Femme Hive

Exercising releases endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Therefore, exercising on a regular basis should be a no-brainer. If only it were that easy...

Finding the motivation to get up early or drag yourself to the gym after work can be tough, especially when you have a demanding job. We have all been there.

Today, Katya Gorbacheva joins our conversation on finding the perfect workout routine for you. Using her experience as Civil Engineer turned Certified Personal Trainer, Bodybuilder and Founder of TotalBodyLab, Katya addresses the stigma that is associated with women doing weight training, particularly the fear of becoming bulky and unattractive. She also shares some practical tips on how to trick your mind into working out. Throw out everything you thought you knew about what makes a good workout plan, because chances are your perceptions of health have been distorted by social media.

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It is not uncommon for young professionals to be fully consumed by their jobs. A healthy work-life balance that leaves time and energy for hobbies and joy outside of work can oftentimes seem unattainable. The productivity guilt is real!

Lena Klein, Australian-German Blogger and Tech Sales Professional based in Dublin, explains just how important positivity and self-love are to staying healthy and happy. She discusses how to bounce back from tough personal situations, and how to make time for yourself without feeling guilty about it — productivity isn’t the be-all and end-all of life! Using her own experiences as examples, Lena proves that a positive mindset is more powerful in changing your life than most people think.

Trigger Warning: This episode contains information about child abuse which may be triggering to survivors.

Ah, working a 9 to 5. Endless fun, constant new challenges, never a dull moment… wait what? While a 9 to 5 job definitely has its perks, it doesn’t always address all of your interests. Starting a side hustle can be a great way to channel passions that are sidelined in the office, and make some extra cash, too. But where do you start and how do both at once?

In early 2019, Safiya Driskell started her blog “Slice of Safiya” while working full-time in the digital marketing space. Today she is an Account Manager at Snap Inc. in Los Angeles, has gained a loyal following and has secured partnerships with companies like Neutrogena while writing about beauty, fashion and culture. On this episode, Safiya talks about her journey, why it is so important to support Black content creators and she gives some valuable tips on how to balance a full-time career with a meaningful and successful side hustle.

There’s no denying that the stress of living during a global pandemic can take its toll. While there’s a lot we can do to help keep our loved ones and ourselves safe from COVID, we cannot keep mental health on the back burner. But what does mindfulness and practicing gratitude have to do with our mental health? And what can meditation really do for you?

To help us learn more about mindfulness and meditation, we turn to Yvette Pelgrom. Yvette has lived in different countries across Asia, Africa, and Europe, and now works for the personal growth platform Mind Valley in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As Head of Premium Coaching and External Opportunities, Yvette always keeps an open mind to new personal growth and self-care techniques that help keep people present and grateful, especially during times like these.

Being the only woman in a room full of men can be intimidating. Being the only POC in a room full of white coworkers can feel doubly so. When these two factors come together, women of color are forced to face more microaggressions and general discrimination in the office. Carrying this burden alone can be exhausting!

Elizabeth Kim discusses her journey as a woman of color, from her childhood growing up as a minority in the evangelical Bible belt, to her current job working as behavioral scientist at Spotify. She describes her experiences with discrimination and explains how to handle micro-aggressions in the office.

Nervous about graduating and moving away from your friends? Starting a new job in a different country altogether? Parting with close friends can feel like the end of the world, even if you are excited to pursue a new opportunity. If only there was a playbook to navigate long distance friendships.

Cue Henny Vogt, a badass woman working in sales at LinkedIn. Henny has kept in touch with friends from all over the world and has a lot of tips to share. From childhood friends back home in Germany, to college friends in the US and coworkers in Ireland, Henny understands the struggle of long distance friendships and knows how to make them work. More importantly, she knows which friendships are worth the effort.

For women who are undercompensated at their job, asking for a raise can be a necessary but stressful step to take towards earning a fair and competitive salary. Women also face many challenges in the workplace that compound this problem. Worried you’ll come off too bossy? Ungrateful?

Today Eden Ashebir, Senior Digital Strategist at Anne Lewis Strategies in DC, discusses salary negotiations in a candid and straightforward way. She speaks about her experience as a Black female professional, and how important it is to be proactive in regards to your salary.

Picture this: you’ve channelled your entrepreneurial spirit and devoted your hard work towards your own company. You are in charge of your work schedule and your professional goals. No waiting around for someone to promote you -- you are your own boss.

Sound too good to be true? Today we talk to someone who can speak on how personal branding can transform your career. After writing an article on landing her dream job that exploded on LinkedIn, Michaela Alexis has become one of the most in-demand speakers for the networking platform. Today, she explains just how important personal branding is and where to start if you have absolutely no clue where to begin.

On the very first Femme Hive episode we are addressing a topic that motivated Thamina to start this podcast in the first place: Her experience with post-graduation depression after graduating from college in 2017. Thamina invited her friend Judy Zhu to engage in a vulnerable conversation and share her story of dealing with loneliness, shame and guilt during the first few months after getting her degree.

On this episode, Thamina is joined by Whitney Hazard who is a Product Marketing Manager at Google. After graduating from college in 2018, Whitney moved to San Francisco for her dream job, expecting to be able to build a social life that mirrored the one she had in college. However, soon she found out that the social change from school to adulthood is a lot more drastic than we give it credit for. Whitney is candidly sharing her experience of building relationships in a completely new environment.