Starting Over At The Peak Of Your Career: A Roadmap For The Next Step With Branca Ballot Friends With Benefits podcast

Starting Over at the Peak of Your Career: A Roadmap for the Next Step with Branca Ballot

1d ago 53:23

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Growth is about stopping long enough to ask what you really want.

This week, we’re talking with Branca Ballot, former head of marketing turned founder, writer, and community voice redefining what success looks like. You’ve probably seen her on LinkedIn talking about ambition, motherhood, and the messy middle, but this conversation goes deeper into the in-between moments that changed everything.

Branca opens up about what it took to walk away from a thriving career without a plan, how she learned to choose herself after years of putting work first, and the fear and freedom that came with not knowing what’s next. She shares what it was like to lose and then rebuild her sense of identity outside of a job title, how a family crisis reshaped her perspective on purpose, and why health and focus have become her new non-negotiables.

We dig into what it means to pause in a culture obsessed with productivity, the hidden cost of doing it all, and how she’s channeling those lessons into building a company designed to help busy women live with more balance, not burnout.

What you’ll learn:

How to navigate the messy middle when your identity is tied to your career
What it really takes to rebuild purpose and confidence after walking away from stability
How to find clarity through stillness, reflection, and honest conversations

Jump into the conversation:

(00:00) Introduction

(00:43) Branca’s story of reinvention

(03:15) Leaving a high-growth startup and confronting the fear of the unknown

(07:04) The emotional and financial challenges of stepping away from security

(09:20) Redefining identity and self-worth beyond career titles

(14:17) The “messy middle” rediscovering purpose and clarity

(23:28) The inspiration behind building a company for busy women

(41:11) How AI empowers non-technical founders to create and learn

(47:52) What Branca refuses to sacrifice again: health and balance

Connect with Branca Ballot: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brancaballot/

Join the waitlist for Branca's New Application: https://kynn.app/

Winner of Loveable's SheBuilds Hackathon: https://www.linkedin.com/in/khillcontag/

Check out Arcadia: https://www.BeArcadia.com

Connect with Sam Yarborough: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-yarborough/

Connect with Jason Yarborough: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yarby/

Produced in partnership with Share Your Genius

https://www.shareyourgenius.com

Chapters

1. Introduction (00:00:00)

2. Branca’s story of reinvention (00:00:43)

3. Leaving a high-growth startup and confronting the fear of the unknown (00:03:15)

4. The emotional and financial challenges of stepping away from security (00:07:04)

5. Redefining identity and self-worth beyond career titles (00:09:20)

6. The “messy middle” rediscovering purpose and clarity (00:14:17)

7. The inspiration behind building a company for busy women (00:24:45)

8. How AI empowers non-technical founders to create and learn (00:43:56)

9. What Branca refuses to sacrifice again: health and balance (00:50:37)

72 episodes