Balance & Beyond

Jo Stone

Balance and Beyond is the podcast for ambitious women refusing to accept burnout as the price of success. Here, we’re committed to empowering you with the tools and strategies you need to achieve true balance, where your career, relationships and health all thrive and where you have the power to define success on your own terms.

  1. 5D AGO

    Why Vulnerability Feels Unsafe for High-Achieving Women

    Four weeks to calm, focus, and clarity: Register for Leverage today (starts Friday 6th February!) When control stops working, what actually builds credibility? We open the door to a different kind of authority: the capacity to stay present, honest, and steady when the ground is moving. Instead of chasing the illusion of certainty, we show how vulnerability becomes a practical leadership skill that strengthens trust, speeds learning, and sets a clear path through chaos. We unpack the old model of leadership built on control, polish, and having all the answers, and why it’s faltering in a world defined by complexity and rapid change. Then we offer the alternative: being human on purpose. That means dropping the masks that drain your energy, acknowledging what you don’t yet know, and pairing that honesty with a simple plan for testing, measuring, and iterating. You’ll hear concrete language you can use with your team, ways to set boundaries without apology, and how to admit mistakes without slipping into defence or self-critique. The heart of this approach is your nervous system. We explore how to stay calm in the mess, decouple identity from outcomes, and avoid the traps of oversharing or performative toughness. Expect practical strategies to reduce over-functioning, move from perfection theatre to real influence, and model a culture where learning happens faster because truth is safe. In a world where AI can mimic polish, your imperfect, present, accountable leadership is the advantage. If the old playbook feels heavy and you’re ready to lead with clarity and courage, this conversation is your next step. Subscribe, share with a friend who’s levelling up their leadership, and leave a review to tell us the one mask you’re ready to drop. Thank you for joining us today on the Balance and Beyond Podcast. We're so glad you carved out this time for yourself! If you’re keen to dive deeper into our world, here are our socials where you can discover more about the toolkit that has helped thousands of women create a life of balance. Website: www.balanceinstitute.com Podcast Website: https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast Email: jo@balanceinstitute.com LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/betterbalanceinstitute/ Instagram: @betterbalanceinstitute Thanks again for tuning in, and we'll see you next time on the Balance & Beyond Podcast!

    17 min
  2. JAN 27

    The Stories We Tell Ourselves

    Ever wonder why a tiny choice—how you part your hair, whether you eat a donut—can spark a wave of judgement in your head? We pull back the curtain on the quiet scripts that turn neutral moments into moral verdicts and show how those stories hardwire your nervous system, shape your identity, and dictate whether rest feels safe or forbidden. From the myth of “I’ll rest when things calm down” to the efficiency trap of “it’s quicker if I do it myself,” we unpack four powerful narratives many women inherit and unknowingly rehearse for decades. You’ll hear how attention in childhood became a proxy for love and safety, why being rewarded for usefulness cements hypervigilance, and how value gets fused to output until slowing down feels like failure. We explore the cost: chronic overfunctioning, comparison that stings, and a body that whispers “enough” while the mind says “more.” Along the way, we bring in somatic insights and a simple focus exercise—the red and yellow scan—that proves how your brain filters reality based on what you ask it to find. When you shift focus, you change the evidence your mind serves up, and that’s where new choices become possible. This conversation is a gentle, practical guide to rewriting your inner script. Label thoughts as stories, not facts. Pair new language with breath, grounding, and micro-rest so the body learns that slower can be safe. Delegate one task fully, leave one email for the morning, and build proof that reliability and rest can co-exist. Change doesn’t arrive in a single revelation; it accrues one word, one response, one boundary at a time. Subscribe for more conversations on redefining success, share this with a woman who needs a softer script, and leave a review to help the show reach the people it’s meant for. Thank you for joining us today on the Balance and Beyond Podcast. We're so glad you carved out this time for yourself! If you’re keen to dive deeper into our world, here are our socials where you can discover more about the toolkit that has helped thousands of women create a life of balance. Website: www.balanceinstitute.com Podcast Website: https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast Email: jo@balanceinstitute.com LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/betterbalanceinstitute/ Instagram: @betterbalanceinstitute Thanks again for tuning in, and we'll see you next time on the Balance & Beyond Podcast!

    18 min
  3. JAN 20

    The Rules That Built Your Success Are Now Working Against You

    If you don’t want to start the year on autopilot, the New Rules for Career Success workshop is for you. Learn how to stop equating speed with value, create space for real perspective, and upgrade the rules that are quietly burning you out. Register here for Day 1 which kicks off Friday 23rd January: www.balanceinstitute.com/rules  The ground rules of work have changed, and running last year’s playbook harder won’t save you. We open the door on a different path: moving from busyness and rescue mode to the rarer skills that now define value — judgment, perspective and discernment. With AI making speed and responsiveness cheap, we explore how to step above the work, stop proving worth through output, and create the space required to lead. We dig into the hidden beliefs that keep high performers stuck: the comfort of a back‑to‑back calendar, the pull of over‑responsibility, and the secret addiction to urgency that makes deadlines feel safer than white space. You’ll hear how accelerated pace and shrinking resources trained us to be firefighters, why that credibility now anchors you in execution, and what shifts help you be seen as direction rather than delivery. We talk practical changes too — protecting thinking time, tightening meeting purpose, delegating execution, and using AI to clear the runway so you can focus on the decisions only you can make. Most importantly, we offer three questions to reset your year before it locks in: what work truly requires your judgment, what tasks you’re holding because busy feels safer than being seen, and how you’d prove value if speed stopped being rewarded tomorrow. If you’re standing between who you were and who you’re becoming, this is your cue to upgrade the operating system of your success. Subscribe, share this with a woman who needs it, and leave a review to help the message reach those ready to lead with space and clarity. Thank you for joining us today on the Balance and Beyond Podcast. We're so glad you carved out this time for yourself! If you’re keen to dive deeper into our world, here are our socials where you can discover more about the toolkit that has helped thousands of women create a life of balance. Website: www.balanceinstitute.com Podcast Website: https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast Email: jo@balanceinstitute.com LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/betterbalanceinstitute/ Instagram: @betterbalanceinstitute Thanks again for tuning in, and we'll see you next time on the Balance & Beyond Podcast!

    11 min
  4. JAN 16

    Speed Was My Advantage. Now It’s My Kryptonite. It’s Becoming Yours Too (Jo Moment)

    Before you blink and 2026 is already underway, join our January 23rd workshop to uncover the unconscious rules shaping your work and redesign how you lead, respond, and create space in your career: www.balanceinstitute.com/rules  We explore how speed becomes a nervous system rule that feels like safety, why AI amplifies it, and what it costs when pace outruns capacity. We share practical ways to upgrade the rule so you keep your edge without burning out or abandoning yourself. • speed as competitive advantage and hidden safety rule • the anxiety of slowing down and earning rest • AI as productivity amplifier and risk to nervous system limits • signs of dysfunction including numbness, irritability and hollow wins • habit of slowing for others while abandoning ourselves • the dream metaphor of leaving without our shoes • the upgrade: keep speed, remove it as the dominant rule • practical shifts to build safety beyond pace “I'm unpacking these rule upgrades in my free workshop starting January 23rd. Help you build safety in places other than speed and create the space and agency so many women are craving.” Thank you for joining us today on the Balance and Beyond Podcast. We're so glad you carved out this time for yourself! If you’re keen to dive deeper into our world, here are our socials where you can discover more about the toolkit that has helped thousands of women create a life of balance. Website: www.balanceinstitute.com Podcast Website: https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast Email: jo@balanceinstitute.com LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/betterbalanceinstitute/ Instagram: @betterbalanceinstitute Thanks again for tuning in, and we'll see you next time on the Balance & Beyond Podcast!

    9 min
  5. JAN 13

    What Stepping Away Taught Me About Coming Back

    Before you blink and 2026 is already underway, join our January 23rd workshop  to uncover the unconscious rules shaping your work and redesign how you lead, respond, and create space in your career: www.balanceinstitute.com/rules  What if the smartest move for 2026 isn’t more control, but more responsiveness? After stepping out of routine during a trip to Vietnam and Cambodia, we saw how thousands of scooters glide through “organised chaos” without aggression. No one clings to a rigid lane. Everyone scans, anticipates, and adjusts in real time. That street-level wisdom exposes why so many driven women feel tense and boxed in: the old success rules reward force and overplanning, while the world now rewards awareness and timing. We unpack the nervous system relief that comes when you drop the micro-management of everyday life, even for a moment. You don’t need a holiday to feel free; you need space. Ten minutes of unscheduled choice can soften reactivity, restore creativity, and invite curiosity back into your day. We share simple, practical ways to weave novelty and movement into a structured life without burning it down—new routes, flexible meals, micro-walks, and tiny experiments that make room for aliveness. History also offers a powerful reframe. Meeting people who carry deep collective trauma yet choose presence and gratitude raised a brave question: what weight are we still dragging? Holding on to old slights keeps us anchored to past versions of ourselves. Letting go doesn’t erase the past; it releases our energy for what matters now. We land on three guiding shifts for the year ahead: flow needs responsiveness not control, freedom needs space not escape, and forward movement needs release not rumination. If you’re successful but quietly frustrated, this conversation is a reset. We outline a January workshop designed to help you examine the rules you’ve been living by and decide what genuinely deserves to come with you into 2026. Subscribe, share with a woman who needs this, and leave a review to help the message reach more ears. Then tell us: what rule are you ready to rewrite? Thank you for joining us today on the Balance and Beyond Podcast. We're so glad you carved out this time for yourself! If you’re keen to dive deeper into our world, here are our socials where you can discover more about the toolkit that has helped thousands of women create a life of balance. Website: www.balanceinstitute.com Podcast Website: https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast Email: jo@balanceinstitute.com LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/betterbalanceinstitute/ Instagram: @betterbalanceinstitute Thanks again for tuning in, and we'll see you next time on the Balance & Beyond Podcast!

    14 min

About

Balance and Beyond is the podcast for ambitious women refusing to accept burnout as the price of success. Here, we’re committed to empowering you with the tools and strategies you need to achieve true balance, where your career, relationships and health all thrive and where you have the power to define success on your own terms.

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