Parents At Work
Lori Mihalich-Levin
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Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Parents At Work episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Parents At Work for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Parents At Work episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
33: An Interview with Podcast Founder Tom Spiggle
Parents At Work
12/29/20 • 25 min
Being a working parent can be a long and intimidating journey, but we are fortunate to live in a time when there is an array of resources to support you on your path.
Today’s guest is none other than Tom Spiggle, founder of the Parents at Work Podcast and Spiggle Law, an employment law firm. Co-host Lori Mihalich-Levin interviews Tom about his inspiration for starting the podcast, as well as his own personal journey as a working parent.
Join Lori and Tom in this conversation for tips on how to navigate your working parent journey and to say farewell to Tom in his co-host role.
Show Highlights:
- Lori shares the story of Parents at Work
- Tom shares his personal working parent story
- Why Tom chose to educate people on the prejudices that happen in the workplace
- What sparked Tom’s interest in employment law
- Key take-aways from Tom’s book, You’re Pregnant, You’re Fired
- Tom shares his experiences being a podcast host
- Consistent themes Tom’s seen throughout his interviews
- Tom talks about why he started the “I Got Fired” podcast
- Tom’s favorite working parent technology and resources
- The importance of acknowledging the passing in parenthood
- Closing advice for the audience and Lori
Links:
Contact Lori:
Resources:
https://www.google.com/calendar/about/
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/All-Joy-and-No-FunJennifer-Senior/1114315283?ean=9780062072269
26: Moms in Corporate Impact
Parents At Work
03/03/20 • 48 min
Today’s guests, Abby Davisson and Anne Wintroub, are both mothers in the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR, or corporate impact). Abby, Senior Director at the Gap Foundation, launched and currently leads the employee network group for working parents at Gap Inc. She shares what her experience as a working parent at Gap Inc. has been, what her hiring and leave process looked like, as well as what inspired her to launch the employee network group. Anne, leader of social innovation at AT&T, discusses the many benefits of being a working parent in social impact and how her position has given her a new perspective on parenting and empowering kids with respect to media and technology..
Join Tom Spiggle and co-host Lori Mihalich-Levin in these captivating interviews to learn more about the shifts that are happening in corporate impact, how these shifts are affecting working parents, and raising socially conscious children, along with great tips for new parents.
Show Highlights:
- Abby’s working parent story and how she made her career shift during pregnancy
- Abby’s experience being a mom in a corporate social impact position and how managers can improve unconscious bias towards pregnancy leave
- What is corporate impact and how the field has shifted over the years
- Support systems that made transitioning back to work easier
- Systems that would improve the working parent experience
- What inspired Abby to launch the employee network group for working parents
- Changes that are currently happening in corporate impact and how it’s impacting working parents
- Implementing the 10/10/10 model for making decisions
- Resources Abby utilizes as a working parent
- Anne’s working parent story and how her leave experience varied with each child
- Workplace supports that improved Anne’s experience returning from work
- Supports that would improve working parents’ experiences
- How paying attention to positive digital culture and digital toxicity is changing the working parent experience
- What is digital toxicity and encouraging young people to find their voice technology and media
- Letting go of expectations as a parent and being light with yourself
- Resources that Anne utilizes as a working parent
Links:
Contact Lori:
Contact Tom:
https://www.spigglelaw.com/podcasts/parents-at-work/
For a copy of “You’re pregnant, You’re fired”- [email protected]
Resources:
The Opposite of Spoiled by Ron Leiber
18: Moms in the Theatre
Parents At Work
07/30/19 • 47 min
In today’s episode of Parents at Work, Tom Spiggle and co-host, Lori Mihalich-Levin, introduce us to two moms in the performing arts, Rachel Spencer Hewitt and Roberta Pereira.
Rachel details her personal challenges as a working mom and the logistics of trying to find acting work while juggling new motherhood. Roberta addresses common practices in the theatre industry that previously haven’t been questioned. Join us as they share insight, tips, and resources for theatre moms, on today’s Parents at Work Podcast.
Rachel Spencer Hewitt received her MFA in acting from the Yale School of Drama. Her credits include Broadway, off-Broadway and regional theatre. She is mom of 2 children, a 4 year old and a 2 year old, the Founder and Executive Director of The National Organization for Individual Caregivers in Institutional Support, and the Founder of the Parent-Artist Advocacy League (PAAL) for the performing arts.
Roberta Pereira is a Tony-nominated, Olivier-award winning theatre producer. She’s currently the producing director of “The Playwrights Realm”, an off-Broadway theatre company committed to amplifying the voices of emerging playwrights. She’s the solo mom of 20-month old Bianca.
Show Highlights:
- Scheduled craziness and chaos of hours
- The need for invisible labor, contingency plans, creative problem-solver
- Saying yes to opportunities that may have a 24-hour notice and then prioritizing that opportunity over everything, no matter how healthy (or unhealthy) that decision is for everyone
- Reaching out and receiving help from family
- Broadway Babysitters based in NYC, composed primarily of artists who are used to long hours and understand industry norms
- Urban Sitter, an online database that will show locations for caregivers while traveling
- Washington D.C. just passed a paid-leave law
- FMLA applies to some people, but doesn’t require paid leave
- Celebrating the individual and saying yes to everything that they are
- Hostile work culture can break an individual, because of their needs outside of the industry
- Prioritizing the health and independence of the individual Rachel and Roberta’s goal is to make the industry better for everyone
- When you’re home, be focused on home
- The Radical Parent Inclusion (RPI) project - providing childcare at auditions
- Sometimes not being able to afford being seen is the reason people don’t get the job, and not because they are not capable or don’t want to work.
- Changing rehearsal dates to coincide with a child’s holiday from school, so that it becomes a day off for both the parent and the child
- The idea of the “disposable artist”: you work until you’re burned out. Once you burn out, you’re replaceable. If we care about longevity, we need to care about practices that are sustainable.
- Caring about inclusion through the lens of parenting
- What lessons can we learn that are transferable?
- Hiring parents can be an asset
- Providing a child-care matinee, where children do activities while parents watch a play
- Being an agent of change within the industry and leading by example
- Find community! Don’t underestimate the value of resource-sharing.
Links / Resources:
https://www.spigglelaw.com/podcasts/parents-at-work/
https://www.broadwaybabysitters.com
Facebook.com/paalperformingarts
Twitter.com/paaltheatre
Instagram.com/paaltheatre https://www.playwrightsrealm.org
https://www.playwrightsrealm.org/rpi
Anna Moensch's Mothers: https://www.playwrightsrealm.org/2019-20
Book:
Cribsheet: A Data-Driven Guide to Better, More Relaxed Parenting, from Birth to Preschool by Emily Oster”
Article:
“End the Plague of Secret Parenting” by Emily Oster
The “Parents at Work” Podcast is sponsored by:
The Spiggle Law Firm, representing people who have been wrongfully fired, or fear they might be, with a particular focus on pregnancy discrimination.
17: Insights from HR Dads
Parents At Work
07/02/19 • 61 min
In today’s episode of Parents at Work, Tom Spiggle and co-host, Lori Mihalich-Levin, introduce us to 2 working dads in the HR field: Wiley Simmons and Adam Calli. Human resources are generally a women-dominated industry, yet men contribute a unique and valuable perspective.
Wiley Simmons is a single father of 2 and came to the HR field through a complete accident. Having an executive and administrative assistant background, he took an admin assistant temp job in the human resources field, and his boss was so impressed with his work, he was offered a position as a benefits coordinator. What he found was that with being prior military, the rules and regulations of the HR profession, as well as his enjoyment of helping people and interacting with staff, turned out to be the perfect career choice for him.
Adam Calli is the proud father of 2 and an HR professional. He is also the principal consultant and founder of the human resources consulting firm, Arc Human Capital, LLC. Prior to working in HR and having children, hotel operations were Adam’s specialty, but it was not especially conducive to family life. He did something quite revolutionary for 2002: he saved up his leave time and took 3 weeks FMLA leave after the birth of his son. Both HR and non-HR professionals alike will enjoy hearing this discussion on industry trends, and finding that perfect balance between work and life. There’s something for everyone here. Please join us!
Show Highlights:
- Hard to trust HR personnel when you’re on the other side of the fence
- HR doesn’t get the accolades as a profession that it deserves
- Allowing time off to take care of family issues
- A support system is extremely important
- Parents need time off, too
- Mandatory leave law
- Talking to a therapist as a way to maintain balance
- Dealing with mental health issues
- Taking care of yourself and enjoying parenthood
- Watching other parents and deciding what kind of parent you want to be
- Why more companies are becoming interested in paid parental leave plans
- How the opportunity to utilize technology makes it easier for today’s parents to be more productive
- Why the “work/life balance” terminology is becoming obsolete
- The “work/life blending” concept is more practical for today
- Work and life is still just life
- Why progressive companies will accept and embrace the blending concept
- Old-school-mentality companies are in danger of fading out
- Hyper-efficiency as a brand new parent
- Which generations might be less accepting of this work/life blending
- HR availability to remote workers
- Helicopter parents
- Families being committed to everything but the family
- The value of committing to your children and your community
- Learning how to say no and understanding the commitment of saying yes
- Being a victim of your own success
- Encouraging employees to tap into the employee assistance program
- How a phone is critical technology when managing multiple people
- The benefit of family-shared calendars/apps
- How to teach our children time management as members of the family
- Time management is an incredibly valuable skill to have no matter what your field
Links / Resources:
10: Balancing Business, Fatherhood and Relationships with Your Kids with Justin Batt of Daddy Saturday
Parents At Work
01/16/18 • 34 min
Fatherhood is one of life’s greatest responsibilities, and yet so many of us feel completely unequipped for the role. Many first time and long time dads find it difficult to engage with their children, or otherwise feel overwhelmed with the pressures of work. How can we begin to redefine Fatherhood, and start building up intentional relationships with our kids? Luckily, we have places like Daddy Saturday to turn to. I’m talking to Justin Batt, Chief Daddy at Daddy Saturday, about how he has transformed his relationship with his kids, even as a working parent.
Daddy Saturday is a website dedicated to building resources and communities for fathers. It started when Justin’s oldest daughter was born, and he found himself being the sole caregiver on Saturdays while Mom was at work. These Saturdays with his kids became precious as he intentionally planned ways to have quality time, rather than simply checking out on his phone or becoming preoccupied with work. Now, he and his children are having grand adventures and encouraging people from across the world to do the same.
Justin is going to share all of his tips for Dads who want to transform their relationships with their kids. While it does require a mindset shift and a commitment to put the phone down, building intentional relationships with kids is incredibly easy. Fatherlessness is currently in a state of crisis, but Dads like Justin are trying to take back Saturday and encourage Dads to engage and take ownership of their responsibility. Yes, life and technology have their pressures and influences, but Justin is going to show us how easily we can build habits that will impact our children for a lifetime.
More in this episode:
• Being intentional and engaging with his kids on a Saturday became a community phenomenon.
• How Justin is encouraging other dads to change how they approach their weekends with kids.
• Fatherhood is a huge responsibility, but it’s also an opportunity.
• Be there for your kids during breakfast, or any other rallying point.
• Questions you can use to engage your kids.
• Why experiencing failure as kids can make strong adults.
• Justin tells the story of how he and his wife became business partners and life partners.
• Advice for Dads who want to start being more intentional.
• What is launching next for Justin and Daddy Saturday?
• A little bit of planning makes a world of difference.
• How to engage your kids as they get older.
• Focus on peak performance in our parenting, not just our career or our health.
• Learn all the nuts and bolts of how Justin runs Daddy Saturday.
• Sometimes, low-tech is best.
Links
07: Improve Your Productivity So You Can Prioritize Time with Your Family with Ari Meisel of Less Doing
Parents At Work
12/04/17 • 28 min
We all wish we had just a few more hours in our day. Between ferrying children around, keeping the house running, and trying to be successful in our career, it seems impossible for us to be able to get it all done in a day. Luckily, there are people like Ari Meisel in the world who are hacking productivity through sleek systems, outsourcing, and automation. I first heard about Ari from his book, Less Doing. I then became involved with a company he started, Get Leverage. Ari has recently left Get Leverage in order to refocus his life on his real passion: interacting with real people to give them real solutions to all of their productivity challenges.
Productivity is all about reducing stress for Ari. He is a father of four kids, and he only works while the kids are in school. That means his working hours have to be productive. Today, Ari is going to share all of the systems he has in place for improving his productivity and prioritizing time with his family. After all, everything he does is to improve the quality of life for the people he loves. That passion is then imbued into each and every task he sets his mind to, and mindset is key.
Listen this week for all the tips and strategies you can use to find a little more time in your day. Ari mentions so many wonderful resources and tools that you do not want to miss.
Show Highlights:
- Why Ari left Get Leverage and decided to work with people again.
- How Ari works from 9-3 while his kids are at school.
- Idea capture is Ari’s obsession.
- What kinds of automation is Ari doing to streamline his life, and the important things he is not automating.
- Have systems and procedures in place. Ari will show you how.
- On-demand labor is key.
- Ari’s personal goals for the new year.
- How the Less Doing Lab can help you in just about every area of your life.
- The psychology of productivity.
- Having a virtual assistant service is invaluable.
- Ari’s thoughts on childcare solutions.
Resources:
Ari Recommends:
03: The Emotional Journey of Parenting with Elisabeth Stitt
Parents At Work
08/10/17 • 39 min
Do you struggle at times to know the best way to go about parenting your child? It can really be a tough call, especially when it comes to the emotional aspects. Some expert advice can really go a long way to help frazzled parents to navigate this often tricky road. Listen in, as Elisabeth Stitt offers you some really great advice on today's show.
Elisabeth is a Parent Educator and a Parent Coach and she will be joining us today, to talk about her her consulting practice and also about her new book, Parenting As A Second Language. She gives parents the concrete skills they really need, in order to become more effective, and she also supports them in the emotional journey of parenting. Listen in to find out what Elisabeth has to share with you today, about how to make deliberate and clear choices, when parenting your child and also about finding out if your parenting practices really are in line with your goals and your values.
Show highlights:
- Elisabeth explains her Fifty Item Family Assessment, that she uses to give parents a chance to assess what's actually going on in their home.
- Elisabeth explains how she got into this particular line of work.
- The challenges that parents face, with the lack of real community, in today's fast paced world.
- Elisabeth talks about her former life, as a teacher, where she liked to teach about the more alternative things, like character education and mindfulness.
- Elisabeth, as a teacher, often felt that the parents were getting in the way of who their children were, uniquely and also of who they wanted to become.
- The impact of the judgment of others and of society as a whole, on people's ability to parent effectively.
- Elisabeth talks about her book, Parenting As A Second Language, which is really a gentle guide to parenting, with various exercises for self-reflection, to help you find your way in a variety of topics.
- How Elisabeth helps parents to find the balance between authoritative and permissive parenting.
- Elisabeth explains how she works with parents- it's really all about their values.
- Family meetings- one of Elisabeth's favorite tools for families.
- Finding the right balance between having your children independent and standing on their own two feet and staying connected, as a family unit.
- Really knowing what you care about strengthens you and acts as a buffer against the judgment of others.
Links:
Elisabeth's website: www.elisabethstitt.com Elisabeth highly recommends that you sign up for her newsletter.
Parenting As A Second Language- A Guide For Joyful Navigating The Trials Triumphs And Tribulations Of Parenthood by Elisabeth Stitt is available from Amazon.
27: Dads in Corporate Impact
Parents At Work
03/03/20 • 59 min
Professionals who work in corporate social responsibility often exude a passion for making a difference in their jobs. What happens when CSR professionals are also passionate about their families? In today’s interview, Tom Spiggle and co-host Lori Mihalich-Levin interview Justin Steele and Brian Breckenridge, to take a deep look at what it means to be a dad in the social impact field.
Justin Steele, Director at Google.org and leader of philanthropic grantmaking for the United States, Canada, and Latin America, shares how his position at Google has supported and improved his parenting experience. He discusses the benefits of a flexible work arrangement and how the trajectory of how we work as a society has drastically affected what it looks like to be a parent today.
Brian Breckenridge, Senior Director and Executive Director at Box.org, also shares the different dynamics of his family experience and how he’s incorporated mindfulness into his parenting techniques and career.
Join Tom Spiggle and co-host Lori Mihalich-Levin in this interview for great insight on not only the major impacts CSR is making today, but for practical tips to balance work and parent life.
Show Highlights:
- Justin’s working parent story and what it was like having kids while in graduate school
- Brian’s working parent story and how his family journey has shifted over the years
- How being a parent or spouse generally affects a career in the CSR industry
- Interweaving work with parenthood and how CSR work can impact your children
- How having a flexible work arrangement has been the greatest support for Justin
- How work culture and managers can drastically impact working parents
- The many benefits of CSR and the progressive approaches it’s taking with employees
- Changes occurring within the industry that are affecting working parents
- Protecting emotional energy in a career that demands long hours and technological attention
- Being conscious of phone use and time spent on social media outside of workspace
- Finding balance in different areas of life and prioritizing how we invest our time
- Critical resources for parents
- Incorporating optimal living and mindfulness practices into parenting
Links:
Contact Lori:
Contact Tom:
https://www.spigglelaw.com/podcasts/parents-at-work/
For a copy of “You’re pregnant, You’re fired”- [email protected]
Resources:
The Meritocracy Trap by Daniel Marovitch
https://families.google.com/familylink/
https://www.mindfulschools.org/inspiration/mindful-reflection/
29: Mental Health Moms
Parents At Work
06/03/20 • 62 min
This month, we’re focusing on moms and dads in the mental health field. And today we‘re delighted to be joined by two working moms who are mental health professionals, Dr. Elizabeth Allen and Dr. Aimee Danielson, to talk about navigating life as a working parent.
Dr. Elizabeth Allen is an assistant professor of psychology and clinical psychiatry, and she’s also an assistant attending psychologist. She specializes in treating adolescents and young adults with anxiety disorders and OCD. Liz lives in New York, and she’s the mom of two girls, ages one and three.
Dr. Aimee Danielson is an associate professor of psychiatry and OB-Gyn, and she’s the director of a women’s mental health program that provides treatment and support for pregnant and postpartum women. Aimee has had the privilege of working with mothers every day for the last twenty years, supporting them through their transitions into motherhood. She lives with her very supportive partner and her three wonderful daughters, ages seven, ten, and thirteen, in Arlington, Virginia.
Be sure to listen in today, to benefit from Liz and Aimee‘s expertise, and to find out what they bring from their jobs to the way that they’re parenting their children.
Show highlights:
- Liz and Aimee share their working parent stories.
- Aimee talks about why she felt privileged, informed, and ready when she became a mother.
- Aimee discusses the choice that she and her husband had to make when their eldest daughter was born with a serious health condition.
- Aimee talks about the flexibility, creativity, and surrender that’s required from working parents.
- Looking at the different seasons of parenthood.
- Aimee explains why she feels that the mental health field is a good environment for working women.
- Some of the challenges of being a working mom in the mental health field.
- Liz talks about her experience of being a working mom in the mental health space.
- Being promoted and rising through the ranks can be difficult for working moms with small children.
- The kind of support that Liz and Aimee found helpful when they became working parents.
- The kind of support that Aimee and Liz would like to have had when they became parents.
- Transitioning from a work identity into a parent identity is important and can be difficult for men, when colleagues don’t know they became a parent.
- Women are feeling that they have to re-invent the wheel.
- Some things that would help working parents, going forward.
Links:
Contact Lori:
The Working Parent Group Network
Contact Tom:
https://www.spigglelaw.com/podcasts/parents-at-work/
For a copy of “You’re pregnant, You’re fired”- [email protected]
Resources:
Books mentioned:
Laughter and Tears: The Emotional Life of New Mothers, by Elisabeth Bing and Libby Colman
Cribsheet, by Emily Oster
Expecting Better, by Emily Oster
Back To work After Baby, by Lori Mihalich-Levin
The Awesomest 7 Year Postdoc or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Tenure-Track Faculty Life, by Professor Radhika Nagpal on the Scientific American blog.
App:
34: Welcome Our New Parents at Work Co-Host!
Parents At Work
03/30/21 • 20 min
In this episode of Parents at Work, Lori welcomes to the podcast her husband and new co-host, Jason Levin, MBA. Jason is the founder of Ready Set Launch, LLC where he helps organizations, professional associations, executives and lawyers with career transition and business development needs through outplacement, individual coaching, training and webinars. Jason comes on as a guest to share his own experience with parenting (during a pandemic!) while also holding down a job and working for himself in his own business.
Jason shares some empowering and actionable tips on everything from how to thrive at working from home with kids in the house, to how you can get your employer to be more accommodating of your needs as a working parent, and so much more. Tune in for a jam-packed 20-minute episode.
Show Highlights
- Jason’s personal working parent journey: Working for someone and also going out on his own while being a parent (01:47)
- Setting clear goals on what you need to get done and how working for yourself goes back to sales (03:45)
- Concentrating on work when working from home especially during the pandemic (06:08)
- The Wall: How he created space for himself so he could focus more on achieving his work goals (08:30)
- The number one career tip for working parents as they ease back into the post Covid-19 vaccine world (09:50)
- How to recenter yourself throughout the day to be consistently focused (10:54)
- Navigating a world where the industry you worked for or your career was turned on its head by the Covid-19 pandemic (12:11)
- How to approach and negotiate with your employer to keep you while enabling you to parent better (18:07)
Links and Resources
- To Sell is Human By Daniel Pink
- [email protected]
- Jason's Website
- Jason on Linkedin
- Lori's Website
- Lori on Linkedin
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FAQ
How many episodes does Parents At Work have?
Parents At Work currently has 58 episodes available.
What topics does Parents At Work cover?
The podcast is about Society & Culture, Parenting, Kids & Family, Personal Journals and Podcasts.
What is the most popular episode on Parents At Work?
The episode title '55: Dads in Finance' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Parents At Work?
The average episode length on Parents At Work is 42 minutes.
How often are episodes of Parents At Work released?
Episodes of Parents At Work are typically released every 28 days.
When was the first episode of Parents At Work?
The first episode of Parents At Work was released on May 15, 2017.
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