Introduction

From Prima Ballerina to Student Midwife

Overcoming the "Too Strong" Label

Embracing Vulnerability and Strength

The Battle with Perfectionism

Transitioning into Midwifery

Navigating Mature-Age Study

Balancing Motherhood and Reinvention

Knowing When to Leave a Career

Letting Go of the First Love

Seeking Professional Support

Starting Fresh in a High-Pressure Role

Lessons from the Delivery Room

The Power of Control and Support

Pride in the Career Journey

Advice for Aspiring Career Changers

For almost two decades, Lana Jones was a principal dancer at the Australian Ballet, celebrated for lead roles in Swan Lake, Giselle, and The Sleeping Beauty. And still, she was told she was “too strong”. After an illustrious career, Jones stepped away from the spotlight to retrain as a midwife. In this episode, Lana joins Briana Blackett to discuss how being “too strong” has helped her soar – from the stage to the delivery room.
Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and explore a career with Victoria Police.
Become an FW member to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.
Keep up with @futurewomen on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

For almost two decades, Lana Jones was a principal dancer at the Australian Ballet, celebrated for lead roles in Swan Lake, Giselle, and The Sleeping Beauty. And still, she was told she was &ldquo;too strong&rdquo;. After an illustrious career, Jones stepped away from the spotlight to retrain as a midwife. In this episode, Lana joins Briana Blackett to discuss how being &ldquo;too strong&rdquo; has helped her soar &ndash; from the stage to the delivery room.
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and <a href="https://www.police.vic.gov.au/police-officer-careers?utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_source=fw_au&amp;utm_campaign=rec-jan_2025-mfm">explore a career with Victoria Police</a>.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Become an<a href="http://futurewomen.com/"> FW member</a> to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Keep up with @futurewomen on<a href="https://instagram.com/futurewomen"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/FutureWomen"> Facebook</a>, and <a href="https://au.linkedin.com/company/future-women">LinkedIn</a>.</li>
</ul>

Ask any woman and she'll tell you about a time when she was too something. At work, women are suffocated by stereotypes about who we should be and how we should behave.

Join Helen McCabe as she speaks with high-achieving women who bucked trends, disrupted systems and refused to quit. Women who built careers by forging their own paths.
Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Explore a career with Victoria Police.
Become an FW member to join the movement and fast-track your professional development. 
Keep up with @futurewomen on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads and X

Ask any woman and she'll tell you about a time when she was too something. At work, women are suffocated by stereotypes about who we should be and how we should behave.
Join Helen McCabe as she speaks with high-achieving women who bucked trends, disrupted systems and refused to quit. Women who built careers by forging their own paths.
<ul>
<li>Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. <a href="https://www.police.vic.gov.au/police-officer-careers">Explore a career with Victoria Police</a>.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Become an <a href="http://futurewomen.com/">FW member</a> to join the movement and fast-track your professional development. </li>
<li>Keep up with @futurewomen on<a href="https://instagram.com/futurewomen"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/FutureWomen"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://au.linkedin.com/company/future-women"> LinkedIn</a>,<a href="https://www.threads.net/@futurewomen"> Threads</a> and<a href="https://twitter.com/futurewomen?lang=en"> X</a></li>
</ul>

Too Much: The Switch by Future Women

Too Much is back with a twist - or should we say, a pivot - for its third season: The Switch. This time, eight women share how they overcame their doubts to take the ultimate leap of faith from one profession to another. Hear about the success they found and the lessons they’d give to women following in their footsteps.
Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Explore a career with Victoria Police.
Become an FW member to join the movement and fast-track your professional development. 
Keep up with @futurewomen on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Threads and X

Too Much is back with a twist - or should we say, a pivot - for its third season: The Switch. This time, eight women share how they overcame their doubts to take the ultimate leap of faith from one profession to another. Hear about the success they found and the lessons they&rsquo;d give to women following in their footsteps.
<ul>
<li>Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. <a href="https://www.police.vic.gov.au/police-officer-careers">Explore a career with Victoria Police</a>.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Become an <a href="http://futurewomen.com/">FW member</a> to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Keep up with @futurewomen on<a href="https://instagram.com/futurewomen"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/FutureWomen"> Facebook</a>,<a href="https://au.linkedin.com/company/future-women"> LinkedIn</a>,<a href="https://www.threads.net/@futurewomen"> Threads</a> and<a href="https://twitter.com/futurewomen?lang=en"> X</a></li>
</ul>

Too Much by Future Women

2. Lana Jones was "too strong": from prima ballerina to delivering babies

For years, in every performance review, Melanie Silva was told she was “too excited”. Too passionate. Not serious enough. Then she joined Google and, suddenly, that enthusiasm was exactly what was wanted. In this episode, Briana Blackett speaks with Mel – now the Vice President and Managing Director of Google Australia and New Zealand – about taking pay cuts to chase opportunities and why she's grateful she didn't get her dream job the first time around. This is a conversation about pivoting sideways and, even, backward. Because sometimes the best way up is not straight ahead.
Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and explore a career with Victoria Police.
Become an FW member to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.
Keep up with @futurewomen on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

For years, in every performance review, Melanie Silva was told she was &ldquo;too excited&rdquo;. Too passionate. Not serious enough. Then she joined Google and, suddenly, that enthusiasm was exactly what was wanted. In this episode, Briana Blackett speaks with Mel &ndash; now the Vice President and Managing Director of Google Australia and New Zealand &ndash; about taking pay cuts to chase opportunities and why she's grateful she didn't get her dream job the first time around.&nbsp;This is a conversation about pivoting sideways and, even, backward. Because sometimes the best way up is not straight ahead.
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and <a href="https://www.police.vic.gov.au/police-officer-careers?utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_source=fw_au&amp;utm_campaign=rec-jan_2025-mfm">explore a career with Victoria Police</a>.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Become an<a href="http://futurewomen.com/"> FW member</a> to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Keep up with @futurewomen on<a href="https://instagram.com/futurewomen"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/FutureWomen"> Facebook</a>, and <a href="https://au.linkedin.com/company/future-women">LinkedIn</a>.</li>
</ul>

8. Melanie Silva was "too excited": then Google made it her strength

Over 25 years, Pamela Naidoo-Ameglio has moved from diamond mines in South Africa to copper operations in rural Australia, and then made a leap that she never saw coming: running a nuclear reactor, despite having zero nuclear experience. Along the way she’s been told she’s "too quiet", and not assertive enough. In this episode, Pamela shares with Briana Blackett why curiosity beats confidence, how to pivot when you have no idea what you're doing – and why quiet women might just be the leaders we need most.
Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and explore a career with Victoria Police.
Become an FW member to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.
Keep up with @futurewomen on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Over 25 years, Pamela Naidoo-Ameglio has moved from diamond mines in South Africa to copper operations in rural Australia, and then made a leap that she never saw coming: running a nuclear reactor, despite having zero nuclear experience. Along the way she&rsquo;s been told she&rsquo;s "too quiet", and not assertive enough. In this episode, Pamela shares with Briana Blackett why curiosity beats confidence, how to pivot when you have no idea what you're doing &ndash; and why quiet women might just be the leaders we need most.
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and <a href="https://www.police.vic.gov.au/police-officer-careers?utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_source=fw_au&amp;utm_campaign=rec-jan_2025-mfm">explore a career with Victoria Police</a>.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Become an<a href="http://futurewomen.com/"> FW member</a> to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Keep up with @futurewomen on<a href="https://instagram.com/futurewomen"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/FutureWomen"> Facebook</a>, and <a href="https://au.linkedin.com/company/future-women">LinkedIn</a>.</li>
</ul>

7. Pamela Naidoo-Ameglio was "too quiet": listening powered her leadership from mines to nuclear

From Parliament to Media

The "Perennial Number Two" Role

The Pressure of Ambition

The Value of High-Stakes Experience

Leaving Politics for Media Innovation

Mastering Transferable Skills

Overcoming Hesitation in Career Shifts

The Emotional Side of Professional Switches

Shifting Identities: Beyond the Job Title

Surviving the Uncertainty of Freelancing

Unexpected Health Challenges

Professional Generosity and Flexibility

The Joys of Collaborative Work

Advice for Navigating Major Changes

FW’s own deputy managing director Jamila Rizvi has spent her career as what she calls a “perennial number two” – from the Prime Minister’s office to media empires. She’s made bold pivots, survived life-altering health scares, and discovered that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is admit: I don’t want to do this alone. In this episode, Jamila chats with Briana Blackett about resignations feeling like break ups, fear masquerading as excitement, and how professional co-dependence has been key to her success.
Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and explore a career with Victoria Police.
Become an FW member to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.
Keep up with @futurewomen on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

FW&rsquo;s own deputy managing director Jamila Rizvi has spent her career as what she calls a &ldquo;perennial number two&rdquo; &ndash; from the Prime Minister&rsquo;s office to media empires. She&rsquo;s made bold pivots, survived life-altering health scares, and discovered that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is admit: I don&rsquo;t want to do this alone. In this episode, Jamila chats with Briana Blackett about resignations feeling like break ups, fear masquerading as excitement, and how professional co-dependence has been key to her success.
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Too Much is a podcast series proudly supported by Victoria Police, who are looking for more women to join their ranks. Consider making the switch and <a href="https://www.police.vic.gov.au/police-officer-careers?utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_source=fw_au&amp;utm_campaign=rec-jan_2025-mfm">explore a career with Victoria Police</a>.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Become an<a href="http://futurewomen.com/"> FW member</a> to join the movement and fast-track your professional development.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Keep up with @futurewomen on<a href="https://instagram.com/futurewomen"> Instagram</a>,<a href="https://www.facebook.com/FutureWomen"> Facebook</a>, and <a href="https://au.linkedin.com/company/future-women">LinkedIn</a>.</li>
</ul>

2. Lana Jones was "too strong": from prima ballerina to delivering babies

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Too Much by Future Women

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