After 30 episodes of saying the quiet part out loud, host Ellen Whitlock Baker closes out Season 1 of Hard at Work with a reflective and forward-looking finale. From people-pleasing and perfectionism to systemic burnout and the stubborn pace of change since the movie "9 to 5" came out 45 years ago, Ellen unpacks what she’s learned about why work still isn’t working — and what it will take to change it.

She looks back on the guests, the lessons, and the quiet revolutions happening in real workplaces, while issuing a challenge for the hiatus: take one step, however small, toward building the future of work we actually deserve. Because as the great Dolly Parton says: "the tide's gonna turn and it's all gonna roll your way."

Tags: burnout, workplace culture, women at work, leadership, boundaries, equity, systemic change, perfectionism, people pleasing, feminist workplace, future of work, Hard at Work podcast, season finale

In this episode of Hard at Work, host Ellen Whitlock Baker welcomes author, two-time founder, and Hype Women CEO Erin Gallagher for a candid conversation about women, work, and the shift from competition to collective power.

Erin shares the origin of the Hype Women movement—including that now-famous photo of Jamie Lee Curtis celebrating Michelle Yeoh—and explains why hype is a verb: it’s the choice to convert admiration into action by promoting, buying from, hiring, referring, and amplifying other women.

Together, Ellen and Erin name the conditioning that teaches women to compete for scarce recognition, how “mean-girl” behavior gets rewarded in professional settings, and why empathy without boundaries leads to chronic self-abandonment and burnout.

Erin offers a practical reframe for jealousy as a signal of desire—when someone else lands a keynote or book deal, ask how they did it, celebrate them publicly, and let your body learn the feeling of abundance.

The two dig into resentment, invisible unpaid labor, and the constant interruptions that drain women’s energy—connecting it to the $10.9 trillion of unpaid work women shoulder globally—and explore how anger can be a healthy messenger when it’s moved through the body: writing, running, singing at top volume in the car, painting, or simply letting yourself feel it.

They also discusses Erin's forthcoming book, Hype Women: Breaking Free from Mean Girls, Patriarchy, and Systems Silencing You (out October 14, 2025), which blends narrative with practical tools to help women stop equating worth with service.

Erin shares the line that changed her life: “I will no longer abandon myself in service to others.”

Listen for honest stories, tangible mindset shifts, and next steps you can take today to hype other women, reclaim your time, and build work that actually supports your life.

(Keywords: hype women, women at work, workplace culture, mean girls, patriarchy, boundaries, burnout recovery, abundance mindset, leadership, Jamie Lee Curtis Michelle Yeoh)

In this high-energy episode, host Ellen Whitlock Baker welcomes licensed neuropsychotherapist Britt Frank, author of The Science of Stuck and Align Your Mind, for a fast, practical tour of how your brain actually works—and how to get it working for you at work and at home. Britt explains that anxiety isn’t all bad; it’s the brain’s check-engine light, an alarm that asks for investigation rather than suppression.

Britt shares how we can convert overwhelm into forward motion using micro-yeses, comically tiny steps (think: shoes by the door, one sentence on the page) that slip past the brain’s change-resistance and build momentum over time.

The conversation distinguishes feelings (physiological signals like tightness or a racing heart) from emotions (feelings plus the story we add), and offers a quick self-audit to test whether your story is true before you spiral.

Britt also brings her signature parts work approach: treat your mind like a team, retrain the “inner critic” into a useful coach, and send unhelpful parts to the metaphorical green room until it’s their scene.

For leaders, Britt delivers a provocative reframe—managers aren’t therapists—and recommends replacing over-empathy (which lights up shared pain) with curiosity (which activates problem-solving), while designing conditions where humans can still be human.

Ellen and Britt also unpack why brains resist change (they’re wired for survival, not optimization), why insight alone can keep us “insightfully stuck,” and how to ask a better question: What am I willing to do today?

Listeners dealing with burnout, perimenopause shifts, career pivots, or post-pandemic malaise will leave with a brain-smart playbook for momentum: respect alarms, pick one micro-yes, use curiosity to de-charge tough moments, and align work with clear roles and lived values.

Keywords: Britt Frank, The Science of Stuck, Align Your Mind, neuropsychotherapist, micro-yeses, workplace culture, burnout recovery, anxiety tools, parts work, shadow work, leadership, curiosity vs empathy, role clarity, behavior change, emotional regulation, feelings vs emotions