Clutter is defined as “a collection of things lying about in an untidy mass.” But lately, with all the talk on minimalism and doing away with excess stuff, we’ve come to realize that clutter is more than just the physical and tangible things.

On today’s episode of The Inside Story Podcast, I talk to certified health and wellness coach Heather Aardema about decluttering and focusing on “finding the more in less”.

My conversation with Heather is so enlightening, and I invite you to join us as she shares:

• How she went from being a self-professed maximalist to a proud minimalist
• What minimalism means to her, and how it relates to being intentional and paying attention to the more important things
• Her decision to leave the corporate world to become a health coach, and serve those who wish to live light both physically and emotionally
• Her favorite quote from Joseph Campbell that is so, so good!! (Hint: it speaks of Stepping into your Brave!)
• How our...

If you’ve been looking for a way to connect with your audience, whether in business or otherwise , then you’re in for a treat!

Today, we’re talking about a story prompt that’s not only going to bring back some pretty good memories for you, but also pull out great stories from inside of you and help you engage with people through storytelling.

Join me as I share with you:

• The story prompt that’s going to carry a lot of good energy and draw people to you!
• How school, mob bosses, and pizza brought out my love for storytelling
• Two skills I’ve developed over the years that’s important to remember when doing storytelling work
• Why working through challenges and making yourself uncomfortable will let you dig out the best stories around you
• How using today’s story prompt can help you attract the right people to your brand or business

I always say: everybody has a story. And when it comes to storytelling, nothing is more engaging than sharing...

Have you ever been called too much of anything?

I’d be willing to bet that at some point, each one of us has been judged, labeled, and called “too much” of something by other people. And I’m pretty sure we’ve listened to what others say about us far more than we should, and actually believed their words even when we know they’re not true.

It’s no wonder we find ourselves exhausted from trying to be what everyone expects us to be, instead of being who we really are.

I invite you to tune in to this episode as I share with you:

• A LIGHTbeamers Community member’s story of how she struggled with a label that came out of a personality test
• How labels and inferences are used to keep women from amplifying their strengths
• Adjusting ourselves to suit other people’s standards
• How another person’s opinion of you is more about them than it is about you
• Allowing yourself to be authentically you and being confident that who you are is...

How do you turn a setback into the biggest comeback of your life?

Catherine Just was only 18 years old when she decided to get sober from an addiction that almost made her give up on herself. That moment was the beginning of her new life, and an amazing artistic career that has led her work to be featured around the world, including the cover of National Geographic.

Her journey so far is nothing short of incredible, and why she’s telling her story is her way of paying it forward and giving someone else an opportunity to learn from her experience and lead a better life, especially through art.

Listen in as Catherine shares with me:

• Her backstory and how someone’s positive words saved her and changed her life forever
• The helicopter moment and what she heard in her head that made her decide to get up and ask for help
• What The 4 Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz and her work with him mean to her
• Why she considers telling her story through her art, a miracle
• How her son Max has...

Today, I am launching a new category of podcast episodes called “Community Spotlight”, featuring LIGHTbeamers Community members who are working on sharing their story to shine a light for others.

We start off with Reaiah Rose Cubero, a mental health advocate who is on a mission to help women on their journey of faith and mental health. She has been an active member of our Community for the last 2 years, learning how to tell her story to reach her audience and get her message across.

Here are some of what Reaiah and I talk about in this episode:

• Her backstory and how her anxieties began from the pressure of trying to maintain a certain image
• A vivid dream she had that led her to reach out to a friend and seek professional help
• How her art has helped her process what was going on with herself mentally, and what it feels like to use it now as a way of helping others who are on their mental health journey
• Finding out that hard conversations are easier to listen to and...

Let’s face it: we find it so much easier to share our story if we can leave out those parts we think are not good enough to be told.

But when we downplay and edit out what could be the most important pieces of our story, we’re not giving our voices and our full stories a chance to be heard by those who need to hear it.

And yes, there are people who will gain inspiration and encouragement from our story, which is why it needs to be told and not edited out in a way that can diminish its significance.

Today on the podcast, I talk about self-editing and I invite you to listen in as I share:

• What self-editing means and the reasons why women do this
• How I self-edited my own story, so much so that my long-time neighbors didn’t know what I did for a living!
• What you can do to stop doing this right now and begin sharing your story in a more authentic way

Our stories are important, and sharing them can mean being the light and survival guide for someone else. Realizing...

They say, “A picture is worth a thousand words” — which really means when words aren’t enough, photos can become a medium for storytelling, especially when taken in a meaningful and reflective way.

When Marie Masse got into the world of photography, she had zero background and didn’t even have a decent camera to use. What started out as something casual quickly became a more thoughtful and intentional practice. She began to notice tiny stories and documented them with her lens. These tiny stories have since become the foundation for her work at Dangerously Good Stories.

Join me on today’s episode of The Inside Story Podcast as Marie shares with me:

• How she started out taking pictures and eventually began “documenting herself awake”
• What tiny stories are and how you can find them by looking at the different areas in your life
• Why it’s important to be living awake for the stories of your life and not sleepwalking through it
• The...

With the spread of the pandemic that affected -- and continues to affect -- millions of people worldwide came the rise in Asian racism. In speaking of this, we’re not only talking about racial slurs hurled toward Asian Americans, but also workplace inequity and discrimination, and physical violence. 

Today’s guest on The Inside Story Podcast is Michelle Hoover, a leadership-development strategist, consultant, and coach. An advocate for lifting women at work, she is using her voice to inspire solidarity against racism, and to remind her fellow Asian Americans of their value and worth.

There are so many eye-openers in my conversation with Michelle. Listen in as she shares with me:

• The staggering statistics reflecting discrimination against Asian American women in corporate America
• 2 macro considerations she draws from her background, and what it’s like growing up in a Korean household
• The latest book she’s reading by Margaret Chin, that discusses 3...

Successful people often display the same qualities: passion, persistence, self-discipline, creativity, and commitment. But they also have one more thing in common and that is their willingness to fail. 

So many of us get stuck and never move forward with our plans and goals because we’re scared of not being able to do it right the first time. We’re scared to make mistakes because failure hurts. It stings like a bee and it’s the kind of pain we don’t want to feel.

But if we’re honest, we know failing can teach us so many valuable lessons we will never learn otherwise, and even develop in us the determination to win.

Join me today in this episode of The Inside Story Podcast as I discuss:

• Why we should be willing to fail and allow ourselves to make mistakes
• My own story of how I messed up a Challenge I was leading for the LIGHTbeamers Community, and what I learned from it
• Two of my favorite one-liners on success from the book Double Blessing by Mark...

Are you waiting for that perfect moment to start something? Have you painted an imaginary starting line that’s supposed to mark just the right point in your life to begin doing what you’ve always wanted to do?

So many of us (myself included!) believe we should first get to a starting line — where everything is all lined up and completely ideal — before we work on a project or pursue a goal.

My friend, I’m here to burst that bubble and tell you: there is NO STARTING LINE.

I invite you to listen to this episode as I share with you:

• The difficulty I had in launching this podcast because of unfounded fears I kept listening to in my head
• What starting lines look like to different people
• How to bring about a paradigm shift by rephrasing your big goals, and acknowledging small accomplishments that will get you to your ultimate win

Beginning today, work on eliminating those starting lines that aren’t supposed to be there. Do something every day that...