Working Mumma

I hope this episode finds you safe and healthy. In this episode, I chat with business coach Emma McQueen talking about improving your confidence, knowing your strengths and managing your mindset. Emma describes herself a little bit like "Pollyanna" because she likes to see the good in every situation and this is evident during our conversation. Emma has been working from home for 3 years and during this episode provides great insights and experiences both from the perspective as her role as a business coach and personal stories as a mother of 3 girls. In this episode we talk about: •Improving your self confidence as a working mum and return to work after parental leave •How to determine your strengths •Knowing your strengths and working on these is like lipstick, you need to keep on reapplying •Working from home & being productive with kids in this "new normal" •Importance of having a routine & communication •How mindset is important working from home •Focusing on what you can control during Covid-19 •Discussing our new normal and how this may change the workforce in the future During the episode when we are talking about adjusting to working from home, Emma mentions "if we would not do it in the office, would we do it at home" which is a handy mindset to have. Links mentioned in this episode •Free strengths finder - https://www.viacharacter.org/survey/account/register •Emma McQueen "Work from Home Schedule" Join the Working Mumma Community, connect with me on Instagram @workingmummacommunity or follow Working Mumma on LinkedIn. If you are on parental leave, be sure to download my free 10 Step Guide to Return to Work. Connect with Emma on Instagram @emmarmcqueen and head to her website for more information. Be sure to get yourself a copy of her new book "Go-Getter".

Looking for ways to stay fit and healthy during COVID-19 then this episode is for you. With so many aspects of our lives feeling like they are out of our control, it is important to then focus on the items that we can. One aspect we can control is our fitness, our health, and our well-being. The good news is that we can still exercise, in our own home AND we don't need gym equipment to do this as today's guest Laura Martin explains. A key takeaway from our discussion is 'focusing on what you can control'. Even though many of us are now living a large proportion of our day at home, it is still possible and very important to remain active. This has benefits for your physical as well as mental health. Often in times of stress, we use food as a comfort. Laura gives tips on healthy eating and a one-day meal plan to help you and your family. We talk about strategies to help you manage your mindset which is so important in times like we are living. This is also where exercise plays a big part as well. Stay healthy and active in mind & body Mumma - if we all work together we can get through this. Join the Working Mumma Community, connect with me on Instagram @workingmummacommunity or follow on LinkedIn Connect with Laura on Instagram @thefitmamalifestyle and head to her website for more information on her programs.

We often hear what it is like for mothers on parental leave and managing career and parenthood, but rarely do we hear from the father. In this episode we do just that! I chat with Blake Woodward, a management consultant and father of two who works part time, 4 days a week. He is passionate about encouraging and enabling working parents to play an active role in their children's lives. When he became a dad in 2016, Blake found a lack of information and support specific to dads who want to be involved fathers. This led him to create www.suittiestroller.com. In this episode we hear about: •Honest experience and feelings in what it is like becoming a dad •Blake's experience in taking 9 months parental leave •Advice for fathers looking to take extended parental leave •The conversation on how he & his wife decided who was going to take parental leave •How Blake's work culture and leaders support fathers to take parental leave and it is now the "norm" •Tips & advice on flexible work •Changing society norms, perceptions and narrative that mum is not the only carer, but both parents •We discuss what organisations should consider to support future workforce needs •And so much more Hope you enjoy this episode and be sure to share it with your fellow working parents managing the juggle of career and parenthood. Links relating to this episode https://www.suittiestroller.com/ http://instagram.com/suittiestroller https://www.facebook.com/Suittiestroller-2173719636020863/ https://twitter.com/suittiestroller Working Mumma https://www.facebook.com/groups/workingmumma/ https://www.facebook.com/WorkingMummaAU/ https://www.instagram.com/workingmumma_au/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/working-mumma/ https://www.workingmumma.com.au/10-step-guide-to-return-to-work

With the theme of this year's International Women's Day, EachForEqual meaning that each person can make a change and create a world where genders are equal. This leads me to today's focus for the podcast and that is discovering your why to help you overcome mum guilt. A topic that we all experience. #EachforEqual, mum guilt is something that is currently not equal and we still have a long way to go. As mothers, we have competing but important priorities in our lives - often the two biggest are work and family. Knowing your why is an important first step in figuring out how to achieve the goals that excite you and create a life you enjoy living (versus merely surviving!). Mum guilt is a term that is regularly used and I think we all live with it. But as someone recently said to me, you integrate this into your life. You don't necessarily get over it, you learn to live with it. I also believe that knowing why you are working and have this understood can help with overcoming the guilt as you know the purpose for why you are doing what you do. Re-framing the thinking beyond the money, into the social, physical and mental well-being may also change your outlook and hopefully with that, overcome some of the mum guilt we all carry. I'm not suggesting it will remove the mum's guilt altogether. Understanding your why of why you work, helps reduce second-guessing yourself and feeling guilty by working. It is perfectly fine to want to work if you want to do so. Like many aspects of parenting, every mother's why is different. What is important, is that you can define this. Know your why for the key priorities in your life. To help you are getting the balance that you want for you and your family.

Wanting to become financially fit to help you and your family? This podcast will help you with financial planner, Keryn Batsilas from Your Life and Money Matters. Keryn talks about her experiences in life as a working mother with two children, starting her own business as a financial planner and great tips to help you have financial freedom. We chat about how her perceptions of parenthood changed with the birth of her first child, how she transitioned from working to parental leave and returning to work, and then onto starting her own business when she was 5 months pregnant with her second child. Keryn giving great tips and suggestions for working parents to allow you to be 'financially fit', cover topics such as budgeting, planning, and budgeting for a family, parental leave and subsequent children, the importance of communication with your partner and advantages of managing your money wisely. Links relating to this episode Connect with Keryn Batsilas, Your Life and Money Matters Website Instagram Facebook Connect with Working Mumma Facebook group - Working Mumma Community Facebook Page Instagram LinkedIn Free resource - 10 Step guide to Return to Work Podcast disclaimer: Keryn Batsilas, Financial Adviser from your Life and Money Matters, is an Authorised Representative of Avalon financial services. Anything Keryn talks about is of a general nature and not to be used as personal advice.

Today I speak with Robyn Miller, who is a medical doctor has spent the past decade helping people from diverse backgrounds in many different places: from Australian cities and country towns to refugee tent hospitals in central Africa. In 2018, Robyn returned to Brisbane to complete her paediatric specialty training. Later that year, she and her husband also welcomed their first child and puppy into the family. Upon returning to work after maternity leave, Robyn, like many women, experienced the struggles of the "mental load". The mental load or emotional labour refers to the endless, but often invisible, planning, organising, remembering of everything that is required to run a household! In most relationships, the majority of this mental load falls to the woman. Robyn realised that to continue to succeed in her professional career, and be a happy wife and mother, she and her partner needed to learn to truly share all this invisible labour. When she couldn't find the any solutions or strategies from googling or from asking friends and colleagues, Robyn drew upon her own skills and experience to develop a unique formula to achieve mental load equality. Somewhat to even her surprise, Robyn's strategy worked and continued to work so much so that Robyn then decided to teach other women via a 6 week online course how to fairly and sustainably share the mental load. During the chat, we discuss all things relating to the mental load as well as Robyn's own experiences in becoming a mother 18 months ago. Robyn gives a great explanation of what the mental load is and talks about the emotional labour vs mental load. A big part of Robyn's work is equalising the mental load at home. We go on to talk about how the sharing the mental load at home can extend into changing stereotypes in society. Robyn shares strategies you can use today with your partner. I love the quote Robyn says during the conversation "working motherhood shouldn't be any harder than working fatherhood". Hope you enjoy this episode and be sure to share it with your fellow working mumma's managing the juggle of career and parenthood. Here is the link to the Emma cartoon we speak about in the podcast: https://english.emmaclit.com/2017/05/20/you-shouldve-asked/ Links relating to this episode Dr. Robyn Miller - The Mental Load project •Website •Facebook •Instagram •Pinterest Working Mumma •Facebook - Working Mumma Community •Facebook page •Instagram •LinkedIn Free guide: 10 steps to return to work

Today I chat with Catherine Ngo. Frustrated with the lack of balanced representation at events, Cathy founded Keynoteworthy as a way to amplify the voices of the 'everyday speaker'. She believed there is no shortage of talent out there and wanted to make it easier for event professionals to find amazing people. Outside of Keynoteworthy, Cathy is a writer in the field of human resources, specialising in diversity, inclusion and thought leadership. She is also an (amateur) comedian and loves to use humour to bring people together. In this episode we hear about: · Catherine's entrepreneurial spirit developed from a young age whilst growing up in a strict Asian family •Understanding of Elizabeth Gilberts career philosophy •Career was a big part of her identity and she left lost when she had her first child •How Catherine found strength in letting go and asking for professional help •Talks about unconscious bias around part time work, especially with Asian background •Advice for going after those career opportunities when you have returned after parental leave •Tips for mothers returning to work after parental leave and managing the juggle Catherine makes a good point as well in reminding us that no one has it all together. A key take-away from the podcast is living by what makes you happy. Hope you enjoy this episode and be sure to share it with your fellow working mumma's managing the juggle of career and parenthood. Links relating to this episode Keynoteworthy https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-ngo-communications/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/keynoteworthy/ https://keynoteworthy.com.au/ https://www.facebook.com/keynoteworthy/ https://www.instagram.com/keynoteworthy/ Working Mumma https://www.facebook.com/groups/workingmumma/ https://www.facebook.com/WorkingMummaAU/ https://www.instagram.com/workingmumma_au/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/working-mumma/ https://www.workingmumma.com.au/10-step-guide-to-return-to-work

Today I chat with Tegan Rose, who is a business owner and working mother of 3 young children. She has worked in the HR space for many years and is passionate about supporting businesses to grow and thrive through good people practices, which in turn helps contribute to a productive and successful community. Tegan also serves on the Board of a local charity which provides crucial assistance to those less advantaged in the community and spends her limited free-time tackling the walking and running trails with friends in the beautiful Dandenong ranges and surrounds. In this episode we hear about: •Tips, tricks and advice from a HR expert •How Tegan transitioned from career to motherhood and she manages the juggle •Learn how Tegan & her partner thought were busy in their 20s and nothing compares to life now with 3 kids! •Why Tegan needed to be 'mentally busy' whilst on maternity leave •Advice on using your 10 Keeping in Touch days •Suggestions on how to negotiate flexible work with your employer •Great tips for women returning to work after parental leave •Trends relating to flexible work and parental leave (great insights for employers) •Tegan's view on Work/Life integration As Tegan reminds us during the conversation, "some days aren't always going to be as you plan - and that's ok". Hope you enjoy this episode and be sure to share it with your fellow working mumma's managing the juggle of career and parenthood. Links relating to this episode Tegan Rose / The HR Dept Connect with HR Dept on Facebook The HR Dept website Connect with Tegan Rose on LinkedIn Connect with the HR Dept on twitter Connect with Working Mumma Facebook group - Working Mumma Community Facebook Page Instagram LinkedIn Website Free resource Free resource - 10 Step guide to Return to Work

Looking to improve your mindset and approach to money at the start of the year? Then this podcast is for you and your family. Today I chat with Lily Hii, who is a bookkeeper and money strategist. She is a self-confessed numbers-nerd, focused on helping small business owners create an entrepreneurial mindset and a pathway for financial freedom. During our chat we covered a range of topics from money mindset, family budgeting, knowing your why to help overcome mum guilt and her own experiences of being a mum. In this episode we hear about: •Lily's experiences in becoming a mum, her challenges and how she overcame these •How to have an open mindset with money •Tips to help talk about money with your partner •Advice on how to improve financial situation and relationship with money •The importance of knowing your "why" as a working mother Hope you enjoy this episode and be sure to share it with your fellow working mumma's managing the juggle of career and parenthood. Links relating to this episode Connect with Lily Facebook Instagram LinkedIn Connect with Working Mumma Facebook group - Working Mumma Community Facebook Page Instagram LinkedIn Free resource - 10 Step guide to Return to Work

Welcome to the first episode of the Working Mumma podcast - a show that provides real-world tips, tricks and advice to all working mothers (& fathers) on how they can have a career, family and hopefully one day break the glass ceiling. My name is Carina O'Brien, a fellow working parent trying to manage the juggle. As this is the very first episode, I wanted to first of all say WELCOME! I also share with you a little about Working Mumma and myself, what inspired me to start this podcast and give you a short overview about what to expect in the future. I look forward to going on this journey of navigating career and parenthood with you. Please take a few seconds to leave me a review and be sure to subscribe so you don't miss an episode. As you are listening to the episode, be sure to take a screen shot, upload it to social media and tag me @workingmumma_au so I can give you a shout out. Have a great week and look forward to speaking to you again soon.