Work-Life Balance in the Middle of Uncertainty: Navigating AI Job Loss as a Working Mom

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What happens when the career you worked so hard to build suddenly feels uncertain? In this episode, I’m talking about the fear, overwhelm, and identity spiral so many working moms are experiencing right now as AI rapidly changes industries and job security. But instead of teaching you how to “hold on tighter,” I’m walking you through how to stay grounded, calm, and strategic in the middle of uncertainty. I share my own experience leaving the safety of a paycheck to start my coaching business, the mindset shift that changed everything for me, and the exact three things you actually can control when life feels wildly unpredictable.  

In this episode, we unpack:

  • Why uncertainty itself is not what creates overwhelm 

  • How AI disruption is uniquely impacting women in leadership and tech 

  • The dangerous trap of trying to control the uncontrollable 

  • The 3 things you always have control over in uncertain seasons 

  • Practical tools to regulate your nervous system and stay grounded  

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Transcript

Welcome to the Ambitious and Balanced Working Moms podcast, your go to resource for integrating your career ambitions with life as a mom, I'm distilling down thousands of coaching conversations I've had with working moms just like you, along with my own personal experience as a mom of two and sharing the most effective tools and strategies to help you quickly feel calm, confident, and in control of your ambitious working mom life. You ready? Let's get to it.

The Career Shift So Many Women Are Quietly Terrified Of

What if the thing that you are holding on to, like it's your lifeline, is the very thing that's keeping you stuck?

Because I talk to women every single week who are terrified, terrified that AI is coming for their job, terrified that the industry that they have built their career on is shifting in a way that they can't outrun. And everything that they're doing, every bit of energy that they have, is going to trying to control something that is ultimately not actually controllable.

I remember that feeling when I left the security of a paycheck to start my coaching business. I was sitting in fear so heavy I couldn't sleep at night. I had to let go of my title, my income, the role that told the world who I was, and I had nothing yet to replace it with.

What I learned in that season of uncertainty is what I want to give you today. Because the women who are going to come out of this season of uncertainty, well, are the ones not who held on tighter, but the ones who opened up their hands.

Why AI and Career Uncertainty Are Making Work-Life Balance Feel Harder Than Ever

The idea of this podcast came to me when I was in the middle of interviewing a working mom. Her name is Kim. She's in tech, she is a director level. She has like 20 people under her.

And I asked her what was the biggest challenge in creating work-life balance as a working mom in this particular season of life. And what she started to talk about was the uncertainty that she was experiencing in her job, particularly in her industry, right, with the kind of disruption that AI is bringing into the industry.

And what I told her is, and to be honest, I really think this blew her mind.

I think that the process of work-life balance doesn't change for women that are experiencing a lot of uncertainty in their life or in their career. Like, I literally think the process, step one, step two, step three, they're exactly the same.

But what this season and this AI disruption in the tech industry, if it's affecting you, what it is bringing is a unique set of challenges in following those steps.

How to Create Work-Life Balance Even When Your Career Feels Uncertain

Look, I want to see more women in tech. I want to see more women in the sciences. We need more women in leadership within these industries and I want to be able to support them however I can.

So you're going to get something from this podcast, whether you are experiencing some job uncertainty or your job might be affected by AI, or if you're just looking to maybe pivot in your career, or you're going through some other sort of uncertain time in your life.

I promise you that you are going to get something from this episode because that's what we're talking about, creating work-life balance even in the midst of uncertainty.

This is going to be super applicable to you.

AI Disruption, Tech Layoffs, and the Growing Uncertainty Women Are Facing

So to kick us off, I want to simply validate this AI disruption that is sweeping through our world, really, and certainly through the job sector. I want to validate that it is bringing a lot of uncertainty and insecurity to a lot of people.

Because while the estimated job loss in the tech industry is already at 100,000 just in 2026 alone, that's only in the last four months. Women are experiencing job loss at 1.6 times men because the types of roles that they tend to be in, AI is replacing at a much higher rate than men.

Okay, so we're hearing this in the news. Layoffs are happening, and they are going to continue to climb over the next few years. There's no question about the uncertainty of this time if you are somebody that works in tech.

Why AI Job Loss Feels Different for Women in Tech

I was at a conference last week, and they were talking about how the Industrial Revolution changed blue-collar jobs. Like literally, they just started to go away because the Industrial Revolution was taking over those types of jobs. But it happened over the course of like a decade.

AI and this disruption that it is bringing into the tech job market is happening in a matter of months. And it's affecting white-collar workers, not blue-collar workers. Right?

So if you are in tech, you likely have an advanced degree. You are probably the breadwinner of the family. You make a good salary. You have great benefits. It's probably why you got into tech to begin with, right? So the impact of losing your job would be great on you and your family.

So it makes sense. Of course, if you are experiencing a lot of disruption in your job or fear in your job because of what's going on in the industry right now, of course it makes sense. It makes sense that you'd be up at night worried about it. It makes sense that you'd be working your tail off to try to keep your precious job in such an uncertain market. Right? It really does make sense.

When Fear Makes You Hold On Tighter

Just like it made sense when I was transitioning out of my previous line of work. I was an event manager and moving into becoming a coach, right? I kept my foot in the door doing events and taking on event jobs while also trying to build my business at the same time.

It made sense. But essentially, I was working two jobs at the time because I was so nervous about failure. I was so nervous about the impact that would have on my family if I couldn't make this business work.

So in times of uncertainty, anxiety and fear take over, and it makes perfect sense.

Overwhelm Doesn’t Come From Uncertainty — It Comes From Trying to Control the Uncontrollable

Okay, so here's why I'm even talking about this. This is what it boils down to: uncertainty. Whether you are in the tech industry or your job is at stake or not, or you're just trying to pivot out of your job and find a new one, or you're navigating some other life event that is creating chaos and uncertainty in your life, right? No matter what the reason is for the uncertainty, an elevated amount of overwhelm and anxiety does not actually come from the uncertainty at all.

Let me say that again.

Overwhelm and anxiety and fear, it does not come from the uncertainty at all. It comes from you trying to control the uncontrollable.

How Fear Creates Tunnel Vision at Work

And what that looks like for the women I'm talking to that are in tech right now, it's like they're trying to hold onto their job like it's their life, doing everything they can to hold onto it.

And when you are trying to hold onto something like that so intensely, it creates an immense amount of imbalance because it creates tunnel vision. Right? You get literally hyper-focused on needing to hold onto your job, needing to perform well in order to be successful.

And with all of that pressure, it completely blocks out any strategic opportunities that you have. Literally, your brain, to help you reach that goal of holding onto your job like it's your life, will put up blinders to everything. Strategic opportunities or conversations or things that might help you calm your nervous system down so you can function better, right? Doors that might open that might help you pivot with more ease.

All of those opportunities are literally shut out of your mind. You can't see them at all when you are holding so tightly like that.

Why Uncertainty Destroys Confidence and Work-Life Balance

And when you hold on so tightly to your current job or your current way of life in the midst of uncertainty, you also invite a lot of self-doubt. It's like the antithesis of confidence, which is what you need in uncertainty, right?

Insecurity in your ability to do your job. Being unsure of whether you're the right person for your job anymore. Questioning yourself and your skill set and your work history. Wondering if you're good at any of this at all, right?

Insecurity, the antithesis of confidence, abounds when you are trying to focus on controlling things that you, at the end of the day, truly cannot control.

So, of course, work-life balance feels near impossible in moments like this. Of course, right?

So if you're experiencing a ton of uncertainty in your life, maybe it's because of AI and your job, or you're working in that industry, or maybe it's the job market or whatever, maybe it's just the world and everything going on.

If you are experiencing a bunch of insecurity and uncertainty right now, here's what I want you to do, okay? I want you to even write this down if you have the opportunity right now: focus on what you can control. Focus on what you can control.

Look, industries change. Unemployment rates go up and down. Pandemics happen, right? These are things you can't control.

And rather than focusing your energy on trying to control the uncontrollable, I want you to focus on learning how to be anchored and steady in the midst of uncertainty, okay?

The 3 Things You Can Actually Control in Uncertain Times

In other words, I want you to focus on the things that you actually can control, which is really just three things: your mindset, your emotional state, and your actions. Okay? We're going to cover each of those three. Let's start with your mindset.

So when I was speaking with Kim in that working mom interview, right, she worked in tech at the director level, I asked her, “So what is helping you to remain steady right now in the midst of all of this uncertainty?”

And what she said blew my mind. Here's what she said:

“Honestly, it's remembering that this job is not everything. That I am not my job. That even if I lose my job, I am still employable. Every day I redirect my mind to this way of thinking so that I focus on what I am doing right, right now, and how I'm doing the best that I absolutely can.”

Isn't that amazing? That's where she's focusing her mind, and it's helping her to remain steady and calm.

Focus on the Opportunity, Not Just the Loss

Here's another mindset shift for you, a really big one, okay? So they are estimating around 90 million existing jobs going away due to AI and automation over the next few years. But it is projected that almost double that will be created in new jobs globally by 2030 due to AI. There is literally a huge opportunity for you if you choose to take it, if you choose to focus on the opportunity and the possibility instead of the loss.

And all of that starts in your mind with what you choose to think in this moment.

Now, if you have never been good at intentionally thinking or mindset work or having a positive mindset, here's what I want you to do. I want you to download the proven tool that I give all of my clients. It's free. It's right there for you on my website.

You can go to ambitiousandbalanced.com/daily-kickstart. Okay, that's the URL, but of course that's going to be in the show notes. It's also just found right there on my website if you go to Rebecca Olson Coaching

A Simple Daily Mindset Practice for Uncertain Times

This 10-minute mindset practice, the Daily Kickstart, it really is such an easy place for you to start thinking about these things on purpose, like redirecting your mind to possibility and opportunity and doing it every single day.

This Daily Kickstart is exactly the same thing I give to all of my clients. Like, I'm literally giving you the tool that all my clients get to help us work on their mindset, and I'm offering it to you for free.

So definitely go take me up on that if you need some help getting your mindset into the right space during this time of uncertainty.

The Most Important Emotion to Cultivate During Uncertainty: Self-Trust

All right, so that's mindset. Number two, let's focus on emotions.

When it comes to uncertainty, the best emotional space for you to be in, like to cultivate on purpose, is self-trust.

Now here's the thing. I want you to remember that your emotions are just your cells, like literally vibrating in your body, okay? So when you're in a heightened state of overwhelm or anxiety or fear, your body is essentially in fight or flight, right? Your heart is racing. You might be a little bit more jittery. You might have that deep sinking feeling in your gut.

Taking the time to remind your body that you are safe, that you are going to figure out the next step, and being intentional about re-regulating your body several times throughout the day — you might have to do this five times throughout the day — but it's going to allow you to feel more calm and grounded in the midst of all of that uncertainty.

When it comes to regulating your emotions, you've probably heard of meditations or visualizations or things like yoga. All of those are super helpful. If you have any of those tools, I encourage you to use them. They all help to calm your nervous system down and help you take back your emotional state.

The 2-Minute Tool I Teach Clients to Calm Anxiety and Regulate Emotions

The proven tool that I offer to my clients that teaches them how to re-regulate in literally two minutes or less, I call it the Pivot Protocol. And it's something I walk all of my clients through, right?

You literally become a master at learning how to pivot out of nervousness and anxiety and overwhelm and failure and into a much more calm, emotional, intentional state in literally under two minutes. Right? It's like magic, okay? It's why I teach it, and it's something I walk all of my clients through when we start working together.

But if there were a tool that I would offer to you right now that you don't even need me for, it's simply intentional breathing. It's something I do every single day.

Literally taking one minute, closing your eyes, and focusing on taking deep breaths, long breaths. If you did that for a minute, I promise you there is no way that the anxiety or the nervousness or the uncertainty, the stress in your body, is not going to lessen. It has to. It's literally your body's design to help you co-regulate your emotions. And you have that opportunity to do that right now.

If you are looking for a more deeper sense of help with that, of course this could be an opportunity for us to talk through working together. I could teach you that Pivot Protocol. I would love to walk you through those steps.

But now let's talk about the third thing that you control. You control your mindset. You control your emotions. You control your actions. Right?

Right now, in the midst of uncertainty, if you haven't pivoted and started the process of really learning AI tools, like even just in your own life, literally just poking around at it, right now is the time.

If you are going to potentially lose your job and then get rehired somewhere else, they're going to be wanting somebody that has AI experience. You're going to need to be able to speak to that, right? You're going to need to be taking some time to learn the tools that are being developed right now.

You also need to be taking care of yourself in the middle of this time. Your workouts or walks or time with your friends or a good book — those are non-negotiables.

Okay, let me say it again. They're non-negotiables.

You have to literally double down on your me time. It's the only way that you're going to be able to show up for your family and your work in the way that you want. Right?

Why Boundaries Matter More Than Ever During Uncertain Seasons

Now and lastly, I would say boundaries are essential, right? It's less important to me how many hours you work right now, and it's more important to me that you are choosing them. Right? Is your schedule going to be 8 to 5 and then you're off at 5 and you're not logging back on and you're off off? Or is it going to be that you're going to work like 8 to 4 and then you're going to spend a couple of hours super focused on your family and then you're going to log back on later?

Whatever you decide your working hours and your non-working hours are is great. I just want you to decide ahead of time and then keep to them, right?

This, like your non-working hours and deciding them ahead of time, is one of the four essential priorities when you're building a life that feels balanced. And now is the time to be doubling down on that.

The only thing you ever have control over are your thoughts, your emotions, and your actions. And now more than ever is the time to be taking back control. To choose to open your fists and to stop sort of white-knuckling through this season of uncertainty. It's a posture of openness and self-trust that is going to help you navigate this season with so much more ease.

Calm Confidence in the Midst of Uncertainty

I remember a very important moment when I was making the transition from my previous career in events into being a coach and starting this business.

I had the opportunity to invest in a program that would essentially teach me how to launch my business. But it was like $8,000. It was a good chunk of money at the time. And at the same exact moment, I was being offered a contracting job in events that would not have allowed me to do both. Right? I was gonna have to choose.

The contracting job was good money. It was stable. It was safe. It would have had me holding on for dear life to my past career and my past way of life and my past successes.

But I had to turn it down, even though I didn't know if my business was gonna be successful or not. Even though I didn't know if my business would really work out or if this program would even be the right investment for me. I just had to trust. I had to believe in myself and trust that I would be okay no matter what.

It's in that mindset and emotional regulation space that I have often found a sense of calm confidence that keeps me moving forward. And I want that same calm confidence for you.

Even in the midst of uncertainty, you can feel grounded. You can feel balanced because balance is not something that just happens in the calm, easy seasons of life, as if those even really happen. It is available to us all of the time. Right?

Sustainable Work-Life Balance Is Possible

And that's exactly what I teach inside my Ambitious and Balanced program.

The women that have gone through my three-month program have gone from experiencing balance on a scale from about 2 to 3 out of 10 — like that's what they rate themselves as when they start — and then ending three months later rating themselves, on average, at about an 8. Right? That's a huge amount of growth in such a short period of time.

It is 100% available to you.

And the next cohort of Ambitious and Balanced is actually opening up in July. I am taking people right now into that cohort. There's already a few people that have signed up. There are some spots left. I would love for you to be in it.

Like this is your opportunity to go from experiencing a 2 out of 10 balance to an 8 out of 10 balance. I can walk you through this process of learning how to take back your mindset, your emotions, your actions. Learn the four essential priorities that are going to create a basis of sustainable work-life balance.

You Don’t Have to Navigate Uncertainty Alone

I got you, my friends, okay? The next step in order to learn more about that program and for us to decide if you are the perfect fit is to schedule a work-life balance strategy call.

You could do that by going to www.rebeccaolsoncoaching.com/ambitiousandbalanced-call. That's a long URL, so it's in the show notes for you. You can find more information on that on my website as well.

Working moms, in the midst of uncertainty, in the midst of this huge shift going on in our world and in the job market with AI, you don't have to be alone and you can handle it with calm confidence.

I know you can. Stay open. Possibilities are coming your way. I got you.

Until next week, let's get to it. 

The Simple 10-Minute Practice to Beat Overwhelm and Take Control of Your Day 

If you wake up most days spinning with 100 different priorities vying for your attention, then the Daily Kickstart is exactly what you need. It's a simple, six-step process that helps you get your thoughts out of your head, reset your mindset, and refocus on what actually matters. 

 

It's designed to help shift you out of overwhelm and into calm, confident action before the chaos hits. This daily practice is the same tool I offer to all my clients, and it's going to show you exactly how to lead your day instead of react to it. 

 

It takes just 10 minutes a day, and the impact will ripple through everything — your mood, your energy, your presence with your kids, and how you lead at work. My clients indicate time and time again that this tool was the one that made the biggest difference for them, and I'm  offering it to you totally free. 

 

You can download it by going to www.ambitiousandbalanced.com/daily-kickstart. And of course, I'll have that for you in the show notes as well. 

Rebecca Olson