Balance & Beyond

You can run a team, lead through crisis, and keep a brave face all day then come undone over a lunchbox, socks, or a towel on the floor. We call it the “duck on a pond”: polished and capable on the surface, frantic paddling underneath. If that’s you, you’re not failing at life, you’re running on empty, and home is where the mask finally drops.

Joe is joined by coach Sabina to get honest about why high-achieving women so often give work the best of their energy and leave family with the scraps. We dig into the real drivers behind burnout and emotional blow-ups: the split between your professional persona and your personal self, the guilt and shame spiral that follows, and the “proving energy” that keeps your brain in constant overdrive. Think imposter syndrome, second-guessing, planning for every scenario, and trying to stay on top of everything, even when your actual to-do list hasn’t changed.

We also tackle the moment many women hit: “You don’t understand my job, there’s nothing I can do.” Sabina shares why that’s the exact cue to stop, not sprint, and how reflection, boundaries, and the right support can help you become calmer, more focused, and more present at home without automatically quitting your role. The payoff is real: better relationships, new memories, and a return to feeling like yourself.

If this resonates, subscribe, share it with a friend who’s paddling hard under the water, and leave a review so more women can find a better way forward.
Send a text message to Jo
The Balance & Beyond Podcast Hosted by Jo Stone, founder of The Balance Institute
For women who are already succeeding, but beginning to wonder if they're willing to keep losing themselves in the process.
We know high achievers, because we are one. This podcast draws on Jo's 20 years in global leadership and thousands of hours coaching executives and ambitious women: the patterns she sees, how to untangle them, and what it actually takes to keep your success without paying for it with yourself.
If something landed today, there's more where that came from.
And if you know a woman this would resonate with, send it her way.
🎙️https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast
🔗 www.balanceinstitute.com
💼https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne
📷 @therealjostone

We realise how often “self-care” comes with an asterisk, where we only do things for ourselves if we can justify them. We challenge ourselves to find what actually makes us feel alive, not just what keeps us functioning. 
• asking what we’ve done this week just for us 
• noticing the qualifiers that turn self-care into damage control 
• spotting guilt, shame, and “insurance policy” habits in our routines 
• sorting habits into draining activities versus nourishing activities 
• recognising when nourishing only brings us back to baseline 
• exploring what “feeling alive” can look like in 30 seconds 
• remembering the version of us outside roles and responsibilities 
If this resonated, share it with a friend who needs to hear it today. And don't forget to subscribe to Balance and Beyond for full episodes and more of these bite sized breakthroughs. 
Send a text message to Jo
The Balance & Beyond Podcast Hosted by Jo Stone, founder of The Balance Institute
For women who are already succeeding, but beginning to wonder if they're willing to keep losing themselves in the process.
We know high achievers, because we are one. This podcast draws on Jo's 20 years in global leadership and thousands of hours coaching executives and ambitious women: the patterns she sees, how to untangle them, and what it actually takes to keep your success without paying for it with yourself.
If something landed today, there's more where that came from.
And if you know a woman this would resonate with, send it her way.
🎙️https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast
🔗 www.balanceinstitute.com
💼https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne
📷 @therealjostone

Register now for The Overdrive Reset - a free 8-day WhatsApp experience designed for women who are exhausted from constantly carrying, managing, fixing, anticipating, and holding everything together.
Short daily voice notes.
Real pattern recognition.
No wellness fluff.
Starts 29th May.
Join here: www.balanceinstitute.com/reset

Your calendar says “rest”, but your body treats it like a threat. If you’ve ever sat down for a break and stood back up minutes later with no real reason, you’re not broken and you’re not doing self-care wrong. We talk honestly about why so many high-achieving women live in overdrive, where stopping feels more dangerous than continuing, even when burnout is already knocking. 

We dig into the sneaky ways productivity hijacks recovery: “resting” with the inbox open, turning downtime into life admin, and keeping noise on because silence feels unbearable. We also name the two-speed pattern that traps so many of us, pushing until collapse then getting up the second the worst passes. When the body has to force a stop through exhaustion, illness, or pain, it never feels like a choice, and that’s where the cycle tightens. 

The heart of the conversation is identity. If you grew up learning that being useful equals being good, and being lazy is the worst insult, then rest can feel like you’re becoming someone you’ve spent your whole life trying not to be. We unpack how standards, fear of letting people down, and the need to be “the strong one” can keep your nervous system stuck on high alert, no matter how many holidays you book. 

If you’re ready to understand what stopping actually means to you, I share why I created The Overdrive Reset and how you can join for free. Subscribe, share this with a woman who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find their way out of burnout and back into real rest.
Send a text message to Jo
The Balance & Beyond Podcast Hosted by Jo Stone, founder of The Balance Institute
For women who are already succeeding, but beginning to wonder if they're willing to keep losing themselves in the process.
We know high achievers, because we are one. This podcast draws on Jo's 20 years in global leadership and thousands of hours coaching executives and ambitious women: the patterns she sees, how to untangle them, and what it actually takes to keep your success without paying for it with yourself.
If something landed today, there's more where that came from.
And if you know a woman this would resonate with, send it her way.
🎙️https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast
🔗 www.balanceinstitute.com
💼https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne
📷 @therealjostone

Register now for The Overdrive Reset - a free 8-day WhatsApp experience designed for women who are exhausted from constantly carrying, managing, fixing, anticipating, and holding everything together.
Short daily voice notes.
Real pattern recognition.
No wellness fluff.
Starts 29th May.
Join here: www.balanceinstitute.com/reset

We rethink goal setting through a simple lens: how we want to feel, not what we want to prove. We share how slowing down, focusing on 1% shifts, and managing inputs brings better results with more joy and less grinding. 
• setting a goal that matters even if nobody knows 
• slowing down to speed up through smarter training and better efficiency 
• using 1% shifts to create compounding progress 
• managing inputs like schedule, frequency, and connection instead of obsessing over outcomes 
• noticing the high achiever trap of moving goalposts and earning joy through suffering 
• stripping out busyness and coping behaviours to find what actually matters 
• practising self-compassion when you pick the wrong 1% and choosing again today 
If this resonated, share it with a friend who needs to hear it today. 
And don't forget to subscribe to Balance and Beyond for full episodes and more of these bite sized breakthroughs.
Send a text message to Jo
The Balance & Beyond Podcast Hosted by Jo Stone, founder of The Balance Institute
For women who are already succeeding, but beginning to wonder if they're willing to keep losing themselves in the process.
We know high achievers, because we are one. This podcast draws on Jo's 20 years in global leadership and thousands of hours coaching executives and ambitious women: the patterns she sees, how to untangle them, and what it actually takes to keep your success without paying for it with yourself.
If something landed today, there's more where that came from.
And if you know a woman this would resonate with, send it her way.
🎙️https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast
🔗 www.balanceinstitute.com
💼https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne
📷 @therealjostone

Register now for The Overdrive Reset - a free 8-day WhatsApp experience designed for women who are exhausted from constantly carrying, managing, fixing, anticipating, and holding everything together.
Short daily voice notes.
Real pattern recognition.
No wellness fluff.
Starts 29th May.
Join here: www.balanceinstitute.com/reset
When was the last time you went to bed with nothing nagging at you, no unfinished loops, no sense that you “should” be doing more? If your gut answer is a tired laugh, you’re not alone, and you’re not failing. I’m unpacking the uncomfortable truth behind why so many high-achieving women feel permanently behind: we’ve been playing a rigged game where feeling okay is conditional on getting on top of everything.

We pull apart the rules of that game, including the never-ending list that has to be ticked off before you’re “allowed” to rest. The kicker is that a huge chunk of the list sits outside your control: kids’ moods, bosses’ deadlines, hormones, family expectations, and the general pace of the world right now. When your nervous system is waiting for perfect conditions to relax, it never gets the signal that you’re safe. So we default to what we know: grip tighter, do more, go faster, and call it “coping” while our bodies quietly run on fumes.

I also name the three big control strategies I see again and again: the 3 am spiral and doom scroll, overcompensating through perfectionism and over-delivering, and the shutdown that looks like numb scrolling on the couch. Then we talk about the escape fantasy, selling the house and starting again, and why it doesn’t fix the internal rules you’ve been living by. There is another way out, and it doesn’t require burning everything down.

If you’re ready to stop chasing inbox zero as proof you’re worthy of rest, come join me for the Overdrive Reset starting May 29. Hit play, share this with a woman who needs it, and please subscribe and leave a review so it reaches the people it’s meant for.
Send a text message to Jo
The Balance & Beyond Podcast Hosted by Jo Stone, founder of The Balance Institute
For women who are already succeeding, but beginning to wonder if they're willing to keep losing themselves in the process.
We know high achievers, because we are one. This podcast draws on Jo's 20 years in global leadership and thousands of hours coaching executives and ambitious women: the patterns she sees, how to untangle them, and what it actually takes to keep your success without paying for it with yourself.
If something landed today, there's more where that came from.
And if you know a woman this would resonate with, send it her way.
🎙️https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast
🔗 www.balanceinstitute.com
💼https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne
📷 @therealjostone