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Feeling powerless against systems that seem too big to change? Episode 190 of The Empowered & Embodied Show will shift how you think about agency, collective power, and your role in transformation.

Kim Romain and Louise Neil sit down with Dr. Krystal Rawls, systems strategist, workforce futurist, and Director of the Workforce Integration Network at Cal State Dominguez Hills. Dr. Rawls breaks down why systems aren't separate from people, they're made OF people. That means you have more power than you think.

In this conversation, we explore the difference between personal and collective agency, why isolation keeps us stuck, and how finding your community isn't just nice-to-have, it's the actual mechanism of systems change. Dr. Rawls shares practical strategies for moving from feeling like a lone voice to building collective power that creates real impact.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Personal agency is the permission you give yourself to act
• Collective agency emerges when your community aligns on shared values and direction
• Systems aren't bigger than people; they're comprised of people, which means you have inherent power
• Finding your community starts by finding one person who you align with
• Belonging is about fully being yourself within community

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Introduction and Welcome

04:02 Understanding Systems and Individual Agency

06:31 The Importance of Community in Systems Change

09:10 Defining Personal and Collective Agency

11:56 Challenging Individualism and Embracing Community

14:58 Navigating Systems and Personal Choices

17:24 Building Community and Collective Action

20:09 The Role of Rituals in Community Building

25:39 The Journey from Individual to Collective Impact

28:26 Finding Belonging in Community

31:04 Rest as a Strategy for Empowerment

33:29 Wrap Up and Call to Action

ABOUT DR. KRYSTAL RAWLS:

Dr. Krystal Rawls is a systems strategist, educator, and workforce futurist whose work centers on equity, agency, and institutional change. As Director of the Workforce Integration Network at California State University, Dominguez Hills, she leads large-scale initiatives bridging digital access, economic mobility, and community empowerment. Her expertise spans organizational behavior, change management, and digital equity with a focus on how identity and agency shape the way individuals engage and transform systems.

Connect with Dr. Rawls on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professorrawls/

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

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If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com

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In Episode 189 of The Empowered & Embodied Show, Kim Romain and Louise Neil sit down with Abriana Johnson, host of the Black in the Saddle podcast and founder of Black Unicorn Creative, to go beyond mindset and explore alignment as something you feel deeply in your body.

Abriana shares her genius about what horses teach us about leadership, safety, and trust. They dive in about why balance is a myth, why over-focusing can actually create harm, and how leaders lose credibility when their words and bodies aren’t aligned.

This conversation weaves together biomimicry, nervous system regulation, brand culture, and collective awareness, offering a grounded reminder that leadership isn’t about control. It’s about attention, congruence, and moving together.

At its core, this episode invites you to slow down, widen your awareness, and remember that alignment happens at the level of self, community, and environment.

Key Takeaways

• Balance is a myth.
• Safety is the foundation of trust, leadership, and collaboration.
• Over-focusing can be as harmful as distraction.
• Nature prioritizes efficiency and sustainability over control.
• Being different only works when people feel safe enough to show up.

Key Moments

00:00 Welcome and Introductions

03:43 Abriana’s Path from Animal Science to Biomimicry

06:21 Horses as a Model for Collective Awareness

07:20 Why Balance Is a Myth and Alignment Matters

11:45 Over-Focus, Control, and Missed Signals

15:16 Nature, Efficiency, and Sustainability

23:25 Safety, Trust, and Alignment

31:44 Alignment at the Individual and Collective Level

33:18 Golden Nuggets and Integration

Connect with Abriana

Website: http://www.blackunicorncreative.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrianajohnson/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/in/theabrianaj/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@abrianaj

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

Reclaim your career and confidence during midlife through Louise's Rise & Redefine program.

If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com

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What if the way you introduce yourself is actually holding you back?

In this episode of The Empowered and Embodied Show, Kim Romain and Louise Neil start with a simple question: "How do you introduce yourself?" and uncover something much deeper... the difference between putting on a mask and performing who you think you should be and embodying who you actually are.

They explore the hidden needs that drive how we show up in the world, why understanding those needs unlocks authentic leadership, and how to stop shrinking yourself to fit into rooms that weren't built for you.

In This Episode:

• Why "Tell me about yourself" may trigger anxiety and what to do instead
• The truth about needs vs. being "needy" (and why this matters for confidence)
• How Human Design reveals patterns that keep you stuck in doubt
• Moving from role-based identity to soul-based expression
• What authentic leadership actually looks like when you stop performing

Perfect for you if you've ever felt the gap between who you are and how the world sees you, struggled with introducing yourself authentically, or wondered why networking feels so draining.

This conversation gets deep, fast and will change how you think about identity, authenticity, and what you truly need to thrive.

Key Moments:

00:00 — Intros and Welcome

04:47 — Identity Starts with How We Introduce Ourselves

05:00 — Human Design: Open Centers and the Spiral of Doubt

08:34 — The Difference Between Wants and Needs

12:34 — Why Needs Are About Fulfillment, Not Lack

15:32 — Unlearning "Too Needy": Reclaiming Our Right to Need

18:07 — Finding the Courage to Name What Fills You

20:34 — Redefining Leadership: Guiding vs. Commanding

27:50 — Holding Space: What It Really Means to Lead Energetically

31:13 — When Someone Else Introduces You (And Gets It Right)

32:48 — The Struggle to Be Seen in Rooms That Aren't Like-Minded

35:23 — Noticing the Word "Need" and What It Reveals

37:24 — Final Reflections: Still in the Messy Middle, Still Growing

38:44 — Embodying Your Identity

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

Reclaim your career and confidence during midlife through Louise's Rise & Redefine program.

If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com

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What if creating ease in your life and work isn’t about doing more… but about aligning more deeply with what’s already true?

In this replay episode of The Empowered & Embodied Show, Kim Romain and Louise Neil are joined by Adhya Rose, an efficiency and energetics coach who supports purpose-driven entrepreneurs in building sustainable systems that honor both capacity and humanity.

This conversation explores alignment, authenticity, embodiment, and the practice of allowing. Together, they unpack why control often feels safer than trust, how misalignment leads to burnout, and what becomes possible when we stop forcing outcomes and start listening to what our bodies, values, and lives are asking for.

Rather than offering formulas or quick fixes, this episode invites a slower, more honest inquiry into how ease is created through clarity, self-trust, and supportive systems that work with us instead of against us.

In this episode, we explore:

• What alignment actually looks like in real life and business
• Why authenticity is a practice, not a personality trait
• The relationship between control, surrender, and inner peace
• How systems can support growth without depletion
• Navigating change, chaos, and personal evolution with more ease
• The ripple effect of personal alignment on the collective

If you’re craving more ease, navigating a season of transition, or re-evaluating how you live and work, this conversation offers language, perspective, and permission to stop pushing and start allowing.

Key Moments:

00:00 – Intro & Welcome

02:53 – Alignment and Ease

05:33 – Authenticity in Practice

08:04 – Asking for Support

12:03 – Systems That Support

15:46 – Navigating Change

19:13 – Inner Peace and Trust

21:20 – Growth Through Chaos

24:37 – Karma and Evolution

30:07 – Conscious Creation

33:12 – Control vs. Surrender

39:02 – Collective Impact

43:46 – Final Reflections

Connect With Adhya:

Website: www.adhyarose.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adhyarose_mentor/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adhya-rose-27960017a/

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

Reclaim your career and confidence during midlife through Louise's Rise & Redefine program.

If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com

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Leadership didn’t become exclusionary over time. It was intentionally built that way.

In this replay episode of The Empowered & Embodied Show, Kim Romain and Louise Neil sit down with Shoshana Allice, a neuro-inclusive leadership coach and consultant, to examine how leadership systems are rooted in exclusion and what it takes to lead differently.

This conversation explores decolonizing leadership, the myth of belonging through conformity, and how power, privilege, and productivity norms shape who gets to lead and who gets left out. Together, they name the ways we’ve been taught to wear armor, suppress our bodies, and confuse fitting in with safety.

This episode covers:

• Why so many leadership systems are exclusionary
• What it means to decolonize leadership and unlearn inherited norms
• Belonging vs. fitting in
• Rest as resistance inside productivity culture
• Curiosity as a leadership practice
• Reclaiming humanity in leadership and work

If you’re questioning traditional leadership models, navigating burnout, or searching for more honest and humane ways to lead, this episode offers language (and permission) to stop pretending the system works for everyone.

Key Moments:

00:00 – Welcome and Introductions
07:20 – Curiosity, Writing, and Listening to the Process
13:20 – Introducing Shoshana Alice
15:47 – Land Acknowledgement and Context
21:33 – What Decolonizing Leadership Really Means
25:15 – Safety, Armor, and Brave Spaces
30:04 – Curiosity as the Starting Point
34:45 – Belonging vs. Fitting In
38:32 – Age, Wisdom, and Leadership
44:36 – Key Takeaways and Reflections
49:10 – Where to Find Shoshana and Closing

Resources Mentioned:

📖 Rest as Resistance by Tricia Hersey

🎥 This is Water

Connect with Shoshana:

🌎 www.decolonizingleadership.com

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

Reclaim your career and confidence during midlife through Louise's Rise & Redefine program.

If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com

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In this re-released episode, we explore the crucial difference between competence and confidence, and why understanding this distinction might be the key to getting unstuck. This episode was originally released November 19, 2024. We're resurfacing this conversation because the struggle between external validation and internal confidence is timeless, and these insights deserve another listen.

Kim, Louise, and business coach Becky Mollenkamp dive into the psychology of proving energy, the myth that confidence appears before you're ready, and why taking action scared is the only way forward. Becky shares her journey from a "perfect on paper" life to complete upheaval, and what she learned about building businesses and lives aligned with who you actually are.

If you've ever felt like you're doing all the right things but still don't feel ready, struggled with self-doubt despite having the skills, or wondered whether fear or wisdom is holding you back from your next big move, this conversation is for you.

What We Cover

• The critical difference between competence (external validation) and confidence (internal belief)
• Why "proving energy" keeps you stuck in a cycle of seeking approval
• How to act your way into believing faster than you can believe your way into acting
• The "Is this new?" framework for evaluating whether fear is protecting you or limiting you
• How to resource yourself when taking scary steps forward
• The mediocre white man test: identifying when systemic conditioning (not lack of ability) holds you back
• Why sometimes the bravest choice is saying "I could do this, and I choose not to"

About Becky Mollenkamp

Becky is a business coach for entrepreneurs ready to transition from small business owner to CEO without recreating toxic corporate culture. She's the founder of the Feminist Founders Movement, host of the Feminist Founders Podcast, co-host of the Messy Liberation Podcast, and founder of the Feminist Podcasters Collective. You can find her work at https://beckymollenkamp.com or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Listen + Subscribe If this episode resonates, follow The Empowered & Embodied Show for more conversations on confidence, self-trust, leadership, and building a life aligned with who you actually are.

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

Reclaim your career and confidence during midlife through Louise's Rise & Redefine program.

If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com

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In this re-released episode, we dive right into the heart of personal agency, systemic conditioning, and what it actually takes to reclaim your power in a world that benefits from you doubting yourself. This episode was originally released on October 29, 2024. We’re resurfacing this episode because the conversation around agency, sovereignty, and systems is more relevant than ever and it’s worth hearing again.

Kim, Louise, and coach + mediator Valerie Friedlander explore how we learn to trust our bodies, advocate for ourselves (and our kids), and untangle the beliefs we absorbed from workplaces, schools, and social systems that were never designed with our wellbeing in mind.

If you’ve ever struggled with self-trust, boundary-setting, burnout, parenting in a system that overrides instincts, or feeling “not enough” inside corporate or cultural expectations, this conversation hits home.

What We Cover
• How systems — not individuals — create the illusion of disempowerment
• The difference between agency, abdication, and conscious choice
• Why curiosity is a key tool for sovereignty and emotional resilience
• Parenting kids to trust their bodies and instincts
• How corporate conditioning follows you into entrepreneurship
• The role of self-advocacy inside schools, healthcare, and workplaces
• What it means to reclaim power without bypassing the realities around you

About Valerie
Valerie is a Life & Business Alignment Coach with over 20 years in leadership development, mediation, and personal empowerment work. Her podcast can now be found under Mindset Unlimited. You can find her coaching, writing, and podcast episodes at valeriefriedlander.com or wherever you listen to podcasts.

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If this episode resonates, follow The Empowered & Embodied Show for more conversations on self-trust, sovereignty, leadership, and living in alignment with who you actually are.

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

Reclaim your career and confidence during midlife through Louise's Rise & Redefine program.

If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com

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In Episode 187 of The Empowered & Embodied Show, Kim Romain and Louise Neil sit down with transformational leadership partner Garland Fuller to explore the power of third spaces -- the places that remind you who you are when life pulls you in every direction.

They go deep into how community, movement, and curiosity open the door back to yourself. They talk about the grief of disconnection, the courage to be a beginner again, and why belonging matters more than ever.

This conversation is a grounded reminder that connection isn’t a luxury, it’s medicine. And sometimes the smallest, most unexpected spaces are the ones that pull you back together.

Key Takeaways:

• Third spaces help you remember who you are outside of roles and expectations.
• Belonging is a core ingredient of human wellbeing.
• Movement reconnects you to your body’s wisdom.
• Curiosity opens the door to growth and possibility.
• Workplaces can transform when they adopt third-space principles.
• Community engagement deepens self-understanding.
• Intentional participation unlocks the full impact of third spaces.

Key Moments:

00:00 — Opening

01:47 — Welcomes and Guest Intro

03:20 — Defining Third Spaces

07:52 — Garland’s Personal Transformation

12:05 — Reclaiming Self Through Community

17:17 — Movement + Body Wisdom

20:12 — Presence and Belonging

23:28 — Accessibility and Equity in Third Spaces

27:29 — Third Spaces Inside Workplaces

32:06 — Why Adults Lose Curiosity

36:03 — Returning to Self Through Ritual

38:29 — Final Takeaways

Connect with Garland:

Website: http://www.garlandfuller.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin/in/garlandfuller

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/garlandrfuller

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@garlandfuller

Keywords: third space, community, belonging, personal growth, movement, curiosity, accessibility, workplaces, inclusivity, transformation

Join a circle of changemakers committed to leading with purpose, presence and ease inside Kim's Rising Visionaries mentorship program.

Reclaim your career and confidence during midlife through Louise's Rise & Redefine program.

If you’re loving this show, come check out the Feminist Podcasters Collective, where creators like us are uplifting diverse voices and driving meaningful change. If you’re looking for new shows to fill your feed, head to https://feministpodcasterscollective.com