Balancing a career and navigating motherhood requires more than ambition, it requires resilience and bold decision-making.
Barbara Nicholas, CEO of Polly, shares her journey of growing up with limited resources, becoming a young mom at 18, working double shifts to make ends meet, and still managing to carve a path all the way to the C-suite.

Barbara opens up about one of the most defining moments of her career: returning to work after having her second daughter, only to find her employer hadn't prepared a proper space for her to pump. What followed was a decision that changed everything, and a lesson she's carried into every leadership role since.

We also dig into the state of parental leave in the US today, including the disheartening rollbacks at companies like Deloitte and Zoom. Barbara shares how Polly approaches leave and why she believes supporting working parents isn't just the right thing to do, it's simply good business.

This one is honest, fiery, and full of hard-won wisdom from a woman who's been figuring it out since day one.

Jump into the conversation:

(00:00) Introduction and family setup

(01:19) Barbara’s journey to becoming CEO

(03:09) Becoming a young mom and early career challenges

(05:09) Maternity leave and pumping struggles at work

(07:53) Leaving her job and reclaiming career agency

(09:37) Setting boundaries and having bold employer conversations

(15:30) Paid leave policies and equity at Polly

(19:23) Corporate parental leave rollbacks and workplace trends

(21:54) Childcare costs, economics, and career impact

(30:32) Generational reflections, leadership, and motherhood

(35:21) Save of the week segment

Connect with Barbara Nicholas: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbara-nicholas-polly/

Connect with Shannon Curran: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-sweeny-curran/

Connect with Mallory Lee: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorylee/

Check out Polly: https://www.polly.ai/

Produced in partnership with Share Your Genius

www.shareyourgenius.com