What if the traits you’ve been taught to suppress your entire career are actually the very qualities that separate those who get what they want from those who stay stuck waiting for recognition that never comes?
Today on the show, Jenny Wood argues that most of us are living in what she calls “an invisible cage” created by an overabundance of caution, and that the biggest lie you’ve been told in your career is to keep your head down and let your work speak for itself.
Jenny is a former Google executive who developed a career development program used by 56,000 people in nearly 100 countries, and she’s the author of Wild Courage: Go After What You Want and Get It. In our conversation, Jenny explains how traits that have a negative rap can be used for positive ends that will advance your career. We discuss how being shameless, reckless, nosy, manipulative, obsessed, and more can help you overcome your success-hindering fears, take bolder action, and achieve your goals.
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As much as I’ve tried to be a tea gal, the truth is… espresso will always be far superior in my eyes. Sue me! I’ve bought the ceremonial-grade powder that costs way too much. I try to romanticize it with a mason jar and glass straw. I gaslit myself into thinking the grassy taste was “earthy” and “elevated.” But no matter how hard I committed, I found myself missing that rich, bold hit of espresso. Especially on hot summer mornings when hot coffee feels a bit too heavy and iced tea just isn’t giving me the jolt of energy I desperately need.
Then, one day in our work chat, I saw the phrase “Espresso Lemonade” hit my screen. It felt like a threat—are we just mixing anything these days? Where’s our decorum? But with my coworkers raving about it, I gave in. And thank God I did. Espresso Lemonade is that girl.
Why Espresso Lemonade works
If you’re side-eyeing right now, I get it. Espresso and lemonade sound like they belong on opposite ends of the beverage spectrum. But together? They’re surprisingly balanced. The tangy citrus cuts through the espresso’s boldness in the best way, giving you a drink that’s bright, slightly sweet, and insanely refreshing. It’s like an Arnold Palmer’s cooler, indie older sister.
Unlike your usual milky go-tos, this drink skips the cream and hits different on hot days. It’s light. It’s zippy (this word just feels right; you’ll get it once you try it). It’s thirst-quenching. Compared to the other iced bevs we’ve always known and loved, Espresso Lemonade is kind of the underdog that steals the show. The Addison Rae of the beverage world, if you will. Hot lattes can feel a bit rich. Espresso Lemonade? It hits all the right notes.
Pulling a shot of espresso at home is… ambitious. I am not in the pay grade to buy a $$$$ machine, so NESCAFÉ’s Espresso Concentrate is the hack that makes this trend way more accessible. It’s a game-changer for anyone who wants coffeehouse vibes without the expensive equipment.
Here’s why it’s different: It’s made with real espresso, but you don’t need a machine to use it. Just twist, pour, mix with your drink of choice, and you’ve got a barista-level bev. You get that deep, rich espresso flavor in seconds, and it’s shelf-stable before opening, so you can keep it on hand for whenever the craving hits. No stress, no burnt espresso taste, just you and your little diva drink against the world.
NESCAFÉ
available in black, vanilla, and caramel flavors
How to make the perfect Espresso Lemonade
OK, girls, here’s how you make the magic happen:
Fill a glass with ice (duh, but necessary)
Pour in 6-12 ounces of your favorite lemonade (store-bought or homemade—whatever’s easy)
Add 2 tablespoons of NESCAFÉ Espresso Concentrate
Stir gently and garnish with a lemon slice or sprig of mint if you’re feeling a little bougie
And you can customize it however you please:
Prefer it sweeter? Use their sweet vanilla flavor.
Want it bubbly? Use sparkling lemonade.
Need more punch? Go with 2 tablespoons of espresso concentrate.
Not a fan of pulp? Strain your lemonade before mixing.
Take a peek at NESCAFÉ‘s recipe page for more ideas on how to use my new go-to pantry staple.
More NESCAFÉ Espresso Concentrate recipes I’m trying this summer
Once you’ve fallen in love with Espresso Lemonade (you will), try branching out. With black, vanilla, and caramel flavors, this concentrate is super versatile—here are a few other drinks to whip up.
Espresso Tonic: Pour 2 tablespoons of your favorite Espresso Concentrate over tonic water and ice for a fizzy, sophisticated twist on your coffee break.
Iced Espresso with Oat Milk: Smooth, creamy, and endlessly customizable—this classic is perfect for any mood.
Dirty Iced Matcha: Blend matcha with your milk of choice, then top with 2 tablespoons of Espresso Concentrate (sweet vanilla is a great pick) for a bold, layered sip.
Espresso Martini: Shake up 2 tablespoons of Espresso Concentrate with vodka and coffee liqueur for a rich cocktail that’s both velvety and buzzy.
All in all, I ride for Espresso Lemonade. With NESCAFÉ’s Espresso Concentrate, it becomes a low-effort, high-reward kind of drink that hits every single time. Light, refreshing, energizing—what more could a gal want? So if tea’s not doing it for you and hot coffee feels like a little too much, give Espresso Lemonade a shot. Feel free to DM me to say thank you!
As the Branded Content Editorial Assistant, McKenna collaborates with our sales team by creating both written and social media content, collecting and analyzing performance data to report back to our partners, and assisting our editors with their everyday tasks to ensure a smooth and productive process.
This post is sponsored by NESCAFÉ but all of the opinions within are those of The Everygirl editorial board.
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A federal judge has expanded an injunction against the Trump administration’s anti-transgender passport policies, temporarily blocking their enforcement for trans, nonbinary, and intersex people who have or need a U.S. passport.
In an order issued Tuesday evening in the ongoing lawsuit Orr v. Trump, Massachusetts District Judge Julia Kobick expanded the preliminary injunction she issued in April, which required the State Department to issue passports that match the plaintiffs’ gender identities.
Kubick’s expanded injunction now blocks the Trump administration from denying passport gender marker changes to all trans, nonbinary, and intersex people who want an M, F, or X designation that differs from their assigned sex at birth, and who “do not have a currently valid passport, need to renew their current passport because it expires within one year, need to make changes to their passport to have the sex designation on it align with their gender identity or to reflect a name change, or need to apply for another passport because their passport was lost, stolen, or damaged.”
The State Department and current Secretary of State Marco Rubio are expressly directed under the injunction to “to process and issue passports […] consistent with the State Department’s policy as of January 19, 2025,” and to allow passport applicants to self-declare their gender even if that information is “different from the sex assigned to those individuals under the [Trump] Passport Policy.”
Excluded from the class certification are all plaintiffs in the similar lawsuit Schlachter v. U.S. Department of State, which is currently being argued by attorneys for Lambda Legal. Kubick also did not specifically include intersex people in the class of those seeking X gender markers, writing in her opinion that because the only Orr v. Trump plaintiffs seeking X gender markers were endosex nonbinary people, it was “not clear that non-binary class representatives could fully represent the interests of intersex class members.”
“[T]he plaintiffs have introduced uncontroverted evidence of the harms that transgender and non-binary people face if they are required to use passports bearing sex designations aligning with their sex assigned at birth rather than their gender identity,” Kubick wrote in her opinion, citing expert testimony that mismatched documents put trans people at heightened risk while traveling and have negative effects on mental health.
Love Island is so messy and we are so here for it.
There are typically 30+ episodes each season and we are only 12 episodes in so far, but the inevitable end is coming and you need a standby to watch when it’s over! Love Island is all about trying to find connections in a sea of people who either haven’t had relationships before, are bad at relationships, or who really just seem like all they want to do is hook up and be on their way. So, if you’re looking for shows to watch that have that same vibe, keep reading!
Netflix
This is a newer show by Netflix that flew in under the radar. Sneaky Links: Dating After Dark is about six singles who check into a love hotel to find a meaningful connection and relationship, but unfortunately for them, what they find is not exactly that. These singles don’t know it, but their most recent situationship is also invited. The goal of Sneaky Links is to get these situationships to give a true connection and relationship a try, or explore other options and let their after dark connection go for good.
Peacock
Peacock is stepping up to the plate with spicy dating shows, and pulls no punches in Temptation Island. This show is about four couples who are at a crossroads in their relationships. Whether there are issues of infidelity in the past, wandering eyes, or questioning the strength of the relationship, Temptation Island is here to expedite the issue and put these couples through the gauntlet. The original couples all take a break from each other and couple up with another partner to live together and see if they really do want their original relationship, or if they’re ready for something else.
Perfect Match
Netflix
Netflix really has all the trashy reality dating shows of anyone’s dreams, and Perfect Match is no exception. A bunch of singles are grouped together on an island (shocker) and are put through a matchup of tests and challenges to see who is perfect for who. These singles are featured from other reality dating shows like Love Is Blind, Too Hot To Handle, and The Mole. So, Perfect Match is even more interesting because it hopes to take where those shows failed and really get these singles paired up into the relationship of their dreams.
Tommy and Ben tackle the big question: will Trump be stupid enough to drag the United States into another war in the Middle East? They dig into the various right-wing forces arguing for and against US involvement, discuss why following Benjamin Netanyahu into yet another regime change war in the region is insane, and how this conflict has ballooned from strikes on nuclear infrastructure to a full-on push for regime change. They also talk about the DC blob and media’s cheerleading for these disastrous wars, the eerie similarities between the current moment and the runup to the war in Iraq, and Trump’s willful disregard of our own intelligence. Finally, they cover the efforts in Congress to try to prevent the US from wading into the conflict and why Democrats need to stand firmly against it. Then, Tommy is joined by Congressman Greg Landsman. Landsman supports the US joining the fight against Iran and has been a vocal defender of the war in Gaza, so they debate each policy. Landsman also discusses the terrifying news that he was on the so-called “hit list” found in the Minnesota shooter’s car.
