Have you ever looked at your career and thought, “Nothing is wrong… but this doesn’t feel like me anymore”?
In this episode of the Great Leader, Great Mom Podcast, Liz Jolley explores what it really means when your career no longer fits — and why this feeling isn’t failure, burnout, or ingratitude. It’s growth.
Instead of jumping straight to a big pivot or questioning everything you’ve built, Liz teaches a calmer, more sustainable approach: making small, self-honoring decisions, understanding why you’re choosing them, and learning how to truly have your own back during seasons of uncertainty.
Through relatable client stories and practical coaching insights, you’ll learn:
Why clarity doesn’t come from big moves — it comes from aligned reasons
How to stop second-guessing yourself when you’re unsure of what’s next
The difference between fear-based decisions and integrity-based ones
How to rebuild self-trust without quitting your job or blowing up your life
This episode is for ambitious women, working moms, and leaders navigating a mid-career identity shift — women who want clarity, confidence, and peace without unnecessary upheaval.
If your career no longer feels like you, this conversation will help you slow down, listen inward, and take your next step with courage and self-trust.
courage.theschoolofcourage.com
If you notice yourself overeating, overdrinking, or overspending during the holidays — this episode is for you.
In this episode of The Great Leader, Great Mom Podcast, Liz Jolley — certified life coach, former corporate leader, and founder of The School of Courage™ — explains why these patterns are not a willpower problem, but an emotional regulation problem.
You’ll learn why women buffer with food, alcohol, shopping, and scrolling during high-stress seasons, why resisting urges with discipline alone backfires, and how learning to allow emotions instead of numbing them creates lasting change.
Drawing on neuroscience, coaching psychology, and real client stories, Liz teaches how to stop pushing emotions underwater like a beach ball — and instead build emotional capacity, nervous system resilience, and conscious self-leadership.
This episode is especially powerful for career-driven moms navigating holiday pressure, emotional overload, perfectionism, guilt, and burnout — and who want to feel grounded, present, and calm without giving up joy.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
If you’re ready to stop beating yourself up and start leading yourself with compassion and courage — this episode will change how you see your habits forever.
🎧 Listen now and learn how to trade guilt and control for awareness, presence, and peace.
The holidays should feel joyful…
but for most women, they feel like pressure, burnout, emotional labor, and endless yeses.
In this episode, Liz Jolley, Life Coach and founder of The School of Courage™, dives deep into holiday people-pleasing— why women default to “yes,” why boundaries collapse in December, and how guilt, emotional responsibility, and childhood programming make it almost impossible to say no.
If you’re overcommitted, overwhelmed, or carrying the invisible load for your family, work, or holiday traditions, this episode will help you understand the psychology of people-pleasing, the role of emotional survival patterns, and how to break the cycle so you can experience a calmer, more intentional holiday season.
You’ll learn:
Why women say yes even when they’re exhausted
How people-pleasing is tied to safety, identity, and family expectations
The emotional labor women absorb during the holidays
How childhood roles and cultural conditioning shape your December decisions
How to stop managing everyone’s feelings
How to create boundaries without guilt, conflict, or overexplaining
A simple holiday boundary tool: “I’ll check and get back to you”
What resentment reveals about your real capacity
How to choose your holiday intentionally — not perform it
This episode is perfect for:
• Working moms
• High-achieving women
• Women leaders
• Anyone balancing motherhood + career during the holidays
• Anyone who feels guilty saying no
• Women experiencing holiday overload, burnout, or emotional pressure
By the end, you’ll understand why your “no” disappears in December… and how to bring it back with clarity, courage, and compassion.
Join The School of Courage™ Membership for coaching, emotional tools, and support: courage.theschoolofcourage.com
The holiday season is marketed as magical… yet for most career-driven women and working moms, it feels like mental overload, emotional labor, and nonstop logistics. In this episode, Life Coach Liz Jolley, founder of The School of Courage™, breaks down the invisible load women carry during the holidays — the planning, preparing, tracking, smoothing, scheduling, remembering, anticipating, and emotional caregiving that no one sees but every woman feels.
You’ll learn why the mental load increases in November, why women default to “holiday project manager,” and how perfectionism, emotional responsibility, and family expectations create burnout before December even starts. Liz also teaches you practical tools to lighten the invisible load, regulate your nervous system, choose intentional emotions, and reclaim your peace during a season that often feels chaotic and overwhelming.
This episode is perfect for:
• Working moms
• Women balancing career and motherhood
• High-achieving women
• Moms carrying holiday stress
• Anyone feeling overwhelmed, burnt out, or unseen during the holidays
• Women navigating family dynamics, school events, year-end work pressure, and emotional labor
Topics covered include: mental load, holiday burnout, emotional labor, motherhood overwhelm, perfectionism, boundaries, invisible responsibilities, family expectations, nervous system regulation, and how to create a meaningful, calm, intentional holiday season.
Join The School of Courage™ Membership for more tools, emotional support, and coaching: courage.theschoolofcourage.com
The holidays bring joy… and for many women, they also bring family triggers, pressure, and emotional overwhelm. In this episode, Liz Jolley breaks down why family gatherings feel so hard — and how most of the suffering comes from arguing with reality.
You’ll learn how thoughts like “they should help more,” “they should care,” “they shouldn’t act that way,” or “my family should be different” create resentment, comparison, and holiday stress. Using the CTFAR model, Liz shows you how to separate neutral facts from painful thoughts, how to accept people as they truly are, and how to choose the emotional experience you want this season.
This episode is perfect for any career-driven woman balancing motherhood and family expectations who wants calmer, more intentional holidays without the guilt, frustration, or drama.
Topics covered:
• Holiday family dynamics
• Arguing with reality
• How thoughts create emotional pain
• Comparison and resentment
• Accepting your parents, siblings, and extended family
• Emotional regulation tools
• Choosing your energy before holiday events
• Self-leadership for women
• Motherhood, boundaries & mindset
• Conscious holiday planning
Join The School of Courage™ Membership for weekly coaching, emotional tools, and a community of women doing this work: https://courage.theschoolofcourage.com
When You Survive the Layoff But Lose Your Spark
Apathy, shutdown, and how to rebuild clarity from the inside out
You survived the layoffs — but somewhere along the way, you lost your spark.
In this episode of The Great Leader, Great Mom Podcast, life coach and leadership mentor Liz Jolley, founder of The School of Courage, breaks down the emotional apathy, shutdown, and quiet disconnection so many high-achieving women and leaders are experiencing after layoffs, reorganizations, and constant workplace change.
This episode is for you if you’ve been thinking:
• “What are we even doing?”
• “Where is this company going?”
• “I don’t know if I want to be here anymore…”
• “I care… but I’m too tired to pretend right now.”
Liz explains why this isn’t laziness — it’s emotional exhaustion and a natural protective response after instability at work. And more importantly, she teaches you how to stop waiting for your company, your boss, or the “new strategy” to give you clarity and direction… and instead shows you how to rebuild that spark from within yourself.
This is conscious leadership.
This is emotional resilience.
This is where your power really is.
Why apathy, cynicism, and numbness are normal responses after layoffs
How your brain protects you by emotionally shutting down
The hidden trap of “I’ll feel better once things settle down”
How to stop outsourcing stability to your company, organizational structure, or boss
How to reignite motivation without pretending everything is fine
Courage-building practices to re-engage with purpose
What it looks like to lead yourself first — even when the future feels unclear
Join The School of Courage Membership
If you’re tired of waiting for clarity and ready to feel grounded again — from the inside out — this is your next step.
The School of Courage Membership helps you:
• Build emotional clarity
• Drop guilt, overwhelm, and burnout
• Rebuild confidence from within
• Learn tools to solve any challenge — even during layoffs and change
• Become the most courageous, intentional version of yourself at work and at home
Founding Members receive special pricing, weekly live coaching, workshops, tools, and the opportunity to help shape the content.
https://courage.theschoolofcourage.com
You don’t need your workplace to “settle down” to feel settled.
You can create that clarity now — and this membership will show you how.
Your job may change, but your worth never does.
When layoffs loom and uncertainty hangs in the air, your brain spirals into fear — not just about losing a job, but about losing control, identity, and safety. In this episode of The Great Leader, Great Mom Podcast, Liz Jolley, engineer-turned-life-coach and founder of The School of Courage, helps you step out of panic and into self-leadership. Learn how to calm your nervous system, reclaim your power, and create genuine security from the inside out. Liz shares practical mindset tools, reflective questions, and powerful reframes — from Wayne Dyer’s wisdom to everyday courage practices — so you can walk into work grounded, confident, and clear on who you are, no matter what happens next.
www.lizjolley.com
Perfect for working moms, leaders, and women navigating change who want to lead at work and at home without losing their sanity, humor, or themselves.
In Episode 78 of The Great Leader, Great Mom Podcast, Liz Jolley unpacks The Myth of the Perfect Job—the belief that finding the right role, boss, or team will finally make you feel valued and fulfilled.
This powerful conversation explores the connection between self-worth, career satisfaction, and emotional resilience. You’ll learn:
Why external validation never leads to lasting fulfillment
How to separate your behavior from others’ to reclaim peace and power
Why self-love, not the “right job,” is the foundation for success and happiness
How to show up at 100% value—regardless of recognition
You’re a high-achieving woman who’s built a great life — but sometimes it feels like you’re holding it all together with grit and coffee. Great Leader, Great Mom is the podcast where we stop chasing “balance” and start building courage from the inside out.
Hosted by Liz Jolley, engineer turned life and leadership coach and founder of The School of Courage™, each episode blends story, science, and soul to help you:
Stop people-pleasing and lead with calm confidence.
Redefine success around energy, not exhaustion.
Set boundaries that protect what matters most.
Build emotional regulation and intentional habits that last.
Whether you’re managing a team, raising a family, or reinventing what leadership means in midlife — you’ll find practical tools, honest stories, and coaching insights that remind you: balance doesn’t come from getting it all right — it comes from within.
We’ve all been there—agonizing over a big decision, convinced there’s a “right” answer out there somewhere. Should you leave your job? Take a promotion? Move your family? We grow up in a world that teaches us every choice has a correct answer—thanks, school multiple-choice tests!—and as adults, we carry that myth into our careers, parenting, and relationships.
But here’s the truth: there is no single “right decision” or “wrong decision.” Believing this myth only fuels indecision, fear, guilt, and endless people-pleasing. In this episode, Liz Jolley unpacks how to break free from decision-paralysis by learning:
✅ How to identify the real decision you’re making (and stop bundling ten into one).
✅ Why imagining your future self can bring clarity and confidence.
✅ How to separate fear, guilt, and obligation from your decision-making process.
✅ What it means to “have your own back” after you decide—without shame, blame, or regret.
Whether it’s career choices, parenting decisions, or even everyday life calls, this conversation will help you stop searching for the mythical “right” answer and start making decisions from a place of clarity, courage, and self-trust.
Ever said, “I just have high expectations—I shouldn’t lower my standards!” and then felt resentful when others didn’t meet them? You’re not alone.
In this episode explores how “high standards” often hide perfectionism, people-pleasing, and burnout. You’ll learn why tying your worth to others’ performance creates frustration—and how to rebuild self-trust, emotional resilience, and peace while still pursuing excellence.
💛 Lead with courage—not exhaustion.
Visit lizjolley.com to learn more.
Do you ever catch yourself thinking, “If I were just smarter, calmer, thinner, or more disciplined—then I wouldn’t feel this way”? You’re not alone. So many of us live with the quiet belief that if we were “better,” we wouldn’t struggle, feel insecure, or experience shame.
In this episode of The Great Leader, Great Mom Podcast, part of the Courage Series, we unravel the toxic myth of perfection—the false story that our worth depends on comparison, achievement, or external validation.
✨ You’ll learn:
Why the scripts of “If I were better…” and “Everyone else is doing it right” keep us stuck in shame.
How comparison fuels insecurity and the trap of not-enoughness.
Why hard feelings don’t mean you’re broken—they mean you’re human.
Practical tools to reframe shame and begin practicing radical self-acceptance.
The truth? You don’t need to earn your worthiness. You are already enough—right now.
www.lizjolley.com
What if everything you learned about money growing up was wrong? In this Courage Series episode , we unpack childhood money myths like “money is scarce,” “money is hard,” and “money is the root of all evil.”
Through stories and insights, you’ll discover how these hidden beliefs fuel scarcity, shame, and fear—and how to rewrite them into an empowered, abundant mindset. Learn how to create freedom, opportunity, and confidence by building a healthy relationship with money.
www.lizjolley.com
Let's unravel the truth about emotions, self-leadership, and resilience. Other people’s words, actions, or judgments don’t actually cause your feelings—your thoughts do. When you realize this, you stop giving away your emotional power to your boss, your in-laws, your spouse, or even your kids.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
Why feelings are created by your thoughts, not by other people’s words.
How to recognize your “tender spots” and stop letting criticism or judgment reinforce old beliefs.
Real-life examples—from family conflict to workplace feedback—showing how we give away our power.
Practical steps to shift from external validation to inner strength, so you can parent, lead, and live with more freedom.
✨ The dream? To stop spiraling in guilt, defensiveness, and self-blame—and instead show up grounded, confident, and loving.
If you’ve ever felt controlled by what others say or worried about how they see you, this episode will help you break free from the myth and reclaim your emotional resilience.
www.lizjolley.com
Are you chasing the perfect grade in parenting—the idea that if you do it all “right,” your kids won’t struggle the way you did? The truth is, there’s no such thing as an “A” in parenting. When we measure our worth by our kids’ achievements or by external praise, we end up exhausted, disconnected, and constantly judging ourselves.
In this episode, I share why striving for perfection keeps us stuck, how to stop arguing with reality, and what it really means to be a good parent: showing up with love, embracing the 50/50 of life, and letting go of the grade.
www.lizjolley.com
Did you grow up believing that if you just earned the accolades, the degrees, the gold stars—you’d finally be happy? Now at work you are burned out hustling for the A.
The truth? Real success comes from defining what you want, not chasing approval.
www.lizjolley.com
The Power of Discomfort: Why Doing Hard Things Leads to Joy, Growth, and Confidence
As adults, we’ve built lives of comfort—yet so many of us still feel unfulfilled. In this episode, I share why leaning into discomfort is the secret to joy, growth, and confidence. From the pressures of parenting three strong-willed kids to climbing rocks at Enchanted Rock, I’ve learned that the most satisfying moments come from doing the hard things we’d rather avoid.
We’ll talk about why comfort isn’t the goal, why struggle actually fuels growth, and how embracing discomfort builds resilience in both parenting and life. If you’ve ever felt like you’re “doing it wrong” because life is hard, this conversation will remind you: discomfort isn’t failure—it’s evidence that you’re growing.
www.lizjolley.com
Are you a career-driven mom frustrated with weight gain, no time for the gym, and constant guilt about your health? You’re not alone—and you don’t have to stay stuck.
In this episode, we uncover why traditional advice like “eat less, move more” doesn’t work for busy moms. Weight loss isn’t just a calorie math problem—it’s a hormone problem. Specifically, insulin. When you understand how insulin affects weight and energy, you can finally stop the cycle of dieting, frustration, and self-blame.
You’ll learn practical strategies to:
Manage weight without endless cardio or strict dieting
Fit simple resistance training into a packed schedule
Stop emotional eating and stress snacking
Build a sustainable lifestyle that supports both career and family
Love your body now—without waiting to hit a number on the scale
If you’re ready to thrive in your career, show up for your family, and feel strong and confident in your body—this episode is for you.
Three key steps to losing weight: Plan what you eat, when you eat, and allow urges.
You have created a plan 24 hours in advance, and then you get invited to lunch with coworkers. You panic. How am I supposed to eat my salad and protein I brought? But I want to be social and eat with them. I want to go and not be awkward.
For a sustainable, healthy lifestyle, we are seeking to return our body to normal with eating foods our bodies can process and spacing out our eating to keep burning fat for fuel. We talked about having and committing to a plan 24 hrs in advance, our protocol, and writing down what we actually eat, and monitoring our weight. And we are being scientists, so we are not hating our bodies, but dropping the drama and going into the math and science with our experiment.
www.lizjolley.com
We tend to use our most needed skillset for weight loss at work, so why not approach food?
Planning ahead—deciding what and when to eat—is essential to a plan made 24 hours in advance for building the healthy lifestyle you want.
Planning is crucial.
Stick to what we eat, when we eat, and then follow through on that plan.
Reach out for questions or comments: www.lizjolley.com