AI-Empowered Mom

Amanda Benson spent 20 years in emerging tech running one strategy: do more, then do more than that. When AI arrived she used it the way an overachiever would. Then her body told her the strategy was finished. What came next is the framework at the center of this conversation with host Sarah Dooley . "Remember. Release. Intentionally Add." Amanda walks through what it means to remember who you were before the world told you who to be, release what stopped serving you, and add back only the support you actually chose, whether that is AI, a therapist, a teammate, or kids who finally fold their own laundry. We also get into the question I could not resist asking. Can you be a systems person and a breath work person at the same time? Amanda says yes, and the story she tells about a field of rabbits in the Swedish countryside is the reason. Her company is called AI+You Studio , and the name is the whole thesis. AI is at its best when you are at your best. Why Amanda went all in on AI at the end of 2022 Training AI to be your executive coach when overwhelm hits Remember, release, and intentionally add, explained Why adding more tools can leave you more overwhelmed Why the future of AI is human led The case for picking one AI tool and going deep 2 apps vibe coded in a single weekend 00:00 A word from Nookly00:51 Welcome to AI-Empowered Mom02:18 Meet Amanda Benson02:47 20 years in emerging tech, and one big hunch03:40 Using AI to overachieve, and why it stopped working05:00 AI as an executive coach06:14 What stays uniquely human06:37 Remember, release, and intentionally add08:10 Waking up from the bubble at the end of your thirties10:50 The girl in the field12:50 Systems and breath work in the same room13:06 Chatbot mode13:27 One Swedish habit worth borrowing, plus fika14:16 What is in her tech stack14:46 A win to celebrate15:53 Where to find Amanda16:34 Sarah's takeaway "AI is at its best when you are at your best." Amanda Benson WholeSum app and podcast: wholesumos.comSocial: @whatsnewamandaAI+You Studio Instagram: @aiempoweredmomFree weekly newsletter, every Sunday night: aiempoweredmom.comEmail: contact@aiempoweredmom.com If this episode gave you an idea or made your mental load feel lighter, follow the show and leave a rating or review. It helps other parents and caregivers find us. Nookly. You set the goal, Nookly builds the plan with personalized stories, activities, songs, and videos for your child. Visit nookly.com and use code AIMUM25 for 25% off, or visit here . Top Shelf. A 3-day retreat for ambitious women in tech and go-to-market, built around one idea: you deserve a real reset. Career and personal brand sessions, sound baths, wine country, and room to think about what is next. Co-founded by Jennifer Ortegon, visit https://topshelfretreat.com/ The Stepmom Summit . Now in its 6th year. This year's theme is Out Loud. It is free, fully virtual, and fully live, with 30 or more speakers including therapists, lawyers, professors, authors, and AI experts. Sarah is speaking this year. Register here: https://thestepmomsummit.com/registration?am_id=sarah8379

This episode is sponsored by Ask Proxy™, a personal AI assistant for your parents' generation. Gift a free month: https://askproxy.com/gifting/ (code AIMOM) or explore Proxy for yourself: https://app.askproxy.com/purchase (code AIMOM) Do you consider yourself ambitious? In a room full of accomplished women in a program literally called Women Who Mean Business, that question turned out to be surprisingly divisive. This week, host Sarah Dooley sits down with Dr. Anne Welsh, licensed clinical psychologist, executive coach, and author of the new book Ambitious Mother, to talk about why the word ambitious feels so loaded for so many mothers, and what it actually means to want something for yourself. Anne shares her own winding path, from an acceptance letter to medical school she turned down, to building a dream job at Harvard, to walking away from that too when she asked to go part time after her second child and was told it was not an option. She talks about reframing ambition as a web instead of a ladder, why motherhood can expand ambition instead of shrinking it, and what happened when she asked an AI tool to change the font color on her book cover and it renamed the whole thing instead. In this episode: 1. Anne's path from medical school to psychology to Harvard to building her own practice 2. What a portfolio career actually looks like, and how Anne built hers one piece at a time 3. Inside her book, Ambitious Mother: the ambition paradox, the motherhood advantage, and healthy striving 4. The question that divides a room: are you ambitious? 5. Reframing ambition as a web instead of a ladder 6. How motherhood can expand ambition instead of shrinking it 7. Where AI helps, where it doesn't, and the gender bias in how AI use gets judged at work 8. The day AI renamed Anne's book, and what it revealed about bias in AI 9. Rapid-fire round with Anne About Dr. Anne Welsh: Anne is a licensed clinical psychologist, certified executive coach, and author of Ambitious Mother, available now everywhere books are sold and on Audible. The book profiles 8 women who are ambitious for very different things. Find Anne at drannewelsh.com or on Instagram and LinkedIn at Dr. Anne Welsh. If this episode gave you a little more clarity about your own ambition, follow AI-Empowered Mom and leave a rating or review. It truly helps other parents and caregivers find the show. Have a topic you want us to cover? Reach out at contact@aiempoweredmom.com or find us on Instagram @aiempoweredmom.

Think about the last time you went somewhere brand new all on your own, and had to figure everything out yourself. Now think about the last time someone said, let me take you, I'll show you around. That difference is what this episode is about. If you have been on the fence about AI, if you have never heard of Web3, if you have no idea what blockchain means, this is your invitation. This week, host Sarah Dooley sits down with Megan Murray , finance and operations strategist, founder of Leoluna Finance Collective, board member of the Austin AI Alliance , and co-founder of ATX Women in Web3 . Sponsored by Ask Proxy™ This episode is sponsored by Ask Proxy™. My friend Christine built Ask Proxy™ after watching so many of us become the tech support line for our own aging parents. Proxy is a personal AI assistant that works entirely by text message, so there is no new tech for your parents to learn. It checks in on them proactively with reminders and stays available for questions, which means fewer of those calls land on you. Check it out yourself by signing up at https://askproxy.com/ for only $39 per month, or gift a free month to your own parents with code AIMOM so they know I sent you. Chapters 00:00 Your invitation to try something new00:27 A word from our sponsor, Ask Proxy™02:28 Meet Megan Murray03:17 Why the AI gap may be about invitation, not resistance04:04 Does this pattern hold everywhere?05:33 The fear cycle that comes with every new technology06:36 Web3 explained, starting all the way back at Web108:35 Where AI and blockchain solve each other's problems10:51 The same gap, showing up again in Web313:14 Femme Founder Bootcamp and the Austin AI Alliance14:49 One small thing to try this week In this conversation: Why the gap in AI use has more to do with who gets invited than who is willing A plain-language primer on Web3, starting all the way back at Web1 How stablecoins are already changing what small businesses pay to accept your payment Why blockchain may become the thing that puts real guardrails on AI agents, including spending limits before your agent books a flight The smallest possible first step for anyone who has used AI zero hours this week, using what is already in your fridge Connect with Megan Murray: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megankaymurray Austin AI Alliance: Events calendar and fall in-person sessions: https://austin-ai.org/ Femme Founder Bootcamp, Season 3: A 6-week virtual cohort from ATX Women in Web3 and AI for femme-identifying founders at any stage, including idea stage. Sessions run Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1 to 2:30pm CT, kicking off September 29 and wrapping with an in-person Founder Showcase in Austin on November 4. Founders get expert-led curriculum, mentorship, a founder community forum, hands-on work applied to their business, and partner resources. Full details and early bird registration: https://www.atxwiw3.com/bootcamp Free in-person info sessions:Houston, Wednesday September 16: https://luma.com/md44uj83 Dallas, Thursday September 17: https://luma.com/ebupl0wz Connect with AI-Empowered Mom Website and Newsletter: https://AIEmpoweredMom.com Instagram: @aiempoweredmom Email: contact@aiempoweredmom.com If this episode gave you a little clarity or taught you something new, please follow the show and leave a review. It really helps other parents and caregivers find us and means a lot!

AI is already showing up in your kids' classrooms, and most parents don't know it. In this episode, host Sarah Dooley sits down with Shreya Gulati, founder of Moms Build AI, a community of more than 3,000 moms learning, using, and building with AI, to talk about what's actually happening with AI policy right now, where the guardrails fall short, and what parents and caregivers can do about it today. Shreya spent a decade in corporate tech building data and partnership ecosystems before becoming a mother, and now works as an angel investor and startup advisor alongside running Moms Build AI. She and Sarah get into the lessons AI regulation should be learning from social media, the disclosure gap behind tools like Gemini reaching classrooms, how other countries are approaching AI guardrails for kids, and two simple things any parent can do to start advocating today. In this episode: Why AI policy needs to learn from social media's slow, reactive regulation The disclosure gap behind AI tools reaching classrooms without parents knowing Why opt out isn't good enough for kids, and what opt in could look like instead How the US, the EU, and individual states are approaching AI guardrails differently Two things parents can actually do this week to start advocating for their kids Episode Chapters 0:36 Meet Shreya Gulati, founder of Moms Build AI 2:13 A day in Shreya's life: motherhood, a cross-country move, and a career pivot 3:38 What Moms Build AI is, and why moms need to lean into AI 5:32 What parents actually picture when they hear "AI regulation" 6:54 The biggest lesson AI policy should take from social media regulation 8:54 The Google Gemini classroom rollout and the disclosure gap it exposed 11:04 From opt in to opt out: how tech permissions quietly shifted 12:29 Why kids need different protections than adults 13:35 How the EU and other countries are approaching AI guardrails 16:35 What this looks like in practice: two things parents can do this week 19:52 Chatbot mode: rapid fire with Shreya 23:52 Closing thoughts and where to find Moms Build AI Connect with Shreya Gulati and Moms Build AI on Instagram at @momsbuildai, browse free resources including her return to work AI kit at momsbuildai.com, and subscribe to her Substack newsletter for ongoing insights on kids, AI, and family policy. Follow AI-Empowered Mom on Instagram and TikTok at @aiempoweredmom, subscribe to the newsletter at aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com, and send your questions or topic ideas to contact@aiempoweredmom.com . If this episode helped clarify what's happening with AI policy, follow the show and leave a quick rating or review. It helps other parents and caregivers find us.

My daughter told me a YouTuber saves puppies for a living. She was so sure of it that we sat down and watched the video together, and it turned out to be a character, a bit, nothing close to real. That one small moment cracked open a much bigger conversation, and it is exactly why I wanted to sit down with Jim Festante. Jim is the Executive Director of Health-e-Habits and a 20-year veteran of the video game and tech industries, with a background that runs through Slate Magazine, Xbox, Microsoft, Adobe, and Meta. He is also a dad, and he built this work after his Big Brothers Big Sisters mentee started repeating outlandish claims picked up from YouTube. We get into where AI actually lives inside video games, the difference between what Jim calls a sandbox and a casino, and why free-to-play games can end up being the most expensive games in the house. We also talk about the emerging link between certain game mechanics and gambling, and what Jim's new tool, the Video Game Mini Map, is built to do for parents who do not know where to start. If you have ever felt behind on the games your kids play, this conversation will hand you a real framework instead of more guilt. WHAT YOU WILL HEAR IN THIS EPISODE: 00:12 Welcome02:15 Jim's path from web design to Slate, Xbox, and Meta03:39 The Big Brothers Big Sisters moment that started this work04:33 Sarah's own YouTube moment with her daughter07:12 Living in the messy middle, and building media literacy with local schools08:28 Where AI actually shows up inside video games09:59 Why parents get scared of games, and the sandbox versus the casino11:44 Free-to-play games and the most expensive hat you will ever buy12:52 One household, two different starting points on gaming13:27 Why getting your own profile changes everything15:27 Building the Video Game Mini Map18:16 The link between game mechanics and gambling20:48 What companies know and why nothing changes without regulation21:53 Jim's one word for parents: communication23:52 The CapCut conversation with his 8-year-old son25:17 Quick Chatbot Mode with Jim26:34 Where to find Jim and the Video Game Mini Map27:16 Closing thoughts CONNECT WITH JIM: Website: health-e-habits.org CONNECT WITH AI-EMPOWERED MOM: Instagram: @aiempoweredmomNewsletter: https://aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com/ Email: contact@aiempoweredmom.com Sarah also mentions her upcoming live webinar with collaborator Carla Greenan, Your Best Self, Empowered by AI, on August 25. Find details on Instagram @aiempoweredmom or by emailing contact@aiempoweredmom.com . New to AI and not sure where to begin? The AI-Empowered Mom free mini-podcast is a low-pressure place to start. Six short episodes for parents and caregivers who want to get started without the overwhelm. Find it at aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com/mini-podcast If this conversation shifted how you think about your kid's screen time, follow the podcast and leave a quick rating or review. It helps other parents and caregivers find the show.

Katie Blouin built an inventory system to keep small businesses from drowning in spreadsheets. Then she pointed that same systems thinking at her own kitchen table and built a chief of staff agent that reads school newsletters, tracks groceries, and makes sure her kids never miss crazy hat day. Sarah sits down with Katie Blouin, CEO and co-founder of Larken and founder of KLB Advisory, to talk about what happens when a founder's business systems meet a household of three kids. Katie walks through how she built her household AI agent using Claude and MCP connectors, why she still keeps financial information locked down even as she automates almost everything else, and what she says to parents who feel guilty about handing tasks off to AI. They also dig into a viral article about a mom running her household with a full staff of named AI agents, whether that is where all of our homes are headed, and how Katie's background as a former IP attorney shapes the way she thinks about who owns the tools we build. Plus, her honest take on non-technical AI adoption, one hard rule she will never break at Larken, and a recent win from the founder community she just launched. If you have ever wondered whether the systems thinking that runs a business could also run a household, this episode is for you. CHAPTERS 00:00 Welcome and introduction01:14 A day in the life of a founder and mom of three02:39 Building an inventory system with AI at Larken05:06 The chief of staff agent she built for her own home06:25 How she actually built it, tools and connections08:04 Why you do not need to be technical to start08:41 The Cut article and a household run by named AI agents10:51 The guilt parents feel about handing tasks to AI12:37 Crazy hat day and other wins at home14:21 An IP attorney's take on who owns your AI agents15:36 Chatbot mode with Katie17:17 Where to find Katie and KLB Advisory18:22 Quick hits and a McDonald's order18:46 One takeaway for parents and caregivers CONNECT WITH KATIE Website: katieblouin.comSubstack: substack.com/@katieblouinLarken: shoplarken.com CONNECT WITH SARAH Newsletter: aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.comInstagram and TikTok: @aiempoweredmomEmail: contact@aiempoweredmom.com Join Sarah for a live webinar, Your Best Self, Empowered by AI, on August 25th. Details on Instagram @aiempoweredmom. If this episode resonated with you, please follow and leave a rating or review. It helps other parents and caregivers find the show.

Most families have a project manager, they just never got the job title or the paycheck. This week, Hannah Morgan, founder and CEO of Heron House Management, joins the show to talk about the mental load, where AI genuinely helps carry it, and where the real relief still has to come from people, not tools. Hannah shares how she built the first virtual house management service designed to sit between a family assistant and a full time house manager, why she is known as the pit bull of project management, and what it actually looks like when a family outsources the anticipating and planning, not just the tasks. We also dig into 2 recent pieces, one from The New Yorker and one from Wired, that take opposite views on whether AI can truly lighten the mental load or just reshuffles it, and Hannah gives her honest take. In this episode: 00:00 – Welcome, and introducing Hannah Morgan 01:00 – A day in Hannah's busy season with 3 kids 01:48 – Where "pit bull of project management" came from, and the origin of Heron House Management 03:24 – What it actually looks like to work with a house manager 05:07 – Why the mental load lands disproportionately on women 08:35 – Reacting to recent New Yorker and Wired pieces on AI and family labor 11:18 – Using a RACI chart at home to bring clarity instead of nagging 14:03 – Chatbot mode: favorite AI tools, paddleboard vs. walking pad, top productivity books 15:34 – Celebrating 3 years of Heron House Management 16:12 – Where to find Hannah and Heron House Management 16:36 – Hannah's final takeaway for parents Connect with Hannah Morgan: Heron House Management: heronhousemanagement.com Listen to her podcast, Destress the Nest Connect with AI-Empowered Mom: Newsletter: aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com Website: AIEmpoweredMom.com Follow along: @aiempoweredmom

What happens when the thing you built to save you time still needs you to catch its mistakes? Danielle Matarasso found out the hard way, over a school lunch order. Host Sarah Dooley sits down with Danielle Matarasso , founder of Numeriq Advisors and writer of the newsletter AI After Carpool, to talk about the day AI ordered her son a cookie instead of lunch. It starts as a funny mix-up and turns into a real conversation about where AI can lighten the load for parents and caregivers, and where it still needs a parent's judgment. Danielle and Sarah talk about the pull that led Danielle to leave a stable career in tech to build something of her own, the business she almost bought because AI kept agreeing with her, and how she keeps her kids' personal information out of the algorithm at home, even as she leans on it for family trip planning and age-appropriate activity ideas. They also get into what Danielle hopes and fears for her 3 kids growing up with AI as a normal part of life, a few ways to catch AI when it is just telling you what you want to hear, the AI tools actually in her weekly rotation, and a low-tech parenting hack that has nothing to do with AI at all. In This Episode: The cookie: what happened and what it taught her You can't outsource intuition How Danielle got introduced to AI AI as a work companion versus a family companion Keeping kids' information out of the algorithm Hopes and fears for her 3 kids in 10 years Leaving a stable tech career to build her own path The business she almost bought, and AI's blind spot How to avoid AI's yes man tendency Chatbot Mode: Danielle's go-to AI tools What Danielle hopes parents take away If you have ever built a system to make family life easier and watched it half work, this episode is for you. Danielle's story is a reminder that AI can carry real weight in a busy household, but the judgment still belongs to the parent holding the calendar. Whether you are weighing a career pivot of your own or just trying to keep school lunches straight, there is something here to take with you. Connect with Danielle Matarasso:Newsletter, AI After Carpool: https://www.aiaftercarpool.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-matarasso/ Connect with AI-Empowered Mom:Newsletter: https://aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com/ Instagram: @aiempoweredmomWebsite: AIEmpoweredMom.com

There is a particular kind of exhaustion that comes from doing everything and still feeling like it is never enough. In this episode, host Sarah Dooley sits down with Courtney Cecil, founder of Working Moms Movement and host of The Life Management System podcast, to talk about why so much of the friction in family life traces back to one quiet question: what do you actually value? Courtney brings an industrial and systems engineering background to the parts of life that feel heaviest. She walks through her Three W's framework, what you value, what you prioritize, and what you spend, and shows how naming those three things can bring your time, money, and energy back into alignment. Along the way she reframes boundaries as something you build to protect what matters, not walls that keep people out, and she shares how she treats AI as a simple delegation tool that takes real decisions off her plate. If you have ever set a goal and kept breaking it, this conversation offers a kinder explanation and a clearer place to begin. As Courtney puts it, if everything is a priority, nothing is. When something keeps slipping, it usually means you are prioritizing something else, and that is allowed. Chapters: 00:13 Welcome and why doing everything still feels like not enough 01:07 Courtney's life now: leaving corporate, two boys, an 80-hour passion 01:58 What she misses about corporate and what she is embracing 02:50 The biggest mistake families make and the Three W's framework 04:54 Why it is so hard to see your own priorities 05:15 The calendar audit and where we bleed time and energy 07:00 Bringing AI into calendar management and prioritization 07:18 AI as a delegation tool and the 10-80-10 approach 09:36 Helping families who feel hesitant to delegate to AI 10:29 The one boundary Courtney holds firm around AI and client trust 10:49 Boundaries as a fence you can open and close 12:19 Problem-solving friction and putting systems in place to protect what works 13:34 The reading goal, the Duolingo streak, and why priorities have winners and losers 14:38 Chatbot Mode: club sports, a recent win, and the one takeaway for parents 17:13 Closing thoughts and where to find Courtney Connect with Courtney Cecil: Instagram @workingmomsmovementWebsite workingmomsmovement.comPodcast The Life Management System Connect with AI-Empowered Mom: Instagram @aiempoweredmomWebsite aiempoweredmom.com If this conversation resonated, follow the AI-Empowered Mom Podcast and leave a quick rating or review. It really helps other parents and caregivers find us.

Sunday evening used to mean a couple of hours of planning for Melissa Regan : cookbooks spread across the counter, kids' schedules stacked up, a running list of things to figure out before Monday arrived. Now that same setup takes a fraction of the time, and the hours she reclaims go straight back to her family. Melissa is an executive coach and consultant who works with leaders and sales teams on operations, communication, and business growth. She is also raising three boys at home, managing a household largely on her own during the weeks her husband travels for work. She did not come to AI with a tech background. She came to it as someone who needed to be efficient in the limited hours she works, and who wanted to actually be present when the workday ended. In this conversation, Melissa and host Sarah Dooley dig into what that shift looked like in real life: the Sunday setup meeting Melissa holds for herself, how AI handles the planning she would rather not do, and how she consciously redirected the time it freed up toward board games, swim meets, and being on the sideline. One idea from the conversation that may stick with you: Melissa draws on a concept from the book Essentialism, that if something is not a "hell yes," it is a no. But as she points out, parents do not always have the privilege of saying no. Meal planning has to happen. The calendar has to get organized. Her adaptation is simple: if it is not a hell yes, but it still has to get done, give it to AI. This episode is for anyone who has stared down Sunday evening and felt the weight of everything that has to happen before the week can start. What we talk about: • The Sunday setup meeting and what it used to cost her • Using AI for meal planning, packing lists, gift ideas, and calendar coordination • The "not a hell yes but it has to be done" principle for deciding what to hand off • How she uses AI with her own coaching clients in live sessions • Consciously reallocating saved time to presence with her family • What an AI-empowered future could look like for parents who feel stretched thin Timestamps: • [00:00] The Sunday scaries and why they hit so hard • [00:50] Meet Melissa: three boys, a dog, and a business built around her family schedule • [02:37] How AI changed her professional workflow first • [04:56] Her consultative coaching philosophy and bringing AI into client sessions • [07:07] Prompting approaches and why iteration beats perfection • [09:37] Where AI made the biggest difference: home life • [10:14] The Sunday setup meeting, before and after • [11:40] Essentialism 2.0: if it is not a hell yes, but it has to happen, give it to AI • [12:35] More use cases: outfits, packing, gift planning • [13:08] Where the saved time actually goes: presence with her family • [14:12] What an AI-empowered future could mean for stretched parents • [15:56] Chatbot Mode: morning routines, how she resets, advice for her past self Guest: Melissa Regan is an executive coach and consultant working with leaders and sales teams on operations, communication, and growth. Find her on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/melissaregan. Connect with AI-Empowered Mom: • Newsletter and Em waitlist: AIEmpoweredMom.com • Email: contact@aiempoweredmom.com • Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok: @aiempoweredmom

AI might already be helping you with meals, trips, reminders here and there. But what if it could do more? What if AI could hold the whole context of your life, your family's food restrictions, your career goals, your startup pitch, even your partner's job search, so you don't have to carry it all in your head? Toni Toomey is the founder of Hone , a premium postpartum apparel brand launching this September, and a full-time healthtech professional at Virgo. She recently relocated cross-country from North Idaho to San Diego with her toddler daughter, and she uses AI as her second brain across every part of her life. In this episode, Toni walks through exactly how she does it. She explains her meal planning setup: a Saturday morning agent that pulls from a Notion recipe library, applies her family's real preferences and restrictions, and generates a ready-to-use grocery list. She shares how she built an automated job search system for her husband after a layoff, one that scored daily matches and delivered customized resumes and cover letters straight to his inbox. She talks about the founding of Hone, which started with a board meeting, a pump, and a dress that would not cooperate. And she makes a case for AI literacy as one of the most important things parents can invest in right now, not to optimize their productivity, but to stay close enough to understand the world their children are growing up inside of. CHAPTERS 01:21 Moving cross-country with a toddler: chaos, grace, and a missing kettle base 03:27 Before and after AI: how the mental load shifted 05:33 Meal planning with AI: context files, Notion recipe library, and a Saturday morning agent 08:47 What is a markdown file and why structured context makes AI smarter 10:47 Automating a spouse's job search: daily scored matches, custom resumes, and cover letters 14:05 How her husband went from zero AI experience to building automations in four months 14:34 Women, AI, and why the gender gap in tech no longer has a gate 17:45 The board meeting pumping moment that started Hone 21:38 Hone: Italian-made, natural fibers, rental program, and certified secondhand 23:26 Chatbot Mode: pumping at work tips, the one task she will never hand to AI, and surfing with a toddler 27:57 What Toni wants every parent to take away CONNECT WITH TONI Instagram: @toni.toomey Website: wearhone.com Vote for Toni for Super Mom: https://thesupermom.org/2026/toni-toomey CONNECT WITH AI-EMPOWERED MOM Website: AIEmpoweredMom.com Newsletter: aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com Instagram: @aiempoweredmom Contact: contact@aiempoweredmom.com

Have you ever thought about where "mom guilt" actually comes from? JoAnn Crohn, founder of No Guilt Mom, references Dr. Jennifer Reid's "guilt equation" to help decode it: your expectations of what a good mom looks like, minus what you are actually able to do on any given day, and that gap is where your guilt lives. The fix is not to do more. It is to look carefully at where those expectations came from in the first place. JoAnn is the host of the No Guilt Mom podcast, author of The Best Mom is a Happy Mom, a former fifth grade teacher, a recovered entertainment industry assistant, and a newly minted improv performer. In this conversation, she and Sarah talk about the shift from martyr to model, the two rules of improv that also happen to be life rules, and the surprisingly practical ways JoAnn uses AI to run a one-woman business without burning out. CHAPTERS 01:05 Welcome, JoAnn Crohn of No Guilt Mom 01:24 Life right now: daughter just graduated high school 02:43 Why teenagers are JoAnn's favorite stage of parenting 03:23 Fifth grade teaching and catching kids at the transition 04:15 Why JoAnn left teaching and built something of her own 05:41 Surviving a high-pressure Hollywood talent agency 06:05 Postpartum depression and the moment that changed everything 08:57 The best mom is a happy mom: where the philosophy came from 09:43 From martyr to model: what martyrdom actually feels like from the inside 11:12 Starting improv to reclaim her own adventure 12:27 The two rules of improv every parent should know 13:42 How "yes, and" changes conversations with kids 14:36 The guilt equation explained with Dr. Jennifer Reid's work 16:11 Dad guilt, mom guilt, and why the bar is set so differently 17:45 How JoAnn uses Claude and ChatGPT in her one-woman business 19:35 Building an Airtable automation with AI and no coding background 21:03 Where to find JoAnn and her free Calm Conversations mini-course 22:29 Chatbot Mode: AI tips, advice for high school seniors, and the myth about mom guilt CONNECT WITH JOANN CROHN Instagram: @noguiltmom Podcast: No Guilt Mom Book: The Best Mom is a Happy Mom (Amazon and wherever books are sold) Free mini-course: Calm Conversations (find the link in JoAnn's Instagram bio) Referenced: The Guilt Equation by Dr. Jennifer Reid CONNECT WITH AI-EMPOWERED MOM Newsletter: AIEmpoweredMom.beehiiv.com Free mini-podcast: aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com/mini-podcast Website: AIEmpoweredMom.com Contact: contact@aiempoweredmom.com KEYWORDS mom guilt, no guilt mom, JoAnn Crohn, guilt equation, mental load, AI for parents, improv parenting, parenting teens, martyr to model, happy mom, expectations, Claude AI, ChatGPT, ADHD and parenting, calm conversations, postpartum, parenting podcast

If you've ever stared at your resume and thought "wasn't AI supposed to be able to help me with this?" -- this episode is for you. Career strategist, career resilience expert, and triple certified master resume writer Emily Kapit of Refresh Your Step joins host Sarah Dooley to talk through the real dos and don'ts of using AI for your career documents. Emily and her team work with clients through The Kapitalize Process , a methodology covering everything from written career assets to interview strategies and negotiation tactics (and she has strong opinions about where AI belongs in that process). Emily shares her approach to AI as a force multiplier: a way to pull out what's already there, find the gaps you can't see on your own, and build a stronger, more intentional job search. We also hit a genuine split decision: Emily says keep AI out of salary negotiations. Sarah says she uses it heavily. We leave it to you to decide for yourself. Whether you're actively job searching, re-entering the workforce after a caregiving break, or just trying to figure out how much to trust AI with something as personal as your career, this episode is grounded, practical, and honest. Emily's insights have been featured in Forbes, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Medium, HuffPost, and MindBodyGreen. She is also currently working on her first book, Sink or Swim: The Life-Changing Strategies for Career Resilience. WHAT WE COVER [00:00] The temptation is real -- and so are the pitfalls [01:22] Emily's world: carpool lines, two kids, and Charlotte the dog [02:09] What "triple certified master resume writer" actually means [04:14] When ChatGPT hit the career space -- and why Emily was skeptical [06:22] AI as a force multiplier: using it to pull out the good stuff [07:41] How to use AI on your resume tonight, step by step [09:07] AI for interview prep: the questions you haven't thought of yet [10:38] How Emily uses AI to build client interview prep plans [11:30] The don'ts: accepting AI output without verifying it [12:34] The formatting trap: why Canva resumes can fail ATS screening [14:14] Keywords: an absolute do (and how to do it right) [15:25] Spotting AI-generated language in your own document [16:19] Career gaps and caregiving breaks: your skills are real and valuable [18:16] Where careers are headed: choose your own adventure [20:05] Chatbot Mode: rapid fire with Emily [23:00] Emily's recent win: the 5K, the business, and all of it [23:55] Final takeaway: force multiplier in every area of life CONNECT WITH EMILY KAPIT Website: RefreshYourStep.com LinkedIn: Emily Kapit Instagram: @RefreshYourStep CONNECT WITH AI-EMPOWERED MOM Website: AIEmpoweredMom.com Newsletter: aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com Mini-Podcast: aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com/mini-podcast Instagram: @AIEmpoweredMom Email: contact@aiempoweredmom.com KEYWORDS resume writing tips, AI resume help, career documents, job search strategy, ATS keywords, AI force multiplier, career resilience, career gaps, caregiving career break, salary negotiation, interview preparation, Emily Kapit, ReFresh Your Step, The Kapitalize Process, AI-Empowered Mom, triple certified resume writer, mental load, parents and caregivers

Mother's Day is one of those days that arrives with a lot of assumptions. Before we get into anything else: however today is landing for you, you belong here. This episode is a gift from host Sarah Dooley to all the parents and caregivers out there carrying a mental load. Five AI habits. Real use. No tech background required. Just the things Sarah has been doing for a long time that have genuinely made a difference, shared in plain language with the hope that at least one of them makes your life a little lighter too. In this episode: A real Mother's Day acknowledgment before anything else Tip 1: Talking instead of typing and why it changes everything WISPR Flow stats and the two-sentence rule that stuck Tip 2: The morning brain dump for getting the day organized A live demo of using Claude to plan a real Friday Tip 3: Meal planning to reduce waste, save money, and move faster Why starting with a photo of your fridge beats planning from scratch The landfill story and why food waste is deeply personal Tip 4: Using AI to carry the mental load of family calendar keeping Tip 5: Getting out of the chief reminding officer role for good How voice reminders shifted the mornings and gave the kids more ownership Closing thoughts: not magic, just manageable Introducing Em and the waitlist opening on Mother's Day Tools mentioned: WISPR Flow, Claude, ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Whisk, Instacart, Amazon voice assistant, Em by AI-Empowered Mom Keywords: AI for moms, reduce mental load, AI meal planning, family calendar AI, voice dictation AI, AI productivity for parents, AI tools for caregivers, WISPR Flow, reduce decision fatigue, mental load management, AI-Empowered Mom, parenting and AI, AI home management, family scheduling AI Sign up for the Em waitlist and explore tools for your family at AIEmpoweredMom.com. New episodes every week. If this one helped, a rating or review goes a long way in helping other parents and caregivers find us.

What happens when a Google Cloud layoff becomes the push you needed to finally write your book? Wanjiku Kamau did exactly that, and she did it in 90 days, with AI helping her find her voice every step of the way. Wanjiku is a tech veteran, fractional COO, AI consultant, and now a published author. Her book, "Out of the Loop, Into the Algorithm: How I Finally Made Friends with AI," came out of one of the hardest years of her life and one of the most clarifying ones, too. In this conversation, Wanjiku and Sarah break down what it actually takes to self-publish, why shame is one of the biggest barriers to AI adoption (especially for women), and how families can use AI to lighten the daily load. In this episode: Why Wanjiku gave herself 90 days to write, edit, record, and launch a book (and what she'd do differently) The two self-publishing lessons that changed everything: title testing and cover design Audiobooks, indie bookstores, and why showing up in person with your dog is a valid distribution strategy How to help someone who feels "late to the party" with AI The fifth grade learning level trick you can use today AI's environmental footprint: the Times Square Test and small steps that add up What a data center actually is, explained by someone who helped build them Family AI use cases: homework support, command centers, and calendar chaos Wanjiku's book: "Out of the Loop, Into the Algorithm: How I Finally Made Friends with AI" — available on Amazon and via IngramSpark Follow Wanjiku's weekly newsletter: tealvoice.com Subscribe to the AI-Empowered Mom newsletter: AIEmpoweredMom.beehiiv.comWebsite: AIEmpoweredMom.com

Every summer, the spreadsheets come out. Color-coded, multi-tab, shared-by-text-message calendars that somehow still miss a school closure or a registration deadline. This week on , host Sarah Dooley sits down with Nicole Hamlin , the Austin-based founder of JustLiv, a platform built to take kids' activity scheduling off the list of things parents have to manage manually. Nicole spent 17 years in IT services before founding JustLiv after hitting a wall planning her daughter Olivia's first summer outside of full-time daycare. She discovered that while plenty of directories existed, nothing actually helped a parent build a personalized, bookable schedule with real-time updates. JustLiv is changing that, using AI to match activities to a family's schedule, budget, location preferences, and kids' interests, all in one place. In this episode, Sarah and Nicole talk about: What the current landscape of kids' activity scheduling actually looks like for most families How AI can quietly carry more of the coordination weight What it is like to build a company in the same industry you are still living in as a parent Summer planning tips for families who feel like they are already behind Why the mental load of family logistics deserves a real solution JustLiv is free to use during beta. Sign up at justliv.org and follow @JustLivATX on Instagram. Follow AI-Empowered Mom at aiempoweredmom.com Find the AI-Empowered Mom newsletter at aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com. Chapters: · Welcome and intro · Nicole's family life: two kids, one busy household · The moment she realized activity scheduling was broken · Leaving a 17-year IT career to build JustLiv · How JustLiv named itself (the story involves a seven-year-old) · How JustLiv works: smart calendars, real-time booking, school closure alerts · Building a company while raising small kids · Turning it off when your work is your life (spoiler: it's hard) · Summer planning advice: what to do if you feel behind right now · Chatbot Mode: rapid fire with Nicole Closing thoughts and how to get started with JustLiv

People are forming romantic relationships with AI. A licensedtherapist is watching it happen in real sessions, with real clients. In this episode, Sarah sits down with Catia Hernandez Holm,licensed marriage and family therapist, conscious parenting coach, TEDx speaker, and founder of Bright Light Marriage and Family Therapy in Wimberley, Texas. Catia works with individuals, couples, and families every week, and AIis showing up in the room in ways that are layered, nuanced, and increasingly common. They talk about what healthy AI use actually looks like, whyhuman relationships are supposed to feel hard, what to tell your kids about AI, and how using AI for the mental ticker might be one of the most meaningful things parents can do for their families right now. WHAT WE COVER Meet Catia: spinning plates in Wimberley, two kids, two dogs, and a life built intentionally Why they left Austin for small-town life and what that taught Catia about what her family actually needed How Catia structured her work schedule around being present, not just available The radio show: how Catia asked a stranger for a hosting slot and got a yes TEDx Talk "Choose Joy or Die": the bold title, the frequency theory behind it, and what she wasreally trying to say AI in the therapy room: what Catia is actually seeing with individual clients Anxiety, OCD, and the black hole of AI reassurance How she supports clients navigating AI use: the Planet Ozarka framework AI in couples and marriages: is it revealing friction or creating it? The relief factor: why AI is filling a real gap in some relationships Romantic relationships with AI and what Catia is seeing Complicated vs. complex: why humanrelationships are not problems to solve Kids and AI: the thinking machine talk, copilot in the kitchen, and what is developmentally appropriate What this moment is asking of parents and how creating margin is the answer Chatbot mode: phone habits, what she would never trust AI with, and her best relationship anti-advice A win worth celebrating and one takeaway for every parent CONNECT WITH CATIA Bright Light Marriage and Family Therapy:https://www.catiaholm.com/ Couch Time with Cat Podcast: https://couchtimewithcat.com/ TEDx Talk: Choose Joy or Die:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEWQSAtmtkw CONNECT WITH AI-EMPOWEREDMOM Website: AIEmpoweredMom.com Newsletter: AIEmpoweredMom.beehiiv.com Email: contact@aiempoweredmom.com If this episode was helpful, a follow or review takes lessthan 30 seconds and helps other parents find this community. KEYWORDS AI and relationships, AI companionship, chatbot relationships,AI in therapy, conscious parenting, AI for kids, kids and technology, mentalload parents, AI emotional support, AI anxiety OCD, therapist AI perspective,Catia Hernandez Holm, Bright Light therapy, Couch Time with Cat, AI-EmpoweredMom, Sarah Dooley, parenting in the AI age, AI and marriage, family therapypodcast

If you have ever applied for a job and heard nothing back,there is a good chance AI screened you out before any human saw your name. In this episode, Sarah sits down with Kate Crane, founder ofDirection Over Perfection and a former people leader at DoorDash, Flock Safety, and OpenTable. Kate has spent 10 years in tech hiring and managing teams, andnow coaches job seekers at every stage of their careers. She breaks down exactly what has changed in the hiring process, what you can do to work with it, and why human connection still wins in the end. Whether you are in a search yourself, re-entering after timeaway, supporting a partner, or helping a young person find their next step, this one is for you. WHAT WE COVER Meet Kate: preschool drop-off lifein Austin and what led her to start Direction Over Perfection Career gaps and nonlinear paths:what actually matters to employers right now How AI has changed recruiting fromthe inside out What an ATS (applicant trackingsystem) is and how it screens your resume before any human reads it Where AI stops and humans takeover in the hiring process How to build a master resume andtailor it with AI without losing your voice The prompting tip that keeps AIfrom stripping the detail out of your bullets Using AI to practice forinterviews without having to watch yourself on video Why applying is table stakes and networking is the real game What an informational interview actually is and how to ask for one without feeling like a burden Video interview tips for a world where hiring happens on screen Re-entering the workforce after time away and what your caregiving years actually gave you The shame that quietly follows job seekers and how to separate your emotions from your search Chatbot mode: Kate's favorite AI tools, resume red flags, and the best question to ask in any interview A recent win worth celebrating anda human-powered pep talk CONNECT WITH KATE DirectionOverPerfection.com First 30-minute consultation is always free. CONNECT WITH AI-EMPOWEREDMOM Website: AIEmpoweredMom.com Newsletter: AIEmpoweredMom.beehiiv.com Email: contact@aiempoweredmom.com If this episode was helpful, a follow or review takes lessthan 30 seconds and helps other parents find this community. KEYWORDS AI job search, AI hiring process, applicant tracking system,ATS resume tips, resume writing with AI, career coach for parents, job search for parents, informational interviews, re-entering workforce after caregiving, career gaps, nonlinear career path, job search shame, interview prep with AI,Direction Over Perfection, Kate Crane, AI-Empowered Mom, Sarah Dooley, AI tools for job seekers, career coaching podcast

It is National AI Literacy Day. And this morning, before host Sarah Dooley had even sat down with her coffee, her daughters were already practicing it at the breakfast table. In this solo episode, Sarah shares the five things she wants every parent and caregiver to know about AI in 2026. No guests. No interview Just a real, honest conversation about where families actually stand right now. Whether you feel behind, overwhelmed, or like AI keeps arriving before you had a chance to prepare, this episode is for you. The 5 things every parent should know about AI in 2026: AI is already in your home and it arrived without an invitation. AI can reduce your mental load when you use it with intention and care. You are your child's best AI literacy teacher, and it happens in the small moments. Verification and critical thinking are skills worth building early. The risks are real, and you do not have to be an expert to show up for your kids. Sarah also shares a National AI Literacy Day challenge: pick one thing that is draining you today, hand it to AI, and see what happens. Subscribe to the AI-Empowered Mom newsletter at AIEmpoweredMom.com. If this episode resonated, please follow or subscribe wherever you listen. It helps other parents find us.

What if the real problem isn't that you don't have time for yourself, but that you've never been given permission to want it? This week, host Sarah Dooley sits down with Christine Landis , creator of Peacock Parent and Proxy, for one of the most honest conversations the podcast has had about self-care, mental load, and what your time is actually worth. Christine is a founder, a parent, a partner, and a self-described recovering workaholic who sold her fintech company, stopped, got quiet for the first time in years, and built something entirely new from that experience. What came out of it is a framework, and a tool, for parents and caregivers who are ready to stop doing it all alone. In this episode, you will hear: Why "I could do it myself" is the exact sentence keeping so many of us stuckWhat a weekly 50-minute planning appointment with your partner can actually unlockHow to identify your low joy tasks and start letting them go without guiltWhat opportunity cost really means when applied to your home life, not just your careerWhat burnout, resentment, and the "is this it?" feeling really have in commonWhy we delegate at work without guilt and so often resist it at homeWhy a recent Harvard Business Review study found women are slower to adopt AI, and what Christine thinks is the real reasonWhat Proxy is, how it works, and why it might be the thinking partner you didn't know you neededHow to start small: even texting "I feel overwhelmed and don't know where to begin" is enough Christine also talks about adult coloring as her current anxiety management practice, the Steamboat ski trip where she and her husband looked at each other through their goggles and just knew, and her daughter's upcoming birthday surprise: a pink castle mural painted on her bedroom wall. This is a warm, grounded episode for anyone who has ever canceled something for themselves to make room for everything else. TRY PROXY FREE FOR 3 MONTHS (a $450 value) Christine is offering the AI-Empowered Mom community three months of Proxy at no charge using the code SARAH. Here is how to get started: Visit https://proxy.peacockparent.com/purchase and select the 3-month plan and enter code SARAH Complete a quick 5-minute profile Save Proxy as a contact in your phone, like a new friend Then text Proxy anytime. Get personalized next steps so you can move on with your day. Note: credit card info is collected during setup, but you will not be charged with the code. You will receive notice 14 days before any renewal and can cancel anytime with no penalty. Find Proxy at https://proxy.peacockparent.com/purchase CONNECT AND SUBSCRIBE Subscribe wherever you listen so you never miss an episode.Join the AI-Empowered Mom newsletter for weekly, calm, practical support on reducing the mental load: https://aiempoweredmom.beehiiv.com/