The mental load is the invisible work that women often take on in order to keep things running smoothly so that everyone around them remains comfortable and happy. It’s noticing what needs to be done, researching and creating plans, delegating out tasks, and monitoring to make sure they get done. When we’re managing the mental load at home, we’re bringing that burden into the workplace as well. It eats into our time, our mental space, and our emotional energy.
In this powerful presentation, audiences will learn not only how to recognize and rebalance the mental load in their personal lives, but will see how they can leverage the mental load to elevate and grow their careers. When we lean into the value of the mental load skillset, we can seize success on our own terms.
Attendee Results:
-Recognize and shift the mental load in personal relationships to create more time, mental space, and emotional energy -Transfer the undervalued skillset of the mental load into high-reward career growth -Unpack cultural gender biases that lead to undervaluing women’s labor -Inspire confidence in women’s unique leadership capabilities stemming from managing the mental load
If women’s unpaid labor was added to the GDP it would account for 6.6% of it, adding a staggering $8 trillion in economic value. And that’s just the physical care work, to say nothing of the mental load associated with those care tasks. The cost of women shouldering this workload without compensation, without systemic support, and often without acknowledgement, even from their partners is more than we can calculate.
This session unveils the true cost of invisible labor not only economically, but also within our relationships, our career growth, and our intangible resources like time and mental energy. And it shows the path forward through both personal and cultural change. When we understand the true cost of invisible labor, we can shift our personal lives and public policy to create a future that truly values this essential work through tangible support and adequate compensation.
Most couples I speak to didn’t plan to end up in their current relationship dynamics. They simply fell into roles that felt natural, predetermined even, until they reached a breaking point. There are many myths about why we fall into gendered patterns with the mental load: that women are simply better at this stuff, that men are “blind” to the mess, that women have unrealistic standards, or that men aren’t natural nurturers.
These myths stem from entrenched cultural messaging that stands in the way of creating truly equitable and satisfying relationships. This session shows couples how to work together to unravel the gendered conditioning that leads to the imbalance of the mental load so they can co-create a life that leads them into a deeper relationship. When you begin to see culture, and not your partner, as the source of relationship inequities, resentment can fall by the wayside as you work towards solutions as a united team.
Attendees will walk away with:
-a firm understanding of their gendered conditioning and how it impacts their relationship -an overview of the four components of the mental load and how to rebalance it -a plan to move past resentment and into team problem solving -an expansive vision for how both partners lives improve when the mental load is shared
Gemma Hartley is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as Rebalancing the Mental Load for Career Growth, The Cost of Invisible Labor and You’re Just Better At This Stuff: Unlearning Gendered Conditioning for Deeper Relationships. The estimated speaking fee range to book Gemma Hartley for your event is $10,000 - $20,000. Gemma Hartley generally travels from Reno, NV, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Christine Michel Carter, Kaitlin Soule, Lindy West, Jodi Kantor and Monique Kelley. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Gemma Hartley for an upcoming live or virtual event.
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