Wise Women's Council

How many people do you have in your immediate community? Is it enough? Most of us have FAR TOO FEW people in our every day lives, and we're living in a community scarcity that would be hard for our ancestors to fathom. It’s only when I step out of the extreme workaholism of modern parenting and take a break—when I go camping, when I get into nature, or when I finally take that day off I’ve been meaning to take for ages—that’s when I realize just how bare-bones and lonely parts of everyday life can become. We’re not meant to carry all of this burden in siloed houses so far apart from each other. The nuclear family is too small. But we can begin to drown inside of it, and forget that all of these fights—the fights over the cooking and the cleaning and the work and the children—are really about something else entirely. Kurt Vonnegut, an American writer, humorist, and the author of fourteen books, speaks to the depth of loneliness that so many people feel and why we’re really fighting with each other. In the essay collection “If This Isn’t Nice, What Is?” Vonnegut shares sharp, precise notes on why it’s too much—and what we can do about it. What we’re really fighting about, he argues, is that we don’t have enough people. “Only two major subjects remain to be covered: loneliness and boredom. No matter what age any of us is now, we are going to be bored and lonely during what remains of our lives. We are so lonely because we don’t have enough friends and relatives. Human beings are supposed to live in stable, like-minded, extended families of fifty people or more.” — Kurt Vonnegut We need other people. We need fifty other people. Or more. One person cannot be everything and everyone for another person. Our partner cannot be our therapist and our confidante and our bowling pal and our reading group and our cooking group. It’s impossible to be all of this to each other. A marriage is not enough. A friend is not enough. We need more people. “We are so lonely because we don’t have enough friends and relatives. Human beings are supposed to live in stable, like-minded, extended families of fifty people or more.” ### What about you? Do you have nearly enough people in your life? If so, how did you build that community? What tips do you have for others?

We are running a summer session of The Wise Women's Council! Sarah K Peck and the Startup Parent team have been running this leadership mastermind for #businessmoms and #foundermoms over the last six years, and we gather together every Thursday for a full calendar year. We believe that parenting is an unrecognized leadership incubator for what the world needs next—the skills you'll need for the rest of your lifetime. If you need REAL people to talk to about the intersection of life and business, if you need more friends and connections at the intersection of business & life, then check out the Wise Women's Council. We're thrilled to welcome back many of our alumni and coaches for another cycle — brilliant folks like Michelle Florendo, Jessica Wan, Meghan Wang, Marianna Kerppola, Pavla Lokajova, Kimberley Healy, Emma Sedlak, PhD, Danielle Goslen, Ashley Knight more! Plus, we have a stunning roster of guest coaches, fireside chats, and facilitators, featuring Angela Parker, Michelle Warner, Jay Acunzo, Wes Kao, Justine Sones, Sara Frandina, and so many more to be announced soon. We only open twice a year for new members. 💜 Translating parenting skills into leadership savvy is what we do in The Wise Women's Council. ✴️ Early bird applications close TODAY. ✅ Final application deadline My 29th. 💜 New cohort starts June 6th! Link in comments for dates, pricing, and how to apply. #femalefounders #motherhood #womenleaders #womensleadership

In our leadership incubator, we host a standing call every Thursday with business leaders, thinkers, innovators, and creatives. One of our standing calls is with Jessica Wan, an executive coach and marketing wizard with 20+ years of experience — not just as an executive and a marketer, but also as an Ampersand. She holds the "and" of mother, coach, mentor, peer, business leader, classical singer, executive, entrepreneur, and more. Here's what Jessica wrote about the space we create in The Wise Women's Council: In WWC, the future looks bright. It's not... ❌ competitive ❌ hustle culture ❌ ego-centric ❌ let me do it myself ❌ growth at all costs It is... ✅ collaborative ✅ ambition with joy ✅ lift all of us up ✅ let's build this together ✅ growth for this season Thank you, Jessica, for being one of our amazing members AND coaches!

What a wild ride 2024 has already been. After months of leg and hip pain, I woke up unable to walk on February 4th. After six more weeks of diagnostics, physical therapy, severe pain, and every pain management tool under the sun, I had spine surgery this week. I'll be in recovery for the next six to twelve weeks with progressive rehab, nerve healing, and strengthening. In a later post, I'll share how beautifully the women of the Wise Women's Council are holding space while I'm on this unexpected leave. I'll probably write about how sudden emergencies can upend your business, no matter how organized you are. And I'll tell you about how many people I need just to do basic things again. Plus, I hope to post some selfies when I'm back in the pool swimming laps (no flip-turns yet). You all know I talk a lot about how important paid family and medical leave is, especially with my work at Startup Parent. I've learned so much from people like Eve Rodsky and Pooja Lakshmin, MD and Katherine Goldstein about just how vital it is to have social infrastructure and support beyond just "having" or "not having" a job. This is yet another example of how CRITICAL it is to have community, social, and civic infrastructure that adequately TAKES CARE of PEOPLE. Right now, I'm taking several months of unpaid leave from my business to heal, all the while hiring as much help as I can get with my two young kids. I can't bathe them, dress them, or prep food for them (yet). But I will soon. I'll write more about this all later. For now, I'm in recovery, and I'm going to rest. And a whole lot of rehabilitation. Baby steps. #paidleave #healthcare #worklife

Reposting from Jessica Wan and I will echo her thoughts on what makes the Wise Women's Council so special. Applications for the next cohort are due by Thurs. 4/18, so please apply if you're interested! The women in this program are magnetic, beyond wise, and incredible leaders in work and life.