important.
Kimberley Borgens:Look. Avoid distractions. Okay? Like, looking at your phone while you're walking, you become a target. If you're using that phone to walk someplace, you look at it, you go.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? You look at it, you go. You don't sit there and go on your phone, texting, doing all this stuff, and not paying attention to your surroundings. Pay attention when you're getting out of your vehicle. K?
Kimberley Borgens:If it's a great parking spot, but you notice two people standing there waiting for you to get out of your car, move. Okay? Park somewhere else. A great parking spot is not worth the hassle of having people that might take from you, cause problems, you know, any of that kind of stuff. This happens a lot around the holidays, so pay attention to that.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay. Let's talk about in your workspace. Secure your workspace. Okay? Whether you're at home, whether, you know, doing business, whether you're in an incubator, you have your own office, you're working for somebody and you go to their office space, is lock the doors behind you that you can.
Kimberley Borgens:Right? Make sure the windows are locked before you leave every day. Secure your valuables, especially when you're in shared or public office environments. Look, ladies. Let's just have a real quick conversation here.
Kimberley Borgens:K? Your purses. They have all your personal information. They have your credit cards, your money. It might have your Social Security, although I think you should leave that at home.
Kimberley Borgens:Know, save somewhere and not put it out there. But so many women will just leave their purse sitting under their desk, on their desk, and they walk away to go to the copy room, go to the restroom, you know, whatever the case may be. You know, you go to events, and you leave your purse sitting underneath the chair at an event, and you go to the restroom, you go get something to drink, and you just leave your purse behind. I can't tell you how many times I have heard women say, somebody took something out of my purse. Okay?
Kimberley Borgens:You leave your purse behind. Somebody could just walk out the other way with it. Nobody knows whose is what, especially at an event. And if you're leaving it in your office where somebody has easy access to it, it's likely that something's gonna go missing. But always, look, I give the benefit of the doubt to people when it comes to safety and security.
Kimberley Borgens:Like, I I trust people are not gonna, you know, rob me. Right? They're not gonna burglarize my purse when I'm not in the room. But at the same time, I know that it happens a lot. So I'm just giving you some heads up.
Kimberley Borgens:Alright? Put your purse in a filing cabinet or put it in another place that makes it more difficult to see and has less easy access to it when you're at the office. When you're at events, right, pick it up and take it with you. It's an inconvenience. Yeah.
Kimberley Borgens:But how inconvenient is it gonna be when you have to replace your credit cards, When you don't have the cash that you thought that you had? When somebody starts to steal your identity because you left it behind? I know it sounds a little grim, but I'm being honest with you. This is what I have worked to support women with for over thirty five years. Right?
Kimberley Borgens:I I I just don't play here. Okay? I'm just giving you my best from my heart, and, you know, it's not something that you wanna have to deal with. So be more aware of it. So secure your your your valuable possessions, your purse, your money, your you know, all of that out of sight, out of mind is a whole lot easier than, oh, easy target.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? And then pay attention to, in your workspace, emergency exits. Know how many steps that it takes to get you close to the the the exit. If there's smoke, you wanna know how to get out of there. Just pay attention to it.
Kimberley Borgens:You don't have to, like, think about it and obsess about it. But know it. You know, we get on an airplane and my husband says, I just want you to know, you have 10 rows to get to the first the next exit, you know, the emergency exit. I'm like, okay. Okay, babe.
Kimberley Borgens:Thanks. Right? Or, he'll say, when we get to our hotel or something like that, look. There's it's four doors, and then it's on the right. Okay.
Kimberley Borgens:Like, he's got me covered. I don't even have to worry about it as much when I'm with him. But when I'm not with him, which is often, I travel without him quite a bit, that I pay attention to those things as well. So make sure that you do. Also, when traveling, let me talk some hotel safety.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? Cover the peepholes of your door. Okay? Just do it. Right?
Kimberley Borgens:When you're staying at a hotel, you can, you know, put a little sticker there. You can use tissue and stick it in the hole. Just cover the peephole. I know it sounds like nobody can see in or whatever, but people have these tools, and I'm just telling you that's one of my my top tips. Use a hanger.
Kimberley Borgens:Look. I use a hanger. I use several things that I'll tell you about when I go traveling and I'm at hotels. Right? I use a hanger and I put it on the doorknob or I'll put it up where the door opens.
Kimberley Borgens:Right? Someplace that if somebody opens up the door, it will either scrape the wall or it will fall off, and I will hear it when I'm sleeping. K? So that way if somebody opens the door, I know that. There's also I have, you could purchase a traveling alarm.
Kimberley Borgens:So I have this little, like, door stop alarm that, when the door opens, it hits it and an alarm goes off. Okay? There's other locks that you can put on those doors that you can purchase. But if you don't carry those things, you can use the things that are right there. I I've been in some shady hotels.
Kimberley Borgens:I admit it. I've done things like taking the ironing board and opening it up and putting it in front of the door when I go to sleep. I will put my suitcase in front of the door. So when if somebody opens up the door, then, you know, it helps you know that somebody is there. The ironing board's gonna fall down.
Kimberley Borgens:Alright? It'll make it crash, scare you awake, but possibly scare away. Don't assume just because you're in a hotel that you're completely safe. Okay. And if you are traveling, let's talk about vacations and things like that.
Kimberley Borgens:Your photos on social media. Unless your home is protected by having somebody staying at your home, you have alarms in place, all of those things, stop posting your vacation photos on your social media until your home is protected. So what that means is maybe when you get back, you do a dump. Okay? As long as somebody is protecting your home, then post all you want.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? But quite often, vacation equals burglary, and people know when you're away because they of everything that you're posting on your social. I don't post on my social when I'm away if nobody is in my home. Now when I leave, most of the time, I have somebody who's here in my house watching my dogs, taking care of things. So I have people.
Kimberley Borgens:So that's why, you know, I'll post when I'm away. A lot of people see me on social. They know that I post my my travels. But just know if you're if you don't have that in place, then don't post until you get home. Alright?
Kimberley Borgens:So also when traveling alone, you know, keep your family and friends informed of where you are. Send text, photos, locations so that they know that you're alright. If you're doing some big trip, like, let them know. You know those emails that we've all gotten that says, hey. Help.
Kimberley Borgens:I got stranded. I need $10,000, you know, whatever. Right? Click this link or whatever. You know, we've all gotten those kinds of emails.
Kimberley Borgens:This is one way to prevent, your family and friends of getting confused. Okay? Let's talk elevators. Get a bad vibe from someone in an elevator? Don't walk in the elevator.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? Wait for the next one. Take the stairs. Shake it off. I don't know.
Kimberley Borgens:You could say something like, oops. I forgot something and start to walk away. Right? Don't get into a space that you feel completely uncomfortable. I've been to look.
Kimberley Borgens:I'm a look. I'll say it. I'm a BA woman. Okay? I can walk into an elevator and handle myself.
Kimberley Borgens:But occasionally, like, I'm like, no. It's okay. I can wait. I can be patient. I'm like, oh, I forgot something.
Kimberley Borgens:And then they close the door and go on. It probably had nothing to do with them. It just had something to do with me in that moment, but I'm okay with doing that. And you need to be okay with doing it also. Don't think just because I'm BA that I don't have any instincts, because I do.
Kimberley Borgens:And sometimes I'm still just a human. I'm still just a woman. And every now and then, right, I go, my woman intuition says something's just not right. Right? You never know.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay. So let's talk about kids real quick. I'm gonna talk about some kids because I know many of my listeners have some kids that they wanna keep safe as well. Right? And I I really do.
Kimberley Borgens:That's my that's my thing. I just want women to be safe, to be able to take care of their families, all that. So why would I not share about some kid safety tips? Okay. That's just me.
Kimberley Borgens:I'm a Grammy now. I have my two grand boys. I have another one on the way. So I'm I'm still all about the kids. So let's talk about some safety for kids for kids at home.
Kimberley Borgens:Look. I know it might be inconvenient for you or whatever, but I would install door peepholes, you know, the little viewers at a child's level. You could have the tall one for the adults, but put in second one there so that your kids can use a peephole before opening the door to anybody that they know to see if it's somebody that they know. It's hard. If the kids are in the house, maybe they're young you're you're tweens.
Kimberley Borgens:Right? You're and you're leaving them home for whatever reason. Not judging anything. I'm just saying it I know it happens. So why not create the space where they don't even have to say a word that they can just look out the peephole to see who's there?
Kimberley Borgens:They can pick up the phone and call you. If you have a ring and they have access to see and you have access to see, then that's even better. But look, bad guys don't necessarily use rings. Okay? And sometimes they turn their back to it, and you can't even tell who's there until, you know, they're gone.
Kimberley Borgens:So do what's what's right for your family. Install a little peephole that they can see out the door. You can do those little covered peepholes. So right? And and then also you wanna take time to explain to your children that although their home is safe, the reason that it's safe is because your family takes precautions by not opening the door to strangers.
Kimberley Borgens:Okay? Just because someone knocks does not mean that you have to open the door. So, you know, teach them that. Let them understand that. And it's not about creating fear.
Kimberley Borgens:It's about creating safety and control of what they have the power to do. Teach them how to secure all the locks. Right? How to set the alarms when they are home alone. Have them show you how to arm and disarm the alarm system.
Kimberley Borgens:Right? How to secure all the locks and the windows. You wanna teach them how to don't. Don't assume they know. Okay?
Kimberley Borgens:Remind them often. Like, hey. We're gonna do a safety check today. Let's go through it. Right?
Kimberley Borgens:Do that. You know, let them know that it's important to you, not just nagging at them, but do it as a family. We're doing a safety check today. Teach your children not to eat anything from strangers. Okay?
Kimberley Borgens:Candies, cookies, more can have drugs in them and harm your kids. I don't want that to happen. Unfortunately, it does happen. So have your kids politely refuse the offer without a guardian or a parent present. You get to be in charge of that.
Kimberley Borgens:When your kids are around you, you get to to say, hey. Yeah. Oh, that's okay. I trust that person. You can do that.
Kimberley Borgens:Right? But when you're not around, teach them how they can trust themselves or not trust anybody. Right? Because it's important. We're trying to keep our kids safe.
Kimberley Borgens:Well, I hope these were helpful for you. I know I didn't give a whole lot. There's a whole, I have a whole sheet that I give out for the holidays. So if you're hearing this around the holidays, go to my Facebook page, bealegacy.com or not bealegacy.com. Be a legacy on Facebook.
Kimberley Borgens:So that's b e a and then legacy. Be a legacy on on Facebook, and I put in my holiday safety tip. If you want more safety tips, you're welcome to go over there and get that. But remember that prioritizing your safety is not just about your physical well-being. That's important, but it's also about feeling confident and in control, you know, both in your business and your personal life.
Kimberley Borgens:I want you to stay empowered and stay vigilant. Right? Always looking out for yourself and looking out for each other. As I wrap up this episode, I I really want you to know that your true strength comes from embracing smart habits, you know, looking out for one another. Safety and confidence go hand in hand.
Kimberley Borgens:You're much more confident when you feel safe. So when you prioritize both, you become, I don't know, unstoppable. So whether you're at home, you're at work, you're out exploring the world, I just want you to make sure that you are, you know, letting your awareness and your courage shine through, based on feeling safe and feeling confident. So let me leave you with a little bit of inspiration. You know, above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.
Kimberley Borgens:That's a quote from Nora Ephraim. Thank you so much for joining me today here on Superheroes and Heals. Stay bold. Stay safe. Keep empowering yourself and those around you.
Kimberley Borgens:And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast. And remember, share this episode on your social to keep your friends and family safe too. I wanna thank you so much for coming today. I'm Kimberley Borgans, and I just I love working with women. So thank you so much for taking the time out and listening today.
Kimberley Borgens:Have a blessed week.
Outro:Thanks for tuning in to Superheroes in Heels with Kimberley Borgans. If you're walking away feeling a little braver, a little bolder, and a whole
Outro:lot more powerful, mission accomplished. Be sure to subscribe to the show and leave a review. It helps us to reach more women who are ready to unleash their power and lead with confidence. And if you do leave a review, you might just hear your name in an upcoming episode.
Outro:If today's conversation lit a fire in you, share it with your network and join us inside the hive society at Kimberleyborgans.com, where powerful women gather to break barriers and rise together. Until next time, keep showing up, standing strong, and heels or not, keep embracing your inner superhero.