Wellness Wednesday Issue #122

⚖️ Maybe ‘work-life balance’ wasn’t made for women after all…

✈️ Jet lag who? These plane sleep-hacks are game-changers.

🧠 24 productivity hacks from powerhouse women.

🏢 Running HR at scale? These enterprise platforms make big teams feel manageable.

Let’s be real: parenting is hard. Teaching is hard. And when you’re navigating both sides of the equation—especially during a school year filled with changing expectations, emotions, and academic pressures—it helps a lot when parents and teachers feel like they’re on the same team.

But sometimes, that parent-teacher dynamic can feel…tense. Or awkward. Or nonexistent. You might feel intimidated. Or unsure of when you’re “allowed” to reach out. Or maybe you’ve had a less-than-great experience in the past and feel like there’s no real relationship there to build on.

Teachers want to partner with you. They want to help your child succeed, and most of them would welcome proactive, respectful communication.

Here’s how to foster a better, stronger relationship with your kids’ teachers—without being “that” parent.

👋 1. Start Early (and Kindly)

Don’t wait until there’s a problem to introduce yourself. Whether it’s via email or a quick hello at back-to-school night, a short, friendly note saying “Hi, I’m [Name], I’m [Child]’s parent and we’re excited for this year” goes a long way. Teachers remember the parents who start with kindness, not complaints.

💬 2. Lead with Collaboration, Not Criticism

If something’s not working—an assignment is unclear, your child is stressed, a grade seems off—reach out with curiosity, not confrontation. Use language like:

➡️ “I’d love to get your perspective on…”
➡️ “Can we work together to support them with…”

This makes it a shared problem-solving conversation instead of a blame game.

⏰ 3. Respect Their Time

Teachers are juggling a lot—lesson plans, emails, meetings, grading, and let’s not forget, dozens of other kids. Keep your messages concise and clear. If it’s urgent, ask for a short call. If it’s not, send a note and trust they’ll get back to you.

🏠 4. Share What They Can’t See

You know your child best. If there’s a big change at home (a move, loss, anxiety flare-up), clue the teacher in. It gives them context and helps them support your child in a more holistic way.

👏 5. Acknowledge the Good

A quick email that says, “Thank you for helping [Child] feel more confident in math,” or “We really appreciated the science project support” can make a teacher’s entire week. It’s easy to forget that praise is just as important as problem-solving.

📝 6. Be Your Child’s Advocate—But Not Their Lawyer

Your child will face challenges. That’s part of life. Your job isn’t to fix everything for them—it’s to help them develop resilience and advocate for themselves, with your guidance. Help them write their own email or prepare to ask their teacher questions during office hours. Encourage independence while staying supportive.

At the end of the day, it’s about partnership. You and your child’s teacher both care deeply about your kid. When you show up with openness, empathy, and mutual respect, you create a stronger, more effective support system—and that benefits everyone involved.

If this sounds like you…

You’re not alone—and you’re definitely not the problem.

1. You’re working harder, but it still feels chaotic.
Jumping between apps, chasing emails, trying to remember which version of the doc is “the real” one… it’s exhausting.

2. You’re spending too much time managing your work—and not enough actually doing it.
Admin creep is real. Before you know it, you’re drowning in busywork instead of making real moves.

3. Everything feels urgent, but nothing feels finished.
When your tools aren’t connected, every task feels heavier than it should.

🎯 How to fix it:

• Build one connected system for everything (projects, clients, emails, money, team stuff).
• Automate the boring stuff you shouldn’t be doing manually.
• Customize your workspace to fit how you work best—not the other way around.

This is exactly what Zoho was built for.

Zoho isn’t just a project manager or a CRM—it’s an entire suite of 40+ connected apps designed to run your whole business from one dashboard.

You can:

• Manage projects, deadlines, and tasks without the chaos
• Track sales leads and automate client follow-ups inside a smart CRM
• Handle finance, billing, and HR (without hiring five extra people)
• Build automations that move work forward without manual check-ins
• Customize dashboards so you see what matters most—at a glance.

It’s basically your new operations department—without the corporate price tag (or the headaches).

If you’re ready to stop duct-taping your workday together…👉 Take a look at Zoho.

Because your energy is too valuable to waste on broken systems.

Hello from Tulum 🌴! I’ve been here since last Thursday for a friend’s wedding—but by the time you’re reading this, I’ll be en route to NYC for a work dinner and a newsletter conference, then off to Philly to meet up with a few amazing TALA ladies. (If you’re in NY or Philly—lmk! I’d love to meet some TA readers IRL.)

Here’s what I’ve realized: balance isn’t binary. It’s not “always on” or “completely unplugged.” It’s seasonal. It’s flexible. And for me, it changes week to week.

What balance looks like this week:

• 🕓 I blocked 30–45 min “check-in” windows on travel days to stay on top of things without being glued to my phone or laptop.
• 📥 I’m setting email boundaries and set an expectation with my team: I’ll respond mindfully, not reactively.
• 📝 I made a super simple “OOO-lite” plan—who’s covering what, when I’ll check in, and what can wait. My team’s looped in, and nothing’s on fire.
• 💡 If I feel like responding to a Slack poolside? Cool. If I don’t? Also cool. The goal is choice—not guilt.

Packing tricks that saved me:

• 👗 I started by listing each day, where I’d be, what I’d be doing, and checked the weather. Then I built outfits around that—focusing on pieces I can mix and match, nothing “just in case.”
• 🧳 I used two packing cubes: one for Mexico, one for NYC. Flipping between wedding and work mode is way easier when it’s all pre-sorted.
• 🤵 Anything I won’t need in NYC? I’m sending it home with my husband (thanks babe!).
• 📸 Yes, I took photos of each outfit. Call me extra, but Cher’s Clueless closet was iconic for a reason.
• 👢 I wore my bulkiest items on the plane to free up space (blazer, boots, etc.).

So if you’re in a season where you’re:

• Picking up extra hours to make ends meet,
• Showing up for family during something hard,
• Or just trying to make space to breathe between work meetings and adulting…

Let this be your reminder:

✨ You get to define balance for yourself—and you’re allowed to update that definition as often as you need.

A few Qs I come back to when I feel overwhelmed:

• What would help me feel just a little more present today?
• Am I reacting to someone else’s definition of “doing it right”?
• What can I let go of without everything falling apart?

You don’t have to chase perfect. Just aim for aligned. This week, for me, that looks like barefoot dancing in Tulum, thoughtful convos in NYC, and checking my inbox without guilt.

Joanna (Co-founder of TA)

P.S. Seriously, if you’re in NY or Philly—slide into my inbox. I’d love to say hey.

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👀 Land your next job with The Search’s tips, tricks, and humor.

🎉 Finally, employee recognition that doesn’t feel forced—and actually builds culture.

💎 Keep your jewelry safe and tangle-free with this travel-sized organizer.

🛡️ Protect your peace and your privacy—online and off.

• MEDITECH is hiring for an Account Executive (Canton, MA).
• LankyBox is hiring for a Production Manager (Las Vegas, NV).
• Beacon Hill is hiring for a Direct Hire HR Manager (Philadelphia, PA).
• Skybound Entertainment is hiring for a Brand Manager (Los Angeles, CA).
• LHH is hiring for a Digital Marketing Lead (Kenosha, WI).

⭐ View more jobs here >

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