An Interview With Melissa Llarena

Have you been neglecting your own interests, wants, and desires, all in the pursuit of making other people happy? They may be your family colleagues, society, or your close friends. Has the time come for you to draw a line in the sand and make a really hard decision – a decision that brings up guilt and shame – to finally put a stop to your patterns to live the often "unlived" lives of others? It's time you create your own unique colorful life. One that is only limited by your own imagination and one where you can feel good about your choices, and occasionally, spoil yourself and allow yourself to thrive.  Today, we're going to talk about two major consequences of not taking the time to reassess why you do the things you do, and whether you're actually living your life or someone else's. I'm also going to leave you with three questions to help give you clarity as to whether you may need a bit of help with your own reassessment process.  Think of this as a hair detangling session. For those of us with curly ha

Want to finally accept that it is you who may need to be the cycle breaker in your family? It’s a tough pill to swallow. Personally, I’ve gagged a couple of times whilst holding onto this thought – the thought that it’s me who needs to ultimately take full ownership for my own happiness and release any need for others to accept or acknowledge my path.  You may also have to contend with certain emotions or clear up some dark clouds, and swallow a similar metaphorical pill. If this rings true, then tune in to today’s episode featuring Dr. Nima Rahmany.  You’ll uncover how to start your healing journey as a way to uplift your emotional well-being, the types of different attachment traumas you may have never worked through, and how a present-day conversation that could trigger you could actually be coming from a place in the past when you were a child. Consider today’s episode your chance to learn more about how you can become the cycle breaker in your family. Dr. Nima Rahmany’s Biography Dr. Nima Rahmany, DC, CC

What if taking meaningful action steps towards the achievement of your life purpose was a need rather than merely a want? What if working towards your life mission right now today could change the way you feel about your overall life for the better? Well, today is your special day. In this week’s episode, you will have the opportunity to take specific steps towards fulfilling your life’s purpose and boost your courage during the next 7 days. Together, let’s kickstart your journey, even if you still quite haven’t figured out your purpose yet.  First, let’s go back to kindergarten and reconsider what we’ve been taught pertaining to our wants and needs. After much reflection, I have come to realize that what other people were trying to teach me was a want, actually turned out to be my personal need. Now, what if executing on your life purpose was a NEED and not just a frivolous WANT? Then I’ll ask you a few questions (read: my three rules below) to help you pick one purpose. You’ll need to work through those bec

Why is a sense of humor and humanity so important that you should bring both to work and keep them in your life? In fact, a sense of playfulness can be your superpower. It certainly was for this week’s guest: Kathy Klotz-Guest.  In today’s episode, Kathy shares her story as a woman in technology who excelled in Silicon Valley by being funny and smart. We delved into the #1 fear most of us share: the fear of judgment especially by others (particularly from our coworkers). Kathy also shares how you can avoid living a fragmented life at work and instead bring more of your personality to the table as an asset. We talk about what you may need to feel psychologically safe enough to let your guard down a bit and show your humanity.  Kathy shares where the magic is as well as other lessons she has learned from her ‘improv’ experiences, including a concept called the “yes, and.” Hopefully, after listening to this episode, you’ll be inspired to add more humor and a spirit of playfulness into your life.  I also want to

Think about the last time that you balled your eyes out in front of someone other than a therapist. How emotional can you be in front of your family? On the flip side, what range of emotions can you handle being on the receiving end of?  In this episode, I'm going to share with you an excerpt from the book I'm writing about having the courage to imagine a better life for yourself while you are looking at your next life chapter or you're trying to pursue your life's purpose or fulfill your mission. Whatever is next for you has to be imagined in order for you to bring it into your reality. And central to that is being able to feel the fullest range of your emotions.  And so, I’m going to talk very specifically about just how emotional you can be right now. I'm also going to share with you how I've witnessed a lot of sanitizing of emotions in the workplace, as well as the numbing of emotions at home. We're also going to go through how you can access your emotions today. Now, there are some maladaptive ways that

This week’s guest is Genevieve Lang, a fellow mum who also sends her children to a Montessori program here in Australia. Now, this was one of those school situations when you realize that amongst us parents, we are still interesting adults with extraordinary life experiences. And it was during the recent lockdown that I had the opportunity to hear her play the harp for us all during our very own harp half hour.  What began as an intimate and very personal performance over Zoom turned out to be an opportunity for me to follow my curiosity and ask Genevieve to be a guest on this podcast. I have to say, I needed to muster my courage to make this ask. And this is the kind of bravery that I want to teach you too as a coach. It’s the type of courage to share your talent with a new crowd or to reach out to a fellow parent and ask them how they decided on their career. It’s the kind of bravery that we all need to live more enriching lives and to ultimately find it within ourselves to finally pursue our purpose right

Have you been seeking to change how you feel on a daily basis from feeling tied down to a boring or uninspiring life into one of meaning, fulfillment, and presence? Whether you want to start a business, write a book, produce a podcast, do a TEDx talk, start vlogging on YouTube, produce a documentary, launch a non-profit, or be part of a foundation – whatever that looks like for you – what do you think has been stopping you from doing what you really want to do in your life? What is stopping you from fulfilling your purpose? This is all about having to stop making excuses for not taking care of your dreams and desires. You have to overcome every single excuse that has been holding you back from seeing how powerful, masterful, and needed you are right now. It doesn’t mean you have to quit your job right away, although you probably have been contemplating your great resignation.  All the self-limiting beliefs and the lies you tell yourself have to stop otherwise you just keep delaying your purpose. The issue her

If you’ve ever wanted to reset your life, then you will love this conversation with couple Cathy and Joe Lurie who did just that! Both have a spirit of adventure that many of us yearn for in our daily lives. We may have once had the guts to toss caution to the wind and seek a life of freedom. But lately, perhaps some of us may have forgotten how badass we once were – and still can be.  Now, what caught my attention and the reason I decided to interview this couple was that I noticed in them a similar desire that I have: to show you that you do not have to live a prescribed or template life, which is life ruled by everyone else’s expectations and societal norms.  You see, you don’t need to lose your zest for life. You can continue to secretly live for Halloween costumes and keep on being you! Your life truly is one big series of experiments if you let it be just that. Even as parents, just because we have kids doesn’t mean we should let go of our sense of adventure – it should even be the opposite, in fact.  C

Are you self-sabotaging your success? You may have spent a decade in a particular field and now you want to bring your talents to a new community that could really use your help. Maybe you’re now ready to fulfill your life purpose and share your message with the world. Or maybe you want to put out your best work possible. You want to start working on your dreams, you want to feel aligned, and you want to start building out your legacy.  If you are an aspiring thought leader and you find yourself in any of those scenarios and you want to leave a mark on this world, then this conversation is relevant to you. Look around you right now. Who is out there putting out those TEDx talks that you wish you could put out? Who is launching a foundation? Who is an influencer right now? Who just quit their job to own their own business?  If you see them as competition, don’t! See that as evidence or signs from the universe that you just need to pick up the pace. You have one life, this is not a rehearsal. If it could happen

What happens in prisons is very secretive. It feels even more far removed from our everyday reality when you take into account what happens in prisons around the world including countries such as South Africa, Brazil, and the Ukraine.  Our guest today, Raphael Rowe, spent 12 years in prison for crimes he did not commit. Eventually, his convictions were overturned in 2000. But that experience changed him.  With that perspective and experience, he was able to be the presenter behind this Netflix show Inside the World's Toughest Prisons, where he had the opportunity to visit these prisons, ask prisoners questions pertaining to their stories, and ultimately, give us a unique viewpoint into what's really going on in prisons. That way, we can have a better perspective about what these realities are, and hopefully, we can do something about them.  Raphael is also the host of his own podcast called Second Chance, and the best selling author of his autobiography, Notorious. Just to give you a bit more perspective pert

“I’ll figure out” is commonly thrown around these days – but did you know there’s a hidden cost of saying it? In fact, trying to figure it all out on your own is the biggest mistake you can make as an aspiring thought leader.  Today, I will talk about the hidden cost of saying I’ll figure it out. This is especially important if you are serious about fulfilling your purpose. If you are at this point where you want to create something important – whether a podcast, documentary, memoir, TedX talk, video game, foundation, or even a movement – and despite knowing what you should do, you’re not taking enough action. You’re probably trying to figure out how to get out of your own way on your own. Yet, anxiety, imposter syndrome, procrastination and caring about what others think are holding you back. Then this episode is precisely for you.  Now, saying “I’ll figure it” out in and of itself is not a bad thing. It’s being resourceful. If you look at the common characteristics of those who rise to the top as influencer

Wondering what the heck happened to your creativity? Where did it go? You may have started life out as a child joyfully playing with Legos, or maybe you were more of a finger painter. Now, you're surrounded by Excel spreadsheets – and they're not even the color-coded ones! If you feel like your creative juices are just not flowing, then you’ve got to tune in to today’s episode as Van Lai-DuMone talks about bringing creativity into the workplace.  We are all innately curious and creative, therefore good ideas can come from any level of an organization. And by cultivating ideas and sharing them in the workplace, everyone has a chance to have their voice heard. This is the foundation of Van’s work as the Founder of worksmART, a progressive team development and leadership training company that activates creativity and experiential learning to enrich company culture and skyrocket performance.  Born in Vietnam and raised in Southern California, after her family fled Vietnam as war refugees, Van watched her parents

There are three toxic fears that are ruining your odds of becoming a thought leader or authority in your field – the fear of judgment, the fear of being found out, otherwise known as imposter syndrome, and the fear that you won't be able to do anything big due to anxiety.  This episode is specifically for someone who could use more courage to create authentic content to connect with power players who may feel out of your league for now, and also folks who want to communicate their message – the message on your heart with a dose of realness.  These three fears are going to sabotage your most well-intentioned efforts, especially when it comes to doing anything that might currently feel outside of your comfort zone. They can cripple even the most well intentioned, aspiring thought leader like yourself, from putting yourself out there.  Whether you want to deliver a TEDx talk, or get in front of camera and do a video on Instagram, or maybe write a LinkedIn article that really showcases your expertise – all of thi

If you are curious about how your brain works and how you can enhance its performance then tune into this conversation. You will have a better sense of how you create a model of the world inside of your head and how you can change it so that you can choose from new behaviors.  This conversation will educate you on some of the ways that have been studied when it comes to enhancing your cognitive control systems as well as how to have the right experiences to pull from so you can get to the new places you wish to go.  Dr. Thomas Hills is a professor of Psychology at the University of Warwick. His research involves using algorithmic approaches to understanding the human condition through language, wellbeing, memory, and decision making. He is a current fellow of the Alan Turing Institute and the Director of the Bridges-Leverhulme Doctoral Training Centre. He also co-directs Warwick's Global Research Priority in Behavioural Science and his works have been published in numerous academic journals. Share this with a

Telling the world that you want to chase your wildest dreams such as podcasting, leading a movement, or selling any form of artistry is vulnerable and anxiety-provoking especially if you’ve spent a bulk of your life trying to hide and not be heard. That is why you definitely need the courage to do those things and continue to be bold during every step of the journey. However, mustering up some courage is not as easy as it looks. Now, we all have different baseline moments of when we have to be our bravest – whether that’s speaking on stage, networking, or managing an illness – whatever that looks like.  One of my clients asked me how I was able to calmly have a conversation with GaryVee podcast guest #10. The reality is, I personally have been building up my courage muscles throughout my life in private settings. I had built my courage early on, but those moments were never on display for the outside world to see. In this episode, I'm sharing with you some personal stories that would explain my comfort and co

Can you describe your ideal life? More, importantly, how can you most effectively navigate your daily life in pursuit of your unique ideal life? You do have options. There are several 300-page self-help books on the market that you can try to read and incorporate into your daily life. However, the odds of you finishing any of those books is pretty small, let alone making the changes they say you should make on your own.  That is why Jordan Maness AKA: “Captain Inspiration'' decided to self-publish a workbook entitled, "SAIL: Select An Ideal Life: Your 59 Minute Guide to Enjoying the Journey of Life." Jordan is a Certified Life Coach with 15 years experience in career counseling and lecturing. His goal is to help his clients find fulfillment and inner peace through living with passion and purpose. After graduating with honors from the University of Colorado, Jordan embarked on a career journey following a series of passions. He spent time as a sportscaster, a consultant, an entrepreneur, and a sketch-comedy pe

Whether you’re in a lockdown (as we are in Sydney, Australia during our winter season) or contemplating how to plan your summer travels after 17 months or so of travel hiatus, you’ll want to listen to this timely conversation with Jenny Herbert. Jenny is a veteran tourism industry expert who has figured out how to fill her soul with tantalizing local adventures. This interview is filled with fascinating multi-sensorial ways to scratch your itch to travel along with stories from people around the world who have found ways to explore their cities and towns, as well as finding the natural beauty they never realized existed until it quenched their wanderlust souls.  Not only a tourism veteran, Jenny Herbert is also an author. In her recent book, “The Art Of Being a Tourist at Home: Expand your world without leaving your hometown,” Jenny celebrates 'staycations' at a time when the world is grappling with the future of travel. She takes us on a journey through our neighborhood streets and our local parks, through m

Have you ever heard of neurodiversity? I hadn’t. So here is one definition: it’s a range of differences in individual brain function and behavioral traits (used especially in the context of autistic spectrum disorders). This brings me to this week’s badass guest, Joe Biel, a neurodiverse creator. Biel is the founder and CEO of Microcosm Publishing and co-founder of the Portland Zine Symposium. Joe Biel is a self-made autistic publisher and filmmaker who draws origins, inspiration, and methods from punk rock. You will want to learn more about a man who fired his distributor to self-distribute in 2018 – which, for a publisher of his size, is completely unheard of in our industry. Despite that, he was able to grow the firm from around 10% per year to 60% per year.   Joe teaches in college and his books are even used in colleges, yet Joe didn’t technically earn his high school degree. Hopefully, by the end of this, you’ll be a better person for it and reach the ultimate conclusion that despite our differences in

Get ready to uncover an incredibly unique way you can identify your values, how creativity can help you reclaim a sense of calm in times of high-anxiety, and why some of us may be able to draw life-like images while others draw stick-figures.  I stumbled on this week’s guest on the Creative Enlightenment publication on Medium. Sarah Spencer wrote an article about her fear of sharks and how she is able to tackle her fears with a creative plan. Be sure to do the exact exercise Sarah asks her clients to do to uncover their values. And when you DM me on Instagram @melissallarena, I want to get to know what matters most in your life and from my profile you’ll get a sense of my values too.  More about Sarah Spencer, she is the founder of 26 Letters Studio. She is a storyteller, professional listener, graphic facilitator, and tool builder who has decades of experience training people in leadership positions to be more creative and innovative. Her magic is in creating an environment for learning that releases anxiety

Happy Father’s Day in the U.S. Jesus Diaz Jr. is a dad and my husband. I get to witness how much care and love he pours into our three sons so I wanted to bring him on the podcast to share some of his wisdom with you – whether you are a guy with kids or a single mom who finds herself having to be the father figure in her kid(s)’s lives.  Jesus was born in NYC and raised in Jamaica, Queens. His parents came to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic and they recognized that the only way to improve the life of all future generations would be through the pursuit of an education.  Jesus’ dad, in particular, believes in the power of an education to push forward his six children’s lives in meaningful ways. As a result, his dad decided to work at NYU, and in turn, put his six kids through an NYU education. Pretty extraordinary, right? All of this to say that Jesus’ viewpoint on fatherhood, what it takes to raise gentlemen, how to stay present even if you are returning to a long-commute, and still get them ready to acti