Managing People is “Heart Work”

Giselle Jones has a saying she likes to live by: “Your passion is waiting for your courage to catch up.” 

This is just one of many nuggets of wisdom Giselle graced us with in episode 45, where she details how she built her confidence as a woman of color climbing the corporate ladder. Drawing on her experience, she's now CEO of SOAR Consulting Services, where she provides HR consulting, coaching, and classes to women to do the “heart work” to heal and succeed throughout their careers. 

Join us!

Please make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode, and kindly review the podcast on Apple Podcasts so we can reach more working moms. We always want to hear your thoughts, concerns, questions or guest suggestions – email [email protected].

Episode social handles:

@WorkingMomHour

@EMechlinski

@MadsCaldwell

Just your casual division of labor card game lunch date?

Playing @fairplaylife every year or so helps us (me) to eliminate the mental load of all the tasks by getting on the same page about who is in charge of what at this moment in time.

Some examples: Chris – laundry, middle of the night kid wake-ups, and kid magic (elf, tooth fairy etc). Me – breakfasts, schools communication and extra curriculars.

It’s not about equal cards it’s about equity of work – and also, for me, it meant admitting long solo stretches with the kids totally depletes me. To which @chrisgcaldwell looked at me and said something magical: “Mads, I think I was put on this earth to be with kids. I can take on more kid stuff.” Hi, swoon.

It’s also a good way to feel seen by your partner. We happen to have ended up with 34 cards each, which made us laugh, but that’s 34 things each of us do that have been acknowledged. We see each other’s work.

Here’s to an hour long game streamlining our lives and the mental load. Thanks @everodsky!

Being and Doing

Please make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode, and kindly review the podcast on Apple Podcasts so we can reach more working moms. We always want to hear your thoughts, concerns, questions or guest suggestions – email [email protected].

Episode social handles:

@WorkingMomHour

@EMechlinski

@MadsCaldwell

A Different Kind of Gift Guide

By Krystina Wales

Sometimes the best gifts don’t come in a box, or even wrapped. As inboxes fill to the brim with gift guides and sales — there’s an opportunity to step outside the commercialization of the holidays and think about how gifts can look different than simply another item.

1 – Be Thoughtful
Every Christmas, I handwrite a letter to my closest friends. I tell them what I love most about them, what I admired about them from this year and what their friendship means to me. Even if your love language is not words of affirmation, I find it an exercise in gratitude for myself, savoring the joy these friendships bring me. I have heard feedback that these letters are some of the most treasured gifts my friends receive, acting as a pick-me-up on tough days throughout the next year.

2 – Be Uninhibited
The past three years have been tough on us all. There are endless amounts of statistics I could reference here that talk about declining mental health, the load of work and stress we all carry around with us as a result of the trauma from this epic decade. Sometimes, the best thing we can gift ourselves is to step outside the homes that have held us during this time, feel the icy air in our lungs as we take a deep breath, listening to only the sounds of the air as it enters our nose and then fill the silent expanse with a loud, ass scream.

3 – Be Present
Presence is an action. My good friend and I instituted a thing during the pandemic called Porch Beers. When we desperately needed time together that COVID was robbing us of, we visited each other’s porches after kid bedtime. Sometimes there was beer, sometimes there were snacks. But there were always chairs, carefully placed six feet away from each other, and conversation flowed. When we think about the act of gathering, it matters less the logistics and more the connection. We don’t need to create elaborate settings to have conversation. We don’t need date nights and babysitters to reconnect with our partners. We need found moments to talk about nothing of consequence. No kids, no house, no pets, no work. Just “Gosh, the person I married is f’ing smart and interesting” moments. Presence is an action.

4 – Be Ready to Capture
My 5-year-old popped into a Zoom meeting recently, which was slightly embarrassing as I was interviewing a physician chair whose time is limited. The doctor was gracious and allowed my 5-year-old to speak and when she went back downstairs the physician said, “I hope you are recording that little voice. It won’t last forever.” Record your little ones rambling on incoherently with a story they made up or a song they love to sing. Capture the fleeting moments now. Record an interview with your grandparent and ask them questions about their life, their childhood, what informed their choices and what turning points shaped their lives. All our memories are inherently flawed, and while we believe when we are in these moments that they will never end, they will and you will want to revisit them someday.

5 – Be the Light
We have all had moments when we receive a call from a sibling, a child or a friend who vents about their day—stress at work or with kids or with a partner. We listen, we offer advice and then we hang up and move on. Sometimes the need behind the call isn’t articulated with words. Sometimes we need to listen for the wish behind the call. Show up with dinner, order a pizza, offer to clean their house or watch their kids. Pick them up and take them for a trail hike and say nothing as you walk among the trees. Everyone has a skillset. Everyone has an ability to act in ways that feel real and true to the relationship. You can unburden someone with the sole knowledge that you care enough to act.

 

 

This mama of two and rockstar partner is fueled by coffee and making a difference. Whether through ad copy as a healthcare marketer, personal narratives on parenthood or narration around the table with friends and a good beer, Krystina Wales knows how to tell a story … and she’s damn good.

 

 

Check out our traditional gift guide here.

Chit-Chat: First Jobs

Please make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode, and kindly review the podcast on Apple Podcasts so we can reach more working moms. We always want to hear your thoughts, concerns, questions or guest suggestions – email [email protected].

Episode social handles:

@WorkingMomHour

@EMechlinski

@MadsCaldwell

Rest Takes Vulnerability

3 people have positively commented on my parenting this week.

I have the awareness to know that it’s important for me to receive the compliment.

So I did – with my words.

But I’m just now sitting down to try to receive it with my soul and body.

Nothing has made me feel more like hugging them and sobbing at the same time.

I felt seen in a really intimate way. Like parenting when no one’s watching but they were.

But my walls went up –

Do I compliment their parenting? Point to the money and time poured into therapists and coaches?

We are coming off of 9 months of the most intentional and intense parenting we’ve ever done.

I have very few regrets with our adoption process. I’m really proud.

But my body really needs to receive this as a way to rest.

Not just for a second but to move into rest. It’s time to rest and recover.

I know this. So I’m trying to receive it.

I advocate for feeling our full spectrum of emotions, and I’m getting better at it.

But motherhood – it’s so strong and fragile and vulnerable.

Like the most vulnerable thing ever.

And guess what? Rest takes vulnerability.

So I’m trying. Receiving. Sharing. To rest and recover.

Thank you for listening.

Working Mom Hour: The 2022 Holiday Gift Guide

Thanks to our guests and growing community, we’ve curated a list of products and services designed to bring you a little self-care joy this  holiday season. 

Explore below!

 

For Inner Peace | The Monk Manual 
The Monk Manual™ is a daily system designed for peaceful being and purposeful doing. Monk Manual

Deal: Use WMH10 for 10% off at checkout.

 

For Balanced Wellness | Commons
Natural wellness solutions to optimize your daily health.

Deal: Head to this link & use WMH15 for 15% off your first order.

 

For Outfit Indecision | Jenny Zook and the Confidence Collective
Jenny Zook’s ultimate guide to building your wardrobe for every season.

Deal: Pre-order the 2023 Winter Capsule & get this year’s for free + 10% with code WMH.

 

For New Year’s Resolutions | Right to be Relevant
Tools for self-awareness and finding self-compassion.

Deal: Use WORKINGMOMS from now until Jan. 1 for free shipping on all decks.

 

For Chill-y Days | Curio Wellness
Enjoy premium products from the #1 medical cannabis brand in Maryland.

Deal: Local to Maryland? Stop by @fardottermaryland, mention the Working Mom Podcast & get 25% off any full-priced Curio Wellness product in either the dispensary or the holistic pharmacy.

 

Happy shopping! 


Check out our post on a different kind of gift guide here.

People Are Funny

People are funny. 

Family and friends, with bonds once believed to be unbreakable, can break your heart with words alone.

Clients transition, despite how you’ve sacrificed your own success for theirs.

Former colleagues, once allies, take pleasure in competing and hoping you fail.

In a recent session with my coach, I questioned how and why people choose to hurt one another like this. He responded, “People are funny.”

That reframe, from people are selfish and mean to people are just funny, made it a lot less personal.

Then I realized – I’m “people” and I’m funny too.

Yung Pueblo teaches, “Self-awareness makes changed behavior possible.” So, maybe there’s hope for all of us funny people.

Surviving Suffocating Adversity with Venus Morris Griffith

A single phone call can change everything. This episode explores what happens next. As a stay-at-home mother of six turned single working mother, Venus Morris Griffin shows us how she navigated the unthinkable in her marriage, and created her career on her own terms. Listen for a captivating conversation on how to stay resilient through adversity.

Pre-Order coming soon: Venus' book, Validated

Please make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode, and kindly review the podcast on Apple Podcasts so we can reach more working moms. We always want to hear your thoughts, concerns, questions or guest suggestions – email [email protected].

Episode social handles:

@WorkingMomHour

@EMechlinski

@MadsCaldwell

Chit-Chat Love Languages

Please make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode, and kindly review the podcast on Apple Podcasts so we can reach more working moms. We always want to hear your thoughts, concerns, questions or guest suggestions – email [email protected].

Episode social handles:

@WorkingMomHour

@EMechlinski

@MadsCaldwell