What happens when staying authentic costs you everything… but opens the door to something even bigger?

In this inspiring episode of Become Empowered, Sabine Kvenberg sits down with author, voice actor, musician, and storyteller Aaron Ryan to talk about resilience, reinvention, creativity, and the courage to stay true to yourself—even when it comes at a cost.

Aaron shares his remarkable journey from accidentally becoming a voice actor to publishing 50+ books, creating music, and building a legacy through storytelling. But behind the success is a deeply human story of rejection, disappointment, and learning to trust yourself when the world doesn’t validate your path.

Together, Sabine and Aaron explore:

✨ Why authenticity matters—even when it’s uncomfortable
✨ The toxic side of creative industries and how to overcome setbacks
✨ What creators and authors need to know about marketing books successfully
✨ How storytelling shapes human connection
✨ The surprising link between pain, music, and creativity
✨ Why your focus determines your reality
✨ The powerful lesson of learning you are truly worthy of love

Aaron also shares one of the most touching legacy projects imaginable: a daily journal he’s been writing for his sons since infancy.

If you’re an entrepreneur, creator, author, speaker—or simply someone navigating change—this episode will remind you that setbacks can become the doorway to your greatest creative chapter.

Key takeaway: Sometimes losing what feels safe is exactly what creates space for something extraordinary.

🎧 Tune in and discover how embracing your authentic self can transform your life.

Get on Podmatch to become a guest or get amazing guests for your show. https://www.joinpodmatch.com/sabine_invitation

Aaron's website: https://authoraaronryan.com/

Sabine's info:

Connect via Calendly: https://calendly.com/coachsabine/connect-with-sabine 

Pre-order GUMPTION: 

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/gumption-sabine-kvenberg/1148750776?ean=9781636989150

RESOURCES:  https://www.sabinekvenberg.com/resources  

What if your money problems have nothing to do with money?
In this episode of Become Empowered, Sabine sits down with Scott Maderer — host of the Inspired Stewardship podcast with over 1,800 episodes — to unpack a truth most people avoid: financial stress is a symptom, not the source. The real problem is alignment.

Scott opens up about his raw personal story: $60,000 in debt on a $40,000 teacher's salary, suicidal thoughts he kept hidden from his wife, and the radical turning point that changed everything. From the classroom to a corporate executive suite to launching a full-time coaching business after a stranger said, "You and your wife are weird — can you help us be weird?"

In this conversation you'll discover:
• Why your checkbook and calendar reveal what you actually value (not what you say you do)
• The little-known difference between career and vocation — and why it changes how you live
• How to master your time, talent, and treasure intentionally
• The one question we stop asking adults that could unlock everything

Scott shares insights from his book Inspired Living and has a free resource page exclusively for Become Empowered listeners at inspiredstewardship.com/becomeempowered.

If you've ever felt stuck, out of alignment, or like your life doesn't match what you say matters most — this episode is for you.

CONNECT WITH SCOTT
Website: inspiredstewardship.com
Podcast: Inspired Stewardship

CONNECT WITH SABINE

Register for free webinar:

https://sabinekvenberg.com/be-seen-live-masterclass
Website: sabinekvenberg.com/resources
Book a call: talktosabine.com
Instagram/LinkedIn: @sabinekvenberg

TOPICS COVERED
[0:01] Welcome — Introducing Scott Maderer
[0:56] Scott's three words: Curious, Knowledgeable, Giving
[3:40] From science teacher to corporate executive — Scott's path
[4:47] $60K in debt on a $40K salary — and suicidal thoughts he kept secret from his wife
[6:35] "You and your wife are weird" — how a stranger accidentally launched a coaching business
[9:43] Money is the symptom — here's the real problem
[12:28] "Show me your checkbook and calendar — I'll tell you if you're lying"
[17:09] Scott's book: Inspired Living — assembling the puzzle of your calling
[18:06] The "blood of the covenant" quote that reframes legacy
[21:00] Can you — and should you — get paid for your calling?
[21:51] Career vs. vocation: the word roots that will change how you think about purpose
[24:09] What "calling" actually means and why it shows up in everything
[29:35] Scott's final message: stop asking "what do you want to do?" — ask who you want to BE

What if manifestation isn't something you do — but something you live?

In this episode, I'm sharing something personal. For my birthday, I ended up on a race track — behind the wheel of a race car — and I never planned it. What unfolded that day became one of the clearest examples of manifestation I've ever experienced in my own life. Not because I followed a formula. Because I was aligned.

I also take you inside my new book GUMPTION: Sacred Whispers, Bold Moves, and the Courage to Become, where I share the framework I've developed after decades of living this truth — the I AM Manifestation Framework and the formula that changed everything for me: Thoughts + Emotions + Action = Outcome.

This episode will shift the way you think about manifestation — from a practice you squeeze into your morning routine, to a way of moving through your entire life.

In this episode you'll discover:

• Why most people think about manifestation all wrong
• The formula behind real, lasting manifestation
• The I AM Framework: Imagination, Alignment, and Music — and how to use all three
• How to clear the "murky water" in your mind so your desires can actually take root
• What my birthday car racing experience revealed about being open to receiving
• Why gumption is the bridge between your dream and your reality

GUMPTION is available now. Want to be one of the first to read it? Reply to this email and I'll send you the details on how to get your advanced reader copy today.

Connect with Sabine: 🌐 sabinekvenberg.com 🎤 Ready to work together? talktosabine.com 📺 Join me every Saturday for YouTube Live

Be fearless. Be heard. Be visible. Become Empowered.

He grew up in East New York, surrounded by violence, and believed he wouldn't live to see 25. Today he's sailed every inhabited continent, coached leaders around the world, and built a media company helping others find their own way. This is Josh Valentine — and this episode will stay with you.

Connect with Josh:

https://javalentin.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@UCK-1WRXSdXRTnZKqUAzAP2g 

Connect with Sabine:

https://sabinekvenberg.com/resources

Follow her on:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/sabinekvenberg/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabine-kvenberg/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sabine.kvenberg.2025/ 

Timestamped Show Notes

00:00

Introduction — meet Josh Valentine

00:42

Three words that define him: courageous, resourceful, in service

02:26

Growing up in East New York — violence, survival, and the fear of not reaching 25

04:33

Travel as transformation and open-mindedness

05:40

"Turn your mess into a message" — and why the past doesn't dictate the future

07:22

The pivotal moment at Ground Zero — the decision that changed everything

10:27

The barbed wire metaphor: climbing from darkness into possibility

13:19

Arriving at college with everything he owned in two bags

14:32

How resourcefulness paid for college — running a barber shop from his dorm

16:25

Resources vs. resourcefulness — Tony Robbins, priorities, and paying forward

18:14

The Journey Podcast and Dream Nation Media — filming on farms, gyms, and golf courses

20:46

Sabine's journey — and GUMPTION coming in 3 months

22:10

Josh's coaching programs — holistic life, work-life harmony, certified coaches

24:35

AI as a human amplifier — the visibility triangle and standing out in the noise

29:10

Final message: your story is your greatest asset — and take care of the planet

In this powerful episode, Sabine Kvenberg sits down with Dr. Angela Mulrooney to explore the hidden realities behind success, burnout, and rediscovering purpose.

Dr. Mulrooney shares her journey from building a thriving dental career to experiencing deep burnout—and how that pivotal moment became the catalyst for transformation. Together, they unpack the pressure of high performance, the identity traps many professionals fall into, and what it really takes to realign your life and business with your true self.

This conversation is a must-listen for entrepreneurs, leaders, and high achievers who are ready to move beyond survival mode and step into a more authentic, fulfilling version of success.

You’ll learn:

• The real root cause of burnout (it’s not what you think)
• How to recognize when you’re out of alignment
• Why success without fulfillment leads to breakdown
• Practical insights to reclaim your energy, purpose, and direction

Feeling stuck, uncertain, or afraid to make your next move?

This episode is your permission slip to rise.

Discover what gumption really means — and why it’s the missing link between where you are and where you want to be. Learn how to tell the difference between fear that protects you and fear that’s holding you back, why failing forward is a success strategy, and how to stay focused on your boldest goals.

Plus, get an exclusive sneak peek into Sabine’s upcoming memoir GUMPTION.

It’s time to trust yourself, take the leap, and step into your next level.

📖 Pre-order GUMPTION (releasing August 2026) and receive a FREE Advanced Reader’s Copy.
👉 Email [email protected] with your receipt to claim yours.

What if the very thing holding you back is the exact fuel you need to move forward? In this episode, I share my Fear Flip method — a simple but powerful shift that transforms paralysis into presence and fear into fire.

https://go.sabinekvenberg.com/aichallenge

connect with Sabine:

TalktoSabine.com

What does it cost to perform a version of yourself for 45 years?

Katherine Dudtscak knows that cost intimately. A former bank CEO who led teams of 25,000 across 19 countries in the Caribbean, Catherine lived at the pinnacle of the corporate world — and in the depths of a secret she couldn't name. When burnout arrived and her mother died in the same season, Catherine finally broke. And in breaking open, she found something extraordinary: herself.

Today — her book's official pub date — Catherine joins Sabine on Become Empowered to share the full arc: from a humble farm outside Toronto, to the C-suite, to publicly affirming her gender in front of 80,000 colleagues, to walking the birth villages of her war-refugee parents through Europe, to writing what she calls "a love letter to humanity."

Connect with Katherine: https://sincerelyinc.com/

In this episode, you'll discover:
• What Catherine calls the "coherence model" — and why most of us live out of alignment with our own essence
• How she survived her darkest moment (and what true empathy actually looks like)
• Why she believes we're living through four simultaneous existential crises — and what we can do
• The surprising thing that happens when you stop performing and start living from your soul

Katherine's memoir, Sincerely Katherine, is available now wherever books are sold.

Ready to step into your own spotlight? Visit talktosabine.com to connect with Sabine or explore the Confident Speaker Accelerator.

https://www.sabinekvenberg.com/resources 

AI is moving fast, but your voice, your story, and your human presence are still what make you unforgettable. 

AI is changing the world at lightning speed, and for many people that feels exciting, overwhelming, and uncertain all at once. In this episode, I share why I believe this moment is not a time to hide, but a time to prepare, adapt, and rise.

I talk about the rapid evolution of AI, why entrepreneurs, coaches, authors, podcasters, and creators must start building their brand now, and why human storytelling will always matter in a world that becomes more automated. I also share one of my most personal lessons, what I call my “$35,000 Harvard experience,” and why chasing the wrong opportunity, even when it looks smart on paper, can pull you away from your true path.

In this episode, we explore:

• why AI should be embraced, not feared
• why your uniqueness can never be replaced
• how storytelling sets you apart in a crowded marketplace
• why visibility and brand clarity matter more than ever
• the “fog” metaphor and what it means for entrepreneurs today
• how to know whether an investment is aligned or simply attractive
• why learning, growth, and contribution still matter deeply in a changing world

If this episode spoke to you, share it with a friend, subscribe to the podcast, and send me a message. And if you are ready to clarify your message, strengthen your visibility, and create the assets that set you apart, reach out to me and let’s talk.

https://www.sabinekvenberg.com/signature-studio-day

https://www.sabinekvenberg.com/resources

What does it mean to truly live — not just exist — after 50? In this episode of Saturday Live, I'm joined by Terry Lohrbeer, host of the Kick-Ass Boomers podcast, who has spent five years interviewing boomers doing extraordinary things in their 70s, 80s, and beyond. Terry and I met at Podfest Expo in Orlando this January — one of those unexpected, instant connections that reminds you exactly why in-person events matter. She was also one of the first advanced readers of my memoir GUMPTION — and her reaction to the book sparked the most honest, energizing conversation about fear, reinvention, and what it actually means to go for it at any age.

✔️ Why Terry flew to Germany at age 19 — alone — and came back with a husband

✔️ The moment she jumped off a Las Vegas hotel building at age 66 (yes, really)

✔️ Why the first step is always the scariest — and what happens after you take it

✔️ How listening to your intuition changes everything

✔️ Why staying social and laughing more might be the ultimate longevity strategy

✔️ What GUMPTION stirred up in Terry — and why she read it in just two days

✔️ The one question people on their deathbeds never ask (and what they wish they'd done instead)

If you've been waiting for permission to start over, try something new, or simply go for it — this is your episode.