Ambitious But Exhausted with Ash Hartney
For ambitious women who are running a business, a household, and on empty.
I'm Ash Hartney. I've helped build multiple businesses to 7 and 8 figures while raising a family, and I did most of it burnt out before I worked out there was another way.
This channel is about the part nobody teaches you: how to keep building without running yourself into the ground. Stress. Burnout. Guilt. Releasing control. Money worry. Doing the school run and a client call in the same hour. The stuff you're carrying on your own because nobody around you seems to get it.
You'll find:
• Solo episodes on burnout, stress and running a business without losing yourself
• Ambitious but Exhausted Podcast, honest conversations with women in business and wellness
• Behind the scenes at The Bathhouse, our wellness venue in Douglas Park, Sydney
New episodes every week.
Ambitious But Exhausted with Ash Hartney
Why Putting Yourself Last Is Costing You Everything
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
If you are running on empty and need space to reset, recharge, and reconnect with yourself, book your Bathhouse experience here:
https://thebathhouse.try.be/
In the first episode of the Ambitious but Exhausted Podcast, Ash shares the personal health crisis that forced her to confront the cost of putting herself last, and why burnout often shows up in a business long before it shows up in the body.
She breaks down the three warning signs she missed, how stress, guilt, and emotional overwhelm affected her finances, team, and relationship, and the practical tools that helped her reconnect with her health, clarity, and purpose.
Ash dives into:
◼️ Why putting your business, family, and everyone else first eventually catches up with you
◼️ The personal spiral that led Ash to a life-threatening health wake-up call
◼️ Why running on empty can affect your business long before you recognise it physically
◼️ How an emotionally unregulated leader can see stress show up in cash flow
◼️ Why team culture and dynamics shift when a founder is no longer truly present
◼️ How unresolved stress can spill into your closest relationships
◼️ Why every founder needs a business that can continue operating without them
◼️ How daily coping habits can quietly make stress worse over time
◼️ Why yoga, breathwork, and quiet reflection became key parts of Ash’s recovery
◼️ How guilt and the belief that you are “not enough” can block growth as a woman and leader
◼️ Why journalling and time away can reconnect you with your most valuable ideas
◼️ How to slow down, reconnect with your why, and stop being so hard on yourself
00:00:00 The real cost of putting yourself last
00:00:48 How Ash reached breaking point in life and business
00:01:54 The health crisis that became a serious wake-up call
00:04:46 Surgery complications, fear, and the long recovery
00:06:31 Why your business needs to run without you
00:07:52 What running on empty was really costing Ash
00:08:24 The first business warning sign: cash flow
00:09:19 The second warning sign: team culture and leadership
00:10:19 The third warning sign: relationships and emotional wellbeing
00:11:54 Yoga, breathwork, and reducing alcohol as recovery tools
00:13:19 Guilt, self-worth, and the subconscious belief of not being enough
00:14:28 Why quiet space, journalling, and travel create clarity
00:15:34 Ash’s message for women who feel overwhelmed and stuck
00:16:22 Reconnecting with your why in a world of constant noise
Let's Connect:
Website: https://www.thebathhouse.com.au
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashhartney
https://www.instagram.com/the_bathhouse_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ash-hartney-609a1911a
TIktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@the_bathhouse_
