Rewritten: Real Talk for Working Moms Who Want It All

Jess Wass and Teresa Sweeney
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Working mothers are constantly handed a choice: serious career or present mother. Ambition or family. Push harder or burn out. Rewritten rejects that framing entirely. Hosted by longtime friends Jess Wass and Teresa Sweeney, two successful working mothers who started in the same place and took very different paths, Rewritten is real, specific conversations about building a life on your own terms. Because the question was never which half of yourself to sacrifice. It was always: what does your version of a full life look like?

Episodes

  1. 1d ago

    How Do You Define Success?

    Jess and Teresa have both built careers that look like success from the outside. But somewhere along the way, each of them started asking a harder question: successful by whose definition? In this episode, they get honest about how their ideas of success have shifted over the years, what they've had to let go of to make room for what actually matters, and why chasing the next milestone is a game that never ends. The conversation moves from boardrooms to baby schedules, from private equity aspirations to the moment Jess realized she'd move to a small town in the middle of nowhere if it meant keeping the work that lights her up. In this episode: The senior banker who got to the top and wished he'd spent more time with his kids — and why Teresa never forgot the look on his face Why Jess spent most of her twenties assuming she just wouldn't have kids, and the two things that changed her mind The moment Jess realized she'd move out of Brooklyn to keep doing work that fills her up Why Teresa's definition of success shifted from making partner to something she saw in the women who looked genuinely happy, not haggard The Fair Play Method: what it is, why Jess recommends it to clients, and why her daughter now uses the cards as toys How to tell the difference between fake urgency and real urgency, and why most of what consumes your time is the former The "if I died tomorrow" question Jess uses to make decisions, and why it's more useful than any five-year plan Never miss an episode — sign up for the Rewritten newsletter to get new episodes, behind-the-scenes updates, and resources delivered straight to your inbox: reworkit.kit.com/rewritten-waitlist Connect with Jess Wass: jesswass.com Connect with Teresa Sweeney: teresasweeney.com Resources Mentioned In Episode Fair Play by Eve Rodsky - https://www.fairplaylife.com/  Chapters 00:00 Defining Success on Our Own Terms 09:07 Navigating Work-Life Balance 17:35 The Role of Partnership in Parenting 23:20 Consumerism and Parenting Choices 24:25 Redefining Success and Parenting 26:23 Finding Meaning in Work and Life Choices 29:05 Intentional Living and Making Trade-offs 31:14 The Power of Choice and Future Reflection 32:44 Living in the Present vs. Planning for the Future 37:41 Balancing Urgency and Importance in Daily Life 40:00 Looking Forward and Appreciating the Now

    46 min

  2. 1d ago

    How Did We Get Here?

    Every conversation has a starting point. For Jess and Teresa, it's a scholarship interview weekend bus ride at Washington University in St. Louis — two women who would go on to build very different careers, end up in very different versions of success, and somehow stay friends for over 20 years through all of it. This is the origin story. Why they started Rewritten, how they met, and what their paths looked like from a business school hallway in St. Louis to where they are now. Jess built her own coaching and leadership development business after leaving corporate, finally free from asking anyone's permission. Teresa carved her path inside some of the most old-school institutions in finance and corporate life, and figured out how to make it work on her own terms without blowing the whole thing up. They are not the same person. That's the point. Because there is no one right way to build a career you're proud of, a family that works, and a life that actually feels like yours. And the whole reason this podcast exists is to show you more than one version of what that can look like — and to be honest about the cost, the trade-offs, and the moments where nothing felt figured out at all. This episode is where it all starts. Pull up a chair. In this episode: Why two already overscheduled working moms decided to add a podcast to their plates — and what they hope it does for you How Jess and Teresa first met and the generous act Jess forgot about The career trajectories that took them from the same starting point to completely different destinations — and why both worked The moment Teresa stopped waiting for permission and realized her life was hers to create Why Jess left corporate entirely — and what being a Black woman in those environments had to do with that decision The role mentorship and community played in both of their careers, and why they want to pay that forward What Rewritten is really about: not having it all, but having what actually matters to you Never miss an episode — sign up for the Rewritten newsletter to get new episodes, behind-the-scenes updates, and resources delivered straight to your inbox: reworkit.kit.com/rewritten-waitlist Connect with Jess Wass: jesswass.com Connect with Teresa Sweeney: teresasweeney.com Resources Mentioned in Episode Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela Druckerman - https://bookshop.org/p/books/bringing-up-b-b-one-american-mother-discovers-the-wisdom-of-french-parenting-pamela-druckerman/5c6559b3e282ff61?ean=9780143122968&next=t  Maven Milk Breastfeeding Support - https://www.mavenclinic.com/maven-milk  Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Rewritten Podcast 03:19 The Motivation Behind Starting a Podcast 06:15 Navigating Career Changes as Women 08:49 The Importance of Mentorship and Community 11:49 Defining Success on Your Own Terms 14:50 The Journey of Self-Discovery in Careers 17:18 Embracing Change and Taking Risks 20:21 Reflecting on Career Paths and Lessons Learned 21:44 Embracing Unique Experiences 23:08 Navigating Motherhood and Work-Life Balance 24:47 Empowerment in Career Choices 27:42 Defining Personal Success 29:01 Creating Family Values and Routines 31:42 The Importance of Self-Care for Parents 34:29 Finding Happiness and Success 37:47 Diverse Paths to Fulfillment

    44 min
  • 2 Episodes

About

Working mothers are constantly handed a choice: serious career or present mother. Ambition or family. Push harder or burn out. Rewritten rejects that framing entirely. Hosted by longtime friends Jess Wass and Teresa Sweeney, two successful working mothers who started in the same place and took very different paths, Rewritten is real, specific conversations about building a life on your own terms. Because the question was never which half of yourself to sacrifice. It was always: what does your version of a full life look like?

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