EP. 25 / Career Coach on How To Find Your Flexible Dream Job From Your Couch | Becca Carnahan of Next Chapter Careers
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Job hunters, listen up! Career Coach Becca Carnahan brings her 14 years of experience in career and professional development at Harvard Business School to help you find jobs that are truly flexible (from scratch, not just scaling down your existing job from full-time to part-time), she offers specific websites you should visit, how to get a great job after you’ve taken a career break, and how to figure out your next career move. Plus don’t worry about awkward networking events in drab conference rooms, Becca has tips on how to network to find your next job from your couch.
Then listener Nikki Barrese’s feedback brought Kim to tears (and she’s not a crier!). Plus, you’ll hear from Michelle Grosser, attorney-turned-life coach for millennial moms & host of the Motherhood Podcast about a dress up day near-disaster!
LISTEN BELOW! And don’t forget to ‘follow’ and leave a rating & review!
Show Takeaways from Career Coach Becca Carnahan:
FLEXIBLE JOBS SITES
Fairygodboss.com
Peoplefirstjobs.com
Themomproject.com
NETWORKING TIPS
People 80% of jobs are filled through referrals
Make your request very clear
Say something flattering but sincere
SCRIPTS TO TACKLE A TOUGH CONVERSATION AT WORK, TO HELP THEM OPEN UP MORE
“I’m confused, when you speak to me like this…”
“Am I misreading something?”
“Help me understand…”
HOW TO HAVE AN AMAZING JOB INTERVIEW THAT EARNS YOU THE JOB
“What a lot of people will do is they'll start listing responsibilities. We need to flip that and really more so focus on your accomplishments. And everyone has accomplishments.”
THINK BEYOND THE JOB POSTING OR JOB BOARD TO LAND YOUR DREAM JOB
“ I think where people get stuck up a little bit here is they, they'll look at those job boards, some of the ones that I mentioned and some others, and they'll think, okay, this is all that's available. And they'll start to write off companies being like, oh, well they don't have an open job this second. But a lot of jobs aren't, are never posted. And so many jobs are filled through networking and referrals. It's like 80% here, Kim, it's crazy. So we just need to shift the strategy away from just applying online.”
HOW TO NETWORK YOUR WAY INTO YOUR DREAM JOB… FROM YOUR COUCH!
“Start with that target list. Look on LinkedIn and start with people that you have something in common.”
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EPISODE LINKS:
-Becca Carnahan & Next Chapter Careers Becca on Instagram Becca on Linkedin
FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Kim Rittberg (00:01):
Today you are getting all your career questions answered. Career coach Becca Carnahan, who comes with 14 years of experience at Harvard Business School, has advice on how to find jobs that are truly flexible. And I don't mean jobs that you're already in and are scaling down. She offers specific websites and tips on how to figure out your next career move, how to get a great job after you've taken a career break, and how to network from your couch. No sad wine and cheese here.
Kim Rittberg (00:30):
This is Mom's Exit interview, the show for moms who wanna craft the career and life they want. Each episode, you'll meet inspirational moms across various industries and levels who are working and living life on their own terms, and they'll bring you actionable tips from finance to business development to happiness, to crushing that imposter syndrome. I'm Kim Rittberg. I was a burnt out media executive at Netflix, US Weekly and in TV news. I wanted a career where I was fulfilled at work but present at home with my kids. So I started working for myself and I love it, but not every day was easy or is easy. I wanted to explore with all of you how other moms were creating careers on their own terms, their carving out flex jobs, starting their own businesses. They're taking back control. Join me and make work, work for you instead of the other way around.
Kim Rittberg (01:35):
Alright, fellow parents, quick plug. If you have a side hustle or business and you need to market yourself, maybe you need content videos and you're not a writer or a video editor, or you wanna shift out of the home and you need a rebrand, well, I will give you the blueprint. I'll help you get to where you wanna go, just DM me or visit kimrittberg.com and hit contact. And I am excited about today's guest, Becca. We've been covering flexible work here and featuring moms who found interesting ways to make their careers work for them. Becca Carnahan, she's a career coach, author, and mom of two. Her kids are seven and six has such amazing advice and I love that we really drill into how to find that flexible job if you're not already in that job and scaling down. Becca herself had her own exit. She has 14 years of experience in career and professional development at Harvard Business School, and she decided to work for herself a few years ago. Becca specializes in helping parents land fulfilling jobs they love without giving up the flexibility they need. Yes, please. Becca and I are encountering some serious technical problems, so we're just gambling and just gonna hit record and hope that this podcast is working right, Becca?
Becca Carnahan (02:47):
It's gonna be amazing. That's mom life, right? It's gotta roll with it.
Kim Rittberg (02:50):
<laugh>. Love it. Becca, thank you so much. You're the founder of Next Chapter Careers, your career coach and a mom of two specializing in helping mid-career parents land fulfilling jobs they love without giving up the flexibility they need. If that's not an intro for our mom's exit interview audience, I don't know what it is,
Becca Carnahan (03:06):
<laugh>. It's everything, right? The fulfillment and the flexibility we can have both.
Kim Rittberg (03:11):
Your website says you can land a fulfilling job you love without giving up the flexibility you need. Okay. This is something so many parents are looking for, but they don't know where to start. Where do you recommend them starting?
Becca Carnahan (03:23):
Yeah. Oh, such a good question. I recommend starting with figuring out what flexibility means to you and what fulfillment means to you because it's gonna be different to me than it is to you, Kim. It's gonna be different to our neighbor down the street, our sister-in-law. So really starting with that clarity piece around what specifically is flexibility? Is it being able to get your kids off the bus? Is it being able to work in a job where it's more results focused than butts and seats focused? Is it more of a culture thing or a specific hours? So getting super clear on that first and foremost. And then going to the fulfillment part of this, right, is what is a fulfilling job actually look like to you in terms of the skills that you're gonna use, the environment that you're in, how you're adding value making impact. Once we have that, we have a much clearer picture of how we can go out and start looking for it and asking people and asking questions because it's not gonna be all on job boards. We're gonna shift this focus to something outside of just scrolling LinkedIn for hours and hours.
Kim Rittberg (04:36):
I love that. And one of these questions came from a listener, Jennifer, who I, she sent me this amazing list of questions about flex work, which I was enraptured by, and I'm like, Jennifer, I'm gonna ask these. I think one of the things there is curiosity and interest in part-time or job sharing <affirmative>, but how do you do that? How do you find those roles if you don't already work there? A lot of the people I've spoken to have been people who they were at a company and then they negotiated with their boss or presented a plan with their boss to share a job or to shift from five days a week to three days a week. How do you find that job from scratch, whether through networking or LinkedIn?
Becca Carnahan (05:11):
It's almost always going to be related to relationships and networking. You're not going to be just happening happening across that job when you're scrolling a job board. And some people hear that and they say, well, that sounds terrible. I don't wanna do that because networking sounds like it's not fun. And they picture that themselves going to one of those wine and cheese mixers where they don't know anyone and they have a name tag on and this is terrible. I wanna be home on my couch. But I promise you, you don't have to do it that way. What I recommend to folks is to create a target list of companies that you would love to work for that you're interested in, the culture that they talk about, the client that they serve, the product or service that they offer. The size of company matters here, the industry, there's a lot of different factors that you can put together to create your target list.
Becca Carnahan (06:08):
And then we're starting to look for people so you don't have to go again to the wine and cheese mixer. You can identify specific people who are in interesting roles or who have something in common with you. Maybe you went to the same college, you worked at the same place back in the day. You have a friend in common. You can get an introduction to. You can build this network individually by finding the right person to have a conversation with and then snowball that into multiple conversations. Who else should I be talking to? This is a great conversation. Who else you think I should connect with as I pursue X, Y, and Z transition? You can snowball this without it being awkward.
Kim Rittberg (06:52):
And in terms of, I love, love the target list idea. I think that's really smart to someone. Just if they're really looking for a part-time job like three days a week or a super flexible job are when they're doing the research on the target companies, are they just Googling companies with flexibility, part-time jobs, companies that won awards for flexible parents? How do you do that research? Yeah, this is for Jennifer. Jennifer better send me some chocolate and cookies again. All her answer, all her questions answered. <laugh>, these
Becca Carnahan (07:20):
Are good questions, Jennifer. I love it. So there's a few good sites that I'm gonna point people to because you could just Google it and you could get the best companies to work for lists. But a few that I like in particular are a website called People First Jobs. And it is a job board, but it's also a company research platform too, because they only work with companies that they vet on a certain set of criteria around a synchronous work and flexibility and other factors that lend themselves more to part-time or flexible work. So that's one. I would also look at fairy God boss, which is an interesting one because they do company reviews and it is from women and they have different factors that they have company reviews on. So that's another good one to look at. You can also look at the mom project.
Becca Carnahan (08:18):
So on the mom project, again, it's more of a job board, but you can still do some company research there as well as potentially find some roles that is a job board that I would spend a little bit of time on because they do focus on flexible work. I'm gonna give you one more, Jennifer here and everyone else is listening. Flex Jobs is another good job board, but you can also use it for company research if you have a membership there to see what are the companies. And they give a list actually very publicly a list of the companies that they rank as high for flexible work. You can use these different sources to pull together your list and have it be online with the industries or types of products and services or cultures that you want to be a part of.
Kim Rittberg (09:05):
And so to reiterate, people you'd recommend job seekers go to these job boards, both looking for the available jobs but also using that as an indicator. So a company X is listing for a flexible role or company Y is flagging that they are a flexible or open-minded company. So then from that you can then see if your network knows people. And this is my own tip, I mean I've done this for jobs and whatnot. Yeah, you're really optimizing your LinkedIn, you're optimizing your website, you're optimizing your social. So then you can also check your social handle to see, do you know somebody at this company? If job X has job shares, job Y has three days a week listed, well maybe that's not your unit, maybe that's not your department, but maybe they have, they're open to that in another department. Not always, but sometimes.
Becca Carnahan (09:48):
But sometimes. And so I think where people get stuck up a little bit here is they, they'll look at those job boards, some of the ones that I mentioned and some others, and they'll think, okay, this is all that's available. And they'll start to write off companies being like, oh, well they don't have an open job this second. But a lot of jobs aren't, are never posted. And so many jobs are filled through networking and referrals. It's like 80% here, Kim, it's crazy. So we just need to shift the strategy away from just applying online.
Kim Rittberg (10:18):
And I think that's the thing that also is encouraging but also frustrating. I know that through my research, through mom's exit interview, I've actually also experienced it. I have hired a job share. When I was managing a team, I had a project I needed to staff people quick. One of the first best people who came in said, I can only work three days a week. And I sort of had a look at my face like, oh, that only gets me 60% of the way there, <affirmative>. She said, wait, I have another person who could fill in the other two days. I thought, okay. And it did work and it was a completely fine solution. I didn't mind, I wasn't trying to be so off on guard, I just was like, yeah, I need to hire. These people are good, this is great. And then in consulting I run my own business.
Kim Rittberg (11:00):
I was a consultant. One of the clients I came to through networking, he was asking me, are you open to a full-time job? And I said, no, no, I'm definitely not open to full-time job, but I think it's a real match between our companies and my skillset. And I ended up consulting for them for three days a week for 18 months. And that's not a job that's listed. So I think it's encouraging, but then I think some people say, oh, that's very encouraging, but if you don't already know that company or you're not already in, and people I've had on moms size interview, they were already in the job when they were convincing their boss to down steps. So I like your tips on here's how to, from scratch, find a flexible job. So I love that. So sorry. So in the end, you sort of feel like it is possible to find a flex job that from scratch that not at a company where you're scaling down
Becca Carnahan (11:50):
Hundred percent. And I mean, I can think of six people, six interesting stories off the top of my head in the past six months of people who have done this who have made big career transitions too, from one industry to another. And another way to think about this too, which I think is really cool, is what are some of your experiences outside of your professional world that you can tap into from a networking perspective, but also from the skills that you're gonna pitch. So I worked with someone who went from working in fashion to now running a, she has a part-time role running a school farm in a completely different part of the country. Yeah, exactly. So she was doing some volunteer work before that. She was able to then be like, oh, I did this volunteer work in this other part of the country, so I'm going to build a new network for myself in this other part of the country and really focus on my volunteer experience to showcase how I can add value here. And it's in this really cool role where she rides her bike to work and is there for a few hours each day, teaching classes, running the farm and then going back home. And it's perfect for her life. And there's other examples I can point to as well from the financial industry, from the tech industry, it goes across. You just need to get a little bit creative here.
Kim Rittberg (13:15):
Great. That leads me into what I was gonna ask you anyway. Can you share what employers look for or how a candidate can present themselves in a resume tips to creating a resume that stands out after taking a career break?
Becca Carnahan (13:27):
Yes, great question. Okay. The first thing I'll say is some people will come to me and say, what am I gonna do about this resume gap? How am I going to present this? And what I say back to 'em is that you don't have a resume gap. And they look at me, what are you talking about <laugh>? But my firm belief is that just because you are outside of the paid workforce does not mean that you weren't working or adding value in many different ways. That sort of stuff should be captured on your resume. But we need to be specific about how you are utilizing that information. So for example, when you are trying to pitch yourself for a specific job that has specific responsibilities or qualifications, what can you pull from your background, whether it's paid or unpaid work that you're gonna highlight on your resume.
Becca Carnahan (14:21):
So perhaps your experience volunteering in the schools with your kids is really relevant because you are doing some project management or fundraising in that role. That's what you highlight on the resume. You're not gonna include every single thing that you did during your time out of the paid workforce. You're gonna pick the specific things that showcase you have these skills. So that's where I start, is figuring out what do you need to target towards? What are the skills and qualifications that you're trying to highlight the most for the specific jobs that you're interested in? And then what a lot of people will do is they'll start listing responsibilities. We need to flip that and really more so focus on your accomplishments. And everyone has accomplishments. Some people will, I don't know if I really did anything, but sure you did in any role. You were either trying to help a company to make money, to save money, to make a process more efficient, to retain employees. Even in your unpaid work too. Maybe you were raising money, maybe you were making a process more efficient with project management, you were gathering more volunteers. You have a lot of great accomplishments and we should try to quantify those and have them come across in your resume.
Kim Rittberg (15:40):
I think that's a great point cuz a lot of times when people say, oh, what do you do in your job? People say, I do X, Y, and Z. But really when you're one of the, it's funny, I recently spoke to a group of students at Syracuse University and one of my tips was to them was you're always pitching <affirmative>. It doesn't matter what you're doing, you're always pitching. And so it's the same with when someone says, what did you do in that job? You're not just listing out verbs. You're like, oh, I wrote, I produced, I did accounting, I did this, that the other, you're like, you have to frame it as I led this team to 10% growth, or I opened seven new accounts over that year. But I think people forget because conversationally, we don't, we're not used to bragging or pitching our friends, and that's most of our conversations.
Kim Rittberg (16:24):
But when you're in the job situation, you really have to remember peacocking a little bit. You know, have to really be showcasing your accomplishments because everyone has done some set of verbs in their job <affirmative>. And so they're looking for the person who can advance their business forward. So I've hired for a lot of roles, and I've obviously interviewed, I've been working for 15 years, but I've hired for roles and I've interviewed for roles. And it's the people who come in with the passion, the accomplishments, but also the passion. And the people come in and say, oh, I did this and I can do this. As a hiring manager, it's, it's a shrug, right? So I like your reminder about the accomplishments.
Becca Carnahan (17:05):
We don't have to be math. We're not math. We've like, we've accomplished so much. And it's okay to share that with people. It's more than okay, it's helpful to them. If you think about it in that way, you're helping the person across the table understand how you do these things well. So it's not bragging. It's helpful <laugh>.
Kim Rittberg (17:20):
Right, exactly. And what recommendations do you have when you can't quantify? A lot of times people will say, oh, quantify what you did. I grew revenue by X percent. Well, sometimes you can't quantify it, but you're doing a good job, you're getting good reviews. What are some ways you can highlight accomplishments that aren't numbers based?
Becca Carnahan (17:39):
It doesn't have to all be numbers based. And you can think about what are the problems that you did help solve? So if your bullet point isn't going to say increased revenue or raised X funds, but what is the problem that you solved? So if your responsibility was to manage a particular set of product projects at the company, what were they really hiring you to do? They were hiring you to manage those projects, but were they trying to make sure they kept their costs down? Were they trying to make sure that they were able to have strong relationships with their vendors? So those other things like maintain strong relationships, built new relationships retained employees let's see here, improved processes. These are all good things that are accomplishment based without having a specific number attached.
Kim Rittberg (18:37):
I love that. And you talked a little bit about this before. When you're thinking about transferable skills, do you have a system or process? How do you think about what are my transferrable skills when you're sort of stuck, it's not job A to job b <affirmative>, but it's either you're on a break or you're shifting areas. How do you think about transferable skills?
Becca Carnahan (18:58):
Yeah, so what I have my clients do is a skills dump and we just sit down and we figure out what are all of your skills and what, let's start with your education. What are some skills that you gained through your education? Let's go into your previous roles. What are the skills that you used in those roles? Cause you weren't just sitting there twiddling your thumbs, you were doing something. So what were the skills?
Kim Rittberg (19:21):
You, well, some of us, us were, but they're not listening to this. They're not listening to the podcast. Mom takes an interview. Are not thumb, TWIs, <laugh>. No,
Becca Carnahan (19:28):
No. And so I mean, those are some of your professional experience, your educational experience, your volunteer experience, your personal experience. Not every mom is good at the same stuff. And what are the skills that you're using as a parent? And we just dump it all down, put it all down, and then we start to look for what are the skills that you really enjoy using the most? And there starts to find the transferable skills. You know what? Well, I really love, I'll give you another example here. Let's say you really doing arts and crafts with your kids. And there is an artistic element to that. You've also in your professional life have done, I've done, you did interior design maybe in your education, you took some classes that were around some graphic design. I'm just throwing out a lot of different examples here. And so you start to realize this, your eye for creativity or your eye for design is your overarching skill that you've used in many different ways.
Becca Carnahan (20:31):
So you start to come up with some different language for skills that tie together different experiences that you've had. And if you're feeling really stuck as to what skills are most transferable, there's another good use for your job boards. You can go back to the job boards and see what are they looking for in these roles. And that might spark something for you. Another good tool to use to compare your skills dump against particular skills is this website. It's a LinkedIn career explorer and it's kind of hidden. It's not actually on LinkedIn. So if you just google LinkedIn Career Explorer and type in a job title that's interesting to you, it's gonna give you the whole list of skills that you need for that job without actually finding a specific job posting for that. So you're gonna see this list of skills and be like, oh, well I hadn't really thought about my skill in verbal communication being relevant to this role, but it is, it's written right there in that they pull all that data from existing job postings, from old job postings to show what skills are most relevant. So skills dump a little bit of research and then tying them together.
Kim Rittberg (21:43):
All right, Becca, I need networking tips.
Becca Carnahan (21:48):
Sure, let's do it. So networking tips. Again, I am not a big fan of the big networking event. Some people love them. If you love them, sure, go out and find them go to those events. But if you're like me and you'd rather sit on the couch and do your networking here's what I'd recommend is start with that target list. Look on LinkedIn and start with people that you have something in common with so you don't feel as awkward reaching out. Look for the people that you have an introduction into. Maybe your good friend is friends with this person and you can get an introduction. Maybe you went to the same school so you can message that in your LinkedIn note. Little things like that that can kind of break the ice, look for an ice breaker as you're reaching out to these targeted people from these companies or people who have made a similar transition that you're looking to make something that makes them feel like, okay, I can see why this person's reaching out in your outreach. I also recommend a little bit of authentic flattery. And I say authentic on purpose here. We're not just saying, you're so beautiful and your eyes sparkle like the sun. No, we're looking to say, I really thank
Kim Rittberg (23:00):
You so much, Becca, thank you so much for <laugh>.
Becca Carnahan (23:04):
Your eyes do sparkle. But what do you admire about that person's job trajectory so far? What have they done in their career that you can very easily see on LinkedIn that you said, I, it's really cool what you're doing or how you've made this transition, or I noticed that you've been within this industry for X number of years and I really admire the passion that you must have for this work. Something that makes them feel like you are reaching out for a reason, not, it's not just about you. You're reaching out because you admire this person. And when you put yourself in the other person's shoes there, that feels good, doesn't it? If someone reached out to me and said like, Becca, I think it's really cool how you made a transition from working in higher education to owning your own business. You're like, yeah, it's really cool, thanks.
Becca Carnahan (23:50):
It makes other person feel good. So you're giving something already, even when you're asking for someone's time. And then there's the other tip there when you're asking to connect with someone or have a conversation, make sure you make your ask, right? People aren't mind readers. They don't know how you can help them unless you ask if you can have a conversation. But don't ask for a two hour lunch with a stranger. Ask for a 15 minute call on the phone or on Zoom. If you could ask them a couple questions about their experience. And they don't need to feel like they all tense about, I need to be an expert on this in order to give advice. It's about their experience. And that just helps them to feel more comfortable to say yes, especially when you're offering up a short period of time, 15, 20 minute phone call. You can get so much out of that and then you can follow up if that relationship feels like it has some legs.
Kim Rittberg (24:47):
I like that tip because I do feel like I used to get asked for, I mean I still do get asked, but I mean what I was with in C is asked to have a coffee and I was always conscious of this is coming with a list. I think that people feel like, oh, it's awkward. Some people feel it was awkward, but it's very important to be explicit. The whole 30 ceo, actually she was a guest in the show on mom's exit interview, she recommended be explicit in your asks you just recommended, because that helps the person decide, Hey, can I help this person <affirmative>? Is this gonna be fruitful? Or see, sometimes people do wanna help, but other times people are like, I'm so busy and your questions are so vague, you can just Google that. So being really specific, if someone were to come to me and Oh, ask me for general video questions, it's like, that's so vague.
Kim Rittberg (25:37):
I have a blog full of ideas and thoughts and stuff. But if you have specific questions, how did you start your business? Or how can I grow with video? Here's my type of company. Just I think the more specific the better because it helps that person gauge A, should they make the time for you? B, can they help you and C, do they want to help you? And that's the sort of fairy dust that you just like can't tell. Yeah. And another listener question I think there are people who know where they wanna go and don't know how to get there. And then there are other people who feel lost. So one person wrote in, what do you recommend for a mom who has low self-esteem and doesn't know what they would do as a career after not being in the workforce for years because they're parenting <affirmative>. I want to go back but have no idea what to do.
Becca Carnahan (26:24):
One of the first exercises that I go through with people in my career clarity program is to that exact point, getting clear on what it is you wanna do and finding that overlap between their passions, their skills, and their value add. And by value add, I mean what types of companies or clients are gonna pay you to do these things When you're pitching, a lot of people will start with saying, oh, well I did this and then I did that and then I did this and then I did that. That's part of your story, but it's not really your pitch. So how I coach people is to think about what are the things you want someone to remember about you? What are the three things you want someone to walk away from that conversation remembering about you? And then what's the highlight reel? What's the evidence that shows that you, yes you do.
Becca Carnahan (27:12):
You can do those things. You do have experience in X, you are really do have this skill set. Give them some highlights and then make sure you are closing up that pitch with what's next for you. I am looking to get back into the paid workforce, or I'm looking to make this pivot from X industry to Y industry. Or I'm excited to use my skills in this to make an impact at this type of company. When you kind of put your pitch together that way with the three things you want someone to remember about you, the evidence and then the what's next, it's a really powerful pitch.
Kim Rittberg (27:49):
I love that cuz it's interesting. I do a lot of on camera coaching and branding and I do abc, so I say a accolades. So start with your accolades. What is unique about you? <affirmative>? That could be an award you won. That could be how you launched a new unit for your company. Any sort of significant accomplishments or accolades. And then I like to say, be your business. What are you actually doing? What will you be doing for them? And then see, I like to think of it as something creative to end with. Oh cool, something they're more personal, but you know, only have 30 or 60 seconds <affirmative>, the rest of the meeting can help uncover more. But it's really like that first minute that decide makes someone decide how they're gonna feel about you and if they're gonna trust you. So I love the idea of it's an inverse, it's reversing what might be your intuitive way of saying. And so these are the things I did. It's like, no, no, no, no. Bring the sales first. Yeah, bring your branding first. <affirmative>, I don't know, I think there's so much job hunting, sales, pitching, being on tv, it's all sort of very connected in terms of you're kind of always trying to pitch and make people love you. You want to make people love you. It's like dating. It's the same thing, it's dating.
Kim Rittberg (29:12):
But I think I like your framework of the three steps, cuz I do think it's frontloading, front loading the most important things. Where are you gonna take this company? How are you gonna help make your jobs life better? And then telling your story behind it. Cuz that's really the order in which they wanna hear it.
Becca Carnahan (29:30):
Exactly.
Kim Rittberg (29:33):
Becca also recommends setting up alerts on LinkedIn and acting fast because in the first few days when a job is posted, that's when someone is most likely to get hired. Interesting. You can find her beccacarnahan.com and on Instagram with underscore loves Becca. I'd love getting letters and feedback from you all. And this note from Nikki Bar just really truly moved me. I work really hard on this podcast. It takes a lot of time, a lot of work, but I believe in it and I love getting your notes on Instagram, LinkedIn, email because I believe that we can all work harder to think about what we want in life, to think about what do we want our life to look like? How do we want a parent, how do we make, wanna make our career work for us? Not every day or not every week is easy for me, but the past few years since I took a leave to leave corporate and work for myself has just been totally transformative.
Kim Rittberg (30:26):
And getting these notes that my podcast is helping other people and helping you is really incredibly touching and moving. So this from Nikki wrote, she wrote that she started listening to these podcasts as she was beginning a new chapter as a single mom. And she wrote to me to the show Three and 30 who I've had on also Rachel and I've been a guest on and Rushma to Johnny's podcast as well. She wrote it to us three and she wrote that she started listening to us every day over housework or driving to school. It was as she was beginning a new chapter as a single mom and she always walked away energized and she felt supported and ready to take the next step. She says, Kim, in the intro before your interview with Melissa Urban hearing you share a sunrise with your daughter was so sweet.
Kim Rittberg (31:10):
Episode topics highlighting parenting tools, establishing morning routines, and being a sturdy leader. Soon we're joined by deep discussions about the childcare crisis and the impact the pandemic had on families and mothers in the workplace. I never before considered that my experience is the only person on my team with a young child and no full-time partner at home was different. The light came on for me. She started listening to Kate Davis as the New Way We Work and no one is coming to save us. Nikki writes, I began sharing select episodes with her leaders at work. She said she passed them to anyone who would listen. And over the past few years, she's seen a dramatic transformation in herself. She feels stronger and more determined to have something she believes in and she's decided to take a big leap, a risk and adventure to part-time work.
Kim Rittberg (31:55):
She wrote, I wanna have the time and brain space available to be present in the life of my daughter. She's five. I don't wanna let any of it slip away. I'm going to build my own business on the side to support this flexible arrangement and start a podcast. Yes, I want both. I want it all in my moments of self-doubt and discouragement. I turn to you and regain my confidence. I want you to hear that you have made a profound impact in my life and more importantly in my daughters. I am so grateful. Thank you for leading a revolution. You really are. Okay. I'm crying <laugh> that actually made me cry. So I just want to say, Nikki, thank you so much for sending that note and for anyone else, please drop me a note if you feel moved to thanks, get ready for our real mom moment. Life in its happiest, funniest, or weirdest moments. This one is from Michelle Grosser, a life coach for millennial moms.
Michelle Grosser (32:45):
Last week my kids had spirit week at school and on Monday they had to dress like career day Tuesday they had to dress, I dunno, some other thing. And on Wednesday they had what I thought was a wacky tacky day. So in the morning we get them dressed up all crazy, bunch of crazy hair different socks, different shoes. They're wearing part of their Halloween costume with a Christmas outfit. They're looking like clowns. And we get to school early and I'm here patting myself on the back feeling so good. Everyone's in good spirits. We've crushed this morning until I start noticing all the other kids getting out of their cars and walking into school wearing their school uniforms. And I've got two clowns in the backseat. So I look at the email again from the school and I realize that kids were supposed to wear their uniforms and it was only wacky sock day.
Michelle Grosser (33:34):
So instead of losing it, spiraling, being hard on myself, I decide that I'm just gonna turn around, drive my kids home, put them in their uniforms, and then bring them back to school and they're gonna be a little late. So as we're driving back home for them to change, I apologize to them. And I'm like, guys, I really biffed it. I read that email wrong. I'm sorry. And my little four year old says, mama, it's okay. Everyone makes mistakes. I love you no matter what you do. I forgive you, mama. And guys, it just wrecked me.
Kim Rittberg (34:07):
<laugh>. That was a close call that reminds me of that scene from Bridget Jones' diary where she shows up dressed like a bunny in sort of like a little sexy bunny outfit at a very fancy brunch. Anyway, love that story. Thanks Michelle. You could find her michellegrocer.coach on Instagram. And if you wanna submit your own real mom moment, visit mobs exit interview.com. And while you're there, sign up for our awesome newsletter. I take the time to type up all of the brilliant nuggets from the show.
Kim Rittberg (34:42):
Thank you so much for listening. We wanna hear from you. Tell us what topics you want us to cover, and what questions you have for upcoming shows and experts. We will read everyone and we will use them. You can find us everywhere. Go to www.kimrittberg.com, scroll down to find the contact button, or you can DM me on Instagram at Kim Rittberg. Or you can leave your feedback right inside your review in the podcast app. Please follow the show in Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen and leave review in a five star rating. And don't forget to share it with people who will find it valuable. It's truly meant to be a resource. And this is Mom's Exit interview. I'm your host and executive producer, Kim Rittberg. The show is produced by Henry Street Media. John Horowitz is our editor, and Aliza Friedlander is our producer and publicist.