About the Show

Stories that feel like yours

The Breadwinners is a podcast about earning, leading, and balancing when the old scripts stop working. Each episode features someone who has redefined success on their own terms.

Hosted by Rachael Lowell and produced by Rachel Sklar. A joint production of Reworking Leadership and Smart Friends Network.

Our Thesis

The system mismatch is destabilizing leadership and identity. We talk to people finding their own way.

RL

Your Host

Rachael Lowell

After helping lead 23 Harvard schools through pandemic-era work, Rachael saw the gap between how organizations operate and the reality of a fast-shifting world. She now runs Reworking Leadership, helping leaders align strategy, culture, and people under pressure.

RS

Producer

Rachel Sklar

Rachel is an award-winning writer and entrepreneur based in New York. She founded Smart Friends Network, a network for professional women, and co-founded TheLi.st. A former lawyer and founding editor of the Huffington Post and Mediaite, she has written for the New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, Elle, Politico and others. She is a sought-after advisor and consultant to companies including Spotify, Netflix and Vox Media. Follow her at @rachelsklar on Instagram and @rachelsklar on X/Twitter.

Signature Segments

How each episode is built

Radical honesty about what breadwinning really looks like now.

Carboload

Quick-fire reflections near the end: a myth you've outgrown, what you're learning now, who's a breadwinner you'd love to break bread with.

Let It Rise

Space for guests to plug, promote, or celebrate something they're working on.

Croutons

Random facts, ideas, or tangents that come up in conversation. The good stuff that doesn't fit anywhere else.