Desktime Stories | Work, growth, and how people move forward.

What if one of the most important career skills isn’t technical at all, but learning how to work with your own mind?

Venerable Robina Courtin joins Desktime Stories for a practical conversation about criticism, anger, difficult people, attachment to approval, resilience, money, focus, and how to stay steady when work or life gets hard. Drawing from decades of experience as a Buddhist nun, editor, publisher, nonprofit leader, fundraiser, and teacher, Robina brings a refreshingly direct perspective to the challenges we all face at work.

Her message is simple: our minds are not set in stone. We can train them, change them, and become more skillful in how we respond.

Follow Venerable Robina Courtin:

Website: robinacourtin.com

#RobinaCourtin #TrainYourMind #CareerGrowth #WorkplaceWisdom #Leadership #Resilience #Mindfulness #ProfessionalDevelopment #DesktimeStories

Carlos “Tapa” Nava ha pasado décadas cerca de algunos de los nombres y equipos más grandes del deporte. En esta conversación con Desktime Stories, el periodista de ESPN comparte las historias y lecciones que ha recogido en una carrera que lo ha llevado desde sus primeros pasos en el periodismo hasta cubrir a los Dallas Cowboys, Super Bowls, Copas del Mundo y algunos de los eventos deportivos más importantes.

Tapa también nos cuenta lo que ha aprendido de figuras como Checo Pérez, Adrián Fernández, Fernando Valenzuela y Julio César Chávez, y habla de sacrificio, disciplina, adaptación, credibilidad y de cómo aprovechar las oportunidades cuando aparecen.

Además, revela la fascinante historia de por qué los Dallas Cowboys tienen una conexión tan fuerte con México y cómo esa afición se ha transmitido de generación en generación.

Encuentra a Carlos “Tapa” Nava:

What happens after you make a mistake and your inner critic takes over?

Professional coach and Dare to Lead facilitator Kate Adametz-Jenkins shares practical ways to break the shame loop, manage overwhelming emotions, recover from setbacks, and replace perfectionism with progress. Learn how emotional intelligence and self-compassion can strengthen your confidence, leadership, and career.

#BreakTheShameLoop #EmotionalIntelligence #CareerGrowth #LeadershipDevelopment #DesktimeStories

Más de 40 años de carrera no llegan por casualidad. En este episodio de Desktime Stories platicamos con Heriberto Murrieta sobre la mentalidad detrás de su éxito. - Habla de tener una vocación clara desde joven, y de no dejar pasar la oportunidad cuando aparece. - Explica por qué la preparación siempre pesó más que el talento. Su fluidez de hoy la construyó poco a poco, con años de práctica constante. - También aborda algo con lo que muchos batallamos: cómo recibir críticas sin que te derrumben. Distingue entre las que suman y las que solo buscan lastimar. - Habla de defender tus ideas sin convertir cada desacuerdo en una pelea, y de la constancia como motor principal: no detenerse hasta concretar una idea, sin obsesionarse con calcular el éxito de antemano. - Cierra con algo que atraviesa toda la conversación: la humildad no como debilidad, sino como base que sostiene todo lo demás. - Esta es una conversación para cualquier persona construyendo su propio camino. - Desktime Stories: historias que despiertan tu potencial de liderazgo y crecimiento. Escúchanos en Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube y donde sea que escuches tus podcasts. Encuentra a Heriberto Murrieta en Instagram en @heriberto.murrieta. #DesktimeStories #HeribertoMurrieta #Mentalidad #Disciplina #CrecimientoPersonal

00:00 Heriberto Murrieta: La Mentalidad Que lo Llevó al Éxito

00:02 La voz de Murrieta

01:36 El primer gran paso

03:41 Vocación desde niño

05:22 Nervios en 24 Horas

06:51 Entrevistar a leyendas

09:57 Críticas sin tomarlas personal

11:43 Debatir sin gritar

15:01 Proyectos y disciplina

17:37 Creérsela y personalidad

24:58 Humildad y pies en la tierra

27:38 Proyectos actuales

31:27 Mensaje final

Feeling behind, burned out, or unsure if you’re doing enough? In this episode of Desktime Stories, Mirtle Peña-Calderón shares an honest conversation about creativity, identity, boundaries, grief, food, and learning to trust your own voice. She talks about the pressure many women feel to do everything, the importance of knowing when to pause, and why keeping track of small wins can help us remember that we are still moving forward.

From The Book of Awesome Latinas to The Bocadito and Confessions of a Tired Latina, Mirtle reminds us that we do not have to have it all figured out to keep growing — and that we are enough simply for existing.

You can connect with Mirtle on LinkedIn under Mirtle Peña-Calderón, follow her on Instagram at @myrtlepcalderon, and read her Substacks: Confessions of a Tired Latina, The Bocadito, and Awesome Latinas.

You can also support The Book of Awesome Latinas through Bookshop.org, local bookstores, Amazon, or Barnes & Noble.

00:00 Storytelling Matters

00:10 Meet Myrtle Pena Calderon

02:06 Origins of a Chismosa

05:56 Pain Grief and Poetry

09:17 Boundaries Hedge vs Wall

13:41 Confessions of a Tired Latina

14:50 Making Awesome Latinas

20:09 Lessons from 500 Years

22:03 The Bocadito Food Stories

26:14 Burnout Wins and Bandwidth

31:23 Where to Follow and Support

33:21 You Are Enough

34:06 Final Pep Talk and Goodbye

At 14, Olga Camargo was asked to translate a financial pitch to her own mother — words she didn't have in Spanish, from a man who stopped looking her mother in the eye. That moment sent her into a 25-year career in financial services. Now CEO of Prosperity Rise Mindset and the first Latina board chair of the Northeastern Illinois University Foundation, Olga breaks down what the industry still gets wrong about Latino families, why Latinas make roughly 70% of family financial decisions, the retirement mistake almost everyone makes at 18, and the advice from her father that pushed her to take the biggest risk of her career.

Books (Amazon — beginner guides to 401(k) and 403(b) retirement accounts):

Rise: Embrace the Future That You Can Build (English)

Sube: Abraza el futuro que puedes construir (Spanish)

Website:

prosperityrisemindset.com — free download, Building Wealth and Financial Resilience / Cómo crear la riqueza y tener resiliencia (English & Spanish), plus webinar sign-up form

Webinar:

Retiro Listo Now — webinar series with Negocios Now (publisher Clemente Nicado), launching ~September

A layoff became the beginning of something bigger. Sandra Sertel, former Oracle and LinkedIn leader and founder of Tzun, shares how resilience, intuition, and her first-gen Latina experience led her to build technology that brings accountability to AI-assisted decisions.

A powerful conversation about career pivots, confidence, AI governance, leadership, and believing you are more than enough.

#DesktimeStories #LatinaInTech #AIGovernance #WomenInTech #CareerGrowth

Centro Legal de la Raza: centrolegal.org

Tzun.ai

This episode is in Spanish, for subtitles in English, visit the Desktime Stories YouTube channel here.

Networking is not about using people. It is about building real trust before you ever need help. In this episode of Desktime Stories, Rebeca de la Piedra shares how genuine relationships can open doors, support us during hard seasons, and make our professional lives more human. We talk about referrals, empathy, follow-up, humility, boundaries, common networking mistakes, and why the smallest gesture can change someone’s career. A warm and practical conversation for anyone who wants to connect better without feeling fake, awkward, or transactional.

 #Networking #CareerGrowth #DesktimeStories #Leadership #ProfessionalGrowth #Mentorship #WorkplaceRelationships

00:00 Networking Isn’t Asking for Favors — It’s Building Trust with Rebeca de la Piedra

00:06 Welcome to the Show

01:24 What Networking Is

02:53 Recommendations and Shortcuts

04:59 Listening and Following Up

08:50 Empathy During the Pandemic

10:35 Fake Networking and Boundaries

11:21 A Referral Story

14:43 A Support Network During Crisis

17:44 Humility and Forgiveness 19:06 A Lesson from September 11

22:24 Ethical Inside Information

24:55 Serving with Love

25:31 Everyday Connections

27:53 Practicing Awareness

28:40 Networking for Introverts

29:35 Humility in Business

32:47 Mistakes That Break Trust

35:23 Boundaries and Saying No

37:48 Doors That Change Lives

40:31 Keeping Relationships Alive

41:36 The Power of a Gesture 43:41 Stay Humble, Stay Hungry

45:11 Closing and Contact

En Español

00:06 Bienvenida al show

01:24 Qué es networking

02:53 Recomendaciones y atajos

04:59 Escuchar y dar seguimiento 08:50 Empatía en pandemia

10:35 Networking falso y límites

11:21 Historia de recomendación

14:43 Red de apoyo en crisis

17:44 Humildad y perdón

19:06 Lección del 11 de septiembre

22:24 Información privilegiada ética

24:55 Servir con amor

25:31 Conexiones cotidianas

27:53 Practicar la conciencia

28:40 Networking para introvertidos

29:35 Humildad en negocios

32:47 Errores que rompen confianza

35:23 Límites y decir no

37:48 Puertas que cambian vidas

40:31 Mantener relaciones vivas

41:36 El poder de un gesto

43:41 Stay humble stay hungry

45:11 Despedida y contacto

Lily Lopez, Director of External Affairs & Sustainability at Walnut Valley Water District and founder of Latinas in Water, shares how she broke into the water industry, prepared for a leadership role at 27, handled rejection, built mentorship relationships, and learned that true leadership is not about ego — it is about listening, building trust, and opening bigger doors for others.

In this episode of Desktime Stories, we talk about career growth, leadership, mentorship, emotional intelligence, Latinas in leadership, public sector careers, and how to become the kind of leader people actually trust

In Work Life Flow with Natalie Mendez, Natalie returns to Desktime Stories to talk about ambition, boundaries, motherhood, leadership, and learning how to enjoy the life you worked so hard to build. From career growth to protecting your peace, this conversation explores how success can flow with family, health, joy, and authenticity.