Conversations with Sekani

Feeling overwhelmed, disconnected from yourself, or chasing everyone else’s expectations in your 20s? Ashley Dawn shares her honest journey of rebuilding through wellness, self-discovery, and realignment. She opens up about the pressures of young adulthood, learning to prioritize her own needs, and creating a life that feels good from the inside out. This episode delivers practical tools for nervo...

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Steve Barton is a high-performance executive coach, author, and creator of The Game of Ten® — a powerful, patented awareness-based framework that has helped hundreds of leaders, entrepreneurs, and parents achieve clarity, confidence, and fulfillment. In this insightful conversation, Steve shares: ​ His 40+ years of experience turning real-world business challenges into coaching wisdom ​ How The Ga...

From chasing society’s version of success in China to a full spiritual awakening in the US — Helen Ye Plehn’s story is a powerful reminder that anxiety and depression can be wake-up calls from your soul. In this deep conversation, Helen shares: • Her journey from PhD student battling severe anxiety/depression to healing through meditation and spirituality • The spontaneous Kundalini awakening that...

From building a million-dollar preschool business to writing a no-filter memoir, Jessica Danel — bold entrepreneur, mom of three, and host of *Jess Saying* — shares her unapologetic journey through small-town chaos, motherhood curveballs, and life’s wildest moments. In this raw and hilarious episode, she talks about turning pain into power, ditching perfectionism, and owning your story with humor...

Want to start or grow a podcast that actually ranks and makes money in your 20s? Roy Coughlan — aka The Podfather, serial entrepreneur with 20+ companies across 5 countries, and a top podcast coach — shares his no-BS blueprint. From hustling as a kid in Ireland to multiple top 0.5% global podcasts, Roy reveals the real systems, mindset, and long-game strategies that separate successful podcasters...

What if you achieved everything society told you would make you happy — law school, career, family, the “American Dream” — only to feel completely empty inside? In this raw and eye-opening conversation, Adam Tumbling (former attorney and host of Act Out Podcast) shares his powerful journey from emotional numbness and complex PTSD to true self-compassion and purpose. He opens up about suppressing e...

What if you chased status and “success” straight out of college… only to later walk away from a massively successful family business to chase your real calling? In this powerful episode of Conversations with Sekani, Forth Hefner — executive coach specializing in commercial real estate leadership teams — shares his unfiltered journey. From joining the family business in 2008 and scaling it sevenfol...

What if everything you’ve been told about health — early workouts, late-night eating, “calories in vs out” — is quietly destroying your energy, hormones, and ability to lose weight? In this eye-opening episode of Conversations with Sekani, Jason Yun (former fitness studio owner and nutrition coach) shares his powerful transformation. After burning out with low energy, poor sleep, and failing clien...

What if the key to peace, purpose, and manifestation isn’t in chasing the future or replaying the past — but in mastering this exact moment? In this transformative episode of Conversations with Sekani, Billy Mandarino — author, speaker, and creator of the Nowist philosophy — shares his raw journey. From a promising pole vault career-ending injury, a harsh modeling contract in New York that broke h...

What if everything you’re doing — gym, clean eating, hustling in your 20s — is being completely undone by one overlooked habit? In this powerful episode of Conversations with Sekani, Cole (certified personal trainer and founder of Night Nutrition) shares his heartbreaking story. After losing his dad to a sudden heart attack — despite him being extremely fit and dedicated — Cole discovered the life...

What if your roughest 20s — homelessness, cancer, failed dreams, and setbacks — became the foundation for an extraordinary life of purpose, businesses, and impact? In this inspiring episode of Conversations with Sekani, Brandy Von Holton (former international heavyweight fighter, entrepreneur, author, and founder of Von Holton Ranch) shares her raw story. From surviving a tough childhood and battl...

Are you constantly pouring into others while losing yourself? Rev. Rachel Harrison — spiritual coach, author, and host of *Recover Your Soul* — shares her powerful journey from alcoholism, severe codependency, and people-pleasing to full soul recovery. In this raw conversation, she explains how addiction and codependency showed up in her life, the moment of grace that changed everything at 48, and...

Built the “perfect” external life — high-paying C-suite job, beautiful home, family — but felt empty inside? Nandita Mahadevan shares her honest journey from corporate executive to founder of SolWomen, helping women reclaim health, identity, and purpose during midlife transitions. Learn how she recognized the illusion of success, navigated perimenopause, prioritized self-love, and balanced product...

Struggling with communication, personal branding, or standing out in your career in your 20s? Conor Cunneen — aka Irishman Speaks, keynote speaker, business humorist, and former marketing VP — shares how to use humor strategically to build warmth, approachability, likability, and trust (the WALT Effect). From his wild-haired ambitious 20s in Ireland to becoming Chicago’s Humorist Speaker of the Ye...

Overwhelmed by responsibilities, stuck in a victim mindset, or feeling like life is happening to you in your 20s? Debbie Weiss shares her raw story of becoming a full-time caregiver for her disabled father at just 21, facing a nervous breakdown, infertility struggles, and decades of people-pleasing before a major life reset. Learn how she broke free from self-pity, took ownership of her life, and...

Tired of being taken advantage of, people-pleasing, or wondering why being “nice” isn’t helping you succeed in your 20s? Danny Goldberg — serial entrepreneur, performance strategist, and author — delivers a powerful wake-up call: respect beats being liked. From leaving corporate America to building an 8-figure business, Danny shares hard-earned lessons on setting strong boundaries, strategic asser...

You read the books, journal, understand your patterns… but still can’t change? Cecilia Baum Mandryk — former geologist turned coach specializing in nervous system regulation and habit change — explains the “Post-Insight Plateau”: that frustrating gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it. In this episode, she shares how she went from checking all the “right” boxes in her 20s (great job...

Your small daily actions can create ripples that last generations. US Navy submariner, pastor, businessman, and author David Petrash shares powerful lessons from serving on nuclear submarines for months underwater with no outside contact. Learn how high-stakes leadership in extreme environments built his resilience, why the decisions you make in your 20s matter so much, and how faith, character, a...

Struggling with self-doubt, comparison, or finding your authentic voice in your 20s? Ana Denis — communications trainer, TEDx organizer, author of *Reinvento*, and former Google/YouTube marketing professional — shares her journey from a lonely introverted bookworm in Russia to building a global career across cultures. Learn why human connection beats algorithms, the danger of social media comparis...

Decisions you make in your 20s can shape the rest of your life. Carl Grant — Army veteran, Christian business leader, author, and founder of Bridges of Faith — shares his powerful story of going from atheist chasing success to a radical conversion at age 24 that changed everything. From military service and graduate school to integrating faith into business, family, and cross-cultural dialogue, Ca...

Diagnosed with epilepsy at 13 and facing uncontrollable seizures, shoulder dislocations, and medical dismissal in her 20s — Jane Rogers refused to let it define her in silence. In this honest and often humorous episode, the author of *Laughing Through the Storm* shares how she built mental and physical strength, navigated stigma and uncertainty, and found the courage to speak openly. Learn powerfu...

Feeling like you’re living a version of yourself shaped by conditioning, trauma, or expectations in your 20s? Lauretta Zucchetti — transformational life coach, speaker, and author with a background in transpersonal psychology and international sales leadership — shares her powerful journey from childhood abuse and survival mode to corporate success and deep personal reinvention. Learn how to ident...

Feeling pressure to perform, questioning your creativity, or struggling with body image and identity in your 20s? Joanne Stewart — experienced yoga teacher, founder of Garden of Yoga, and co-host of the Flow Artist podcast — shares her journey from art school burnout and harsh criticism to discovering yoga as a tool for self-acceptance and calm. Learn how she makes yoga truly accessible for all bo...

Feeling lost in your identity, carrying childhood trauma, or struggling to rewrite your story in your 20s? Licensed therapist, storyteller, and author Johnzelle (Jonzelle Anderson) shares his raw journey through mental health challenges, race, relationships, and finding himself. In this powerful episode, he explains how storytelling (including his music-structured memoir *Mixtape*) became a tool f...