270: Empowering Working Parents with Lori Mihalich-Levin
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270: Empowering Working Parents
In honor of National Working Moms Day (March 12, 2025), I decided to revisit my 2022 interview with Lori Mihalich-Levin, founder and CEO of Mindful Return. Our conversation delves into Lori's personal and professional journey, from growing up in a challenging household to becoming a healthcare policy lawyer and later establishing Mindful Return, a growing organization that provides support and resources for parents transitioning back to work from parental leave.
Lori shares insights into her early aspirations, her interdisciplinary college and law school experiences, and her passion for public policy and healthcare. We discussed Lori's approach to maintaining meaningful relationships and the evolution of Mindful Return, which has now grown to include international chapters offering various support programs for working parents. Lori shares her advice on integrating your personal passions with your professional life using small, consistent increments.
After returning to a full-time law practice from maternity leave, Lori Mihalich-Levin discovered that she did not have the resources she needed to manage her life in the ways she wanted. Once her second child was born, her stress multiplied. Lori decided to do something about it and help other parents with many of the same issues. She created Mindful Return to help parents transition back to work after parental leave. Mindful Return offers many resources for new working parents, including e-courses, programs that employers can offer to their employees, and chapters based in the US, UK, India, and South Africa.
Lori has been committed to promoting women’s equality and leadership throughout her career. As a Partner at Dentons US LLP, Lori founded and Co-Chaired Dentons’ Parent Professional Network for two years. In her prior role at the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), she founded the Returning to Work Community (RWC) for mothers returning to work from maternity leave and a D.C. Health Policy Lean in Circle. At Princeton, Lori wrote her undergraduate thesis on immigrant women in France who experienced domestic violence. At Georgetown Law, she was co-president of the Women’s Legal Alliance and represented clients through the Domestic Violence Clinic.
She is the author of Back to Work After Baby: How to Plan and Navigate a Mindful Return from Maternity Leave and co-host of the Parents at Work podcast.
In this week’s Work From The Inside Out podcast, learn more about Lori’s journey:
Lori’s thought leadership has been featured in publications, including Forbes, The Washington Post, New York Times, Parenting, and Thrive Global.
Today, Lori advises clients in her law practice on issues relating to Medicare graduate medical education payments.
Learn more and connect with Lori here:
Instagram: @mindfulreturn
Facebook: Mindful Return
LinkedIn:Mindful Return
LinkedIn: Lori Mihalich-Levin
Website: Mindful Return
Listen: Parents at Work podcast
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About Tammy, host of
Work from the inside out
Prior to establishing her practice, Tammy held a variety of positions in mental health services, higher education administration, public policy analysis and fundraising. Her practical knowledge and experience in organizational development, program management and business operations builds a relatable relationship with clients striving for higher performance results.