FREEDOM UNLOCKED

What happens when you still believe in God, but your faith feels tired, uncertain or disconnected from the season of life you are actually living?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, Christian romance and romantasy author Briana Bass explores faith, spiritual burnout, doubt, identity and finding God in life’s in-between seasons. After experiencing burnout while working in higher education, Briana spent a season in prayer asking what should come next. That process ultimately led her toward writing for young Christian women who are building careers, navigating relationships and trying to understand both themselves and their relationship with God.

Briana shares why she deliberately writes Christian characters whose faith is messy rather than perfect, allowing them to wrestle with questions, uncertainty and everyday pressures. She discusses storytelling as a way to make spiritual ideas more accessible, the importance of prayer and community during seasons of burnout, and why churches need to create safer spaces for women who have questions instead of making them feel that doubt or struggle must remain hidden.

At its heart, this conversation is about giving yourself grace while continuing to grow spiritually. Briana encourages women who feel distant from God to begin with something simple: an honest conversation with Him about where they are right now. Rather than pretending everything is fine, she believes spiritual growth can include questions, uncertainty, compassion for yourself and supportive relationships with people willing to listen as you find your way forward.

Connect with Briana Bass

Explore Briana’s books, devotionals and resources:

https://authorbrianabass.com/

Her website includes links to her Christian fiction and devotional books, her monthly newsletter, bonus and behind-the-scenes content, and a free 7-day devotional.

What if pushing harder is not the answer to better leadership—and the way you manage your own energy matters as much as the strategy you use to grow your business?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, Energetic Alchemy creator Warren Williams explores leadership, burnout, nervous-system regulation, focus and sustainable performance. Warren works primarily with founders and describes his approach as increasing a leader’s capacity to handle stress without relying entirely on force, long hours or constant effort. His central argument is that financial success can become costly when leaders repeatedly ignore what their bodies and relationships are telling them.

Warren discusses his idea of moving from “force to flow,” building periods of recovery into the workday and creating greater awareness around stress. He recommends practices such as breathwork, walking, stretching, mindfulness and intentional breaks as ways to step away from constant high-output work. He also shares his perspectives on brainwave states, neurodivergence and physiological regulation. Some of the specific medical and neuroscience claims discussed in the conversation represent Warren’s own framework and should not substitute for individualized advice from qualified medical or mental-health professionals.

At its heart, this conversation is about building success you can actually sustain. Warren encourages leaders to examine whether achievement has come at the expense of sleep, health, relationships or presence. Rather than treating exhaustion as proof of ambition, he advocates creating space for recovery, beginning the day intentionally and learning when to shift between focused execution and rest. His message is simple: the goal is not merely to accomplish more, but to develop a way of working that allows you to remain grounded while doing it.

Connect with Warren Williams

Explore Warren’s work through Energetic Alchemy, including his free 90-second stress assessment, resources on nervous-system regulation and access to his community.

Warren shared his website during the conversation as:

https://energeticalchemyos.com/

His website also provides access to a free PDF with techniques from his approach and information about his Telegram community.

What happens when your life looks successful from the outside, but somewhere inside you know it no longer feels like your life?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, Modern Consciousness founder Stacie Shifflett explores intentional living, reinvention, emotional triggers and creating a life that feels genuinely aligned. After moving through careers in hospitality, technology, construction and entrepreneurship—and rebuilding her life after the end of a 28-year marriage—Stacie shares why she believes we are capable of consciously creating new chapters instead of simply continuing along paths we chose years or even decades ago.

Stacie explains what it means to live on autopilot, where schedules, commitments and old decisions begin creating the momentum of your life instead of your own intentional choices. She introduces her Clarity Sequence, which begins with honestly assessing where you are today before asking what you actually want to experience next. She also discusses why clarity does not eliminate uncertainty, why trying to change everything at once often fails and how focusing on one important pattern can create a ripple effect across many areas of life.

At its heart, this conversation is about taking responsibility for the life you are creating. Stacie describes emotional triggers as clues rather than enemies and shares one of the biggest lessons from her divorce: reacting automatically can mean giving away your sense of control. Her message is to become curious about your reactions, challenge beliefs that may no longer serve you and consciously build the next version of yourself one meaningful change at a time.Connect with Stacie Shifflett

Explore Stacie’s work, programs and free resources through Modern Consciousness:

ModernConsciousness.com

Her website includes a free Navigating Your Emotional Triggers resource as well as information about her Clarity Sequence for understanding where you are, what you want to experience and what needs to change.

You can also connect with Stacie through Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn using the links on her website.

What happens when you become successful, responsible for everyone around you and respected in your career—but slowly stop taking care of yourself?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, leadership coach Carla Coates explores intentional leadership, burnout, career transitions and building a meaningful next chapter. Drawing from her journey from bill collector to senior leader with the U.S. Department of the Navy and eventually business owner, Carla shares the defining moment when a respected executive confronted her about being too focused on herself and not enough on her people, colleagues and organization. That experience forced her to rethink what leadership actually meant.

Carla explains that strong leadership is ultimately human-centered leadership. She discusses simple practices such as knowing the people you lead, remembering what matters in their lives, building relationships across an organization and setting boundaries that protect your ability to actually do your work. She also identifies subtle signs of burnout, including abandoning the everyday routines, exercise, meditation or self-care practices that once helped you stay grounded because everything and everyone else has become more important.

At its heart, this conversation is about creating success without disappearing inside your responsibilities. Carla encourages accomplished professionals—especially those approaching a career transition or new stage of life—to ask what they genuinely want next instead of remaining somewhere simply because it looks successful from the outside. Her message is that intentional leadership begins with people, healthy boundaries and enough self-awareness to recognize when your current definition of success no longer fits the life you want to build.

Connect with Carla Coates

Connect directly with Carla Coates on LinkedIn for conversations about leadership, burnout, career transitions and navigating your next chapter.

http://coatesconsultinggroup.info/

Search Carla Coates — Leadership Coach on LinkedIn and send her a direct message to connect.

What if getting older didn’t automatically have to mean becoming weaker, less mobile or less capable?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, neurological wellness specialist and author Karl Sterling explores healthy aging, brain health, movement, strength and longevity. Karl shares his own transformation from an unhealthy lifestyle with excess weight and health problems to losing around 80 pounds, becoming a trainer and eventually dedicating his work to helping people maintain a longer “health span” within their lifespan.

Karl explains his neuromotor training philosophy, which views the brain, nervous system, muscles and skeletal system as interconnected rather than isolated parts. Drawing from his work with older adults and people living with conditions such as Parkinson’s, he discusses the importance of maintaining movement, muscle strength and functional abilities as people age. He also shares the story of a woman with Parkinson’s who, in his account, progressed from needing assistance to roll over in bed to eventually running a marathon—an example he uses to illustrate the potential impact of targeted training, persistence and renewed confidence. Individual outcomes vary, particularly with neurological conditions, and exercise or rehabilitation programs should be tailored with appropriately qualified healthcare professionals.

At its heart, this conversation is about refusing to let age alone define what you believe your body can still do. Karl encourages listeners to prioritize regular movement, strength, nutrition and preventive health habits rather than waiting until physical decline becomes severe. His message is straightforward: you may wish you had started decades ago, but the next best opportunity to begin taking your health seriously is now.

Connect with Karl Sterling

Learn more about Karl’s book Brain Body Bones:

BrainBodyBones.com

The book is available in paperback, Kindle and audiobook formats, with English and Spanish editions discussed in the episode.

Learn more about Karl’s training, books and work:

KarlSterling.com

What if losing the job you depended on became the moment that finally pushed you toward the work you were meant to do?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, entrepreneur, author and social enterprise founder Merry Korn shares how being unexpectedly fired as a single mother of two became the beginning of an entirely different life. Instead of waiting for her fear to disappear, Merry negotiated a severance, focused on keeping her family financially secure and began taking practical steps toward building something new. She eventually created a social enterprise that prioritized employment opportunities for disabled veterans, military spouses, people with disabilities and people living in economically challenged communities.

Merry explains her three-part approach to major career transitions: overcome the fear, discover your life purpose and use informational interviews to learn from people already doing the work you want to do. She also shares practical advice for someone who has just lost a job, including taking time to grieve, understanding your finances, protecting available benefits, reducing expenses where necessary and creating an immediate plan for income before tackling the bigger questions about purpose.

At its heart, this conversation is about turning setbacks into direction. Merry discusses building a business where profit and social impact worked together, the importance of servant leadership and why great leaders surround themselves with people whose strengths complement their own. Looking back, she now considers being fired a gift—even though it felt like a nightmare when it happened. Her message is not to wait until fear disappears, but to take the next practical step while the fear is still there.Connect with Merry Korn

Explore Merry’s resources and work around career transitions, courage and finding your purpose:

FiredToInspired.com

Her website includes free workbooks covering overcoming fear, discovering your life purpose and using informational interviews.

You can also connect with Merry Korn on LinkedIn and learn more about her upcoming book through her website.

Why can a woman eat well, exercise and seemingly do everything right—yet suddenly struggle with belly fat, low energy, poor sleep and weight that refuses to move?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, internal medicine and functional medicine physician Dr. Roopa Chari explores perimenopause, menopause, hormones, metabolism and weight management for women over 45. She explains how changes in estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, muscle mass, sleep and stress can affect how women feel and where their bodies tend to store fat. Her central message is that women should not automatically blame themselves when strategies that worked in their twenties and thirties stop producing the same results.

Dr. Chari discusses why she encourages women to reconsider overly aggressive exercise and rigid dieting during this stage of life. Her approach emphasizes adequate protein, resistance training, walking, sleep, stress management and paying attention to hunger rather than forcing extended fasting when the body feels depleted. She also discusses the importance of evaluating symptoms such as significant hot flashes, night sweats, sleep disruption, mood changes and unexplained weight gain with an appropriately qualified healthcare professional, since individual needs and medical histories vary.

At its heart, this conversation is about working with your changing body instead of fighting against it. Dr. Chari encourages women to view midlife as a transition rather than a personal failure and to pay attention to the signals their bodies are giving them. Her message is that changes in weight, energy and sleep can have multiple contributing factors, and understanding those factors can help women have more informed conversations about their health and appropriate treatment options.

Connect with Dr. Roopa Chari

Learn more about Dr. Chari’s work through the Chari Center of Health:

ChariCenter.com

Her website also includes additional information about her approach to women’s health, nutrition, hormones, metabolism and lifestyle medicine, along with links to her social media.

What if the message, expertise or business you have built is already valuable—but not enough people know that it exists?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, speaker profitability expert and Speaker’s Playhouse host Kimberly Crowe explores public speaking, visibility, podcast guesting and turning attention into business opportunities. After leaving a 17-year corporate career, Kimberly built a business around speaking and helping entrepreneurs, coaches and authors use stages, podcasts and other platforms to get their ideas in front of more people.

Kimberly explains why visibility alone is not enough. Speakers need to know what they want an audience to learn, do and feel, and they need to give listeners a clear next step after hearing them. She also shares practical advice for landing early speaking opportunities, preparing a speaker bio and headshot, building genuine relationships instead of simply collecting contacts and approaching networking with a specific goal rather than trying to meet everyone in the room.

At its heart, this conversation is about having the courage to stop hiding your message. Kimberly encourages people who fear public speaking to reframe some of that nervous energy as excitement and gain confidence through repetition. Her mantra is simple: when someone hands you a microphone, say yes. The more opportunities you take to speak, the more clearly you learn to communicate your expertise, build trust and create opportunities around the work you care about.

Connect with Kimberly Crowe

Get Kimberly’s free resource:

GiftFromKimberly.com

Discover speaking, podcast and networking opportunities through Speaker’s Playhouse:

SpeakersPlayhouse.com

Speaker’s Playhouse is Kimberly’s weekly online networking event where participants can hear directly from show hosts and discover opportunities to share their message.

What if surviving trauma made you stronger on the outside—but your body was still living as though the danger had never ended?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, trauma practitioner and founder of Phoenix Women Healing, Anissa Hudak, explores trauma, PTSD, nervous-system regulation and feeling safe in your body again. Drawing from her own experience as a sexual trauma survivor and her professional work with yoga therapy and neurosomatic approaches, Anissa shares how her personal healing journey eventually became a way to help other women.

Anissa explains her view that trauma cannot always be addressed through conversation alone and discusses why she incorporates movement, somatic practices and neuro-focused techniques into her work. She shares her belief that clients do not necessarily need to repeatedly describe traumatic experiences in order to work toward healing. She also discusses movement—including yoga, walking, hiking and martial arts—as tools she uses or recommends for helping people reconnect with their bodies. These therapeutic claims reflect Anissa’s professional approach and personal perspective; trauma treatment needs vary, and people experiencing PTSD or significant symptoms should work with appropriately qualified healthcare professionals.

At its heart, this conversation is about moving from survival mode toward a greater sense of safety and freedom. Anissa shares that one of her own turning points came while training to help people with PTSD, when she realized she first needed to address how deeply trauma was affecting her own life. Her message to women who have spent years appearing strong, independent and in control is that strength does not mean you have to carry everything alone—and recognizing what your body has been protecting you from can be an important part of deciding what support you need next.

Connect with Anissa Hudak

Learn more about Anissa’s trauma-healing work through Phoenix Women Healing:

PhoenixWomenHealing.com

Anissa also offers a free 3-minute Strong Survivor quiz through her website to help women explore patterns such as hyper-independence and overprotectiveness and consider possible next steps in their healing journey.

What happens when addiction takes you through broken relationships, jail, relapse and rock bottom—but you are given another chance to rebuild your life?

In this episode of Freedom Unlocked, substance abuse counselor, sober coach and author Max Nijst shares his journey through addiction, relapse, recovery, faith and resilience. Max describes beginning to experiment with alcohol and drugs as a teenager, eventually losing control of his life and facing repeated jail sentences. A judge ultimately gave him another opportunity by allowing him to enter treatment instead of going to prison—a decision that became part of the turning point toward the recovery he has maintained for more than two decades.

Max speaks candidly about the difficult inner work that followed. Early recovery included four relapses, confronting shame and guilt, rebuilding relationships and eventually realizing that he could not stay sober simply for his children, probation officer or family—he had to choose recovery for himself. He describes faith, Alcoholics Anonymous, sponsorship, asking for help and being of service to others as major parts of what has helped him continue moving forward.

At its heart, this conversation is about surrender, responsibility and discovering freedom through recovery. Max encourages people struggling with addiction to admit when something is wrong and recognize that asking for help is a strength rather than a failure. For him, freedom today means having choices again, being present for his family and using his experience to help others move from simply surviving toward building a life worth living.

Connect with Max Nijst

Learn more about Max’s counseling, coaching, books and recovery work:

MaxNijst.org

His books Fearless Happyness — My Addiction, My Battles, My Recovery and Fearless Resilience are available on Amazon.

You can also find Max through The Fearless Happyness Podcast, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.