Pivot Club: From Head Of Podcasts To Student Teacher - Lize Ratliff On Walking Away From The Top

What happens when you're not just climbing the ladder, but standing at the very top? For Lize Ratliff, that meant achieving her dream job as Head of Podcasts at Mamamia, after 10 years hustling to get there. 

Lize’s journey is a masterclass in pure tenacity. She started at 19 as an intern from a small country town, so determined to work for Mia Freedman that she "literally didn't leave”. Over the next decade, she climbed the ladder through nine different titles - from intern to Mia's EA, to the first-ever producer of No Filter - eventually becoming the woman running the entire 29-show operation.

For Lize, the birth of her first child was the catalyst for an enormous change. Realising the demands of the job were incompatible with the life she wanted as a mother, she and her husband came to a terrifying realisation: they needed to ‘blow up their life.’

In a move that left many stunned, they both quit their high-profile Sydney jobs, moved to Newcastle, and Lize enrolled in a Master's degree to pursue a completely new career: As a high school English teacher.

This is a raw and candid look at what it means to walk away from the top. We cover the creative job application that got her hired, the moment she crashed her boss's car (and kept her job), and the overwhelming "what have I done?" feeling that hits after you trade a high-prestige career for a student ID.

Get ready to learn why sometimes, you have to "just jump.”

THE END BITS:

Want more from Sarah Davidson? Check out her podcast Seize The Yay.

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CREDITS:

Guest: Lize Ratliff

Host: Sarah Davidson

Executive Producer: Courtney Ammenhauser

Senior Producer: Sally Best

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