Elsplend Realities

What if the reason you keep falling short of your intentions isn’t a lack of motivation—but a deeper struggle with how you lead yourself? We often know what we should do, make the plans, and set the goals, yet still find ourselves choosing what feels easier in the moment. The real challenge may be learning to align our actions with our values, even when we don’t feel ready.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Bobby Shelton, author of Easy Hard vs. Hard Hard and host of The Self-Leadership Lab, challenges the idea that motivation is the answer to inconsistency. We explore self-leadership, internal authority, discipline, emotional influence, personal standards, decision-making, and the subtle ways we avoid the choices that create meaningful growth. Bobby offers a grounded perspective on moving beyond temporary motivation and developing the self-leadership required to consistently show up for the life we say we want.

What happens when surviving becomes the only thing you know how to do—and eventually, you realize you need to learn how to truly live again? Recovery is rarely a straight line. It can involve confronting painful patterns, facing shame, rebuilding identity, and finding the courage to create a life that feels authentic and meaningful.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Chelzzz Henson, author, artist, and recovery advocate, shares an honest perspective shaped by her experiences with addiction, trauma, codependency, and rebuilding her sense of self. We explore the realities beneath addiction, the emotional weight of recovery, accountability, identity, shame, creative expression, physical discipline, and the moment pain can begin to take on purpose. Chelzzz’s story is a reminder that our past can shape us without having to define us—and that rebuilding is possible, one intentional choice at a time.

What if your most meaningful years are not behind you—but still ahead of you? Aging is often framed through decline, limitation, and irrelevance, but what if growing older can instead become a season of deeper wisdom, greater courage, and renewed contribution?

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Chris Moore, founder of Senior Remodeling Experts and a nationally recognized leader in Aging-in-Place solutions, shares nearly four decades of experience and the personal loss that reshaped his understanding of life and purpose. We explore aging with intention, challenging cultural stereotypes, resilience after loss, creating environments that support independence, and what it means to live boldly at every stage of life. Chris offers a powerful reminder that experience is an asset, purpose doesn’t retire, and the next chapter can still become one of the most meaningful.

What changes when you stop waiting for permission to become the person you know you’re capable of being? Sometimes the greatest barriers aren’t external—they’re the stories we carry about our worth, visibility, confidence, and whether our voice truly matters.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Kimberly Spencer, founder of Crown Yourself®️ and CEO of Communication Queens, shares her journey of resilience, reinvention, entrepreneurship, storytelling, and personal ownership. We explore self-doubt, authentic confidence, visibility, the power of language, leadership, storytelling, and the importance of owning your voice in a world that can make us feel pressured to perform. Kimberly offers a powerful reminder that transformation begins when we stop waiting to be chosen and begin choosing ourselves.

What does pressure reveal about us when there’s nowhere left to hide? Beneath performance, discipline, and the image we present to the world are often deeper questions about identity, control, conflict, and who we are becoming.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Cengiz Dervis — actor, filmmaker, and former world kickboxing champion — shares how his experience in elite competition continues to shape the way he understands discipline, pressure, and human behavior. We explore the transition from professional sport into storytelling, the psychology of performance, healthy versus restrictive discipline, internal conflict, and his project Assassin Within. This conversation offers a powerful reminder that pressure doesn’t only test our strength—it can reveal the parts of ourselves we are being called to understand.

What happens when your health changes without warning, the answers don’t come easily, and you begin to feel disconnected from the person you once were? Sometimes, healing is not only about finding the right answers—it’s also about learning to advocate for yourself, rebuild connection, and find strength in the middle of uncertainty.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Jeanne Grant, Executive Director of the Lyme Revive Foundation, shares her deeply personal journey through severe illness and nearly three years of being bedridden. We explore the realities of chronic illness, self-advocacy, feeling misunderstood, isolation, education, integrative wellness, and the courage it takes to regain a sense of control. Jeanne’s story offers a compassionate reminder that even when the path forward feels unclear, you can continue searching, speaking up, and finding your way back to yourself.

Why do some messages change the way we think and act while others—even when well-intentioned—never seem to land? Influence goes deeper than having the right words. It requires understanding how people perceive information, process emotion, evaluate choices, and ultimately decide what feels worth acting on.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, JonRobert Tartaglione, psychologist, behavioral scientist, and founder of Influence 51, explores the science behind persuasion, decision-making, and strategic communication. Drawing from social psychology, behavioral economics, cognitive neuroscience, and political psychology, we explore emotion and rationality, framing, comparison, resistance, communication, and the subtle factors that shape human behavior. JonRobert offers a practical perspective on how leaders can communicate with greater awareness—not simply to be heard, but to create meaningful connection and action.

What happens when you build a great product but struggle to get the market to recognize its value? In Fintech, innovation alone isn’t enough. Standing out in a crowded industry requires clarity, disciplined execution, confidence, and a sales process that can communicate meaningful value without relying on constant discounting.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Stacy Bishop, a seasoned Fintech sales leader and advisor with 25 years of experience across banking, core technology, revenue leadership, channel sales, and strategic partnerships, shares what it really takes to sell into financial institutions. We explore sales strategy, boardroom confidence, founder-led sales, value-based selling, ROI, discounting, long banking sales cycles, positioning, and building repeatable systems that scale. Stacy offers a practical reminder that innovation creates possibility—but disciplined execution is what turns that possibility into sustainable growth.

What if meaningful change doesn’t begin with a grand plan, but with one small act of compassion? Sometimes a simple gesture of dignity and kindness can become the starting point for something much bigger—a movement that restores confidence, creates opportunity, and reminds people that they are not alone.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Cathlene Miner, global changemaker, bestselling author, and founder of Hopefull Handbags Global Non-Profit, shares how a simple act of filling handbags with essential items for survivors of domestic abuse grew into an international mission of empowerment and support. We explore survivor empowerment, mentorship, confidence, self-perception, community, mission-driven leadership, children’s mental health, digital boundaries, and the responsibility of turning compassion into sustainable action. Cathlene’s journey offers a powerful reminder that we don’t always need to start big—we simply need to start with purpose, and allow one meaningful act to create a ripple.

What happens when the person leading the way is also navigating a deeply personal battle? Leadership can look very different when certainty disappears and the stakes become personal. In those moments, clarity, accountability, emotional awareness, and resilience become more than leadership qualities—they become essential ways of moving forward.

In this episode of Elsplend Realities, Zed Dhalla, founder of a fast-growing point-of-care diagnostics company and a MedTech leader with more than 16 years of experience, shares how his own cancer diagnosis reshaped the way he understands health, leadership, responsibility, and human outcomes. We explore adversity, emotional regulation, accountability, early detection, prevention, empathy, decision-making under pressure, and building teams that can respond with both urgency and humanity. Zed’s story offers a powerful perspective on leading through uncertainty while continuing to build with intention, awareness, and purpose.