What if the people around you are one of the best ways to invest in yourself?

Self-Published Author, Speaker, Female Mentor and Women's Advocate, and corporate finance professional, Urmi Hossain joins Dawn to talk about "friendtors," speed mentoring, and the boundaries that let her invest in herself so she can invest in everyone else. She shares tips on managing time so that she can do all the things that fill her up.

Together, Dawn and Urmi dig into identity, non-negotiable sleep, and why progress beats perfection every time.

🎶 Urmi's contribution to Work is Third: The Soundtrack - Unstoppable by Sia

📚 Guest Info

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/urmihossain/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@urmihossain
• Instagram (personal): https://www.instagram.com/urmamio/
• Instagram (podcast): https://www.instagram.com/storiesbeyondborderspodcast/Linktree: https://linktr.ee/urmihossain 

📚 Resources Mentioned

• Urmi's podcast, Stories Beyond Borders: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stories-beyond-borders/id1831413373  
• Women in Leadership — Montreal chapter: https://www.womeninleadership.ca/montreal
• Urmi's book: Discovering Your Identity: A Rebirth From Interracial Struggle – Available on Amazon

🔗 Let’s Stay Connected!

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• 📸 Instagram: ⁠@the_dawn_hunter⁠
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• 🌐 Website: http://workisthird.com/

Have you ever felt like you didn't belong somewhere but couldn't explain why? Organizational scientist, adjunct professor, and keynote speaker Andrea D. Carter has spent years studying exactly that feeling — and she has the data to prove it's not in your head. It's in your nervous system.

Her belonging research, validated across 8 industries and over 150,000 people, makes one thing undeniable: belonging isn't soft. It's science. It's infrastructure. It's how people perform.

In this episode, Dawn and Andrea explore why the human nervous system is constantly scanning for safety or threat, what psychological safety actually protects (hint: it's not comfort), why resilience is not a solo sport, and the difference between fitting in and truly belonging. This is the conversation workplaces aren't having but desperately need.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: https://andreacarterconsulting.com | https://belongingfirst.com
• LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreadcarter/
• Substack: https://andreadcarter.substack.com/
• Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/belongingfirst/
• Adler:https://www.adler.edu/faculty-engagement/faculty-directory/carter-andrea-d/

📚 RESOURCES MENTIONED

• Canada's Largest Belonging in the Workplace Study — conducted in the mining industry, 2021–2022, 3,508 participants
• "The Body Keeps the Score" — referenced in conversation (book by Bessel van der Kolk)
• Neuroception — concept by Dr. Stephen Porges; the nervous system's unconscious scanning for safety or threat
• Amy C. Edmondson — pioneer in Psychological Safety

🔗 Let’s Stay Connected

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·       🌐 Website: http://workisthird.com/

What does health actually look like — when you factor in ADHD, night owl energy, systemic barriers, and the courage to say the hard thing out loud?

In this episode, I sit down with Jen Fry — conflict resolution coach, speaker, tech entrepreneur, and author of I Said No: How to Have a Backbone and Boundaries Without Being a Jerk — for a wide-ranging conversation about redefining health on our own terms. We talk about why "we all have the same 24 hours" is a myth that ignores real systemic barriers, how to have direct conversations without blowing things up, what it means to be a villager in your community, and why the consequence you're afraid of might already be happening.

This one goes places. Come curious.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: https://jenfrytalks.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenfrytalks
• Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/jenfrytalks
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenfrytalks
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jenfrytalks

📚 Resources Mentioned

I Said No: How to Have a Backbone and BoundariesWithout Being a Jerk by Jen Fry — available on her website (includes signed copy + bookmark + sticker) or on Amazon and Barnes & Noble

Let’s Stay Connected

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📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_dawn_hunter

Are you building a life that feels right for you , or one shaped by expectations, achievement, and what you think you're supposed to do?

In this episode of Work Is Third, Dawn Hunter sits down with Calvalyn Day to explore freedom, flexibility, reinvention, and the choices that shape our lives. Together, they unpack why so many people live by the "shoulds," how external validation can quietly drive our decisions, and why feeling stuck is often an invitation to get curious rather than stay still.

Calvalyn shares her own journey of choosing a different path and offers practical insights on values, healing, self-trust, and creating a life aligned with what matters most.

They discuss:

• Why flexibility is more than just your work schedule
• Breaking free from external validation
• Why you're never too old — and never too stuck — to choose differently
• The role values play in shaping decisions
• Healing, reinvention, and learning to trust yourself
• Why work should be third

Because building a meaningful life doesn't start with havingall the answers. It starts with listening to your own voice.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: https://www.calvalynday.com/
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@calvalyn?si=d6Gr6bjzTttMmicl
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/calvalyn/?hl=en
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@calvalynday

🎶Calvalyn's contribution to Work is Third: The Soundtrack: T.I., Let 'Em Know

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Have you ever felt like you’re always trying to do enough, be enough, have enough?

In this episode of Work Is Third, Dawn Hunter talks with psychotherapist and coach DeMonta Whiting about people pleasing, emotional resilience, identity, and learning how to stop tying your worth to productivity. Together, they explore how childhood beliefs shape adult behaviors, why so many high achievers struggle to feel “good enough,” and what it means to prepare for the future while still living fully in the present.

DeMonta shares his experience surviving a rare cancer diagnosis at a young age, how it transformed his perspective on life, and why letting go of outcomes can create more peace, connection, and authenticity.

This conversation is a reminder that when we believe we are enough, we can let the chips fall where they may.

Topics include:

• People pleasing and perfectionism
• High achievement and emotional wellbeing
• Childhood beliefs and adult relationships
• Letting go of outcomes
• Boundaries and self-worth
• Living fully in the present
• Therapy, healing, and identity
• Work-life balance and burnout

📚 Guest Info

• Website: DeMonta Whiting Coaching & Therapy
• Instagram: @demonta_the_therapist
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/demontawhitinglmft

🎶DeMonta's contribution to the playlist: "Feeling Good" by Nina Simone

Let’s Stay Connected

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What if protecting your peace doesn’t mean staying quiet—but finally speaking up?

In this episode of Work is Third, Dawn Hunter talks with Rene Rivas, entrepreneur, nurse, and founder of RevIVe+ Mobile IV Concierge, about healing, presence, vulnerability, and redefining success on your own terms.

Rene shares his journey from difficult workplace experiences to building a business rooted in prevention and wellbeing. Together, Dawn and Rene explore the power of community, how joy can be a daily choice, why adulthood may need to be reimagined, and the difference between being a thermometer who reacts to the room—or a thermostat who sets the tone.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: revive2you.com 
• Socials: @revive2yo

Let’s Stay Connected

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Have you ever had a moment where you stopped and thought… how much of who I am is actually me?

In this episode of Work is Third, Dawn Hunter sits down with James Lumumba, host of Don’t Be Afraid to Talk, for a powerful conversation on identity and how to rewrite the stories we’ve been told about ourselves.

Together, they explore how many of the beliefs people carry about themselves are shaped by early experiences, expectations, and the need to belong along with what it takes to question and rewrite those stories.

This episode covers:

• Letting go of external expectations
• Understanding guilt and people-pleasing
• The connection between belonging and self-worth
• Rewriting personal narratives
• Learning to love yourself and build healthier relationships

Through honest reflection and shared experience, this conversation offers a reminder that self-awareness is the first step toward real change, and that it’s possible to define yourself on your own terms.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: https://co-creatingcoach.ie/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dontbeafraidtotalk/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameslumumba/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Dontbeafraidtotalk/

📔Resources Mentioned

• Pieta House, Pieta | Preventing Suicide and Self-Harm since 2006
• Movie: Banshees of Inisherin (2022)

What if the problem isn’t that your life is too full, but that there’s no space for what actually matters?

In this episode of Work Is Third, Dawn Hunter speaks with Natolie Warren, a psychotherapist, wellness expert, and retreat leader, about shifting out of autopilot and reconnecting with yourself through small, intentional practices.

They explore the power of breath, the importance of asking better questions, and how letting go of expectations and guilt can open the door to a more fulfilling life. This conversation is a reminder that meaningful change doesn’t always require a complete overhaul. Sometimes it starts with a pause.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: www.natoliewarren.com
• All Socials: @natoliewarren

📔 Resources Mentioned

• Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the StressCycle by Amelia Nagoski
• We Should All Be Millionaires by Rachel Rodgers

Let’s Stay Connected

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📸 Instagram: @workisthirdlife

What happens when women share their stories and build connections across generations?

In this episode of Work Is Third, Dawn Hunter speaks with the hosts of the Raised by Her Podcast, a mother-daughter duo exploring womanhood, identity, and life through an intergenerational lens.

Together, they discuss the power of storytelling, the importance of honest conversations about women’s health, and how mentorship and community can help women navigate life’s challenges.

From self-care and career growth to generational wisdom and evolving relationships, the conversation highlights how sharing experiences can help the next generation move forward with greater clarity and support.

This episode is a reminder that when women openly share their stories, they create space for learning, connection, and collective progress.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: https://raisedbyherpodcast.buzzsprout.com/   
• All Socials: https://linktr.ee/raisedbyherpodcast
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RaisedByHerPodcast
• TikTok: tiktok.com/@raisedbyherpodcast
• Instagram: instagram.com/@raisedbyherpodcast
• Facebook: facebook.com/RaisedByHerPodcast
• X: x.com/@RaisedByHerPod

🎶Raised by Her’s contribution to the Playlist: You Gotta Be by Des'ree

Let’s Stay Connected

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What if progress didn’t have to look impressive to count?

In this episode of Work Is Third, Dawn Hunter sits down with founder and storyteller Paula Thomas to explore what it means to rebuild after loss, and how small wins can change everything.

After navigating crippling depression and anxiety, and later, an ADHD and autism diagnosis, building a career in tech, and then losing her husband unexpectedly, Paula was forced to redefine everything: her identity, her work, and what success really means. Along the way, she discovered that small, intentional progress is often the most powerful kind.

Together, Dawn and Paula discuss:

• Why “success” doesn’t always look like success
• What motorcycles and submarines teach us about resilience
• Why grief doesn’t fit into three days of PTO
• How to build workplaces that expect the unexpected
• Why keeping a “win book” matters

This conversation is for anyone who has experienced loss, burnout, identity shifts, or the quiet pressure to do more and is ready to move forward with intention.

📚 Guest Info

• Website: weiter-mfg.com
• LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/paula-thomas/

🎶Paula’s contribution to the Playlist: Shake it Out by Florence + The Machine

📔 Resources Mentioned

• SuperBetter App, https://superbetter.com/
• Brag Books
•  “Clear is kind,” attributed to Brené Brown
• Military Concepts: submarine qualification cards(cross-training for resilience); designing systems that expect failure/unexpected absence
• Morning pages, from The Artist’s Way

Let’s Stay Connected

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📸 Instagram: @workisthirdlife