If you’ve ever finally sat down to rest only to find yourself mentally replaying work conversations, planning tomorrow’s to-do list or feeling guilty that you’re not being productive, you’re not alone.

In this solo episode of The Belonging Project Podcast, leadership and career coach for working parents Fiorenza Rossini explores why rest can feel surprisingly uncomfortable for ambitious working parents.

❌ This isn’t an episode about productivity hacks or better time management - sorry!✅This episode is about understanding the psychology behind why so many of us struggle to switch off, even when we desperately need a break.

Drawing on psychological research, behavioural science and her own experiences as a working parent, Fiorenza unpacks the hidden beliefs that shape our relationship with work, achievement and rest, and shares practical ways to build a healthier, more sustainable approach to being career-driven or ambitious.

🔍 In this episode, you’ll discover:

* Why so many working parents struggle to switch off from work

* The hidden psychology behind feeling guilty when you rest

* Why busyness has become a status symbol, and how it shapes our identity

* How ambitious professionals can unknowingly tie their self-worth to productivity

* Why rest often feels uncomfortable rather than restorative

* The double ledger many working parents carry between work and family

* Practical mindset shifts to help you rest without feeling like you’re falling behind

Whether you’re leading a team, navigating career growth, returning from parental leave or simply trying to balance work and family life, this episode offers a fresh perspective on why rest feels so difficult, and why that doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong.

📚 Research and resources mentioned

This episode references research and ideas from:

* Mental Health UK’s Burnout Report 2026

* Deloitte UK research on working parents

* KPMG’s Working Parents survey

* Research published in the Journal of Consumer Research on busyness and social status

* The concepts of contingent self-worth, hedonic adaptation and loss aversion

☀️ Summer Coaching Intensive

If you’re a working parent who feels you’ve lost momentum on your career goals this year, my Summer Coaching Intensive is designed to help you gain clarity, rebuild confidence and make meaningful progress before September.

The intensive includes:

* One 90-minute coaching session to untangle what’s really going on, clarify your priorities and create a roadmap.

* One 45-minute follow-up session to review your progress, overcome new challenges and keep your momentum going.

There are only a few places available. 📩 Get in touch via email on [email protected] to find out more.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

Most managers want to support working parents. Few have ever been shown how.

What happens after an employee becomes a parent can shape their confidence, career progression and sense of belonging for years to come. Yet many managers are left to navigate these conversations without any real guidance.

In this episode, leadership and career growth coach Fiorenza Rossini explores how managers, leaders and organisations can better support working parents, by creating the conditions for them to continue growing and thriving, instead of lowering expectations.

Drawing on her experience coaching professionals through career transitions, leadership development and the identity shift that comes with parenthood, Fiorenza shares practical insights for anyone leading a team.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

* The common assumptions managers make after an employee becomes a parent

* Why career development conversations shouldn’t stop after parental leave

* How to create a greater sense of belonging for working parents

* Simple leadership practices that help retain and develop talented people

* Questions every manager can ask to better support working parents

Whether you’re a manager, team leader, HR professional, senior leader, or a working parent yourself, this episode will help you rethink what effective leadership looks like during one of life’s biggest transitions.

“Perhaps the most valuable thing that any manager can do is replace assumptions with curiosity.”, says Fiorenza.

🔎 Jump in

03:09 Becoming a parent changes you - that’s just the reality04:01 The load we can realistically carry has changed05:28 Don’t assume: ask (aka the power of curiosity)06:23 Career conversations should never stop07:32 Visibility or performance08:54 The importance of small moments and showing up09:53 Recognising parenthood as a leadership skill

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review

🔗 Links & resources

* Connect with Fiorenza Rossini on Linkedin.

* Explore coaching, leadership workshops and speaking: here

Topics covered:Working parents | Leadership | People management | Career progression | Parental leave | Employee wellbeing | Workplace culture | Belonging | Inclusive leadership | Talent retention | Career development | Working mothers | Working fathers

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

What happens when a high schooler tells you your positivity feels fake — and it changes everything about how you lead? That’s just one of the moments that shaped Elysha Weissglass ’s path from school counsellor to leadership coach and people development partner.

In this episode, Fiorenza sits down with Elysha for a conversation that moves fluidly between boardrooms and kids’ dinners to career pivots and grief. They talk about what it really takes to support people through change — and why the messiest transitions are often the most important ones.

🔎 What we explore

In this episode, we explore:

* From classrooms to corporate: why Elysha made the leap

* The dual vantage point: working inside organizations building career tracks and coaching managers, while running a private coaching practice.

* The sandwich generation struggle: aging parents, young kids, and how to find presence in the middle of it all

* An exploration on how to allow joy and grief to co-exist

* Belonging as a practice: what it looks like in moments of grief, identity shifts, and becoming

* Fiorenza opens up about anticipatory grief, her grandmother, and the chair that was always set for anxiety at the dinner table

A thread running through it all: the in-between spaces — in a career, in a family, in yourself — are not obstacles to get through. They’re where the real growth happens.

"Things don't always fit into some perfect box. And there are ways to notice what really is here in the moment so that you can have connection and joy and feel what's really there.", says Elysha.

🎙️ Tune in for the full conversation!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review!

🔗 Links & resources

* Explore Elysha Weissglass here on Substack.

* Connect with Elysha on Linkedin.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

What is the true cost of navigating early parenthood while trying to maintain a career? In this episode, host Fiorenza Rossini sits down with Sam Allman-Briggs—a marketer, devoted father, and advocate for parental rights—to pull back the curtain on the modern fatherhood experience.

From the harrowing grief of pregnancy loss and the workplace anxieties that follow, to navigating a culture that frequently overlooks fathers, Sam shares his raw, personal journey. They dive deep into the gaps in paternity leave, the reality of workplace redundancies for new parents, and why the corporate mask needs to slip to make way for genuine, hands-on parenting.

🔎 What we explore

* Fathers are being overlooked: The baby and toddler industry frequently defaults to viewing mothers as the sole primary consumer, alienating hands-on fathers and limiting long-term industry progression.

* The Reality of Pregnancy Loss: Miscarriage and stillbirth affect one in four pregnancies, yet the emotional and psychological toll—especially the secondary anxiety during a subsequent pregnancy—remains a taboo subject in corporate environments.

* The Paternity Leave Gap: Current statutory paternity leave models fail to support the realities of postpartum recovery (such as C-section healing times), highlighting a severe need for progressive parental rights.

* Dropping the Corporate Mask: True workplace inclusivity means moving past seeing people as a professional or a parent, and letting employees combine their identities without fear of professional penalty.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Enjoyed this episode? Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform!

🔗 Links & resources

* The Dad Shift: An advocacy group campaigning to change paternity leave law and corporate rights for men.

* Parenting Out Loud: An organisation pushing to change perceptions and increase visibility for hands-on fathers in traditionally female-dominated environments.

* Connect with Sam Allman-Briggs on Linkedin

About your host Fiorenza Rossini

Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work 🔗 Fiorenza on Linkedin 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram

🎧 Enjoyed this episode?

If this conversation stayed with you, consider sharing it with another parent who might need to hear it.

And if you haven’t already, you can connect with me on LinkedIn for more reflections on belonging, leadership, and navigating career and identity alongside parenthood.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

Return-to-office conversations are often framed around productivity, collaboration and company culture.

But what if they are also revealing something about belonging, leadership and whose lives workplaces were originally designed around?

In this solo episode, I reflect on the emotional and practical realities many working parents are navigating behind the surface of business as usual.

For many professionals, especially parents of young children, the return-to-office conversation is really not about commuting or flexibility. It is about:

* How much someone can realistically hold and carry

* Identity

* Visibility

* Ability to sustain

* The pressure to continue performing as though life has not fundamentally changed.

In this episode, I explore:

* Why return-to-office debates feel emotionally charged for many parents

* The invisible mental load behind showing up

* How workplaces still holding old beliefs

* The leadership skills caregiving often develops

* Why reduced capacity is not the same as reduced ambition

* The connection between belonging and psychological safety at work

* What sustainable success might look like across different chapters of life

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review!

This episode is for anyone who has ever wondered:

Can I still grow professionally without working exactly as I used to?

And perhaps more importantly:

What kind of workplaces will people remain loyal to in the future?

🔗 Links & resources

* McKinsey Report: Women in the Workplace

* Deloitte Report

* Working Families Index 2025

About your host Fiorenza Rossini

Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work 🔗 Fiorenza on Linkedin 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram

🎧 Enjoyed this episode?

If this conversation stayed with you, consider sharing it with another parent who might need to hear it.

And if you haven’t already, you can connect with me on LinkedIn for more reflections on belonging, leadership, and navigating career and identity alongside parenthood.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

What if the exhaustion so many parents carry isn’t a personal failure, but a signal that something deeper needs tending?

In this episode, I’m joined by Gemma Dean, life coach and founder of Reset with Gemma, and Sima Rahman, creative facilitator and founder of The Artist’s Apothecary. Together, they co-created the Mindful Parent Hub, a space where coaching meets creativity to support parents navigating burnout, identity shifts, and disconnection.

“I was just surviving… there was no joy, no happiness. I couldn’t connect with my kids.”, reflects Gemma.

We explore the realities of parental burnout (what it can feel and look like), the myths that keep it hidden, and the small ways we can begin to find our way back to ourselves and to each other.

This is a conversation about slowing down, asking for help, and redefining what support and belonging can look like in this season of life.

🎙️ Tune in for the full conversation!

🔎 What we explore

* Why the perfect parent narrative can lead to burnout

* The limits of traditional self-care and what can actually create change

* What parental burnout can feel like when you’re in it, even if you don’t have the words yet

* The identity shifts that come with parenthood and returning to work

* Creativity as a form of healing

* The role of community in moving from isolation to belonging

* How small, consistent practices can reshape wellbeing over time

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review!

🧩 Key reflections from the conversation

We’re not failing. We’ve just taken on too much.

A gentle but powerful reframe that challenges the internal narrative many parents carry.

Self-care isn’t a quick fix

It’s less about escaping and more about building small, repeatable habits that support you day to day.

Burnout can be invisible, even to yourself

You can still be functioning, caring, showing up… and feel completely disconnected underneath.

You don’t have to do it alone

Support isn’t a weakness. It’s often the turning point.

Creativity reconnects us

Not as something to be good at, but as something that helps us feel, process, and connect with others.

🌱 About the Mindful Parent Hub

Gemma and Sima’s work blends coaching, creative practices, and peer support to help parents:

* Move from burnout to balance

* Rebuild boundaries

* Reconnect with their sense of self

Their workshops are designed to be accessible, community-led, and rooted in real-life parenting challenges, with space for both reflection and connection.

💬 A small step to take today

If something in this episode resonated, start here: Tell one person how you’re really feeling.

Not the “I’m fine.” Just something honest.

Sometimes that’s where things begin to shift.

🔗 Links & resources

* Explore Gemma Dean’s work at Reset with Gemma. Follow on Instagram and LinkedIn.

* Explore Sima Rahman’s work at The Artist’s Apothecary. Follow on Instagram and LinkedIn.

* Read Sima’s article on living a creative life

About your host Fiorenza Rossini

Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work 🔗 Fiorenza on Linkedin 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram

🎧 Enjoyed this episode?

If this conversation stayed with you, consider sharing it with another parent who might need to hear it.

And if you haven’t already, you can connect with me on LinkedIn for more reflections on belonging, leadership, and navigating career and identity alongside parenthood.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

In this episode, Fiorenza Rossini shares personal insights on how becoming a parent has transformed her approach to work and life, highlighting five key changes she has made to become more intentional and mindful.

* Overcommitting (01:40)

* How much to prepare for meetings (02:39 )

* Saying yes too quickly (03:20)

* Trying to prove your worth constantly (04:13)

* Holding yourself to a pre-parenthood pace (04:42)

Tune in for the full conversation!

Key topics explored:

* Impact of parenthood on work habits

* Strategies for better work-life balance

* Building mindfulness and intentionality

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review!

About your host Fiorenza Rossini

Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 Fiorenza on Linkedin 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram 🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

Resilience isn’t just about bouncing back; it’s about how we hold ourselves together when everything flips on its head. In this episode, Fiorenza sits down with author, solopreneur and PR expert Lucy Werner to explore her career and life defined by adaptation.

We dive deep into the disconnect of identity that can happen and be fuelled as we move through big life chapters (health challenges for our parents, health challenges for our own children). After 20 years as a high-profile PR expert in London, Lucy moved to rural France and found that her professional armour (of which her command of language was a big piece) didn't translate. She shares the humbling reality of going from an excellent communicator to something that at times felt like a different version of herself.

Lucy’s story is a masterclass in resilience.

We also discuss how to create a career that actually supports your life, the patience required and why sometimes the most resilient act is to simply go dark and find your own pace.

“I didn't have the mental capacity to be on the grind in the same way as I was when I had the agency”, says Lucy Werner.

Tune in for the full conversation!

Key Takeaways on Resilience

* Major life events [07:34]—including a parent’s stroke and a child born with rare heart malformations—acted as the shake-up that forced a shift away from the grind.

* Navigating the transition from a confident London communicator to a rural introvert who felt she couldn’t speak perfectly. [09:20]

* Moving from a high-overhead agency model (PR land) [06:40] to a flexible micropreneur life that can accommodate unexpected events including childcare.

* The lemon tree philosophy (I loved this metaphor!): redefining resilience as planting seeds for later and being gentle with yourself when growth isn’t accelerating as planned or as you’d like it to be. [14:24]

* Using tools like a physical digital brick to protect her nothing time, which Lucy identifies as the true source of her best creative work.[16:30].

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review!

Connect with Lucy Werner

🔗 Find more about Lucy’s work here 🔗 Connect with Lucy on Instagram 🔗 Connect with Lucy on LinkedIn

About your host Fiorenza Rossini

Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work 🔗 Fiorenza on Linkedin 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

In this episode, we dive into a topic that resonates deeply with working mums: the invisible burden of the mental load and the necessity of establishing healthy boundaries.

Studies show women spend an average of 4.5 hours per day on unpaid work compared to 2.5 hours for men, leading to stress and burnout.

"A mother's brain makes over 1000 micro decision daily. There is no job in the world harder on the human brain, not a surgeon, not a politician, not a lawyer. Mothering is the only job where the brain never clocks out, even when asleep." shares Fiorenza.

Fiorenza explores practical strategies to help you reduce this burden, establish boundaries, and create vital space for self-care and creativity.

Key topics explored:

* Defining Mental Load (02:15): It’s the invisible burden of planning, organising, and remembering tasks (from school bags to household chores). It includes the constant thinking and worrying, on top of the execution of the tasks.

* The Mother’s Brain: Fiorenza shares a powerful post from Anna Whitehouse (Mother Puka) (03:42), citing UCL research that a mother’s brain makes over 1000 micro-decisions daily, making it a 24/7 job that never clocks out.

* Sharing the Load - The Big 3 Activity (06:06): A quick exercise inviting you to list the 3 tasks that weigh most heavily on your mind and brainstorm ways to share those responsibilities with your partner or family.

* Practical Strategies for Mental Load Reduction (07:00):

* Communication & Systems: Surfacing invisible tasks and having open conversations with your partner.

* Fair Play Card System: A playful, powerful tool to make the mental load visible and decide who holds which responsibilities. This is a topic from a previous podcast episode with Sam Kennedy Christian.

* Scheduled Check-ins: Conversations should not be a one-off; schedule check-ins to ensure responsibilities remain evenly distributed.

* Establishing Boundaries (08:07):

* Workday Buffer: Create a small buffer (10-15 minutes) at the start and end of your workday to transition smoothly between home mode and work mode.

* Communicate & Prioritise: Be clear about your availability, communicate your time commitments, and practice saying no to tasks that don’t align with your priorities.

* Self-Care & Creative Activities (11:51):

* Separate Self-Care from Creativity: Self-care is about looking after your body and mind (e.g., nutritious food, physical activity like yoga/pilates). Creative activities (e.g., sewing, which Fiorenza enjoys) are for engaging in flow states that boost mental health and often generate ideas for other areas of life/work.

* Prioritise Time: Acknowledge that finding time for creative activities often involves a trade-off, especially on weekends, but keep it on your radar and don’t be afraid to try something new.

* Societal influences, Gender Roles and Expression:

* A study on ScienceDirect suggests that the expression of traditional gender roles (identifying as femme) can influence who takes on more of the mental load at home: not surprisingly, cultural norms often position mothers as the default caregiver.

* Advocacy for policies like shared parental leave helps reduce the gender gap in unpaid work.

* Fostering Belonging: Celebrate small wins, practice self-compassion, and connect with other mums to feel less alone. Community plays a crucial role.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review!

About your host Fiorenza Rossini

Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 Fiorenza on LinkedIn 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram 🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

In this episode, Fiorenza Rossini sits down with Sam Kennedy Christian, an accredited executive coach, coach supervisor, and certified Fair Play Method facilitator at The Float Space.

Together, they explore the often invisible but overwhelming mental load carried by working mothers.

“Sharing the mental load or even just distributing the mental responsibilities can significantly reduce stress and improve mental health. It’s about surfacing those invisible tasks and having open conversations about them.”, says Sam.

From understanding how societal expectations shape household responsibilities to practical tools for reducing stress, this conversation offers actionable insights to foster balance, belonging, and well-being.

Whether you're juggling work, family, or both, you'll find strategies to make space for self-care, creativity, and shared responsibilities in this episode!

In particular, I really enjoyed getting to know more about the Fair Play method!It’s a game-changing approach developed by Eve Rodsky. It's designed to help couples divide household responsibilities more equitably. The method uses a deck of cards, each representing a task, to make the invisible mental load visible and manageable. It's not just about who does what, but about having clear ownership of tasks from start to finish.

Tune in for the full conversation 🎧

Key topics explored:

* (02:15) The concept of mental load and its impact on mental health

* (06:30) Using the Fair Play Card System to Share Household Responsibilities

* (09:45) Setting Boundaries Around Work and Transitions

* (13:20) Introducing the Concept of “Unicorn Space” and Creative Hobbies

* (17:50) How Gender Expression Influences Household Responsibilities

* (21:05) The Role of Community and Small Wins in Fostering Belonging

* (26:40) Recognition of the Mental Load as a Never-Off System and Its Brain Impact

* (30:00) How Mental Load Affects Confidence and Practical Conversation Starters

* (35:15) Protecting Time for Self-Care and Hobbies Like Sewing

* (40:00) Reflections on Community Building and Societal Expectations

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review!

Connect with Sam Kennedy Christian

🔗 The Float Space 🔗 Sam Kennedy Christian - LinkedIn 🔗 Sam Kennedy Christian - Instagram

About your host Fiorenza Rossini

Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 Fiorenza on LinkedIn 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram 🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com