In this episode of What She Taught Me by Go Long, Jill Consor Beck talks to Sonni Abatta, author of 'News for Normies', and host of the 'We Gotta Talk' podcast. Sonni credits her mother's gratitude, relentless work ethic, and growth mindset for shaping who she is today. On dinner breaks from her news anchor job, Sonni would rush home to nurse her baby to sleep before heading back to the newsroom — until her mother, watching her run herself into the ground, told her flatly one night: "Quit your job." We get into what she's doing to unlearn the instinct of "always being busy" and the need to keep filling every open moment instead of allowing time to recharge.

Resources mentioned:

• News for Normies (Substack) — https://sonniabatta.substack.com/

• Sonni's previous appearance on Going the Distance — https://youtu.be/M0nruFbM6ng

More about Sonni:

• Website — https://wegottatalk.com/

• Podcast — https://wegottatalk.com/podcast-show/

• Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/sonniabatta/

More about Jill & Go Long:

• Sign-up for Go Long's newsletter — https://golong.substack.com/subscribe

• Learn more about Go Long — https://www.golong.me/how-it-works

• Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/justgolong/

• Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/justgolong

• LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/company/go-long/

Jump to:

00:00 Intro: Welcoming Back Sonni Abatta

03:35 How Her Mother's Work Ethic Shaped Her

06:25 The Well-Oiled Machine: Mom Never Asked for Help

08:31 What She's Consciously Carried Forward

10:44 "Quit Your Job": The Pivotal Career Moment

13:19 Realizing She'd Already Checked the Box

15:24 Immigrant Roots: Why Work Ethic Wasn't a Luxury

17:20 Underselling Herself and "You'll See Someday"