I'm fascinated by founders and business owners like Mukti, because she's been incredibly successful with her skincare brand Mukti Organics, but she totally flies in the face of the highly corporate, suit-clad, city dwelling business person that we often associate with success.

Instead, she does things a little differently. She gave birth in a tee pee, for one. Her mum was - in her words - a crazy hippy woman who renounced everything and went off to India. She was a young mum, and she founded her business before the certified organic movement was even a thing. Before social media was even a thing.

She's funny, she's honest, she has some incredible tales to tell, and as someone in the earlier days of navigating parenthood and paid work, I value the wisdom of those mums that have come before me to no end.

From storing products underneath tarps hanging off the back of her house and navigating separation to reflecting on 16 hour days and what she regrets, here, she covers it all with generosity and humility.

---

THIS WEEK'S PARTNER

This episode is brought to you by Bed Intentions, a modern wellness brand that celebrates the evolving spectrum of pleasure.

From the world’s first microbiome certified water based lube to their new oil based natural tingle balm, this female-founded company has made it their mission to welcome open, shame-free conversations about all things intimacy.

Head to bedintentions.com to shop their natural, self-care products. We spend a third of our lives in bed, and these products are designed to make things safe, fun and easy.

---

Thanks for listening to Ready or Not! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Witching Hour: the show that looks at what's exciting, delighting, intriguing, and frustrating us as we make work, work alongside parenting. It's Ready or Not's loose little sister coming to your ears every Monday.

In today's episode, we cover:

• More than two thirds of working parents consider quitting jobs because of childcare costs, research finds.
• What If Motherhood Isn’t Transformative at All? Actually, Having a Baby Changes You Forever: The Cut published two opposing articles on the same subject and we have some thoughts.
• And let’s talk about sex – in celebrating our partnership with Bed Intentions, we’re all getting into bed together.

---

THIS WEEK'S PARTNER

This episode is brought to you by Bed Intentions, a modern wellness brand that celebrates the evolving spectrum of pleasure.

From the world’s first microbiome certified water based lube to their new oil based natural tingle balm, this female-founded company has made it their mission to welcome open, shame-free conversations about all things intimacy.

Head to bedintentions.com to shop their natural, self-care products. We spend a third of our lives in bed, and these products are designed to make things safe, fun and easy.

---

Thanks for listening to Witching Hour! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Tits and Tricks! It’s Ready or Not’s new bite sized tip based podcast, and it’s coming to your ears every Thursday. Well today it’s on a Friday and if you don’t know why yet, you’ll have to listen to Wednesday’s check in episode with me, Lu.

And on that, you might be wondering why you’re hearing from me when I said Loz and I would be taking turns in bringing you Tits & Tricks.

Loz is solo parenting, while working four days a week while her husband is away for work. SO you get me two weeks in a row I’m afraid, and this week is made up of a whole lot of little hacks. We’re talking one meal two ways, what we’re automating so we can do less, and how to get through a day of working with a sick kid when you really have no choice but to get some form of paid work done. There’s nothing wildly new here, but sometimes I think we just need to be reminded about how others are tackling making work, work, and learning those little tricks along the way can make things SO much easier.

So let’s start with one meal two ways. I’m almost thinking of how you’ll see articles about one blazer worn five ways and applying that to food. After that, I’ll share what you’re all automating to make life a bit easier and lastly, we’re talking how the heck you work when you’ve got a sick baby or kid at home with you.

LINKS

• Take 10% off the Postartum & Returning to Work Go To Guide (or buy all three Go To Guides with the same code!) here with code READYASEVER.
• Find the expanded show notes & grocery list here.

---

Thanks for listening to Tits & Tricks! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Doctors and health professionals may have called Snuggle Hunny chief Julie Mathers geriatric on more than one occasion, but in my opinion, she's fit a hell of a lot in to a short amount of time. With her husband, she founded and sold an incredibly successful business in Flora and Fauna. She's experienced miscarriage and after trying for some time and some failed rounds of IVF, both of her sons ended up being conceived naturally, to her surprise. Her older boy Woody has Down Syndrome and a heart condition that will require surgery one day soon. He was born at 34 weeks and spent some time in the special care. She returned to work just four hours after his birth. And to their surprise, she was pregnant with her son Alfie just six months later.

Now that all might sound overwhelming at best and incredibly stressful at worst, but that's not the story you're about to hear. Julie's story is magic. Her boys run their own races, that's for sure. But, she's not too phased. Woody is Woody and Alfie is Alfie.

This is an incredible story regardless of whether you're navigating disability or not and we all need more of Julie and these stories in our lives.

From Flora and Fauna to Snuggle Hunny, from Woody to Alfie, from her working class background collecting milk money to big business sales, this is one of the most colourful stories I'll ever bring you.

---

THIS WEEK'S PARTNER

This episode of Ready or Not is brought to you by Mukti Organics, results-driven and award-winning skin care products made with certified organic ingredients & powerful actives.

Purchase the revised and expanded second edition of Mukti’s bestselling book ‘Truth in Beauty’ for $89 via www.muktiorganics.com and retailers Amazon, Booktopia and QBD Books.

---

Thanks for listening to Ready or Not! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Shit hit the fan for us as we were going to press publish on what was meant to be today's episode with Snuggle Hunny founder Julie Mathers. A big fat tech failure that nearly led Lu to start the whole edit again at 7.25pm last night. But, Loz reminded her of what's important, so here, she shares a quick check in instead.

We'll catch you back here tomorrow for an incredible episode with Snuggle Hunny's boss, Julie Mathers.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Witching Hour: the show that looks at what's exciting, delighting, intriguing, and frustrating us as we make work, work alongside parenting. It's Ready or Not's loose little sister coming to your ears every Tuesday.

In today's episode, we cover:

• I regularly travel for work. Why do people keep asking who’s looking after my child? (SMH)
• Eva Mendes is glad she had kids later In life (People)
• And a really ridiculous poll today: it's a would you rather, but motherhood edition.

---

THIS WEEK'S PARTNER

This episode of Witching Hour is brought to you by Mukti Organics, results-driven and award-winning skin care products made with certified organic ingredients & powerful actives.

Purchase the revised and expanded second edition of Mukti’s bestselling book ‘Truth in Beauty’ for $89 via www.muktiorganics.com and retailers Amazon, Booktopia and QBD Books.

---

Thanks for listening to Witching Hour! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to Tits and Tricks! It’s Ready or Not’s new bite-sized advice-based podcast, and today is all about making the return to paid work a little bit easier via simplifying our wardrobes.

Look, I am no style expert. Although I love clothes, I’m not going to pretend to be your fashion correspondent. But I am a mum who needs to get dressed each day. And of all the things that bring unexpected stress in getting out of the door in the morning to get to work, a big one can be getting yourself dressed when you’re potentially trying to get little people fed, dressed, and out the door.

Your body might be different, you might have shoved your office wardrobe out of sight for six months or longer, and you might just feel different about the way you want to dress.

This episode is less about vanity and more about streamlining processes. It’s inspired by our Postpartum and Return to Work Planning Guide, and while that guide doesn’t cover fashion, the logistical advice we give in that guide has influenced so many areas of my life, including my work wardrobe.

---

YOUR RETURN TO WORK WARDROBE CHECKLIST

Our full checklist referenced in the episode didn't quite fit the show notes limit, so please click here for the full checklist plus the items Lu mentioned, as well as links to some excellent return to work uniform sales happening at the moment.

---

Thanks for listening to Ready or Not! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

U-Fhern Chang was on a plane for a work trip when she had a pretty profound AHA moment. And while she didn't immediately act upon it, it would eventually lead her to completely revamp her priorities when it came to her career. Add quitting her job at a big four, four kids, and a few businesses into the mix, and it's fair to say that she's had a bit on.

After her children, I think it's fair to say that her other baby, Elan House of Wellness, the business dedicated to nourishing and supporting mothers, is one of her proudest projects to date. And as a paying customer, I think it should be. Her dry sweet and savoury packs were a staple in my early postpartum pantry, and her messaging encouraging rest and valuing the transitions of motherhood are incredibly important.

Here, we talk disappointing parents, postnatal depression as a pretty fair response to the way we're meant to mother in western society, and how she navigates four children and a business.

---

THIS WEEK'S PARTNER

This episode of Ready or Not is brought to you by Mukti Organics, results-driven and award-winning skin care products made with certified organic ingredients & powerful actives.

Purchase the revised and expanded second edition of Mukti’s bestselling book ‘Truth in Beauty’ for $89 via www.muktiorganics.com and retailers Amazon, Booktopia and QBD Books.

---

Thanks for listening to Ready or Not! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Witching Hour: the show that looks at what's exciting, delighting, intriguing, and frustrating us as we make work, work alongside parenting. It's Ready or Not's loose little sister coming to your ears every Monday.

In today's episode, we cover:

• Working families are more stressed than ever, a new report has found.
• ‘Kinkeeping’ is the invisible workload that women take on—and it’s affecting the mental health, performance, commitment and bandwidth of employees, experts say. (NYT)
• And the Instagram community poll of the week: How do you navigate pregnancy and friendships when you're the Miranda or the Charlotte?

---

THIS WEEK'S PARTNER

This episode of Witching Hour is brought to you by Mukti Organics, results-driven and award-winning skin care products made with certified organic ingredients & powerful actives.

Purchase the revised and expanded second edition of Mukti’s bestselling book ‘Truth in Beauty’ for $89 via www.muktiorganics.com and retailers Amazon, Booktopia and QBD Books.

---

Thanks for listening to Witching Hour! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since I last interviewed Phoebe Simmonds over a year ago and Ava Chandler Matthews just under a year ago, the two business owners, mothers, and friends have had just a bit going on. Ava is getting ready to launch her business Ultra Violette into the US and she's actually launching herself into second time motherhood very soon, too. So soon, I'm surprised she even let me convince her to come back on the show.

As for Phoebe, The Memo is having a big year. They've just opened their Fitzroy store, and they're opening their Highpoint store in just a few weeks' time. And as you'll hear here, they have no plans to slow down from there.

I wanted to get Ava and Phoebe back onto the show for many reasons. Firstly, you loved both of their episodes, which I'll link in the show notes, and secondly, they had sons at the same time as I did. They're also friends who have being co-founders in common, and as women in business who I really look up to, I wanted to know what's changed for them both as they continue to move through navigating career and motherhood.

So, this episode is a bit hodge podge by design. It's less of an interview and more of a check in. I wanted you to feel as if you were part of the car talk that mum friends have on the regular as they make their way to or from the office.

Here, we talk about the delight of two year olds, the things we still don't have the answers for, what Ava will grapple with until the day she dies and why Phoebe doesn't believe in imposter syndrome.

ORIGINAL EPISODES:

• Listen to the interview with Phoebe on Apple here and Spotify here.
• Listen to the episode with Ava on Apple here and Spotify here.

THIS WEEK'S PARTNER

This episode is brought to you by Our Pilates – an online, physio led library of classes that you can seamlessly fit into a busy life. With prenatal and postnatal programs as well as membership options available, Our Pilates has every busy parent covered. Start your free 7-day trial now at ourpilates.com.au

---

Thanks for listening to Ready or Not! If you liked the show, please tell your friends, subscribe or write a review. You can also find us on Instagram at readyornot.pod

This podcast was recorded on the lands of the Boon Wurong people of the Kulin Nation. The land on which we're lucky enough to raise our sons and daughters always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

We Pay The Rent and you can too here.

Very Luxe Face Cream means business.*

• Clinically proven to increase skin firmness by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin elasticity by 39%.
• Clinically proven to increase skin smoothness by 15%.
• Clinically proven to strengthen the skin barrier function by over 45%.

*Based on a 12 week clinical trial of 30 participants.

Serious business.**

• Over 95% of participants said their skin felt smoother and tighter.
• Over 90% of participants said their skin felt significantly firmer.
• 100% of participants said they noticed a more even skin tone.
• 100% of participants said their skin looked more youthful.

**Based on a 12 week clinical study of 30 participants.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.