Fearless in Pursuit of HappyHer

One year. Fifty-five episodes. And I'm still wondering. In this anniversary episode, I'm looking back at the woman who sat down a year ago to record Episode 1, The Power of "I Wonder…" — and at everything curiosity has taught me since. This isn't a highlight reel or a neat list of lessons learned. It's a conversation about celebrating what counts, changing your mind without calling it failure, tru...

If you're the person who notices the problem, steps in first, and figures out what everyone else needs, this episode may feel very familiar. Renée shares a conversation with her sister, Stephanie, about the family "dance" of fixing, helping, rescuing, and being needed—and what can happen when we begin learning new steps. They talk about parenting adult children, control, guilt, letting people stru...

When Dolly Parton's nephew shared the words, "Dolly never saw a door she could not open," it struck a chord in my heart. In this episode, I'm reflecting on what Dolly represented to me as a little girl, what I see differently now, and how easy it is to let "being realistic" slowly turn into limiting what we believe is possible. Sometimes the barriers in front of us are real. And sometimes the bigg...

Two years ago, I thought I needed to have retirement—and what came next—completely mapped out. Podcast. Coaching. Business. A plan for replacing income. A plan for the plan. 😂 What I didn't expect was how much I would change while I was building it. In Episode 52 of Fearless in Pursuit of HappyHer , I'm talking about what happens when the plan that once made perfect sense starts to evolve—not bec...

Sometimes it's not what someone did that hurts us most. It's the story we create about what it meant. In this episode of Fearless in Pursuit of HappyHer , I'm sharing a real situation where I filled in missing information, got hurt and defensive, and almost treated my first interpretation like a fact. We'll talk about how quickly our brains create stories when we don't have the whole picture, why...

You make a plan. It feels good. You chose it. You wanted it. But somewhere along the way, that plan can quietly turn into something else—something you should do, have to do, or are supposed to do. So when does a choice become a rule? In this episode of Fearless in Pursuit of HappyHer , I'm wrapping up my Making Space series with a conversation about plans, expectations, changing your mind, and wha...

How did I get from forgetting one thing... to questioning my character? That wasn't the episode I planned to record. After forgetting to do something I told you I was going to do, I noticed something surprising happening in my own mind. Before I ever had the chance to simply acknowledge what happened, I'd already started creating a story about what it meant. And that made me wonder... How often do...

What do I want now? It sounds like such a simple question… until you actually try to answer it. Whether you're navigating retirement, becoming an empty nester, moving through midlife, or simply wondering what's next, having more space in your life doesn't always bring the clarity you expected. Sometimes it brings more questions. In this episode of Making Space, I'm sharing what I'm discovering as...

Have you ever stopped to wonder where that little voice saying, "I should..." came from? The questions we ask ourselves don't appear out of nowhere. More often than not, they're rooted in stories we've been living for years—stories shaped by our experiences, expectations, and the beliefs we've quietly accepted as truth. After we've lived with them long enough, those stories stop feeling like stori...

Why does keeping up at home feel so overwhelming—even when you're trying your best? If you've ever stood in the middle of your kitchen, looked around, and wondered, "Why can't I keep up?" this episode is for you. This week, I thought I was going to explore the expectations, responsibilities, guilt, and stories I carry. But as I reflected, I discovered I had been asking the wrong question all along...

Have you ever organized a space, only to find yourself right back where you started a few months later? Me too. For years, I thought I just needed a better system... another basket... another organizing method. While those things can absolutely help, I've started wondering if they aren't the whole answer. In this first episode of my four-part Making Space summer series, we're beginning a different...

Have you ever felt guilty for taking a break—even when you desperately needed one? In this episode, Renée explores why so many women feel guilty when they rest, why the to-do list never seems to end, and how the stories we tell ourselves keep us stuck in productivity guilt. Through a simple 24-hour getaway, she shares a powerful reminder: Rest isn't something you earn. It's something you need. If...

Renée was standing in her carport, surrounded by boxes she could name one by one — completely overwhelmed, and not sure where to even start. So instead of cleaning, she got curious. What came out of that curiosity changed how she sees every "yes" she's ever said. In this 10-minute episode, Renée shares the question she now asks herself before taking on anything new — and what actually got her unst...

Episode 42: Why We Resist the Very Thing We Want Most Have you ever wanted something — really wanted it — and still couldn't make yourself move toward it? In this episode of Fearless in Pursuit of HappyHer, Renée breaks down what's actually happening in your brain when you feel frozen — and why resistance doesn't mean what you think it does. This one is for the woman who has been saying "I know I...

Have you looked up lately and realized the last time you really talked to someone who truly knows you was longer ago than you want to admit? You're not alone — and this episode is for you. In Episode 41, Renée digs into why women in midlife neglect their friendships even though we are literally wired for connection. She breaks down the neuroscience behind why your brain and nervous system crave be...

What does retirement actually feel like on the first Monday? Honestly? A lot like summer break — except for one thing. The quiet. In this episode, Renée gets real about her very first Monday as a retired woman — including the fact that she almost missed her own podcast deadline at 8:30 on a Sunday night. No frameworks. No big emotional revelation. Just an honest conversation about what it feels li...

What do a Paint by Number kit, an Easy-Bake Oven, and a Magic 8 Ball have to do with midlife transition? More than you might think. In this episode, Renée reaches back into the toy box of her childhood and discovers that the games and toys she grew up with in the 70s hold some of the most powerful truths she knows about courage, identity, burnout, and trusting yourself. This isn't a retirement spe...

Have you ever noticed that for most of your life, there was always a next thing? School, college, career, family — the path was laid out and you followed it. But what happens when that script runs out? In this episode, Renée gets personal about the revelation she had driving home from her own retirement reception — and what it taught her about the illusion of control, the fear of the blank page, a...

What if the worry you're feeling about a life change isn't a warning sign at all? Renée gets honest about her own quiet what-ifs as she counts down to retirement — and why even a solid plan can't fully silence the noise in your head. If you're facing a change right now, chosen or not, this episode will meet you right where you are. Because the goal was never to arrive at happy. It was always to be...

Have you ever stopped to consider that your thoughts are literally running your life — and most of us don't even realize it? In this episode, Renée shares a funny (and very human) story about sleeping through not one, not two, but three alarms on the morning of her very last evaluation ever — and what that moment revealed about the power of choosing your thoughts. You'll learn why your repeated th...

What happens to your identity when the title you've carried for decades is gone? In this episode, Renée gets honest about the fear — and the excitement — of standing at the edge of a major life transition. With 32 days until retirement, she's sitting with a question that so many women in midlife know well: Who am I without this role? Whether you're retiring, leaving a career, watching your kids le...

What does 30 years of showing up for others actually teach you? In this heartfelt episode, Renée Janes shares five hard-earned truths from her three decades as a school counselor — wisdom that goes far beyond the classroom and speaks directly to women navigating midlife, career transitions, and the courage it takes to start over. Whether you're burned out from giving too much, struggling to trust...

What does it actually look like to show up when you don't feel ready? In this episode, Renée gets real about the fear, doubt, and perfectionism that almost kept her from hosting her first workshop since this little community started growing into something real — and what happened when she showed up anyway. From the wrong microphone to a 3am export, a late replay and a forgotten resource attachment...

Your brain has been keeping you stuck — and it's not your fault. In this episode of Fearless in Pursuit of HappyHer, Renée shares the personal breakthrough that changed everything for her and extends a heartfelt invitation to the Tame Your Brain and Go From Stuck to Empowered Workshop . You'll learn why creativity and play are powerful tools for lasting change, how socialization has quietly shaped...

You didn't lose yourself all at once. It happened slowly — through hundreds of small, ordinary moments that all sent the same quiet message: who you are on the inside matters less than how you show up for everyone else. Maybe you were the responsible one. The capable one. The one who handled things. Maybe you were the quiet one, the peacekeeper, the good girl who never caused trouble. Different st...