Power of the Pivot Podcast Susan Salzman

When you don’t know the answer, you ask. But when you don’t know who to ask, you have to find the answer on your own. This is what Pamela Weinburg’s road to pregnancy looked like. 
Growing up in the suburbs then living in the city during her pregnancy, she had to do her own research around the neighborhood about newborn essentials. This led to writing a resource guide for parents living in the city entitled City Baby New York. 
In today’s episode, Pamela talks about her childhood dreams and how they somewhat came true, her father’s influence on her career, growing up in a middle-class family, and how she jumped from being an author to a career coach. Listen to her stories about wanting to buy a Frye Boots at the age of 15 to watching The Bachelor and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and New York as a way to relax and more.
Pamela is currently a Certified Career Coach working with individuals in all stages of their career development—from college students to moms to young professionals. 
Highlights

[14:52] You know what I realized about public speaking? I think still if I had to present in an advertising agency for a new business, I’ll still be nervous like I was, but when I’m speaking now, I’m speaking about things that I love and I’m so passionate about. And it’s all about helping other people. 
[31:25] Working with them (college students) is keeping me so current in what’s going on in the job market, learning about how marketing companies use TikTok to sell their products, learning so much lingo from them.
[32:02] I just find it fascinating to have this exposure to so many different types of careers and types of people, and I’m such an extrovert, and I get my energy a lot from other people, so I look forward to learning from each client.
[33:09] I’m never afraid to ask questions. And I hope that that is a good example for my clients who are young, who may be in a meeting, who isn’t afraid to say like “Can you explain that? I don’t know what that acronym means”. I love to learn.
Links
Get a daily dose of professional career advice and other tips from Pamela Weinburg on her Instagram @pamelaweinbergcareercoach and on her website.
You can also purchase her book City Baby New York here.

When you’re exposed to the showbiz industry at a very young age, your life seems to be heading that way. It isn’t the case for actor Romy Rosemont.  
Her father was a show producer which contributed to all she has known about the entertainment industry. At around 10 years old, she already knew that she wanted to be an actress because she wanted people to make people laugh, cry, and feel things. But before she landed a role on the small screen, she jumped from different jobs: a waitress and then an executive assistant.
In this episode, Romy gives a glimpse of her early life as a student at Northwestern University starring on improv shows which she eventually directed in her senior year, how she wanted to pursue theater, and how these experiences influenced her acting skills. Being cast as a recurring character on Glee as Finn Hudson (Corey Monteith)’s mom, she looks back on some important realizations she had with the role. She also gives some life advice on how to balance passion and work, the wonders of surrounding yourself with good people, and how to find your voice especially in situations you don’t have control of. 
More importantly, Romy talks about her advocacy on SAG-AFTRA, the acronym for Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, and why she wants to run for a position, get involved, and be elected as a part of the local board.

Highlights
[21:30] When you are that successful in the industry now, so much is asked of you. And if you really want to use your power for good, it’s best to have someone to help you organize that. 
[23:42] Nothing ever got off the ground because the truth is, when you create a business like that, it’s 24/7.
[25:07] Here’s also a gift: you surround yourself with the most amazing people. 
[26:25] I’ve found that, especially in the pandemic, is that I find myself more authentic with people that I just started “dating”, it’s because you get to be who you are now, and then you get to share your history, and you share all of the stuff.
[32:38] You do have to get to the point of acceptance, and my thing is that “I might accept it, but I might not like it”. 
[40:55] What happens is that you are constantly reminded that you can be replaced. It’s like everyone is dispensable. And as an actor, that’s really heart-wrenching. We’re the biggest creative people. And what happens is that only 21% of actors voted last time. 
[49:39] I think that those closest to me know that in good times and bad, and kind of especially in bad, that I have their back, that they can exhale from time to time. 
Links
Check out Romy Rosemont’s fun food videos and photos of her new pup Archie, a rescue dog from Tobies Small Dog Rescue, on her Instagram and other life updates on her Twitter.  Watch Romy on YouTube with the Bitter Party.
Get to know more about Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), their advocacies, and activities on their website. Don’t forget to vote if you’re a member of the organization, and if you aren’t, sign up now.

When things aren’t going your way, it’s easy to get sidetracked into thinking that you can never work on your passion and achieve your dream. 
In reality, there are a lot of different paths towards the future you’re imagining for yourself. There will be a lot of ups and downs, but you just need to learn how to trust the process. 
Julia Myles, an ex BBC Director turned Confident Speaker Coach, went through a series of events in her life that seemed all over the place. Taking in as many skills and knowledge, she discovered her true passion which led her to where she is today.   
In this podcast episode, you will learn the importance of confidence and how each of your experiences plays a role in the future.

Highlights
[7:55] Find ways on how you can achieve your dream, regardless of how pointless and boring it can be
[9:15] Keep moving and do your best whether or not it is where you want to be, you’ll soon realize you’re on the right path
[14:00] Taking breaks and facing challenges doesn’t mean you’re on the wrong path. They will all come together in the end and actually lead you to a better path, one you have never imagined. 
[19:05] It doesn’t matter if you have a lot of opportunities. If you don’t take action, those opportunities will all be missed.
[23:20] If things aren’t going your way, how you choose to look at the situation makes all the difference. 
[24:25] Pick up and learn everything you can. Master and many skills and take in as much knowledge. They will all become useful in the future, while you work on your passion. 

[27:10] You are filled with strengths and some of them are innate. You just have to understand it, accept it, and know when it’s best to use them.
[31:50] All the skills you’ve mastered will all come together in the end. You just need to have the confidence to apply them in the right situations. 
[33:45] Learn to collaborate and delegate tasks. Most importantly, trust that the people you’ve asked help from, will and can deliver. 
[36:10] Trust and have faith that your dreams will happen in the future. After all the struggles, everything will become better and you’ll realize that they were all worthwhile. 

Links
Learn more about Julia Myles on her website and join her summit to learn how to be your own business celebrity. 

They say life starts when you realize you’re living one, but in the case of full-time mom Sharon Brecher, that one cathartic moment in her life that changed everything was when her eldest daughter started to move out for college. Her pent-up emotions and feelings about midlife crisis all the while being a mom gave birth to Miserable Moms, an unfiltered comic relief about moms for moms made by a mom. 
In this episode, Sharon talks about her eureka moment in grad school and a newfound interest in using educational software that landed her a job at FutureKids, then Disney Interactive and Disney Online. She also shares how she started Miserable Moms out of emotions, the idea behind each illustration she creates, and her two- to five-year vision and plan following the success of her naturally funny comics.
Show Highlights:
[20:35] I think the biggest thing is that, first of all, I’m loving what I’m doing. It’s fun. So when you’re enjoying it, it makes it a little bit easier even when it’s terrifying, and even when you don’t know where it's going. 
[23:16] It’s really hard sometimes to let yourself be vulnerable, right? You feel like it’s just really raw to share what you’re thinking and feeling, whether it’s in an illustration or something you’ve written or something that you’ve cooked. Whatever it is, when you’re sharing it out there, there’s a vulnerability to it.  
[23:45] But I really think that being more honest about what we’re going through, about those day-to-day things, the more we can all relate to it. 
Guest Links:
If you want to discuss any idea, scenario or have your thoughts illustrated through Miserable Moms, you can submit it on their website here, or send a voice dm on Instagram @miserablemoms. Don’t forget to follow them on Instagram and like their Facebook page to get your daily dose of raw motherhood life stories that will definitely make you laugh. 

The term ‘virtual assistant’ wasn’t a thing yet if you look back even just several years ago. 

But in today’s digital age, it’s considered one of the most in-demand online jobs there is. 
Emily Reagan is one of the first few virtual assistants (VA) who started a decade ago, long before she was able to refer to herself as one. Being a VA is something she saw herself doing for a long time since she’s a military spouse moving from one city to another. A few years after her first stint as a VA, she now teaches digital marketing and helps women venture into being a virtual assistant career path.
In this episode, we talked about how to apply and land a job as a VA, what skills and tools are needed to get that VA position, and the advantages of working in a digital space.
Show Highlights:
[9:51] Business owners are scared to hire, they want someone they can trust so they can keep it in-house.
[40:24] You can be almost any kind of VA, like anything you used to do, especially in an office or for work, translated online. You just need your eyes open to that and you need to update with the lingo, and the software, and the platforms. 
[40:52] You can’t go in with a negative attitude or a closed mindset. You have to be willing to take on that challenge and learn.
Guest Links:
Know more about Emily Reagan, her Digital Media VA Crash Course, and more resources through her website here. 

We all love good food, but did you know that what people eat during their younger years can hugely impact their eating habits and choices in the long run? If you want kids to be healthy, you gotta start them young.
This existing problem is what Amber Stott wants to address through food and nutrition literacy programs. Listen to how she talks passionately about the importance of childhood nutrition in schools. 
She also speaks about the unfamiliarity of people on local produce, her experiences with nonprofit organizations and food banks like Freedom from Hunger, working with nutrition and education experts and world-renowned chefs like Jaime Oliver and Alice Waters, and the hopes in building a cooking school integrated with the usual classroom schedule in the near future.
Amber Stott is a food activist and author who founded the nonprofit Food Literacy Center, focused on educating and changing the kids’ attitude towards food. She also started farm to school state-wide programs and pushed forward a resolution declaring every September as Food Literacy Month in California. 
Show Highlights:
[18:55] There’s only 4% of the kids in America, in all of America, we only have 4% of kids who eat the recommended amount of daily vegetables.
[25:06] Food Literacy Center’s approach was always not to reverse childhood obesity but to get out in front of it, same as what we’re doing in Covid. We wanted to prevent childhood obesity in the kids that we serve, we don’t want them to ever face that problem.
[38:10] This is about raising the bar of the importance of food literacy education within the school system. Food education is as important as science and reading and math and that’s the kind of systems change that we ultimately want to see.
Guest Links:
Amber Stott wrote a hands-on guide book for children entitled ‘Food Anatomy Activities for Kids: Fun, Hands-On Learning’ and talks about how people can use food to make the world a better place in her podcast called Raising Kale. You can donate and volunteer in the Food Literacy Center here.