The Belonging Project Podcast

Fiorenza Rossini
  • 5.0 (3)
  • Business
  • Updated Biweekly

For working parents navigating career, finding their voice as a leader alongside parenthood. The Belonging Project Podcast brings honest conversations about work, identity, parenthood and belonging, grounded in real life. Hosted by career and leadership coach Fiorenza Rossini, the podcast explores how our sense of belonging evolves through career transitions, leadership journeys, and life changes — especially during seasons of working parenthood, when the mental load, confidence, and priorities may bring shifts. Through conversations with guests from different professional and personal backgrounds, each episode explores the real-life challenges that shape how we show up at work and beyond. Expect reflections, practical insights, and energising conversations about career growth, confidence, leadership, and finding your voice when life is already full. Because belonging isn’t just about fitting in at work or in life— it’s about creating careers and lives that feel aligned with who we are and who we are becoming. belongingproject.substack.com

  1. 6d ago

    The assumptions we make about working mothers, with Ceci Hajredinaj

    When I sat down with Cecilia (Ceci) Hajredinaj, there were moments when it felt like I was speaking with a future version of myself: a Fiorenza with teenage children, further along her own journey of unlearning, reflecting on how we become better humans and what we model for our children. Ceci moved from Honduras to the US at 16, navigating a new country, culture and way of life. She remembers her childhood in Honduras fondly, particularly the strong sense of community around her. She had a village. When she became a mother in the US, she experienced something very different. The village she had grown up with was not there. For much of her daughter’s early years, the core support system was Ceci and her husband. She talks openly about the guilt she experienced as a working mother, the mental load of managing family life, and the challenge of making space for her own career ambitions alongside motherhood. Ceci describes being passed over for promotions and projects because senior leaders made assumptions about what she would want or have time for, now that she was a parent… rather than asking her. While the flexibility was there, it did not mean equal opportunities for career progression were there. We also talk about the cultural messages that can shape how women show up at work. Ceci grew up hearing: “Calladita te ves mas bonita” In Spanish, this means “You look prettier when you're quiet.” What happens when a message like that stays with you? What does it teach us about speaking up, ambition, leadership and what women are allowed to be? And what do we have to unlearn later in life? This poses the question: What messages did we absorb growing up about what women are allowed to be? ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review! In this episode, we also discuss 💡What workplaces still don’t fully understand about working parents, including: * the emotional and financial impact of childcare * why flexibility matters, particularly during the early years of parenthood * the assumptions that can affect working mothers’ career opportunities * psychological safety and feeling able to speak up * the importance of community and belonging at work * why working parents want understanding, not lower expectations for their careers. 📚 Key topics: This is a conversation about working motherhood, career progression, ambition, cultural conditioning, belonging and the things we learn about ourselves long before we enter the workplace. 🔗 Cecilia Hajredinaj Cecilia has a non-linear career journey across client-facing roles, sales and marketing, operations, people operations, learning and development, coaching and consulting. Today, she brings that generalist perspective to her work supporting leaders and mission-driven organisations. And perhaps fittingly, unlearning has become a central part of her work. Ceci talks about why leaders sometimes need to unlearn old behaviours, habits and assumptions before they can genuinely learn something new. Connect with Cecilia on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ceciliahajredinaj/ 🔗 Fiorenza Rossini, your host Connect with Fiorenza on LinkedIn and Instagram. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

  2. Sep 16

    How to Improve Your Executive Presence: 3 Simple Communication Habits

    Executive presence doesn’t have to mean becoming louder or more performative. Sometimes, it’s about letting go of small communication habits that can undermine the seniority you already have. In this short episode, I share three tiny shifts to try: * Replace “Does that make sense?” with a pause. * Own your recommendations instead of softening them with “maybe” or “perhaps”. * Stop apologising when you contribute or interject in meetings. Three small changes. Potentially a very different impact. Which one will you try first?⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

  3. Sep 2

    Mum Means Business: Motherhood, Ambition & Belonging with Victoria Phipps

    What connects a group of WWII veterans in Normandy with mums building businesses today? More than you might think! In this episode, I’m joined by Victoria Phipps, MBE, photographer and host of the Mum Means Business podcast, for a conversation about motherhood, ambition, entrepreneurship and belonging. Victoria has spent much of her life creating spaces where people feel connected and part of something. Before becoming a mum, Victoria spent 11 years working with WWII veterans, bringing them together in Normandy for the D-Day commemorations, and building a community around shared experiences. Those years taught her a lot about connection, purpose and finding your people. We explore how those lessons eventually found their way into her work with mothers building businesses, alongside the pressure to “have it all”, what happens when our old definition of success no longer fits, and why recognising our capacity and protecting our energy matters. You can fall into the trap of doing it all. And it can feel like having it all, but you’re absolutely beside yourself, broken, exhausted, says Victoria. We also talk about something very close to Victoria’s heart: why mothers deserve to be in the photographs too, and how printed photographs can become powerful reminders of identity, connection and belonging. 💡5 takeaways: * Motherhood can change the shape of ambition without making ambition disappear. * Belonging and community can be just as important as the work itself. * “Having it all” can become exhausting when it means doing it all. * Protecting your capacity is not selfish. It is part of sustaining the life and work you care about. * You deserve to be present in the memories you are busy creating for everyone else. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review! 🔗Resources & people mentioned Victoria Phipps, MBE: Photographer and host of Mum Means Business.Find her photography work here Mum Means Business: Victoria’s podcast about motherhood, business and building a life that works for you. Listen here. Find Victoria on Instagram Fiorenza Rossini, your host: Leadership and career transitions coach, supporting parents of young children through career growth, leadership and change. Find her work here. Connect with Fiorenza on LinkedIn and Instagram. Thanks for reading The Belonging Project Podcast! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

  4. Jul 22

    Why Rest Feels So Hard for Working Parents

    If you’ve ever finally sat down to rest only to find yourself mentally replaying work conversations, planning tomorrow’s to-do list or feeling guilty that you’re not being productive, you’re not alone. In this solo episode of The Belonging Project Podcast, leadership and career coach for working parents Fiorenza Rossini explores why rest can feel surprisingly uncomfortable for ambitious working parents. ❌ This isn’t an episode about productivity hacks or better time management - sorry!✅This episode is about understanding the psychology behind why so many of us struggle to switch off, even when we desperately need a break. Drawing on psychological research, behavioural science and her own experiences as a working parent, Fiorenza unpacks the hidden beliefs that shape our relationship with work, achievement and rest, and shares practical ways to build a healthier, more sustainable approach to being career-driven or ambitious. 🔍 In this episode, you’ll discover: * Why so many working parents struggle to switch off from work * The hidden psychology behind feeling guilty when you rest * Why busyness has become a status symbol, and how it shapes our identity * How ambitious professionals can unknowingly tie their self-worth to productivity * Why rest often feels uncomfortable rather than restorative * The double ledger many working parents carry between work and family * Practical mindset shifts to help you rest without feeling like you’re falling behind Whether you’re leading a team, navigating career growth, returning from parental leave or simply trying to balance work and family life, this episode offers a fresh perspective on why rest feels so difficult, and why that doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong. 📚 Research and resources mentioned This episode references research and ideas from: * Mental Health UK’s Burnout Report 2026 * Deloitte UK research on working parents * KPMG’s Working Parents survey * Research published in the Journal of Consumer Research on busyness and social status * The concepts of contingent self-worth, hedonic adaptation and loss aversion ☀️ Summer Coaching Intensive If you’re a working parent who feels you’ve lost momentum on your career goals this year, my Summer Coaching Intensive is designed to help you gain clarity, rebuild confidence and make meaningful progress before September. The intensive includes: * One 90-minute coaching session to untangle what’s really going on, clarify your priorities and create a roadmap. * One 45-minute follow-up session to review your progress, overcome new challenges and keep your momentum going. There are only a few places available. 📩 Get in touch via email on fiorenza@growinnow.com to find out more. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

  5. Jul 8

    Supporting Working Parents: What Every Manager Needs to Know

    Most managers want to support working parents. Few have ever been shown how. What happens after an employee becomes a parent can shape their confidence, career progression and sense of belonging for years to come. Yet many managers are left to navigate these conversations without any real guidance. In this episode, leadership and career growth coach Fiorenza Rossini explores how managers, leaders and organisations can better support working parents, by creating the conditions for them to continue growing and thriving, instead of lowering expectations. Drawing on her experience coaching professionals through career transitions, leadership development and the identity shift that comes with parenthood, Fiorenza shares practical insights for anyone leading a team. In this episode, you’ll learn: * The common assumptions managers make after an employee becomes a parent * Why career development conversations shouldn’t stop after parental leave * How to create a greater sense of belonging for working parents * Simple leadership practices that help retain and develop talented people * Questions every manager can ask to better support working parents Whether you’re a manager, team leader, HR professional, senior leader, or a working parent yourself, this episode will help you rethink what effective leadership looks like during one of life’s biggest transitions. “Perhaps the most valuable thing that any manager can do is replace assumptions with curiosity.”, says Fiorenza. 🔎 Jump in 03:09 Becoming a parent changes you - that’s just the reality04:01 The load we can realistically carry has changed05:28 Don’t assume: ask (aka the power of curiosity)06:23 Career conversations should never stop07:32 Visibility or performance08:54 The importance of small moments and showing up09:53 Recognising parenthood as a leadership skill ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review 🔗 Links & resources * Connect with Fiorenza Rossini on Linkedin. * Explore coaching, leadership workshops and speaking: here Topics covered:Working parents | Leadership | People management | Career progression | Parental leave | Employee wellbeing | Workplace culture | Belonging | Inclusive leadership | Talent retention | Career development | Working mothers | Working fathers This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

  6. Jun 24

    Navigating Grief, Parenthood, and Career Pivots Without Losing Yourself, with Elysha Weissglass

    What happens when a high schooler tells you your positivity feels fake — and it changes everything about how you lead? That’s just one of the moments that shaped Elysha Weissglass ’s path from school counsellor to leadership coach and people development partner. In this episode, Fiorenza sits down with Elysha for a conversation that moves fluidly between boardrooms and kids’ dinners to career pivots and grief. They talk about what it really takes to support people through change — and why the messiest transitions are often the most important ones. 🔎 What we explore In this episode, we explore: * From classrooms to corporate: why Elysha made the leap * The dual vantage point: working inside organizations building career tracks and coaching managers, while running a private coaching practice. * The sandwich generation struggle: aging parents, young kids, and how to find presence in the middle of it all * An exploration on how to allow joy and grief to co-exist * Belonging as a practice: what it looks like in moments of grief, identity shifts, and becoming * Fiorenza opens up about anticipatory grief, her grandmother, and the chair that was always set for anxiety at the dinner table A thread running through it all: the in-between spaces — in a career, in a family, in yourself — are not obstacles to get through. They’re where the real growth happens. "Things don't always fit into some perfect box. And there are ways to notice what really is here in the moment so that you can have connection and joy and feel what's really there.", says Elysha. 🎙️ Tune in for the full conversation! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review! 🔗 Links & resources * Explore Elysha Weissglass here on Substack. * Connect with Elysha on Linkedin. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

  7. Jun 10

    Modern Fatherhood: Closing the Paternity Gap and Dropping the Corporate Mask, with Sam Allman-Briggs

    What is the true cost of navigating early parenthood while trying to maintain a career? In this episode, host Fiorenza Rossini sits down with Sam Allman-Briggs—a marketer, devoted father, and advocate for parental rights—to pull back the curtain on the modern fatherhood experience. From the harrowing grief of pregnancy loss and the workplace anxieties that follow, to navigating a culture that frequently overlooks fathers, Sam shares his raw, personal journey. They dive deep into the gaps in paternity leave, the reality of workplace redundancies for new parents, and why the corporate mask needs to slip to make way for genuine, hands-on parenting. 🔎 What we explore * Fathers are being overlooked: The baby and toddler industry frequently defaults to viewing mothers as the sole primary consumer, alienating hands-on fathers and limiting long-term industry progression. * The Reality of Pregnancy Loss: Miscarriage and stillbirth affect one in four pregnancies, yet the emotional and psychological toll—especially the secondary anxiety during a subsequent pregnancy—remains a taboo subject in corporate environments. * The Paternity Leave Gap: Current statutory paternity leave models fail to support the realities of postpartum recovery (such as C-section healing times), highlighting a severe need for progressive parental rights. * Dropping the Corporate Mask: True workplace inclusivity means moving past seeing people as a professional or a parent, and letting employees combine their identities without fear of professional penalty. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Enjoyed this episode? Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave a review on your favorite podcast platform! 🔗 Links & resources * The Dad Shift: An advocacy group campaigning to change paternity leave law and corporate rights for men. * Parenting Out Loud: An organisation pushing to change perceptions and increase visibility for hands-on fathers in traditionally female-dominated environments. * Connect with Sam Allman-Briggs on Linkedin About your host Fiorenza Rossini Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work 🔗 Fiorenza on Linkedin 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram 🎧 Enjoyed this episode? If this conversation stayed with you, consider sharing it with another parent who might need to hear it. And if you haven’t already, you can connect with me on LinkedIn for more reflections on belonging, leadership, and navigating career and identity alongside parenthood. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

  8. May 20

    Return-to-office policies are exposing a hidden leadership gap

    Return-to-office conversations are often framed around productivity, collaboration and company culture. But what if they are also revealing something about belonging, leadership and whose lives workplaces were originally designed around? In this solo episode, I reflect on the emotional and practical realities many working parents are navigating behind the surface of business as usual. For many professionals, especially parents of young children, the return-to-office conversation is really not about commuting or flexibility. It is about: * How much someone can realistically hold and carry * Identity * Visibility * Ability to sustain * The pressure to continue performing as though life has not fundamentally changed. In this episode, I explore: * Why return-to-office debates feel emotionally charged for many parents * The invisible mental load behind showing up * How workplaces still holding old beliefs * The leadership skills caregiving often develops * Why reduced capacity is not the same as reduced ambition * The connection between belonging and psychological safety at work * What sustainable success might look like across different chapters of life ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review! This episode is for anyone who has ever wondered: Can I still grow professionally without working exactly as I used to? And perhaps more importantly: What kind of workplaces will people remain loyal to in the future? 🔗 Links & resources * McKinsey Report: Women in the Workplace * Deloitte Report * Working Families Index 2025 About your host Fiorenza Rossini Fiorenza started building her coaching business in 2016 while still working in investment banking. When her first child was born in 2019, she knew something had to give. Like many parents, she realised she couldn’t keep growing her career in the same way while also being the parent she wanted to be. Her priorities became clearer, and she chose to leave corporate life to focus fully on her coaching work. Today, Fiorenza supports driven professionals & leaders who are also parents of young children, who find themselves to be at a pivot point - whether that’s returning to work, stepping into leadership, or rethinking what career growth now looks like.🔗 More about Fiorenza’s work 🔗 Fiorenza on Linkedin 🔗 Fiorenza on Instagram 🎧 Enjoyed this episode? If this conversation stayed with you, consider sharing it with another parent who might need to hear it. And if you haven’t already, you can connect with me on LinkedIn for more reflections on belonging, leadership, and navigating career and identity alongside parenthood. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit belongingproject.substack.com

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For working parents navigating career, finding their voice as a leader alongside parenthood. The Belonging Project Podcast brings honest conversations about work, identity, parenthood and belonging, grounded in real life. Hosted by career and leadership coach Fiorenza Rossini, the podcast explores how our sense of belonging evolves through career transitions, leadership journeys, and life changes — especially during seasons of working parenthood, when the mental load, confidence, and priorities may bring shifts. Through conversations with guests from different professional and personal backgrounds, each episode explores the real-life challenges that shape how we show up at work and beyond. Expect reflections, practical insights, and energising conversations about career growth, confidence, leadership, and finding your voice when life is already full. Because belonging isn’t just about fitting in at work or in life— it’s about creating careers and lives that feel aligned with who we are and who we are becoming. belongingproject.substack.com

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