Written by Dan Taylor, MS, CSCS, 50+ Fitness and Nutrition Expert Dan's exercise Physiology/Sports Nutrition education, NSCA Strength and Conditioning background, and work with a wide variety of active older adults since 1998 make him the ideal guide to help navigate the muddy waters of optimal eating and training strategies for the over-50 athlete and fitness seeker. Most training plans for over 50 athletes fail for one simple reason: they pit fitness and sports skills against each other instead of aligning them. This is the most common and most damaging, albeit avoidable, factor in the programs of many older fitness practitioners. But how do you avoid it? After all, you only have so much time during the week and want to maximize both your conditioning and your sports performance capacity. Wrong. You want to optimize both, and this is critically important in relation to each other. Keep reading to learn how. Problem: Both your fitness foundation maintenance and sports skills training draw water from the same well Sports skills training and foundational fitness capacities (strength, endurance, mobility, balance, coordination, directional precision, explosive power, deceleration capacity, core stability, sprint, and acute recovery capabilities) require similar resources. And our well gets drier with each passing year (sorry, the truth hurts, I know). So, clearly, more trips to the well are not the answer. Neither is filling up multiple buckets each time you go. The solution is to both ration your “water” for the most important and urgent needs, while simultaneously developing a sustainable system to keep the main water supply to the well renewing and as productive as possible for as long as possible.  Redundant training effects All fitness capacities have points of diminishing returns for optimal cultivation. Each of the above-mentioned abilities has its own, and they have collective points of diminishing returns. The unfortunate thing with older athletes is that, although we rarely require incentive or motivation to hit the gym or the playing field, we’re commonly ill-equipped to make objective evaluations about where that point is . Often, we overestimate what we should be doing, and we succumb to blind spots of familiar training patterns that worsen the problem. Incomplete muscle stress recovery, excess aerobic loading (both acute and chronic), and inadequate post-workout (WO) recovery are epidemic in our community. Competing training effects What’s commonly known in hybrid athlete circles (and is a more consequential problem for older athletes) as the “interference effect” refers to any combination of elements for which maximizing one ability/skill makes the other one suffer. This is almost certain to happen when the collective points of diminishing returns collide. Running and lifting weights for the lower body are classic examples. Surfing the morning after a three-hour hike the previous afternoon would be another such convergence. Isolating the individual training templates and calculating the optimal combination and timing requires expertise, an elegant touch, and an open mind regarding conservatism when experimenting with different protocols. Age related diminishing tolerance of redundant and competing effects Hormonal changes, durability and elasticity of muscle/tendon tissue, the robustness of other connective tissue (primarily ligaments and cartilage), and the need for improved nutrition and recovery habits all factor into the requirement for the 50+ athlete to  shift her/his focus from competition to long-term resilience . A severe acute or nagging chronic injury will not be the first warning that the shift is due, but either will ratchet up the importance dramatically if you’re paying attention and are open to the change. The mobility and strength paradox As most aging athletes discover over the years, we slowly move across the continuum of limber-to-stiff until we’re far less vintage Jim Carrey and more the Tin Man squeaking for the oil can. At least as disconcerting is that we either lose a significant amount of strength and muscle volume or fight like crazy to retain as much as possible. For the latter group (likely your situation if you’re reading this), joints and connective tissue become more rigid and movement becomes more restrictive, sometimes as much a result of years of resistance training as the normal aging process. Optimizing both to avoid the conflicting effects takes careful programming and relentless adherence to it. Most mature athletes struggle with doing this. Optimal pre training requirements for both conditioning and sports skills work Endurance and sprint training are performed better when the muscles are not in an immediate post-resistance training recovery period. It’s the same with most sports skills work, but cardiovascular exhaustion and central nervous system (CNS) fatigue also compromise optimal sports skills practice. CNS fatigue is more influential in degrading the quality of sports skills training in older athletes, as we present more consequential hormonal and physiological challenges as well. Separating the training modules to allow for peak performance of sports skills is critical to successful programming. Solving the problem: Practical tactics There are many ways to structure a training program. It can be event-specific periodization  or, more commonly in our age group, weekly cycles that allow for constructive work/recovery phases. The important point is that measures should be taken to ensure the program structure effectively addresses these important factors: 1. Avoid excessive central nervous system fatigue Accumulated, full-body systemic fatigue is an easily overlooked obstacle that can drag down older athletes. Early signs are often ignored, and the progression of chronic CNS fatigue  is usually slow and cumulative. 2. Train with a power, sprint, and strength sequence Explosive power, especially the kind that also requires precision, control, and consistent repetitive quality, requires the least impeded runway. Peak performance for this type of movement is most achievable with the least amount of starting fatigue. After that, sprint capacity requires cardiovascular recovery to be as robust as possible. Finally, strength can be effectively built and retained with less detrimental encroachment than the other modes preceding resistance work. So, the sequencing should be planned accordingly. 3. Protect joints and connective tissue Joint and soft-tissue stress is minimized if the program sequence is optimal for both energy and recovery management. But it is also important to limit acute training/event stress  and to structure the frequency/duration/intensity triad conservatively. The key to successfully managing this rate-limiting component is to err on the side of restraint regarding accumulated training time over the week. 4. Prioritize acute training module recovery As implied above, the successful longer-term (chronic) program will be determined primarily by the strategically implemented individual post-WO recovery intervals. The body will respond to a given event or training session in accordance with the adequacy of the rest period allowed, given the overall work of the previously accumulated training. Ideally, the athlete feels fresh and rejuvenated for each training bout or event. If that bar is repetitively unmet, trouble is brewing. 5. Manipulate the frequency and duration relationship The reality is that athletes rarely vary the applied intensity of their given WOs dramatically. If, in fact, these variations are built into the structure of the program, this is ideal. However, more often, given a base level of consistently moderate to high intensity, the overtraining trap is the result of a rigid weekly program that is either too frequent, features WOs that are too long, or both . Often, the driven older athlete is reluctant to add two or more non-consecutive rest days to their program, fearing it will compromise performance. Instead, these elements are often the linchpin for performance breakthroughs as well as a valuable preemptive measure that reduces injury risk. Sample weekly training template This is my current weekly program. For reference, my sport was boxing, so the physical and neuromuscular demands that potentially create maximal interference in the training process are about as severe as they can get. I’m 63 and maintain an outstanding age-specific Vo2max, better than 1:1 strength-to-bodyweight single-rep max capacity for the big four lifts,  and have very open, balanced mobility, head-to-toe. Mobility warm-up and push/pull muscle-endurance  lead all formats (except cardio/core/yoga), all formats (except Sunday) end with large muscle group eccentric dynamic flexibility . Mon: Heavy big four lifts and isolating exercises using cables and dumbbells for accessory muscles. This provides an ongoing benchmark for overall strength to bodyweight ratio. Tue: Rest, modified fast day, details in subscription program . Wed: Peanut bag and heavy bag training, core work, and high intensity interval training or muscle endurance if fully recovered from Monday’s workout. Thu: Rest or light recreational movement such as a long walk or bike ride if fully recovered. Fri: Shadow boxing, mitt work, light sparring, and a 60 repetition full body dumbbell stack . This elevates heart rate dramatically and becomes a de facto integrated strength, sprint, and skills workout. The hardest session of the week. Sat: Rest. Sun: Cardio, core, and yoga format with four minutes work, one minute rest, and three to four cycles of each as fatigue dictates. Why this model works Preserves neuromuscular capacity: Each day involves different loading patterns, force-application planes, movement techniques, pacing variants, and specific directional placement and stabilization requirements. Sequences work to minimize redundant and conflicting training effects: Because of the variety mentioned above, the order (light warm-up before heavy lifting, power/sports skills before more fatiguing conditioning) and proper spacing for similar stresses, diminishing returns, overtraining, and injury risk are all minimized. Allows adequate recovery time for joints and connective tissue repair: The multi-plane loading, varying pure strength vs. power, separating impact, and allowing chronic recovery between WOs combine to allow more comprehensive repair for both muscles and connective tissues (ligaments, tendons, and cartilage). Provides fine-tuning options to adapt to current conditioning and skills response: The format has built-in flexibility, and all three variables (WO duration, frequency, and intensity) are adjusted ad hoc as indicated by the body’s freshness for each new WO. Additionally, I recommend and practice periodic de-load weeks (monthly, quarterly, or as needed based on how the athlete feels). Employ expert guidance to personalize fueling and training Optimizing your training and sports skills programs is an individual art based on broadly applied scientific principles. Most older athletes would benefit from the expertise and objectivity of a guide well-versed in the needs, preferences, and profile-specific priorities for both eating and training. So if fueling for performance consistently with precision, maintaining your athleticism, and avoiding injury are priorities, choose the right mentor . The  50+ Hybrid Athlete  subscription program is built around the fundamentals covered in this and my other articles in this   six-part series . You can unsubscribe at any time, but you won’t want to miss the ongoing helpful guidance and the time-released, astoundingly  valuable bonus products  that you get as a subscriber. Follow me on Facebook , YouTube , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Dan Taylor, MS, CSCS Dan Taylor, MS, CSCS, 50+ Fitness and Nutrition Expert Dan left a career in high-tech corporate finance in 1998 to pursue his mission of leading others in elevating and simplifying the art of physical aging through the best fitness and eating practices for the mature athlete (and the aspiring athlete). His online subscription program provides a clear and simple pathway to achieve peak performance while lowering disease and injury risk, adopting powerful and principled eating practices that effectively support the training framework, and developing an individualized, manageable, and adaptable template for both.

Some careers are built on momentum. Others are built on meaning. Thirukumaran Sivasubramaniam’s path falls into the second group. As Co-Founder and COO of Fintex Inc. in Toronto, his leadership style is shaped by lived experience. Loss. Migration. Education. Discipline. Over time, those forces turned into a steady, people-focused approach to business. His story moves from early hardship to operational leadership in a technology-driven company, with a clear throughline: progress comes from consistency and care. Early life and immigration: Lessons that last Thirukumaran was born in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, during a period of civil conflict. His father was a police officer who was killed in the civil war. That moment changed everything. His mother was left to raise four children alone. “She never let us forget that education was the way forward,” he says. “No matter how hard things were, school always came first.” When he was 9 years old, his uncle sponsored the family's immigration to Canada. The move brought safety, but not stability. The family relied on social support programs and moved often. Thirukumaran attended several schools across Toronto. Each move meant adapting again. “It wasn’t easy,” he says. “But moving around taught me how to observe, listen, and adjust. Those are skills I still use in business.” Education as a foundation for leadership Education was not optional in the Sivasubramaniam household. It was a responsibility. Thirukumaran carried that mindset through his school years. He learned early that effort mattered more than comfort. “When you see your Mom sacrifice everything, you don’t waste opportunities,” he says. This focus helped shape his work ethic. It also influenced how he views teams today. He believes people perform best when expectations are clear and support is real. Entering the business world Over time, Thirukumaran moved into roles that blended structure with problem-solving. Those experiences eventually led him to Fintex Inc., where he now serves as Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer. As COO, his focus is on operational clarity. Systems. Processes. Accountability. He works behind the scenes to make sure teams can execute without friction. “My job is to remove obstacles,” he explains. “If people are confused, progress slows. Clear systems let people do their best work.” Rather than chasing visibility, he prioritizes stability. That approach reflects his background. He values long-term thinking over quick wins. Leadership style: Calm, consistent, people-first Thirukumaran’s leadership style is shaped by observation. He pays attention to how people work and what they need to succeed. He believes consistency builds trust. “Leadership isn’t about being the loudest voice,” he says. “It’s about being reliable.” At Fintex, he focuses on execution and alignment. He believes strong operations enable innovation without chaos. His role is to make sure ideas turn into outcomes. He also sees leadership as service. That belief comes from watching his mother hold the family together under pressure. “She showed me that leadership is about responsibility,” he says. “Not control.” Mentorship and giving back Mentorship plays a central role in Thirukumaran’s life. He has helped many immigrant youth and newcomers to Canada land their first jobs. For him, this work is personal. “I know what it feels like to start with nothing,” he says. “Sometimes all someone needs is one person to believe in them.” He also volunteers as a judge for Youth Leadership Programs, focusing on technology categories. He enjoys seeing young people present ideas and build confidence. Beyond mentorship, he organizes annual fundraising efforts with family and friends. Each year, they raise close to $5,000 and send it directly to people facing hardship. He also helps collect and ship clothing to communities in need around the world. “Giving back keeps you grounded,” he says. “It reminds you why progress matters.” Life outside work: Balance and discipline Outside the office, Thirukumaran Sivasubramaniam  stays active. He plays basketball, volleyball, tennis, badminton, and baseball. He also enjoys watching sports and cheering on his kids at soccer and volleyball games. Mornings start with a walk, no matter the weather. “It clears my head,” he says. “It’s my time to reset.” He also spends time learning about trading and emerging technologies. For him, learning never stops. It is a habit, not a phase. A leader built over time Thirukumaran Sivasubramaniam’s career did not follow a straight line. It followed a steady one. From Jaffna to Toronto. From hardship to leadership. From survival to service. “I didn’t get here alone,” he says. “Everything I do is built on what others gave me.” Today, as a business leader, mentor, and community contributor, he brings that perspective into every role he holds. His story is not about speed. It is about endurance. And in business, that often makes all the difference.

Feeling overwhelmed by your classes? Between lectures, assignments, and exams, it’s easy to feel like you’re constantly playing catch-up. Juggling multiple subjects requires more than just attending class; it demands smart time management and a clear strategy. Creating an effective study plan for students isn't about filling every free moment with revision. Instead, it’s about working smarter, not harder. By the end of this guide, you'll know how to make a study plan that reduces stress, improves your grades, and gives you back control over your schedule. Let’s build a study schedule that sets you up for academic success. Step 1: Define your goals Before you can create an effective study schedule, you need to know what you're aiming for. Setting clear, achievable goals gives your efforts direction and makes it easier to stay motivated. Many students find that specific resources, like those mentioned in positive AI essay writer , help them define better study plans and achieve their targets. Vague goals like "do better in math" are hard to measure. Instead, focus on specific targets, such as completing a certain number of practice problems or achieving a specific grade on your next assignment. Write down your goals, making them as specific and measurable as possible. For example: Bad Goal: Study more for history. Good Goal :  Read and summarize two chapters of the history textbook each week and achieve at least an 85% on the midterm. Breaking down your larger academic ambitions into smaller, manageable steps makes them feel less daunting. This process not only clarifies your path forward but also provides a framework for your study plan, ensuring every study session has a purpose. Step 2: Assess your time Once you have your goals, the next step is to figure out when you can actually study. Effective time management for students starts with a realistic understanding of where your hours go each week. Be honest with yourself about your existing commitments. Start by listing all your fixed activities. This includes: Class and lecture times Work shifts Sports practice or club meetings Regular family commitments Commute times After you've blocked out these non-negotiable activities, look at the free time that remains. This is your potential study time. It’s helpful to use a weekly planner or a digital calendar to visualize your schedule. Seeing your week laid out can reveal pockets of time you might have overlooked, like the hour between classes or your morning commute on the bus. Remember to also schedule time for yourself. Allocating time for meals, exercise, sleep, and socializing is crucial for avoiding burnout. A sustainable study schedule for students is one that balances academic responsibilities with personal well-being. Once you have a clear picture of your available time, you can start filling it in with focused study sessions. Step 3: Prioritize your subjects Not all subjects are created equal. Some will come naturally to you, while others may require more effort and time to master. To make the most of your study hours, you need to prioritize your subjects based on their difficulty and importance. Start by making a list of all your courses. Then, rank them using two key criteria: Difficulty: Which subjects do you find the most challenging? Be honest about your weaknesses. The topics you struggle with will need more of your attention. Importance: Consider the weight of each course. Is there a subject with an upcoming exam that makes up a large portion of your final grade? Does one class have weekly quizzes that require consistent review? A simple way to do this is to create a priority matrix. Label your subjects as high, medium, or low priority. For instance, a difficult subject with a fast-approaching final exam would be a high priority. A subject you find easy with no immediate deadlines might be a low priority. Step 4: Allocate time blocks Now it's time to bring everything together and create your study schedule. Using the time assessment from Step 2 and the subject priorities from Step 3, start scheduling specific study blocks into your weekly calendar. This is the core of how to make a study plan that is both structured and effective. Assign specific subjects to your available time slots. For example: Monday, 3-5 PM: Work on calculus problems (high priority). Tuesday, 6-7 PM: Review notes for literature class (medium priority). Wednesday, 10-11 AM: Read a chapter for sociology (low priority). Be strategic with your scheduling. Many students find it best to tackle more difficult subjects when they feel most alert and energized, whether that’s in the morning or late at night. Save easier tasks or general reviews for times when your energy levels are lower. Step 5: Stay flexible and adapt A study plan is not a static document; it’s a living tool that should evolve with you. Life happens. You might get sick, a professor might assign an unexpected project, or you might find that a subject needs more or less time than you initially planned. The key to long-term success is to build flexibility into your plan and be ready to adapt. Review your study schedule at the end of each week. Ask yourself a few questions: Did I stick to my plan? If not, why? Am I making progress toward my goals? Do I need to allocate more time to a particular subject? Is my schedule still realistic, or am I feeling burnt out? Based on your answers, make adjustments. If you consistently skip a Friday evening study session because you’re too tired, maybe that time is better used for relaxing, and you can find another study slot over the weekend. If you’re acing your biology quizzes, you might be able to reduce your study time for that class and dedicate it to a more challenging one. Make your plan work for you Creating a study plan is a powerful step toward taking control of your academic life. By setting clear goals, understanding your time, prioritizing your subjects, and scheduling your efforts, you can build a routine that reduces stress and boosts your performance. Remember that the perfect study schedule is one that works for you – one that is realistic, balanced, and adaptable. Don't be discouraged if it takes a few tries to get it right. The goal is consistent effort, not perfection. Keep refining your plan as the semester progresses, and you'll find yourself more organized, confident, and prepared to tackle any academic challenge that comes your way.

Some careers grow fast. Others grow steady. Gabriel Lopez chose the second path. His work with GL Construction of Madison reflects a long-term view of building, leadership, and responsibility. Lopez began his career in commercial construction. Early on, he learned that large projects leave little room for error. Schedules are tight. Teams depend on each other. One missed step can delay dozens of workers. “Commercial sites teach you discipline,” Lopez says. “If you’re late or unclear, the whole job feels it.” That experience shaped how he thought about construction. It also shaped how he thought about people. Clarity mattered. Planning mattered. Accountability mattered. Starting GL Construction of Madison In 2006, Lopez founded GL Construction of Madison in Madison, Wisconsin. The company started with commercial work before moving into residential projects. The transition was not about growth for growth’s sake. It was about applying structure to an area that often lacked it. “When we moved into residential work, I noticed how confused homeowners felt,” Lopez says. “They didn’t know what questions to ask.” Lopez saw an opportunity. Not to market harder. But to explain better. “We focused on making the process clear,” he says. “Before tools come out, conversations need to happen.” This approach became a core part of the business. Clear scopes. Clear timelines. Clear expectations. From tasks to systems in construction One of Lopez’s defining ideas was treating exterior work as a system rather than separate jobs. Roofing, siding, framing, and gutters were often sold as individual services. Lopez saw the risk in that approach. “They all affect each other,” he says. “If water doesn’t move away properly, framing suffers. Then everything else follows.” This thinking came from commercial construction, where systems thinking is standard. Lopez applied it to residential homes. “When you understand how a building behaves, decisions change,” he says. GL Construction of Madison focused its services on roofing, siding, framing, and gutters. Not to limit growth, but to protect quality. “Doing fewer things well is better than doing many things poorly,” Lopez says. Leadership through consistency Lopez does not describe himself as a visionary in the traditional sense. His ideas were practical. His leadership style was calm. “Construction doesn’t need hype,” he says. “It needs consistency.” That consistency showed up in daily operations. Teams followed the same process across projects. Clients received the same level of communication regardless of project size. “If you change standards depending on the job, you lose trust,” Lopez says. Over time, this approach shaped the company’s reputation. Not through slogans. Through repeat work and referrals. Defining value, service, and quality GL Construction of Madison operates around three values: value, service, and quality. Lopez is clear about what they mean. “Value is not about being the cheapest,” he says. “It’s about not having to redo the work later.” Service, in his view, is about communication. “Silence creates stress,” Lopez says. “People want to know what’s happening.” Quality is about restraint. “Shortcuts always cost more later,” he says. “They just hide for a while.” These ideas guided decisions even when they slowed projects or reduced short-term gain. “You don’t build a reputation quickly,” Lopez says. “And you can lose it fast.” The long view of building a career Nearly two decades after starting the company, Lopez still views construction as a craft. His big idea was not automation or expansion. It was discipline applied consistently. “Buildings tell the truth over time,” he says. “So does work.” His career reflects that belief. A slow build. A steady process. A clear standard. GL Construction of Madison stands as the result of ideas turned into habits. Habits turned into systems. And systems turned into a lasting career. “We just focus on doing the work properly,” Lopez says. “Everything else follows.”

Written by Danielle McKinnon, Equine Leadership Facilitator/ Social Entrepreneur Danielle McKinon, Founder of Eat Sleep Ride, a rural-based charity in Scotland, and a certified Equine Leadership Coach. Part of the global TeachingHorse network, Danielle applies the Diamond Model of Shared Leadership to help individuals and teams lead with confidence through uncertainty. This year is the year of the snake. Not as a symbol of loss or failure, but of shedding what no longer fits. For a long time, I believed leadership meant pushing forward, through exhaustion, through illness, through the quiet signals that something wasn’t sustainable. Slowing down felt like letting go of momentum, even when everything in my body was asking for a pause. I told myself this was resilience. I told myself this was what commitment looked like. The horses taught me something different. They taught me to connect with the body before the head, to regulate before reasoning. To notice energy before explanation. As I’ve evolved, I’ve spent less time being unwell, not because pressure disappeared, but because I learned to work with it differently. Not harder. Wiser. This is where the real work begins. The snake: What had to be shed Over eight years of building a business, and four years of waiting for adult ADHD medication, I did everything I was told good leadership looked like. I trained relentlessly. I traveled. I qualified in NLP, became certified in equine-facilitated coaching, and transformed a reclaimed landfill site into a functioning, purpose-led space. I founded Herd Dynamics. I made it work. But it came at a cost. What had to be shed wasn’t ambition, it was over-functioning. It was performing resilience instead of practicing sustainability. It was leadership models that reward burnout and systems that don’t support neurodivergent leaders to thrive. I had to stop doing some very specific things, carrying everything myself, staying in my head when my body was asking for rest, and saying yes to work or structures that looked successful but quietly depleted me. I stopped turning my home into a workstation and made it a place of rest again. I stopped doing admin in the middle of the yard and created space to be fully present with the horses. I stopped trying to lead by endurance. Shedding wasn’t dramatic. It was practical. It was choosing health over heroics. It was learning that stepping back is sometimes the most responsible form of leadership. I’m still standing. But I’m standing differently. The horse: What leadership actually looks like Horses don’t respond to performance. They respond to presence. One of the clearest lessons they’ve given me came during a difficult moment at work. I was navigating a challenge with an employee, we were friendly, and I cared about her, but I also knew the role wasn’t working and that a change was needed. Intellectually, I understood this. Emotionally and physically, I hadn’t embodied it yet. I kept circling the conversation instead of having it. I took the issue to the horses. There’s a simple exercise we use called a leadership walk. You choose a direction and invite the horses to move with you. That day, no matter how many times I tried, the horses wouldn’t come. I kept walking the same path, repeating the same approach, and nothing shifted. Standing there, it became obvious, I was doing exactly the same thing in my leadership. I was moving forward without fully accepting the truth of the conversation I needed to have. I wanted harmony, but I was avoiding clarity. The moment I allowed myself to feel the change that was required, not rehearse it, not justify it, but accept it, my body shifted. My pace changed. My energy changed. And only then did the horses follow. They weren’t resisting me. They were reflecting me. That experience taught me something fundamental, leadership doesn’t begin in words. It begins in the body. Until direction is embodied, it can’t be shared. Horses also taught me that boundaries aren’t control, they are safety. When humans become people-pleasing or client-led rather than grounded, horses adapt instantly. Confusion creeps in when leadership doesn’t come from in front, not physically, but energetically. Leadership, through horses, is relational. It’s clarity without force. Responsibility without domination. Regulation before direction. Grounding this in real work This way of leading is not theoretical for me. It’s lived. At Eat Sleep Ride, I hold responsibility for people, animals, land, safety, and systems, all at once. It’s not a polished environment. It’s real. Decisions have consequences, not just outcomes. You feel them in the ground, in the herd, in the team. As I slowed down, other things became possible. I began delegating properly, not as a last resort, but as an act of trust. I started recognizing the strengths in my team instead of compensating for everything myself. Leadership became something we shared, not something I carried alone. Herd Dynamics emerged not as a brand, but as a container, a way to hold this work with integrity. It’s grounded in the belief that relationships take time to build, that systems matter, and that leadership is something you practice, not perform. Cold water swimming became a way to regulate rather than punish my body. Personal development became aligned with the work, not separate from it. And perhaps most importantly, I began to see that meaningful leadership isn’t about constant motion, it’s about stepping back far enough to see the bigger picture. I have always stepped into leadership. But now, the horses are with me. . Leadership through awareness, not control I saw this same lesson reflected recently while working with a young person stepping into her first leadership roles on site. She was practicing a simple pole exercise, focused on guiding the horse through a turn. But as she concentrated harder on the movement itself, she stopped sensing the wider environment. Her body stiffened, her hands lost feel, and she couldn’t adapt her pace or direction. The horse responded by doing what she couldn’t, pivoting, adjusting, compensating. It was a powerful moment. Not because she had done something wrong, but because it revealed how easily leadership narrows under pressure. When attention collapses into control, awareness disappears. Horses make this visible immediately. For our young people, this becomes a language they can relate to, especially when working with clients on site. Leadership isn’t about executing a task perfectly, it’s about staying present enough to respond as things change. Adaptability isn’t a technique. It’s a state of awareness. Stepping forward, not pivoting This isn’t a pivot. It’s a progression. The Year of the Horse asks for a different kind of leadership, one rooted in presence, rhythm, and shared responsibility. It invites us to rethink what strength looks like, who leadership is for, and how we build systems that don’t require people to burn out in order to belong. I’m stepping into leadership that honors pace. That values the body as much as the mind. That understands power as something relational, not extracted. This isn’t about doing less. It’s about doing what actually lasts. If this way of thinking about leadership resonates, I invite you to experience it rather than analyze it. Leadership days at Eat Sleep Ride and through Herd Dynamics offer space to explore embodied, relational leadership working with horses, land, and presence to understand what actually sustains us in responsibility. Sometimes the most meaningful shift isn’t learning something new, it’s remembering how to listen. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Danielle McKinnon Danielle McKinnon, Equine Leadership Facilitator/ Social Entrepreneur Danielle McKinnon is the founder of Eat Sleep Ride | Rural-Based Charity in Scotland, a rural charity using horses, nature, and coaching to support disadvantaged and neurodiverse young people. She is a qualified equine-facilitated learning practitioner, coach, and licensed facilitator of shared leadership, working locally and globally to build brave spaces for change. Her work is rooted in lived experience, community care, and the wisdom of the herd. To explore Danielle's leadership programmes, visit the Leadership at Eat Sleep Ride page at Herd Dynamics | Equine Leadership and Personal Development  these programs support  Eat Sleep Ride .

Written by Laila Belabbas, Splish Splash Handmade Products & Executive Coach Laila Belabbas is the Founder of Splish Splash Handmade Products & Executive Coach In Your Corner. With over 15 years as a Human Resources Leader and Leadership Coach, she holds a Bachelor's in Commerce Entrepreneurial Management-Finance, is a Certified Executive Coach and a member of the International Coaching Federation As a Human Resources Leader and an Executive Coach, I am at the forefront of gender inequality in the workplace. The number of women in leadership roles is surprisingly low, especially so in senior and executive roles. It is very challenging to break into the old boys' club. Why is that? Men are significantly less likely to promote women into leadership roles, so the fewer women in leadership roles, the fewer opportunities there are for women. As an HR and a Coach, I empower women to break through barriers and take charge of their career growth.  Looking to move up in a senior leadership role Nora has been working for this shipping company for 25 years. She worked as a clerk while completing her degree in business management. She worked her way up to management. She was very experienced and knowledgeable about the operational sides of the company. A senior manager role opened up due to a departure for retirement, and Nora decided it was time to move up again. She was excited to continue to grow her leadership career. Nora always had excellent performance reviews and was very appreciated by the employees. Nora felt confident that she would be a great fit for the role. As her Human Resources Manager, I was excited about the next stage of her career.  The hiring process lasted several weeks, and unfortunately, she wasn’t selected. The shipping company decided to hire an external candidate. They believe that he was a stronger candidate for the senior role. She was very disappointed by the decision and was struggling with motivation and engagement. Nora was considering leaving the organization as she couldn’t see a path forward. I scheduled a coaching session with her to understand what led the interviewer to choose another candidate, and to help Nora manage her disappointment and prepare for a future opportunity. I asked Nora, "Have you requested an informal discussion to learn more about what you could have done differently, or what you need to qualify for a senior role when it opens up again?"  She wasn’t pleased with the discussion, however, Nora decided to schedule a meeting with the management team that interviewed to gain clarity on why she wasn’t selected for the senior manager role. The feedback she received was that she needed more exposure on a national level. Nora’s role was regional throughout her career at the shipping company. The level of complexity at the national level required someone with the experience for the role, which she didn’t have. She was still very upset about the decision to add insult to injury, Nora was chosen to train the new senior manager, as she had been acting as the senior manager temporarily until the selection process was completed. You could feel the tension between Nora and Steve, the new senior manager. Nora didn't want to work under Steve’s leadership and wasn’t very enthusiastic about training him because she felt he had taken the promotion that she deserved. What is holding back the promotion The frustration of not being promoted was not helping her behaviour towards Steve. When I spoke with her, I advised her to put her feelings aside, be the professional she is, and let’s create a strategy to help her navigate this challenging time and move on… Nora eventually agreed, and I started to see some improvement in her attitude.  Lack of opportunity to shine and not being seen by the executive team I reached out to the training and development team because I knew they were working on implementing a new leadership program with limited space and available only by referral. I proposed that Nora join the training program, however, I received pushback. They didn’t believe she needed leadership training as her performance exceeded expectations. I convinced the team that she was at risk of leaving the organization due to a lack of motivation.  I approached Steve to discuss Nora’s leadership development, as I was also his HR Manager, and he was candid about the situation and understood Nora’s frustration. However, he was very supportive of her development and agreed that this new leadership program could help Nora’s career. Ah, music to my ear as an HR!  When approached with this new leadership training program, she was a little hesitant. I assured her that this training program is designed specifically for women in leadership roles who aspire to grow into more senior positions. The beauty of this program is that you’re paired with external female leaders from across the country and various organizations, which provides a support group and a safe space to be vulnerable and learn.  In addition, the program is project-based, so Nora had to identify a national challenge the organization faces and develop strategies to address it. Then this assignment was presented to the peer-female-leaders training group and the executive leadership team of the organization she had worked for decades.  This was an opportunity for Nora to shine, gain the exposure she needed to develop new skills at the national level, and be seen by the executive leadership team! When the next senior role presents itself, Nora will be able to demonstrate that she’s the right fit and ready to take on a new challenge.  Follow me on Instagram , LinkedIn , TikTok , and visit my website  for more info! Read more from Laila Belabbas Laila Belabbas, Splish Splash Handmade Products & Executive Coach Laila Belabbas is an Executive Coach, Human Resources Leader, and Entrepreneur passionate about helping people and organizations reach their full potential. With over 15 years of experience in leadership, coaching, and business growth, she brings a human-centered approach to performance and purpose. As the Founder of Splish Splash Handmade Products and Executive Coach In Your Corner, Laila blends strategy with empathy to inspire conscious, authentic leadership. Her articles explore coaching, leadership, entrepreneurship, human resources and wellness, empowering readers to lead with confidence, purpose and live with intention.

Written by Monica Kovacs, Sacred Sexuality and Embodiment Coach Monica is a Sacred Sexuality and Embodiment Coach whose keen interest is exploring the intersections of the mystical and the erotic. With over 10 years of experience in Somatic Sex Education, Tantra, and BDSM, she offers clients embodied tools and practices for healing sexual trauma, reclaiming their erotic wisdom, and integrating sex and spirit. These days, many couples are becoming more intentional about their intimacy. There seems to be a growing awareness that unless we actively tend to the erotic in our relationships, it’s easy for it to slip, become forgotten, or get placed on the back burner amid a growing list of other priorities. But even those couples who faithfully plan their date nights, practice healthy communication, attend tantra workshops, and schedule time for intimacy are still struggling. They seem to be at a loss as to how sex can feel so brittle, flat, and effortful, even after all the care and courage they’ve poured into making it better. More often than not, the problem here lies in the fact that they’re chasing arousal while their bodies are bracing. Their approach to intimacy has been hijacked by our toxic productivity and self-help culture, turning it into a results-based metric, something to measure as either a success or a failure. Rather than focusing on building nervous system capacity and resilience, the ground on which arousal can organically unfold, we obsess over outward signs of arousal, and in their absence, we push even harder. Erotic fulfillment is not about driving yourself harder, but rather about redirecting your attention toward building capacity, so you can expand how much intensity your nervous system can hold. How we learned to treat arousal as the measure of sexual success The most important thing to understand about arousal is that it’s a response, not a skill. However, self-help culture tends to perpetuate the illusion that lack of arousal is just another problem to be corrected and optimized through better conversations, better techniques, better schedules, and balancing your hormones. While all these factors undoubtedly contribute to an improved chance of having good sex, we can think of them more as supportive measures rather than getting to the core of the issue. The biggest misperception that this approach keeps reinforcing is that arousal should be available, on demand, to any functioning adult, with just a little effort and strategy. Likewise, the opposite becomes true, if you can’t get aroused, it means you’ve somehow failed, haven’t tried hard enough, haven’t healed enough, or haven’t done the right exercises. On the other side of self-help culture, we have porn culture perpetuating its own set of myths (and here, I’m referring to mainstream porn, not the ethical and thoughtfully curated erotic content created by independent artists). It trains the nervous system to associate sexuality with constant escalation, novelty, intensity, and faster payoff. Arousal is depicted as immediate, exaggerated, and endlessly renewable. The interactions in the scene unfold without hesitation, pacing, and seemingly without any need for safety and attunement. Most significantly, if the porn does not prioritize ethics via genuine pleasure, what we witness is bodies performing rather than regulating. This unconsciously models a kind of erotic expression that teaches us to override signals of overwhelm, numbness, or disconnection. Again, the message becomes, if you just try harder, you’ll get there. “Getting there,” of course, means more erections, more lubrication, more orgasms, and a raging libido. In the absence of these responses, people wind up feeling broken, stuck in loops of comparison and self-blame. The expectations we place upon our bodies turn into pressure and performance anxiety, further dysregulating the nervous system and standing in the way of the very thing we want. So, it bears repeating, arousal is a response, not something that can be forced through effort. Your nervous system is the real gatekeeper of pleasure When we talk about the nervous system in the context of sex, we are simply talking about the body’s moment-to-moment sense of safety. Long before the mind decides whether something is pleasurable or desirable, the nervous system is scanning the environment and the relational field, asking a single question, "Am I safe enough to stay here?" When the answer is yes, the body can soften, open, and orient toward connection. When the answer is no, or even uncertain, the body mobilizes to protect itself. This is where the familiar survival responses of fight, flight, and freeze come in. A fight may look like irritation, control, or pushing for performance. Flight can appear as a distraction, avoidance, or sudden loss of interest. Freeze often shows up as numbness, dissociation, or feeling like you can’t get out of your head. In contrast, states of safety support curiosity, presence, and the capacity to feel pleasure without bracing. Sex is uniquely demanding on the nervous system because it combines several high-stakes experiences at once. It involves physical intensity, emotional exposure, and a degree of surrender that few other activities require. During sex, we allow ourselves to be seen, touched, entered, and affected. Our breath changes, our defenses soften, and our sense of separateness thins. Even in loving, committed relationships, this level of closeness can activate old protective patterns stored in the body. Past experiences of rejection, shame, pressure, boundary violation, or simply being overwhelmed can teach the nervous system that intimacy equals danger. The body does not distinguish between then and now, it responds to sensation and proximity based on embodied memory, not logic. This is why many people experience a puzzling gap between their conscious desire and their bodily responses. They may love their partner, feel emotionally secure, and genuinely want intimacy, yet their body tightens, shuts down, or drifts away. When this happens, low desire is often misdiagnosed as a lack of attraction or a relational problem. In reality, it is frequently a protective response, the nervous system down-regulating arousal in order to prevent overwhelm. Seen through this lens, low desire is not a failure or deficiency, but an intelligent strategy. The body is saying, this is too much, too fast, or not safe enough yet. When we understand this, the question shifts from “Why can’t I get aroused?” to “What would help my body feel safe enough to stay present?” When trying harder pushes the body further away When I work one-on-one with clients, I see the panic on their faces as they recount the story of their downward spiral. Their arousal feels increasingly removed from the realm of possibility, as if walled off by a thick fog. The farther it slips, the more they grasp, bracing their bodies and intensifying sensation in an effort to force it to stay. Except that this rarely works. And even if it does yield an orgasm in the end, it feels like nothing more than a tiny sneeze after a tense and grueling trial. The effort is rarely met with an equal measure of satisfaction. This inevitably makes people feel confused, frustrated, and hopeless. It triggers a cycle of behaviors that seek to mask the symptom rather than address the underlying dysregulation. This might look like adding more techniques to one’s sexual repertoire, effectively keeping the focus on performance rather than presence. It might involve increasing the intensity of stimulation to the point that it becomes numbing or damaging to the body. And for most people, the focal point becomes a rush to orgasm because any amount of lingering in the present moment brings with it a sense of threat, a fear of losing arousal, and a fear of being seen in a place of vulnerability. The paradox of this kind of effort is that it is driven by an engine of fear, fear of being broken, inadequate, and unworthy. The cost of pushing the body in this way is that it sacrifices true intimacy, embodiment, and the healing capacity of presence, whether that presence is directed at oneself or one’s partner. The skill no one teaches: Erotic capacity Erotic capacity is a nervous system skill. We can define it as the ability to stay present with sensation, intimacy, and intensity. Unlike arousal, this is a trainable skill. Just like our physical strength, our nervous system capacity is not fixed. It can grow or diminish based on our life circumstances and our willingness to lean into our edges. The more we cultivate our ability to stay regulated and present within our body, the more we grow in our capacity to perceive and hold pleasure and arousal. There’s a subtle difference between high erotic capacity and high arousal that’s important to distinguish. While some people may get turned on quickly, they may still struggle to sustain that current of energy over time. Erotic capacity is the ability to hold both depth and intensity for a sustained period without collapsing. High arousal without capacity often looks impressive on the surface, but it is brittle. The body lights up quickly, intensity spikes, and sensation builds fast, yet there is very little room for nuance, pacing, or disruption. When something unexpected happens, such as a change in rhythm, a surge of emotion, or a moment of vulnerability, the system tips into overwhelm or shuts down. This is why arousal alone does not create satisfaction. Without capacity, the intensity doesn’t land or get metabolized. Erotic capacity, by contrast, creates containment. It allows sensation to deepen rather than peak and crash. A person with high capacity may not be the quickest to get turned on, but once arousal arrives, it can be sustained, expanded, and woven with connection. There is room for pauses, for waves of emotion, and for moments of uncertainty without losing the thread of presence. Pleasure becomes less about chasing a climax and more about inhabiting a current. Importantly, growing erotic capacity does not mean pushing through discomfort or forcing openness. It means learning how to meet the edge without crossing into overwhelm. It is built through micro-moments of staying present, noticing sensation instead of overriding it, slowing down instead of speeding up, and choosing curiosity instead of control. Over time, these moments accumulate. The nervous system learns that intensity does not automatically equal danger and that it can remain intact even in states of deep arousal and closeness. When we shift the focus from generating arousal to expanding capacity, pleasure becomes more sustainable. Intimacy no longer depends on peak states or perfect conditions. Instead, it grows from the body’s increasing confidence in its ability to stay with what is real, alive, and unfolding. Why safety is the foundation of erotic range For many people, the idea of nervous system regulation may conjure a sense of something dull, cautious, and boring. But the ultimate paradox is that the safer the nervous system feels, the more risk it can tolerate without collapsing into dissociation. This is the sweet spot that most people are unknowingly chasing, being present with intensity, feeling it fully, rather than just performing it. Some important somatic markers you can look at during sex to gauge your level of regulation are your breath, your attention, and your muscle tone. Notice, initially, if your breath is deep and slow, and if it reaches your pelvic floor as you inhale. Naturally, as your arousal increases, your breathing patterns will speed up and change. However, it should always feel flexible and easy. An indication of a dysregulated nervous system might be a breath that is perpetually shallow, fast, and rigid. Likewise, your attention should be flexible, able to zoom in and out at will, and able to linger on the experiences of your choice, fully absorbing and savoring them without the interruption of restless and unhelpful thoughts. If your mind is looping in self-criticism, worry, or strategizing, this indicates that you’ve moved away from safety and are entering a fight-or-flight state. Your muscles, especially those around your hips and belly, should be relaxed, though they may pulse and contract involuntarily as your arousal builds. Again, rigidity and clenching can be a signal that your body is moving away from safety. Cultivating safety gives us the capacity for erotic range, allowing us to inhabit both tenderness and ferocity and feel anchored at both ends of that spectrum. When the nervous system is well-regulated, we can shift focus from performance to presence, from tracking outcomes to noticing subtle cues. This is the ground on which we gain permission to play more, deepen our trust in our own bodies, and expand the scope of our erotic experiences. This shift sets the stage for less urgency, more responsiveness, and more meaningful connections. From chasing arousal to building capacity If there is one invitation this article offers, it is this, stop asking your body to perform, and start listening to what it needs in order to stay present. Arousal was never meant to be coerced or managed through force of will. It is a natural response that arises when the nervous system feels safe enough to soften into sensation, connection, and intensity. When we mistake arousal for the goal, we inevitably turn intimacy into another arena of pressure and self-judgment. But when we shift our focus toward regulation and capacity, something far more sustainable becomes possible. This shift requires patience and courage. It asks us to slow down where we’ve been rushing, to feel where we’ve been overriding, and to meet the edges of our experience with curiosity rather than control. Over time, this reorientation changes not only how sex feels but how we relate to our bodies and to one another. Pleasure becomes less fleeting, intimacy becomes more resilient, and desire naturally has room to emerge. If you recognize yourself or your relationship in these pages, know that this work does not have to be done alone. Expanding erotic capacity is deeply relational, and having skilled support can make the process feel safer, clearer, and more embodied. If you’re interested in working with me one-on-one, either individually or as a couple, I invite you to visit my website here  to learn more or get in touch. Together, we can explore what it would mean for your body to feel safe enough to fully inhabit pleasure, intimacy, and connection. Follow me on Instagram and LinkedIn for more info! Read more from Monica Kovacs Monica Kovacs, Sacred Sexuality and Embodiment Coach Monica is a Sacred Sexuality and Embodiment Coach who brings a holistic lens to the understanding of human eroticism. Coming from a deeply religious and dogmatic background, she spent her early adulthood breaking taboos and exploring ways to integrate the mystical and the erotic. Now with over a decade of experience in Tantra, BDSM, Somatic Sex Education, Breathwork, and Depth Psychology, she devotes herself to guiding others along the path back to sexual wholeness. Using practices that are grounded in modern neuroscience while also drawing on ancient wisdom traditions, she aims to equip clients with body-based tools for accessing healing, growth, and insight on their sexual journey.

Written by Christina Giordano, Marketing & Manifesting Consultant Christina Giordano is the founder of the movement Soul'd™, an approach to marketing and manifesting with nothing but the essence that is you. Most people don’t struggle with manifesting because they’re doing it wrong. They struggle because they’ve been taught to do it in a way that disconnects them from themselves. The dominant manifestation paradigm asks you to perform belief, manufacture certainty, and rehearse outcomes you don’t yet trust. It encourages you to “fake it until you make it,” to override your internal signals, and to adopt identities that aren’t true, all in the name of getting something external. That approach doesn’t fail because you’re incapable. It fails because it’s inauthentic. The form of manifesting I teach is rooted in essence. It does not require you to become someone else. It requires you to return to who you already are. Your essence is your highest frequency, your internal compass, energetic signature, and most truthful point of orientation. When you lead from it, you stop forcing outcomes and start broadcasting coherence. And coherence is what creates magnetism. But before the external world can reorganize, an internal shift must occur. The ego must loosen its grip. Not the ego as arrogance, but the ego as protection, hesitation, perfectionism, and self-silencing. The parts of you that stay small to remain safe. The parts that wait for the “right time.” The parts that monitor perception instead of truth. Your essence is free. And manifesting becomes easier when you allow it to lead. Below are five mindset shifts that support this return, especially for entrepreneurs and leaders building from alignment rather than performance. Mindset shift 1: You’re not figuring it out, you’re remembering Your essence already knows. Your message. Your strategy. Your next step. When you stop trying to solve your life from the mind alone and begin listening inward, clarity emerges naturally. This isn’t intuition as guesswork, it’s self-recognition. When you remember who you are, decisions stop feeling heavy. Action becomes congruent. Manifesting accelerates when you trust what’s already within you. Mindset shift 2: Your reality reflects what you are authoring If life is responsive (and it is) then you are not a passive participant. You are the main character. What story are you telling through your choices? Through your posture? Through what you tolerate and pursue? When you recognize yourself as the author, responsibility returns, not as pressure, but as power. You don’t wait for permission. You write forward. Manifestation becomes less about hoping and more about inhabiting the role you’re here to play. Mindset shift 3: Money is a mirror, not a master Your relationship with money reflects your relationship with worth, safety, and trust. When money is unconsciously positioned as authority, it controls your decisions and constrains your identity. But when it becomes a mirror, it reveals where alignment exists, and where it doesn’t. From this perspective, money is information. It responds to stewardship, not force. Integrity, not urgency. Manifesting abundance becomes sustainable when money is no longer feared or worshipped, but understood. Mindset shift 4: Life responds to your consciousness, not your costume The Universe does not respond to what you want. It responds to who you are being. Your self-concept. Your capacity. Your internal posture. No amount of scripting or visualization can override misalignment. Manifestation is not about appearance; it’s about embodiment. When your inner state is coherent, life responds accordingly. This is why essence-led manifesting works. It’s honest. Mindset shift 5: You don’t receive what you deserve, you receive what you broadcast You are the signal. Your essence is not something you perform, it’s something you radiate. And what you radiate organizes your field. You cannot fake frequency. You cannot bypass embodiment. When your essence leads, you receive opportunities, resources, and experiences that match your internal state, not your effort level. For soul-aligned entrepreneurs, this changes everything Through essence-led marketing, you clarify your message. Through essence-led manifesting, you become the version of yourself who can carry it. Manifesting becomes easier not because life gets simpler, but because you are no longer divided. Your essence is the portal. Follow me on   I nstagram  and visit my website for more info! Read more from Christina Giordano Christina Giordano, Marketing & Manifesting Consultant For over 15 years, Christina Giordano has helped soulpreneurs build their businesses with alignment and authenticity, leading the way. In 2020, she channeled her own methods of self-discovery, which act as soulful (yet practical) roadmaps for entrepreneurs to market and manifest with nothing but their essence. These methods are The Marketing Methods, The L.I.F.E. Method, The S.O.U.L. Method, and The L.O.V.E. Method, and The Manifesting Methods, The D.E.B.I.T. Method, The C.R.E.D.I.T. Method, and The R.O.S.E. Method. The methods represent the movement Christina has founded and trademarked as “Soul’d,” which empowers big-hearted business owners to show up, be seen, and shine in the way that is uniquely and wholeheartedly you.

Written by Christina Giordano, Marketing & Manifesting Consultant Christina Giordano is the founder of the movement Soul'd™, an approach to marketing and manifesting with nothing but the essence that is you. You’re not just building a business. You’re answering a calling. For many entrepreneurs, their career path and soul path are deeply intertwined. Their work is not something they chose randomly; it’s something they were entrusted with. And yet, as they grow their business, they’re often told to follow strategies that ask them to do more, be more, and push harder, even when it costs them their authenticity, boundaries, and wholeness. This is not a failure of discipline. It’s a failure of paradigm. The old models of marketing and manifesting pull entrepreneurs away from themselves. They prioritize performance over presence, tactics over truth, and outcomes over integrity. After more than a decade as a business owner, I’ve seen this pattern repeatedly - both in my own journey and in the work I do with clients. Authentic business building doesn’t come from forcing strategies onto yourself. It comes from working with your essence. Below are five reasons why. Reason 1: When you work with your essence, you become magnetic instead of forceful True magnetism is not created by effort. It’s created by alignment. There’s a common idea in manifestation spaces that your inner world creates your outer world. While this is fundamentally true, the way it’s often taught skips the most important part: internal transformation. Many approaches ask you to think differently or feel differently without addressing the deeper layers of identity, nervous system capacity, and subconscious patterning. That can work temporarily, but eventually, you’re still the same version of yourself trying to hold a larger reality than you’re equipped for. You cannot build a business that outpaces who you’ve become. When you work with your essence, you don’t chase opportunities, you attract them. You stop forcing momentum and start moving with flow. This happens because you’re no longer operating from an older identity that’s trying to “get” something. You’re becoming the version of yourself who can naturally hold what your business is calling in. Growth requires capacity. Essence builds it. Reason 2: When you work with your essence, you no longer look outside yourself for direction or validation One of the most destabilizing patterns entrepreneurs fall into is outsourcing their authority. They look to trends, experts, formulas, and external opinions to tell them what their next move should be. Over time, this creates confusion, hesitation, and self-doubt, not because they lack intelligence, but because they’ve disconnected from themselves. Working with your essence restores internal leadership. When you know yourself, you know how to move. You trust your timing. You trust your decisions. You trust your path. This kind of certainty doesn’t come from confidence-building exercises. It comes from shedding everything that isn’t you. Once that happens, second-guessing dissolves. You’re no longer waiting for permission or reassurance. Your clarity becomes self-generated. That is real authority. Reason 3: When you work with your essence, you co-create with life through intention, not outcomes Outcome fixation is one of the most subtle forms of self-betrayal in entrepreneurship. When you’re attached to a specific result, you begin clinging. The goal turns into an expectation, and your sense of safety becomes dependent on whether or not it arrives. This creates pressure, constriction, and eventually burnout. Intention works differently. Intention asks: Who are you becoming? How are you moving? What values are you honoring? When you lead with intention instead of outcomes, you stay present with the process of creation itself. You recognize that fulfillment doesn’t come from the end result, it comes from who you become while building. Your calling was never about a single outcome. It was about embodiment. Reason 4: When you work with your essence, you break old patterns that keep you stuck Every entrepreneur carries inherited patterns around worth, money, visibility, and success. Left unexamined, these patterns quietly dictate behavior, decisions, and ceilings. Working with your essence means interrupting those cycles. In business, this shows up as releasing outdated marketing paradigms that prioritize credentials, performance, or polished personas over lived truth. What actually resonates isn’t your résumé, it’s your journey, your process, and the transformation you facilitate. Internally, this work dismantles limiting beliefs, attachment wounds, nervous system dysregulation, and unconscious self-sabotage. These are not personal failures; they are conditioned responses. When they dissolve, a different version of you emerges. One who is no longer fighting themselves. One who knows how to win without force. Reason #5: When you work with your essence, you fully recognize your value and worth Value recognition is not a mindset. It’s an integration. As you reconnect with your essence, you stop negotiating your worth. Comparison loses its grip. Imposter syndrome quiets. You’re no longer performing for approval; you’re expressing from truth. Your essence is your higher self embodied. It is clarity without fear. Confidence without arrogance. Power without pressure. When your business is led from this place, alignment becomes natural. Decisions simplify. Visibility feels clean. Growth becomes sustainable. This is what it means to build a business with integrity. If you’re searching for the next strategy that finally feels authentic, stop looking outward. The most powerful strategy you will ever use is already within you. Your essence isn’t an accessory to your business. It is the foundation. Follow me on   I nstagram  and visit  my website for more info! Read more from Christina Giordano Christina Giordano, Marketing & Manifesting Consultant For over 15 years, Christina Giordano has helped soulpreneurs build their businesses with alignment and authenticity, leading the way. In 2020, she channeled her own methods of self-discovery, which act as soulful (yet practical) roadmaps for entrepreneurs to market and manifest with nothing but their essence. These methods are The Marketing Methods - The L.I.F.E. Method, The S.O.U.L. Method, and The L.O.V.E. Method, and The Manifesting Methods - The D.E.B.I.T. Method, The C.R.E.D.I.T. Method, and The R.O.S.E. Method. The methods represent the movement Christina has founded and trademarked as “Soul’d,” which empowers big-hearted business owners to show up, be seen, and shine in the way that is uniquely and wholeheartedly you.

Written by Christina Giordano, Marketing & Manifesting Consultant Christina Giordano is the founder of the movement Soul'd™, an approach to marketing and manifesting with nothing but the essence that is you. Every entrepreneur is operating from a version of themselves, whether consciously or not. There is the contracted version: shaped by outdated pain, patterns, and programming. This version moves from survival, hesitates to be fully seen, and often doubts her capacity to hold what she desires. And then there is the expansive version. The expansive version moves with confidence, clarity, and conviction. She does not force momentum, she embodies it. She builds from truth, not fear. This is the version of you who can actually hold the business, visibility, and impact you are being called toward. For a long time, I was not operating from that version. I was building from a foundation that wasn’t truly mine, one shaped by external expectations, inherited beliefs, and unexamined compromises. I accepted less than I deserved. I placed everyone and everything on a pedestal except myself. And eventually, the weight of that misalignment became impossible to ignore. What I came to understand is this: If you’ve been given a calling, the only thing that can obstruct it is the version of you who hasn’t yet recognized her own capacity. Releasing the contracted version of yourself is not an act of rejection. It is an act of integration. You don’t bypass her. You love her, forgive her, and thank her for getting you here. And then you let her rest. What follows is not effort. It is alignment. Below are four essential shifts required to embody the version of you who can build a truly soul-aligned business. 1. The shed is required Authenticity is not something you add; it is something you uncover. Shedding means releasing old pain, patterns, and programming from the mind, body, and nervous system. It means dismantling identities that were formed in survival rather than truth. Your essence has always been intact. It has simply been covered. The more you shed what isn’t you, the more naturally aligned opportunities, relationships, and ideas begin to find you. This is not because you are doing more, it’s because you are no longer distorting your signal. This is the foundation of inner alignment. 2. You must become intimately aware of your contracted self The contracted version of you is subtle and persistent. She tells you to wait. She hands your power to external authorities. She convinces you that pushing harder is the answer. She operates from fear, scarcity, and self-doubt, even when things appear “successful” on the surface. Many manifestation frameworks fail because they ask this version of you to simply do more. More affirmations. More visualizations. More effort. But nothing sustainable can be built while the contracted self is leading. Awareness creates choice. Choice creates freedom. And freedom allows a new version of you to step forward. 3. Your baseline beliefs determine your capacity Your baseline frequency is not about positivity. It is about truth. What do you fundamentally believe about yourself? About life? About whether you are supported or struggling against the world? These beliefs quietly dictate your ceiling. As you shed conditioned narratives about worth and value, your internal state begins to shift. You become lighter. Clearer. More present. You stop fighting reality and start co-creating with it. From this state, opportunities become visible that were previously inaccessible - not because they weren’t there, but because you couldn’t see them. Freedom expands perception. 4. Your essence must lead Your essence is not your “best self.” It is your truest self. It is not concerned with proving, performing, or perfecting. It is concerned with truth, integrity, and alignment. The more you live from this place, the more coherent your life becomes. Decisions simplify. Strategy clarifies. Action feels natural. This is the version of you who builds with precision, not pressure. With trust, not force. Why does this matter for business? Because a soul-aligned business can only be built by the most expansive version of you. No strategy can override misalignment. No system can compensate for self-abandonment. If the vision feels right but you cannot move toward it, the issue is not the calling, it is the version of you attempting to carry it. This is what I know to be true: Your message is clear because you have lived it. Your strategy is accessible because it reflects who you are. And your capacity expands when you allow your essence to lead. The version of you who wins is not trying harder. She is aligned. The question is not whether you are capable. The question is whether you are willing to become the version of yourself who can hold it. Will you answer that call? Follow me on   I nstagram  and visit  my website for more info! Read more from Christina Giordano Christina Giordano, Marketing & Manifesting Consultant For over 15 years, Christina Giordano has helped soulpreneurs build their businesses with alignment and authenticity, leading the way. In 2020, she channeled her own methods of self-discovery, which act as soulful (yet practical) roadmaps for entrepreneurs to market and manifest with nothing but their essence. These methods are The Marketing Methods, The L.I.F.E. Method, The S.O.U.L. Method, and The L.O.V.E. Method, and The Manifesting Methods, The D.E.B.I.T. Method, The C.R.E.D.I.T. Method, and The R.O.S.E. Method. The methods represent the movement Christina has founded and trademarked as “Soul’d,” which empowers big-hearted business owners to show up, be seen, and shine in the way that is uniquely and wholeheartedly you.

Written by Joanne Pagett, Midlife Mentor & Strategist Joanne Pagett is a Women’s Wellness Strategist and Mentor who empowers women to navigate the emotional, physical, and mental transitions of midlife. She helps them rediscover their energy, identity, and joy, and partners with organisations to create supportive, wellbeing-focused environments for women in the workplace. There’s a moment in every workout when your muscles scream, your mind whispers, “That’s enough,” and quitting seems like the logical choice. That last rep, the one that feels impossible, is where real transformation happens. If you’re a woman in midlife who’s spent years building a career, raising others, and putting yourself last, that moment in the gym mirrors exactly what you’re feeling right now about the bigger changes calling to you. Why this matters now (not later) You’ve been thinking about it for months, maybe years. Pivoting your business. Finally, prioritize your health. Walking away from a career that no longer fits leaves you feeling cold. Starting that thing you’ve been “too busy” or “too old” to begin. What’s really happening is you’re standing at the edge of your last rep, and the weight feels impossibly heavy. Not because you’re weak, but because you’ve never let yourself find out how strong you actually are. The physical truth (and why it matters at this stage) When you push past perceived limits in the gym, you’re triggering hypertrophy, forcing your body to adapt and grow stronger. But here’s what they don’t tell women over 40, our bodies are still capable of remarkable transformation. You’re not “too late.” You’re not “past your prime.” You’re “right on time.” Muscle doesn’t know your age. It only knows tension and recovery. Every strength training session after 40 isn’t just about building muscle. It’s preserving bone density, balancing hormones, and proving to yourself that you can still become someone new. That last rep? It’s evidence that you’re not declining. You’re evolving. The psychological breakthrough (this is where everything shifts) From a psychological perspective, that last rep rewrites your internal narrative. Sports psychology research shows that pushing through physical barriers directly impacts your self-efficacy, your belief in your ability to succeed at anything. Research by psychologist Albert Bandura shows that self-efficacy, your belief in your ability to succeed, is developed primarily through "mastery experiences." Every time you accomplish something you thought was impossible, you're literally rewiring your brain's confidence pathways. Source: National Institutes of Health Each time you complete what felt impossible, you’re literally rewiring neural pathways associated with confidence and resilience. Source: American Journal of Health Education For midlife women, this is profound. We’ve spent decades being competent, capable, maybe even extraordinary, in roles others defined for us, as professionals, as caregivers, as the “responsible one.” When was the last time you did something that felt impossible for you alone? That last rep teaches you that discomfort doesn’t mean danger, difficulty doesn’t mean defeat, and being scared doesn’t mean you’re going in the wrong direction. It shows you’re finally going "your" direction. Overcoming the fear of “dropping the weight” (metaphorically) The fear of dropping the weight isn’t really about the barbell, it’s about: Failing publicly after being competent for so long Disappointing people who depend on the “old” version of you Discovering you waited too long, and it really is too late Looking foolish as a beginner when you’re used to being the expert Losing financial security, professional identity, or your social standing These fears are real. They’re also the chains keeping you from the life you actually want. Here’s how to push through Reframe failure as expensive education: Every “dropped weight” teaches you exactly where your edge is. At this stage of life, you don’t have time to play small. You need data, and “failure” gives you the most valuable information. Control the controllable: Just like using a spotter and safety bars in the gym, you can architect your leap strategically. That business pivot? Start it as a side project. That health transformation? Hire the coach. That career change? Build the bridge before you burn the boats. When you remove unnecessary risk, fear loses its rational foundation. What’s left is just the discomfort of growth. Visualise the struggle, not just the success. Elite athletes don’t visualise perfection, they visualise pushing through the hard parts. See yourself exhausted at month three. Visualise the moment your old colleagues question your choices. Imagine your business hitting a plateau and see yourself solving it. Prepare for the messy middle. That’s where most people quit. But not you. This is where the growth is. Building strength from within when there’s nothing left The truth about midlife? You’ve been running on empty for years, giving more than you had. Pushing through while depleted, worn out, and on your knees. When I say, “build strength when there’s nothing left,” I’m not asking you to dig deeper into the same well. I’m asking you to drill a new one. Practical strategies for women rebuilding themselves 1. Stop training for endurance, start training for power You’ve proven you can endure, decades of juggling, sacrificing, and pushing through have demonstrated that. But power? That’s different. Power is explosive, intentional, it’s lifting heavy things and putting them down. It’s saying no, disappointing people on purpose, choosing yourself first, not last. In the gym, lift heavier weights for fewer reps. In life, make fewer commitments with greater impact. 2. Vocalise what you want (literally) Studies show that vocalisation activates your sympathetic nervous system and can boost power output by up to 25%. But how often do you actually say out loud what you want? Not what you “should” want, not what’s “realistic” or “appropriate for your age,” but what you truly want. Practice in the gym. Grunt, count out loud, make noise. Then take it into your life. Tell someone your real goal, say the scary thing. Speak your ambition without apologising for it. 3. Leverage your “why” (but make sure it’s yours) In that moment, under the bar, connect to something bigger. But here’s the critical question: Is it "your" why, or is it another version of service that keeps you safe? “I want to be healthy for my kids” keeps you small. “I want to be healthy because I deserve to feel powerful in my body for the next 40 years” is the truth that transforms. “I’m building this business to create flexibility” is safe. “I’m building this business because I refuse to spend another decade making someone else rich while my ideas die inside me” is the fire that sustains you. 4. Embrace the plateau (and trust the timeline) Sometimes that last rep won’t happen. Sometimes your business will stall. Sometimes you’ll gain the weight back, lose the client, or doubt everything. Your strength isn’t measured by one moment. It’s measured by showing up consistently to test your limits, especially when it feels pointless. Midlife transformation isn’t linear, it’s not a 90-day challenge. It’s a complete identity shift that takes as long as it takes. Trust the process. You’ve got time, more than you think, and less than you’ll waste by staying where you are. The truth about midlife reinvention Society has convinced us that midlife for women is about graceful acceptance, downsizing, becoming invisible, and making room for the next generation. That’s rubbish! This is when you finally have the experience, clarity, resources, and sheer audacity to build the life you were always capable of. You know who you are, you know what you don’t want, and you’re finally willing to disappoint people to get what you do want. The gym is your laboratory That last rep is your practice run for every scary thing you’re about to do. Every time you load the bar heavier than last week, you’re proving to your nervous system that you can handle more than feels comfortable. Every time you show up sore and do it anyway, you’re practising the exact discipline you’ll need when your business hits month six, and revenue is flat. Every time you fail a lift, reset, and try again, you’re rehearsing the resilience you’ll need when the career pivot feels like a mistake, and everyone’s watching. Your “last rep” moments are waiting You already know what they are: The business idea you’ve been “planning” for three years. The career conversation you’re too scared to have. The weight you’ve been trying to lose since your 30s. The relationship dynamic you keep tolerating. The creative pursuit you decided was “impractical.” The version of yourself you see in quiet moments but never show anyone. Here’s what I know about you You’re capable of extraordinary things. You’ve already proven that by building the life you have, even if it’s not the one you want. You’re competent, resilient, and far stronger than you’ve allowed yourself to be. The only question is, "How much longer are you going to leave that strength in the gym?" That last rep is calling, in your body, in your business, in your life. And this time, maybe for the first time in a long time, it gets to be about "you". So let me ask you, "What’s your last rep? What’s the thing you keep thinking about but haven’t pulled the trigger on? What would it take for you to start today? Not perfectly, but messily, bravely, and finally?" If you’re ready to “lift the bar” but you’re afraid to drop it, then I’m just a message away. Let’s talk about what you’re really capable of. Follow me on Facebook , Instagram , LinkedIn , and visit my website for more info! Read more from Joanne Pagett Joanne Pagett, Midlife Mentor & Strategist Joanne Pagett is a Women’s Wellness Strategist and Mentor who helps women navigate the emotional, physical, and mental transitions of midlife. As the founder of The Female Energy P.O.W.E.R System™, she empowers women to rediscover their confidence, energy, and sense of purpose. With over 25 years of corporate experience, Joanne also partners with organisations to create supportive and inclusive wellbeing strategies for women in the workplace. Through her coaching, writing, and workshops, she inspires women to transform midlife from a season of uncertainty into one of strength, clarity, and joy.

In 2025, the most-watched TED Talks moved far beyond motivation and self-optimization. Instead, they reflected a global curiosity around power, technology, trust, and what it means to stay human in an AI-driven world. Photo: Jason Redmond / TED, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 1. This Is What a Digital Coup Looks Like By Carole Cadwalladr Cadwalladr exposes how democracy can be quietly undermined through data manipulation, targeted misinformation, and opaque algorithms. What made this talk resonate wasn’t fear, it was clarity. She helped audiences understand how digital systems shape public opinion without most people realizing it, turning abstract threats into something tangible and urgent. Watch Carole's TED talk here! 2. How to Spot Fake AI Photos By Hany Farid Farid delivers one of the year’s most practical talks, breaking down how AI-generated images deceive the human eye. He explains the subtle inconsistencies most people miss and why visual literacy is becoming a core skill in the age of misinformation. Watch Hany's TED talk here! 3. The Art of Reading Minds By Oz Pearlman Blending entertainment with psychology, Pearlman shows how body language, micro-signals, and human intuition reveal far more than words alone. The talk stood out for turning human behavior into something both fascinating and immediately relatable. Watch Oz's TED talk here! 4. The AI Arsenal That Could Stop World War III By Palmer Luckey A bold and polarizing talk that explores AI as a potential deterrent rather than a weapon. Luckey challenges traditional thinking around defense, raising complex questions about ethics, power, and technological escalation. Watch Palmer's TED talk here! 5. Meet NEO, Your Robot Butler in Training By Bernt Børnich One of the most-watched demonstrations of the year, this talk offers a real-world look at humanoid robots entering daily life. Practical, concrete, and surprisingly grounded, it made the future feel much closer than expected. Watch Bernt's TED talk here! 6. The Next Computer? Your Glasses By Shahram Izadi Izadi reframes how we think about computing itself, suggesting that spatial computing and smart glasses could replace screens altogether. The talk sparked conversations about how invisible technology may soon become our primary interface. Watch Shahram's TED talk here! 7. Why Climate Action Is Unstoppable and “Climate Realism” Is a Myth By Al Gore Gore counters skepticism with data, momentum, and real-world progress. Rather than focusing on fear, the talk emphasizes solutions already in motion and why climate action is accelerating, not stalling. Watch Al's TED talk here! 8. The Catastrophic Risks of AI and a Safer Path By Yoshua Bengio One of the most serious talks of the year. Bengio calmly outlines the long-term risks of unchecked AI development while proposing realistic, collaborative approaches to safety and governance. Watch Yoshuas TED talk here! 9. The Science of Making Fruits and Veggies Last Longer By Jenny Du A quietly powerful reminder that innovation doesn’t always look flashy. Du shows how small scientific breakthroughs can significantly reduce food waste and improve global sustainability systems. Watch Jenny's TED talk here! 10. How AI Will Answer Questions We Haven’t Thought to Ask By Aravind Srinivas This future-facing talk explores how AI may not just respond to human questions, but expand how we think, explore, and discover, reshaping curiosity itself. Watch Aravind's TED talk here! Takeaway: The most popular TED Talks of 2025 weren’t about inspiration. They were about awareness, who holds power, how technology shapes truth, and how humans stay grounded as systems accelerate.