Why You Get More Done When You're Busy

After 85 episodes, this is our final one. In Episode 85, Mandy Alt and Mandy Holt hash it out, live and unscripted: why The Corporate Burnouts Podcast is ending, what it healed for both of them, and why walking away while you still love something beats staying until it runs its course. This show started as a place to pour out every bit of our corporate trauma and burnout. It became our therapy. Now our lives look completely different, and we want to honor the ending as much as we honored the start. In this episode: Why we're ending the podcast after 85 episodes How this podcast became our therapy Our guests were the real therapists When something stops feeling authentic to your life Putting fun first without dropping the ball on work Your accomplishments are not your identity Realizing we'd tied our identity to being podcasters Leaving the room while people still want you there The boat day that started the conversation Why we never told other people's stories on air A possible Corporate Burnouts Facebook group (vote in the poll!)

You picked a career at 18. Did anyone ask what you wanted your life to look like? In Episode 84, Mandy Alt and Mandy Holt dig into why so many people climb the ladder, reach the top and still feel empty. Starting with the college-planning chaos in both of their homes and a viral trend of high achievers walking away from the careers they spent decades building, they unpack why happiness isn't a destination, why midlife feels like a tipping point, and the better questions to ask before (and after) you pick a path. In this episode: Why "what do you want to be when you grow up?" is the wrong question Choosing a career based on the life you want, not just the title Happiness is not a destination Midlife crisis or midlife wake-up call? Reevaluating your career at 25, 30, 35 and 40 The random-Tuesday test Why your job doesn't have to be your passion It's okay to want money (just know the trade-off) Finding your non-negotiables Every career has a cost Future tripping and the "I'll be happy when…" trap Why waiting until retirement to live is a bad plan

If working from home was such a problem, why did it take until 2026 for anyone to say so? In Episode 82, Mandy Alt and Mandy Holt break down the real return-to-office timeline: the 2020 shutdown, the 2021–2022 hot labor market that turned remote work into a hiring perk, the messy 2023 "back to normal" push, and the 2024 layoffs that flipped power back to employers. They get into the theories nobody says out loud, what happens to people hired 100% remote who now live nowhere near an office, and what a commute actually costs once you add it all up. In this episode: ​A real timeline: 2020 lockdowns to 2026 mandates ​The real estate and power-and-control theories behind RTO ​What happens when you're hired fully remote and then told to relocate ​The hidden cost of commuting: gas, time, clothes and childcare ​Why "be more productive" isn't a real reason without a system behind it ​How to negotiate before you comply ​The stats: 91% of Amazon employees unhappy, 80% of companies losing talent

Burnout isn't just coming for your health. It's coming for your bank account. In Episode 81, Mandy Alt and Mandy Holt get honest about what burnout really cost them: late-night retail therapy, Target runs that always hit $200, delivery apps, paying for chores they couldn't face, and bills that didn't get paid until the water got shut off. They break down why burnout spending is really escapism, how financial procrastination sneaks in even when the money is there, and how to stop the financial bleed without shaming yourself. In this episode: Retail therapy and stress spending as burnout coping Grocery delivery, DoorDash and why simple tasks feel impossible Outsourcing chores: healthy choice or avoidance? Financial procrastination and paying bills late Automating your bills to cut the mental load Skipped raises and retirement savings on pause How to do a 60–90 day burnout spending audit Why your career can't be your whole identity

One 30-minute conversation blew up an entire business plan this week — and it started with a ChatGPT prompt at 11 p.m. Mandy and Mandy talk honestly about playing small: staying quiet in meetings when you have the better idea, undercharging because you're "still new," waiting for someone else to tell you you're ready. Mandy Alt shares the $750 website that kicked off her marketing agency and what those years of underpricing actually cost. Mandy Holt breaks down the gut-check question nobody wants to answer: who benefits when you stay small? This one's for anyone in corporate, running a business, or somewhere in between who's been comfortable a little too long. In this episode: the signs you're playing small, where the habit comes from, why imposter syndrome keeps good ideas trapped in your head, the real financial cost of underselling yourself, the "every idea is an ugly baby" rule, keeping a written record of your wins, and the one-size-up challenge to try this week. The prompts from the episode, as promised: "Based on everything I've ever told you, tell me 5 things about me that you've figured out yourself. And don't soften it for me. Tell me straight." And then after it give you your answer, ask it this follow up question. "What pattern do you see in the way that I work now? Predict the next 5 years if nothing changes. Also predict the next 5 years if I fix this one thing." Have a work secret you've never told anyone? Drop it anonymously at thecorporateburnouts.com under the Secrets tab. We'll tell it and we won't tell them it's yours. Follow the show so new episodes land in your feed every Thursday morning.