Episode Details

Remember when you used to laugh more, dance more, feel more? Somewhere between endless meetings, mental load, and pressure to perform, your joy got buried – not gone, just buried beneath layers of "should" and "must." Today we're diving deep into what makes ambitious women lose their capacity for joy and the surprisingly simple path back to reclaiming it.

Joy has been systematically replaced by control. When we're stuck in fight-or-flight mode, joy feels frivolous or wasteful. Living in our heads and disconnected from our bodies, we forget that joy is fundamentally a feeling, not a thought. And in our overscheduled lives, we leave no room for the spontaneous moments where genuine joy flourishes.

This isn't just about feeling happier – it's about reclaiming your power. When you're operating without joy, you're functioning at half capacity. Contrary to burnout culture's messaging, joy doesn't make you flaky; it makes you magnetic and followable. It unlocks creativity that bullet points and spreadsheets never could. In an age of AI and automation, your uniquely human capacity for play and spontaneous connection becomes your greatest professional asset.

To view the Transcript from this week's episode, visit our Balance & Beyond Podcast webpage: https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast/2025/104

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The Balance & Beyond Podcast Hosted by Jo Stone, founder of The Balance Institute

For women who are already succeeding, but beginning to wonder if they're willing to keep losing themselves in the process.

We know high achievers, because we are one. This podcast draws on Jo's 20 years in global leadership and thousands of hours coaching executives and ambitious women: the patterns she sees, how to untangle them, and what it actually takes to keep your success without paying for it with yourself.

If something landed today, there's more where that came from.

And if you know a woman this would resonate with, send it her way.

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