Ambition, Motherhood, and the Millennial "Do It All" Script with Amil Niazi

In this episode of "Parenting, apparently," Esther and Melissa sit down with Amil Niazi — whose viral essays and national bestselling memoir have made her one of today's most talked-about parenting thinkers. The conversation grows out of the premise behind Amil's book, *Life After Ambition*, and her column, *The Hard Part*, for The Cut: what role does parenting play in our relationship with ambition and selfhood? How much of who we are should be defined by our job, versus everything else that makes up a life? Is "balance" a myth, or does it just work better as seasons than as a pie chart? And what does "good enough" actually look like on an ordinary morning — first day of school included? Drawing on her own winding path — from producing at CBC and BBC, to bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, and The Washington Post, to finally settling into writing on her own terms — Amil shares hard-won lessons on letting go of the millennial "do it all" script. She also opens up about a small but telling choice: she tells her three kids she *writes*, rather than that she *is a writer*. It's a distinction that gets at the heart of her conversation with Esther and Melissa, and it raises a bigger question for the rest of us: does how we talk about our own careers shape how our kids will frame theirs? Read Amil's work at the cut: https://www.thecut.com/tags/the-hard-part/ And pick up a copy of her book Life After Ambition: A "Good Enough" Memoir: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/750349/life-after-ambition-by-amil-niazi/9780771005213 Write in to us at hello@parentingapparently.com Subscribe and follow **Parenting, Apparently**, a podcast by Melissa Cash, Esther Huybreghts, and the Pok Pok team: YouTube Pok Pok YouTube Instagram Pok Pok helps raise the next generation of creative thinkers through non-addictive digital tools that encourage kids to think outside the box and learn through play. Learn more: https://playpokpok.com * * * Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.