Powrup

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190

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Oct 2026

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About the show

Nat and Kristen are on a mission to amplify your impact - think of us as your personal cheerleaders. We’ve been there and done that and are open-sourcing the career playbook. Filled with actionable insights and entertaining commentary, each episode will equip you with the confidence and skills to shape your career on your terms. Find out more at www.powrsuit.com.

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October 19, 2026Episode 18934 min

Ep 189: Should you do the job before you get the promotion?

Ask someone chasing a promotion whether they should work at the next level before they get it, and plenty say no thanks. Ask the person doing the promoting and the answer’s almost always yes. In this ep, Nat and Kristen take a middle ground. Things like speaking up in meetings like a peer, linking your work to revenue, cost or culture, and making the value you add easy to see (visibility for its own sake just makes everyone groan). Where they draw the line is taking on a whole second job, or covering the gaps for a colleague who got the role instead of you. A rule of thumb is to spend your first three to six months in any role getting wins on the board, then start spotting gaps you could fix. And if you want a place to start this week, get curious about what would make your manager’s life easier (and no, that doesn’t mean picking up their sandwiches). Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

October 13, 2026Episode 18834 min

Ep 188: How do you back yourself in meetings?

We've noticed a trend lately: Powrsuiters sharing that they want to back themselves more when under pressure. Getting the words out is the first step, but it’s the uncertain twenty seconds after, when you’re braced for someone to question you, that stops many of us speaking up at all. In this ep of Powrup, Nat and Kristen talk through both. They share a four-point sticky note to fill in before your next meeting (your position, what it rests on, any trade-offs, and what would change your mind) and why speaking first beats waiting for the perfect moment. In a Powrsuit LinkedIn poll, half of you said preparation helped most - which supports researcher Herminia Ibarra's point that you can’t think your way into acting differently, so at some point you just have to say the thing! Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

October 5, 2026Episode 18732 min

Ep 187: Not sure what to do next in your career?

The usual advice when a job ends is to work out what you want first, then make a move. Kristen has given that advice to plenty of Powrsuit members, and in this ep of Powrup, Nat and Kristen question it. They talk about the awkward in-between stage after a redundancy, time at home with kids or outgrowing your role (there's even a word for it: liminality). They draw on Herminia Ibarra's year-long study of 23 career changers, who figured out what they wanted by trying things first. Her advice is to spend a little time reflecting to come up with three ideas, then test them in real life to see which one sticks. That could be a 15-minute virtual coffee where you ask someone what a typical Tuesday looks like for them, or saying yes to an unpaid spot on a local sports club board. Confidence usually turns up after you've started, so you don't need to wait for it. Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

September 28, 2026Episode 18634 min

Ep 186: How to Disagree at Work in a Polarised World

Neutrality used to cost you nothing but now it costs reach. We start with the flashpoints doing the rounds: Ed Sheeran, Sydney Sweeney, Meghan Markle, Jacinda Ardern, return to office mandates, private school vs public school (we could go on). Then the work version, where you can't mute anyone and the project's still due. Using Jessica Tarlov's new book 'I Disagree' as a frame: leave room for people who choose differently, because if every disagreement is a character test you'll run out of colleagues. Go in to learn rather than to win. Nat's opener is to ask whether someone's open to changing their mind, and if they're not, leave it there. Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

September 23, 2026Episode 18533 min

Ep 185: Why Women Can Be Harder on Other Women

Queen bee syndrome is when senior women pull the ladder up behind them. It's real, it's been studied, and the research points to structure rather than personality. We start with the Sydney Sweeney ad and the pick me girl label, then get to the thing Powrsuiters say in hushed tones on calls: one of my worst managers was a woman. A few reasons it happens. There's often only one seat, so enter fierce competition thanks to scarcity. Survival mode sets in, because if proving you're not like other women is what got you there, distancing is the strategy that works. And helping really does cost us, since women who champion other women get worse performance ratings for it while white men doing the same don't....(?). Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

September 17, 2026Episode 18434 min

Ep 184: Are People Getting Ruder?

Are people ruder now, or have the norms just shifted under our feet? Speakerphone conversations in the airport lounge, QR code ordering when you've just paid close to a hundred dollars for a couple of burgers and beers, ghosting meetings and catchups - is this the new normal? A researcher has been asking people about rudeness since the 90s and the number has climbed every time, with the biggest rise in customers behaving badly towards frontline staff. She also found nobody thinks they're the rude one (ha). Plus our LinkedIn poll results and the noise violation ticket Kristen dodged at 14. Got a pet peeve we missed? Tell us. powrsuit.com Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

September 7, 2026Episode 18333 min

Ep 183: Are you past, present or future focused?

Your brain has a default time zone: Past, present or future. Kristen found out about it at a dinner party, went home and got AI to test her, and ran a shorter version on Nat. Someone more junior gets the promotion you wanted and it's 9pm, what are you doing?If you're past focused you work out how something happened, which is great for spotting patterns and for backing yourself based on your track record, though you can get stuck diagnosing when you should be deciding. Present focused means you go on how it feels right now, which is a lovely way to live but no help for a five year plan. Future focused means today is always a step towards something, and it comes with skipping your wins and comes with a worrying version. We figure it’s useful to be able explain yours to the people you work with, which is why we did this out loud - so give it a go. Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

August 31, 2026Episode 19830 min

Ep 182: Calendar management: do's and don'ts for sanity

Your calendar probably isn't a plan. It's a receipt for everything other people asked you to do. We've heard a few common ways people run a calendar. As a receipt, where it's just a record of what you're delivering for everyone else. As a watch list, where you accept everything and then triage it on a Sunday night. Or as a Tetris board, where the blocks are constantly moving around because they have to fit the hours you've actually got. Some of our do's and don'ts: Deliberately end meetings 5-10 mins early. Stop defaulting to 60 minutes! Start at 15 and make yourself justify more. Put the agenda in the description field - most agendas are one question or one decision anyway. Block your travel time and be honest about how long it takes. Block the prep before a meeting, and a block for the work that comes out of it. Name your blocks, personal ones too, so people can see what's movable. Put a three month end date on recurring meetings, so you've got a natural excuse to kill them. Plus an expensive Japanese pot, a helpful husband, and three op shops.If this was helpful, we've got mini masterclasses on calendar hacks, taking back your time, and the art of prioritisation inside Powrsuit. Reach out and we'll sort a discount for your first month. Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

August 24, 2026Episode 18135 min

Ep 181: How to work a room when you'd rather hide in the toilet

Networking is the thing most of us dread, so here's how to actually work a room without wanting to hide in the women’s toilet. We start with the liking gap - the research showing people walk away thinking they tanked terribly while everyone else rated them an A. Then in Powrsuit fashion, Nat and Kristen get practical: the walk-in plan, why heading straight for the drinks table gives you a job to do, how to read which groups are safe to join, and graceful ways to exit a convo. In a male-dominated field? What to do when banter feels designed to exclude you, and why the fix is curiosity. Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/

August 17, 2026Episode 18028 min

Ep 180: Quiet quitting is back (in the worst economy for it)

Quiet quitting is back - and it makes no sense. Jobs are at an all time low, unemployment all time high, and yet work disengagement is off the charts? Nat and Kristen dig into why people are checking out when you'd most expect them to cling on. They cover what’s going on (poor management, burnout and broken promises), and why Gen Z are more likely to quiet quit than boomers. Plus the difference between disengaged and actively disengaged and whether this is all about boundaries and why it’s all pretty bad for our mental health. Also - eclipse tourism, and how wedding-spend correlates to divorce rates. Loved it? Share it and leave us a 5-star review! More from Powrsuit: 🔗 Podcast: https://powrsuit.com/podcast/ 🌐 Website: https://powrsuit.com/ 📩 Newsletter: https://powrsuit.com/newsletters/ 📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCORJdS-WlYOWA20mSOGG2ug 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/powrsuit 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/powrsuit/