Dying Out Loud Podcast

Kris Saim shares a letter he originally planned to hold onto until he entered hospice care. It is a letter of boundless gratitude written to his "Gs,” his community of nearly 800 colleagues at Gale. Instead of saving his final words for the end, Kris is choosing to speak them out loud today, while the people who earned them can actually hear them.   Kris opens up about the first six months followi...

Welcome to Dying Out Loud. Today’s episode is unlike any we have ever recorded. There is no guest, no interview, and no holding back. Today, host Kris Saim reads a letter to his younger self—the boy who carried a secret so heavy he felt like the world had agreed to look away. For the first time in a public space, Kris is telling the whole truth about who he is and where he came from. In this profo...

In this profound solo episode, Kris Saim reads a letter to someone who was once his closest friend. She was there for the best chapters of his life—from meeting at a swim-up bar in Cancun to wandering the streets of Paris and Amsterdam—but was absent when he received his terminal cancer diagnosis. For years, Kris held onto the pain of that quiet drift. It wasn't until he learned she had lost her f...

Today’s episode is a little different. There is no guest and no co-host—just Kris and a microphone, pulling back the curtain on what it really looks like to live and eventually die with stage four colon cancer. We are trained our whole lives to avoid talking about death, treating it like a taboo subject. We talk about the weather, we talk about test results, but we rarely touch on the real fears s...

Every once in a lifetime, if you are lucky, you encounter a teacher who doesn't just teach a subject—they teach you who you are. For Kris, that teacher was Kathie McCormally. Entering a tight-knit rural high school as a freshman trying to figure himself out, Kris found a safe haven in Mrs. McCormally's drama class. In this profoundly moving episode, Kris sits down with his favorite teacher to say...

Welcome back to Dying Out Loud Podcast. This week’s episode takes us on a journey back to the beginning of a 30-year friendship. Kris is joined by Jenne Schwinn to discuss the messy, traumatic, and ultimately beautiful reality of growing up together. Entering a small-town high school where all 34 other students had known each other since kindergarten, Kris and Jenne found themselves as the two ult...

In this tender and powerful episode of Dying Out Loud, host Kristopher Saim welcomes back his dear friend and grief coach, Jen Ripa, creator of Thrivologie and the "Creative Cocoon." Jen shares her profound personal journey of loss—first the death of her 16-year-old son, Oliver, to cancer, followed four years later by the passing of her husband of 25 years. Together, Kris and Jen explore how to mo...

In the Season 2 premiere, Kris shared a love letter to the man who saved him. In this deeply personal, unscripted follow-up, Anthony writes back. Caught completely by surprise, Kris listens as Anthony reads a letter that pieces his own heart back together. He reflects on the "gray" world he lived in before they met, isolated, depressed, and directionless during the height of the pandemic, and how...

Welcome to Season 2 of Dying Out Loud. If Season 1 was about saying goodbye, this season is all about how we keep living anyway. In this deeply personal season opener, Kris is joined by the man who knows him best—his husband and producer, Anthony Saim. Together, they navigate a conversation that is vulnerable, honest, and intentionally designed to break your heart open. In this episode: The Health...

While the Dying Out Loud Podcast team is on a short break, we are re-releasing our most streamed episode of 2025, a conversation that clearly struck a chord with all of you. In this deeply personal episode, Kris sits down with his close friend and colleague, Jesse Perez. Jesse opens up about the heartbreaking loss of his best friend, Kendra, to throat cancer and shares his biggest regret: allowing...

In this special holiday release of Dying Out Loud, Kristopher reunites with Mandi Botic, a friend whose loyalty has spanned nearly 20 years and multiple zip codes, from Kansas City to New York and LA. For the first time in three years, Kristopher and Mandi see each other face-to-face. Together, they take a trip down memory lane, revisiting the "trauma bond" that started it all, wild nights at Miss...

Kris welcomes his longtime friend Nickie Gibbs to discuss how a workplace friendship turned into a decade-long bond that helped him survive his first cancer diagnosis. They discuss: The "Platform" Days: How high-stress jobs forged a family-like bond. Servant Leadership: Lessons on leading with heart in business and life. Showing Up: Why effort is the secret ingredient to long-distance friendship....

Host Kris sits down with Dr. Rebecca Lee for an open conversation about creative partnership, friendship, and overcoming imposter syndrome in the workplace. They share their journey from colleagues to close collaborators, offering insights on mutual coaching, the importance of connection, and the courage it takes to grow both personally and professionally.

In this deeply personal episode of Dying Out Loud, Kris sits down with men’s coach and speaker Deano Sutter for a conversation about the profound, often invisible impact we have on one another. Kris reveals a moment from years ago—a simple one-hour consultation regarding a men's coaching group—that Deano doesn't even remember, but which fundamentally altered the trajectory of Kris’s life and caree...

In this episode of Dying Out Loud, host Kristopher Saim sits down with Tracy Kreikemeier, a woman who has played the dual roles of cherished friend and professional mentor in his life. Their story began through mutual friends, Fritz and Holly, but deepened during their time working together at Platform Advertising, where Tracy served as Kris's supervisor.   Kris and Tracy take a nostalgic walk dow...

This episode of "Dying Out Loud" celebrates a "human first type of leadership" that transcends titles. Host Kris is joined by Luana Pereira, a leader he has been fortunate to work with for several years. When Kris was navigating his stage four cancer diagnosis , he was in an incredibly "vulnerable state". Luana's "steady presence" , advocacy, and commitment to him as a person created the space and...

In this reflective and empowering episode , Kris Saim connects with Michael Platt, founder and former CEO of Platform Advertising and a prolific voice in higher education advertising. This conversation dives deep into the profound influence Michael had on Kris’s career, shaping his view of leadership, business growth, and balance in life. Michael shares his motivation for starting Platform: creati...

This incredibly personal and strategic episode features Kris Saim and former manager Kevin Doyle, exploring the journey from coach to team member and the transformational power of leadership grounded in trust and profound investment. Kris shares how Kevin and his team not only adapted his role following a Stage IV diagnosis but actively fueled his professional evolution, giving him the space and r...

From Coaching Session to Core Connection: Investing Deeply in One Another’s Growth This episode highlights a powerful truth: sometimes, the most sacred connections sneak up on you and change everything. Kris Saim welcomes Celina Goddard to explore their journey from a routine professional coaching session into a deep and reciprocal friendship. This conversation is a masterclass in how leadership p...

Family, Medicine, and the Power of Unconditional Support with Dr. Jeff Edenfield In one of the most personal episodes of Dying Out Loud, Kris Saim welcomes his cousin and oncologist, Dr. Jeff Edenfield, for a reflective stroll down memory lane that progresses from childhood pool days to the present reality of a Stage IV cancer journey. This conversation explores the enduring strength of family con...

Host Kris Saim welcomes his old friends, Fritz and Holly Heffinger, owners of Out Cold Marketing, for a conversation spanning two decades. Their friendship began just after Kris came out, making them "some of the first people that didn't know me from before" when he was pretending to be someone he wasn't. Kris shares that their immediate welcome, laid-back energy, and willingness to share their fr...

Host Kris Saim welcomes Danielle Ripley-Burgess, VP of Disease Awareness at Fight Colorectal Cancer (Fight CRC) and a three-time colon cancer survivor. Their friendship began in Kris's ICU room, the day after he awoke from a three-day coma during his first diagnosis. Danielle showed up with her heart wide open , sharing her story and truth to offer hope and permission to imagine a future. She expl...

This episode honors a friendship born out of the highly unconventional world of professional bass fishing and the road trips of the early 2000s. Kris Saim welcomes his great friend Kelly Oettinger to discuss the lasting loyalty and acceptance that anchored Kris through major life moments, including his coming out. Kris and Kelly reflect on a time in their lives when they were both searching for wh...

The Value of Consistency: Finding Mentorship and Trust with Ben James This episode highlights the profound value of meaningful relationships that start at work and evolve into something more. Kris Saim welcomes Ben James, a colleague and Chief Innovation Officer, whose consistent presence, laughter, and coaching conversations have become a grounding rhythm in Kris's life. Ben models the kind of in...

Host Kris Saim welcomes his "adopted sister," Amy Kruse, to celebrate a 30-plus year friendship that began on a retail sales floor and evolved into a sacred "chosen family" bond. Kris and Amy reflect on their history as each other’s anchors through love, loss (including the deaths of their fathers), and professional pivots. Amy recounts being one of the first people Kris came out to, and how her m...