You Should Write A Book About That™

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I used to love to write from the dark. Dark dark dark. Movies I made were dark, and short stories I wrote were dark, and the light to me was a sham and bubble gum b******t. I loved short stories because they were weird and perverse, and usually dark. I wanted to be as weird and dark as I could be, I stayed in that space for a long time until my life in itself was darkness and then I was living in the dark.I desperately clawed to find the light.I know that sounds kind of hokey but it was true, and now that I am in my fifties, I truly want to be only in the light. That said, I confess I have my ups and downs, trauma triggers, panic attacks and moments when my nervous system takes over and won't calm the f**k down. I doubt in this lifetime my make up will ultimately change, but I get to love on and appreciate those parts of me because they push me even closer to that desire for light. They are the messengers but they are not the harbingers of grief. The protection mechanisms I had in the dark can speak to me, but I get to balance them in the light.What does this have to do with storytelling? After I wrote my book about sexual abuse and published it in 2023, I was free. I had written a self help book I felt was essential for the recovery spiritually, emotionally and physically for sexual abuse survivors. It worked for me, and I believe it will work for any survivor who wants a new life in the light. Then I discovered how many women don't give themselves permission to be the greatest versions of themselves because they are buried in what I call Gunk. So I wrote a book about Permission, happiness and wealth (hence the column you are now reading), and it is a wonderful follow up to the life I can lead after so much darkness. Keep your fingers crossed I find a fabulous agent and/or editor who understands and champions the book because women need this message.Now I am endeavoring to be a romance writer, and here is the best part about that twist. It's not a twist at all. The Universe has been strumming their fingers on the desk waiting for me to catch up to all the versions of this career I have started and stopped. It's hard to write about romance in a light way when the love for yourself or others is in a dark place. Sure, you can write the darker movies where love doesn't conquer all, but I like when love works. I like happy endings. I like when the light and the dark make the dawn.I was reminded today that a romance novel I am writing that involves horses and Malibu was actually first gestated in 1998 in a week long holiday in Haiku, the Upcountry of Maui, Hawai'i. Fields dotted with the spikey tops of pineapples and the smell of sodden soil was the topography high above the green frothed Pacific Ocean. I had seen a sign in the one road town for a rodeo, and that was all that I had needed to rush back to my rental and put down on paper my lone cowboy looking for love. But I recall it was like writing through mud, and I made a decision about myself. I can't write about love. I am too dark.We make decisions about who we are as writers in places and spaces that truly are calling for a more emotional and psychological healing. Our original writer self is simply overshadowed by the trauma. So many of my clients have blocks in their writing not because they are not writers or shouldn't be writing about the topic, but because there is a deeper wound and an underlying cause that forces them to buck up against the literary assignments given. Some people I can pull from the fire, and other people just burn up and let themselves be devoured by the pain. They ultimately need to want to save themselves and believe in their writer spirit.My current romance novel that I decided was ready to be written needed a vocation for the male love interest. Like all good romance books that I am reading as research such as Emily Henry and Abbie Jimenez, tension is created between the potential love interests and they also heal each other. My friend Meta, also a writer, suggested he has horses. I mean randomly she said this one day sitting in her backyard having one of our conversations about writing. “His horses keep coming onto her property and it drives her nuts…” she said. While I won't run with that exact story line, now I was recalling many parts of this puzzle over a lifetime.Attending a coaching event in Arizona and learning about equine therapy and thinking it was bunk.Deeply interested in race horses, and even considering buying into a share of one on an app lately.The fact that as a little girl I rode horses and it saved my life for a little while.I couldn't stop thinking about the equine therapy that I now recalled, and I googled therapists in Malibu. Sure enough I found a ranch and the owner and I connected. Shock of shocks, her main clientele are from trauma. She had also been sexually assaulted as a young girl. My people. As I asked her about me riding horses as a young girl, she said it balanced my nervous system and settled me down so I felt safe. It makes sense because when I stopped riding horses and showing in dressage and show jumping, I turned to drugs and alcohol. They became the main stage for my nervous system regulation.And we know how good that turns out…So I am now understanding that the Universe is sending me all the nuggets and signs and they are in the joy of creation. I could turn my back on them and get worried it's not the right path, and I should know and left brain the f**k out of the narrative, but I also think its time to not turn away from the light but rather let the sun fall on my face and my keys to fly across the keyboard.Here's a question for you reader: Where has a story popped up and then gone away and then popped up again twenty years or more later for you? Or even something you did, and discarded that a person in your world then re-fired up for you? I would love to hear from you in the comments! Let's open this discussion up!Our connection to our peers as writers is very deep. When we have a circle that hears our evolution in our writing, they can mirror back to us, even what they didn't now about our past narrative and writing dreams. That is because it is in our aura.We wear our stories in our hearts and they come through in the essence of who we are.So based on my convo with my writer friend, and the history of me writing about a horse guy in Haiku, I booked an equine therapy session with the gal in Malibu. I am going at the end of month as research but also to reconnect myself to the horse who has a heart 8 to 10 times bigger than the human heart, and no judgement because they have no pre-frontal cortex. I am going to deepen in at a ranch in Malibu and allow me, and my female character in my romance novel take flight.If I told you I wasn't scared, I would be lying.What happens if I start crying and never stop? I give myself permission to find this story. It deserves the light. I give myself permission to take the time the novel needs to grow and deepen. To be as insular, and as prolific and restless as I need to be as a writer.Find that story you discarded again. Let the words sift through your fingers like hot desert sand. Treat it with reverence and then fling it on the page to be then owned by you.Possess your writing. It's yours. If you are interested in the Human Design that I walked about in my video, please check out Stephanie Zhong at https://www.stephaniezhong.com Get full access to I Give You Permission with Kim O'Hara at igiveyoupermission.substack.com/subscribe

What would you think if I told you EROTICISM is the SECRET sauce to wellness? Would you buy a book written on that topic? I know I would, and while she hasn't written the book yet, that is the position of Tina Koopersmith MD, who after 30 years as a fertility specialist is focused on prioritizing Pleasure to remind our nervous system that we are safe in our bodies. I am sure many of our listeners are going through fertility-issues, or have questions about late in life motherhood, or like me, are abuse survivors with the body trauma, so this is going to be a fantastic conversation for you but also for everyone, looking at a deeper relationship to our bodies and sexuality.So why hasn't she written her book yet? On today's episode we talk about the headspin many people come to me with –” I think I have four books, I can't decide which book to write, I want to do the book more aligned with my coaching practice, but I feel more called to this other book…”As a Coach, Tina's mission is to guide women to nourish all 4 of our bodies: the mind body, the heart body, the physical body and the energetic body because we are ALL worthy of self-care, self-acceptance and self-love. Join us as we find out where she is in the writing process, her many experiences with patients in infertility and amazing tools for happy healthy sexuality.You can learn more about Tina at womensreproduction.comIf you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with my book client Angie Wisdom who wrote the  book The Non-Negotiable You and talks about coming to writing as a complete newcomer. Or perhaps listen to Alisa Zipursky, an author who has written a frank self-help book on Healing Honestly from sexual abuse. There is always a guest for everyone at every stage in their writing journey so subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests. If you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts.I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kimohara.substack.com

Life & Business Coach Angie Wisdom came to me to write a book because it was something she didn't think she could do… which made it very appealing! A high achiever who brings her clients to find a life they love, Angie endeavored to write about how critical it is to trust yourself and be authentic in all you do.She had to overcome some perfectionism to write the first draft of the book. Wanting every line and idea to resonate wasn't helping her forward momentum. She soon learned we would craft the book into the vision she saw in drafts two and three.  Now she is releasing this incredible book The Non-Negotiable You in June 2023 and already has a best-selling companion journal Start With You.I personally did three rounds of the Start With You Journal, tracking every day what my intentions were, and was shocked at how clear and directed my life became. Her book is an extension of the journal, diving deeper into some of the concepts of values and purpose.From this episode, you will walk away with a deeper insight into the book writing process from a novice (who now knows not only how to write a book but publish one with her marketing partners), as well as hear a highly sought coach talk about core concepts that can make you see how you focusing on you first can enhance your life.She also stresses it's up to you to choose your seat, and create a meaningful success and a life you love.You can learn more about Angie athttps://angiewisdom.com/If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Alisa Zipursky who talks about the magnificent messy process of writing about childhood sexual abuse, or one of my great book clients Joy McManigal who has written a book for young adults called The Good Life. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts.I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kimohara.substack.com

Since 2016, Author Alisa Zipursky has been blogging about her experiences as a millennial woman trying to live a full life while healing from her abuse. As many of you know, I am a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and I am thrilled that Alisa is my first guest who has written a book about her healing. She wrote Healing Honestly: The Messy and Magnificent Path to Overcoming Self-Blame and Self-Shame to put a book out in the world that honestly addressed the balance of trauma recovery and living a happy life. Going out in the world and trying to be practical or rational about your abuse story to make others less uncomfortable is just b******t, and she takes that head on as an effort to show how it can ultimately combat shame. She is a beautiful writer and on today's show, we get deep into the balance of personal narrative and research in her book, as well as who connected with her when she first started the writing process online. When she got public in her survivorship, the first survivor who connected with her was from India, but she also heard from people in her social circle that they were affected by abuse. She realized it was all around her in this seemingly perfect community in Bethesda, Maryland. The truth is, we are all surrounded by survivors. We chat about:*Her grandmother was Alisa's biggest champion through the early process of her writing her blog (which eventually led to the book.)* How she at first felt that just body memories were not enough to be a legit survivor only to discover this was one of the biggest areas where people connected with her story.* When she shared about a niche experience in her process of facing abuse that she never thought anyone would connect with, that it was exactly what people needed to hear.As writers in recovery we are tasked with writing about what goes on inside us, even if we think we will be stigmatized as angry feminists as abuse survivors (which may be on some levels true, but not so binary). Our job is to show that it is not black and white thinking for healing where you are either thriving or victimized. We get to have many layers and stages of our recovery and it is ever changing.She offers practical strategies for survivors of sex abuse to support themselves in living full and vibrant lives. You can find Alisa at - Founder HealingHonestly.comAuthor of Healing Honestly: The Messy and Magnificent Path to Overcoming Self-Blame and Self-Shame (June) pre-order now!If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other episodes you may like with Book Client/Authors of Kim's? Check out recent episodes with Joy McManigal, Author of The Good You or Matthew Brownstein, founder of the Institute of Interpersonal Hypnotherapy. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts.  My podcast is also connected to my 3x weekly column Inner Circle so be sure to subscribe!I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kimohara.substack.com

Book client Joy McManigal has led a varied life from owning a pub in Ireland, working in​​ the movie business, facing bankruptcy, and raising four daughters with celebrity Giancarlo Esposito. All of her life's twists and turns landed her on the decision to write a book that would help young people dodge some of the pitfalls she encountered. Young adults have a lot to overcome and learn, including doubting themselves in today's hyper critical society on social media. Their path will be one of a Good Life if they can discern their values, mission and purpose - tools rarely taught in high school or even college. Her new book, The Good You, was written to press the concept of Help not Hurt out in the world for young adults. She gives four key pillars to look at why you are motivated to make choices in your young life.We talk about the creative process she went through and how exhilarating it feels to write a book. Her moment when she knew she had to write this book came in a dinner conversation when friends were expressing they were struggling with their kids and they asked her, “Why are your kids not so messed up?' She understood all her capacities as a mentor, teacher and coach combined provided her kids the tools they needed from her mothering perspective. The book started as a guide for mothers to not raise kids who are not screwed up, and it morphed into a book focused on how to be a good person in a simple non-complicated way.We chat about:* Writing a true vernacular and terminology for young readers as a midlife writer.* When she realized her self-help book needed her story so the readers could invest in her as an author.* Writing five drafts and how the vision has changed of the book.Her advice to any writer starting the process is to be clear about your motivation for writing a book. Remember why you initially started which anchors you on days you are staring at a half-baked book. She also suggests a writer to be flexible with their book as it evolves. Joy is in the process of shopping her book and so we are rooting for her to land an agent to get this amazing book in bookstores all over America! What a great graduation gift! If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other episodes you may like with Book Client/Authors of Kim's? Check out recent episodes with Matthew Brownstein, founder of the Interpersonal Hypnotherapy Institute or Amy Powers talking about network marketing from an Ivy League perspective. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts.  My podcast is also connected to my 3x weekly column Inner Circle so be sure to subscribe!I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kimohara.substack.com

Book client Matthew Brownstein didn't originally come to me to write a book. He was looking to better promote his five already written books. I convinced him to re-write his book on hypnotherapy, and today the book emulates a curriculum for his state-licensed Institute of Hypnotherapy. He acknowledges how he had to let Spirit guide him to let the words come through and be okay if the words didn't come. He appreciated the structure I provided to him and had to be in the spiritual flow of knowledge and wisdom. He speaks of rewriting the introduction three times, and being okay with being patient in the process. Matthew as a young person was your average middle class kid, headed to a liberal arts college, until he had a moment of enlightenment. This affected everything about his life, and he felt the desire to meditate all the time and connect to the mystical branches of the world religions. His desire was to connect to love's presence and live in a monastery. He went on a journey to understand oneness. When Matthew and I met, we connected from a mutual respect for the author Michael Singer (The Untethered Soul). He lived on and off in his Temple of the Universe, where Michael would talk about blockages (“sankars”). So Matthew first went to school for acupuncture to remove blockages for people but the higher wiser voice told him he was going to go to Hypnotherapy school. He was quickly blown away by the power of the mind. He found with Hypnotherapy he could remove the blocks. Interpersonal Therapy is his unique brand. It came from him asking the higher wiser voice, what is the spirituality of hypnotherapy? He heard, interpersonal is the answer. The word is about the sacred nature of transformational relationships. Profound, right?Listen in to hear more lessons and insights from Matthew who has dedicated his life to healing people in the body and mind from his lifetime work. We chat about:-What is at the root of negative belief systems-What is at the core of the negative memories?-How we can discover an unforgiven relationship and release itWith his school, and books, Matthew hopes to encourage more people to either learn how to use hypnotherapy for their own healing, or explore hypnotherapy as a profession. You can learn more about Matthew at https://www.instituteofhypnotherapy.com/If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Jenna Dillon, a results-driven Executive Coach or one of my great book clients Jae Wu talking about happiness and moving through after coming to this country from Korea. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts.I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kimohara.substack.com

Sophie McCallum has first and foremost on her website the question, “Are you ready to love being you?” This is over her looking very chic riding an escalator up from the NYC Subway. She emulates strength and grace in mid life, but that hasn't always been the case. She tells about hitting herself repeatedly in the head with a brush when she looked in the mirror or biting her arm so hard it bled when she was a young girl. When she met her husband and had her boys, she became a super mom… until that fell apart and after divorce came shared custody, and then the terrible bouts of drinking. Sophie hit her bottom. I can relate as a sober woman who used to drink my feelings of low self-worth and emotions away! When she became sober, she was able to look within and find and understand long trapped emotions that held her back from knowing her true self.So why hasn't she written her book yet? On today's episode we get real and honest about our journeys as moms and also as rock star women (she actually plays in a band), as well as my needling her about why she hasn't yet written the book and why.I chat with her about:Don't write the introduction first Understand her reader avatarAs a Certified Professional Coach, Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner and School of Life Participant, Sophie's mission is to guide women to their strongest position: Self-Love. Join us as we find out where she is in the writing process, her many relapses with alcohol and amazing tools for self-love.You can learn more about Sophie at https://selflovepeddler.com/meet-sophieIf you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Sarah Sperry, a Wellness Coach who works with women about burnout, or one of my great book clients Ethan Bach talking about his five psychotic breaks. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts.I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kimohara.substack.com

A main focus of certified Leadership Coach Tanya Geisler's work is with the imposter complex. Come on, don't act like you don't have one. We all do, even the most accomplished of us have that voice that tells us we need to do more, work harder and just be better.  On today's show, I talk with Tanya about how she landed on this work as well as how the imposter shows up in her in terms of the book she wants to write but hasn't yet. I coach her through her book idea and we debate what kind of  She has a great Iconic quiz which she created to not make people feel crappy about having the value of perfection. Why isn't it okay that you want to show up for excellence? You can be a big vision thinker but women who own businesses, or first time authors, tend to have a intrinsic desire to belong which can be translated into a desire to belong in a tribal way. So we cap ourselves because it doesn't feel good to be the first. Or what got me here won't get me there, and what I need to do means I have to become a variation of myself I don't want to be.When people we love in our life tell us they see so much for us at a young age, we can feel the onus of the broadness of that goal. So when supporting women, Tonya likes to be super intentional in her recognition of what is available for women. She talks about the book is the expression of thought leadership. Writing comes out of us to be expressed from our hearts. Sometimes we don't understand why we want to write about what sets us on fire so we suppress it when in fact it is our greatest message.She also tells me she loves the name of my podcast with “the fire of a thousand suns” which may be my favorite statement of 2023.You can learn more about Tanya at https://tanyageisler.com/If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Sarah Sperry, a Wellness Coach who works with women about burnout, or one of my great book clients Ethan Bach talking about his five psychotic breaks. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts.I have written a  book!  Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kimohara.substack.com

Chronic exhaustion and burnout can hit complete with panic attacks, seemingly coming out of nowhere. The answer at first for health seems to be medical doctors, and we can seek out all the opinions when in truth we know in our gut we have to make change to stop running on empty. The panic attacks can be painful, and really are our wake up calls. So as highly motivated women, we have to look at the lens differently. Wellbeing coach Sarah Sperry was working in the male-dominated field of finance when she hit her burnout. The problem she was having was shared by lots of women, but the company benefits were box-checking (under the guise of great services). She had never heard of burn out before until it came up on her Bloomberg terminal. She read the article, gobbled up some books and researched the condition. She was ultimately self-diagnosing. No doctor had asked her about her stress levels! Women in male dominated fields who are “the only” face unconscious bias and toxic work environments contribute to the burn out. They can't seek out other women in leadership roles to have counsel because they feel alone. Luckily, they can hire someone like Sarah to help them through these signs of burnout. Join me as I coach Sarah through her book idea. We debate what kind of book she could write and the how to/self-help model to tell about the stories she hears from women could ultimately give them a new path in six steps. Women need to author a new code for living in business so they can feel not so alone, and have other solutions. You can learn more about Sarah at https://www.sperrywellness.com If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out recent episodes with Linda Lingo, a financial coach who rolls out the great tips for making money, or Author Gretchen Hydo sharing about her book on how to Break Our Dirty Little Secrets. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts. I have written a book! Check out No Longer Denying Sexual Abuse: Making The Choices That Can Change Your Life. I also have a 21 week series Abused No Longer.

Money! Money! Money! What a big conversation for women! Women are so inquisitive and smart, but we have a tendency to not ask all the questions about our finances especially if we are being undermined by a financial advisor, or told by a partner we don't know anything about money. Financial Coach Linda Lingo has personal and relatable experiences that are so helpful to women. She stayed in a marriage for way too long because she liked the retirement numbers. She was so tied to the retirement plan, she couldn't sever the tie. When she did write the six figure check to leave the marriage, she found freedom. She also looked at what her ex-husband had told her about herself. That she was incapable with money, and she had taken on these false beliefs until she was on her own. She helps women to feel confident to ask the right questions about managing their money and investing. She helps them out of their education blind spots by looking at their money mindset and blocks. She also focuses as a coach on money values. By helping women to build confidence and education, they can build wealth. She wants to write books about money for the various ages. Like in your 30's, you are in the accumulation age and typically making a decent living. She wishes she had known in the 30's how to invest the 401k. The HR person cannot tell you what to do. There is not a lot of education out there. Listen in to hear her advice for the 40's and older and what she would put in her book. For all ages, she asks the universal question, what is important about money for you? If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out Why We Second Guess Ourselves with Sunday Paper Editor Stacey Lindsay or Author Gretchen Hydo sharing about her book on How to Break Our Dirty Little Secrets. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts. Looking to write a book? You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach. Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writing adventures at kimohara.substack.com Also, my book is out! Head over to nolongerdenyingsexualabuse.com.

Chris Whitney worked in construction, sold women's shoes and was successful in insurance until one day a famous global evangelist came to his church when he was working as an usher, and showed Chris an ocean liner filled with grain headed to China to feed hungry people. This man was the first guide to plant the seed for Chris to one day open One Gen Away in Nashville that rescues food from restaurants, grocery stores, caterers and farms before it goes to waste. In 2022, his organization, with his wife Elaine, (that they started from the trunk of their car) served food to over 3 million hungry people in three states. Hope, honor and dignity shared through food is their mission. Chris also unveils great insights about service. When we serve others, we get the answers to our troubles in our heart. When we listen to others, we discover we all have the same wants, needs and desires. He also speaks on the power of prayer: When someone has one need, they have others. If you are food insecure, you probably are transportation insecure. The prayer can be, is there anything I can pray about for you today? The goal is not trying to win them over (which is something that can be assumed about Christianity as manipulative.) If you are at a turning point in your life, and unsure which way to turn, Chris can open your eyes to a new way of living. He plans to write a book in 2023 about obedience, which involves sacrifice and deepening your trust. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out Why We Second Guess Ourselves with Sunday Paper Editor Stacey Lindsay or Author Gretchen Hydo sharing about her book on how to Break Our Dirty Little Secrets. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts. Looking to write a book? You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach. Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writing adventures at kimohara.substack.com You can find Chris Whitney at https://onegenaway.com/

Want 2023 to be the year where you get results? Sure, you have seen so many coaches say this, especially in the early months… but the key to results is to slow your mind down, and figure out what are the origins of self-defeating feelings and voices in your head. My conversation with Leadership Coach Jenna Dillon who is all about results is very eye opening in the way that we can go after our goals, and have solid discernment about the emotions attached to your dreams. She uses a whiteboard in her sessions for clients to see what is coming out of their mouths about how they truly feel about their dreams and the realities. 2023 is already an on fire year and this interview is designed to help you sew the seeds in the soil for who you want to be by December 2023. We all have our big goals, and how fantastic to be able to acquire them this year. Transparency and our roles in our success are not to be avoided by just pushing through and being a taskmaster. Being tough isn't the key. We can be soft and also incredibly successful as women. We talked about my mindset being the true driver of wanting to sell my book to a top publisher, syndicating my weekly column and becoming a media conglomerate. We also talked about why people hedge on investing in coaching when it could be the very conversation they need to get the results they desire. What do people need to do to maintain their dreams through the course of the year and not stop believing? Coach Jenna talks about the “being conversation.” It's more about who you are first, diving deep, and getting rid of underlying habits and associations that are wired in our brains. It's not the magnitude of the goal… but rather are you the person set up to receive that goal. Will Jenna write a book in 2023? She talks about how much information is in her head that she wants to put in a book, it holds her back. But I explain how book coaching is designed to tease out the best ideas that demand the spotlight and then grow the book from there. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writer on my newsletter at https://kimohara.substack.com/

I met business strategist & coach (and former therapist) Diann Wingert on the Zoom screen at a women's networking group where I just knew when she talked that she was speaking my language. Her multiple marriages, single parenting, and several careers were similar to my life course - but also the shame that can come from living out of the box. She speaks with us today about the idea of personal evolution. Most people “pick and stick” early in life - decide who they think they are, take the same vacation every year - and those of us who pivot and make change can think, why can't I just stay the course? We question and judge why we are so driven to change versus applauding ourselves for being willing to live out of our comfort zones. We even leave situations that are for all intensive purposes, successes, when we know there is more to explore. Diann is a delight to listen as she has great metaphors like a “too tight pair of shoes” and “passing for normal.” We also have a frank discussion on her leaving the Christian church, and how I just was baptized a Christian. And of course I take her through the drill of why she hasn't yet written a book. We talk about the level of commitment as a big issue. Listen to hear more about: Why you shouldn't “stay the course” if you are not satisfied. When it is a good idea to sit back and take some inventory of your situation. How abuse survivors can find each each other due to our chameleon nature. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out Dr. Bonnie Zucker, an LA psychologist, who talks about anxiety, or Author Gretchen Hydo sharing about her book on how to Break Our Dirty Little Secrets. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, and if you liked this episode, I would love a review! It's the lifeblood of podcasts. Looking to write a book? You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach. Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writing adventures at kimohara.substack.com

Join me and journalist Stacey Lindsay on today's show to talk about how women can second guess themselves when it comes to asking questions and being curious. It's not entirely the fault of the female race! The patriarchy has kept women from asking challenging and different questions for ages. Women have been afraid of what will happen when they act outside the box, and that has fed into a universal lack of self-trust. Stacey Lindsay has written for many popular outlets as a journalist and reporter, including holding the position of Senior Editor for Maria Shriver's Sunday Paper and editorial director of September Letters, a mental health advocacy platform (https://septemberletters.com/) created by Jaspre Guest and Brittany Snow. Over the course of her career, she has learned how to ask the questions she feels most curious about in her stories and discovered a new level of intimacy with her subjects. At a press junket, she deviates from the standard questioning of a celebrity and discovers they have a shared narrative about grief. Women writers and journalists that have inspired her include Anna Quinn and Sharyn Alfonsi. Knowing she wants to write a book, we explore what makes someone a writer, and how unknown it can be just how hard writing is. But if you have that longing and desire to put a voice to the page, you can push through and write a book that has an impact out into the world. You can read more about Stacey at staceyannlindsay.com. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Tiffany Yu speaks about her Diversability community and the accident that changed her life, and offers tips on how to lessen the blow, and Master Coach Gretchen Hydo reveals a ten stage secret-breaking system for women from her new book. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writer on my newsletter at https://kimohara.substack.com/

Burnout is a buzz word. Women everywhere are talking about it. But Rebecca Whitman is an abundance coach and she doesn't want women to be burnt out. She wants them to feel Balanced, Beautiful and Abundant. Yes, please! And she sees life in a beautiful way. On this week's episode, she dishes about finding her spouse, and building a fulfilling life that didn't look like her original game plan a decade prior. She has also written a book How to Make Six Figures Working Part Time (which is really about living in the 7 pillars of abundance, and you will be shocked the order - finance is not first!) Her dad was who she credits on pushing her to write, and she now has the idea that one day she may write a memoir. Join me as she gives sage advice about what holds women back from meeting their mate, her history and emotional evolution in playing tennis, and why she created coaching programs that only cost $7. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Clinical Psychologist Bonnie Zucker writes about panic and anxiety, and offers tips on how to lessen the blow, and yours truly does a stand-alone episode on Finding Your Safe Space in Writing. To connect with Rebecca, visit: https://linktr.ee/rebeccaewhitman? Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writer on my newsletter at https://kimohara.substack.com/

Tom Henschel is a whole a pie of amazingness– he's not only a Julliard trained actor but an extremely successful coach helping leaders in top companies such as Disney, Netflix, Walmart, Amazon, navigate the workplace, their peers, and conflict externally and internally. I met Tom early in my coaching career and we reconnected recently over our podcasts. Tom's podcast, The Look & Sound of Leadership, is ranked in the top 1% of most popular. His use of dialogue with an imaginary client brings in an experiential component. We enjoyed talking about leadership, his past TV career, the power of listening and why Tom, with good reason, will never write a book. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out former manager of Britney Spears and Steven Tyler Rebecca Warfield on working with creatives, and also Ryan Farley on writing on the hit show Ozark. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writer

As I come from a two decade run of working in the movies, chord of nostalgia is plucked in me when I get to have an entertainment writer on the show, in TV nonetheless, which I could never break into. Nick Morton co-wrote the first season of “Cooper's Bar” for AMC which stars Rhea Seehorn from Better Call Saul and she has a 2022 Emmy nom from his writing. He is also a movie producer… remember that gorgeous film Ray with Jamie Foxx? Join us as we talk about how Nick approaches writing, and what have been some of his favorite Hollywood experiences. He shares the feeling of being in the gray area for a while when developing movies for a prestigious company, which led him to do some of his worst drinking. Now a sober writer, he was able to take his life experiences and put them into a show on a sober recovery house coming out soon on Crackle. The show stars Matthew Lillard and Blythe Danner. He has written for many online magazines including Mr. Porter and The Scoop. He hosts the popular podcast The Drunkalogues. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check out former manager of Britney Spears and Steven Tyler Rebecca Warfield on working with creatives, and also Ryan Farley on writing on the hit show Ozark. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach Check out my books on kimoharabooks.com and sign up for my adventures as a writer

Comedian and recipe blogger Anna Vocino is super funny for someone who eats no gluten, grain or sugar. Many of us would be in a bad mood all around. She was pushed to change her diet and her life when she was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. In fact, she made a full time living inspiring thousands of people with her eathappykitchen.com brand where she creates the sauces and spices from her cookbook. She is a perfect example of how we can take an illness and turn it into a gift. Listen in to hear her advice on how to best food blog (and not leave lots of money on the table - SEO 101), why recipes on line sometimes don't work, and her journey as a cookbook writer into a traditional publishing deal. You can catch her weekly as a co-host on the podcast Fitness Confidential with Vinnie Tortorich. If you enjoyed this show, may we suggest other similar episodes you may like? Check our Naomi Joseph on writing about her long battle with Binge Eating and Ethan Bach writing a memoir about five psychotic breaks. Again, people using their adversity in their writing to help others. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! You can find me at kimohara.com as well as IG @kimoharacoach You can find Anna at https://eathappykitchen.com

A third of people will have a diagnosable anxiety disorder at some point in their lifetime. There are also people who have subclinical anxiety which is distressing but doesn't quite rise to the level of a disorder. So in other words, there are a whole hell of a lot of us out there feeling quite anxious and looking for solutions! Book Host Kim O'Hara met clinical psychologist Dr. Bonnie Zucker in their weekly writing cohort, where Zucker shared pieces of her book proposal for "The Anxiety Club: 7 Ways to Deactivate Your Membership.” Since Host O'Hara has a special interest in this topic, diagnosed with panic disorder, she felt Bonnie's book was important to highlight on the show. Zucker describes the book as a general anxiety book which is missing in the marketplace that is not disorder specific, appealing to anyone who has panic or anxiety in any situation. They talk about the decision authors in the self help space make to write the book or the proposal first, and how in both scenarios there is a waiting game when it comes to the timing of getting published. O'Hara points out that some people just need to write the book to get it all out. Dr. Zucker leaves the listeners with some incredible solutions for anxiety management: Acceptance of the anxiety. There are many situations where you actually should feel anxious, and you are not alone! Validate yourself and find the kernel of truth. Identify what types of behaviors you are doing that reinforce the anxiety like reassurance. Subscribe in your fav podcast platform to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! Like our music on the show? Shout out to LUXXURY and the track “Somebody Tonight” (Nolita Records, Expensive Sounding Music) Want to know more about show host Kim O'Hara and the authors she has helped write books? Check out her website at astoryinside.com.

When I jumped into the interview with ice cream brand Coolhaus founder Natasha Case, I didn't expect our conversation would run so wide a gamut of topics. While the impetus was to lay out the story of how she came to found a LGBTQ woman-run ice cream business, we delved into some of the more discreet parts of being an entrepreneur. She discovered her desire to create an innovative ice cream business pursuing an education in architecture and a love for food. When an assignment to create student housing came out more like a model of a layer cake, she ran with it. She speaks about the road to raising money, and while few queer women would speak about benefits in a white man's world, but she did see she had more of a seat at the table than a straight woman because she was less of a threat to the wives. When we spoke about her writing a book (or books) on her journey, she revealed her passion in the exploration of less traditional couplings in relationships. She is currently, in fact, in a thruple with her partner, co-parent and woman of color co-founder Thea. She would also speak about her desire to expand her reach in politics, and the transferable assets from being an entrepreneur to success as a politician. She is considering a bid for Mayor of Culver City, CA, where Cool Haus has its headquarters. What's the parallel of politics and entrepreneurship? A smart entrepreneur sees the value and importance of building a community and contingency… which is what a savvy political candidate builds their platform on. If you haven't tried Coolhaus ice cream, no longer stand in the frozen aisle at Whole Foods or Ralphs in a decision daze. Grab their latest unique flavor, you won't be disappointed. Subscribe in your fav podcast platform to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! Like our music on the show? Shout out to LUXXURY and the track “Somebody Tonight” (Nolita Records, Expensive Sounding Music) Want to know more about show host Kim O'Hara and the authors she has helped write books? Check out her website at astoryinside.com.

On today's episode, host Kim O'Hara talks with Nu-disco song-writing wizard and DJ Blake Robin about his career creating dance music for adults with his brand LUXXURY, as well as songs for film, TV and gaming. He shares the nuances of creating live DJ sets on location in places like Mexico City, as well as curating his Spotify playlist Good Morning, Disco! with gems that span four decades of groove-first music. He is currently known for his viral TikTok videos about “Interpolation” that go “Inside the Song.” A musicologist of his own kind, he explores stems of classic hits and “reports” on his findings. Blake, who started as a pop song writer, has a “newfound earnestness of expression but a lifelong love for the craft of disco.” His debut album “It's Not Funny” (Nolita) blew past 6 million streams on Spotify. Last Call with Carson Daly audiences were treated to luxe live renditions of "Take It Slow" and "Hold On." SPIN praised the music's sensuality. Complex said it sounded like Nile Rodgers DJing a rave. You can find him at https://www.tiktok.com/@luxxuryxx. Subscribe in your fav podcast platform to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! Want to know more about show host Kim O'Hara and the authors she has helped write books? Check out her website at astoryinside.com.

How do you know if your next most brilliant idea or divine download is book worthy? You just had an incredible epiphany and madly filled three notebook pages with the idea, the whole time thinking, I could write a whole book on this topic! I can't believe how clear I am on this subject! The possibilities are endless! You are energized and inspired but then the writing stops, and quickly a counter voice rushes in to fill the now empty space with the warnings that halt many great potential books… what if I don't actually have the authority to speak on this topic at all?What if that is it? I am not a PhD or anything, you think, discounting yourself from the natural writing process which is timing and time. What was a high is now a creative low and you cut yourself off from the big open flow you have created. It happens to the best of us. Join Host Kim O'Hara, an experienced author and book coach, who takes to the mic solo in this episode to talk about her very personal experience with this writer mindset as she grapples with whether she could write a book about “feeling safe” (her download topic) and the weeks (or a lifetime really) that led up to her seeing the importance of this topic and her agency with its exploration. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests such as music producer Blake Robin and Coolhaus founder Natasha Case, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show!

Can you survive five psychotic breaks by 30 and live to tell about it in a sane and sober way? Ethan Bach sure did, and feels like he is just starting to live with a big story to tell. Ethan was living a fairly normal teenage life. Sure, he played too many video games, was exposed to porn at a fairly young age, and had seen his fair share of violent films, but it wasn't until he was diagnosed with a deep and perilous brain tumor that he slipped into what was described as a Steroid Psychosis at age 18. Despite trying to ‘live normally” with college, and girlfriends, he fell down a dark path with drinking, weed, spice and porn which led to more of a breaking of the mind. Four more psychotic episodes ensued, each one crazier and harder to believe than the last, and usually including "The Truman Show Delusion.” Today he is recovered, on medication and sober, and writing a book about his experiences. You can find Ethan at IG @ebach_writer. Subscribe to not miss any upcoming guests, or check out the diverse and amazing people we have had previously on the show! Want to write a book? Check out Kim O'Hara's web site astoryinside.com, and find her on IG @astoryinside.com

Tiffany Yu is the founder of Diversability, an award winning community business that elevates disability pride through disability community, visibility, and engaged allyship. Tiffany, at the age of 9, was in a car accident where her father died and she lost the use of her arm. In one felt swoop, the dynamic of her body changed as well as her family structure. She was physically disabled, but also not facing the PTSD of witnessing the death of her father and her own survival.    Years later, and through several evolutions of Diversability, she is addressing the topics of sorrow and grief, as well as the PTSD she never knew to face. In today's interview, we walk through several significant age turning points with her disability, and how each period was one that informed the powerful and inclusive work she does today to educate and support others in her community.   At some point in her journey, she even questioned whether she was disabled enough to do this work!  We can relate this to how people avoid writing books because they don't know if they are worthy enough to be an expert! She gets super honest about the feelings of exclusion in terms of stepping into being a writer.

Ladies, you know you all have a basket of dirty little secrets you are keeping. You may not have slept with the UPS guy but you are married 26 years and still holding a torch for that first boyfriend in high school. You've guzzled champagne to give a speech or peed yourself when you laughed too hard. Secrets big and small create shame and play on our expectations that we have to be perfect as women. Our judgements hold us back from living our best life. Author Gretchen Hydo, a Certified Master Coach, says it's time to stop. Enough stuffing secrets, and then creating more. As a coach to business owners and coaches, she is tough and results oriented, helping men and women exponentially increase their income. She turns that passion now towards secrets, and like many people who wrote books, is driven by her own personal story with secret-keeping.  She saw a deficit on the book shelves for a Secret-Breaking System so she wrote the book!  On this episode, we are going to talk about her big secret, the inner workings and stages of  her powerful Secret -Breaking System to help women get free of their dirty little secrets, and what came up for her as a first time author.   You can find Gretchen at gretchenhydo.com to inquire about her upcoming Secret-Breaking One Year Program and to get notifications on the 2022/2023 release of her book.   If you are interested in knowing more about how Gretchen was coached by Kim O'Hara through her book, head over to astoryinside.com or check out Kim's program Own Your Authorship at astoryinside.com/own-your-authorship

Just because the barrier of entry to podcasting is low, creating good thought-provoking content is where the pros separate from the amateurs. Also, podcasting the right way for good sound isn't necessarily quick and easy. One needs to understand the various technologies like a good microphone and an excellent reliable remote recording platform. Our podcast in one year has gone from Skype on a cell phone, to full on remote with Squadcast which is why it was such a thrill to interview Squadcast co-founder Rock Felder. He helps provide the forum for creatives to have engaging conversations and spread their message in a professional way.  We cover a lot of ground in this interview from how Squadcast was founded by Rock and high school friends Zack and Vince who were like brothers to him, to the fire one walks through when creating an out of the box original innovation.  You need to have growing pains, and come out stronger. Plus he drops some great remote recording tips that are free and intuitive!    Drop comments in the chat! Are you still friends with folks from childhood? Did you grow up listening to the radio? What are some of your favorite podcasting stories where your ass was in the fire!  

Susan Paulhus-Roper, a highly successful Senior Regional Director for a major shoe chain, was relocated to the East Coast.  Upon arrival, and after buying a million dollar house in Jersey, her husband left and she decided she didn't gel with the company culture.  She found herself needing to downsize, collect unemployment and lean into her local parent community.     She networked her butt off, called in strong relationships she had made over the years, printed spreadsheet after spreadsheet and landed as a Regional Manager to 180 Starbucks Licensed Stores. She shares incredible tips about how to look for a new job, and not just any position, but one where you can feel happy.  It's not all about the money, but at the end of the day, who are you helping, where are you growing and who are the people around you.   We can take the power back in our lives even when the best laid plans fall apart and Susan does it with humor and a no bull crap approach.   How do you stay positive looking for a job?  What are some of the tools that you used when you were replaced? Drop your feedback in my social, or comments on the episode. Susan admits it is a really lonely time, so find a few people also looking for jobs to flip jobs to you, and you them!  Also to be there for you when you get rejected!

You can do something as simple as buy a house and write a whole novel around it. We think we need these epic tragedies or great successes to justify writing as our unique selves. Look around!  There is material happening everywhere and self-awareness is key to developing a commentary and a narrative about your life. When we tune in creatively, the world is real time offering us endless amounts of material. Let that endless monkey mind work in your favor and get it down in the computer.  In today's episode, host Kim O'Hara shares her creative journey writing about her house buying experience and her first year as a single woman homesteader in Los Angeles. Called a mix between Pema Chodron and Anne Lamott (which makes her blush), Kim shares how she allows life to unfold over the year and makes a point to write about each experience from a gunman on her roof (and the crappy boyfriend who never checks on her), to an evolving and spiritual battle with nine foot palm fronds. She doesn't miss a bit of detail and peppers in comedy, as well as her continual struggle with faith, fear and loneliness.    Don't wait ten years to start writing about your emotions and observations while they are happening real time, especially if you have taken a leap in your life. For Kim, buying a house was a huge accomplishment, and her trials and tribulations that range from micromanaging growing grass to stray cat management gives courage to others to step up and make a leap as homeowners, or whatever area in their lives that calls for meaning!  Go towards what makes you happy when you write, and what thematically fills your writing cup, instructs Kim. Your desire to land your experiences on paper will be infectious and equally connect with your readers.  Are you enjoying the podcast? It would be greatly appreciated if you could take 60 seconds (yes only 60 seconds!) to fill out this survey to help this podcast create more content that you want to hear about! http://astoryinside.com/survey

Start writing about those relationships.  If you are like host Kim O'Hara and her guest dating coach Kindra Murphy, you have a lot of material to reap!  So stop worrying about whether someone is your person, and get honest about your own patterns and relationship with intimacy.  The right special someone will come when your emotional house is in order.   We are in a time when the essence of spontaneity in romantic relationships is waning with the Facebook stalking, constant texting and this subterfuge that is actually codependent behavior.  Then when you are ghosted after being smitten with the smothering of early attention, you feel all the bad emotions of being dumped… even in a relationship that hasn't even gotten legs. Relationships could use some time in between the messaging and checking in to build the solo self.    In today's podcast Kindra Murphy, returning for a second time on the show, shares tips on how to prevent false intimacy in relationships new or established. We get really clear on what texting should truly be used for. As a writer, personally, host Kim O'Hara admits she is uncomfortable answering honestly to the "How are you?" text. What are they expecting?  A paragraph?  She and Kindra agree, if someone really cares about how you are they would be calling on the phone and making plans.    The best action when it comes to finding that special someone is to continue to  look at ourselves and our behavior in relationships what  our actions are that in some way keep us safe. You can watch the video portion of the podcast on You Tube at https://youtu.be/ky4mBzXB7WQ

Jae Wu helps a lot of women who are the primary breadwinners buy houses, whether they are in a couple, a divorcee, or a single woman.  It's no wonder they are attracted to Jae as a realtor as she is a strong woman who has created a whole life after coming to this country as a Korean immigrant woman who has had to fight through Asian prejudice.  Some stories don't end as happy as hers, but she made a choice to choose positivity over lingering in the past. She came to this country at 7, and her parents worked 24/7 to run convenience stores in Maryland.  She was given the responsibility to raise her sisters. She broke away at 18 and came to Los Angeles and never looked back.  She has spent the last 26 years helping make people's dreams come true in real estate.   She wrote a book about her journey, including forgiveness and closure with her mother, who was a victim in a miserable life she didn't choose. In the process, Jae found a life that was a complete opposite of what she grew up with. She chose to be unique and different and crafted the message of Speak Out Loud, and Keep on Moving to have impact for all women in the world who need to believe they can have the fullest best life of their dreams.  We battle a lot of head crap that leads to negativity, versus not letting doubt and fear enter into our psyche at all.  Stay in the positive view of your life.   Don't forget to check out my class Own Your Authorship where you can step into the power of your story before you even take the plunge to write a book.  astoryinside.com/own-your-authorship.

Mike Savas has always been on the go. He spent ten years on the road managing tours for mega bands like Bon Jovi, Guns N' Roses, Janet Jackson, Katy Perry and the Rolling Stones to name a few. He had already traveled many countries prior as a university student. Typically as people get older, they think to “settle down.” But Mike is not going in that direction.  In fact, right now he is taking on 12 countries in 12 months learning 12 new skills. Because he believes we all have the power to curate our lives by riding the waves of opportunity that come our way… And we are going to explore what he means today on the show.   Ask yourself as you listen to our conversation, what is your relationship with risk?  How can you have your life be less stagnant?  What if we asked you to be just a little bit more curious about your desires. Jumping in a plane and heading to Kenya to be a ranger on the Serengeti seems dramatic, yes, but we all need to take a look at our limitations, and our dreams, and ask… who told us they were impossible or too big?   Mike plans to write a book of his experiences, and knows in order to do so, he has to deepen. I have currently instructed him to pour his heart out on audio files to me!  Keep your fingers crossed, because with all this travels, he dives into tribes and communities, and then leaves. He is on the rollercoaster of love, and loss, connection and parting.  Sounds like the next Eat, Pray, Love to me!  You can watch the video portion of the podcast on You Tube at https://youtu.be/AkcC0buEkeA.   As always, follow me on IG @astoryinside for updates on my new webinar, From Someday to Author: Three Keys to Unlock Your Dream Book in Under 8 Weeks.   You can learn more about Mike's adventures at savasonthego.com and on Instagram @savasonthego.

Jude Weber has been through it and back. She's dealt with childhood trauma and a mysterious illness that had her bedridden and in large amounts of pain for 3 years before getting a diagnosis: her largest organ - her skin - was failing. You could say she made a miraculous recovery, but Jude doesn't. She attributes her recovery to taking responsibility for her health through tapping from her background as an Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) practitioner.   In today's episode, she discusses how her previous trauma led to her tapping, her previous denial of it, and explains what my own tapping session with her was like. Check her out at www.judeweber.com   I love my listeners and want to know more about you!  Especially if you think you would be a good guest on the show!  Drop me a line at info@astoryinside.com and tell me your story!   We also love surveys.  If you could fill out the survey so we know what you love about the show, you will be entered for a free Amazon gift card!  astoryinside.com/survey

Show host Kim O'Hara reprises her popular episode The Bigger Message in the Book and this time it is part 2 with more detail on building the foundation of your book and your mindset as an author.  Learn how as a first time author you can benefit from forward thinking to create the right mindset to write a successful book. Also hear what happened when she took her own book back from her traditional publisher and stood in the power and purpose of her voice and message! Kim warns about writing books too fast or without a system or process.  You can end up with a doorstopper book!  She also gives the 3 Keys to Unlock your Dream Book, a sure fire system she sees work over and over with her clients, and her participants in her 8-week cohort Own Your Authorship.  If you are interested in joining Kim live every week with 12 other aspiring authors, go to astoryinside.com/own-your-authorship.  Or see her free training at astoryinside.com/join-me-as-i-train-live As you can see, Kim doesn't leave any stone unturned when it comes to making sure you go out of the gate with that book with the strongest footing, to battle away those cunning brain games that keep you from writing.    If you subscribe to our podcast, you can be delivered bite-sized interviews with incredible people with a story to tell each week who will inspire and educate you in areas of money, relationships and health. Please also review us and share this podcast, but more importantly check out these recent episodes from amazing guests Aiden Moore talking about finding your soul Carl Jung - style (get your head out of celeb news and find your soul!) and Karuna Rawal, an Emmy winning executive who has mastered the art of balance and motherhood. Thank you for listening! 

So what do you do when you are in a successful career as a professional bassist working with the likes of Justin Timberlake and Bono and the Edge on Broadway (Spiderman Turn Off The Dark) and then suddenly you realize you are not as happy as you should be? Especially when you are called to research the works of Carl Jung? Existential life crisis or miraculous pivot?  What Aiden Moore randomly discovered was researching Jungian philosophies was more intrinsic to the life he was leaning towards living than he could have ever expected.  In this bite-size interview he gives us a great purview of how we can look at failure and loneliness…. Or the loss of soul from childhood.  When was the last time you looked at what you loved from childhood and reconnected with those dreams?   Aiden also has the daunting task of reading all Jung's body of works to create a comprehensible digestible book of his own perspective. He feels positive he can make it happen after some time in Jung's volumes of works, especially since he is making a timeline of his life and how Jung's philosophies have come into play.    We also talk about him as a past performer, and performing now as more of a speaker with a mission and a message.  Will it feel the same?   You can catch him in a couple places sharing his wisdom - His Facebook Group -https://www.facebook.com/groups/jungschool as well as his web site at http://www.aidenmoore.com And I am killing it this month with my webinar From Someday to Author: Three Keys to Unlock Your Dream Book in Under 8 Weeks.  This is a jam packed free live training on how to get from desire to yes with that book!  Register here for this event every Thursday!   https://www.astoryinside.com/join-me-as-i-train-live/

We intellectualize our grief.  Imagine if we went into our heart?  According to Charlene Gorzela, Advanced Grief Recovery Specialist, moving into the heart is the key to recovery from our grief. She also knows people need to be listened to as they process their grief. How much do we listen in our day to day lives to others?   No time in modern history could be more important to process so much grief…which is coming up for many of us after going internal for the last year plus.  We can see the patterns in our grief and what they have held us back from discovering. Charlene is candid as she explains how long she went without a strong romantic relationship until she did the grief work on her dad, and then met her life partner.    Through the Grief Recovery Method, we can heal our collective grief and Charlene  provides simple practices to personally start to peel back the layers.  A very upbeat person who always has her hands into something new and spiritual, Charlene is interested in tackling grief in a loving upbeat way - a “heart with ears” approach.    One of the cornerstones of the practice is to get free from unresolved/incomplete grief to a powerful sense of resolve/completeness in their  relationships and feel a sudden change in their lives.  A big follower of the human potential movement, Charlene's goal is  to help free the griever to live a  life beyond their wildest dreams.     She also has a podcast called Grief Recovery Now with Charlene Gorzela and I was even a guest!  You can listen to my show here!  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/uncovering-sexual-abuse-trauma-with-kim-ohara/id1506839988?i=1000502444710   Are you burning to write a book but can't seem to get out of someday? If you are interested in going from Someday to Author with your book,  I am holding a FREE LIVE TRAINING on May 13th at 11AM.  Click this link to sign up, but act fast as this is coming down in just a few days!  https://www.astoryinside.com/join-me-as-i-train-live/

Performance anxiety can take down even the most talented creative… if they don't have the foundation and purpose behind their art.  People who write books battle performance anxiety every week when they are putting together their chapters.  That one chapter was amazing, but will I ever write a better one?  Was that my whole swan song? Podcasters and performers could feel the same way.  Someone tells you that they loved your interview last week and immediately the voices go, that's it.  You're done. From now on it's downhill from here.   So how do you keep creating and moving along despite these ever present voices?  Believe that what you are putting out in the world has more purpose and meaning than how you may feel creating it. You can be insecure as hell but if you think that the message or the song or the idea needs to lands to hundreds or thousands of people, your performance simply can't stand in the way. You get quiet and rise to the occasion.   In today's stand alone episode, I take a break from interviewing fascinating people and instead contemplate and offer solutions for this often defeating affliction of performance anxiety. I tell a story of recording a simple video for an ad of a program I am passionate about, and how that passion at the end of the day got me doing a clean take despite internal and external circumstances (or in my mind, forces against me proving I had no right to sell this product!  Not true!)   If you enjoyed this podcast, and would like to see me in a live free training on May 13th, From Someday to Author: Three Keys to Unlock Your Dream Book in Under 8 weeks head over to my IG @astoryinside for all the details. And if you have a book you are dying to write and want to know more about me as a coach, sign up for my newsletter at astoryinside.com.   

To say Karuna Rawal has won a lot of awards is an understatement, and she brings to our conversation today a well-rounded view of why Adweek named her the 2021 Trailblazer Working Mom of the Year. I am always curious what it takes as a woman to artfully achieve leadership while simultaneously raising kids. If you think motherhood will hold you back, guess again. In 2019, Karuna was recognized as one of Forbes CMO NEXT 2019 50 Game-changing Marketing leaders who are re-defining the CMO role. In 2015 she won 14 Lions at Cannes Festival  including the coveted Titanium Lion, an inaugural Glass Lion for promoting gender equality and an Emmy for Outstanding Television as the  lead strategist on the wildly successful P&G Always #LikeAGirl campaign.  Currently, she is the Chief Marketing Officer for Nature's Fynd, a food-tech startup where she is commercializing a new-to-the-world sustainable alternative protein that can help feed the world.    Originally born in New Deli, India where her dad worked for the Indian government, Karuna moved to Egypt as a young girl,  and then lived all over the world which is how she learned to adapt. Her grandfather had a house near a famous beach in India called Elliot Beach that she would walk to, and was tickled to read that Kamala Harris also had walked on that same  beach near her own grandfather's house!    When Karuna became a brand manager for the first time, she got pregnant and there were not many women successful at juggling both career and parenthood. Still, she raised her kids through her entire ascent in business and leadership. While she credits her success to adaptability, pivoting, and supportive bosses, she emphasizes building a really strong team, both at home and at work.  Balancing priorities has also been key to her ability to expand in her career.  She has learned, don't look back at a day but at the month.  Everything may not be perfect, but looking back, she strove to evaluate without carrying any guilt. We don't have time as women to be in guilt!   When I asked her what is the next glass ceiling women have to break, she said, women of color are not in enough leadership positions or in business.   How do you bring more diverse voices to the table? She even ponders why shouldn't the whole Supreme court be women.   All of the women who are contemplating staying working at home after liking the work life balance in Covid, Karuna worked from home for many many years in her career.  There is a way to make this model work, and moms are incredibly efficient.

Margot, like many of us seeking healing after we have lost ourselves, found the enneagram after a second divorce from someone who was abusive. She had to work on quieting the inner critic in her mind, and found the enneagram to be transformative in all her relationships including her family.   Margot Burns ran me through an enneagram coaching session and I was blown away by the assessment of my personality and what I am driven by.  While one hour is really quick to do a full evaluation, Margot knew the exact questions to ask to direct me to really express and hone in on my personality and what drives me. She has been doing this teaching and coaching for a long time, but she bases what she asks by seeking freedom. In my typing interview, I identified as a leader and protector.  She asked me how it was for me to be vulnerable.  Not easy… but as a Type 8 if I soften that energy and slow down and listen, I can benefit.   The Three Triads - thinking, heart and the body  - make up the nine personality types and it is almost eerily accurate in identifying patterns for people. Of course there is some initial resistance to any personality assessment (can you say Scientology?) but I didn't get any of that energetically with the ancient practice of the enneagram.    Margot is a part of the Enneagram prison project, training to be a guide.  People inside taking the program and coming out are benefiting from this work. She coaches a man released from prison after 23 years incarcerated.  There are a whole crew of coaches who help these folks when they come out.  They have turned their whole lives around because of this healing system.    She wants to write a book about finding herself and the journey back to her own essence, as well as the people who supported her along the way. 

I attended an intimacy and Trauma workshop that was facilitated by Dr. Erica Holmes.  She shared about an interesting aspect of attachment trauma; being severed at 5 from a very large and close knit family and tribe in Camden, Arkansas, and landing in LA with no one but her mom and brother.  Growing up in the South is very different from the inner city of Los Angeles.  Eventually her mother sent her back to her grandparents. Her story got me thinking about how my family who once shared big Christmases when I was a child slowly broke down, as people died or got divorced, and how that is an unresolved sadness.  No one talked in the 70s about trauma, no less losing attachment figures or loved ones. We were in a time where we were told to buck up and survive. As she wrote a book on dating, we speak of people who have had trauma who could take three paths to soften the desire to put up walls. One, take stock in how the trauma is continuing to live on in your life. How trauma impacts your emotional selves can cause a bifurcated reaction. When we are hurt in relationships, they start to become frightening in themselves. Two, develop relationships with the self other, like a therapist, a mentor or someone encouraging, supportive or validating. And Three, to practice self-compassion.  Be kind to yourself and remember there is common humanity and humans are fallible and life can be stinky.  I have read all the dating books, and I can tell you, until you do the work she is talking about, you can keep perpetuating patterns. Take a listen where I share a little of my crazy process thus far!

David Neuman is an Extra Virgin Olive Oil Expert, working in the industry with top brands for the past fifteen years, and now selling his own private label Semone.  His passion for food started very early when he worked at the Four Seasons Hotel, and it was in a part time job at Williams Sonoma where he understood there was something to the olive oil product… but did not get deep into its origin and complexity until the early 2000s.    He has taught Olive Oil 101 thousands of times, and when he came to me as a book client, he was ready to write the book that is non existent on the marketplace about olive oil. What you are really buying is not what you are being presented with not just by label fraud but the process of shipping and distribution. HALT (heat, air, light and time) have a great effect on the oil that sits on the supermarket shelves.    In our interview (and definitely in his book coming out in 2022), he offers a very simple way to ensure you have the best olive oil for your family and home - become an in-home taster and return what doesn't smell or taste right.   David offers key advice to buying olive oil and  simple tools to make your olive oil purchasing experience successful!

We all have stories we have told ourselves about how good we are with money, or how much money we can make. Glass ceilings are real for women and Madison, WI -based holistic financial planner Joanna Burish is committed to teaching lifestyle protection especially to young women. She helps with overseeing setting up your company properly, financially empowering your company team and bringing the knowledge home to our own daughters.  Holistic is not just investments and retirement.  What are your plans B, C and D?   We have the shared past of working in entertainment as producers and creators,  and commiserated about how that culture not only did not foster strong financial empowerment for women, but you only thought you had to stay in your lane. When she had the opportunity land in her lap to be a CEO of a real estate company that wound up making $130 million,  she woke up about making money.    Growing up as an immigrant from Nazareth, Israel, where her parents came here with four kids and built their businesses, she thought making $150k was a big deal.  She capped herself for years until she broke that ceiling and then started to protect her rising income.    We had a candid conversation about money and the fear we can only get lucky once if we make decent money.  The mantra we need to have is I can make money when I want, as many times as I want.    Do you have a story to tell or a book to write?  Ask yourself some simple questions with our Get Naked with your story hand out at astoryinside.com/naked, or sign up on the website for 4 Sure Fire Tips to know you have a book to write.    We love featuring incredible guests on our podcast, and we really appreciate all your donations!  Click here to donate to our podcast and keep the doors on!    https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=GWDSB3VYWJLLE

Suspect profile?  Genetic Markers?  Evidence Sample?  Your DNA on a glove?  Just a few of the terms thrown around in my riveting interview with Matt Speredelozzi,  Deputy Public Defender for the  County of Santa Barbara. Today we talk about how Matt overturned a case where a man was incarcerated for twenty years through new DNA evidence. Matt has worked in the field of criminal law since 2007 on major crimes cases including high stakes felony, carjacking, robbery, gang enhancements and white collar offenses.  He has worked on this particular murder case for the last ten years.   In Jose's case, his DNA was on a pair of gloves used in the crime but there was inconsistency on multiple markers and samples. He succinctly in less than twenty minutes walks us through the DNA process, convictions, and how unreliable witnesses play into the case, which is incredibly fascinating.     Jose is the first of 256 cases where people sat in jail over science that should have not been allowed to slip through the cracks.  Matt sees this case as the gateway for many other innocent people to turn their conviction around.   If you want to geek out on science and crime, you are going to love Matt!   Interested in being on the show?  You think you have a book in you?  Reach out to Host Kim O'Hara who helps aspiring authors write books.  She can talk with you about YOUR book dream, and being a potential show guest. Book a free discovery call at  https://calendly.com/bookcoachkim/15min.  

Amy Powers is about to release her book in March 2021 No Degree Required:Network Marketing The Ivy League Way  and I am proud to say that I was her book coach.  She pushed through always reaching for a higher level of quality in her writing and message, and I predict this book to be a game-changer in how people see network marketing.   She has two Ivy League degrees and an impressive Emmy-nominated songwriting career.  Networking marketing was her third career when she felt she could no longer control her income in the music business. She was introduced to networking marketing by other fantastic women who were also looking for something different from their entertainment careers.  Mind you, while she was building her network marketing business, she wrote the score for Dr. Zhivago on Broadway.   Her own failing health and two little kids to take care of pushed Amy to explore building a business in the wellness space.  She has never been happier spreading a positive wellness and empowerment message for men and women which affects all areas of your life. She radically believes cleaning your insides affects your outsides.    Support self-publishing and buy Amy's book!  You won't regret it! Here is her link! https://tinyurl.com/3vpbwa5c   We love featuring incredible guests on our podcast, and we really appreciate all your donations!  Click here to donate to our podcast and keep the doors on!  https://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=GWDSB3VYWJLLE

How intimate do you think you are with others?  How about yourself?  If you are a business woman who has it all, the kids, the house, the career, but pause even for half a second on that question, you may be bypassing facing trauma in your history and the narrative of your current story.  As women who are motivated, visible and charismatic, we think we are being “intimate” but still behaving in an old story that keeps people at an arms' length. Especially when it comes to romantic relationships.  In that category we can find the most evidence of lack of intimacy from trauma, but then when we peel back the layers, we see it is in more areas of our life.   Host Kim O'Hara offers another stand alone insight into her own personal journey through the narrative of recovery from sexual abuse, and the many uplevels and layers she has transcended since she faced her truth.  Now she gets to own her life, and her story, and ask herself, how intimate does she want to be in her life? Want to get Naked with your story and find out where you can have more intimacy after trauma? Head over to astoryinside.com/naked. Also, Kim offers 8 week Own Your Authorship workshops for authors with a desire to write a book, but stuck in the procrastination and lack of worthiness to take the leap.  Reach out to her at astoryinside.com to inquire about this game changing class. Do you enjoy our podcast every week?  We would appreciate any donations so we can keep doling out honest truths and having on incredible guests. Every dollar counts to keep the doors open! Donate here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GWDSB3VYWJLLE&source=url 

Show up and step out in faith, and the Universe will provide for us, says Davina Kotulski, the award-winning author of the book The Manna Paradigm Shift: Creating the Consciousness of Abundance and Freedom.  As always, we get real on this episode, tightly navigating her choice to make a big career change for freedom of spirit, the importance of the work in past life regression to forgive yourself and others,  and falling in love without a gender bias.     Davina is an LGBT marriage equality advocate and her first book was called Why You Should Give A Damn About Gay Marriage. She was one of the first couples to be married in SF when Gavin Newsom lifted the ban in 2004 and on a book tour on May 17th 2004 in Massachusetts when MA became the first state to allow same-sex marriage.   Want to get Naked with your story?  Head over to astoryinside.com/naked and grab our free giveaway! We also have our live video version on https://youtu.be/V0XOA1E2aZY

Wendy Borlabi never considered herself ambitious but today she is the performance coach for the Chicago Bulls.  You don't rise to this stature in the sports world taking life lightly.  She continued to connect the dots in her career, stay focused and put one foot in front of the other.  Originally from Ghana, her dad and brother watched a lot of American football...and that was family time together. It became synonymous with comfort and love and familiarity.     She is not only highly motivated to help players get the best performance out of their game, but she also had twins by a surrogate because the time had come. She didn't have a partner and she was looking at an operation that could affect her uterus.  So she went for it and within months of making the decision, was pregnant.   A rule breaker and a game changer, Wendy doles out some incredible “Wendy-isms” on how to have the best performance you can in your life.   Join us on You Tube for the live video recording of this interview. https://youtu.be/P4SnEIrhs5M  Unedited, you will feel like we just came into your living room with our conversation!    We appreciate any and all donations to keep bringing you incredible guests each week! Donate here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GWDSB3VYWJLLE&source=url   

Kimberly Adams existed for a long time in a world of fear and intimidation in sales until she had an incredible boss who inspired her to look closer at the way she operated in the world. She speaks about her magical methods for building a business from $700K to $30M with a badass group of women and her “corporate hippie” viewpoint. Her speaking and book goals are focused on changing the male-dominated way of working and showing teams how to work together in corporate America by operating from a place of Joy and Love, and as a family!    She went through a very deep process in understanding the book she needed to write. We worked together on an outline of her book (which she says was like ten hours of therapy!), and then she went out and built this incredible life even while being laid off twice.  After 31 years of working in corporate America, she decided to be a partner and a bonus mom.  Soon more material was unblocked, and her book The Corporate Hippie is releasing this March!    Kimberly is a manifestor of magic in her own life, and ready to inspire others to go after all of their dreams through trusting their intuition, practicing passionate self-care, and being deeply heart-led. You can change your life in an instant by utilizing her  tools…Magical stuff that you can't make up once you trust and believe.    Do you enjoy our podcast every week?  We would appreciate any donations so we can keep doling out honest truths and having on incredible guests. Every dollar counts to keep the doors open! Donate here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GWDSB3VYWJLLE&source=url    Looking for more info on how to write a book?  Check out my free 5 point sheet on How To Get Naked with Your Story!  astoryinside.com/naked and you will also be in the loop for more special events and fun writing facts!

After the episode, The Bigger Message in the Book, was my highest rated and downloaded episode, I reserved another week's time slot for more book mindset tips and tools. Dealing with Rejection, Distraction, and Justification. I have been writing for a long long time, in the movies, and also in books. I also have been helping storytellers find their voice for many decades (which makes me seem really old, but who's counting…).    In this recording, I address the three horsemen that stand in the way of writers successfully saying yes to their book journey: Rejection, Distraction, and Justification.  I pack a lot of psychological nuance into this episode as humans can exhaust themselves jumping through hoops to avoid what they are called to do.  It is truly astonishing how much resistance is prevalent with book writing contrasted by an equally voracious desire to become an author.  The polarity seems insurmountable but I can assure you, there are not only paths to least resistance, but solutions to get through the mud and on the broad highway to writer freedom!   We love bringing in amazing guests every week, as well as dropping writing truth bombs.  We appreciate any donations to keep our doors open! Donate here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GWDSB3VYWJLLE&source=url    Looking for more info on how to write a book?  Check out my free 5 point sheet on How To Get Naked with Your Story!  astoryinside.com/naked and you will also be in the loop for more special events and fun writing facts!  

Stephanie Morimoto, owner and CEO of the brand Asutra, is an organic leader.  She was a customer of Asutra and passionate about the products when she discovered the company was for sale. She likes to invest in companies that she can shape and grow, and after a twelve year career helping educational non-profits raise $500 million, she saw a fantastic opportunity with Asutra. Tennis great Venus Williams also was in love with the magnesium products for pain and joined the company as a co-owner and Chief Brand Officer.    Stephanie speaks with me on what it was like to raise funds in the education space, and her transition into business ownership. She reveals undiscussed barriers for women like the hurdle of selling a female-driven product to a male investor, or the lack of education for women on how to find funding.     Stephanie attributes her entrepreneurial spirit to her grandfather who was incarcerated in WWII internment camps for Japanese Americans, then served in the National Guard. Her grandfather stood by the golden rule - treat people how you want to be treated.  She also credits her career to excellent mentorship which she pays forward.    A self-care product company, Asutra focuses on women but find their products for relief from pain after exercise or sleep aids are for everyone.   Asutra has bigger and bolder plans in the works for 2021, so keep your eyes peeled.    Do you enjoy our podcast every week?  We would appreciate any donations so we can keep doling out honest truths and having on incredible guests. Every dollar counts to keep the doors open! Donate here: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=GWDSB3VYWJLLE&source=url    We want to know who YOU are, our listeners, which is why we do what we do every week!  Help a gal out and let me know what is working on the show!  Head over to astoryinside.com/survey.  

Founder of FitChick Granola Tammy D'Onofrio gets real about what she had to pull herself out from under to become the face on her brand (which is sold in national supermarket chain Gelsons).  She first had to make the decision that she can longer feel like she was a loser, which can connect for many of us to that sense of not belonging in a family of origin.  She often finds when she tells her story, which includes sexual abuse, that so many women look to her strength to then share the secrets of their past.  She built the granola business with no money, with an idea that came from making her kids healthy snacks, while simultaneously calling in the love of her life (who by the way is hot and nine years younger).    Women need to believe we can have it all, go for our dreams, even if in our darkest hours the past seems to be bumping up against our best efforts.  Tammy gives her time to women who want to start businesses and offers spectacular advice on how to go into 2021 with the world at your feet, not on your shoulders.    Want 20% off amazing granola?  Go to Fitchickgranola.com and enter BOOKS at checkout!   We need YOU for two minutes!  We would love to know what you think about our podcast!  It helps us bring more amazing guests to the table.  Just 2 minutes at https://www.astoryinside.com/survey/.  Thank you!