The Conscious Edge Podcast: Redefining Wealth as a Whole Human Experience

The decisions you're not only as a business owner, but in life in general, are costing you more than any wrong decision ever could.  You're Invited to Podcast Club: Starting in June, listeners of The Conscious Edge are coming together on Thursdays at 1pm ET for Podcast Club. Think book club, but for the podcast. We'll talk about the episodes, what landed, where it's challenging us, and how to actually apply it. It's a chance to meet other business owners, get into real two-way conversation, and stop just consuming content. RSVP for the dates you want at consciousedge.com/club.  If you're a real estate investor and ready to be in a room with women who are doing the work, Alecia will be teaching her framework, The Now Advantage, at InvestHer Con in Scottsdale, Arizona, June 14 to 16. It's her favorite conference of the year. Join her there: https://therealestateinvesther.com/investhercon  Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep105 Instagram:@aleciastg In this episode, Alecia is sharing her recent conversation on The Real Estate InvestHer Podcast (Episode 588) with hosts Andresa Guidelli and Liz Faircloth. The three of them go deep on the real cost of indecision for capable, high-functioning women, the story behind the decisions Alecia and her husband made (and didn't make) during the 2008 downturn, and what's different about her business, her marriage, and her capacity now. They also cover what The Great Wealth Transfer means for women in real estate right now, the conversations Alecia is having with aging parents to preserve generational wealth, why money is an amplifier rather than the source of the dysfunction, and a first look at The Now Advantage, the framework she's teaching at InvestHer Con in June. It's a real, honest conversation between three women who have lived this work, made the hard calls, and aren't pretending they had it figured out the first time. 

If your numbers are dipping and you're panicking that you must be doing something wrong, the dip might not be the problem you think it is.  Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep104 Instagram:@aleciastg If this episode landed and you're tired of running your business reactively every time your numbers shift, the next step is a Capacity Assessment Call. We'll look at where you actually are financially, where the panic is coming from, and what it would take to make a slow season feel like a season instead of an emergency.  Book yours at consciousedge.com/capacity.  You know the feeling. Revenue is down. What was working isn't working as well. And before you can even think about what to do, your brain has already decided you must be doing something wrong. You're not. Businesses cycle. The way real estate cycles. The way the stock market cycles. The dip is often the nature of running a business in a real economy. In this Monthly Money Talks, Alecia and her financial strategist Jenn Baas of Peak to Peak Solutions get into what's in your control when the market shifts, how much cash to actually keep on hand, the peace tax, and why adaptability matters more than stability if you want to still be in business ten years from now. If you've ever felt the panic of an unexpected slow season and wondered if you should be doing something different, this conversation will reset what a slow season actually means.

Perfectionists and the kids who didn't even prepare got the same test scores, and that should change how you think about your business.  Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep103 Instagram:@aleciastg If you saw yourself in this episode, the next step is a conversation. Book your Capacity Assessment Call at consciousedge.com/capacity.  After volunteering at her daughter's Science Olympiad state competition, Alecia spent hours grading tests and noticed three distinct patterns. The perfectionists who only answered questions they were absolutely certain about, leaving entire sections blank. The kids who showed up unprepared and just guessed at everything. And the top performers who came prepared, knew their material, and still answered every single question even when they had to take a swing at it. The part that should wake you up: the perfectionists and the kids who didn't prepare at all scored about the same. Joined by her regular co-host Jonathan Dugger, Alecia unpacks what this dynamic looks like in business. Why perfectionism is actually a strategy for avoiding failure disguised as high standards. What it's costing the capable business owners who've been telling themselves their carefulness is a strength. And why it's never too late to start retraining the brain to take small, intentional risks without being so attached to the outcome.

Mindfulness has become a business buzzword, and a lot of what's being sold to leaders under that label isn't actually mindfulness at all.  Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep102 Instagram:@aleciastg If this conversation has you rethinking how you show up as a leader in the moments that matter most, the next step is a conversation. Book your Capacity Assessment Call at consciousedge.com/capacity.  Mindfulness has become a top-searched wellness term and a growing line item in corporate training budgets. According to Jonathan Dugger, a lot of what's being sold to business owners and leaders under that label isn't actually mindfulness at all. In this Mindfulness Matters conversation, Alecia and Jonathan unpack what mindfulness really is, why the marketed version can erode trust with your team, and how to tell the difference as a business owner trying to lead well.  The episode takes a turn when Jonathan gets heated about how mindfulness is being commodified, and then demonstrates in real time exactly what the practice looks like when it's working. You'll hear what he calls "McMindfulness," why mindfulness is not about being positive and not a cure for anything, and what it actually is: a daily practice of non-judgment, curiosity, and staying in alignment with who you are. If mindfulness has started to feel like a wellness buzzword you can't quite trust, this is the conversation that cuts through the noise. 

If you're the kind of leader who feels deeply responsible for the wellbeing of your clients, your team, and the people you love, this episode is going to call out something you've been living without even realizing it. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep101 Instagram → @aleciastg There is a version of responsibility that serves people beautifully. And there is a version that dismantles you, your business, and ultimately your ability to help anyone at all. In this episode, Alecia St. Germain unpacks the difference. She gets into why keeping the wrong employee too long, undercharging because you feel bad, holding back from visibility out of fear of causing harm, and carrying more than your share at home are not acts of generosity. They are patterns of over-responsibility that hold everyone around you smaller than they are, and drain resources your business can't run without. If you have ever wondered whether taking care of yourself and your business first is selfish, this episode will answer that question clearly. Hint: it isn't. It's how you help more people.

Struggle isn't evidence that something is broken. It's evidence that something matters. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep100 It's time to stop spiraling and start building from a different place. The next step is a conversation. Book your Capacity Assessment Call at consciousedge.com/capacity. This is Episode 100 of The Conscious Edge, and for this milestone conversation, Alecia St. Germain and co-host Jonathan Dugger are unpacking one of the most damaging thought errors she's seeing in the women she works with right now: the belief that struggle means failure. That if something is harder than expected, if things aren't going smoothly, if uncomfortable feelings are showing up, then you must be doing something wrong. In a culture shaped by curated social media, pop positivity, and generations of wanting to shield ourselves and our children from discomfort, this belief has become almost invisible. And it's costing people dearly. This episode names it, traces where it comes from, and offers something more honest and more useful in its place.

Debt can be a strategy or it can be a hiding place. This Monthly Money Talk with Zen Jenn will help you tell the difference ❓Have a question for Monthly Money Talks? Send your question to me in a DM on Instagram → @aleciastg.  Your question may be featured in an upcoming  with Zen Jenn. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep099 If this episode raised a question you are not sure how to answer, the best next step is a conversation.  Book a Capacity Assessment Call at consciousedge.com/capacity Alecia St. Germain and her fractional CFO and  financial strategist Jenn Baas go straight to one of the most charged words in business: debt. Not to tell you it is bad. Not to say use it freely. To ask the question that actually matters, which is what is it doing for you, and what is it helping you avoid? From the client who used debt to sidestep difficult conversations, to the entrepreneur who keeps adding lines of credit instead of fixing what is fundamentally broken, Alecia and Jenn unpack the mindset underneath the money. They talk about when debt is a powerful strategic tool, how to know if you are using it from abundance or from scarcity, what Jenn calls the peace tax, and why the pain of where you are has to become greater than the pain of change before anything actually shifts. Real, practical, and surprisingly personal, this one will make you look at your own relationship with debt a little differently.

Almost a hundred episodes in, Alecia St. Germain finally says out loud the part of her work she has been carrying for a very long time. In one of her most personal episodes yet, Alecia St. Germain finally gives the soul pillar of her company, The Conscious Edge, a methodology and a name out loud. She shares what soul purpose is, where it comes from, and what happened when she stopped doing everything by the book and started paying attention to her soul instead. That's when the map encoded in her birth name finally made sense. She walks through her own chart. The codes that explained her early career rise, her lost voice, her debt, and her path back to alignment. And she makes the case for why the soul piece so many entrepreneurs hold privately is the piece that changes everything when it finally gets to belong in the work. Curious what a soul purpose chart actually looks like? It's posted in the show notes at consciousedge.com/ep098 with a full breakdown of what it all means Let's connect on Instagram → @aleciastg

If you're still doing your own books — or handing them off and never looking at them again — this Monthly Money Talk with Zen Jenn will change how you think about what your finances are really costing you. ❓Have a question for Monthly Money Talks? Send your question to me in a DM on Instagram → @aleciastg.  Your question may be featured in an upcoming episode with Zen Jenn. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep097 Ready to get connected to your business finances? Book a Capacity Assessment Call at consciousedge.com/capacity Alecia sits down with fractional CFO and financial strategist Jenn Baas for March's Monthly Money Talk.  This month, they're digging into something that comes up all the time with women entrepreneurs: accounting software. Not the fun part of running a business, but one of the most important. They talk through QuickBooks vs. spreadsheets, what to look for in a bookkeeper, and what it really means to be connected to your numbers. Because staying disconnected isn't just inconvenient, it's draining your energy and limiting your growth.

You can be profitable and still be burning down your health. You can hit your goals and ignore the exhaustion. You can tell yourself it's just a busy season while your sleep declines, your focus slips, and your body starts sending signals you don't want to look at. Most business owners don't lose their health overnight. They trade it away in small, reasonable decisions that feel productive in the moment. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep096 Instagram → @aleciastg In this episode, Alecia St. Germain shares her deeply personal experience and why she's imploring you to reframe your health as your most important responsibility, not a luxury.

You've been told to work hard, max out your retirement accounts, and wait until 59½ to access the life you're building toward. But what if that timeline doesn't actually fit the life you want? Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep095 Instagram → @aleciastg In this episode, Alecia St. Germain sits down with fund manager and real estate investor Lisa Moore to explore what most people are not taught about investing, retirement access, and building time freedom earlier. You'll hear how real estate can shift your relationship with income, risk, and retirement age.

If you've ever reacted in a way you later regretted, before you even realized you were angry, this episode will help you hold anger without letting it take control.  For many leaders, anger doesn't look explosive.  It shows up as frustration, impatience, control, or pulling away. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep094 Instagram → @aleciastg In this episode, Alecia St. Germain and Jonathan Dugger explore how anger can become a powerful force for clarity and change when it's met with awareness and how mindfulness helps leaders respond instead of react.

❓Have a question for Monthly Money Talks? Send your question to me in a DM on Instagram → @aleciastg.  Your question may be featured in an upcoming episode with Zen Jenn. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep093 If budgeting makes you tense, avoid your numbers, or feel boxed in, you're not alone. In this Monthly Money Talk with Zen Jenn, I'm joined by financial strategist Jenn Baas to explore why budgeting often feels restrictive for business owners and how to approach it in a way that actually supports growth. This conversation offers a grounded reframe of budgeting as a leadership tool, one that helps you make clearer decisions, reduce financial stress, and build a business that feels steady instead of reactive.

Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep092 If January left you feeling tired, unmotivated, or quietly resistant to goal-setting, this episode offers a deeply relieving reframe. What if nothing is wrong with you and the issue is the calendar you've been trying to force yourself into? This episode explores why the traditional January-based planning model often creates burnout, resistance, and misalignment and what to do instead. Before we dive in, let me be clear.  The perspective I'm sharing challenges a widely accepted way of planning and leading. I'm not rejecting structure or ambition.  I've built my business inside that model. But I've come to believe it's incomplete. So if you're willing to hear me out, this conversation may put language to something you've already been feeling. In this solo episode, I share a compassionate, grounded approach to leadership that honors natural energy cycles instead of hustle-culture timelines. I invite you to rethink the January-to-December model and explore Seasonal Capacity Planning as a more sustainable, human way to lead, plan, and grow. This episode is especially for high-achieving, Type A leaders who feel deeply connected to nature but want structure, strategy, and logic. This isn't about doing less or playing small. It's about applying discipline and effort at the right time.

Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep091 If you've ever known you're good at what you do but felt a knot in your stomach when it came time to raise your prices or choose the right pricing model, this episode will bring clarity. Pricing challenges aren't about math or market demand. They're about how safe it feels to lead the pricing conversation. In this conversation, I'm joined by pricing strategist Shannon Mattern to unpack why so many women underprice their work and what actually needs to shift for pricing to feel grounded. This conversation reflects the kind of inner and strategic work we do inside The Conscious Edge—where clarity, nervous system safety, and leadership identity come first so strategy actually sticks. This episode is especially for service providers, consultants, and coaches who are tired of doing more to earn more and are ready to charge in a way that feels clean, calm, and sustainable.

Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep090 If you've ever said, “I can't grow because I don't have access to capital,” this conversation will gently but firmly challenge that belief. In this episode, we explore financial capacity through the lens of capital raising and leadership identity. I'm joined by capital-raising strategist Lauren Brychell, who breaks down why access to money is rarely the true constraint. Instead, it's often confidence, clarity, and the courage to be seen. Together, we unpack what actually holds entrepreneurs back from raising capital, how imposter syndrome quietly caps growth, and what it looks like to step into bigger opportunities without needing to have it all figured out first.

❓Have a question for Monthly Money Talks? Send your question to me in a DM on Instagram → @aleciastg.  Your question may be featured in an upcoming episode with Zen Jenn. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep089 If you've ever hit a point in your business where things feel hard and you're not sure whether you should push forward or pull back, this conversation will bring clarity. In this episode, you'll learn how to quickly diagnose whether your business challenges are growing pains that strengthen you or signs of disordered growth that weaken your foundation. In our Monthly Money Talk, Zen Jenn and I break down one of the most overlooked reasons businesses plateau: confusing disordered growth with healthy, capacity-expanding growth.

Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep088 When you avoid a hard conversation, it doesn't just disappear. It silently taxes your time, your energy, and your momentum. In this episode, we explore how expanding your relational capacity can completely transform how you lead and communicate. I'm joined by real estate investor and client Sandra McEwan, a former pharmacist who rebuilt her career after inheriting her father's properties and diving head-first into investing. She recently faced a conversation she'd been avoiding for months.  What unfolded on the other side wasn't conflict but clarity, relief, and renewed trust. If you've been carrying the weight of a conversation you don't want to have, this episode will show you how grounded, compassionate leadership creates connection instead of rupture.

Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep087 As the year winds down, Jonathan and I sat together for a heartfelt, unscripted conversation about what truly shaped us in 2025 and who we're choosing to become in 2026. If you've been craving a moment to pause and reorient your inner compass, this episode will feel like a deep exhale. We unpack joy, unexpected challenges, recalibration, and the moments that quietly changed everything. As Jonathan put it, “Some challenges were necessary; they revealed what truly matters.” Before you dive in, here's a simple reflection to ground you:What was one moment in 2025 that unexpectedly shaped you for the better?Give yourself 10 quiet seconds to answer, it will shift the way you receive this conversation.

Take the Conscious Business Alignment Assessment Discover what's holding your business back and where to focus next to grow with clarity and confidence.

Take the Conscious Business Alignment Assessment Discover what's holding your business back and where to focus next to grow with clarity and confidence.

Take the Conscious Business Alignment Assessment Discover what's holding your business back and where to focus next to grow with clarity and confidence.

Elevate your leadership, your impact, and your results. Begin with the Conscious Business Alignment Assessment: www.consciousedge.com/assessment Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/075 Did you know 65% of businesses fail within the first 10 years? I don't want you to be part of that statistic. In this episode, I'm talking about what it really takes to build a business that goes the distance. It's not just about making money.  It's about leadership, alignment, and the financial habits that keep your business sustainable and fulfilling for the long haul.

Running a brick-and-mortar business often means choosing between growth and survival.  Do you hire the team you need or expand into the space your business deserves?  In this episode, I sit down with my client Katie Kim, a visionary developer and educator who has made it her mission to change that story. Katie shares how she helps entrepreneurs leverage real estate not just as a place to operate, but as a powerful tool for adding income streams, unlocking hidden incentives, and creating long-term wealth—even beyond the day you exit your business. Having closed her first deal at just 15, she's spent decades making real estate development more accessible for business owners. Her work is deeply purpose-driven, answering her own calling to help others use real estate as a foundation for growth, stability, and legacy.

Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep070 Working with your partner can be incredibly rewarding and incredibly challenging. In this episode, I sit down with my client, coach, and fellow entrepreneur Amanda Rockrohr, who helps couples navigate the unique dynamics of running a business together. She shares not only what it takes to thrive in business with your partner, but also the powerful shifts she's made in the last year through coaching.

Strengthen your leadership skills and navigate tough conversations with confidence. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep068 As entrepreneurs, one of the hardest leadership skills to master is holding people accountable, especially when you value kindness and worry about coming across as “mean.” In this episode, Jonathan Dugger and I unpack compassionate accountability and how to use it to improve team performance, build trust, and address conflict without burning bridges. You'll learn how to stay grounded in your values, manage your emotions before a tough conversation, and create a workplace culture where both kindness and results thrive.

Want to feel more confident in who you're lending your money to? Start with the right questions. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep067 I'm Alecia St. Germain, founder of The Conscious Edge and host of this podcast. If you're using private lending to grow your wealth, you need to know this: even savvy investors can fall for a polished pitch. In this episode, I talk with Melissa Palmer, former federal agent and behavioral scientist, who now dedicates her work to protecting investors from fraud and fuzzy facts.  After losing a significant sum in a deal gone sideways, she used her investigative training and firsthand experience to build a safer system for evaluating lending opportunities. This is a must-listen if you're handing over cash and want to do it with confidence.

Want to create sustainable wealth without sacrificing peace of mind? Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep066 I'm Alecia St. Germain, founder of The Conscious Edge and host of this podcast. If you caught last week's episode on mid-year money check-ins, you know I've been thinking a lot about the mindset behind our financial decisions. So I invited Whitney Elkins-Hutten to join me and take that conversation even further. Whitney helps high-income earners and business owners transform their active income into long-term, passive wealth. In this episode, she shares how to shift from reactive decisions to a proactive, aligned investment strategy, especially in unpredictable markets. If you're a woman building wealth through business or real estate, this conversation will help you play smarter, not just harder.

Now's the time to pause, assess, and realign your financial goals for the second half of the year. Get full show notes at www.consciousedge.com/ep065 We're halfway through the year and if things aren't going the way you planned financially, this episode will be a breath of fresh clarity. Alecia walks you through her mid-year budget review, shares where mindset derailed revenue goals, and highlights why cutting costs isn't always the answer. You'll learn how your spending and earning patterns often mirror your beliefs and how to take back control without sacrificing your vision.