Shameless Leadership

Alison Tedford is an author, marketing consultant, and mom from Abbotsford, BC, Canada. Her work has been published on AlJazeera, CBC, Upworthy, and Today's Parent, and her debut book, Chronic Profit, is being released by Self Counsel Press in April 2021. I have been following Alison online for a couple years now. She has always stood out to me as a leader and a truth teller. She speaks up to share her perspective even when it’s not comfortable. She is sassy and smart as a whip as she shares her experiences living as an entrepreneurial, Indigenious single mom with a disability. I deeply appreciate Alison’s work and her voice and I’m so honored to have her here with us for this conversation. Listen in to hear Alison share: All the layers of her identity as an entrepreneurial, Indigenous mom with a disability and why she has chosen to share her stories The assumptions people have made about her identities The importance of inclusivity from the top down in organizations How her disability has shaped her parenting How she models asking for help to preserve her energy for the places she can have most impact How she shares her Indigenous culture with her son How pain management can be a full time job Links mentioned: Join my free business training:, 3 Essential Building Blocks To Growing A Successful Business Connect with Alison Get Alison’s book: Chronic Profit Alison on Instagram Alison on Twitter Alison on Facebook Thank you to our sponsors: Cubo Ai: Go to getcubo.com and use my code “SHAMELESS “for "$10 off your purchase. Songfinch: Visit songfinch.com and use promo code SHAMELESS this week for $20 off the perfect gift! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I don’t want to squash your dreaming. Dreaming is beautiful and powerful and necessary. But… Sometimes our dreams can be intimidating. We see them out there and they look inviting and delicious - and also terrifying. I want to run a marathon - but how do I go from running 3 miles to running 26.2 miles? I want to write a book - but how do I write an opening paragraph, let alone 300 pages? I want to go back to school - but how do I find the time and money to commit to 2 more years of education? Too often we hold our dreams as long term (seemingly impossible) visions with no action plan. We put off the doing required to achieve our dreams because we don’t know where to start. We don’t know what the first step should be - and all the first steps we can think of feel like massive scary leaps. And massive scary leaps sound hard. So, we decide to just wait… And often - too often - the dream dies. In this episode, we will talk about how to move from dreaming to doing by taking specific small action steps to get started moving in the direction of your dreams. Are you ready to GET STARTED??? Link mentioned: Join my free business training: 3 Essential Building Blocks To Growing A Successful Business Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jessica's superpower is making brain science accessible and entertaining for children and adults alike. She is living this out as a clinical supervisor, nationally known speaker, author, and Shameless Mom of 3. She is also the founder and director of the training and resource platform BraveBrains. This is Jessica’s second time on the show. I was so excited to have her back because talking to her about brain science is so incredibly helpful and insightful. Learning from Jessica makes me a better woman, leader, and mom. Listen in to hear Jessica share: How our stories lead us to shame spirals and keep us in shame spirals How our shame spirals are more dramatically triggered while parenting in a pandemic Why she is calling her sons “explorers” to appreciate and honor the ways their brains are differently wired How to engage your “upstairs brain” to stay hopeful in hard times and shift your stories and narratives How we can help our kids shift their stories and narratives, especially around worry and shame Why she wrote What’s Inside Your Backpack? about a little girl’s worry and shame - and why she released it during the pandemic Why she opted to frame her story around a little girl who has an unsafe parent How and why she considered multiple layers of inclusivity when writing her book and having it illustrated How to introduce your kids about the “both/and” philosophy in order to foster hope and resiliency Links mentioned: Join my business training workshop on May 11th, 3 Essential Building Blocks To Growing A Successful Business Connect with Jessica and order What’s Inside Your Backpack Jessica on Instagram Jessica on Facebook Jessica on Twitter Thank you to our sponsors: Bulldog Online Yoga: Head to bulldogonline.com and use promo code SHAMELESS for a 30 day free trial and 50% off your next month! Cubo Ai: Go to https://bit.ly/3wPkIYf and use my code “SHAMELESS” for a discount off your order. Hello Fresh: Go to HelloFresh.com/shameless12 and use code shameless12 for 12 free meals, including free shipping! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Perhaps you’ve noticed that with changing times have come changing needs, changing goals, and changing desires. With that, perhaps you notice you’re saying YES to new things - and NO to new things. Some of my yeses and no’s and have definitely shifted over the last year. In fact, I find myself saying yes to some things I thought I would never say yes to. Funny wildly unusual circumstances paired with a cultural uprising will make you rethink almost everything. As you make space for new yeses, you’ll notice you’ll also be required to say no to new things in order to make space for those yeses. This is a process of discernment that requires you look closely at your core values so you can understand why each yes and each no is important to you right now. Listen in to hear 9 things I’m saying yes to right now. It’s my hope that this may inspire your YESES (and no’s!) Links Mentioned: Join my business training workshop on May 11th, 3 Essential Building Blocks To Growing A Successful Business: shamelessmom.com/business SMA Ep 455: 3 Steps To Create Core Values You Can Confidently Commit To Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Maya Luque is a strategist. She helps businesses craft smart, perceptive ways of communicating. The focus of her work is to help businesses build strong, long-lasting relationships with their customers. She has an M.F.A. and has created over 100 sculptures and installations. Her background as an artist helps her guide people towards an emotion; to help them feel connected. Art is great for strategy because art history is full of telling and re-inventing stories, themes, emotions. Maya has a passion for observing the ever-shifting puzzle of trends, human nature, and people. Maya is also the author of The Heart Of The Matter: EMDR Through An Adoptee's Eyes. She shared her book with me on social media asking if I would be interested in sharing it with my audience. I immediately knew I didn’t only want to share the book, I wanted to share Maya’s voice and entire story. I asked Maya if she would be up for this interview. I’m so honored that she said yes. Her book and her story are so important. Listen in to hear Maya share: Her journey of being abandoned outside a police station in China during their One Child Policy to living her first 11 months in a Chinese orphanage to being adopted by a single mom in the US The lasting impact of her abandonment and how that trauma impacted her ability to cope as a child How she vacillated between extreme perfectionism and testing her mom to see if she would always really love her Her lifelong patterns of trying to prove her worth How she got started in EMDR therapy What EMDR is and how it helped her recover from her trauma How EMDR allowed her to finally find herself lovable Why she wrote The Heart of the Matter in a really approachable way so all ages could use it as a tool Links mentioned: Maya’s Book: The Heart Of The Matter: EMDR Through An Adoptee's Eyes Connect with Maya Maya on Instagram Color for Charity Coloring Book Thank you to our sponsors: Talkspace: To match with your perfect therapist for a fraction of the price of traditional therapy, go to talkspace.com, Make sure to use the code SHAMELESS to get $100 off your first month and show your support for the show. Cubo Ai: Go to getcubo.com and use my code “SHAMELESS “for a discount off your order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ever since I read Michelle Obama’s book two years ago, I have been obsessed with this notion of becoming. We are always becoming. There is no way around it. Sometimes we are becoming more the person we know we want to be. Other times not so much. Sometimes we are becoming a person we did not want to be. Maybe even a person we feared we would be one day. What we must remind ourselves everyday is that WE GET TO CHOOSE. You have many times each day where you make choices that take you closer to or further from the person you want to become. This is comforting because at any time you can course correct. Make a crappy decision at 10 am? No worries. You can make a better one at 10:02. While that sounds super simple and maybe even annoyingly idealistic, it’s true. What matters most is your trend of becoming over time. So, what is your trend? And is it heading in the direction you want it to? I have a task for you. As you listen to this episode, you will gain clarity on who you want to become and HOW to become her. Listen in and do the task. Then let me know, how are you becoming? Links mentioned: Last day to register for the Shameless Mom Con Collective SMA Episode 325: Michelle Obama’s 4 Secrets to a Successful Marriage Book: Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kim Evey is a Los Angeles-based actor, writer, and stand up comedian. She has appeared in numerous commercials and TV shows, written for children's animation, and created and starred in one of the first web series on Sony's Crackle.com entitled "Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine Show." She produced Felicia Day's trailblazing series "The Guild," a web show so successful that it was actually put on display in The Smithsonian American History Museum. As a stand up comedian, Kim's online clips have been viewed over 8 million times. She is the proud Mom of a boy who is five going on fifteen. I met Kim through a story telling event where she shared her journey into motherhood through adoption. Her story touched me so deeply. I knew I had to invite her onto the show. What I didn’t know at the time was that Kim is also an adoptee. She was adopted from an orphanage in Korea when she was 2. Her journey from adoptee to adoptive mom so beautifully demonstrates the magic of adoption. Listen in to hear Kim share: How motherhood fuels her comedy career Her indecision around becoming a mother The moment she knew she actually did want to become a mother, and was ready to pursue adoption Her journey from a foster home in Korea to her adoptive parents in the US when she was 2 years old How her being an adoptee influenced her choice to adopt her son through open adoption The process of being one of 3 chosen prospective families to adopt the baby who would become her son The most profound and magical moment of meeting her son, Charlie Links Mentioned: Join us for the Shameless Mom Con Collective Connect with Kim: Kim Evey Kim on IG & Twitter: @kimevey Kim on Facebook Thank you to our sponsors: Thrive: Start thriving and help women in need today by going to ThriveCausemetics.com/shameless for 15% off your first purchase! Bulldog Online Yoga: Head to bulldogonline.com and use promo code SHAMELESS for a 30-day free trial and 50% off your next month! Episode art credit: Kevin McIntyre Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Sara, I’ve been getting your emails for 7 years and I’m finally ready to sign up for your program.” This is the email I got from a prospective gym member back when I had my gym. This woman had been waiting for 7 year - SEVEN YEARS - to finally qualify herself to change her life. She came in to check out the gym a few days later and we immediately hit it off. After about 10 minutes, she confided in me, “I can’t believe I waited so long. I keep thinking where I would be if I just decided to start earlier. I’m so mad at myself.” I have to tell you, I have had this conversation with so many women. We excel at waiting, don’t we?? Waiting to join the gym. Waiting to go for the promotion. Waiting to ask for the raise. Waiting to ask for help. Waiting to start the hobby. Waiting to take time for yourself. Waiting to take a chance. Waiting to say YES. Waiting to say NO. Waiting to do what you want to do even if no one else gets it. Waiting to go for it even if no one believes in you. Waiting to choose yourself. You know you want more - but you’re afraid of failure, worried what others might say, and filled with self doubt. You wait because you think there will be a better time, a better option, another chance. You tell yourself you’ll be more ready next week, next month, next year. You watch others go before you and you decide they are more capable, more qualified, more worthy. And you wait. While you wait, you compromise your dreams, your desires, your sense of self While you wait you chip away at your happiness and your worth. The waiting is ruining your life. I’m here to invite you to STOP WAITING. Listen in to hear how you can stop waiting and start living a fuller life without regret. Link mentioned: Join us for the Shameless Mom Con Collective Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Shannon Kenny Carbonell grew up in Sydney, Australia, and moved to the U.S at 18 to study acting. After earning a BFA in Theater from The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), she worked in regional theater where she had the privilege of playing some classic roles like Nina in The Seagull, Julie in Miss Julie, and Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She then transitioned into television guest star roles, one of her favorites being Katrina Banks on HBO’s Dream On— a parody of Courtney Love—where she got to shoot heroin between her toes, sing in a music video with Brian Benben, and (being the excitable girl she was) experience the thrill of meeting Warren Zevon. Her other favorite guest star role was playing Alison, George’s girlfriend, on NBC’s Seinfeld. Shannon was cast in series regular roles on TV shows and if she fails to rank the show Muscle as her best experience, she’d risk offending her wonderful husband Nestor, whom you might recognize from his role on LOST, or more recently on The Morning Show; it was on this show the two of them defied producers orders to not date other cast members. After many roles in movies and TV, Shannon pushed pause on acting to focus on motherhood while Nestor was traveling to film LOST. Shannon and Nestor currently live in Los Angeles with their two sons Rafa and Marco and their dog Donna Borrelli Carbonell. Shannon just published her first book All Is Not LOST, which talks about her journey into motherhood and her journey back to herself and all the ways her life paralleled the show LOST, which has been so near and dear to their family. Listen in to hear Shannon share: How she lost her sense of identity after motherhood The unexpected sense of loss, grief and emptiness she felt as she left her career and stepped into motherhood The risks of space and silence when we no longer have reasons to lean into our gifts and creativity How being in HA for LOST played a role in her reconnecting to her identity How her life parallel storylines in LOST and how the show helped lead her back to herself What it was like for Nestor to see Shannon struggle with her identity Why we all want to be seen and our constant search for meaning Links mentioned: Get your Early Bird ticket to the Shameless Mom Con Collective Connect with Shannon Book: All Is Not LOST Shannon on Instagram Nestor on Instagram Thank you to our sponsor: Bulldog Online Yoga: Head to bulldogonline.com and use promo code SHAMELESS for a 30 day free trial and 50% off your next month! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Last week, we had to very quickly and unexpectedly say goodbye to our sweet dog of 14 years, Granny Dani. Our hearts are broken. My husband and I lost our first baby - this creature we doted on with all of our love and affection before welcoming Vinnie 6 years later. Vinnie lost his sister - his best friend with whom he spent hours each day, snuggling and singing fart songs (that no one else in our house wanted to hear…) We didn’t realize how much space our sweet girl took up in our home and our hearts until she was gone. Every room I walk into seems so big and so empty without her. Piper, our puppy, roams from room to room and dog bed to dog bed searching for her sister. Our family is grieving for sure. But there have also been many gifts over the last week that have made this loss beautiful in unexpected ways. These gifts make the grief bearable. We have all lost something over the last year. We are all grieving. I made this episode thinking of all the ways we all are grieving, in hopes that it might help you find the gifts in moments of loss that feel absolutely unbearable. Link mentioned: Get your Early Bird ticket to the Shameless Mom Con Collective Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tiffany Bluhm is the author of She Dreams, Never Alone, and her newest book Prey Tell: Why We Silence Women Who Tell the Truth and How Everyone Can Speak Up. She is a sought after speaker, writer, and podcast co-host of the popular podcast Why Tho, a show answering the existential and nonsensical questions we ask ourselves, with author and speaker, Ashley Abercrombie. She speaks at conferences and events around the world, and her work has been featured in World Vision Magazine, TODAY Parents, the Hallmark Channel, The Jenny McCarthy Show, and more. She was named a Woman to Watch in 2018 by Premier Media. Tiffany leads an engaged audience online around women’s issues, identity, and faith. As a minority, immigrant woman with a interracial family, she is passionate about women’s equality, justice, and dignity. Listen in to hear Tiffany share: How she operates at the intersection of women and justice Why women are disposable vs men are indispensable How white women’s proximity to power makes them complicit in many cases The important difference between women being nice and being kind How systems have been intentionally architected to oppress and silence women How WOC are silenced in ways white women are not The difference between fighting for power vs fighting for equality How we are all passive vs active enabling of abuse and oppression Specific ways you can help start breaking down systems of oppression Links mentioned: Get your Early Bird ticket to the Shameless Mom Con Collective Connect with Tiffany: Tiffany Bluhm Tiffany on Instagram Tiffany on Facebook Tiffany’s podcast: Why Tho Thank you to our sponsor: Bulldog Online Yoga: Head to bulldogonline.com and use promo code SHAMELESS for a 30 day free trial and 50% off your next month! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When you spend a year (or any season of life) worrying about what’s next and wondering how you’ll manage all the things you cannot control, you are likely to find yourself in exhausting cycles of fear and doubt. Then, to combat the worry and fear and doubt, you find ways to numb so that you may quiet the fear and the doubt. This happens to us in the year after having a baby, the season after losing an important relationship, and certainly after a year of enduring a pandemic. This leaves us feeling stuck as all get out - stuck in our heads, stuck in poor habits, and stuck in a life without much joy on the horizon. At a certain point, you have to decide that you will stop staying stuck. You will take action to start moving forward. You will process the season you’ve been in so that you may move forward with less fear, less doubt, and better coping skills. Also, you will create joy. Because joy matters. Even when you’re too tired to plan the joy, you need the joy. Create the joy, dammit. In this episode, I’ll walk you through 3 ways you are likely staying stuck right now and how to get unstuck. Links mentioned: Join us for the Shameless Mom Con Collective Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As a podcast visibility expert and host of the Go Pitch Yourself podcast, Angie Trueblood knows that the only 'perfect pitch' is the one that leads with value and focuses on building a genuine connection. Whether she is teaching entrepreneurs how to pitch themselves or working behind the scenes to secure opportunities for others, Angie leverages her super-connector powers to grow businesses and build long-lasting relationships. When she's not working with her clients or being active in her local community, she loves exploring Richmond, Virginia's parks and playgrounds with her two kiddos, checking out new restaurants with her hubs, and laughing about motherhood over cocktails with friends. Listen in to hear Angie dig into: Why she elected to homeschool her kids this year and the gifts that have resulted Why she left the corporate workforce even though she had loved her work and always been ambitious How her corporate ambition in work transferred to ambition in motherhood The significance of making the ask in order to get what you want The power of curiosity in networking and and connecting How motherhood led her to building a business amplifying women’s voices Where to start if you have a story you want to share with the world What you need if you want to pitch yourself to podcasts Links Mentioned: Apply for one-on-one business and leadership coaching with Sara Get on me email list to get Shameless Mom Con Collective info Connect with Angie: Angie Trueblood Angie on IG Sara’s interview on Go Pitch Yourself Podcast: Go Pitch Yourself Thank you to our sponsor: Talkspace: To match with your perfect therapist for a fraction of the price of traditional therapy, go to talkspace.com, Make sure to use the code SHAMELESS to get $100 off your first month and show your support for the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

5 years ago today I launched the first episode of The Shameless Mom Academy. To be honest, if it hadn’t been for a pushy coach I would likely still be saying, “I think I’m going to do a podcast soon.” Starting is the only way to find the magic and I’m so glad I started when I did. I wasn’t quite sure what I was doing and I wasn’t quite sure why I was doing it. I only knew I had some things to say. I wanted - no, needed - to talk about the trauma of motherhood. It had shaken me to my core. Nobody warned me about that part. Everyone told me I would be tired. No one told me I would be completely lost. I also needed to talk about the shrinking of women. I was pissed that I had been a participant in an industry that thrives - to the tune of many billions of dollars a year - on telling women they must be smaller in order to be valuable. So, yeah - I had things to say. 5 years, 264 powerhouse guests, 528 episodes, 3.5 million downloads. I’ve a few learned things - and most of them haven’t been easy lessons. In today's birthday episode I will share the top 5 lessons I’ve learned on leadership and motherhood over the last year. Thank you for listening and inviting me in to your ear week after week. It is a privilege I do not take lightly. I’m so honored to be on this Shameless journey with you. Links mentioned: Apply for one-on-one business and leadership coaching with Sara Get on me email list to get Shameless Mom Con Collective info Leave a review for the show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As an award-winning business strategist, host of the Promote Yourself to CEO podcast, and best-selling author, Racheal Cook is on a mission to end entrepreneurial poverty for women. Over the last 10 years she has helped thousands of female entrepreneurs design predictably profitable businesses without the hustle and burnout that doing #allthethings inevitably accomplishes. In fact, Racheal is a sought after speaker on entrepreneurship, marketing, and productivity and has been featured by the US Chamber of Commerce, Forbes Coaching Council, Female Entrepreneur Association, and more. Her real passion, though, is supporting savvy, soulful women as they implement the strategy, systems, and support to uncomplicate their business so they can work less and live more. Listen in to hear Racheal dig into: The concept of entrepreneurial poverty and why women and moms are especially susceptible How mismanaging time by overgiving time uses all your precious energy for the things that matter most to you The problems of hustle culture and how women fall so easily into it Boundaries around our different identities - employee vs mom vs woman How the pandemic has amplified hustle culture for women Her projections for women starting businesses in 2021 Why moms actually have new and more opportunities for employment in this pandemic How she and her husband have navigated Racheal being the breadwinner How they systematized their household to work for both of them The gift and importance of therapy, now more than ever Links Mentioned: Apply for one-on-one business and leadership coaching with Sara Submit your question for an upcoming Ask Me Anything episode Racheal on Facebook: Racheal Cook Racheal on Instagram: Racheal Cook Racheal on Twitter: RachealCook Racheal on YouTube Racheal of Pinterest Racheal Cook LinkedIn: Racheal Cook Thank you to our sponsor: Bulldog Online Yoga: Head to bulldogonline.com and use promo code SHAMELESS for a 30 day free trial and 50% off your next month! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I have repeatedly likened our survival of this pandemic to our survival of Newbornland. We have endured a year of uncertainty and upheaval. We have made accommodations and adaptations to our lives that we never imagined - and often thought were not possible (hello virtual learning). This has taken a toll on us physically, mentally, and emotionally. And, like surviving Newbornland, we cannot fully process the toll it has taken because we have had to focus on keeping our family units alive and safe - without having the time or energy to give any consideration to our own deep and chronic exhaustion. We have carried the worry of our family’s health, security, and sanity as we have wondered how much worse things could get. And then we watched them get worse. We have worried about the lasting impact of this pandemic on our children’s mental health, without considering that we ourselves are also moving through a chronic traumatic event. We have used wine and workouts and Netflix and sourdough starter as coping mechanisms in hopes of a moment of reprieve. We have cried in closets and bathrooms, and screamed at the people we love the most, and thrown in the towel as we’ve thrown ourselves on the floor, and then picked the damn towel back up and dried our tears and tucked our kids into bed - for 365 nights now. We are not ok. Links mentioned: Apply for one-on-one business and leadership coaching with Sara Submit your question for an upcoming Ask Me Anything episode: shameless Mom Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Heather Chauvin is a leadership coach and strategic parenting expert who helps ambitious women become leaders at work and home. Drawing from her professional experience as a social worker and her life experience raising three boys, Heather created a signature approach to focus her clients on sustainability, profitability, and ease in business and life. She is the host of the Mom Is In Control Podcast where she reveals her most vulnerable truths about womanhood, marriage, parenting, living through stage 4 cancer, and running a successful business—without burning out. Heather has been featured as a TEDx speaker and on The OWN Network, CTV, and The Jenny McCarthy Show. She has also appeared in Entrepreneur and Real Simple. When Heather isn’t being a classic Canadian by driving her boys to hockey practice, you’ll find her curled up on the couch with her husband surfing the internet, researching their next family adventure. Heather is a returning guest to The Shameless Mom Academy. She’s joining us to talk about her outstanding new book, Dying To Be A Good Mother. Listen in to hear Heather share: What inspired her book, Dying To Be A Good Mother How we are all dying to be good mothers and how it’s killing us figuratively and literally Why it’s not your job to make other people comfortable The power of stillness and why you need it #everydamnday The power of energetic time management Why she doesn’t buy into “we can do hard things” Her empowering and liberating alternative to doing hard things The truth about resistance and how to specifically determine what you want Why we need to give ourselves permission to want what we want Links mentioned: Get my newsletters and email updates Connect with Heather Get Heather’s book: Dying To Be A Good Mother Heather on IG: heather Chauvin Heather on FB: heather chauvin coaching Thank you to our sponsor: Bulldog Online Yoga: Head to bulldogonline.com and use promo code SHAMELESS for a 30 day free trial and 50% off your next month! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People are going to tell you NO. You will be rejected. Over and over and over. One of the gifts of being an entrepreneur is that you get rejected so often (especially early on) that you get a little callous to it - meaning, you let it roll off you easier and faster each time. This is a blessing. Without this gift (which definitely doesn’t feel like a gift early on), you may find yourself crippled by the NO’s. The rejection you face often has nothing - NOTHING - to do with you. Yet we are masters at internalizing it and defaulting to a place of self blame and self doubt, and sadly, even self loathing when we are faced with a NO. In this episode I’ll talk you through the actual causes of rejection (vs the stories you make up in your head) and 5 ways to manage rejection in an objective way so you can KEEP GOING and get what you want out of relationships and circumstances. Links mentioned: Get my newsletters and email updates Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nikki Tucker is a 16 year Finance Professional, Divorce Financial Strategist, and founder of The FIIRM Approach. She is also a mom of a teenage boy, part-time foodie, and oat milk latte lover who helps female breadwinners prepare their finances for divorce. She helps those early in the divorce process gain clarity and reduce overwhelm by arming them with information, strategies, and resources to confidently maintain their financial security whether they end up divorced or not. Nikki primarily works with clients through her signature program Silent Preparation Series which has both on-demand and live learning options. Listen in to here Nikki share: Why divorce can be empowering and positive and liberating Why she has chosen to work exclusively with women in her business Why it’s crucial for women to be financially independent regardless of the status of your marriage Why financial independence is an insurance policy for women How she works with women as a Divorce Financial Strategist The two questions she helps women answer when they are considering divorce The biggest myths about divorce that keep women in unhealthy marriages How to redefine family in the face of divorce How the pandemic is impacting divorce scenarios and divorce rates Her “Bid ADO” philosophy (that you need now!) Links mentioned: Connect with Nikki: The Fiirm Approach Get Nikki’s Free Ultimate Financial Resource Guide Facebook: The Fiirm Approach Instagram: The Fiirm Approach Thank you to our sponsor: Bulldog Online Yoga: Head to bulldogonline.com and use promo code SHAMELESS for a 30 day free trial and 50% off your next month! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you were to sit down and make a list of all the identities you hold, what would be on your list? I made a quick list recently. I hold the following identities (in no particular order): woman, mom, wife, infertility warrior, anxiety manager, speaker, leader, hetero, cisgender, white, Seattleite, athlete, skier, writer, ally, podcaster, daughter, sister, business owner, child of divorce, 18 year entrepreneur, CEO, advocate I’m sure I could come up with even more layers to my identity if I gave it more thought. We are made up of SO MANY layers. This makes each of us a true unicorn. As we navigate our lives, we have the opportunity to embrace different layers of our identity in different ways during different seasons of life. What layers are you leaning into right now? What ones are most significant to you as we sit here in 2021? You get to choose which parts of yourself you really want to lean into at any time. So, how do you lean into the most powerful parts of yourself? Here are a few tips: Take responsibility for the stories you hold around your identities Call yourself by your titles - out loud in front of other people Find people who share your identities and be in community with them In this episode, I talk you through how to lean into the layers of your identity that mean the most to you and have the most potential to deeply impact the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rho Thomas is an attorney, mindset strategist, and personal finance coach who believes that true wealth is having control of your time. She helps lawyers make intentional lifestyle and money decisions to regain control of their time, build wealth, and live the lives of freedom and choice they deserve. She has been featured in outlets such as Yahoo! Finance, Refinery29, and Mic and hosts the Wealthyesque podcast, which explores how lawyers can achieve lifestyle freedom by reframing their mindset and by managing their money to achieve financial independence. Listen in to hear Rho share: How she has restructured her law career during the pandemic in order to step out of the hustle How her and her husbands’ money stories around being raised by single moms on very limited incomes influenced them How they ended up $670,000 in debt after having their first child How they found hope and inspiration to start paying off their debt The first strategic steps they took to start working on their debt How paying down debt built her confidence and created momentum in her life Why financial independence is a form of self care How to rejigger finances based on what brings you joy - instead of mindlessly How women are conditioned to shrink around money and finances and how to build financial confidence The difference between media messages around money for women vs men How she juggles motherhood, marriage, being a lawyer, and running her business to support women and finances How Kobe Bryant’s death inspired her to start her business Links mentioned: Book: Your Money or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicky Robin Website: Rho Thomas Find Rho on Instagram Find Rho on Facebook Find Rho on Twitter Find Rho on LinkedIn Thank you to our sponsor: Talkspace: To match with your perfect therapist for a fraction of the price of traditional therapy, go to www.talkspace.com/, Make sure to use the code SHAMELESS to get $100 off your first month and show your support for the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We are coming up on a full 12 months of enduring a pandemic that we initially thought would last 2-6 weeks. How are you? No, really? This time is very much like navigating Newbornland - that phase when you’re totally sleep deprived, but you’ve been sleep deprived for so long that it just feels normal and you don’t know what it feels like to actually be rested. That’s where we’re at. We’ve been in survival mode for a year. So long that it feels normal and we don’t remember what it feels like to not have to juggle constant worry and uncertainty. So, in the face of this chronic worry and uncertainty, how are you holding on to hope, power, and connection? We must be able to harness these if we are to stay sane and functional. In this episode I’ll give you tactical steps to restore hope, power, and connection in your everyday life. Links mentioned: Get my Shameless Mom Con updates Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Shaunda Head is a Shameless Mom to her 2 year old daughter and a Shameless full time caretaker of her 96 year old Granny. She is also an Atlanta-based brand strategist and digital marketer who helps women align ALL THE THINGS in their brand so that their brand message can impact more powerfully. She creates and implements strategies in marketing, branding and copy to help her clients SHOW UP as their whole selves, and drive higher connection with their true, dream clients. Shaunda has 16 years of experience, including brand design, marketing, communications and business development for global companies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), UPS and E! Entertainment Television. She now coaches and consults for emerging and growing entrepreneurs — past clients consist of coaches, podcasters, stylists, therapists, bloggers, e-commerce site owners and more. Listen in to hear Shaunda share: How she juggles taking care of her 96 year old grandmother and 2 year old daughter full time - while running her business from home How she leans into flow and alignment to thrive in her life and grow her business How she started relying on her intuition and shut out the noise in 2020 How she leveraged being the only Black person and the only woman in many spaces inspired her career What it’s like to be a caretaker in a multigenerational household The decision process of bringing her grandmother to live with her immediately following the loss of her mother How taking care of her grandmother prepared her for motherhood What she wants her daughter to remember about growing up in a multigenerational household The biggest gifts and biggest challenges of being a caregiver to 2 generations at the same time Links mentioned: Connect with Shaunda Take Shaunda’s branding quiz Shaunda on IG Shaunda on FB Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Months of unpredictability, instability, and chaos can leave a mama feeling disoriented, exhausted, and chronically overwhelmed. I know I’ve been feeling this as the last year has started to catch up with me. One of the things that really helped me to start feeling grounded again was to identify a few “anchors” that can consistently connect me back to who I am becoming, how I want to show up, and how I have promised to take exquisite care of myself this year. The anchors I identified for myself are: Self Trust Nourishment Nimbleness Deep Work In this episode, I explain what each of these anchors look like for me and how I’m consistently returning to them to stay grounded this year. If these anchors appeal to you - STEAL THEM! They are all yours! And if they aren’t quite the ones for you, this episode will help you discern some other ones that might be a good fit for you. 2021 is your year to take back the reins and double down on YOU. Links mentioned: Join Abbi Perets and me on FB live Feb 8th at 10am PST/1pm EST: Facebook SMA Ep 501 with Mia Hemstad: Nourishing Oneself While Living With PTSD and Depression Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dayna Parish Dennis is a wife, Shameless Mom, and doctor. Originally from Oklahoma, she relocated to the Bay Area to complete her residency in pediatrics. She has served patients in low income, urgent care, private practice, and Hospitalist settings, and just recently made partner at a multi-specialty group practice in the Bay Area. She speaks a couple of languages, loves reading books with happy endings, and raising 2 free Black children. Listen in to hear Dayna share: What it’s like to be a doctor in this pandemic How she’s managing her mental health as a physician, wife, mom, and woman during this time What it was like to be the only Black person in her medical school class The pressure of being the sole Black representative in conversations around race The relief she found in moving from Oklahoma to Oakland for residency and to work with other Black doctors How her employer (Kaiser Permanente) responded to George Floyd’s death and supported the Black Lives Matter movement The benefits she’s seeing in living through this pandemic and why we need not desire going “back to normal” The power in making partner in her medical practice this year The legacy she is building to show her daughters that Black girls can do anything Links Mentioned: Connect with Dayna IG: @wittyacronym IG: @bookish.black.nerd FB: Dayna Parish Dennis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rae McDaniel, MEd, LCPC, CST (They/Them) is a Gender and Certified Sex Therapist and Coach who works with folks feeling anxious and lost about a transition they’re experiencing in sex, gender, sexual identity, or relationships. Rae also provides consultation & training for professionals and organizations wishing to uplevel their knowledge and expertise in these areas. Rae is the founder of Practical Audacity, a Gender & Sex Therapy group practice in Chicago, and GenderFck: The Club, an online group coaching community designed to help transgender/non-binary/questioning folks transition with less suffering and more ease. Listen in to hear Rae share: Their experience growing up adopted into a family of evangelical christian missionary puppeteers The evolution of their identity from bisexual to queer to non binary The relief of coming out as non binary Why not everyone in your life needs to know all the ins and outs of your identity and how you can prioritize safety when coming out How gender exists on a spectrum, not just two categories of male and female Why they are having top surgery and how they came to this decision Why they use they/them pronouns and why pronouns matter Why it’s inaccurate to refer to someone’s pronouns as their “preferred pronouns” How they are working to take the suffering out of transitioning for trans people Linke mentioned: Connect with Rae: Practical Audacity Join Rae’s Genderfck program Rae on IG/FB: @practicalaudacity Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Megan Hadley, MS, RDN, and LDN is a nutrition therapist and owner of Simple Nutrition, a nutrition counseling practice in Greensboro, NC, and founder of Fork the Food Rules, a membership for people who have decided not to diet. She believes that all bodies are good bodies and that from cake to kale, all foods are good foods. After helping hundreds of clients recover from diet culture, Megan knows that when women think less about food and body and more about what really matters to them, they begin to thrive in all areas of their life. When she’s not working, Megan enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters. She loves cooking, traveling, long naps, good wine, and french fries. Megan finds her strength, both personally and professionally, rooted in her deep faith in Christ, as she knows she was created to live a life of abundance and to help other women believe and discover that, as well. Listen in to hear Megan share: Why she walked away from the pharmaceutical industry to become a registered dietician in order to have a bigger impact in people’s lives What originally drew her into her work with intuitive eating and health at any size The difference between an eating disorder, disordered eating, and non-disordered eating All the (tricky and subconscious) ways that negative relationships with food show up What intuitive eating is and how it differs from food plans and programs How the media breaks our ability to trust our own bodies How restrictive eating is the number one predictor of overeating/emotional eating/binge eating behaviors Why comfort foods can be beautiful and affirming and should absolutely be a part of your life What steps to take to start being more intuitive with your eating The truth about BMI and life span/longevity What kind of freedom comes with choosing not to diet or changing your body Links Mentioned: Enrollment is open for Momentum Mamas Connect with Megan: Simple Nutrition counseling Fork The Food Rules IG: @nutritionissimple & individual professional: @tasteandseerd FB: Simple Nutrition Counseling Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Let’s just stop. Stop faking fine. When you’re hurting, let it be known. When you’re tired, let it be known. When you’re depleted, let it be known. When you’re worried, let it be known. When you’re lonely, let it be known. When you’re uncertain, let it be known. When you’re DONE, let it be known. Stop faking fine. Everytime you fake being fine, you perpetuate this ideal that women should button up and stuff it down and dishonor themselves by disowning their pain. This is not only detrimental, it’s downright dangerous. Model being less-than-fine to others. You go first. Let them know: I’m struggling. I’m hurting. I’m tired. I need help. It is in owning and honoring where you’re really at that you will find the soft places and most sacred spaces to land - where others will be waiting to hold you, arms open wide. Links mentioned: Enrollment is open for Momentum Mamas Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today we have an extra special episode with two guests, who are not only powerhouse Shameless Moms and entrepreneurs making deep impact in the world, but also sisters. Caren Lettiere is the Founder and President of Democracy Clothing, the casual lifestyle brand designed for the modern, multitasking woman who grew up with fashion, then got busy with life. Best known for its “Ab”solution jeans with fit technology, Democracy Clothing embraces women of all shapes and sizes, providing them with confidence-building clothing that helps them look good and feel good, while doing good. Alongside Democracy, Caren’s proudest accomplishment is the fulfilling family life she’s built with her husband of 29 years, David, and their amazing kids Nicole and Josh. Julie Neale is a life and leadership coach, community builder, writer, and mom to two high energy boys who challenge her to grow into her best self. Alongside a 20 year career in youth development, it was Motherhood that transformed her and set her on a course to live a truly E.P.I.C. life. Now, as the founder of Mother’s Quest and the Mother's Quest Podcast, Julie provides inspiration, coaching, and community-building so that mothers, and those who care for young people, can connect to support and resources, fulfill their unique purpose, and live their E.P.I.C. lives. I’ve been so excited for this conversation for months now and I just know you’re going to love so much about it. Listen in to hear Julie and Caren share: How you can have the audacity to forge your own path without having to prequalify yourself The birth of Mother’s Quest podcast and Democracy Jeans How their separate businesses and goals converged into a collaborative working relationship How Julie and Caren were able to participate at Sybrina Fulton’s (Trayvon Martin’s mom) Circle of Mothers event to bring joy to mothers who lost children and family members to gun violence Shawna Free Jeans Freakout article https://shawnamorrow.com/free-jeans-freakout/ Caren’s philosophy around “My body is the carriage I arrive in” Julie’s philosophy of leading and living an E.P.I.C. life The power of opening the door for yourself instead of waiting for someone else to open the door for you How ignorance can actually help you be a problem solver Links mentioned: Make sure to sign up for my Momentum Mamas announcement Mother’s Quest Podcast: Mother's Quest Julie on IG: Mother's Quest Julie on FB: Mother's Quest Julie and Caren’s interview on Mother’s Quest Podcast: Save 20% off your order of Democracy Jeans (my FAVE jeans): (1 use per customer for total purchase, ends 02/28/21) Julie’s article on committing to anti racism Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As we continue to see white supremacy reign here in the US, it’s critically important to pause and reflect on where we have come from, how we can do better, and how we can talk to our kids about it all. I am not a race educator, but I will point you to some excellent people and resources in this episode from whom you can learn on an ongoing basis. I am showing up for this conversation because, while I want you to be learning about race from people other than middle class white ladies (me!), I want to share some things that we have been doing in our family to educate our 8-year-old while also taking big responsibility for our commitment to our own anti racism journeys. My intentions in this episode are 3 pronged: To share resources To invite you into longer term commitments in your anti racism journey To push pause to reflect on the importance of carrying out Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s legacy Please note all the resources below as you continue to listen and learn and take action. Links mentioned: Get my email announcement about Momentum Mamas enrollment Podcast: First Name Basis: The Untold Story of Martin Luther King Jr. Video: I Have A Dream speech with subtitles Article: 19 of the Most Influential Civil Rights Leaders of the 21st Century Stacey Abram’s Documentary: All In: The Fight For Democracy Book: Becoming Ms. Burton Book: Dear Martin Book: Something Happened In Our Town Thank you to our sponsor: Talkspace: To match with your perfect therapist for a fraction of the price of traditional therapy, go to talkspace.com, Make sure to use the code SHAMELESS to get $100 off your first month and show your support for the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mirna Valerio is a native of Brooklyn, NY, a former educator, cross-country coach, ultramarathoner, and author of the bestselling memoir, A Beautiful Work in Progress. Although she began running in high school, she recommitted to the sport after a health scare in 2008 and started her blog Fatgirlrunning—about her experiences as a larger woman in a world of thinner endurance athletes— while training for her first marathon. Mirna's athletic story has been featured in the WSJ, Runner’s World, on NBC Nightly News, CNN, and in the viral REI-produced documentary short, The Mirnavator. Her writing has been featured in Women’s Running Magazine, Self Magazine Online, Outside Online, and Runner's World Magazine. In 2018 she was chosen as one of the National Geographic Adventurers of the Year, and most recently appeared on the Kelly Clarkson Show, Access Hollywood, and the short Running Through Barriers, produced by LLBean. Listen in to hear Mirna share: How she is discerning about who gets her time and energy Why she is participating in NANOWRIMO and how it’s been transformational to her What your identity truly is and how it dictates how you interact with the world How she’s leaning into different parts of her identity and learning new things in this year How she manages haters How she steps into fear as she steps into new partnerships, especially her new position with Lululemon How anxiety shows up for her and how she has learned to manage it How she helped Will Smith train for a half marathon The best lesson she learned from Will Smith Links Mentioned: Get updates and announcements about Momentum Mamas Thank you to our sponsor: EveryPlate: Get started with EveryPlate for just $1.99 per meal plus an additional 20% off another 2 weeks by going to EveryPlate.com and entering code SHAMELESS199. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As you are thinking about what you want out of 2021, I'm inviting you to keep things super simple. We tend to make things too hard and way overcomplicated as we enter a new year. I think this is only because we want to make things super FAB, but still - no need to make things tricky, as this minimizes your chances of actually building any momentum and getting things done. So, how can you build momentum in order to have a few quick wins and feel like you are off to the races in 2021? Here are 4 tips: Know Your No’s Know What Works Make It Up As You Go Stay Connected In today’s episode, I’m going to help you dig into each one of these tips so you can feel lighter and more inspired to GET STARTED in a year that has already proven to be cumbersome and tumultuous in so many ways. You absolutely have what it takes to make great things happen in 2021. Let’s get to work. Links mentioned: Sign up for my 2021 Plan & Prep Pajama Party Get updates and announcements about Momentum Mamas Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jennifer Litner has over a decade of experience working, studying and teaching in the field of sexual health, with a specialization in sex therapy, sexuality education, and helping people thrive in their intimate relationships. Ms. Litner is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and sexuality educator whose passion is helping couples, individuals and families navigate sexual concerns. Ms. Litner is a Clinical Fellow of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT), a Certified Member of the American Association for Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT), and a member of the Society for Sex Therapy and Research (SSTAR). In addition to her clinical practice, Ms. Litner earned a Master’s of education and is currently pursuing a doctorate degree in human sexuality studies at Widener University with emphasis in human sexuality education. Ms. Litner is also an adjunct professor at Adler University in the Departments of Counseling and Couple and Family Therapy where she teaches masters and doctoral students. Ms. Litner empowers individuals to make healthy choices about sexuality by providing them with accurate sexual health information. Listen in to hear Jennifer share: Where caregivers can begin when they want to talk to their children about sexuality How to talk to your kids about touch and hugs at an early age Research based myths and truths about having “the talk” with your kids How to talk to your kids about sex in a developmentally appropriate way (in grades 1-3 vs grades 3-5) What it means to be sex positive and how you can be a sex positive caregiver How to talk to your kids about gender identity and gender expression Examples of shaming, sex negative messaging and the harm perpetuated in shameful messaging The intersection of conversations around pleasure and privacy How to be warm and neutral in conversations around sexuality with your kids How to create a sex positive home for your kids - even if you had a sex negative upbringing Links mentioned: Join my 2021 Plan & Prep Pajama Party Connect with Jennifer Get Jennifer’s course and use promo code SHAMELESSMOM to save 20% - GOOD THRU 1/31 Jennifer on Facebook and Instagram: @embracesexualwellness Jennifer on Twitter: @ESW_LLC Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You get to start fresh. It’s true. While we are kicking off a new year in the middle of a continuous shitstorm, you still get to choose how you will begin. Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, says, “Uncertainty is chronic. Instability is permanent. Disruption is common. We can neither predict or govern events. There will be no new normal. There will only be a continuous series of not normal episodes defying predictions and unforeseen by most of us until they happen.” How’s that for affirming that change and evolution will continue to be constant disruptors?? Happy 2021, lol! In spite of all this, there is still plenty you can do to step into 2021 on your terms. You still get to dream. You still get to take charge. You still get to make great things happen. I’m waking up #everydamnday ready to own the day and make progress in the face of uncertainty. I want this for you too. Listen in to hear 4 simple steps to start fresh this year - in order take charge and disrupt the doubt and worry that has been so permanent over the last 10 months. You got this. 2021 is yours to own and nurture. Links mentioned: Join my 2021 Plan & Prep Pajama Party Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Catherine Gray is a Producer, Author, Speaker, and Podcast Host. Catherine is also the Co-Founder of the SHE ANGELS FOUNDATION and 360Karma Productions. Catherine is producing a new original series for television called She Angels. It covers the exciting journeys of female founders and funders. The series, together with her SHE ANGELS FOUNDATION, has a vision to create a global initiative that will accelerate the funding of women, since currently they get less than 15% of the funding dollars. Catherine founded 360Karma Productions, which is a multimedia platform that creates everything from films and shows, to game changing events to empower women. These include past events such as the Live Love Thrive Conferences, workshops, and podcasts to the SHE ANGELS PITCHFEST, with the City of West Hollywood, CA. She will soon launch the SHE ANGELS TV series and the INVEST IN HER Podcast. The show and podcast series showcases ways to accelerate the funding of women, and provide resources and inspiration to the entrepreneur listeners. Gray says, “I am so proud to have produced several award-winning films including the very first documentary film about gay marriage entitled ‘I Can’t Marry You,’ narrated by Ellen DeGeneres’s mom Betty, which aired on PBS in more than 60 cities nationwide. I believe filmmaking is a powerful catalyst to change on every front. My focus now is on empowering female entrepreneurs. I enjoy working on socially conscious projects that are impacting the world in a positive and powerful way.” Listen in to hear Catherine share: How telling our stories lead us to making societal changes that create equity and justice Why we need more women inventors and investors Why women only get 15% of business funding What angel investing is and how you can become an angel investor at any level in order to support another person’s company/invention How you can go ask for money and funding to start your company and bring your ideas to life The first step to take if you have an idea to invent a product The importance of bringing your visions to life to help others (why you must be brave and vulnerable!) Links mentioned: Join my 2021 Plan & Prep Pajama Party Connect with Catherine Invest In Her Podcast She Angles Pitchfest She Angels Foundation Catherine on Facebook and Instagram: @sheangels1, @sheangelsfoundation Catherine on Twitter: @sheangesseries, @sheangelsfoundation Catherine on LinkedIn: @catherinelgray, @sheangels, @sheangelsfoundation Mindset Coach Andrea Quinn Learn more about OSEA and Golden Seeds Thank you to our sponsor: Take2Minutes: Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What if 2020 wasn’t just a dumpster fire? What if, instead, 2020 was the year you: Built better boundaries Got clear on what really matters Learned to sit in hard feelings Worked on your most intimate relationships Got to know your kids better Pushed yourself to stretch in new uncomfortable ways Became a million times more adaptable Decided your voice had value Said good bye to relationships and circumstances that were no longer serving you Found joy in ridiculously small things Learned to laugh at yourself Tried scary new things and didn’t die Stood up for your core values - even around those who disagreed Gained clarity on who you are becoming and who you want in your corner What if 2020, in spite of it’s pain and grief, was a year of massive growth and life changing accomplishments? As you prepare to close the door on 2020 and open the door to 2021, I invite you to think about what you are taking with you and what you are leaving behind. What if you left behind self doubt, over doing, over consuming, allll the noise, and ignorance & idleness? What if you took with you hope, power, patience, ease, adaptability, self trust, boundaries, empathy, and your voice? While we cannot flip a switch and heal the messes of 2020, we can step into 2021 realizing the potential that lies ahead - and the responsibility we have to meet that potential. Listen in to squash your dumpster fire and find some beautiful remains. Links mentioned: Join my 2021 Plan & Prep Pajama Party SMA Ep 307: How To Be More Adaptable #everydamnday Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kelly Altman is a certified health coach, a fitness business owner and a Shameless Mom to 4 kids, ages 2-14. Growing up overweight and lacking energy she fell in love with exercise and the way it made her feel in her 20's and became an entrepreneur by "accident" when she and her husband, Jay, started a fitness business in 2010. After taking a back seat to the business when her 3rd child was born it was only then that she started to realize how much of her own thoughts, feelings, and desires were taking a back seat in so many aspects of her life. She knew something had to change when her physical and mental health were suffering and she was ready to play by her own 'rules' - including stopping the endless cycle of 'on and off' again dieting that had manifested when she became the face of a fitness business. She became a health coach to help busy women see that in their life there is nothing more important than their physical and mental health and that they can put themselves first even when they need and want to show up for everyone else. Through her one-on-one coaching, group coaching, and her new on-line course she helps women upgrade their lifestyle by forming their own rules around eating, exercise, and their daily habits so they can gain the energy and confidence they desire. Listen in to hear Kelly share: The impact of moving 13 times in her childhood and how it built her resiliency Her compromise to work at a job she didn’t like to keep medical benefits for her daughter’s health condition How she left corporate in order to help her husband grow their fitness business How diet culture damaged her - while she was selling diet programs How her dieting compromised her fertility Her shift from following other’s lead to become a leader in her own right How she asked her husband for support and not permission in her building her own dreams The gift of COVID - How she has totally shifted her business to position herself as a leader and be in total alignment with her core values The most important thing you can do to make change How to put yourself first - even with a ton of people counting on you Links mentioned: Join my 2021 Plan & Prep Pajama Party Connect with Kelly Join the Wait List for Kelly’s Lifestyle Upgrade Challenge Kelly on Facebook Kelly on Instagram Thank you to our sponsor: Homeschool Magnet: Go to Homeschoomagnet.com and join the growing waitlist! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As a Health and Success Coach, Kelly Travis helps ambitious, high achieving women realize they don’t have to “should” their way to success in life or business. Through her programs and speaking, Kelly helps women realize what they actually want for themselves, ditch limiting beliefs and excuses, and create a sustainable action plan to achieve their big scary goals. Kelly models the ideal mix of professionalism, compassion, and discipline to help women get to where they want to go - not to where she thinks they should go (her methods are not prescriptive) but where they truly want to go in their career and life. Her brave, sassy, and always approachable coaching style encourages women to take a cold hard look at their habits, mindset, boundaries, and everything that goes into creating a life on their terms. Officially, Kelly earned her Bachelor of Science in Public Health with an emphasis on mental health from Central Michigan University. She is also a graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition where she earned her certification as a Holistic Health Coach. Her passion for wellness and her ability to create successful strategies to reach goals started in college, where she was a collegiate All-American runner at UNC-Charlotte. Listen in to hear Kelly share: The truth about our struggle to dream or create goals The way we make choices that provide false benefits and let us hide from our dreams How her eating disorder led her into her career How her unplanned pregnancy pushed her to learn how to use her voice and ultimately leave an abusive marriage Her daily coping skills to continue to work on herself as she recovers from an abusive relationship and is a single mom to two littles How she shows up as her very imperfect, messy, most authentic self How to start working toward a goal based on how you want to feel vs metrics & milestones Why you need to make decisions for yourself and not based on other people’s formulas, templates, prescriptions or opinions Links mentioned: Join my 2021 Plan & Prep Pajama Party Connect with Kelly Kelly’s free workshop, Clear AF: Complete Clarity On What You Desire Kelly on social media: @kellythealth Podcast: She Doesn’t Settle Thank you to our sponsor: Take2Minutes: Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Leslie Tagorda is a multiracial, brand astrologer, designer, podcast host, and author. An Aquarius boss woman and Human Design Projector, she calls herself a Brand Navigator as she guides spiritual entrepreneurs, social impact makers, and visionaries to become the luminary leaders they are born to be using an innovative system of empowered brand and biz astrology called The AstroBrand™ Framework. Since 2004 Leslie has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and social impact organizations clarify their brand so they can stop hiding and contribute their expertise in the world through their websites, social media, and brands. Leslie hosts a podcast and Facebook community The Savvy Luminary – Astrology for Entrepreneurs. And while you might think this sounds too woo woo for you, I invite you to listen in to all the really practical ways you can use astrology to greatly amplify your voice and your gifts in the world. Listen in to hear Leslie dig into: Acknowledgment that we have all lost something and we’re all grieving something right now The rise and power of female leaders and spiritual leaders in 2020 Her accidental entrance into motherhood and grieving her pre motherhood life How her multi cultural family lead her on a spiritual path to discover astrology - and then turn it into a career later in life How to amplify your energy and your gifts by understanding your astrological birth chart Why the massive energy around change, shift, and growth in 2020 is totally real and part of an expansion that only happens every 800 years How this big shift applies directly to you and your ability to overcome self limiting beliefs in the near future The reading of my actual birth chart How having your birth chart read can affirm and validate your direction in life and career Links mentioned: Connect with Leslie: The Savvy Luminary Podcast: The Savvy Luminary Order Leslie’s books, New Moon Rituals for Entrepreneurs and Star Powered Brand Leslie on Instagram Join Leslie’s free Facebook group Thank you to our sponsor: com: To save 30% off a Care.com Premium membership, visit Care.com/SHAMELESSMOM Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What do you need out of these holidays to consider them a success? This is an important question if you want to make this time count. In a year of heartbreak and loss, we still have the power to create joy and magical memories in alignment with our values. When I sat down to think about what I want out of this season, I came up with this: Health Safety Good Citizenship Joy Connection Rest Having identified this list, it was so much easier to make decisions around what is right and what is best for our family as we celebrate the holidays this year. In this episode I help you decide what it is that you truly want out of this holiday season and then I give you 4 simple strategies to actually getting what you want. While this year is anything but normal, there are still plenty of opportunities to connect and find joy & magic this holiday season. We are in this together. I got you. Thank you to our sponsor: Homeschool Magnet: Go to Homeschoomagnet.com and join the growing waitlist! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mia Hemstad is a wife and mom of two kids (ages 2 and 4). She works full time as a social justice activist, and runs her personal company online where she talks about her daily life with PTSD and depression and the importance of doing the hard, inner work of overcoming trauma and taking care of yourself. A recovering perfectionist and people pleaser, Mia wants women to learn to take their power back by making themselves a priority. Mia’s raw and honest content about mental health and stepping into her power has earned her features in media outlets such as Romper, Parents.com, Cafe Mom, and several others. Some of Mia’s favorite pastimes include trying out new coffee shops, taking naps, watching anything about food, and buying yet another journal from the planner section at Target. Listen in to hear Mia share: Her identity around being born on Guam, one of 11 children, into an African-Caribbean/Mexican/German family What it was like to be an American living on Guam, watching the mainland US from afar Her journey through PTSD, depression and suicidal ideation How she was diagnosed with anxiety and depression and how it changed her life Why she decided to start talking about her mental health publicly How to catch yourself in perfectionism and let it go The difference between self care and nourishment The critical difference for women stuck in comparison vs seeking camaraderie Links mentioned: Book: Radical Acceptance by Tara Brach Mia Hemstad Mia Hemstad Facebook: Mia Hemstad Instagram: Mia Hemstad Mia on Youtube Thank you to our sponsors: Homeschool Magnet: Go to Homeschoomagnet.com and join the growing waitlist! Take2Minutes:Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Holy cow. 500 episodes. 500!!! Part of me wants to be all exasperated, “How did that even happen? How did we get here???” But that would diminish what I know to be true. 500 episodes of The Shameless Mom Academy happened because I chose to show up - ALL THE WAY UP - 500 times. I have shown up full of joy and hope. I have shown up with a broken heart, in a puddle of tears. I have shown up to teach and coach and listen and learn and share and apologize and cry and push myself and push you and model leadership and celebrate. I have shown up on some of the best days of my life and some of the worst days of my life. I didn’t get to 500 episodes on accident. I got here on purpose. I worked hard to get here. Just like I encourage all of you to do, I’m going to own the heck out of this accomplishment. Most podcasts don’t make it past 14 episodes. And here we are. 500 episodes. Your legacy is built on how you choose to show up over time. These 500 episodes are a massive part of my legacy. I have learned so much about the power of showing up over the last 500 episodes. I have learned exactly why it matters, exactly how it can change your life, and exactly how it can open big huge doors to your future. Listen in to get really inspired and totally FIRED UP to keep showing up for your life and your dreams. Thank you to our sponsor: Take2Minutes: Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Meredith Atwood is a former attorney, podcaster and motivational speaker, and 4x IRONMAN triathlete. She is the author of the best-selling triathlon book, Triathlon for the Every Woman, and the new book, The Year of No Nonsense. She’s the host of the iTunes Top 50 fitness podcast, “The Same 24 Hours.” She has been featured in The Boston Globe, The New York Post, the Seattle Times, and dozens of online publications. Meredith is a contributing writer to Psychology Today online, Triathlete Magazine, and Women’s Running. She is a sobriety advocate, and the founder of Grateful Sobriety. She is a USA Weightlifting Level II, USA Triathlon Level I, and Precision Nutrition Level I Coach. She is originally from Georgia and lives in the burbs of Boston, Massachusetts with her husband and two tweens. Listen in to hear Meredith share: Her spark moment in a spin class that changed everything in her head and opened her eyes to totally new layers of potential within herself Her experience doing her first triathlon - in an overweight body How she used triathlons and Ironmans to try and prove she was healthy when she was truly unhealthy What caused her to give up a 2 bottle a day wine habit Why she identifies as an addict and how she negotiates moderation and abstinence in different areas of her life How she defines Nonsense and how this concept shaped her life How to open up your Truth Onion in order to find freedom and liberation and escape a lot of your own self inflicted oppression What real leadership looks like in these days of influencer culture The dangers of marketers who present themselves as leaders and take no accountability for the harm they do online Links mentioned: Connect with Meredith: SwimBikeMom IG/Facebook/Twitter: @SwimBikeMom Book: The Year of No Nonsense Podcast: The Same 24 Hours Thank you to our sponsors: Best Fiends: Download FREE on the Apple App Store or Google Play. Take2Minutes: Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There are all sorts of stories that people will tell you about procrastinators. They are lazy and lack motivation. They are ill prepared and unqualified. They just don’t have what it takes. They don’t have their shit together. If you’re someone who struggles with procrastination, perhaps these are the things you say about yourself? You wouldn’t be alone… The truth is that procrastination is commonly a form of perfectionism. Many people procrastinate because they are paralyzed by the fear of doing something wrong, making a mistake, looking foolish, not being good enough, and being stuck in analysis paralysis. This makes them feel guilty and weak and like they are not enough. This creates feelings of dread and worry and massive self doubt. Relatable much??? Many (most?) women struggle with perfectionism because we have been conditioned to believe we must show up a certain way, on certain terms, within certain parameters. The specificity around what is acceptable and what is not is a fine line drawn with a Sharpie. Listen in to learn more about why procrastination is not a bad thing, how to use it to your advantage, and how to release yourself from the perfectionism that comes from procrastination. Thank you to our sponsors: Homeschool Magnet: Go to Homeschoomagnet.com and join the growing waitlist! Take2Minutes: Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kristen Westcott is a Shameless Mom to two little girls, as well as a business growth strategist and founder of Kristen Westcott Media who has spent the last decade in the legal and education fields supporting leaders and students in the areas of goal setting, productivity, and project management. After recognizing her true passion lies in serving entrepreneurs, Kristen honed her skills as a Director of Operations. She quickly noticed that what was holding many business owners back wasn’t a lack of drive or ability, but a lack of foundational systems that could support the day-to-day operations of a scaling business. These days, she spends her time helping online coaches, copywriters, and course creators scale without the frustration that massive growth often brings. Listen in to hear Kristen share: How she navigated the decision around wanting children vs not wanting children What triggered her Postpartum Depression for her and how it showed up for her Being thrown for a loop when she got pregnant on the pill How PPD showed up very differently after both of her daughter’s births How she treated her PPD Why women are resistant to getting help and support How to be more adaptable in order to use our best skills in all areas of our lives How to own your skills in order to access them in hard times and places How to prioritize and optimize hiring help in your home and your work Links mentioned: Connect with Kristen: Kristen Westcott Media Kirsten on Facebook: Kristen Westcott Media Kristen on Instagram: Kristen Westcott Kristen on LinkedIn: Kristen Westcott Thank you to our sponsors: Take2Minutes Homeschool Magnet: Go to Homeschoolmagnet.com/ and join the growing waitlist! Take2Minutes: Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

2020 would like you to think you can’t do it, you’re not enough, you just don’t have it in you. I would like to suggest otherwise. You CAN do it. You ARE enough. You DO have it in you. On any given day, at any given moment, your life is full. Full of gifts and magic. Full of hope and power. Full of everything you need to keep going and to keep growing. Last week we did a 5 day Abundance & Gratitude Challenge with 250 Shameless Moms. Maybe you were one of them. Every day of the challenge I was blown away by all the abundance we have in our collective lives. HOT DAMN. So much goodness. In this episode, I walk you through 4 areas of your life that are already abundant - as long as you choose to see them that way. By the end of the episode, you’re gonna be all kinds of fired up about the gifts in your life that you perhaps have struggled to see in 2020. Link mentioned: Book: Mindset by Carol S. Dweck Thank you to our sponsor: Take2Minutes: Download Take2Minutes for free at: take2minutes.org/shameless. Check out their shop page and use the code SHAMELESS for 15% off your purchase. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gail Keyes Allen is an Accountant, a Life & Money Mindset Coach, and Serial Entrepreneur. She is the host of the Midlife Moneymaker Podcast, a podcast for multi-passionate women in their 40s, 50s, 60s, and beyond who want to transform their relationship with their money and their life. Her coaching is centered around helping women discover their limiting beliefs and take them on a journey to transform their money mindset from scarcity to abundance. Listen in to hear Gail share: How she is co grandparenting with her ex-husband Her hero’s journey from poverty to abundance Having her daughter at 26 weeks - as a 2lb preemie How she helps women see their financial potential and overcome money mindset blocks How you can use thought work to grow your abundance mindset The intersection of money, race, and age How to check in on your relationship with money (do you have a booty call relationship with money or a committed relationship with money) How society trips up our financial perspective and money mindset How motherhood has made her a resilient businesswoman Links mentioned: Connect with Gail Learn about Gail’s new course Gail on IG Gail on Facebook Gail on LinkedIn Check out Gail’s new course called "The Sanctuary of (Im)possibility." It's a 3 month course that helps the participants reach their (im)possible goal. We take their vision from the board and bring it to life. The link is Sanctuary. Thank you to our sponsors: Pipette: Visit Pipettebaby.com to get 30% off with code SHAMELESS! Homeschool Magnet: Go to Homeschoomagnet.com and join the growing waitlist! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

At least once a week, I sit down to write a social media post and I want to start it with, “YOU GET TO CHOOSE.” Every day, no matter where things stand with the world, we get to choose - so many things. We get to choose how we show up. We get to choose who we share our energy with. We get to choose who gets the best pieces of us. We get to choose how to honor ourselves. We get to choose how to live out our core values. We get to choose it all. This year, more than ever, we have had the responsibility of big choices. In this episode, I share three really powerful examples of what you get to choose right now, as these seem to be popping up over and over in my life and in the lives of others in our community: You get to choose how you use social media You get to choose where you’re going professionally You get to choose how you see your life and your life story Listen in to get inspired and fired up about the choices you get to make today and #everydamnday. Thank you to our sponsor: Orgain: Go to TryOrgain for 20% off your first order PLUS extra savings when you subscribe! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sophia Yen, MD, MPH is the CEO and Co-Founder of Pandia Health, birth control delivery. She has a passion for making women’s lives easier, preventing unplanned pregnancies, and educating women about #PeriodsOptional. With more than 20 years of experience in medicine, she is board-certified in Adolescent Medicine. She graduated with a B.S. from MIT, M.D. from UCSF Medical School, and M.P.H. from UC Berkeley in Maternal Child Health. She serves as a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Adolescent Medicine at Stanford Medical School. Dr. Yen's company, Pandia Health, is the first-ever female doctor founded birth control company. Men have been leading an industry they know little about, which is crazy to think about. But now, women across the country are turning to Dr. Yen and Pandia Health for birth control (pill, patch or ring) and telemedicine needs. Plus, the science and safety behind skipping your period is a topic often not talked about. In fact, 66% of women have never been informed by their doctor that they can safely stop their period. Dr. Sophia Yen is on a mission to help educate women about this crucial health topic. Listen in to hear Dr. Yen share: How to use birth control as hormonal treatment to manage your life How periods have changed over the over time and why we have hundreds of more periods over our lives than women used to (or current women in African tribes currently have) The truth about period poverty The impact of periods on the environment How fewer periods reduces your risk of endometrial, ovarian and colorectal cancers How stabilizing hormones with BC support other health issues The truth about “pill anxiety” and the mad dash to keep your prescriptions fills How to safely use telemedicine How to be a conscientious consumer around your health, birth control, Links mentioned: Join my free 5 Day Abundance & Gratitude Challenge Connect with Dr. Yen and Pandia Health Yen on FB/IG/Youtube: @pandiahealth Yen’s TED Talk: Making Periods Optional Thank you to our sponsor: Cove: Go to withcove.com/shamelessmom for 50% off your first month of medication and free two day shipping. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Amy Fish is the author of I WANTED FRIES WITH THAT: How to Ask for What You Want and Get What You Need. She is also the “Chief Complaints Officer” (also known as the Ombudsperson) for Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, which has more than 50,000 students, and where she spends her days investigating, analyzing (and mostly resolving) complaints for a whole variety of people. Amy's insights and wisdom have been featured in and on Reader's Digest, CBC-TV Canada, CBC Radio Canada, Global TV Canada, The Huffington Post, and many other publications. She lives in Montreal with her family and believes we all can make the world a better place by standing up for ourselves — even about the small things. Listen in to hear Amy share: Why women don’t speak up for themselves 5 tips for standing up for yourself more effectively Her philosophy that you can only change things if you start speaking up Her #1 tip for sanity and happiness during 24/7 togetherness How to answer uncomfortable questions with space and grace How to build your “asking muscle” to build confidence to speak up for yourself Links mentioned: Join my free 5 Day Abundance & Gratitude Challenge Connect with Amy Amy on Instagram Amy on Facebook Amy on Twitter Thank you to our sponsor: Pipette: Visit Pipettebaby.com/ to get 30% off with code SHAMELESS! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices