Pivot Point - Strategy for Change with Nik Michael

The Gen Z Launch Gap: College Admissions, Career Readiness, and What Families Need to Know | Featuring Darren Meyers. College is one of the most significant financial and lifedecisions a family will make—but much of what parents believe about admissions,testing, scholarships, and career outcomes is outdated. In this episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change, hostNik Michael sits down with colleg...

What if the biggest obstacle to happiness isn't failing to reach your goals—but believing they'll finally make you feel complete? In this solo episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change , Nik Michael explores the concept of the Arrival Fallacy —the belief that lasting fulfillment begins only after achieving the next milestone. Drawing on decades of experience as a psychotherapist, Nik exp...

In this episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change , host Nik Michael sits down with Jason Kuperman , veteran growth executive, fractional CMO, and founder ofKuperman Advisors, for a powerful conversation about career reinvention, change, and leading through uncertainty. Jason shares how he transitioned from architecture into digital marketing, what he learned building a career duringthe rise of...

The Gen Z Launch Series - In today’s competitive job market, many recent graduates find themselves feeling lost about what truly matters in the hiring process. When I spoke with Kim Steiner and Amy Kraus, partners at Force Recruiting, they shared valuable insights that can help job seekers better understand what employers are really looking for. In this post, we’ll explore the keydisconnects betwe...

In this conversation with Kim Steiner and Amy Krause of Fource Recruiting, I wanted to pull back the curtain on what the hiring process actually looks like from the recruiter’s side, especially for Gen Z candidates and the parents trying to help them. What came through clearly is that getting hired is not just about having a degree or a polished resume. It is about preparation, communication, self...

What if the discomfort you feel isn't dissatisfaction—but a sign you've outgrown your current life? In this episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change , Kim Costa shares how a quiet realization in her 50s led her to reinvent her life, redefine success, and create a path rooted in authenticity. Through her personal journey and the development of the Wheelhouse Method, Kim explores how our...

In this episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change ,Nik Michael welcomes executive coach, leadership consultant, and organizational strategist Erin Treacy for a thoughtful exploration of one of the most important challenges facing families, employers, and young adults today: thegrowing gap between preparation and reality as Gen Z transitions into adulthood and the workforce. As part of the Gen Z...

Kim Costa built a life that looked exactly right — and then had to admit it wasn't hers. In this episode, she shares how a quiet internal discomfort, ignored for years, became the signal that changed everything. Kim is the creator of the Wheelhouse Method, an author, speaker, and top-performing realtor serving North America. Her framework treats your life like a house: four foundational pillar...

What if the discomfort you feel isn't dissatisfaction, but a signal that you've outgrown your current life? In this inspiring conversation, Kim Costa shares how a quiet realization in her 50s led her to reinvent her life, redefine success, and create a path rooted in authenticity. Through her personal journey and the development of the Wheelhouse Method, Kim explains how our environments o...

In this deeply personal and emotional episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change , Yvonne Manning shares her experience as primary caregiver for her mother through the progression of Alzheimer’s and dementia. This conversation is not about business, success, or external achievement — it is about the quiet internal pivot that happens when life calls you to care for someone you love while navigatin...

In this episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change with Nik Michael , Nik explores the psychology of diffused guilt — the tendency to assume responsibility for other people’s emotions, discomfort, or reactions even when they may not belong to you. Through relatable examples drawn from relationships, work, parenting, caregiving, and everyday interactions, Nik examines how emotionally aware and res...

What if the patterns you keep repeating aren't failures — they're unfinished business? You changed the job, the relationship, the environment, and somehow the same feeling found you again. In this episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change with Nik Michael, Nik draws on Gestalt therapy and over two decades of clinical work to explore why we keep arriving at the same emotional outcomes no...

In this episode of Pivot Point, Stacy Kessler reveals adifferent kind of pivot—one that doesn’t necessarily look like change from the outside, but transforms everything internally. After building the kind of career most people are stillworking toward—decades across Off-Broadway, network television, and major national campaigns including Capital One, Verizon, Lancôme, and Mercedes-Benz—Stacy had re...

In this episode, Scott Lackey explores the concept of “lightning strike moments”—those pivotal experiences that fundamentally alter the trajectory of your life and identity. Drawing from his book, The Power of Lightning Strike Moments, he explains how these events—whether driven by loss, disruption, or unexpected opportunity—create a clear divide between who you were and who you’re becoming. The c...

In this episode of Pivot Point Strategy for Change, Nik Michael and Stephen Rodriguez unpack what a true pivot point really looks like. This is not a story about career change. It’s a breakdown of the internal mechanics of transformation—the mindset shift that makes change inevitable. Stephen explains how his real pivot didn’t happen when he moved from piano tuning into tech, marketing, and busine...

In this episode of Pivot Point Strategy for Change, Nik Michael sits down with Stephen Rodriguez toexplore what a true pivot point really is—and what it isn’t. This isn’t a conversation about changing careers. It’s adeep dive into the internal shift that makes real change inevitable. Stephen shares how his defining pivot didn’t happen when he left piano tuning or entered the world of tech, marketi...

Pivot Point Strategy for Change — Kim Steiner What if the life you spent your entire career building is the very thing breaking you? This conversation is about toxic leadership, the quiet courage it takes to choose yourself, and what I’ve learned sitting across from people who finally do. There are moments that rewrite us—but not the obvious ones. Not the dramatic turning points we point to later...

High performers know this feeling: the results are solid, the success is real — but right at the edge of something bigger, something inside hesitates. Most people call it imposter syndrome. Jen Coken calls it what it actually is — a protection pattern. An executive coach, speaker, and author, Jen works with high-achieving leaders — especially women in STEM — to uncover the strategies they built ea...

In this episode of  Pivot Point: Strategy for Change with Nik Michael , executive leadership coach  Jen Coken  reframes what most people call  imposter syndrome  into something far more useful — a  protection pattern. High performers know that quiet hesitation that shows up right at the edge of something bigger — more visibility, more impact, more responsibility. The results are there. The success...

Pivot Point Strategy for Change — In this powerful episode, we explore how a sudden panic attack in a supermarket became the moment that unraveled Don’s carefully constructed life, exposing years of inherited narratives and suppressed truths. What followed was a profound transformation. Don takes us from a place of fear, hiding, and rejection to stepping fully into the spotlight as an actor, singe...

On this episode of Pivot Point Strategy for Change, I sit down with Amy Collette, and what unfolds is much more than a conversation about writing a book. It becomes a deeperexploration of identity, fear, and what really happens when we allow ourselves to be seen. One of the most powerfuldistinctions Amy brings forward is the difference between being a “writer” and becoming an “author.” And I found...

In this conversation, Darren Myers brings us into the moment that question became unavoidable for him. He had done everything “right”—a respected physics teacher and college counselor, committed, accomplished, and deeply invested in his work. Yet beneath that, something wasn’t sitting right. The system he was part of no longer reflected his value, and over time, that disconnect began to cost him—n...

This segment of Pivot Point Strategy For Change featuresa conversation between Nik Michael and Gordon Gooding, LCSW, focusing on the challenges and strategies for individuals seeking change but feeling paralyzedby fear. Nik inquires about counseling approaches for those longing for change, while Gordon shares insights from his experience with clients who feel stuck, despite being successful. He em...

In this episode of Pivot Point: Strategy for Change , I sit down with Dr. Richard Lustberg—psychologist and strategic advisor to businesses and corporations—to explore why so many high performers stay stuck. In my experience, most people don’t plateau because they lack ability. They plateau because they avoid the uncomfortable truths sitting just beneath the surface. So I wanted to ask a better qu...

In the latest episode of Pivot Point Strategy for Change, wedive deep into the quiet moments that lead to pivotal shifts. It’s not always a loud, dramatic change; sometimes it’s a subtle tension that reveals our true selves. Kim Steiner, our guest and seasoned professional, shares her journey from media sales to recruiting. She reflects on the discomfort ofchasing external validation while feeling...