How do you build a successful career, raise a family, protect your health, and still have a life?

Sarah Armstrong, Vice President of Global Marketing Operations at Google and author of The Art of the Juggling Act: A Bite-Sized Guide for Working Parents, joins Women Road Warriors to share practical strategies for balancing work, family, friendships, health, and personal fulfillment.

Drawing from leadership roles at Google, McKinsey & Company, Coca-Cola, and Leo Burnett, Sarah discusses why the traditional idea of "having it all" may be setting people up for frustration and guilt. Instead, she encourages listeners to define success on their own terms, establish healthy boundaries, and focus on what matters most.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why work is the "rubber ball" and the rest of life is made of glass

• The biggest misconception about work-life balance

• How to stop feeling guilty about career and parenting choices

• Why perfection is impossible—and unnecessary

• The power of saying "no" without apology

• How Sarah protected family time while leading global teams

• Why building a support network is critical to success

• Practical ways to create a life aligned with your values

Whether you're a parent, caregiver, entrepreneur, executive, or simply trying to manage competing priorities, Sarah's insights offer a practical roadmap for thriving in both your personal and professional life.

https://thejugglingact.com

www.womenroadwarriors.com

www.womenspowernetwork.net

#SarahArmstrong #Google #WorkLifeBalance #WomenInLeadership #WorkingParents #PersonalDevelopment #WomenRoadWarriors #ShelleyJohnson #KathyTuccaro #SuccessMindset #Parenting #LifeBalance

This is Women Road warriors with Shelly Johnson and Kathy Tucaro.

From the corporate office to the cab of a truck, they're here to inspire and empower women in all professions.

So gear down, sit back and enjoy.

Welcome.

We're an award winning show dedicated to empowering women in every profession through inspiring stories and expert insights.

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I'm Shelley and Kathy's on assignment.

For many women, one of life's greatest challenges is trying to balance a successful career, a fulfilling personal life, and the demands of family without losing themselves in the process.

That's difficult to do today.

Our guest has spent more than two decades navigating that balancing act while building an extraordinary career, raising a daughter, mentoring future leaders, and helping other parents find practical ways to thrive amid the chaos of everyday life.

Sarah Armstrong is the author of the Art of the Juggling Act, a bite size guide for working parents.

It's a thoughtful and practical roadmap for managing the competing demands of work, family, health, friendships, and personal fulfillment.

She draws on her own experiences as a working parent.

She tackles everything from guilt and burnout to setting boundaries, finding reliable childcare, co parenting, and creating a life that reflects your own definition of success.

What makes Sarah's perspective especially compelling is she's lived the challenges she writes about while leading at the highest levels of global business, including leadership roles at Coca Cola, McKinsey Co. And today as vice president of global marketing operations at Google, Sarah started her career at Leo Burnett in Chicago.

In media, her work has been recognized around the world.

She was named one of ad agencies Women to Watch and included in Ad Agency's Book of tension, the top 10 who made their mark.

So whether you're a parent, caregiver, entrepreneur, executive, or simply somebody trying to juggle the many responsibilities life throws your way, Sarah's insights offer practical wisdom and encouragement for creating a life that works for you.

We're excited to have Sarah Armstrong on our show.

Welcome, Sarah.

Shelley, thanks so much.

Great to be with you.

Oh, this is going to be an awesome discussion.

And I want to say you really have been a renaissance woman in all that you've done.

Oh, my goodness.

You've led by example and you've definitely had to juggle a lot of stuff.

Yes.

You know what, it's been fun, but it is a challenge to juggle in life.

And I just, I feel fortunate to have been able to have the experience I've had both raising grace over the years, but also having my career and also trying to live the fullest life possible.

So it's been fun to try to figure out.

Figure out how to manage the juggling act, for sure.

And your perspectives are so valuable.

How did you come up with this workable formula?

I was wondering maybe you could tell a little bit about yourself and your life's journey.

Sure, I'm happy to.

So, you know, I think I actually started, you know, young in life.

I was a student athlete.

And I think that that actually probably were.

Were the early days of me figuring out how to juggle a lot of things in my life and figure out how to do work or how to do school and my.

And my schoolwork and go to practice and.

And also have friends and all those things that really inspire.

Probably age 12, I was managing that aspect of my life and trying to figure out how to do all those things.

And I think it translated then into my adult life in terms of I was a scholar athlete at Georgetown as well, played volleyball there on scholarship.

So it just kind of continued on.

And then in the working world, though, and once you introduce children into that equation, it takes it to a whole nother level.

So.

And it's interesting, Shelley, because I reflect, as I, prior to writing this book, the Art of the Juggling act, that we go to school and we learn about a lot in school, but we don't ever learn about parenting in school.

And then we also don't learn about how to manage our career in school.

We study something to do in our careers, but actually how to manage your career.

And then we actually don't learn how to manage both of those aspects of our life in school.

And they're two of the most important things that you're going to do and how to figure out how to do them and be health and happy and enjoy, you know, that journey of being a working parent.

So that was really.

As I reflected on all that I've learned over the years, my goal is to kind of pay it forward for the next generation of working parents who are trying to figure out, you know, this juggling act each day and do what I can to share some thoughts, because I do see a lot of, excuse me, a lot of young parents who are surviving and maybe not thriving as working parents.

And I'd really love to help them to thrive.

Thriving is the ultimate goal, isn't it?

And, oh, the challenges today are just incredible.

And I love how you're paying it forward.

You were really fortuitous, though, at a very young age.

I was reading.

You were inspired by your dad, who was a hospital CEO, and you told yourself at 6 you wanted to run something.

That's pretty amazing.

And you also had a powerful woman mentor at Leo Burnett who was able to juggle a career, parenting and family.

Was that kind of what got you thinking all of that?

Yeah, it's interesting going back to that memory from my dad.

You know, I.

My dad is, has been someone I've looked up to my whole life.

And I do have this distinct memory of sitting at his desk.

He was a hospital CEO at the time.

And I just said, I want to run something.

I just have this funny vivid memory of that at that age, in this big badash of meeting this little person in his chair.

But yeah, and then I did.

Renetta McCann was my first mentor at Leo Burnett when I was in my early 20s, starting out my career.

And there weren't, in fairness, a lot of working moms around me at that time.

And in fairness, my mom worked when we were very young, but then she ended up staying home with myself and my two younger brothers.

And so.

But she juggled a lot.

It was, I always say, being a stay at home mom, you juggle many things.

It's just not necessarily in the same same way you do when you're managing career, leaving the house.

And so I saw Renetta doing what she was doing and I was studying, you know, I, I basically studied working moms in my early career to see how they were doing it, see what worked, because I knew that I wanted to both have a career and a family at some point.

And so it is, it's something that, I think it's much more common these days.

You know, 70% of, of women that have children are working now, so it's a much higher percentage.

And you see lots of working moms, the workplace, which is amazing.

But in my early career there were fewer.

And so I really was trying to study what they were doing and almost the to dos and maybe some of the not to do's, but I just definitely was, was studying because I knew it was something I wanted to try to figure out how to do.

It's wonderful how the workplaces have been a lot more accommodating for working moms and working parents, period.

Absolutely.

You know, in the early days, I think women especially felt kind of like a square peg in a round hole if they were raising kids.

And I mean, the amount of women work and how they were supposed to divide their time, it was almost.

They needed to clone themselves.

Yeah, yeah.

And you Still.

And I think working moms still feel like they need to clone themselves a lot of times.

And, you know, I think part of it is what are the societal expectations of what a working mom is meant to do and where we're meant to be?

I mean, I was just talking to some colleagues the other day.

They were starting to just their younger colleagues and looking at schools for their children.

And I said, you know, that's one of the most important things is you're raising your kids and deciding where your child's going to go to school.

Because the expectations of you as a parent are different at different types of schools.

And you really need to be choiceful about what pressures you're putting on yourself based on the pressures that school has for you as a parent.

And it sounds funny, but when we were looking for gracious schools, one of the schools says, we expect you to be in the library sorting books, you know, one afternoon a week.

I looked at my husband on the school trip and the school is not for us.

Right.

That's not happening.

So, but I mean, again, this is, you know, what are the expectations that collectively are put on you as a working parent and what can you do to manage those and make the right decisions for you and your family so that you don't feel like you're constantly, you know, failing or just surviving in that, in that day to day management of your life?

You know, it's just so important.

Well, when you think about it, parents, as soon as their feet hit the floor in the morning, they're on the run, they're working, they're taking the kids here, there, and when school's done at the end of the day, they're running the kids here, there, everywhere else.

And even on the weekends, they barely have time to just sit down and relax.

They don't have parent time.

No, no, I know.

And I do think that's an important piece of the equation is figuring out as a working parent or as a working mom, what is that hour in the day or hour in the week?

Sometimes you can't find it in the day.

But what are those hours that you give to yourself so that you can recharge?

Because it is such an intense day to day, as you said, from the minute you get up to the minute you fall asleep.

And I always say when you fall asleep, you have that list of things running in your head that you, you know, either wanted to get done or didn't quite finish.

And in any given day, right before you fall asleep.

So I think, you know, finding time to recharge and, you know, give a little bit of time back to yourself is really important because, you know, it is definitely a marathon, even though it feels like you're sprinting every day and literally.

But I do think that's one of the important things for working parents and working moms specifically to really figure out how to do in a given week.

And that could, by the way, that could be going for a walk or going for a walk with a friend.

It could be getting a massage.

It could be, you know, you know, going and, you know, literally just spending some time outside on your back porch or deck or patio by yourself.

You know, it doesn't even mean that you have to leave the house.

But just having a little bit of time where you're not being asked to do something or having to care for someone else and you're just giving time to yourself.

Yeah.

Because it's easy to forget ourselves.

And if we don't take care of ourselves, we can't take care of other people.

Absolutely.

No.

It's fundamental, I think.

Absolutely.

Stay tuned for more of Women Road warriors coming up.

Dean Michael, the tax doctor here.

I have one question for you.

Do you want to stop worrying about the irs?

If the answer is yes, then look no further.

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I've helped countless people across the country, and my success rate speaks for itself.

So now you know where to find good, honest help with your tax problems.

What are you waiting for?

Welcome back to Women Road warriors with Shelly Johnson and Kathy Tucaro.

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We want to help as many women as possible.

Our guest is Sara Armstrong, Vice president of global marketing operations at Google and the author of the Art of the Juggling A Bite Sized Guide for Working Parents.

In her book, Sarah challenges some of the biggest assumptions we make about success, balance, and trying to do it all.

The simple fact is you can't do it all and you have to take care of yourself, too.

Life isn't about perfection.

It's about making intentional choices that align with what matters most to do.

The balancing act of a working parent.

This applies to anyone with a career or doing multiple things in life.

Sarah, I was reading that you were inspired by a quote from James Patterson, which is really a powerful quote, and I think it became a premise for your book.

Imagine life is a game in which you're juggling five balls in the air.

You name them, work, family, friends, health and spirit, and you're keeping all of these in the air.

You'll soon understand that work is a rubber ball.

If you drop it, it will bounce back.

But the other four balls, family, friends, health and spirit, are made of glass.

If you drop one of these, they're going to be irreparably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged, or even shattered.

That's pretty powerful.

Could you elaborate on how this quote has guided you?

I mean, it looks like that really inspired your book.

It did.

It inspired.

Inspired my book.

It was actually a quote I have always had in my office, both in the workplace, but then at my home office, now at my desk, it sits there.

And I just think that those balls are always juggling in any one given day.

And I do think sometimes we have to really remind ourselves that work will always be there, our careers will always be there.

But prioritizing what's most important for your family, your friends, and yourself are really important because those nicks and scuffs that happen to you more on the personal level are things you can't, you know, you.

It's hard to erase those, you know, career things.

You might have a misstep at work or not meet a deadline.

You know, there will be more deadlines.

You know, there'll be more things, there'll be more work.

But I really feel strongly that you have to protect and really protect the boundaries you set for your life with the people that are important in your life so that you can be there for them.

So I think that's one of the most important things.

And I talk a lot about setting and protecting boundaries because I think many of us talk about doing them or might think we've done them, but we don't protect them in a way that we need to.

And it could really have significant impact on, you know, your kids, your family and friendships, et cetera.

Women have a hard time setting boundaries, I think more so than men.

Don't you?

You know, I think so.

I think part of it is because we want to do we, you know, we a little bit of, we want to please.

We want to make sure everything's taken care of and also the expectation that we are kind of trying to do all of the things, quite honestly, all at once.

So I think the thing about, and I say that interestingly enough, when you set a boundary, and I generally say this to people that I'm mentoring, like when you set a boundary, you need to make sure you tell everyone around you that you've set that boundary, whatever that boundary is, because people will walk all over your boundaries because they don't know they exist.

But if you've told them about that boundary and you ask them to help you protect the boundary, then they feel equally accountable to help you with that.

And so, and you know, no one can protect a boundary that they don't know about.

So that's one of my big things for women specifically is to say, you know what?

This is what, these are the hours I'm trying to carve out, for example, with my kid tonight.

And I'll give you my own personal example.

When Grace was growing up, I actually had on my calendar blocked in my calendar from 6pm to 8pm at night and have said Grace time.

Now, it happened to be her name.

It also worked well for what I was trying to do.

And I said to my assistant, look, no one can touch that time.

That's when I'm getting Grace, you know, dinner and getting, we're getting ready for bed and we're reading.

And you know, that's her time.

And you know, I said if someone, because I was in, I've been in a global role my, my entire career.

And I said, if someone wants to talk to me, I'm happy to talk to them at 9pm after I put her to bed.

Or I could talk to them at 8am the next morning after dropping off her carpool.

But Those hours that 6 to 8, we're not touching.

And I can tell you that over the course of her growing up, I maybe took one call during that six, eight.

I mean, it was so protected.

And I just share that because I think sometimes we don't think we can do that.

And even in high demanding careers, I do think we need to do that because otherwise, you know, you're.

You're not able to be pleasant with your children and be there even for just the day to day of, you know, bath time or dinner time or whatever the case may be.

So I'm a big believer that both studying them, you know, communicating them to those around you and then really protecting them is really important.

I think that's really good.

And I think a lot of people probably, when they first try that, probably feel guilty.

But I mean, it's so important because today, with today's technology, everybody's on.

They're getting texts 247 almost.

It's absolutely.

And that really robs your family.

It robs yourself.

Yeah, no, and I completely agree with you, Shelly.

Actually, one of the things on staying on the boundary topic, but just a really important thing is I have a point in my book that talks about finding a cupboard.

And the reason I make this point is that our technology, if.

So I had a cupboard in my back hallway when I, when Grace was growing up and I would literally walk in the door and I would take my tote bag with my laptop and I would put it in the cupboard.

It really was, it was put away.

And I did that because I really think that if you bring your work laptop into the house, put it on the kitchen table, put it on the kitchen counter, you know it's there, even if it's closed, it's talking to you.

It is literally, it is literally drawing you in.

And I feel the same thing.

Even with our mobile phones, obviously.

And these days the challenges are mobile phones are almost like the remote controls for our home.

So it's a much harder thing to put them in a cupboard.

But I did also have a charging station inside a cupboard, so that when I came in for those couple hours with Grace, I put it in the cupboard and I thought, you know what, if someone needs to reach me, I'll look at it at 8.

Because I really believe, so strongly believe that our children deserve for us to be present when they're, when we're with them and that the technology in our lives pulls our attention away from them.

And they don't deserve that.

They don't deserve to have to share their.

The attention that we're trying to give them with the piece of technology.

So, and it's interesting because I am proud to say, and I look back and this is.

Was really took a lot of willpower, but in Grace's growing up, up until she was 15 years old, she never saw my work laptop.

Oh, wow.

Yeah.

Because I would pull it out after she was asleep.

And so I really believe that I didn't want.

Because I already worked a ton, Shelly.

So, I mean, there was a lot of working going on.

So I didn't want the few hours that I had with Grace to be associated with her seeing me and my work laptop together.

Now, in the hybrid world that we all live in now, and a lot of the work from home dynamics we have, that's a harder thing to do for parents.

And I know.

So saying that it's not maybe as realistic today to say that, especially if people have home offices.

But I say, you know, if you have a home office situation, close the door.

Make, you know, or put it, you know, even if, if you don't have an office and you do work at your kitchen table, put that laptop in a drawer in a cupboard somewhere in the, in the hours you're trying to focus with your children and spend that, that really precious time with them because they only get a couple hours a day with us.

And I just really feel strongly that they, they shouldn't have to share it with your laptop and your phone.

And they need that kind of interpersonal interaction.

They need that nurturing because that's absolutely, you know, that's going to shape them as adults.

Absolutely, absolutely.

And I really.

And it shows.

And I think it also shows practices you would want them to try to follow in their adult life down the road.

And I think, again, this is a whole, you know, society these days that we are so tied to our technology.

But I do think these moments are moments when you can show that, that personal interaction, that quality time having conversations is just really so important.

Well, if we don't talk to each other and we don't talk to our kids, they're not going to learn how to talk.

This is true.

This is true.

It's very important.

And with all of our technology, it's kind of interesting how a lot of people don't know how to talk.

It's like, can we communicate?

I mean, we have the biggest opportunity we've ever had worldwide to communicate with anybody and everybody.

And that seems to be lacking.

And what you're giving as a template really is so powerful.

It gets back to the basics of family time, me time and interaction.

Stay tuned for more of Woodwork Road warriors coming up.

Dean Michael, the tax doctor here.

I have one question for you.

Do you want to stop worrying about the irs?

If the answer is yes, then look no further.

I've been around for years.

I've helped countless people across the country and my success rate speaks for itself.

So now you know where to find good, honest help with your tax problems.

What are you waiting for?

Welcome back to Women Road warriors with Shelly Johnson and Kathy Tucaro.

We're talking with Sarah Armstrong, vice president of Global Marketing operations at Google.

Sarah's book, the Art of the Juggling act offers practical wisdom for anybody who's trying to manage the competing demands of work, family, friendships, health, and personal fulfillment.

One of the most memorable ideas she has involves five balls that we're all juggling and why only one of them can safely be dropped.

And that's not family, friends, health, or yourself.

Boundaries are super important.

So is self care and setting time aside for our loved ones and ourselves.

That's part of our boundaries.

Sarah, I also see that you reject the whole concept of having it all, society's definition of success.

I think that we're always trying to achieve this, I don't know, utopian lifestyle and goal.

That really does seem kind of ridiculous, doesn't it?

What does having it all mean?

Well, you know, it's interesting.

I. I would say that the interesting thing about having it all is that, you know, it's.

It's something that it looks very different for different people.

So what does having it all mean to you?

You know, I just, I think having a universal definition of having it all is not realistic.

And, you know, I also believe that you might be able to, quote, unquote, have it all, but you may not have it all.

You know, it might happen at different stages of your career.

And so every.

So in terms of your life.

And so I think that we have to just stop spending time comparing ourselves and trying to live up to societal benchmarks of what having it all means.

That's maybe when you say that I reject the concept because I just think you have to think about what you want out of your life and then define what having it all means to you.

And that equation, what those components are of your life and how you want to live them is absolutely up to you to define.

And I just, I think the societal pressures that we put on ourselves of what that picture looks like is what I think has a lot of women specifically feeling like they're not delivering on this model of having it all.

And I just Would love to release that pressure.

And going back to your comment earlier about feeling guilty about what you're doing or not doing, I think we have to give ourselves a lot more grace in the day to day and say that, you know, and I had a saying, Shelly, that I would say to Grace, you know, and raising her, and I would say, I'm doing the best I can.

You know, that was.

That was my motto.

And I, you know, because some days were, you know, better than others in terms of trying to juggle everything.

But I'd say mom's doing the best she can.

And I think that's something we need to tell ourselves and take it to heart that we are all doing the best we can.

And the concept of having all is something that is.

Is a wonderful thing to strive for in terms of you want to have, feel like you're fulfilling, you know, all that you want to do in your life.

So that's definitely a wonderful goal to have.

It's definitely a goal I've had, but I just think it's being realistic about how all of that comes together.

And is it really all at once or does it happen over the course of your life?

Well, you have in your book.

Mindset is essential.

And it really is a lot about that.

I think that women tend to.

They're hard on themselves.

They feel guilty.

Gee, I didn't do this today, or I should have done this.

The shoulds, those are.

That's a bad word.

I should.

Should.

Should.

And perfection.

No one's perfect.

No one's perfect.

And actually, the message you gave Grace was powerful.

I'm doing the best I can.

So she realized growing up that mom can't do everything.

She isn't perfect, but she's trying her best.

And I guess that's all we can.

Any of us can do, right?

Absolutely.

And we say that to our kids all the time, right?

We, if they're going out to try something new or even in school, just do your best.

You know, we say that a lot to our kids, I think, and it's a.

It's a wonderful message.

I just think we need to.

To say that same message to ourselves.

And, you know, I think sometimes we just, yeah, we beat ourselves up for the little things that we didn't do.

And, you know, one of the really small, small points of guidance, but actually important ones that I give to moms because I think we.

We're always trying to do it quickly.

And like, when things come at, you know, things come in, you're like, oh, I need to do that right now.

And I, I think we also need to say, you know, not everything has to happen in the moment.

And we are a society that also is, is expecting that, you know, responses happen immediately and everything's supposed to happen right now.

And so I have two pieces of kind of bite sized guidance that I feel really strongly about in, in that way.

And one is, I call it the Sunday list.

And it sounds a bit tactical, Shelley, but there's all those things that come at you in a given day or week.

And what I did over the years is I just had this list on my phone, I called it the Sunday list and everything that didn't have to happen that day, I just put it on my Sunday list and it just basically it was parked, you know, it was written down and then it gave me the permission to forget that it was there.

And then on Sundays I'd set aside an hour and sometimes maybe a little bit longer to basically crash through that Sunday list and figure out what are the things that I needed to do.

It could be responding to a birthday party invitation, it could be ordering, you know, a baby gift, you know, whatever the tactical things that come in in a given week that you're supposed to handle.

It could be signing the permission ship slip that's due on a given day, or ordering the school uniforms or the sports uniforms.

You know, there's just all these things that come through as a working mom and I think sometimes we feel the pressure that we have to do it that night that it came through that day.

And it's like, no, no, no, like, give yourself the time, put it on the list and you'll get through it.

And some things might be longer term.

You're like, you know what, I'm not going to get to that this week.

It'll go on the next Sunday list.

It's not going to go on the Monday or Tuesday list of goods.

So I just think that's, that is one of those things that has really helped me and it actually, I've shared it with a lot of young working moms.

Like, it's so great to have that Sunday.

I go, I know, because it just releases your brain.

And then when you do go to sleep at night, those are the things that are jumping around in your brain that you feel like you didn't get done.

You know, you've taken them off that pressure list of, oh, I didn't get that done today.

So I do think it's, it's a tactic, but I really found to be incredibly helpful and Then the other thing that I feel we as women specifically don't do well is I. I talk about it in my book, the Power of Saying no.

And I was given some advice, and it was only in the last 10 years, and I wish I'd been given it much earlier in my life.

But I was talking to a colleague, he was asking me to attend a meeting, and I said, oh, I can't attend this meeting.

I started explaining why, and he stopped me mid sentence and he said, sarah.

He said, Sarah.

He said, you don't need to explain to me why you can't make the meeting.

All you need to say is, I can't make.

No, I can't make this meeting.

He's like, the reason that's important.

At the point when you start giving me the reason of why you can't do it, I start judging you on whether you made the right decision.

And he goes, and that's not my judgment to make.

He's like, you have made a decision that's best for you, whatever the reason is, and just say no and don't.

You don't need to give a reason behind it.

And so I have to tell you, Shelly, as someone who, you know is juggling a lot in any given day, that little piece of advice was so free and, and the juggling act that we do have in the day to day and all the things we're being asked to do.

When you do have to say no, how you manage saying no, I think is really important.

And that piece of advice is one of the best pieces of advice I've.

Ever been given that is powerful.

Yeah.

Because when you think about it, when you have to explain yourself, you feel like you're explaining yourself to the other person.

You're almost apologizing for saying that.

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And I think it goes, by the way, it applies to both your work world, but also, I think, applies to your personal life when you have to decline an invitation or so.

I can't make that.

You know, it's.

You should say, you know, I'm just, sorry, I can't make that.

Not.

I can't make that because I'm doing something with so and so it's like, you know, because again, your, your friend or your family might as well like, well, isn't this as important?

You know, so I just think it, it has been such a, a little gift to myself, I would say, using that advice on a, a daily and weekly basis.

Um, and I just, I think as, as women, again, because we feel that guilt of what we aren't doing versus saying, oh, I've prioritized what I'm.

What I've decided is the best thing for me to do with that hour or with that weekend or whatever the case.

And so I do think that's a really important piece.

And these are just, again, they're small.

They feel small, like they're small little pieces of advice, but they.

They really kind of unlock, you know, some freedom to.

To free up your mind or free up that feeling of guilt.

And those are the things that I think then when you.

When you can not have those things, like the feeling of guilt or freeing up your mind, you then enjoy life much more.

Right?

You enjoy the journey of this.

Like, you know, we're, you know, all of our lives are this kind of collection of hours and days and weeks, but I think the whole point is to enjoy it.

And I just.

I feel so strongly about that.

And I think sometimes we get so caught up in all that we're trying to get done and all that we're trying to do and where we're needing to show up and all these things and really just enjoying the whole experience of, you know, being a parent, managing career, all the things that come with it, and just trying to enjoy it.

I just.

It's something I just feel so strongly.

I'd love for more people to do that because life is very short and you just really want to enjoy every day to the.

To the fullest.

People don't live in the moment a lot of times.

I agree.

I agree.

We live a lot in the future and.

Or in the past, in fairness.

But, yeah, I think living in the present, being present and really focusing on enjoying the present moment you're in with whoever you're with, whether it's your children or if you're in a meeting and discussing something, whatever the case is, I think being present is just so.

So key, you know, And I think.

If you concentrate on living in the moment, you're thoroughly enjoying things, you're observing things you might not have before.

And time doesn't feel like it's just rushing by us and fleeting.

You're immersed in it.

I agree.

I agree.

Yeah.

And I also think sometimes because of all that, we're.

All that we're needing to think about in the given day, I think that the ability to be present is actually a muscle you need to build.

And I think the way you build that, and I talk about it in my book, is the concept of a compartmentalization muscle.

And I joke that I do Pilates.

And they talk to you a lot about having a.

A strong core muscle, which I do think you need in life, but I do think for your brain and for how you think about things, having a compartmentalization muscle is fundamental.

And what that means is, you know, if you're coming home after a long day and you're about to spend time with your kids, being able to, you know, compartmentalize whatever happened at work and set it aside and really just focus in being in your mom or your parent mode.

And then, you know, if you're at work, the flip side, you know, happens that, you know, if.

If your child really wasn't getting ready for school quickly enough and you're rushing and, you know, it just was a bad start to the morning, and you get into your first meeting, you know, setting that aside too, and like, okay, I'm here.

I'm going to focus.

I'm going to be present in this conversation.

And, you know, again, these are muscles we have to build.

A lot of people don't have them naturally.

But I do think it is also one of the tools that you can.

If you can focus on building that muscle, it's one of the tools that you then have to be able to manage this kind of ebb and flow of your life that does have a lot of different components in a given day, whether the personal side, the professional side, or sometimes when they're trying to meet in the middle in some of our hybrid working ways.

So I think it's a really important muscle to have.

So you're essentially teaching parents to have structure.

I mean, we have structure at work and we're acclimated to that, and we understand that.

But then when we go home, if we don't have that structure, everything can feel like chaos.

Yes.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And I do think there's elements.

Yeah, I would agree.

I mean, I do think there's elements of.

Of being organized, of figuring out how you can live your day so you don't feel like it's happening to you and, you know, it's all just happening.

But I think, yeah, there is an element of structure, but there's an.

Also an element of the fluidity of life and what you have to build a role with as well.

And, you know, things are going to happen, and I think when those things happen that aren't expected, it's also that, you know, you have to roll with it and go, okay, well, that wasn't quite how that day was meant to go, or that, you know, whatever the situation is.

But I Do think there's.

There's an element of structure.

I also.

It's funny, one of my big beliefs as a parent is figuring out.

I talk about three things that I think our children remember of a childhood.

And I, in fairness, this is my own reflections of my childhood.

I had a very.

I had a wonderful, amazing childhood.

But the things I most remember are the travel we did as a family, the traditions we had as a family, and the special moments that I had either with one of my parents or as a family.

And I think thinking about.

So I call about tra.

I talk, say travel, traditions and special moments, like, what are those things that you're looking to instill into life that are the things your kids will remember, you know, down the road?

And, you know, they can be small things, you know, I had a little tradition I did with Grace where on her birthday, I asked her the same list of questions every.

Every year from the time she was three until she was 18.

And it was my little tradition.

There was.

There was like 36 questions on this list.

And actually I put it in the back and put the list back of my book.

And it was so fun over the years, Shelly, to ask.

And I didn't show Grace the points every year, so she.

Every year I just asked her questions.

And we would see over the course of her life how she answered them.

And it was just a fun little tradition.

It's like little things that just add a memory that's special.

But I think it's just figuring out what are those things in your day to day.

And it goes back to your point about structure.

They're just little moments of tradition you can build in that are special and become really special memories over the course of time.

And those are things that can be carried forward.

Is a family tradition, too.

Absolutely.

Yeah, yeah.

No, it's fun.

I mean, we also had the special tradition.

We made these funny things called mud balls, which are basically peanut butter and chocolate balls that we made.

And I had made those with my mom growing up.

And then we made them and then we delivered them around.

Around town to friends around town.

And I took them to work.

Grace would be my little elf and come to work during the holiday season and we'd pass them out to my different colleagues that we wanted to give little gifts to.

So, yeah, again, these are small things, but it's fun.

I mean, literally, Grace has now graduated and out in the world as a working adult.

But this Christmas, she goes, mom, I made mud balls.

She made mud balls.

That's great.

And I said, I love it.

I love the tradition continuing.

So yeah, it's just again, these are small things, you know, it's a baked good, you know, but it's, but there are things that do stick with your kids and when you have those things that you carve out the time to do with them because you know, you can also buy the store bought thing and pass it out to colleagues and friends and family.

But I do think there's something special about spending time with your kids, making something together and then sharing it with others.

That is a special moment.

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Welcome back to Women Road warriors with Shelly Johnson and Kathy Tucaro.

In the art of the juggling act, Sarah Armstrong tackles some of the issues that keep many women awake at night.

Guilt, burnout, boundaries and the pressure to live up to impossible expectations.

Like the whole concept of having it all no matter what.

Sarah believes you can achieve success on your own terms.

She shares practical strategies for defining success and creating a life that works for you instead of everybody else.

It's great advice, Sarah.

You cover everything in your book and I mean, it's a really wonderful template.

You talk about boundaries, of course, and building your support network.

I'm not sure women are good at doing that a lot of times either.

You talk about organization, your lists.

I've been huge on lists for many, many decades.

Yes.

Yeah.

It really is a great way to.

Okay, it's on my list.

And you scratch it off as you accomplish so you don't feel like you're not accomplishing stuff.

You talk about the power of routines, being social, every possibility that a parent can encounter.

You give them basically a guideline of how to do this.

And like you said, there's no lesson in school on how to parent.

Yeah.

You know, we can set goals.

This is what we want to be, this is what we want to do.

But once you're there, how do you do it?

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

And that was my big realization, Shelly, as I got into this working world.

And you know, and ironically the inspiration was writing this book and writing them in these bite sized pieces is I would be mentoring young moms that would be coming into my team and we'd be talking and they're like what did you do with Grace?

And I would talk and so it was funny.

I would have these conversations and I would write the little nug of advice on my phone.

Like that's a good one.

I'll remember that for later.

Because I had never intended to write a book.

And so you know those just kind of built up over the years.

And you know the bite size, there's about 140 bite sized pieces in my book broken out this, these various categories and they're meant to be by the way, it's meant to be a guide that you just have with you.

Like it's, you don't need to read it cover to cover.

It could be you just pick it up and the table of contents, it's broken out by those 140 topics.

So you know, and I have, I have colleagues.

I just had one of my colleagues that said it was actually a working father.

He said to me, he's like, you know, I have it on my bedside table.

My wife and I are trading who gets to read it at night.

That I love that you know.

And I, you know, but it's.

And it, I also believe and I.

If this is, I think all those working parents out there will relate.

No one really has time to read a book to be honest, when you're, when you're managing the juggling act.

That's why I wrote this in such a bite sized guide type of way.

So it, I know because I always joke that if you're working printing, you try to read a book that's like chapter books, you end up rereading the first page of that chapter a couple times because you keep on coming back like where did I leave off?

And so I, So this book is really meant to be something you can pick up each page.

It's only a paragraph or a page for a given topic.

So it is not long.

It's very bite sized.

And it is really meant to help that working parent that's just looking for a little point of reflection on a given topic and for something to think through.

You cover everything.

The staying power, family memories.

Yeah.

And when you think about it, when we look back on our lives, that's really what we think about.

It isn't good to be what we did at work?

Absolutely no.

And that's why I feel so strongly about all the, what I mentioned earlier in terms of the travel you're going to do or the.

And again travel could be traveling to the next town over.

It doesn't necessarily require getting on a plane, you know, but it's just those moments when you change the location of where you are with your family.

You're automatically going to create memories that you take with you.

And I think we all grow and learn when we travel to different places, so I think that's a big one.

I also think, you know, we haven't talked about it, but, like, volunteering with your kids and giving back, I feel very strongly about.

And it's something that Grace and I did throughout her childhood.

We actually went and we went to a soup kitchen.

We lived in Atlanta at the time, and we would go to a soup kitchen about six times a year and serve lunch to the homeless in Atlanta.

And I have to tell you, those.

Those moments that Grace and I shared in doing that together were both special, but they also, really, there were so many life lessons that came through that experience.

And, you know, I. I think that's an important one.

And, you know, I also just even from teaching Grace over the time, I gave her three piggy banks when she was three years old.

And one was for spending, one was for saving, and one was for giving.

Oh, I like that.

Yeah.

And so there were three.

And then what I did is I took a little sticker and I put the knit, like, over the pig's mouth.

I put like, say.

But spending, saving and giving.

So, like, they're.

They were smiling with whatever the word was.

And so basically she, you know, that was.

So I gave her a dollar for each of the piggy bank starting at age three.

And over the years, every year, she would take out, you know, she could do whatever she want with the spending.

We took her to the bank and literally, physically went with her, went to the bank and opened up a, you know, a bank account.

So she would see what that looked like, that process looked like.

And then we would take her money to the bank teller, and she would give it to the bank teller and put it in the bank, because I think so many things are, you know, electronic these days.

You don't understand, like, what.

What's happening in that moment.

And.

And then on the giving front, we.

We would take all the money out of the giving, and then she got to decide where she was going to give that money.

And she was.

She's a huge animal fan, and so she wanted to give it to Humane Society.

So we took all those little dollars that she'd saved up, and we drove to Humane Society, and she took it into the front desk and we handed it to the person there.

And you know, I just, I wanted it to be very tangible for her of, you know, what it meant, you know, and then spending, obviously she could go to wherever she wanted to spend those couple dollars.

But I think it's just, you know, teaching our kids these things.

Sometimes life gets crazy and we don't spend the time teaching them some of the fundamentals.

And I do think the fundamental of giving and what giving means in your life is really important.

And so I'm, you know, I'm proud to say, even as Grace is going out as an adult and she's just graduated from colleges last year, but she's already built into her life as an adult two different volunteer opportunities that she is doing in Seattle where she lives.

And that just makes me feel really good because that's been instilled in her since she was young and it's her own doing.

I didn't say, so where are you going to volunteer?

She's like, hey mom, I'm doing X and Y.

And you know, that just, it makes me smile.

So, so she saw the value in that.

I mean, giving it, paying it forward, giving to others, that's what we're about.

That's what we are supposed to be about.

Not being self centered and that's so powerful.

And the piggy bank example, what, what a great idea, you know.

Yeah.

And it's so simple, you know, it's a simple one, you know, and everyone can do it and you can start at whatever age.

I mean it.

But I, I started at three just because I thought early on I just thought, okay, let's see how we can, you know, help her with this.

And so it was, Yep.

So it's been, it's.

And it's also something I've, I've shared with us and a lot of parents have been like, I love the piggy bank.

And I'm like, yeah, it's a good one.

So again, there's different, there's different little, again little nuggets in this book.

Bite sized pieces of things to reflect on.

And many parents, there's things that might not be applicable or they wouldn't say is for them, but I have found that there's a lot of pieces that you can reflect on and say, how do I integrate this into how I'm raising my children and also managing this juggling act with my career.

Your template basically I think is going to help people enjoy their lives so much more and, and expand the possibilities.

You essentially, you're teaching people to design their lives Intentionally, rather than just kind of meandering through life.

Right?

Absolutely, yes.

And I do think there's a lot of intentionality in this, in the approach I've taken to the book and having people to reflect on what it means to be a parent in this day and age, but also going back to some of the fundamentals that aren't.

That are kind of universal and timeless.

And I think those are the things that I felt really strongly about because I think society evolves and changes.

But when I was writing this book, I thought, I want someone to be able to pick up this book 20 and 30 years from now and still read these things and think, oh, I could do this.

This is something I could do with my children, or I could do in terms of how I'm thinking about my career.

So I really felt like that was what I wanted to be able to communicate because I wanted this to live on for parents, you know, generations to come, to be able to use as a guide.

It's a wonderful tool.

And you also talk about work, life, balance.

Balance doesn't mean working less.

You have some really great messages there.

Yeah, because I think people think, well, if I work less, what is your concept on all of that?

Yeah, no, it's interesting because, you know, some people say, does, you know, does balance exist?

You know, is what.

What does balance mean?

And again, I think that, you know, the concept and the definition of balance, again, is.

Is very personal.

And, you know, I think that, you know, my definition of balance and your definition of balance, Shelly, could be very different.

Right.

But it's about you thinking about what does balance mean to you and how do you want to balance these aspects of your life in a way that work for you, work for your family, work for what you're trying to achieve with your career and really thinking through those elements.

And, you know, sometimes in fairness, and I would say there would be points in my career where I might be out of balance or there'd be imbalance in my day to day life.

And I would reflect and say, okay, I can see that that's happening.

For what my definition of balance was in fairness.

And I would think about how I wanted to readjust so the things felt more in balance for what, what my balance, my definition of balance meant.

And so I do think a, it's very personal.

And it's also going to involve, depending on the ages of your children, what they need from you, the stage of career you're in and what your career needs.

And so it is a matter of really not feeling like you're going to set that definition and just going to be the same thing for the course of, of your life or the course of your children's lives as you're raising them.

But I do think that it is something to reflect on and think about what is your definition of balance and what and how do you want to manage that?

And so that's kind of how I think about it.

But it's going to evolve over time and that's okay.

You know, that really is okay because that's what the juggling act is all about, is figuring out how to balance those things over the course of time.

And those five balls you mentioned, you.

Really cover everything on how to juggle all those balls and every kind of concept, every kind of possibility.

You have it in the chapters of this book.

It's a wonderful way to rewire perspectives, if you will, and enrich people's lives.

And they can take what they need and leave the rest, whatever applies to them.

Which is great.

Yeah, yeah.

It's definitely one of those things that I feel that everyone can kind of take a little bit from it.

And then there's other things that may not apply.

But I found in the parents that have been reading this book the feedback I do get.

And I do appreciate all the feedback.

So I'm always open to any feedback for anyone that reads the book that they can really take something away, think about it, and then say, oh, that's something I want to do with my kids, or oh, I had thought about the power of saying no in that way, or, you know, whatever the case is.

And so those reflections are, to your point.

I just want everyone to be able to live their life to the fullest and whatever that looks like for individuals.

And this book is really my, hopefully my gift to those that are trying to think about it and something that's very approachable in terms of just being there when you need it.

It really is.

And it's something that can be passed on through future generations.

I think it's going to always apply, which is terrific.

Where do people find the art of the juggling act?

A bite sized guide for working parents.

Thank you.

So, yes, it's available in any of the online booksellers and in bookstores around the country and actually around the world.

And you can also go to thejugglingact.com and order the book through my website and learn a bit more about the background on the book and some of the things.

But yes, those are the two ways to.

And you can also reach [email protected] as well.

Excellent.

Thank you Sarah for being on the show.

This is really valuable for our listeners and I'm amazed at your perspectives.

Your wisdom is just infinite in a lot of this.

It really is.

Oh, thank you, Shelley.

Thank you for having me.

I've really enjoyed the conversation and I just hope that everyone out there can enjoy life to the fullest and enjoy the juggling act, because that's what life's all about.

Thank you Sarah.

This has been terrific.

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