Shameless Leadership

Over the last few years, I have heard the discourse on rest evolve dramatically. More and more books are coming out on the importance of rest. Doctors, therapists, and thought leaders are addressing the ways our chronic hustling has harmed us as individuals and as a society. This is great and necessary progress.  It is very hard to reprogram a society that was built on devaluing rest, even going so far as labeling anything that’s not explicitly productive as “lazy”.Last year, I read Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey and my eyes were further opened to how our inability to rest is all part of Supremacy culture. Not resting isn’t new. It’s part of an over 400-year-old, very intentionally built system.  As you think about what you want and what you need for yourself this year, I want to invite you to explore your relationship with rest. Is resting hard for you, even downright uncomfortable? Do you have a hard time giving yourself permission to do nothing? Do you use rest as a reward when, in reality, it is your birthright?In this episode, you will have the chance to explore your roots with rest as well as your current relationship with rest. If you find rest to be uncomfortable, I’m right there with you. This episode is for us! Let’s make this the year that we reframe our relationships with rest and model what rest looks like to those around us so they may build healthier relationships with rest, shall we?Link mentioned:Book: Rest Is Resistance by Tricia HerseyWe love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Diana Fryc is a Shameless Mom and stepmom who was raised by immigrant refugee parents. Her father is a holocaust survivor. Professionally, she is a marketing executive with 20 years of experience advising brands from Fortune 50 companies to start-ups on how to address their toughest growth challenges. As partner and CMO of branding firm Retail Voodoo, Diana uses her expertise in brand development, innovation, consumer markets, marketing, and packaging systems to help clients generate meaningful and sustainable growth. Tireless and determined in every element of her work, Diana believes that business should be a force for good. She uses her networking superpowers to drive change in the food, beverage, and wellness industries - specifically in the areas of employment diversity, food equality, and the promotion of sustainable supply chain. She is also the founder and host of The Gooder Podcast where she interviews the powerhouse women leading on every level in food, beverage, and wellness.Listen in to hear Diana share:  How her work with Jane Goodall impacted her work and professional journey in a profound way Her experience being raised in the US by immigrant refugee parents and navigating being “in the middle” of so many aspects of her identity - not fitting in in many places and always feeling like an outsider The impact of learning her Dad was a holocaust survivor in her twenties How she has been able to use “finding common ground by acknowledging differences” as a superpower  How she has used her values and layered identities to build a company around her personal philosophy to “do good” What she loves and what she struggles with as a stepparent Her experience getting her MBA as a mom of a middle schooler and high schooler Links mentioned: Connect with Diana and follow her work: Retail-voodoo.com Diana’s Podcast: Gooder Podcast  Diana on LinkedIn Retail Voodoo on LinkedIn Retail Voodoo on FB Diana on IG We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Looking forward can be exciting. It can also be very scary. It’s easy to put off our future lives because the uncertainty can feel too great, the stakes too high.  As I’ve been working with clients and teams over the last few years, it has been so thrilling to see how we can shift what we see as possible when we take some intentional time to look back and find evidence of what we are capable in order to harness that capability moving forward.  As the world has flipped itself upside down over and over again in my last 20+ years as an entrepreneur, I have had the opportunity to experience some deep lows followed by very high highs. Over the last few years, I have found myself better able to sit in sticky moments and look toward an uncertain future with ease and even excitement.  This is because I’ve had to spend a lot of time collecting past evidence as proof that:  I can figure out really complicated things. I’m good at adapting to changing times (even if I hate it).  My creativity allows me to be nimble and agile.  My intuition is strong and is usually right on the money.   These are all things that I long thought I sucked at. But when I started forcing myself to look back before making moves forward, I was able to see my track record. I was able to see all this proof that I was actually good at things I had been telling myself I was horrible at. Recognizing this has given me a tremendous amount of power over my decision-making and action-taking in recent years. In this episode, I walk you through a few ways you can use your past successes and failures to collect the right evidence to help you make bold moves with ease and confidence moving forward. We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dr. Catherine McCarthy, Dr. Heather Tedesco, and Jennifer Weaver are all mental health professionals who jointly co-authored RAISING A KID WHO CAN, a simple but comprehensive how-to parenting manual designed for the post-pandemic world. They were able to recognize that most parents' depleted attention and energy is in constant conflict with their desire to be guided by the most current, evidence-based information and best how-to strategies when it comes to their kids and mental health.  What I love about this book is that it’s organized for easy skimming and designed to be useful at any stage in a child’s life. The book devotes one short, impactful chapter per principle, including Resilience, Attention and Self-Control, Psychological Flexibility, Self-Motivation, Compassion, and Gratitude. The result is a new approach to a parenting guide that takes a holistic approach to nurturing a child’s development and helps parents get right to the information they need right when they need it most.Listen in to hear Catherine, Heather, and Jennifer share: Their invitation to parents to embrace and stay in this "The Age of Adaptability" without feeling chronically overwhelmed The beauty of "the Age of Adaptability" for our kids How to use a Validation Sandwich to help you or your child in a moment of struggle or unpredictability How they formatted their book to be a guide you could immediately put to use without having to do heavy reading  The significance of knowing the WHAT, the WHY, and the HOW in how you parent in specific situations The 10 Essentials of Raising a Kid Who Can How to manage some of the paradoxes of parenting that often make us feel like we are getting it wrong The problem with trying to “fix” your child’s feelings Links mentioned: Learn more: Raisingakidwhocan.com Get the Book: Raising a Kid Who Can Connect with Heather: www.drtedesco.com Connect with Jennifer: https://weaverandassociates.net Book: How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk Raising A Kid Who Can on IG We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As I’ve kicked off the year with my business consulting clients and corporate clients, the topic of expanding visibility keeps coming up. It’s an important topic for anyone entering a new year!  As you think about what you want to make happen for yourself as a mother, an employee, a team member, a community member, a business owner, a partner, or a friend, how do you want to expand upon who you are now in order to get your needs met, have your voice heard, share your gifts and ideas, and have an impact in the spaces you inhabit over the next 12 months? It’s a big question, isn’t it?! Don’t worry, I got you.  In this episode, I talk through 4 questions to ask yourself as you consider how you want to grow this year. Then, we talk through the actual steps to take to make this happen.  As I’ve been working with clients over the last two weeks, I’ve seen them light up as they have considered what is possible and started to put together action steps to move toward possibility. The overwhelm and uncertainty of a new year can be a lot. Taking some time to reflect on you can make a huge difference in terms of feeling ready, confident, and competent.  You got this. Promise. We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Stefanie Wilder-Taylor is a past guest of the SMA, one of my very favorite podcasters, my beloved pandemic memoir writing teacher, and author of Drunkish: A Memoir of Loving and Leaving Alcohol - coming out January 16thIn addition to all these roles, Stephanie is a TV personality, and cohost of the popular podcast For Crying Out Loud. She co-created and hosted the late-night comedy parenting show Parental Discretion with Stefanie Wilder-Taylor for NickMom on Nickelodeon. Her books include Sippy Cups Are Not for Chardonnay; Naptime Is the New Happy Hour; It’s Not Me, It’s You; I’m Kind of a Big Deal; and Gummi Bears Should Not Be Organic. She’s appeared on Good Morning America, 20/20, The Dr. Oz Show, Dr. Phil, Larry King Live, and Today. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, her three delightful teenagers, and her dog, Penelope.Listen in to hear Stefanie share: How she rationalized her addiction for decades Her slow burn to full-blown problematic drinking  Her lowest moment of driving her children while drunk How she had to shift her identity from an author who writes about “mom drinking” to writing about being a sober mom How she managed her diagnosed anxiety after getting off alcohol and Xanax How she was outed after 10 days of sobriety by the New York Times  Links mentioned: Connect with Stefanie: Stefaniewildertaylor.com Book: Drunkish: A Memoir of Loving and Leaving Alcohol Stefanie on IG @fcolpodcast across all platforms We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As you welcome in a new year, perhaps you’re giving some consideration to changes you want to make. I want to invite you to be gentle with yourself as you enter this year. Sometimes we try to make so many changes to kick off a year that we are almost immediately too overwhelmed to follow through on any of them for the long haul.  I always encourage moms to give themselves the entire month of January and even into February to settle into the new year, set goals, and start taking action steps. Your last 6 weeks have likely been a chaotic explosion of fun, festivities, fatigue, drama, confusion, and feeling not so grounded. Give yourself a minute to reground yourself for the new year.  As you walk gently through this process of grounding yourself and growing some intentional roots for 2024, think about what YOU really want and need most right now. Collectively, we all need more help, more support, more validation, more connection, more resources, more open and authentic communication, and more opportunities and time for personal growth beyond motherhood. But, what do YOU specifically need most?In this episode, I will talk you through what moms need most right now so that you may have some verbiage to express your needs to others as well as see how you might be able to show up for the other mothers around you. If we can all be more transparent about what we need, we can more openly acknowledge and take responsibility for the fact that we belong to each other and we truly need each other.  I got you and I know you got me. That truth can bring comfort to us all. I am so excited to do 2024 with you!We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A new year is always a good time to reflect on the state of your current relationships. As I considered which past guests could bring the most value to you as you kick off 2024, I immediately thought of Kat Vellos, who specializes in helping people develop meaningful friendships in adulthood. Sometimes it can feel like a dirty little secret in adulthood, “I don’t have many friends.” So, we keep it to ourselves. This Best Of conversation is an invitation to openly and proudly pursue the friendships you have long been craving in 2024. Kat Vellos is a trusted expert on the power of cultivating healthy teams and meaningful friendships in adulthood. Formerly a UX designer at Slack, Pandora, and multiple startups, her work today focuses on helping people design belonging into their lives and workplaces. She is the author of We Should Get Together: The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, TED Talks, Forbes, Real Simple, Communication Arts, SF Design Week, Lesbians Who Tech, and many more.Listen in to hear Kat share: The difference between meeting people and actually making friends The 4 reasons it gets harder to make friends as we age The specific challenges for moms in making friends How our relationships evolve (for better or worse) as our various identities evolve The significance of reciprocity in healthy adult friendships The important role of curiosity in friendship How to maintain strong friendships even when you’re on separate life paths Steps to take to invest in a new friendship Specific steps we can take to invest in the relationships we want to grow and preserve Links mentioned: Connect with Kat: weshouldgettogether.com Get Kat’s Book: We Should Get Together: The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships Kat on IG Kat on Twitter We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When I was considering which episodes of the SMA I wanted to bring back for you this week, I went to see what my most downloaded episodes of the last couple of years have been. This interview with Aubrey Gordon was my most downloaded episode of this year. I think (and hope!) this is because you are all huge Aubrey fans AND I hope this episode's popularity is a reflection of this community’s openness and eagerness to have conversations around bodies, size, anti-fat bias, and fat activism. Sizeism, the discrimination toward a person or group of people based on their size or weight, remains the only socially acceptable form of discrimination and oppression - and it’s rampant. Since this interview, Aubrey has gone on to release her very own documentary, Your Fat Friend, which has received an abundance of awards and critical acclaim, packing theaters at film festivals and selling out theater after theater across the US and various other countries. As you consider your relationship within your body as you enter 2024, I invite you to listen and learn from Aubrey. She may be able to bring you peace and ease with your current body that you have never found before.Aubrey Gordon writes under the pseudonym of “Your Fat Friend,” illuminating the experiences of fat people and urging greater compassion for people of all sizes. She is the author of What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat and her newest book, You Just Need to Lose Weight and 19 Other Myths About Fat People. Her work has reached millions of readers and has been translated into 19 languages. She is co-host of the Maintenance Phase podcast, a top-rated podcast since its launch in 2021, and a columnist with SELF magazine. Her work has also been featured in Health magazine, Vox, and Gay Mag, among others. She lives in the Northwest, where she works as a writer and organizer. Listen in to hear Aubrey share:  What it was like for her to go from an anonymous online writer to a fully public figure How the success of the Maintenance Phase has impacted her work How women are conditioned to externally process and speak about their bodies and food constantly and how this is harmful in a myriad of ways The importance of understanding thin privilege and recognizing if you benefit from thin privilege Scripts and language for parents to talk to kids about bodies and fatness in a neutral way How to talk to your kids about healthy eating without subscribing to your own internalized messages from diet culture Links mentioned: Connect with her at yourfatfriend.com and aubreygordon.net/ Book: What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat Book: You Just Need to Lose Weight - And 19 Other Myths About Fat People Podcast: Maintenance Phase Aubrey on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: @yrfatfriend  We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Are you rethinking your relationship with alcohol as you approach 2024? Casey McGuire Davidson has been a guest on the SMA multiple times and she is my go-to referral partner when it comes to connecting women who are sober curious to sober coaches and communities. I chose Casey for this Best Of episode because I see so many women reevaluating their relationships with alcohol and I want you to make sure you don’t have to go it alone. If you want to participate in Dry January with a fabulous group of women or are sober-curious and want to know what all the hype is about, you’ll want to go grab Casey’s Sobriety Kit (linked in the SN) so you can join her Dry January community! Casey is a leader in the modern sober curious movement of women who are gray-area drinkers going alcohol-free. An ex-red wine girl turned Life and Sobriety Coach, Casey is passionate about helping women change their relationship with alcohol. She specializes in working with busy women with full calendars and overflowing to-do lists, who are doing all the things and then coming home and drinking to forget about all the things. Casey has helped thousands of women turn the decision to stop drinking from their worst-case scenario to the best decision of their lives.  Casey is the creator of The Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking and The Sobriety Starter Kit, and the host of The Hello Someday Podcast for sober curious women and gray area drinkers, ranked in the top 1% of all global podcasts.Listen in to hear Casey share: Where the concept of Dry January comes from What it means and looks like to be sober curious The science of alcohol and dopamine on our bodies and how it impacts our mindset, outlook, positivity, and joy in life How alcohol use contributes to our stress levels and overall anxiety  Steps to manage dopamine if you’re choosing not to drink The significance of the non-alcohol (NA) industry on the alcohol industry Why alcohol works as an “Easy Button” AND is also a very maladaptive coping mechanism Links mentioned: Get Casey’s Sobriety Starter Kit and join her Dry January community: https://www.thesobrietystarterkit.com/ Connect with Casey: https://hellosomedaycoaching.com/ Get Casey’s Free 30-Day Guide To Quitting Drinking - 30 Tips For Your First Month Alcohol-Free https://hellosomedaycoaching.com/30-day-sober-guide/ Casey’s Podcast: The Hello Someday Podcast: https://hellosomedaycoaching.com/podcast/ Casey on Facebook Casey on Instagram We love the sponsors that make this show possible! You can always find all the special deals and codes for all our current sponsors on our website: https://shamelessmom.com/sponsorInterested in becoming a sponsor of the Shameless Mom Academy? Email our sales team at sales@adalystmedia.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices