How do you create a practical plan for taking a career break? We talk a lot on this podcast about high achievers, burnout, and work/life balance because we’re driven professionals striving to live our most fulfilling lives while also leveling up our careers. Chances are, the thought of taking a lengthy break from work has crossed your mind, but you might have been as skeptical as I was until I spoke with Laura Nguyen.

The author of Career Break Compass, Laura is an executive coach who transitioned from a high-performance, high-stress marketing career to guiding high-achievers like herself in planning and pursuing career breaks that let them come back better than ever. She shares what brought her to this field and her four-step framework for making the most of your time off.

Uncover her strategic process for making a career break a reality, including:

• How to strike a balance between career advancement and rest;
• The time off options available to American workers;
• Building a logical framework to guide your career break;
• How intentional time off can create holistic and long-lasting shifts in your career and life.

Related Links:

• Laura’s book, Career Break Compass: Navigating Your Path to a Balanced Life Through Intentional Time Off - https://www.lauranguyen.co/career-break-compass
• Learn more about Laura’s work - https://www.lauranguyen.co
• Connect with Laura on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauran546/
• Episode 136, Is Job-Sharing the Secret to True Work/Life Balance - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode136   
• Episode 456, How Connection Can Cure What Ails Us - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode456
• A Better Balance, workers’ legal advocacy organization - https://www.abetterbalance.org/
• The Effects of Decision Fatigue on Judicial Behavior - https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-law-and-courts/article/abs/effects-of-decision-fatigue-on-judicial-behavior-a-study-of-arkansas-traffic-court-outcomes/8B7EB8735C10F7730FB402D6F2E80D70
• Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul by Dr. Stuart Brown - https://bookshop.org/p/books/play-how-it-shapes-the-brain-opens-the-imagination-and-invigorates-the-soul-stuart-brown/577397
• Take my LinkedIn course, Managing Career Burnout - https://www.linkedin.com/learning/managing-career-burnout/today-s-burnout-work-culture
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

Caregivers: when’s the last time you didn’t feel stressed out? In August, the U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory, titled “Parents Under Pressure,” that identified parental mental health as an urgent public health issue. Nearly half of parent participants in the surveys confirm that “their stress is completely overwhelming.” 

The wellbeing of these adults is worrisome on its own, and research also shows a strong correlation between poor mental health in parents and poor physical and mental health in children. In other words: this public health issue impacts multiple generations and, by extension, our entire country. In this episode, I take a closer look at the advisory and what workplaces should be doing to mitigate this national crisis.

Discover what the research says and what your workplace should be doing about it:

• Seven unavoidable causes of parental stress;
• The overt connection between parental mental health and talent retention;
• Specific steps organizations can take to help improve the wellbeing of employees who are also parents or caregivers.

Related Links:

• U.S. Public Health Service “Parents Under Pressure Advisory” - https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/parents-under-pressure.pdf
• Episode 468, “Disrupting Elder Care: We Need to Talk More About Working Daughters” - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode468
• Episode 434, “The Economic Imperative of Affordable Childcare” - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode434
• Episode 472, “How We Get Over Overwork to Build a Better Life” - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode472
• TAKE ACTION with Bossed Up - https://www.bossedup.org/takeaction
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

How can managers navigate the ever-changing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging landscape? While most people grasp the overall intention of DEIB—fair and equitable treatment for all workers—the specifics are nuanced and easily misunderstood, and they can be difficult to implement, especially in the face of recent pushback.

Alida Miranda-Wolff is a DEIB practitioner, author, and podcast host driven by a deep passion for cultivating belonging. In 2019, she launched Ethos Talent, a full-service DEIB and employee advocacy firm that serves companies all around the world. In this episode, she leverages her decade of expertise to explain how support for this field has fluctuated over the years and what leaders—and first-time managers in particular—can do to facilitate the day-to-day integration of these practices, which are deeply intertwined with basic human rights.

Elevate DEIB in your own leadership practice with these takeaways:

• How managers can be inclusive and equitable in their day-to-day leadership;
• How to navigate difficult interpersonal situations through a DEIB lens;
• Why the current political climate is such a challenge for DEIB practitioners and managers;
• The problem with the segmentation of DEIB within organizations.

Related Links:

• The First-Time Manager: DEI by Alida Miranda-Wolff - https://alidamirandawolff.com/book/
• “Care Work with Alida Miranda-Wolff” podcast - https://alidamirandawolff.com/podcast/
• Connect with Alida on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/alidamw/
• Learn more about Alida and her work - https://alidamirandawolff.com
• Work with Ethos - https://www.ethostalent.com/
• Bias in Feedback Decision Tree - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1C-HMz4RFwQNuIzMgS0wCmafQX09N81lp/view
• Episode 388, How To Leverage Your Power and Push For More Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode388
• Episode 423, Being White and Latina - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode423
• Ezra Klein affordability crisis article, “The Economic Theory That Explains Why Americans Are So Mad” - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/07/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-annie-lowrey.html
• Intercept diversity and social justice article, “the Evolution of Union Busting” - https://theintercept.com/2022/06/07/union-busting-tactics-diversity/
• Alida’s interview with Truthout “Here’s How Workers Can Build Power Amid Corporate Co-optation of DEI Programs” - https://truthout.org/articles/heres-how-workers-can-build-power-amid-corporate-co-optation-of-dei-programs/
• Philosopher and psychiatrist Frantz Fanon’s work “Black Skin, White Masks” - https://monoskop.org/images/a/a5/Fanon_Frantz_Black_Skin_White_Masks_1986.pdf
• Frantz Fanon’s other work “the Wretched of the Earth” - https://monoskop.org/images/6/6b/Fanon_Frantz_The_Wretched_of_the_Earth_1963.pdf
• Elite Capture: How the Powerful Took Over Identity Politics (And Everything Else) by Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò - https://bookshop.org/p/books/elite-capture-how-the-powerful-took-over-identity-politics-and-everything-else-oluf-7865-769-mi-o-taiwo/17984390?ean=9781642596885
• LEVEL UP: A Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

How will the various abortion bans across the U.S. affect HR policies? 

When Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, federal protections on abortion ceased, and states were suddenly free to make independent decisions about this essential healthcare issue. The new laws range from full allowance to complete bans and criminal charges for those who circumvent them. So how are employers and HR teams navigating the impacts of this change, and how are employees across the country reacting when it comes to travel and job change considerations?

The consequences of how these new laws impact women and their careers—both in states with bans and those without—can’t be overstated. In this episode, I examine some of the policies being discussed in regard to women’s rights and safety and how these laws are impacting both organizations and employees.

Find out how abortion ban HR policies are affecting our career decisions:

• Why announcing abortion travel accommodations is a questionable corporate decision;
• How companies might begin to develop truly beneficial travel policies;
• The impact of abortion bans on the entertainment and events industry;
• Survey says: recruitment is likely to feel the impacts of these shifting laws.

Related Links:

• SHRM: Companies Are Announcing Abortion-Travel Benefits Following Dobbs Decision - https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/benefits-compensation/employers-prepare-benefits-policy-responses-to-abortion-ruling-shrm-survey-finds
• SHRM: Companies Announcing Abortion Travel Benefits Following Dobbs Decision - https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/benefits-compensation/companies-announcing-abortion-travel-benefits-following-dobbs-decision
• Northstar: How the Events Industry Is Responding to State Abortion Bans - https://www.northstarmeetingsgroup.com/state-abortion-bans-could-drive-event-planners-cancel
• Perry Undem: What Does "Top Talent" Think About Working in States that Ban Abortion? - https://perryundem.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/PerryUndem-TX-Abortion-Law_Survey-Findings_0901.pdf
• Resume Builder Sruvey - https://www.resumebuilder.com/one-third-of-job-seekers-wont-work-in-states-with-abortion-bans/
• Stop congratulating companies for making abortion a corporate 'perk' by Ali Griswold - https://oversharing.substack.com/p/stop-congratulating-companies-for  
• Episode 357, How to Talk About Abortion at Work - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode357
• TAKE ACTION with Bossed Up - https://www.bossedup.org/takeaction
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

Men comprise over 90% of the CEOs in the U.S.—so how do we help them become allies in the vital pursuit of workplace equality? Rather than dismissing the defensiveness that sometimes arises in men who believe promoting more women to power means taking theirs away, Wendy Wallbridge uses her platform to change the narrative. She teaches tech companies how to create cultures of belonging and strategies for workplace equality, with a focus on equipping men as allies. Her strategies show next-generation business leaders that the right approach to equality lifts everyone up: the employee, the executive, and the company.

Discover how both men and women leaders can pursue gender equality in the workplace, including:

• The very real benefits of gender equality for men in positions of power;
• Why emotional intelligence is the leadership skill of the future;
• The three biggest challenges facing women and non-binary people in the workplace;
• How to use micro-interventions to improve inequality in the corporate world.

Related Links:

• Learn more about the Spiral Up program - https://spiralup.com/
• Order Spiraling Upward: The 5 Co-Creative Powers for Women on the Rise - https://spiralup.com/book/
• Read Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez -https://bookshop.org/p/books/invisible-women-data-bias-in-a-world-designed-for-men-caroline-criado-perez/15136602
• Bossed Up Ep 452: Redefining Success: Women and the Fight for a Fair Economy - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode452
• Level Up: A Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

Earlier this year, the FTC put forth a ruling that would ban non-compete agreements nationwide. But last month, a Texas federal court blocked this endeavor, leaving workers in limbo while the Supreme Court considers taking up the issue next. In today’s episode, I explore what’s going on and why there is still hope for a new path forward to defeat non-compete agreements for good.

Get the latest details on this recent workers’ rights development:

• Why the lack of a federal ban isn’t the end of the story;
• Where the power to prevent harmful non-competes lies now;
• What we as citizens can do to foster fair policies for workers.

Related Links:

• Episode 459, Why Non-Compete Agreements Can No Longer Derail Your Career - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode459
• Economic Innovation Group’s State Non-Compete Law Tracker - https://eig.org/state-noncompete-map/
• Axios: The Future Of The Noncompete Ban Isn't Totally Bleak - https://www.axios.com/2024/08/23/noncompete-ban-states
• TAKE ACTION with Bossed Up - https://www.bossedup.org/takeaction
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

Growth mindset is a hot topic these days. We hear a lot about how important it is to approach life and work open to learning, changing, and growing. This concept is often focused on the individual, but my guest today centers her research on how to build a workplace culture that fosters a growth mindset for all.

Mary C. Murphy is a professor of psychological and brain sciences at Indiana University and a protege of mindset scholar Carol Dweck. During her PhD, she began to explore the potential for cultures of growth to create learning organizations. Mary and I explore the research and practice behind how employees and leaders alike can start transforming their organizations with growth in mind.

Discover how cultures of growth build better businesses for all, including:

• How to identify the current mindset culture of your workplace;
• The difference between cultures of growth and cultures of genius;
• How to circumvent mindset triggers with mindful feedback;
• The huge impact of cultures of growth on diversity and equity.

Related Links:

• Mary’s book “Cultures of Growth” - https://marycmurphy.com/cultures-of-growth/
• Take the Mindset Triggers Assessment - https://marycmurphy.com/resource/mindset-triggers-assessment/
• Take the Mindset Culture Assessment - https://marycmurphy.com/resource/mindset-culture-assessment/
• Connect with Mary on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-murphy-2b4a70235/
• Episode 452, Women and the Fight for a Fair Economy -  https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode452
• LEVEL UP: a Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

What do you think of when you hear the term “glass cliff”? I have been pondering this concept for a while, especially in light of the upcoming election. In today’s episode, I share my thoughts on the problems, and potential opportunities, inherent in the social construct that so often presents women with their opportunity to lead only when the ship is sinking. If you have ever sought or been offered a promotion that seems a bit doomed to fail, this episode is for you.

Consider the glass cliff on your way through the glass ceiling as we explore:

• The origin of this term and the research that backs it up;
• The potential dangers of accepting a leadership role in a crumbling company;
• The potential opportunity waiting within this gender-biased blind spot.

Related Links:

• Episode 465, What Kamala’s Candidacy Means for Women Leaders - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode465
• New York Times, When That Promotion is Really a ‘Glass Cliff’ - https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/12/business/glass-cliff-effect.html
• Harvard Business Review, How Women End Up on the “Glass Cliff” - https://hbr.org/2011/01/how-women-end-up-on-the-glass-cliff
• Kathryn Kincaid’s thesis, Why Can Why Can’t a Woman Fail Like a Man? - https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1401&context=ugtheses
• LEVEL UP: a Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

What individual, organizational, and policy changes will help us transform the daily grind into the good life? The conversation around work-life balance and women in the workplace can feel stalled. You might speak out and speak up about the problems and inequity you see every day, yet insufficient individual solutions remain the most common recommendations. This lack of progress highlights a widespread systemic problem.

Brigid Schulte has quite literally written the book on what’s up with our ongoing struggle to balance a good life with a sustainable career. Her latest book, Over Work: Transforming the Daily Grind in the Quest for a Better Life, is available today! Brigid joins me to discuss what her research has revealed about our continuing struggle to make work actually work for us.

Learn what needs to happen to transform our hustle culture into something healthier, including:

• The declining of the American Dream;
• Why we need to look beyond paid labor when we talk about “work”;
• The importance of good middle management;
• Where the U.S. should look for policy inspiration.

Related Links:

• Over Work: Transforming the Daily Grind in the Quest for a Better Life - https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250801722/overwork
• Overwhelmed: How to Work, Love, and Play When No One Has the Time - https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250062383/overwhelmed
• Discover More About Brigid - https://www.brigidschulte.com/
• Connect with Brigid on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brigidschulte
• Learn More About the Better Life Lab - https://www.newamerica.org/better-life-lab/
• The Economic Policy Institute’s Productivity Pay Gap - https://www.epi.org/productivity-pay-gap/
• Harvard Business School Study - https://www.hbs.edu/managing-the-future-of-work/Documents/The_Caring_Company.pdf
• The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee - https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-sum-of-us-what-racism-costs-everyone-and-how-we-can-prosper-together-heather-mcghee/14618549?ean=9780525509585
• Workism Is Making Americans Miserable by Derek Thompson - https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/02/religion-workism-making-americans-miserable/583441/
• The Story of Work: A New History of Humankind by Jan Lucassen - https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-story-of-work-a-new-history-of-humankind-jan-lucassen/18399262?ean=9780300267068
• Episode 452, Redefining Success: Women and the Fight for a Fair Economy - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode452
• Episode 440, The Problem With Self-Help - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode440
• Episode 468, Disrupting Elder Care: We Need To Talk More About Working Daughters - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode468
• Episode 456, How Connection Can Cure What Ails Us - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode456
• TAKE ACTION with Bossed Up - https://www.bossedup.org/takeaction
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/
• Follow me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/emiliearies

How do you handle the sting of being passed over for a promotion? Unfortunately, for ambitious women, this frustrating experience tends to be part of the package deal. We’re always pushing ourselves outside our comfort zones—so, of course we won’t get every opportunity we go after. In this episode, I share how to manage the emotional aftermath of this normal but distressing experience without losing your drive.

Tackle these three tips for coming out on top after a promotion pass-over:

• Why you need to let yourself feel all the feelings;
• How to get clear on what your career future looks like now;
• When it’s time to think about moving on.

Related Links:

• Episode 323, How To Lead With Emotional Intelligence - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode323
• Episode 295, How to Make Career Progress in the New Year - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode295
• The Progress Principle, Harvard Business Review - https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=40692
• Permission To Feel: The Power Of Emotional Intelligence To Achieve Well-Being And Success by Marc Brackett, Ph.D. - https://bookshop.org/p/books/permission-to-feel-unlocking-the-power-of-emotions-to-help-our-kids-ourselves-and-our-society-thrive-marc-brackett/9879244?ean=9781250212832
• LEVEL UP: a Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/

How do you navigate grief in the workplace in an empathic and supportive way? We all experience loss, and we might default to assuming the only place for grief is in the home. The truth is that a loss permeates every aspect of our lives, sometimes for years or even decades, and it certainly crosses into the workplace. 

Krista St-Germain experienced a devastating loss in 2016 when her husband was killed by an impaired driver. That trauma propelled her into grief, then therapy, then research. Today, she is the founder of the Mom Goes On group coaching program and the host of the Widowed Mom podcast. She shares her hard-won wisdom on what we need to know about grief and how to navigate it in the workplace, both for ourselves and in support of others.

Question your assumptions about grief and learn to better support yourself or others who are navigating it, including:

• How we’ve come to misunderstand the grieving process;
• The role time plays when we are healing from a loss;
• How to navigate interactions with grieving coworkers;
• The possibilities of life beyond grieving and post-traumatic growth.

Related Links:

• Learn more about Krista’s work - https://www.coachingwithkrista.com/
• Follow Krista on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/lifecoachkrista/
• Connect with Krista on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/coachingwithkrista
• The Widowed Mom Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-widowed-mom-podcast/id1468127632
• The Grieving Brain by Mary-Frances O’Connor - https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-grieving-brain-the-surprising-science-of-how-we-learn-from-love-and-loss-mary-frances-o-connor/16976128?ean=9780062946249
• Report from the Death Studies Journal on the Dual Process Model - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10848151/
• Brené Brown - Silver Linings Clip - https://brenebrown.com/videos/rsa-short-empathy/
• On Death & Dying: What the Dying Have to Teach Doctors, Nurses, Clergy & Their Own Families by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross - https://bookshop.org/p/books/on-death-dying-what-the-dying-have-to-teach-doctors-nurses-clergy-their-own-families-elisabeth-kubler-ross/9165298?ean=9781476775548
• On Grief & Grieving: Finding the Meaning of Grief Through the Five Stages of Loss by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross - https://bookshop.org/p/books/on-grief-grieving-finding-the-meaning-of-grief-through-the-five-stages-of-loss-david-kessler/6699869?ean=9781476775555
• Episode 468: Disrupting Elder Care: We Need To Talk More About Working Daughters - https://www.bossedup.org/podcast/episode468
• LEVEL UP: a Leadership Accelerator for Women on the Rise - https://www.bossedup.org/levelup
• Bossed Up Courage Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/927776673968737/
• Bossed Up LinkedIn Group - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7071888/
• Follow me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/emiliearies