Tales From The Lane

Welcome to Day 3 of our Quarterly Retreat series inside Tales From The Lane! If you've been following along, you've already: Day 1: Planned Day 2: Created And today… We Organize. This is the quiet power day. The one most people skip. But it's also the one that creates peace, reduces overwhelm, and makes everything you've mapped out actually work. Because clarity loves order. In this episode, you'l...

Welcome back to Day 2 of our Stay-at-Home Quarterly Retreat mini-series! If yesterday was about reflection, clarity, and direction, today is about rolling up your sleeves and  building the things your next 90 days will need. Today is all about Creation Mode. Most of us do planning beautifully. But then life happens…and suddenly everything becomes last-minute: graphics, promo posts, emails, outreac...

Ready to step out of reaction mode and into intention? Today we're kicking off a special 4-part mini-series walking you through my Quarterly Retreat Strategy so you can step into the next 90 days grounded, organized, creative, and clear. Most of us spend our lives reacting—putting out fires, responding to whatever shows up, and getting swept into urgency instead of alignment. This retreat is about...

How to be the Change You Want to See with Mari Manoogian Today on Tales from the Lane , I'm joined by the Honourable Mari Manoogian —former Michigan State Representative and now Executive Director of The Next 50 , an organization dedicated to empowering and equipping the next generation of leaders to shape the future they want to live in. This conversation is honest, energizing, and deeply groundi...

As we head into a new year, many of us are thinking about goals—what we want to do, accomplish, or finally finish. But what if the real work starts somewhere deeper? In this episode of Tales from The Lane , Kate Kayaian explores the idea of identity shifts, and why before you can start talking about building better habits, or finding more discipline, we need to figure out WHO you need to be in ord...

In a world where everyone is shouting for attention online, how do you share your story in a way that actually connects, and doesn't just add to the noise? Today's guest has built an entire career around answering that question. In this episode, I'm joined by Michelle Glogovac —podcast publicist, host of multiple shows (including Read the Damn Book ), and author of How to Get on Podcasts . Known a...

In a world that's speeding up, sloppier than ever, and overflowing with noise, excellence can feel like a lost art. But what if small, intentional acts of care are exactly what bring you back to yourself? In this solo episode, Kate unpacks the idea of Finding Excellence in the Small Moments —not as a perfectionist mandate, but as a powerful form of self-respect, identity-building, and rebellion ag...

This week on Tales from The Lane , I'm joined by Dr. Kristen Strom — speaker, author, former English professor turned transformational wellness coach — for a deeply real, encouraging conversation about what it  actually takes to stop surviving and start thriving. Kristen built the career she thought she always wanted: PhD, professor, teacher educator, mom of three, leadership roles—all the boxes c...

Does life feel louder lately? Not just  audibly , but mentally? Between the news cycle, nonstop notifications, the group chats, and the never-ending list of micro-decisions—we're all running on cognitive overload. In today's episode, Kate breaks down five powerful, practical strategies to help you turn down the volume, reclaim your mental space, and get your focus back. You'll learn how to: • Be i...

Register for Thrivefest (it's free!) We begin on November 17th! What does it really mean to show up—on stage, on camera, online—and feel authentic instead of performative? Certified coach, speaker, writer, and retreat leader Dayna Del Val joins Kate to unpack "audacious visibility": the blend of presence, clarity, and courage that helps leaders and creatives communicate with impact. We get into: H...

Most high achievers spend their lives mastering their side of the table—preparing, polishing, striving. But what happens when you switch sides? When you stop practicing only for the audition, for the interview, for the presentation…and step into the seat of the person on the other side? This week, we're exploring one of the most underrated tools for accelerating your growth, confidence, and clarit...

How do you rebuild momentum after a big change — in your work, your business, or your identity? This week on Tales from The Lane , I'm joined by entrepreneur, coach, and leadership expert John T. Meyer ( @johntmeyer_ on YouTube , LinkedIn , and Instagram ). We dig into what it really takes to create — and sustain — forward motion when life and work evolve. John shares the story of rebuilding after...

Do you ever end the day feeling like you were busy nonstop… but somehow didn't  really get anything done? Between the texts, the quick favors, the emails, the "just a minute" tasks—it's no wonder our focus feels shredded. Research from UC Irvine shows that after each interruption, it takes an average of 23 minutes to fully return to your original task. Multiply that by a few dozen interruptions, a...

Get your copy of Kate's book, Beyond Potential:  A Guide for Creatives Who Want to Re -Assess, Re -Define, and Re -Ignite Their Career.  In today's episode, Kate sits down with author and executive coach  Charlie Gilkey , founder of Productive Flourishing , to unpack the truth about why teams struggle — and how to fix it. Charlie explains how small, everyday team habits can make or break performan...

We've officially entered the final 90 days of the year—the season where some people push to "Crush Q4!" and others quietly pack it in and wait for January. But there's a better way. In this episode of Tales from The Lane , Kate Kayaian shares a refreshing framework for using the last quarter of the year as both a celebration of what you've achieved and a launch pad for what's next. Learn how to:...

What is the role of art in today's political reality—comfort, challenge, escape… all of the above? In this wide-ranging, candid conversation, conductor Alyssa Wang joins Kate to wrestle with the big questions artists, leaders, and audiences are asking right now: Does art really "bring people together"—and what does that actually mean? How do we reconcile fundraising language with tangible communit...

Big goals are exciting—but setting a challenge for yourself is transformative. Whether it's a wellness program like 75 Hard, training for your first 5K, making a revenue target at work, climbing a mountain, or finally tackling that house renovation, a defined challenge pushes you beyond comfort and into growth. In this episode, Kate explores why challenges are so powerful, what science says about...

We all have them—the nagging, unfinished tasks that have been sitting on our list for months, sometimes years. They weigh us down, drain our energy, and quietly whisper that we're falling behind. For me, it was finally starting Invisalign after years of thinking, "I should do something about my teeth." It's a year-long commitment, but the simple act of beginning has already lifted a huge mental lo...

We've all been told to manage our time better if we want to be more productive. But here's the truth: you don't run out of hours, you run out of energy. In this episode of Tales from The Lane , Kate Kayaian unpacks why energy – not time – is the true currency of high performance. You'll learn: Why stress is one of the biggest drains on your energy (and how to reframe it into fuel). The surprising...

Excellence doesn't require obsession—it requires integration. We've all heard the advice: focus on one thing, say no to everything else, single-minded purpose is the path to success. Books like Gary Keller's The One Thing and Greg McKeown's Essentialism make a powerful case for focus. But what happens when that focus becomes obsession? In this episode of Tales from The Lane , Kate unpacks the dark...

If you lived the same week over and over for the next 52 weeks… where would you be a year from now? Would you be healthier? More successful? Closer to your goals—or stuck in the same place you are now? In this episode of Tales from The Lane , Kate Kayaian shares her 365-Day Week framework, a powerful way to assess where your time, focus, and energy are going. You'll learn how to identify the "dial...

  In this episode of Tales from The Lane, Kate takes a candid look at a growing trend: using self-care and boundaries as default reasons to opt out of opportunities, connection, and growth. While the movement to prevent burnout was born out of necessity—helping leaders, parents, and professionals stretched impossibly thin—somewhere along the way, it became a lifestyle brand. And now, more and more...

In this solo episode of  Tales from The Lane, Kate explores how summer—with its longer days, lighter rhythms, and natural pauses—can become a powerful opportunity for purposeful reflection. If you've ever found yourself feeling stuck, burned out, or constantly "too busy," this conversation is your invitation to slow down and check in with yourself. Kate shares why high-achievers often resist refle...

In this episode of  Tales from The Lane, I'm joined by the brilliant and ever-evolving vocalist Emily Byrne. Emily's career has spanned opera houses across Europe, intimate cabaret stages here in the U.S., and now, a bold new project close to her heart: recording a jazz album with her father in honor of his milestone birthday. We talk about: How Emily navigated the shift from opera to cabaret and...

In this episode, we're diving into one of the most overlooked yet powerful elements of success, connection, and fulfillment: the energy you bring into any room or situation . We often think strategy and planning are everything. But what if your emotional lens—the default assumptions, emotions, and intentions you carry—was the hidden factor shaping your outcomes more than anything else? In this epi...