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If you’ve ever watched a less qualified coworker get promoted while you quietly held everything together, you’re not imagining it and you’re not alone. We dig into the real reason high-performing women get overlooked even when they’re delivering results: what career coach Rosie Zelinskis calls the articulation gap, the space between the impact you create and what leadership actually sees and rewards.

Rosie shares her wake-up call after a blunt message from a supervisor and explains why the usual advice to “be more confident” misses the mark for experienced professionals. Instead, she breaks down a practical, repeatable framework built on three pillars: clarity (measuring your work in real numbers), composure (preparing to talk about your impact using a simple story vault), and conviction (owning your expertise and making decisions like you belong). We also unpack how unmeasured labor and constant rescuing can bury your best work, and why alignment with company goals matters if you want your performance reviews to reflect your true value.

You’ll leave with concrete ways to translate task language into impact language, identify metrics even in roles that feel hard to quantify, and advocate for recognition without sounding forced or boastful. If you’re ready to stop waiting to be noticed and start being rewarded for what you contribute, listen now and share this with a woman who needs it. 

You can find Rosie HERE

https://nowomanleftbehind.com/

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Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

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Your brain loves to leap ahead and ask the scariest question possible: “If I’m struggling right now, what does that mean about the future?” I’m sharing a small but powerful reset that helps me cut through anxiety fast: zoom in on the challenge directly in front of you and stop borrowing trouble from tomorrow. The idea comes from a column by Heidi Stevens, and it lands because it’s practical, not preachy. 

We talk about a marathon training moment that captures the spiral perfectly. When a 10-mile run feels brutal, it’s tempting to jump to “How will I ever run 26?” But you don’t need to run 26 miles today. You need to run the mile you’re in. That same reframing works for career decisions, college majors, parenting seasons, and any situation where pressure turns into paralysis. I also unpack why “wrong choices” are often just information, and why changing direction can be a sign of learning, not failure. 

Then I bring it home with real life: our high-energy puppy Alfie, the puppy blues, the chewing and digging, and the sleep-deprived feeling that it might never end. What helped wasn’t predicting the next three months, it was building support, creating structure, and focusing on getting through today with a sense of humor. If you’re looking for mindfulness that actually works, plus a grounded take on decision anxiety, resilience, and living in the moment, this mini episode is for you. 

Subscribe, share this with a friend who’s overwhelmed, and leave a review with the question you’re trying to answer right now.

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

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Getting fired can feel like public failure, private grief, and a full-body identity crisis all at once. I know that kind of rupture, and that’s why this conversation lands so deeply. In this episode, Merry Korn, founder of Pearl Interactive Network, talks about how a career collapse can become the moment you finally stop shrinking and start building a life that fits who you are. We don’t treat reinvention like a motivational poster. We name the humiliation, the fear about money, and the way rejection can hit old wounds you didn’t even realize were still tender. 

Merry shares the flashbulb moment that changed everything: taking a job that felt wrong from day one and then being fired just two months later as a single mom. From there, she walks us through the practical method that created real momentum when she had no bandwidth to “wait and see” for the right opportunity. The centerpiece is informational interviews, a structured way to gather clarity, build relationships, and turn uncertainty into a plan. If you’re stuck in career stagnation, burned out, or quietly unengaged, this approach is actionable and repeatable. 

We also go deeper into resilience, trauma, and the surprising ways the past can live in the present. We talk epigenetics in plain language, inherited stress responses, and Merry’s family history connected to Holocaust survival. That thread connects directly to her mission-driven business: a for-profit social enterprise that prioritizes hiring people with the greatest barriers to work, including disabled veterans and people with disabilities. If this conversation helps you, subscribe, share it with a friend who needs a reset, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

You can find Merry HERE

https://firedtoinspired.com/

Books mentioned in this episode: 

The Artist's Way - Julia Cameron

The Power of Now - Eckhart Tolle

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!

We sit with the messy truth of tough love and why letting natural consequences happen can be the most loving path to resilience. We also face parenting guilt head-on and separate what we can influence from what is shaped by DNA, boundaries, and our kids’ own choices. 
• defining tough love as guidance with limits 
• why natural consequences teach faster than nagging 
• how smoothing the path blocks grit and confidence 
• helicopter parenting and the struggle to navigate adulthood 
• boundaries, rules, and honest conversations that stay compassionate 
• nature versus nurture and why perfect parenting is impossible 
• radical acceptance when a child keeps struggling 
• supporting adult children without enabling 
• a personal story about addiction, guilt, and consequences 

If you have thoughts about this, I would love to hear your input. Use the link in the show notes to send a typed or voice text.

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!

Survival can make you brilliant at coping and it can also quietly steal your identity. We sit down with writer and trauma educator Lisa Lacy to talk about the gap between looking “high-functioning” and actually feeling well, especially for women conditioned to be good, productive, and pleasing even when they’re drowning inside. Lisa shares how repeated near-death medical crises and turning 50 forced a hard truth: you can’t keep going back to the old script and call it strength.

We get specific about what “high-functioning survival” looks like in real life: caretaking, overperforming, polishing the image, and numbing emotions while your nervous system stays on high alert. We dig into trauma recovery and why mental health labels can help and hurt, including how diagnosis language can become an identity that keeps us stuck in blame and resentment. From there, we move into the practical work: radical honesty, choosing safe people to open up to, self-forgiveness that isn’t forced, and boundaries that protect your peace without shutting the whole world out.

Lisa also breaks down identity masking, the way different versions of us show up at work, at home, and in relationships, and how healing can look like becoming congruent across every arena. Along the way, she shares grounded tools you can try today: replacing the inner critic with statements of fact, getting curious about “sticky” comments that rewound old childhood wounds, and processing emotions within 24 to 48 hours so pain doesn’t keep stacking.

If you’ve been performing wellness, people-pleasing through burnout, or wondering who you are without the coping strategies, this conversation gives language and a path forward. Subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a quick rating so more listeners can find No Shrinking Violets.

You can find Lisa HERE

https://www.lisalacy.com/about-1

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!

City life can be brutally loud, and sometimes the stress isn’t a personality flaw, it’s a nervous system response to an environment that never powers down. After a weekend at BookFest and a bunch of conversations with readers, we keep coming back to one practical question: how do you access the benefits of nature when you don’t live next to a forest or have time for big adventures?

We tell a simple story about our puppy, Alfie, who struggles with the sounds of the city. On a trail at the edge of town, with trees, trails, and a sensory garden nearby, his body language changes even when the same motorcycle noise shows up. That shift becomes a clear reminder of what research keeps finding about nature therapy and ecopsychology: green space supports stress reduction, grounding, and better emotional regulation, often in small, repeatable moments.

Then we get concrete. If you have houseplants, you already practice need-based care without judgment: light, water, soil, and the right spot. We borrow that logic for people and call it your “plant tag” a way to name what you need to grow and thrive. If you do not have plants, we share easy ways to start outside with a single tree, a park bench, a patch of flowers, or ten quiet minutes in the stillness.

If this resonates, subscribe, share with a friend who feels overwhelmed, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!

Hustle culture has a nasty way of sounding like wisdom until you’re exhausted, snapping at everyone you love, and wondering why you can’t “just be consistent.” We sit with that tension head-on and ask a better question: what if the problem isn’t your ambition, but the model you’re trying to run it on?

I’m joined by Renee Fieck, a feminine leadership coach, cycle syncing expert, and business strategist who helps high-achieving women scale without burnout. Renee shares the flashbulb season that changed everything: her husband’s brain tumor diagnosis, a new job, and a third pregnancy colliding at once. That experience forced her to build a life and business that works now, not someday, and it pushed her to challenge the masculine productivity frameworks so many of us inherit.

Together, we break down how hormones can influence focus, creativity, communication, and energy, and why women often thrive when they plan in cycles rather than forcing the same pace every day. We talk estrogen and progesterone “superpowers,” how to use mood and irritability as useful data, and how cycle thinking can still help in perimenopause and menopause through simple tracking, body cues, and even moon rhythms. If you want practical cycle syncing tips, healthier boundaries, and a more sustainable approach to leadership and productivity, this conversation will give you a new lens.

You can find Renae HERE

https://renaefieck.com/

Subscribe for more conversations like this, share the episode with a friend who’s running on empty, and leave a review so more women can find the show.

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!

We bring home a new puppy and quickly realize our biggest problem is not Alfie, it is how much we are trying to manage and control every moment. We connect puppy behavior struggles to helicopter parenting and resilience, then decide to give him more space to learn how to self-soothe and trust. 
• adopting Alfie and adjusting to his unknown early experiences 
• how being home constantly fuels whining, barking, and evening chaos 
• noticing our rigid schedule and stress are making things worse 
• the curling metaphor for “sweeping” discomfort away 
• why self-soothing and resilience require room to struggle safely 
• recommitting to leaving him alone sometimes and loosening control 

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!

A pro and con list can’t tell you why a choice feels right in your bones. We start with a deceptively simple question: why would two frequent travelers in a small city townhome with three cats decide to get a dog? That “on paper it makes no sense” moment opens the door to a deeper conversation about discernment, the kind that lives in your body, your intuition, and that quiet internal click of rightness you can’t always explain.

I’m joined by Stephanie Peirolo, executive coach and author of The Saint and the Drunk: A Guide to Making the Big Decisions in Your Life. Stephanie breaks discernment into practical signals you can actually use, especially attraction and aversion. We talk about why women are often taught to mistrust a strong “no,” how cultural expectations distort our choices, and why beginning with the words “I want” can feel startlingly hard. Stephanie also shares the spiritual roots of discernment through Saint Ignatius of Loyola, then offers a more inclusive approach inspired by Alcoholics Anonymous and the idea of a Higher Power you define for yourself.

We also get real about what blocks the signal: trauma, grief, shame, perfectionism, and the fear of making a mistake. Stephanie introduces the idea of an “internal community” of voices, including the one we jokingly call Barbara, and how naming those narratives helps you choose with more clarity and self-compassion. If you’re deciding about a relationship, a career pivot, becoming a parent, moving, or any other life crossroads, you’ll leave with a grounded decision-making process you can practice slowly and make your own.
 

You can find Stephanie HERE

https://www.speirolo.com/

Subscribe for more conversations like this, share the episode with a friend who’s at a crossroads, and leave a review so more listeners can find us.

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!

Thoughts or comments? Send us a text!

We’re running on puppy time and talking about why a new dog can upend your routine fast. Then we share a therapy tool called immediacy and show how naming what’s happening right now can break through shutdowns, jokes, and stalemates in relationships. 

• what immediacy means in therapy and why it matters 
• noticing real-time reactions like shutdowns, jokes, and defensiveness 
• using I statements to name the dynamic without blame 
• examples with partners, parents, and kids after stressful moments 
• starting the hard conversation by naming fear and vulnerability 

If you would like to support this show, if you are a fan and you like listening or you appreciated this episode, use the link above.

Support the show

BUY ME A COFFEE or SUPPORT ALFIE'S TREAT STASH

Learn more about my book, Nature Knows: Grow and Thrive through the Wisdom of Plants HERE.

Comments about this episode? Suggestions for a future episode? Email me directly at [email protected]. 

Want to be a guest on No Shrinking Violets Podcast for Women? Send Mary Rothwell a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/noshrinkingviolets

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram, and check out my website!