VIRGIN.BEAUTY.B!TCH VIRGIN.BEAUTY.B!TCH

Christopher and Heather welcome back ghostwriter and editor Juliane Bergmann, author of an influential article in Huffington Post titled "So I thought parents who forgot their kids in their cars were monsters. Then I did it!" It's an emotional, even tearful conversation with Juliane where she shares a personal experience of accidentally leaving her child in a car. She expresses deep shame of having once coldly judged parents who had done the same, and now she was a failure as a mother. We explore the emotions and societal pressures around parenting and the importance of parents sharing mistakes to support those who didn't get a second chance. It's a conversation that challenges stereotypes and hopefully inspires parents to be more gentle with themselves as they confront their own fallibility.

David Jurasek is a father, husband, Sensei, and Registered Psychotherapist working with boys and men for over 20 years. He's worked within a clinical context, in a communal setting, and within various men's groups. However, despite his expertise and experience, David found himself continuing to struggle in intimate relationships, especially with his wife. Inspired by Martin Luther King's words on the balance of power and love, David founded a community called Powerful and Loving. David's life mission is building a village for men to rediscover and strengthen relationships that help them grow into Relational Leaders. David also mentors women seeking guidance on navigating their relationships with the men in their lives.

In this episode, Christopher & Heather continue our conversation around the book "The Creation of Patriarchy" by Gerder Lerner. Her groundbreaking work peals back history to see the origins and evolution of patriarchal systems. We lament how a once harmonious relationship between women and men spiralled into a hierarchy of power for one and subordination, bordering on slavery for the other. We shake out the patriarchal mindset and its impact on women and men.

Patriarchy has never been a secret; it's in our faces from birth to death. Maybe that's why we don't talk about it. Most men hear the word Patriarchy and associate it with women's liberation or feminism and summarily dismiss it as irrelevant to their own experiences. On the other hand, women either believe that Patriarchy is a natural consequence of biological differences between women and men or that Patriarchy is a social injustice that must be rectified. What do you envision when you hear the word Patriarchy? Join us, let's talk about it.

Is it true? It is literally impossible to be a woman. Are you beautiful and smart but still think you're not good enough? Do you need to be extraordinary but still feel you're doing it all wrong? Is staying young, pretty, and thin the expectation, even when age says different? Is being the good girl your ideal, so you can't be rude, selfish, show off, fail, show fear, and never step out of line? Does being a woman mean tying yourself into knots just to be noticed or liked? Is it all too contradictory? Are you the victim? But how does staying the victim keep you from becoming the beautiful, smart woman who is enough? That's our conversation in this episode.

Kathy Caprino is no movie critic, but her critique of the Barbie movie and the power of the patriarchy inspired us to search her out. We found someone who was once a corporate executive, but even with career success, she struggled inwardly to feel successful. Surviving sexual harassment, gender discrimination, toxic colleagues, narcissistic bosses, and zero work-life balance, she didn’t feel valued or like someone making a positive contribution to the world. “Finding Brave” is an attitude that has transformed Kathy’s life purpose as a career and leadership coach, writer, speaker, executive trainer, and educator dedicated to the advancement of women in business. “I want to help people, not hurt people or be hurt myself.”