RECENT ARTICLES + PODCASTS

Building Your Village as a Mother — Episode #214 with Beth Berry

Beth Berry became a mother for the first time at 17, but it wasn’t until she got married that she fully understood the injustices around motherhood. As a teen mom, Beth had consistent help with her daughter because she lived with her family. Her family was a built-in...

Momfluencers: Inside The Billion-Dollar Industry of Instagram & Mommy Bloggers — Episode #211 with Sara Petersen

Sara Petersen is a writer whose essays about feminism, domesticity, and motherhood have appeared in the New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar, the Washington Post, and more. In this episode of the Startup Parent podcast, host Sarah K Peck interviews Sara to discuss her most recent book, Momfluenced: Inside the Maddening, Picture-Perfect World of Mommy Influencer Culture. They talked about how momfluencer culture impacts women psychologically, as consumers, as performers of their stories, and as mothers.

How Childhood Stress Affects Adult Health — Episode #206 with Michelle Stephens

Dr. Michelle Stephens, PhD, CPNP, RN is cofounder and chief nursing officer of Oath Care. Her experiences as a pediatric clinician, early childhood stress scientist, and mom deeply inform how she leads and builds in healthcare technology. In this episode we talk about Michelle’s career journey from pediatric nurse practitioner to healthcare startup founder — and what she’s learned along the way.

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Why Are The Stories Of Motherhood So White? — Episode #173 with Nefertiti Austin

In America, the word “mother” is nearly always describing white motherhood. That’s what Nefertiti, a single African American woman and the author of “Motherhood So White,” discovered when she decided she wanted to adopt a Black baby boy out of the foster care system. Nefertiti was shocked by the assumptions people had about what adoption, motherhood, and Black motherhood should look like. She realized that American society saw motherhood through a white lens, and that there would be no easy understanding or acceptance of the kind of family she hoped to build.

Come Gather With Parents To Talk — Community Connect

We’re hosting FREE community gatherings for working parents every month. Come gather with other parents and soon-to-be-parents to meet each other and connect. Come as you are, show up in your jammies, with your baby, nursing, hiding in the bathroom, ducking into a car for a meeting—whatever you need to do, by all means. Sounds, noises, messes all welcome.

Areas of Control: A Coaching Practice (Plus, Something To Look Forward To) — Episode #172

In a year with a pandemic, wildfires, the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and more, it can be easy to fall into despair, sadness, or anger. Even if you’re reading this years from now, things can go wrong—and they often do. People pass on, projects go under, businesses are forced to change. Part of the work of being human is reconciling with all that is beyond our control. Here’s a practical exercise to understand what’s within your control, and how to use it.

Micro Schools, Prepping for Q4, and What Businesses Can Do To Support Parents — Episode #171

School is back in session, and parents everywhere are fatigued, overwhelmed, and still in the lurch. Workplaces are less and less forgiving, and yet the problems created by the pandemic are still here. What’s a working parent to do? Last week, Lions + Tigers gathered a panel to talk about specific steps parents can take to strategically plan ahead for the coming year. I hosted a conversation with Brea Starmer, founder of Lions+Tigers, Shauna Causey of Weekdays, and Blessing Adesiyan of Mother Honestly.

Why Is This So Hard? — Episode #170

If you’re overwhelmed by everything, you’re not alone. There’s a lot happening right now. All of the things happening right now—a pandemic, job stress, health worries, lack of childcare, natural disasters, uncertainty about the future, an election year—can conspire to take a toll on our mental health. The environments we are in and the way the stress affects us is real. If you’re feeling stressed and close to burnout, you’re not alone. This is a struggle, and I’ve got a few tips for you to stay compassionate to yourself and help make all this stress just a little bit lighter.

ASK SARAH #10: Starting A Podcast? Tools, Structure, Editing + More

Are you curious about starting a podcast, or in the process of starting one? I get dozens of questions about starting a podcast, so grab your headphones and listen to this episode. I’ll cover the tools I use, the way I structure the audio, content guidelines, and vocal tips.

Consistency, Batching, and Productivity: Why I Take An August Sabbatical

A few years ago, when we first had children, my husband talked to his workplace about parental leave. He knew that while he’d like to be home during the first few weeks during and after the birth, he was also interested in being able to be around with his kids while they grew up. So, the summer after our first kid was born, he shifted his schedule to work from 8am to 4pm. From there, he advocated for taking a four-week leave every summer to spend time with his kids. We’re not taking a full sabbatical this year because of the pandemic, but we will still push pause on a few things where we can.

Giving Birth All Alone — Episode #162 with Megan Hale

When coronavirus first happened, many of us were adjusting to figuring out the shut down. How long would it last? Would this just be a week or two? What were the next steps? For many of you reading this blog and listening to the podcast, you have also been trying to figure out your birth plans. How do you give birth in a pandemic? What do you plan for, when everything keeps changing? Here’s what Megan Hale did when she found out her husband and mother both tested positive for the flu the week before she was due to give birth.

Running Online Groups and Facilitating Group Experiences — Episode #161 with Tara McMullin

A few weeks ago, Tara McMullin invited me onto her podcast to talk at length about mastermind programs—how we run them, what we charge, how they’re organized, how many people are in them, and more. I asked her if I could share the episode with all of you, too, so I’m airing this conversation again on the Startup Pregnant podcast. This episode is a very detailed, behind-the-scenes look at both of our online programs and how we’ve designed our mastermind communities.

What If I Only Work 2 Days Per Week? — Episode #160 with Kelsey Kerslake

Kelsey Kerslake runs a design agency as well as a coaching business, and has a young kiddo at home who just turned one. Her husband is an essential worker, so she hasn’t had a minute of childcare or backup help throughout all of this. Here’s how she is rescheduling her days and dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. Her question—can she keep working on a reduced schedule and still have the same impact?

Navigating Hard Conversations — Episode #159 with Sharon Stolt

Think of a difficult conversation that you are in the middle of, or one that you’ve recently had. Maybe it’s onboarding a new team member, or working with a client. Maybe it’s with your partner or your spouse, and you’re trying to negotiate all those logistics of parenting. Maybe it’s with the grandparents, your kids, your boss, a colleague—whoever it is, I am sure that you have had the experience of how challenging it can be to go through a hard conversation. Today on the podcast, we get to have Sharon Stolt join us to teach us what to do and how to start the art of having challenging and uncomfortable conversations.

Two Attorneys, Two Kids, And Pregnant In A Pandemic — Episode #158 with Caitlin Boland Aarab

You all have been asking to hear how other moms and small business owners are navigating the pandemic right now. I’ve been interviewing working parents about how they’ve been affected by the pandemic. Today we take a look at Caitlin Boland Aarab: she and her husband are both attorneys, and they own their own law firm in Great Falls, Montana. They have two kids at home and she’s pregnant with their third kid. When everything shut down, the kids were sent home from school—but the courts weren’t closed. Work was still in session.

My Three Year Old Will Now Reply To All Of Your Emails

I’ve given my three year old my laptop to reply to your incoming emails right now. My one-year old might also be chiming in. I’m having a hard time keeping them away from the keyboard. Don’t worry, I’ve invented a magical device that can also translate their thoughts and actions into words. As of Sunday, they are now responsible for my inbox. You can consider them my new personal assistant.