June 18, 2025 • 23 mins
In this cozy, solo second-to-last episode of Season One, Kristen reflects on the journey so far using the classic journalist’s lens: Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How. From humble beginnings and a spark of curiosity to building confidence, community, and connection -- this episode is part memoir, part love letter to the listeners who’ve come along for the ride. Kristen shares behind-the-scenes reflections on launching the podcast, lessons learned, favorite moments, listener impact, and what’s coming next in Season Two. Think of this one as your guided pause before the next big leap.
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Episode Transcript
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Kristen (00:00):
Hey everybody and welcome back.
Oh my gosh.
Can you even believe that thisis our second to last episode of
season one?
I know.
Where has the time gone?
So this episode, it's just meand what I wanna do today is
take a look back, everythingover season one and also give a
(00:20):
little sneak peek for season twoI have gone back and forth many
times of how do I wanna break itdown?
What do I wanna talk about?
And as I was writing downquestions, that's kind of how it
got me thinking of how I reallywant to.
Structure the episode.
I don't know if I've mentionedit before or not, but growing up
(00:42):
I really wanted to be a writer.
I was gonna go into journalism,which good thing I didn't'cause
print journalism is kind ofdead, a good reporter knows that
you need to be able to answerthe five Ws well and the H.
Who, what, where, why, when, andhow.
When I started thinking aboutthe podcast in those terms, I
wrote down questions that Ithought would be good to answer.
(01:03):
Like where we started, what welearned, who was impacted, how
far we've come, and why thispodcast, why now?
Whether this is your first timetuning in or you've been here
for every episode, let's reflecton how far we've come.
So I first wanna start likewhere we started.
(01:24):
So, I came up with the overallplan last November and then
over, my Christmas break, Istarted working on some behind
the scenes things.
The intro, the outro, figuringout what I was gonna do, staging
some episodes, planning episodelist, like just all the stuff
that goes into making it work,because I really wanted
(01:44):
something that was going towork.
I had tried podcasting in thepast and I don't think I really
had learned enough of what to door how to do it, so it kind of
fizzled out.
And then I took some time offand did more research into what
went into it, and then came upwith my plan.
So when I launched the podcastfinally on 2 5 25, which I
(02:07):
thought was just the cutest timeto start because how fun, like
launching soon 2, 5 25.
It seemed catchy to me and Ithought it would be fun.
I had a few episodes recordedbefore then and kind of knew
what I was doing.
But I didn't really know whereit was going to go.
Like, was anybody gonna listen?
Did people care what I have tosay?
(02:27):
Did it even matter?
At that time, I don't think Igave a whole lot of thought I
wanted to put something outthere and thought that if there
were topics that I thought wereimportant or things that I
talked about with my closefriends, then maybe there were
other people that also thoughtthose things were important and
also would want somebody to talkabout.
But I also thought, you know, asI've mentioned so many times
(02:48):
before.
There's not a whole lot of reallife connection because we're so
connected on social mediabecause we're so busy with all
our lives.
And then I thought, well, maybethere's some people out there
that.
Do wanna talk about these topicsor have someone else to talk
about these topics but don'thave anybody.
So I was like, maybe I can bethat somebody.
I don't know how many of yougrew up listening to radio and
(03:11):
the nighttime there was Delilah,you know, Delilah, and you could
call in and tell her what wasgoing on in your life and she'd
picked the perfect song for you.
And I think part of it was thatthere was a part of me that
wanted to connect to people.
And hear their stories and givethem a space to talk and have
them have somebody to share thatwith.
(03:33):
And I really think that's what Itried to create and I think for
the most part So that's where mymind was in the beginning of,
where we started and what myoutlook was for it.
Looking back now, the nextquestion I was gonna talk about
is what we learned or what Ilearned because I feel like it's
(03:54):
been a learning process for allof us.
So when I started, I had thetagline with it, because it's
cheaper than therapy.
And I've said, was it therapyfor me?
Was it therapy for the guests?
Was it therapy for thelisteners?
And I think it was a little bitof all of that.
I do think that a lot of it wastherapy for me.
And when I look at the questionof what I learned.
(04:16):
It's more than what I learned.
It's how I grew and how Ichanged.
And there's just so manydifferent intricacies to it.
Like when I started, it was areally scary thing.
I have mentioned my peoplepleasing tendencies and how I
tried to portray having my lifetogether and being perfect,
(04:37):
which, okay, I'm not perfect,but it was.
Having people think that I was.
And so I was really nervousabout putting so much out there
talking about my personal lifeand opening things up.
It was really kind of scarybecause there were all these
insecurities I had and I keptthinking like the people were
going to take my insecuritiesand turn around and use it on me
(04:58):
and destroy me and all thesethings, which I guess is still
possible.
I feel like I have gained somuch confidence from this
podcast because at the beginningI was really defined by my work.
I felt that was my identity.
If things were going well atwork, things were good, and if
things weren't going well, Ifelt really bad about myself.
I looked for validation in somany different ways and trying
(05:23):
to get people to like me.
And it was exhausting, and Ihave found that over the past
several months of doing thepodcast, my confidence has
grown.
I don't see myself defined asmuch by my work now.
Like that's my job and I do lovemy job and I go there and I do a
great job when I'm there and Itake care of my employees and do
(05:45):
the mission and do everything Ican.
I still believe I'm a reallyhigh performer there, but that's
not who I am anymore.
It's just a part of me becauseI'm also a podcaster and a mom,
and a wife and a friend, and allthe other labels I have.
But I feel like having this asan outlet to work through
different things that I'mthinking about or struggling
(06:06):
with, or like I said,insecurities I have, it's just
kind of gave me something elseand helped me grow in my
confidence.
And then I also think by talkingto different guests and having
their story the book club thatwe went through and breaking
free from those lies.
And even the friendship seriesof talking about how to make
(06:28):
friends, how to be a friend, andthings that seem obvious, but
when you're talking to differentpeople and getting different per
people's perspective, it justreally kind of grows.
And when you build on that, youbecome more connected with the
people you're talking with also.
So I think that's a lot of whatI learned.
(06:48):
And overall, it's just lookingat the person that I was six
months ago, to where I am now.
It's just like.
Wow.
It's crazy and I love it, and Iam so proud of the person I'm
becoming and being able to letgo of that need for validation,
that need to please, and I'm notsaying it's completely gone,
(07:10):
like there's always still roomfor growth, but building the
confidence that I have now toknow that I can do hard things
and that this isn't even thathard or scary like I thought it
was.
And just seeing that growth inme and feeling that I'm
different has been so huge.
So who is impacted?
Aside from myself, I have gottenso many comments from listeners
(07:32):
who've reached out and said, youknow, Hey, I really appreciate
you talking about this.
Hey, this resonated with me.
I listened to your body imageone.
I go through the same thing.
I'm so glad that you talkedabout that.
I've heard a lot about Taylor'sstory, people love Taylor's
story, if you haven't listenedto that one, you have to go back
and listen to Taylor's story.
(07:54):
People really appreciated thatwe talked about that.
I've had some people talk aboutthe purity episode and how, it's
something that they'restruggling with even at their
age.
And I've had other people reachout and just talk about how,
something I said really struckthem about having that belonging
and not feeling like you fit in,being grateful that I opened up
(08:16):
and started talking about it.
It's little things like thatwhere.
I feel.
I don't know what the word is,it sounds kind of silly to say
that I'm proud of that.
I mean, I am, but I'm alsothankful that I have this space
where I can share things likethat and give people an
(08:36):
opportunity, either a way toshare their stories or to hear
other people's stories.
Or to just feel like they're notalone, that there is somebody
else that has thought that, feltthat or is going through that.
Because I think sometimes that'sall we need is like when you're
going through something orstruggling and you're like, is
it just me?
Am I crazy?
And to hear somebody else, talkabout how they have a hard time
(08:58):
making friends or that they'rescared to reach out to someone,
or that they're struggling withsubstance abuse or they're
struggling.
With being able to, you know,connect with their spouse.
Like there's just, so manydifferent topics and sometimes
just knowing that you are notthe only one going through that
can give you enough kind ofpeace of mind that you can deal
(09:20):
with it more.
The next question I wanna coveris how far we've come.
So.
This one's kind of crazy.
Season one will end with I think30 episodes, and I'm not sure if
that counts all the bonusepisodes or not.
So it's gonna be about 30, whichis crazy for me.
I don't know how much a podcastseason is supposed to have.
(09:41):
It depends on where you look.
And what kind of podcast youare.
At the beginning of every year,I write goals I wanna accomplish
this year, one of the things Iwrote down was that I wanted to
publish at least 25 episodes ofmy podcast.
And it's so cool because like Isaid, we will be at 30 when
season one ends, and I'm stillplanning on season two starting
(10:04):
in a few months.
So there will be even more thanthat by the end of the year.
Which is super exciting.
And even just the.
Followers I've gained, it's hardto measure the success of a
podcast.
You can look at followers,listeners, subscribers.
But I'm not sure the numberstell the full story because just
(10:26):
because I have, X amount offollowers on Instagram doesn't
mean all those people arelistening to the podcast.
Because they're probably not.
There's some on Facebook, andthen on platforms like Apple,
Spotify, Amazon, there'sdifferent followers not every
follower is listening to everyepisode.
I don't listen to every episodeof every podcast I follow either
(10:47):
not a big deal.
So it's kind of hard to reallyidentify that, the fact that
anybody is following me orsubscribed.
Is kind of a big deal becausewhen you're recording these, you
don't know if anybody'slistening or if they're going to
listen.
Maybe in some aspects you'relike, well, I hope nobody does
(11:07):
listen to this one.
But you put it out there and youjust believe that the universe
is going to get it where itneeds to go, and the person who
does need to hear the message isgoing to find it.
And so that's what you do itfor.
I've said I don't care about thenumbers and I don't, I mean,
it's hard when, buzz Sproutsends you a weekly report of how
(11:28):
many downloads you have.
It's hard to not see thenumbers, but it's not about the
numbers.
It's really about who I'mimpacting or how I'm impacting.
And even if it's just for me,that's amazing.
I'm building this legacy forwhen I'm gone, my son will have
all the stuff to listen to, andmaybe he won't.
(11:48):
Maybe it'll be totally cringe, Idon't know.
But he'll still be able to hearwhat my voice sounded like.
And maybe he'll get to an agewhere he does wanna learn more
about me.
These are just things I thinkabout, I feel like I'm leaving
some kind of legacy for someoneout there, and that's pretty
cool.
(12:08):
The last question here is whythis podcast platform, it wasn't
just about me talking because Ido love talking, but it was
about giving that platform forother people to tell their
stories.
Taylor came on and was reallyvulnerable to share her getting
over addiction story, which wasphenomenal.
(12:30):
Paige and Amber shared theirfriendship story and the
different things they'd beenthrough, and just such a
beautiful story of friendshipthrough the years and the next
generation now with their boysbeing friends.
Tiffany shared hervulnerabilities and how to get
through.
You know, more of a millionairemama mindset and being aligned
(12:52):
and thriving and getting awayfrom just surviving and shared
so much good advice of how toget out of our heads and into
living and loving ourselves.
And then all the times,conversations I've had with
Alexis and Kelly.
Those girls were phenomenal.
But you know, when we talkedabout some of the different
(13:14):
things we grew up with, likepurity culture and struggling
with knowing how to slow down.
And even the beginning episodeswith Laura and we talked about
burnout boundaries and how todeal with those things and
strengthen our mental health.
There is just so much we wentthrough this season and I feel
(13:34):
like having the podcast platformwas really the best way for it
because it was a conversation,not just with my guests, but
also with you, the listeners, sothat you could feel like you are
a part of it the stories we'resharing.
None of us are experts.
We don't have all the answers.
It's just a way of, conversatingthinking out loud and sharing
(13:56):
perspectives.
And of course the conversations,Emily and I had not just about
the friendship piece, but aboutgrowing up as girls to women
finding still the femininity,but also being able to be out
there and not feeling like wehave to stay small.
There's so much goodness fromseason one that as we go into
(14:18):
our pause and playback era, Ihope that you'll go back and
maybe some of the episodes youdidn't listen to yet, you'll go
back and maybe some of the onesyou listened to before, you
wanna go back and listen again.
'cause maybe there's othertidbits you can take.
For the first season it wasreally kind of understanding us
personally, a littleintrospective who we are, what
(14:41):
we're about.
I know that's how it was for me,kind of looking at who am I?
What am I about?
What's going on?
And finding our people andbuilding connection.
That's why, there was a wholemonth about the Friendship
series and the book club reallyfinding people, finding
connection.
For the second season, it'sgonna be that and more.
(15:03):
What I'm planning for season twois developing ourselves, helping
people, and growth.
I have a vision for it.
So again, going through the samequestions, where we're going,
who's coming along, what we'llcover, why it's important, how
will we do it, and when will itbe.
(15:24):
Where we're going.
Season one was introspective andpersonal finding people,
building connections.
For season two, I see us beingmore focused on what we're
talking about.
And I don't wanna say it'snecessarily going all business
or corporate, but I want to.
Take the boundaries and theburnout episode and take that
(15:45):
farther.
I'm going to be focusing more onleadership, both personal
self-leadership and growth andtopics like imposter syndrome
and how we get over it.
And I really wanna focus on.
People who have followed theirpassions and talking about like
taking risks and getting outthere and doing what you love or
(16:07):
just doing something different.
And I'm really excited aboutthat because I think when people
find something they'repassionate about and pursue the
passion, they're more fulfilledwhen you're more fulfilled,
you're more happy, yourconfidence is up.
And I'm just excited to sharethose kind of stories and more
growth stories, kind of likewhat we did a little bit this
season, but really diving moreinto them.
(16:29):
And then the leadership lessons,as I mentioned, and I will say
it again in case some magicalgorithm picks this up.
I really, really, really want tointerview Coach Mark Dall from
the Oklahoma City Thunderbecause I think his coaching
style and leadership style issomething I would like to
emulate.
So I'd like to talk to him.
I'm thinking about some otherleadership lessons maybe we'll
(16:51):
do some deep dives on lessons wecan take from movie tv, public
people, lessons learned.
I'm excited about that.
And also maybe some, careerdevelopment, just focus on that
personal growth aspect.
Season one was personal findingourselves, and season two I
wanted to be personal, growingourselves.
That's where I see that going.
(17:12):
So who's coming along?
I already have several guestslined up for season two.
Some of them who are going to behere multiple times, and I am so
excited about those topics andshowing how they all link
together with following yourpassion, personal growth
development, things like that.
I am always open for new guestsso if you are someone who's
(17:33):
followed a passion or have astory to share or just wanna
talk with me, you can reach outand we'll get you set up or if
you don't think you're the rightguest for, but there's a topic
that you wanna talk about,definitely reach out to me also,
because I'm open to adding moretopics as we go along.
So what we'll cover, it's goingto be really things that fall
into that growth mindset of howto develop ourselves, how to
(17:57):
grow, how to follow ourpassions, how to believe in
ourselves more.
I think this season was kind ofabout finding our voice and
season two is gonna be about,Hmm, what's another word for
growing?
Enhancing our voice, tuning itin, finding a way to put
ourselves out there more,getting away from the
(18:19):
introspective, building ourconnection and going out there
and building more the community.
That's where I see us going.
Why is it important?
It's important because we shouldall try to be lifelong learners
and trying to better ourselvesand trying to better those
around us and create a communityof people.
(18:39):
And networks and just all thethings like it's, it's hard to
put it all in words because it'sstill ideas in my head, but I'm
excited about the potential andhow we can all learn and grow
and do so much more.
How will we do it?
Just like we did season one.
There'll probably be someepisodes where I talk about
(19:01):
things I am learning orresearching or sharing, there's
gonna be many guests the plan isstill an episode a week,
although if there are some thatepisodes that I feel like need a
little bit more time to developor research, it may be every
other week sometimes, but youknow.
I will keep you posted on howoften it will be.
(19:24):
So you're probably wondering,well, Kristen, season one is
wrapping up.
You've been talking about thatfor a while, and you said
there's gonna be this pause andplayback time, but when can we
expect season two?
That's a great question.
My plan right now is to take offthe month of July completely.
I've got some trips planned, andI just don't know that I'm going
(19:44):
to have the time to really.
Record post anything.
So I've been saying that I planon coming back mid-August, which
is still my plan, although itmay be closer to late August.
I'm really thinking of kind of aback to school time, which is
great because as we're talkingabout season two being about a
time to learn and grow anddevelop, it makes sense that it
(20:06):
would come back around, back toschool time because, you know,
school is now in session.
I expect to be back probably midto late August and keep up on my
socials.
I'll still be posting there andmaking sure that everybody knows
when the day will be.
I don't think there's a day inAugust that is exciting as 2 5
25, although August 26th is mybirthday, so that's a
(20:30):
possibility.
I will keep you all posted and Ipromise, as soon as I have a
date confirmed, you'll know.
So until then.
Stay tuned.
It's been such a good season andit is more than I could have
hoped for.
You know, I say the numbersdon't matter and I keep saying
that.
I keep saying it, maybe toreinforce it for you, me,
(20:51):
whoever.
But I do see the numbers and Ican't tell you how much I
appreciate all the people whoare listening.
There are times that I stilllook at it and I'm like, oh my
gosh.
All these people listen to thatepisode.
That's crazy.
When they talk about, even ifyou have, a hundred people like
something, can you imaginehaving a hundred people in a
room liking something you did?
(21:13):
That's kind of what I thinkabout when I see the numbers and
I'm like, oh my gosh, that manypeople listen to me talk about
this.
And I picture all those peoplein a room and I'm like, that's
pretty cool.
Like, we would all be friends ifwe were in the room together so
I don't know who you are, it'sstill very anonymous.
But I know there are a lot ofyou out there.
And from the bottom of my heart,I just wanna thank you for
supporting me on this journey.
(21:34):
Whether you are liking my poston Instagram or Facebook, or
you're listening once in awhile, or you're listening to
every episode, or you're sharingmy posts, or you're texting me
or sending me dms, it means somuch to me.
And I really do appreciate it.
And if you haven't reached outyet, please do let me know what
(21:55):
you love.
Let me know what you didn'tlove.
Let me know what you wanna seein season two.
Next week's episode will be ourgrand finale and I am looking
forward to talking to you allthen.
All right.
Till then.
Hey everybody and welcome back.
Oh my gosh.
Can you even believe that thisis our second to last episode of
season one?
I know.
Where has the time gone?
So this episode, it's just meand what I wanna do today is
take a look back, everythingover season one and also give a
(00:20):
little sneak peek for season twoI have gone back and forth many
times of how do I wanna break itdown?
What do I wanna talk about?
And as I was writing downquestions, that's kind of how it
got me thinking of how I reallywant to.
Structure the episode.
I don't know if I've mentionedit before or not, but growing up
(00:42):
I really wanted to be a writer.
I was gonna go into journalism,which good thing I didn't'cause
print journalism is kind ofdead, a good reporter knows that
you need to be able to answerthe five Ws well and the H.
Who, what, where, why, when, andhow.
When I started thinking aboutthe podcast in those terms, I
wrote down questions that Ithought would be good to answer.
(01:03):
Like where we started, what welearned, who was impacted, how
far we've come, and why thispodcast, why now?
Whether this is your first timetuning in or you've been here
for every episode, let's reflecton how far we've come.
So I first wanna start likewhere we started.
(01:24):
So, I came up with the overallplan last November and then
over, my Christmas break, Istarted working on some behind
the scenes things.
The intro, the outro, figuringout what I was gonna do, staging
some episodes, planning episodelist, like just all the stuff
that goes into making it work,because I really wanted
(01:44):
something that was going towork.
I had tried podcasting in thepast and I don't think I really
had learned enough of what to door how to do it, so it kind of
fizzled out.
And then I took some time offand did more research into what
went into it, and then came upwith my plan.
So when I launched the podcastfinally on 2 5 25, which I
(02:07):
thought was just the cutest timeto start because how fun, like
launching soon 2, 5 25.
It seemed catchy to me and Ithought it would be fun.
I had a few episodes recordedbefore then and kind of knew
what I was doing.
But I didn't really know whereit was going to go.
Like, was anybody gonna listen?
Did people care what I have tosay?
(02:27):
Did it even matter?
At that time, I don't think Igave a whole lot of thought I
wanted to put something outthere and thought that if there
were topics that I thought wereimportant or things that I
talked about with my closefriends, then maybe there were
other people that also thoughtthose things were important and
also would want somebody to talkabout.
But I also thought, you know, asI've mentioned so many times
(02:48):
before.
There's not a whole lot of reallife connection because we're so
connected on social mediabecause we're so busy with all
our lives.
And then I thought, well, maybethere's some people out there
that.
Do wanna talk about these topicsor have someone else to talk
about these topics but don'thave anybody.
So I was like, maybe I can bethat somebody.
I don't know how many of yougrew up listening to radio and
(03:11):
the nighttime there was Delilah,you know, Delilah, and you could
call in and tell her what wasgoing on in your life and she'd
picked the perfect song for you.
And I think part of it was thatthere was a part of me that
wanted to connect to people.
And hear their stories and givethem a space to talk and have
them have somebody to share thatwith.
(03:33):
And I really think that's what Itried to create and I think for
the most part So that's where mymind was in the beginning of,
where we started and what myoutlook was for it.
Looking back now, the nextquestion I was gonna talk about
is what we learned or what Ilearned because I feel like it's
(03:54):
been a learning process for allof us.
So when I started, I had thetagline with it, because it's
cheaper than therapy.
And I've said, was it therapyfor me?
Was it therapy for the guests?
Was it therapy for thelisteners?
And I think it was a little bitof all of that.
I do think that a lot of it wastherapy for me.
And when I look at the questionof what I learned.
(04:16):
It's more than what I learned.
It's how I grew and how Ichanged.
And there's just so manydifferent intricacies to it.
Like when I started, it was areally scary thing.
I have mentioned my peoplepleasing tendencies and how I
tried to portray having my lifetogether and being perfect,
(04:37):
which, okay, I'm not perfect,but it was.
Having people think that I was.
And so I was really nervousabout putting so much out there
talking about my personal lifeand opening things up.
It was really kind of scarybecause there were all these
insecurities I had and I keptthinking like the people were
going to take my insecuritiesand turn around and use it on me
(04:58):
and destroy me and all thesethings, which I guess is still
possible.
I feel like I have gained somuch confidence from this
podcast because at the beginningI was really defined by my work.
I felt that was my identity.
If things were going well atwork, things were good, and if
things weren't going well, Ifelt really bad about myself.
I looked for validation in somany different ways and trying
(05:23):
to get people to like me.
And it was exhausting, and Ihave found that over the past
several months of doing thepodcast, my confidence has
grown.
I don't see myself defined asmuch by my work now.
Like that's my job and I do lovemy job and I go there and I do a
great job when I'm there and Itake care of my employees and do
(05:45):
the mission and do everything Ican.
I still believe I'm a reallyhigh performer there, but that's
not who I am anymore.
It's just a part of me becauseI'm also a podcaster and a mom,
and a wife and a friend, and allthe other labels I have.
But I feel like having this asan outlet to work through
different things that I'mthinking about or struggling
(06:06):
with, or like I said,insecurities I have, it's just
kind of gave me something elseand helped me grow in my
confidence.
And then I also think by talkingto different guests and having
their story the book club thatwe went through and breaking
free from those lies.
And even the friendship seriesof talking about how to make
(06:28):
friends, how to be a friend, andthings that seem obvious, but
when you're talking to differentpeople and getting different per
people's perspective, it justreally kind of grows.
And when you build on that, youbecome more connected with the
people you're talking with also.
So I think that's a lot of whatI learned.
(06:48):
And overall, it's just lookingat the person that I was six
months ago, to where I am now.
It's just like.
Wow.
It's crazy and I love it, and Iam so proud of the person I'm
becoming and being able to letgo of that need for validation,
that need to please, and I'm notsaying it's completely gone,
(07:10):
like there's always still roomfor growth, but building the
confidence that I have now toknow that I can do hard things
and that this isn't even thathard or scary like I thought it
was.
And just seeing that growth inme and feeling that I'm
different has been so huge.
So who is impacted?
Aside from myself, I have gottenso many comments from listeners
(07:32):
who've reached out and said, youknow, Hey, I really appreciate
you talking about this.
Hey, this resonated with me.
I listened to your body imageone.
I go through the same thing.
I'm so glad that you talkedabout that.
I've heard a lot about Taylor'sstory, people love Taylor's
story, if you haven't listenedto that one, you have to go back
and listen to Taylor's story.
(07:54):
People really appreciated thatwe talked about that.
I've had some people talk aboutthe purity episode and how, it's
something that they'restruggling with even at their
age.
And I've had other people reachout and just talk about how,
something I said really struckthem about having that belonging
and not feeling like you fit in,being grateful that I opened up
(08:16):
and started talking about it.
It's little things like thatwhere.
I feel.
I don't know what the word is,it sounds kind of silly to say
that I'm proud of that.
I mean, I am, but I'm alsothankful that I have this space
where I can share things likethat and give people an
(08:36):
opportunity, either a way toshare their stories or to hear
other people's stories.
Or to just feel like they're notalone, that there is somebody
else that has thought that, feltthat or is going through that.
Because I think sometimes that'sall we need is like when you're
going through something orstruggling and you're like, is
it just me?
Am I crazy?
And to hear somebody else, talkabout how they have a hard time
(08:58):
making friends or that they'rescared to reach out to someone,
or that they're struggling withsubstance abuse or they're
struggling.
With being able to, you know,connect with their spouse.
Like there's just, so manydifferent topics and sometimes
just knowing that you are notthe only one going through that
can give you enough kind ofpeace of mind that you can deal
(09:20):
with it more.
The next question I wanna coveris how far we've come.
So.
This one's kind of crazy.
Season one will end with I think30 episodes, and I'm not sure if
that counts all the bonusepisodes or not.
So it's gonna be about 30, whichis crazy for me.
I don't know how much a podcastseason is supposed to have.
(09:41):
It depends on where you look.
And what kind of podcast youare.
At the beginning of every year,I write goals I wanna accomplish
this year, one of the things Iwrote down was that I wanted to
publish at least 25 episodes ofmy podcast.
And it's so cool because like Isaid, we will be at 30 when
season one ends, and I'm stillplanning on season two starting
(10:04):
in a few months.
So there will be even more thanthat by the end of the year.
Which is super exciting.
And even just the.
Followers I've gained, it's hardto measure the success of a
podcast.
You can look at followers,listeners, subscribers.
But I'm not sure the numberstell the full story because just
(10:26):
because I have, X amount offollowers on Instagram doesn't
mean all those people arelistening to the podcast.
Because they're probably not.
There's some on Facebook, andthen on platforms like Apple,
Spotify, Amazon, there'sdifferent followers not every
follower is listening to everyepisode.
I don't listen to every episodeof every podcast I follow either
(10:47):
not a big deal.
So it's kind of hard to reallyidentify that, the fact that
anybody is following me orsubscribed.
Is kind of a big deal becausewhen you're recording these, you
don't know if anybody'slistening or if they're going to
listen.
Maybe in some aspects you'relike, well, I hope nobody does
(11:07):
listen to this one.
But you put it out there and youjust believe that the universe
is going to get it where itneeds to go, and the person who
does need to hear the message isgoing to find it.
And so that's what you do itfor.
I've said I don't care about thenumbers and I don't, I mean,
it's hard when, buzz Sproutsends you a weekly report of how
(11:28):
many downloads you have.
It's hard to not see thenumbers, but it's not about the
numbers.
It's really about who I'mimpacting or how I'm impacting.
And even if it's just for me,that's amazing.
I'm building this legacy forwhen I'm gone, my son will have
all the stuff to listen to, andmaybe he won't.
(11:48):
Maybe it'll be totally cringe, Idon't know.
But he'll still be able to hearwhat my voice sounded like.
And maybe he'll get to an agewhere he does wanna learn more
about me.
These are just things I thinkabout, I feel like I'm leaving
some kind of legacy for someoneout there, and that's pretty
cool.
(12:08):
The last question here is whythis podcast platform, it wasn't
just about me talking because Ido love talking, but it was
about giving that platform forother people to tell their
stories.
Taylor came on and was reallyvulnerable to share her getting
over addiction story, which wasphenomenal.
(12:30):
Paige and Amber shared theirfriendship story and the
different things they'd beenthrough, and just such a
beautiful story of friendshipthrough the years and the next
generation now with their boysbeing friends.
Tiffany shared hervulnerabilities and how to get
through.
You know, more of a millionairemama mindset and being aligned
(12:52):
and thriving and getting awayfrom just surviving and shared
so much good advice of how toget out of our heads and into
living and loving ourselves.
And then all the times,conversations I've had with
Alexis and Kelly.
Those girls were phenomenal.
But you know, when we talkedabout some of the different
(13:14):
things we grew up with, likepurity culture and struggling
with knowing how to slow down.
And even the beginning episodeswith Laura and we talked about
burnout boundaries and how todeal with those things and
strengthen our mental health.
There is just so much we wentthrough this season and I feel
(13:34):
like having the podcast platformwas really the best way for it
because it was a conversation,not just with my guests, but
also with you, the listeners, sothat you could feel like you are
a part of it the stories we'resharing.
None of us are experts.
We don't have all the answers.
It's just a way of, conversatingthinking out loud and sharing
(13:56):
perspectives.
And of course the conversations,Emily and I had not just about
the friendship piece, but aboutgrowing up as girls to women
finding still the femininity,but also being able to be out
there and not feeling like wehave to stay small.
There's so much goodness fromseason one that as we go into
(14:18):
our pause and playback era, Ihope that you'll go back and
maybe some of the episodes youdidn't listen to yet, you'll go
back and maybe some of the onesyou listened to before, you
wanna go back and listen again.
'cause maybe there's othertidbits you can take.
For the first season it wasreally kind of understanding us
personally, a littleintrospective who we are, what
(14:41):
we're about.
I know that's how it was for me,kind of looking at who am I?
What am I about?
What's going on?
And finding our people andbuilding connection.
That's why, there was a wholemonth about the Friendship
series and the book club reallyfinding people, finding
connection.
For the second season, it'sgonna be that and more.
(15:03):
What I'm planning for season twois developing ourselves, helping
people, and growth.
I have a vision for it.
So again, going through the samequestions, where we're going,
who's coming along, what we'llcover, why it's important, how
will we do it, and when will itbe.
(15:24):
Where we're going.
Season one was introspective andpersonal finding people,
building connections.
For season two, I see us beingmore focused on what we're
talking about.
And I don't wanna say it'snecessarily going all business
or corporate, but I want to.
Take the boundaries and theburnout episode and take that
(15:45):
farther.
I'm going to be focusing more onleadership, both personal
self-leadership and growth andtopics like imposter syndrome
and how we get over it.
And I really wanna focus on.
People who have followed theirpassions and talking about like
taking risks and getting outthere and doing what you love or
(16:07):
just doing something different.
And I'm really excited aboutthat because I think when people
find something they'repassionate about and pursue the
passion, they're more fulfilledwhen you're more fulfilled,
you're more happy, yourconfidence is up.
And I'm just excited to sharethose kind of stories and more
growth stories, kind of likewhat we did a little bit this
season, but really diving moreinto them.
(16:29):
And then the leadership lessons,as I mentioned, and I will say
it again in case some magicalgorithm picks this up.
I really, really, really want tointerview Coach Mark Dall from
the Oklahoma City Thunderbecause I think his coaching
style and leadership style issomething I would like to
emulate.
So I'd like to talk to him.
I'm thinking about some otherleadership lessons maybe we'll
(16:51):
do some deep dives on lessons wecan take from movie tv, public
people, lessons learned.
I'm excited about that.
And also maybe some, careerdevelopment, just focus on that
personal growth aspect.
Season one was personal findingourselves, and season two I
wanted to be personal, growingourselves.
That's where I see that going.
(17:12):
So who's coming along?
I already have several guestslined up for season two.
Some of them who are going to behere multiple times, and I am so
excited about those topics andshowing how they all link
together with following yourpassion, personal growth
development, things like that.
I am always open for new guestsso if you are someone who's
(17:33):
followed a passion or have astory to share or just wanna
talk with me, you can reach outand we'll get you set up or if
you don't think you're the rightguest for, but there's a topic
that you wanna talk about,definitely reach out to me also,
because I'm open to adding moretopics as we go along.
So what we'll cover, it's goingto be really things that fall
into that growth mindset of howto develop ourselves, how to
(17:57):
grow, how to follow ourpassions, how to believe in
ourselves more.
I think this season was kind ofabout finding our voice and
season two is gonna be about,Hmm, what's another word for
growing?
Enhancing our voice, tuning itin, finding a way to put
ourselves out there more,getting away from the
(18:19):
introspective, building ourconnection and going out there
and building more the community.
That's where I see us going.
Why is it important?
It's important because we shouldall try to be lifelong learners
and trying to better ourselvesand trying to better those
around us and create a communityof people.
(18:39):
And networks and just all thethings like it's, it's hard to
put it all in words because it'sstill ideas in my head, but I'm
excited about the potential andhow we can all learn and grow
and do so much more.
How will we do it?
Just like we did season one.
There'll probably be someepisodes where I talk about
(19:01):
things I am learning orresearching or sharing, there's
gonna be many guests the plan isstill an episode a week,
although if there are some thatepisodes that I feel like need a
little bit more time to developor research, it may be every
other week sometimes, but youknow.
I will keep you posted on howoften it will be.
(19:24):
So you're probably wondering,well, Kristen, season one is
wrapping up.
You've been talking about thatfor a while, and you said
there's gonna be this pause andplayback time, but when can we
expect season two?
That's a great question.
My plan right now is to take offthe month of July completely.
I've got some trips planned, andI just don't know that I'm going
(19:44):
to have the time to really.
Record post anything.
So I've been saying that I planon coming back mid-August, which
is still my plan, although itmay be closer to late August.
I'm really thinking of kind of aback to school time, which is
great because as we're talkingabout season two being about a
time to learn and grow anddevelop, it makes sense that it
(20:06):
would come back around, back toschool time because, you know,
school is now in session.
I expect to be back probably midto late August and keep up on my
socials.
I'll still be posting there andmaking sure that everybody knows
when the day will be.
I don't think there's a day inAugust that is exciting as 2 5
25, although August 26th is mybirthday, so that's a
(20:30):
possibility.
I will keep you all posted and Ipromise, as soon as I have a
date confirmed, you'll know.
So until then.
Stay tuned.
It's been such a good season andit is more than I could have
hoped for.
You know, I say the numbersdon't matter and I keep saying
that.
I keep saying it, maybe toreinforce it for you, me,
(20:51):
whoever.
But I do see the numbers and Ican't tell you how much I
appreciate all the people whoare listening.
There are times that I stilllook at it and I'm like, oh my
gosh.
All these people listen to thatepisode.
That's crazy.
When they talk about, even ifyou have, a hundred people like
something, can you imaginehaving a hundred people in a
room liking something you did?
(21:13):
That's kind of what I thinkabout when I see the numbers and
I'm like, oh my gosh, that manypeople listen to me talk about
this.
And I picture all those peoplein a room and I'm like, that's
pretty cool.
Like, we would all be friends ifwe were in the room together so
I don't know who you are, it'sstill very anonymous.
But I know there are a lot ofyou out there.
And from the bottom of my heart,I just wanna thank you for
supporting me on this journey.
(21:34):
Whether you are liking my poston Instagram or Facebook, or
you're listening once in awhile, or you're listening to
every episode, or you're sharingmy posts, or you're texting me
or sending me dms, it means somuch to me.
And I really do appreciate it.
And if you haven't reached outyet, please do let me know what
(21:55):
you love.
Let me know what you didn'tlove.
Let me know what you wanna seein season two.
Next week's episode will be ourgrand finale and I am looking
forward to talking to you allthen.
All right.
Till then.
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