Beyond the Draft

What happens when the life that once seemed completely broken becomes the foundation for an entirely different kind of purpose?

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Dave Letterfly Knoderer, author, artist, entrepreneur, storyteller, spiritual seeker, and lifelong creative whose extraordinary journey has taken him from circus horsemanship and award-winning performance to entrepreneurship, recovery from alcoholism, publishing, and a life spent traveling across America.

After decades as a creative entrepreneur and artist, Dave faced a silent adversary that threatened to take everything away. His recovery from alcoholism became a turning point, leading him toward a different way of living and a mission to encourage others who feel stuck, overwhelmed, anxious, or uncertain about their future.

Today, Dave travels a seven-month route of Harley-Davidson dealerships, creates art, tells stories, and continues helping people see challenges as opportunities for growth.

In this episode, we explore:

- How creativity shaped Dave’s life and career

- Lessons learned from circus horsemanship

- The turning point that changed everything

- Addiction, recovery, and creating a new way of living

- How failure can become an unexpected teacher

- Entrepreneurship outside the traditional office

- Traveling while building a creative career

- Finding purpose after difficult seasons

- Using storytelling to inspire and encourage others

- Why there can always be a way forward

Explore Dave’s work and get his free book:

https://DaveLetterfly.com

What if the story you’ve been keeping to yourself is actually the foundation of your greatest impact?

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Teresa Rodriguez, publisher, storyteller, TEDx speaker, bestselling author, and founder of Liberté Press—a boutique publishing house dedicated to helping women transform their stories into books that create influence, impact, and income.

Teresa shares why writing can be more than putting words on a page. It can be a powerful way to find your voice, reclaim your narrative, build confidence, and turn life experiences into something that creates lasting influence.

From her TEDx talk, Owning Alone: Conquering Your Fear of Being Solo, to helping women leaders and creatives bring their stories to life, Teresa offers a powerful perspective on storytelling, visibility, thought leadership, and the growing creator economy.

In this episode, we explore:

- Why every woman has a story worth telling

- Finding your voice and owning your narrative

- Writing as a tool for confidence and empowerment

- Turning personal experiences into influence and impact

- How a book can build authority, credibility, and visibility

- Storytelling and thought leadership in the creator economy

- The biggest misconceptions about writing and publishing

- The future of storytelling and publishing in the age of AI

Explore Teresa’s work:

https://libertepress.com

At just four years old, Jen Aitken survived a life-altering car accident that took her father and left her with lasting injuries. Being pulled off life support and surviving gave her a perspective that would shape the way she sees life forever: life is short, so why not live it fully?

Today, Jen is a professional travel advisor, explorer, and self-proclaimed “side quest queen” who has travelled to places like Antarctica and South Africa while building a life centered around adventure, growth, and extraordinary experiences.

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Jen shares how adversity changed her relationship with life, why stepping outside the everyday routine matters, and how embracing adventure can help people create a life they genuinely want to remember.

In this episode, we explore:

- Surviving a life-altering experience at four

- Turning adversity into a reason to live boldly

- The psychology behind bucket-list living

- Travel, adventure, and stepping outside comfort zones

- Building meaningful community through shared experiences

- The idea of “side quests” and finding joy in unexpected adventures

- Designing a life around experiences rather than simply routines

Explore Jen’s work:

Jen Aitken’s Website

How can one disagreement turn into something much bigger—and what happens when trust, loyalty, and ambition begin to collide?

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Rodney Phillips, author of Dissension: A Disagreement That Leads to Discord, a crime drama exploring the thin line between loyalty and betrayal and how one fracture in trust can unravel everything.

Rodney's own writing journey is remarkable. He began writing Dissension at just 19 years old, then left the manuscript untouched in a filing cabinet for 37 years. After becoming an empty nester, he pulled the manuscript back out, transferred it into a Word document, and eventually saw the story published after turning 56.

With a background in pharmaceutical leadership, a master's degree in human resource leadership management, and more than two decades of mentoring young athletes, Rodney brings a unique perspective to stories about conflict, human behavior, choices, and consequences.

In this episode, we explore:

- The 37-year journey behind Dissension

- Why a disagreement can become something much bigger

- The thin line between loyalty and betrayal

- How ambition and moral compromise shape decisions

- Writing characters caught between trust and deception

- Why stories about power, conflict, and downfall resonate

- The journey from a 19-year-old writer to published author

- What may come next for the Dissension story

Explore Rodney’s work:

https://rodneyphillipsauthor.com

What would it feel like to remember every single day of your life since the age of six—including the emotions attached to those memories?

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Frank Healy, a Licensed Professional Counselor, life coach, author, and one of a small number of people known to have Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory. Frank shares how his extraordinary relationship with memory shaped his understanding of emotions, trauma, stress, and healing.

With more than 40 years of experience in counseling and coaching, Frank offers practical insights on healing painful memories, managing stress, pursuing success without losing peace, and finding happiness despite difficult circumstances.

In this episode, we explore:

- Living with an extraordinary autobiographical memory

- How the past can influence the present

- Healing painful memories

- Managing stress while pursuing success

- Finding happiness despite difficult circumstances

- Memory, emotional healing, and personal growth

Learn more about Frank and his books: https://healyshealing.com

What happens when life looks successful from the outside—but internally, something still feels wrong?

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Liz Coleman, a certified transformational life coach, psychology graduate, Mind Shifting and NLP practitioner, and creator of the MindLife Reset™.

Liz works with women who appear to have everything together but are exhausted from constantly thinking, achieving, and staying “on.” Drawing from her own experiences, she explains why success doesn't automatically create fulfillment and why lasting transformation requires looking beyond mindset alone.

In this episode, we explore:

- Why successful women can still feel empty

- The hidden cost of an “always-on” life

- Why better boundaries aren't always the answer

- How limiting beliefs shape our behavior

- Mind, body, and spirit as one system

- Learning to trust yourself again

- Creating a life that actually feels like your own

Sometimes life doesn't break down one piece at a time. Sometimes everything happens at once.

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with TedX speaker, author, medical sales professional, ultra-marathon runner, and charity founder Troy Haslinger to explore the raw story behind his memoir, Beautifully Dysfunctional.

Troy's journey includes career setbacks, addiction, mental health struggles, relationship challenges, the loss of his sister Holly to cancer, a near-death experience, and even being fired from his own charity. Rather than hiding the difficult chapters, Troy brings them into the light with honesty and vulnerability.

In this episode, we explore:

- The day that changed Troy's life forever

- Addiction and recovery

- Mental health struggles

- The impact of losing his sister Holly

- Failure, resilience, and starting again

- Running 65 miles and pushing beyond limits

- Faith, loss, and finding a way forward

- Why difficult chapters don't have to define the whole story

Learn more about Troy and his story: https://authortroyhaslinger.com

How many unfinished conversations, broken promises, unspoken boundaries, and unresolved commitments are quietly draining your life?

On this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Robin Quinn Keehn, Human Dynamics Specialist, Certified Mediator, and author of Stop Stealing From Yourself.

Robin introduces the idea of “Open Loops”—the conversations we avoid, promises we leave unfinished, boundaries we refuse to set, and resentment we continue carrying. Drawing from her own experiences, Robin shares how closing these loops can restore time, energy, peace, and self-trust.

In this episode, we explore:

What an “Open Loop” really is

Why difficult conversations are often avoided

Boundaries as an act of self-respect

Trusting patterns instead of promises

Staying calm during difficult conversations

Learning to trust yourself again

How to disagree without hate

Explore Robin’s work and free resources: https://closetheloopsnow.com

What does it take to lead change without losing the people you're trying to lead?

In this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Rev. Dr. B. Keith Haney, a pastor, author, ministry leader, and advocate for unity and transformation, for a powerful conversation about faith, leadership, organizational change, culture, and the difficult work of building bridges in a divided world.

With more than 30 years of ministry experience, Dr. Haney brings together pastoral wisdom and strategic leadership to explore why organizations and churches sometimes resist change — and how leaders can guide people through uncertainty with both truth and grace.

His latest book, Guided by Grace: A Narrative to Lead Organizational Change, uses storytelling to explore renewal, resistance, leadership, and transformation through the fictional journey of a church navigating change.

In this episode, we explore:

- What it truly means to be a bridge builder

- Leading organizational change without losing trust

- Why people resist change and how leaders can respond

- The relationship between faith and leadership

- Healing racial and cultural divisions

- Balancing truth, grace, and difficult conversations

- Lessons from more than three decades in ministry

- Why storytelling can become a powerful leadership tool

- How today's leaders can create greater unity and transformation

Explore Dr. Haney's book, Guided by Grace:

https://wipfandstock.com/9798385251667/guided-by-grace/

What happens when everything you thought you knew about leadership has to be reconsidered because the culture around you has changed?

In this episode of Beyond the Draft, Imma sits down with Eva Aimable-Kolosko, global leadership and transformation strategist, executive coach, speaker, and author of Growth Without Borders: The Global Leader's Toolkit.

Having lived in eight countries across three continents and led teams across more than 10 countries, Eva brings a deeply personal perspective to cultural intelligence, leadership, transformation, credibility, and influence.

Her journey of repeatedly starting over — including immigrating to Canada without North American work experience and progressing from Manager to Executive in under a decade — shaped her belief that your way is not the only way.

This conversation explores what happens when leaders learn to stay grounded in their values while becoming flexible enough to understand people who see the world differently.

In this episode, we explore:

- Why cultural intelligence is essential for modern leaders

- What living across eight countries taught Eva about leadership

- Why organizations change when people do

- The difference between performance and leadership

- How leaders earn credibility in unfamiliar environments

- Building trust across cultures and perspectives

- Leading people through transformation and uncertainty

- Why strong performance alone isn't always enough to move forward

- How to influence without losing authenticity

- The four pillars of the Global Leader's Compass: credibility, cultural intelligence, influence, and impact

Take the free Global Leader's Compass™ Scorecard:

https://eva-aimable.involve.me/globalleaderscompass