Ambition 2.0

What if "having it all" didn't mean climbing a single corporate ladder but building a whole web of work that fits your real life? An ecosystem of offers, clients, and projects fueled by your network and reputation, where you can tap into different opportunities at different seasons of life.

This week, host Amanda Goetz sits down with Anna Mackenzie, a startup advisor, writer, and author of the newsletter Anna Mack’s Stack, who traded the corporate dream for a self-designed portfolio career. They get into how to diversify your income, why articulating your value is harder (and more important) than selling it, and how to start building on the side without burning out or quitting your day job.

From the sunk cost fallacy that keeps you stuck to the 30-minutes-a-day rule that changed Anna's life, this episode is your friendly reminder to stop forcing your career into a straight line.

Key Takeaways:


A portfolio career is multidimensional and diversified by design—many income streams, projects, and identities at once.


A full-time job can absolutely be part of a portfolio. It's not all-or-nothing.


Your salary can fund the experimentation. Start building on the side before you leap.


Ask past bosses and colleagues what you're good at. You can't always see your set of skills or offers clearly.


Break big scary goals into the smallest achievable unit of effort—what Amanda calls the “KitKat” method.


Structure your portfolio career around three tiers: core, secondary, and experimental income.


You don't need a perfect strategy. Experiment your way to a plan that fits your life.

(00:00) Intro

(02:16) How ambition changes over time

(04:20) What a portfolio career actually is

(06:42) Signs a portfolio career might be for you

(08:55) What keeps people stuck

(11:41) Why the traditional path feels narrow for women

(13:42) The first step: knowing your value

(16:04) Starting when you're too drained

(20:04) Side hustle vs. portfolio career

(21:18) Building your flywheel

(24:30) Deliberate experimentation

(29:16) Rapid fire

GUEST LINKS

Anna’s new 6-week accelerator, The Portfolio Career Build Method: https://www.annamackenzie.com.au/portfoliocareerbuildmethodSubstack: Anna Mack’s Stack 

Website: https://www.annamackenzie.com.au/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annaclmack/ 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@annaclmack 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclmack/ 

FOLLOW THE PODCAST

IG: https://www.instagram.com/girlboss/ | TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@girlboss 

Amanda Goetz: https://www.instagram.com/theamandagoetz/ 

https://girlboss.com/pages/ambition-2-0-podcast 

SIGN UP 

Subscribe to the Girlboss Daily newsletter: https://newsletter.girlboss.com/  

For all other Girlboss links: https://linkin.bio/girlboss/ 

ABOUT AMBITION 2.0 

Powered by Girlboss, Ambition 2.0 is a podcast where we'll be exploring what it really means to "have it all" in work, family, identity, and self… and if it's actually worth it. Each week, you'll hear from hardworking women who've walked the tightrope of ambition. They'll share their costly mistakes, lessons learned, and practical tips for how to have it all and actually love what you have.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re told that we can have it all if we time it right: build your career first, then start a family. But what does the medicine actually say?

Amanda Goetz sits down with Dr. Lucky Sekhon, a double board-certified reproductive endocrinologist at RMA of New York and author of the USA Today bestseller The Lucky Egg.

Dr. Lucky busts the biggest fertility myths (no, your fertility doesn't fall off a cliff at 35), explains why so-called "fertility checks" are mostly marketing, and breaks down the real difference between freezing eggs and freezing embryos. She also flips the script on a part of the story we tend to ignore—male-factor infertility, which accounts for roughly half of cases—and why family building is a team sport. Women shouldn’t carry all the burden!

It's an honest, science-forward, and surprisingly reassuring conversation about the fertility knowledge gap—and how it’s okay to not have it all figured out in your 20s. .

This episode gets into both the emotional and physical considerations of fertility treatment, and we think it's a worthwhile listen, regardless of what stage of life you might find yourself in—and even if you're undecided on the whole kids thing.

Key Takeaways:


Fertility doesn't fall off a cliff at 35. It's a gradual continuum, and many women conceive naturally into their 30s and 40s.


AMH measures egg count, not fertility, and a low number shouldn't cause panic.


Most pop-in or at-home "fertility checks" are marketing. No single test can predict whether you'll struggle to conceive.


Start paying attention in your 20s by understanding your cycle and spotting red flags like PCOS or endometriosis. And pay attention to your family history.


Freezing eggs and freezing embryos are different—eggs offer more flexibility and stay solely yours, while embryos give clearer answers but need both partners' sign-off.


When choosing a clinic, ask about its actual thaw and IVF success rates, not just whether you like the doctor.


Male-factor infertility is something we need to talk more about.


Every day stress doesn't cause infertility, but insulin resistance is an under-recognized and treatable driver worth checking.

(01:20) Intro

(03:30) Dr. Lucky's personal journey

(08:49) The misinformation problem and why absolutes are a red flag

(10:22) The "cliff at 35" myth and the continuum of fertility

(11:03) When to start paying attention (hint: your 20s) + birth control myths

(15:28) Amanda's PCOS diagnosis

(18:31) Family timing, privilege, and perfectionism

(21:46) Feeling "behind," the knowledge gap, and giving yourself grace

(24:56) Egg freezing: when it should enter the conversation

(27:14) All about eggs vs. embryos 

(32:12) Men and male-factor infertility

(36:00) Rapid fire

(44:00) Inside The Lucky Egg

GUEST LINKS

Read The Lucky Egg

https://www.instagram.com/lucky.sekhon/ 

https://theluckyegg.com/ 

FOLLOW THE PODCAST

IG: https://www.instagram.com/girlboss/ | TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@girlboss 

Amanda Goetz: https://www.instagram.com/theamandagoetz/ 

https://girlboss.com/pages/ambition-2-0-podcast 

SIGN UP 

Subscribe to the Girlboss Daily newsletter: https://newsletter.girlboss.com/ 

For all other Girlboss links: https://linkin.bio/girlboss/

ABOUT AMBITION 2.0 

Powered by Girlboss, Ambition 2.0 is a podcast where we'll be exploring what it really means to "have it all" in work, family, identity, and self… and if it's actually worth it. Each week, you'll hear from hardworking women who've walked the tightrope of ambition. They'll share their costly mistakes, lessons learned, and practical tips for how to have it all and actually love what you have.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most leadership advice was written by and for a generation that thought "work-life balance" meant leaving the office before 9 p.m. and checking emails on weekends.

Amanda Litman is here to set the record straight.

As co-founder of Run for Something—the organization that's helped elect over 1,600 young leaders across the U.S.—and author of When We're In Charge, Amanda has spent years studying what actually makes the next generation of leaders different.

She sat down with Amanda Goetz to get into the stuff no one says out loud, like why "bring your full self to work" is actually setting you up to fail, why return-to-office mandates disproportionately push moms out of the workforce, and what it really means to lead with authenticity without accidentally trauma-dumping on your team. 🙃

Plus: the surprisingly effective thing she did every Saturday in 2025 to fight loneliness; the case for the four-day workweek; and a rapid-fire round of who’s most likely to: workplace edition (Gen Z, millennials, or Gen X).

If you've ever wondered whether you can lead a team, build a career, and have a full life—without becoming the kind of boss you swore you'd never be—this one's for you.

01:17 Intro

02:37 The biggest lie in leadership

07:43 "Bring your full self to work" is setting you up to fail

10:15 The three-question framework for showing up authentically without oversharing

13:43 Personal branding for leaders who grew up online

17:11  How to use your platform without blowing up your career

19:32 Return to office, paid family leave, and why flexible work isn't a perk

25:40 The loneliness of leadership, and two solutions

32:28 The one thing first-time leaders need to let go of (hint: it's being liked)

33:18 Rapid fire who’s most likely to: Gen Z vs. millennial vs. Gen X

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Responsible authenticity is about bringing the best version of yourself to serve your team, not your unfiltered 3 a.m. thoughts.


Your employees are not your friends. Friendship is a relationship between equals, and a boss-employee dynamic is not that. 


If you can't manage a remote team, that's a “you” problem.


The four-day workweek forces better prioritization, and the research backs it up.


The sooner you let go of needing to be liked, the sooner you can actually lead—trying to please everyone is a fast track to pleasing no one and resenting yourself.

GUEST LINKS

IG: https://www.instagram.com/amandalitm/ 

Read When We're in Charge

Learn more about Run for Something

https://www.amandalitman.com/ 

FOLLOW THE PODCAST

IG: https://www.instagram.com/girlboss/ | TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@girlboss 

Amanda Goetz: https://www.instagram.com/theamandagoetz/ 

https://girlboss.com/pages/ambition-2-0-podcast 

SIGN UP 

Subscribe to the Girlboss Daily newsletter: https://newsletter.girlboss.com/ 

For all other Girlboss links: https://linkin.bio/girlboss/

ABOUT AMBITION 2.0 

Powered by Girlboss, Ambition 2.0 is a podcast where we'll be exploring what it really means to "have it all" in work, family, identity, and self… and if it's actually worth it. Each week, you'll hear from hardworking women who've walked the tightrope of ambition. They'll share their costly mistakes, lessons learned, and practical tips for how to have it all and actually love what you have.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You've probably had one. Maybe you even have one right now. And if Glassdoor data is anything to go by, you're far from alone—mentions of "toxic boss" in workplace reviews have surged 6.7x since 2018. 🤯

This week, Amanda Goetz sits down with Mita Mallick—bestselling author, workplace culture expert, and self-described recovering people pleaser—to talk about the bad bosses we've all worked for, the ones we've quietly become, and how to tell the difference. 

Mita's new book, The Devil Emails at Midnight, breaks down 13 archetypes of bad bosses (yes, they all have nicknames), and this conversation goes deep on the ones you'll recognize immediately—and the ones that are dangerously easy to miss.

They get into why bad bosses are made, not born; what the midnight email really signals about a leader's psychology; and why toxic positivity might actually be the sneakiest trap for high-achieving women. 

Over 70% of workers say they've quit a job because of a bad boss. This episode is for everyone who has—and everyone who's still figuring out whether they should.

Key Takeaways


Bad bosses are made, not born.


The sneakiest toxic boss, The Cheerleader. 


Demanding excellence and coaching excellence are not the same thing.


Apologies are the most underutilized tool in leadership.


Trauma from a bad boss follows you to the next job if you don't deal with it.


Context matters. Not every bad boss is a reason to quit.

Self-awareness is the non-negotiable foundation of good leadership.02:30 Intro

04:49 The 3 moments toxic leadership shows up 

13:18 Why toxic positivity is the hardest boss to spot 

17:25 What The Devil Emails at Midnight title really means 

20:24 Why companies keep tolerating bad bosses 

25:43 Mita was a micromanager too 

29:08 Where to start if you have a toxic boss right now

31:14 How to survive without burning out when leaving isn't an option 

33:05 The post-toxic-boss trauma nobody talks about 

35:42 What the best bosses do differently 

37:20 Rapid-fire questions

GUEST LINKS

IG: https://www.instagram.com/mita_mallick13/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mita-mallick/ 

Read The Devil Emails at Midnight: https://bookshop.org/a/116169/9781394316489 

Read Reimagine Inclusion: https://bookshop.org/a/116169/9781394177097 

FOLLOW THE PODCAST

IG: https://www.instagram.com/girlboss/ | TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@girlboss 

Amanda Goetz: https://www.instagram.com/theamandagoetz/ 

https://girlboss.com/pages/ambition-2-0-podcast 

SIGN UP 

Subscribe to the Girlboss Daily newsletter: https://newsletter.girlboss.com/ 

For all other Girlboss links: https://linkin.bio/girlboss/

ABOUT AMBITION 2.0 

Powered by Girlboss, Ambition 2.0 is a podcast where we'll be exploring what it really means to "have it all" in work, family, identity, and self… and if it's actually worth it. Each week, you'll hear from hardworking women who've walked the tightrope of ambition. They'll share their costly mistakes, lessons learned, and practical tips for how to have it all and actually love what you have.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you've ever wondered what actually gets discussed behind closed doors when companies are hiring, promoting, or handing out pink slips, this episode is like a backstage pass.

Amanda Goetz sits down with Deepali Vyas, a veteran executive recruiter and career coach who’s spent 25 years in the boardrooms on Wall Street. She’s also one of the most followed career experts on the internet.  She's advised Fortune 500 CEOs, hedge funds, and private equity firms on their most senior hires—and she's here to spill everything they never told you.

The timing couldn't be better. Between mass layoffs, rapid AI expansion, and an unpredictable job market, navigating your career right now feels harder than ever. Deepali breaks down exactly what's changed, what still works, and what you need to stop doing right now—from the resume mistakes that get you filtered out in six seconds (!!!), to why loyalty to a company is not the flex you think it is, to the 5-5-3 networking rule that actually moves the needle when you're on the market.

We're also getting into the closed-door conversations that decide who gets laid off, the one move that makes hiring managers want you more, and the corporate truth that might sting a little: your manager is not your mentor.

If you've been playing checkers with your career, this is your invitation to start playing chess. Tune into the episode to find out how.

Key Takeaways


Talent alone won't get you promoted—visibility will. 


Your manager is not your mentor. 


Everyone has skills. What separates people is proximity.


BLUF: Bottom line up front.


Build your external brand while you're still employed. 


Why you should leave your job when you’re winning. 


When you're job searching, use the 5-5-3 rule: five texts to people in your network, five days a week, and aim for three meetings.

00:00 Intro

03:12 Deepali's career origin story

05:41 Being underestimated as a superpower

06:13 Talent alone isn't enough: visibility & access matter most

08:14 Managing up & the power memo

13:58 Checkers vs. chess: playing the long game

15:57 Leave when you're winning

17:30 Behind closed doors: what hiring really looks like

20:06 Resumes, layoffs & career resilience

22:54 The 5-5-3 rule

26:46 Becoming indispensable vs. high impact

32:21 Rapid fire: resumes, LinkedIn & interview tips

GUEST LINKS

IG: https://www.instagram.com/the_elite_recruiter/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@elite.recruiter

Subscribe to Deepali's newsletter: https://eliterecruiter-newsletter.beehiiv.com/

FOLLOW THE PODCAST

IG: https://www.instagram.com/girlboss/ | TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@girlboss 

Amanda Goetz: https://www.instagram.com/theamandagoetz/ 

https://girlboss.com/pages/ambition-2-0-podcast 

SIGN UP 

Subscribe to the Girlboss Daily newsletter: https://newsletter.girlboss.com/ 

For all other Girlboss links: https://linkin.bio/girlboss/

ABOUT AMBITION 2.0 

Powered by Girlboss, Ambition 2.0 is a podcast where we'll be exploring what it really means to "have it all" in work, family, identity, and self… and if it's actually worth it. Each week, you'll hear from hardworking women who've walked the tightrope of ambition. They'll share their costly mistakes, lessons learned, and practical tips for how to have it all and actually love what you have.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices