I sat down to record a "normal" podcast episode. I had notes, structure, talking points—the whole thing. Fifteen minutes in, I closed my laptop and just... talked.

This is what happened when I stopped trying to perform and started processing: a raw reflection on holding space for both your dreams and the chaos, especially as a first-generation person watching both the US and Venezuela fall apart. No polish, no perfect answers—just what I'm remembering about why building the life you want is actually resistance.

⏱️ Timestamps:

00:00 - Why this episode almost didn't happen (the emotional struggle of recording right now)

00:47 - Honoring myself even when it feels performative

01:29 - Holding space for dreams, rage, and the feeling of potential safety slipping away

02:38 - The blog post I wrote about building while burning

03:03 - The first-gen weight: What we're actually carrying right now

03:54 - Why working on yourself is a radical act of resistance

04:56 - How values like love and empathy can shift the timeline we're in

05:17 - The manifesting privilege no one talks about (and what it means for the rest of us)

06:37 - Small belief-shifts that can influence bigger change

07:17 - Navigating the weird push-pull tension of wanting to work on your goals while everything burns

07:41 - Strategies for reducing the tension rod between self-focus and societal responsibility

08:24 - Making personal dreams and social impact not be opposites

08:49 - The message my ring light has for you

09:01 - An invitation to keep building (messily, imperfectly, anyway)

🎧 What You'll Hear:

→ Why trying to sound "put-together" stopped working halfway through recording

→ The difference between discomfort (necessary) and dysregulation (unsustainable)

→ How manifesting is easier when you're born believing things are possible for you

→ Why building an aligned life isn't escapism—it's strategic resistance

→ What "not abandoning your own ship" actually looks like when you want to run

→ The tension first-gen folks carry: fear, guilt, hypervigilance, pressure to belong

→ How to make your goals and your values work together instead of fighting each other

📚 Related:

→ Read the full blog post: Building an Aligned Life During Crisis: A Framework for Holding Both

→ Download The Resistance Manifesto (free, no email): Fill in your tension-giving goal and make it yours

🧞‍♀️ Your Host:

Nane is a marketer, certified life coach, and lover of all things taboo. A Gemini sun with double Scorpio depth, born in Venezuela and based in the US. She's here for real conversations about building aligned lives—minus the toxic positivity, minus the "just focus on your goals" BS. Fellow traveler, not arrived guru.

📲 Connect:

→ More about Nane → coachnane.com/about

→ Follow on Instagram: @TheFreeGeniesProject and @CoachNane

→ Watch on TikTok: @CoachNane

→ Read the blog: coachnane.com

→ Monthly newsletter: Short, warm, real—no fluff Subscribe

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Keywords: aligned life during crisis, building while world burns, first generation immigrant, emotional regulation, resistance, manifesting privilege, anti-toxic positivity, Venezuela, US political climate, first-gen weight, personal development as resistance

🎶 Music: "Runaway" by NEST BEATZ