What does modern fatherhood really look like in 2025 - and why aren't more men talking about it?

In this episode of The Breadwinners Podcast, host Alexis Contos sits down with Nick Firchau, creator and host of The Paternal Podcast, to have an honest conversation about the challenges fathers face today. From the crisis of male loneliness to the invisible labor dads carry, Nick shares insights from over 130 interviews with fathers from all walks of life.

This conversation explores why fatherhood feels so isolating for many men, how generational patterns shape the parents we become, and why supporting working mothers and engaged fathers isn't a zero-sum game.

1. Many fathers are parenting without a roadmap

2. Male loneliness is a parenting issue

3. The "bumbling dad" stereotype hurts everyone

4. Partnership means rejecting the scorecard

5. Emotional vocabulary is learned, not inherited

Nick Firchau is the creator and host of The Paternal Podcast, a show exploring modern fatherhood through candid conversations with dads from diverse backgrounds. With a background in journalism (Chicago Sun-Times) and over 15 years in podcasting, Nick has interviewed Super Bowl champions, Pulitzer Prize winners, bestselling authors, and everyday fathers about what it means to be a dad today.

The Paternal Podcast launched in 2017 and has produced over 130 episodes examining father-son relationships, masculinity, male mental health, and the evolving role of fathers in American families.

Connect with Nick:

The Breadwinners Podcast is for ambitious working mothers who are set out to redefine what Breadwinner means in today's society and culture - beyond the paycheck. New episodes drop weekly.

If this episode resonated with you, please leave a 5-star review and share it with a fellow breadwinner - or the dad in your life who needs to hear this conversation.

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Ali Tate Cutler gets brutally honest about what nobody tells you: how to build a business while grieving the version of yourself you once were.

Less than 1% of guests on major business podcasts are mothers. The rest? Childless men teaching strategies that don't work when you're building while celebrating your own transformation as a working mom.

"Mothers don't grind, we create. We don't hustle, we flow."

Ali (former supermodel turned social media strategist) created a new framework: Mothers don't grind, we create. We don't hustle, we flow.

She shares the grieving process of losing her pre-mother self, what she misses, the paradox of freedom, how to create when your time is fractured, and what small business owners get wrong about social media.

What You'll Learn:

- How moms actually build businesses versus the traditional playbook

- The grief of losing your pre-mother self and why it's okay

- The paradox of choice after kids

- Creating (not grinding) with constant interruptions

- What's wrong with "hustle" advice for working parents

- Building visibility without burnout

- Honoring who you were while becoming who you are

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In this episode, Alexis Contos sits down with Patrice Meagher, a 20-year Commercial Real Estate veteran turned Founder and CEO of MilkMate. After spending two decades leasing millions of square feet in Manhattan , Patrice realized that while we can fly to space, the most "innovative" solution for pumping at work was still a storage closet or a bathroom stall.

MilkMate

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It started with a pinched sciatic nerve and a diet of dollar-slice pizza. In 2012, Sarah Levey was working in fashion on a $32,000 salary, desperate for physical recovery but completely alienated by the performative nature of traditional yoga. She didn't just want a workout; she wanted a sanctuary where she didn't have to look like the teacher or the person in the front row. So she built Y7 Studio—a beat-bumping, candlelit rebellion against the mirrors, bright lights, and judgment of the typical studio experience.

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In this candid conversation, Alexis and Sarah go far beyond the business of fitness. Sarah opens up about the darker side of building a cult-favorite brand: the dangerous trap of letting your business become your entire identity. She takes us through her transformative experience with the Hoffman Process, revealing how she learned to "divorce" her soul from her company after years of being the ultimate decision-maker.

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From her early days of "living the dream" on the streets of New York to her evolution as a leader who no longer needs to control every outcome, Sarah shares deep wisdom on emotional accountability. She discusses the parallels between gentle parenting and leadership, and why stepping back to become a "steward of culture" might be the bravest move a founder can make.

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Whether you're a reluctant yogi, a burnt-out founder, or someone trying to stop carrying the emotional weight of everyone around you—this episode is a masterclass in building a business without losing yourself.

The Breadwinners

Y7 Studio

Sarah's Website

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In this episode, Alexis Contos sits down with Libby Leffler, tech executive turned founder of First, who is dismantling the stigma around prenups and reframing them as the ultimate act of partnership design.

After spending nearly two decades building generation-defining companies like Google, Facebook, and SoFi, Libby noticed a glaring gap in how we handle our most significant personal "merger", marriage. She realized that while we plan meticulously for our careers and companies, we often leave our relationships to chance. She founded First to change that, shifting the narrative from a "breaking point" to "a "joining point."

From debunking the Sex and the City era myths about prenups to defining "modern money" (it’s not just cash, it’s your IP, your side hustle, and yes, even your pets), Libby is normalizing the hard conversations that actually make couples stronger. She’s helping women protect their "future selves" amidst the Great Wealth Transfer, ensuring they enter partnerships with clarity rather than crossed fingers.

In this conversation, Libby opens up about the reality of leaving a high-powered corporate career to build a startup while raising young children. She discusses why "work-life balance" is a lie we need to stop believing, how she uses "focus" as her superpower to navigate different seasons of life, and why she believes your failures will always teach you more than your successes.

Whether you’re walking down the aisle, negotiating a raise, or just trying to figure out how to integrate your ambition with your life, this episode offers a new operating agreement for it all.

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First Official Website 

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Business Insider Article

Use code THEBREADWINNERS at checkout for $100 off First lawyer reviewed prenup package

Promo code available 1/5/2026 through 3/1/2026 11:59p PT; all coupon codes must be used a checkout at time of purchase (no retroactive discounts), terms and conditions apply

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In this episode, Alexis Contos sits down with Morgan Zanotti, the founder behind Waay and former leader at Primal Kitchen, to discuss what it really takes to build wellness brands while being a breadwinner mother.

From navigating the competitive CPG industry to creating products that align with her values as a parent, Morgan shares the unfiltered reality of startup life, financial responsibility, and integration. Learn about her journey from established brand to founder, her philosophy on health and family, and how she's redefining what success looks like as a mother-entrepreneur in the wellness space.

The Breadwinners: https://thebreadwinners.co/

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They say you can't have it all — that mothers must choose between ambition and presence. But what if we're asking the wrong question?

On The Breadwinners Podcast, Alexis Contos redefines what it means to be a Breadwinner in modern culture, moving it far beyond the paycheck. Through raw, honest conversations with women like Morgan Zanotti (CEO of Primal Kitchen), Nicole Trunfio (CEO of Bumpsuit), and Eve Rodsky (Author of Fair Play & Find Your Unicorn Space), we explore what it really takes to bring financial richness, emotional richness, and systemic change to our families.

This isn't about balance, it's about integration. Not perfection, but wholeness.

Whether you're already navigating motherhood and career, building your empire before kids arrive, or reimagining what family leadership looks like, these conversations will challenge everything you've been told about what's possible.

The Breadwinners: Where ambitious mothers aren't just earning a living, they're pioneering a new era for themselves, and everyone who comes next.

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In this episode, Alexis Contos sits down with Nicole Trunfio—supermodel, founder of Bumpsuit, and mother of three—who's on a mission to do something radical: make motherhood desirable, not just manageable.
When Nicole's father told her "You have a strong head on your shoulders and I trust you," she took that trust and ran—straight to New York to model, then straight through every outdated rule about what mothers should look like, how they should behave, and what they should accept. She built Bumpsuit and started a movement.
From studying ancient Ayurvedic postpartum practices (belly binding, the first 40 days, pelvic floor work) to openly discussing the things mothers are "supposed" to whisper about, Nicole is rewriting the entire system. She's not just designing maternity wear—she's amplifying mothers' voices and creating camaraderie among women who are tired of being told motherhood is something to merely survive.
In this conversation, Nicole shares how she balances raising three children with Gary Clark Jr. on a Texas ranch while running a company that's fundamentally about changing how we see motherhood—not as sacrifice or limitation, but as power. Learn about her move-fast-break-things approach to business, why she has high expectations for her children while also giving them radical trust, and how she's teaching the next generation to be their own best advocates.
Whether you're breaking rules, building systems, or just trying to feel like yourself again—this episode will challenge how you think about what's possible when we stop managing motherhood and start making it magnetic.

Liver flushing

Nicole's Instagram

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"You're not hitting your skincare routine, being a great mom, crushing it at your job, putting dinner on the table, and having sex with your husband in 24 hours every day,” says Kim Chappell, the chief brand officer at Bobbie. “Nobody is. That's not happening."

Bobbie

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In this episode, Alexis Contos sits down with Aileen Fitzgerald, an Austin-based landscape artist who embodies "the art of devotion."

Aileen Fitz Art

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Alexis' Instagram

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