Lara Bazelon: Ambitious Like a Mother

Merging professional ambition with managing your home life isn’t easy, but I think it’s worth it. While you may constantly have to task-switch between meeting professional goals and meeting the needs of your family, the satisfaction that comes from having a foot in each world runs deep. The question is - what do we do with the guilt?! Wondering how our professional ambition will affect our kids keeps a lot of working women up at night, and that’s why my guest today decided to investigate. In this episode, I interview Lara Bazelon: attorney, law professor, and author of the book: Ambitious Like a Mother. Lara and I discuss how we can dance with work-life balance, embrace our ambitions and model for our children what it means to live a truly purposeful life. Listen in… Show Highlights Include: Why the word ‘ambition’ holds a negative meaning for women (and how looking past that can help you achieve your goals faster) (6:24) The three mother-child archetypes (and how they differ in work-home balance) (7:58) Why it’s important to model vulnerability as a leader in the workplace (17:44) Why the children of working mothers fare slightly better than stay at home mothers (26:51) The boring conversations we have to hash out when starting a relationship (instead of going into it blindly) (29:37) Interested in coaching with Brilliant Balance? Schedule an exploratory call here: www.brilliant-balance.com/schedule Subscribe to The Brilliant Balance Weekly and we’ll deliver it to your digital doorstep each Tuesday: www.brilliant-balance.com/weekly Need a few moments of peace? Listen to our free 5-Minute Meditation: www.brilliant-balance.com/breathe/ Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/brilliant_balance Join our private Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/281949848958057 Check out Lara Bazelon’s website: http://www.larabazelon.com/ Atlantic Article by Lara Bazelon - “The End of Mom Guilt”: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/05/working-mom-career-women-guilt/629364/

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You deserve a big, full life and the freedom to enjoy it. The Brilliant Balance Podcast helps women in leadership design their next chapter for sustainable success—without burnout. Every week, host Cherylanne Skolnicki, a leading expert in work-life balance, leadership growth, and mindset coaching, shares ideas, inspiration, and insights to help high-achieving women align their ambition with personal fulfillment. Through conversations on leadership mindset, time management, and personal growth, you'll gain the tools to thrive in both your career and personal life. Whether you're considering a career pivot or craving more time for your personal life, you might find yourself asking: How do I advance my career—without working 24/7? Can I achieve my goals while still having time for my family? How do I stop feeling overwhelmed and start feeling in control? What’s next for me—and how do I design it intentionally? If you’ve ever wondered how to fulfill your potential without breaking your life, this podcast is for you. In addition to sharing her own insights, Cherylanne sits down with experts, thought leaders, and ambitious women who reveal their strategies for burnout recovery, productivity for women, and redefining success on their terms. You’ll love the Brilliant Balance Podcast if you like podcasts like: Unlocking Us or Dare to Lead with Brene Brown, Women at Work by Harvard Business Review, The Midlife with Reshma Saujani, We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle, The Mel Robbins Podcast, HerMoney with Jean Chatzky, So Money with Farnoosh Torabi