The “messy middle” is the part most of us want to skip—after the rush of a new beginning and long before the satisfying finish. In this solo episode, I share why this season is not a mistake, how it shows up in creative work, business, and relationships, and what actually helps you stay with it instead of self-isolating or burning it all down.

I tell two behind-the-scenes stories:

• Subway Dreams: the indie documentary I stopped promoting after a harsh review—plus the counter-example of a director who kept iterating, resubmitting, and ultimately premiered at Tribeca.
• Marriage in real life: what it looked like to stay through a rocky, high-conflict period with my now-husband—and the specific supports that got us through.

You’ll hear:

• What the messy middle is (and why it feels like tangled spaghetti)
• Why the instinct to self-isolate makes it harder—and what to do instead
• How to use pacing, breaks, and co-regulation so you don’t crash and torch the project
• Why holding a clear vision and finding pleasure now keeps you moving
• The mindset reframe: care more about connection than “saving face”

Try this:

• Get support (coach or buddy up)
• Pace yourself and take real breaks
• Keep your vision close—and let yourself enjoy the process now
• When fear of “how it looks” spikes, return to connection (clients, audience, partner, community, self)

Work with me
If you’re in your own messy middle and want steady support—nervous-system-safe, compassionate, and practical—I offer 1:1 coaching and a small group space.

• Website: www.annaholtzman.com
• Email: [email protected]
• IG: @anna_holtzman

Thanks for listening—and for staying with your process. You’re not behind; you’re in it.

If you’ve ever felt nervous about being seen, unsure how to talk about your work, or stuck trying to grow your business without burning out — this episode will shift your mindset around visibility, connection, and what’s actually possible when you speak up.

This week, Anna is joined by Beth Nydick — a former TV producer turned visibility strategist and business mentor who helps entrepreneurs, coaches, and experts turn podcast interviews into paying clients. She’s the behind-the-scenes force behind some of the most successful media presences in the online business world — and she’s here to help you stop “just showing up” and start strategically showing out.

In this powerful and down-to-earth conversation, we explore:

✨ Why podcast guesting is one of the most underutilized sales tools in the online space
✨ How to turn visibility into revenue without sounding like a walking sales pitch
✨ The difference between “being visible” and actually making your presence count
✨ How to stop shrinking, start asking for what you want, and take up space with confidence
✨ Why rising together beats hustling alone — and how media strategy can be rooted in generosity, not ego

Whether you’re new to podcast guesting or dreaming of your first mic moment, Beth will leave you feeling lit up, encouraged, and ready to own your voice.

Connect with Beth Nydick:
🌐 Website: www.bethnydick.com
📸 Instagram: @bethnydick (DM her the word “Anna” for a free gift!)
🎙️ Free $10k Checklist: https://courses.bethnydick.com/10kchecklist

Connect with Anna:
🌐 www.annaholtzman.com
📸 Instagram: @anna_holtzman
📬 Email: [email protected]

In this empowering episode, Anna sits down with Miriam Schulman — artist, author, and founder of The Inspiration Place Podcast — to explore what it really takes to turn your creativity into a sustainable livelihood.

After walking away from a lucrative hedge fund job in the wake of 9/11, Miriam chose to build a life centered around her art. Now, through her coaching programs, her podcast, and her best-selling book Artpreneur, she helps other artists and creatives do the same.

Together, Anna and Miriam talk about the mindset shifts, practical tools, and visibility strategies that help creatives stop undercharging, start sharing their work confidently, and build income with integrity.

✨ In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The #1 reason so many creatives don’t stick with their dreams — and how to change that
• Why charging money for your work isn’t “selling out” — it’s self-respect
• How to stop letting fear of visibility keep you from connecting with your audience
• The difference between “marketing” and simply telling your story with clarity and conviction
• Why being a successful creative isn’t about talent alone — it’s about treating your work like it matters
• What to do if you’re overwhelmed and don’t know where to start

🧠 Whether you're an artist, coach, healer, or multi-passionate creative, this episode will remind you that your work is valuable — and you can build a sustainable business doing what you love.

🎨 Connect with Miriam Schulman:

• Website: schulmanart.com
• Instagram: @schulmanart
• Podcast: The Inspiration Place
• Book: Artpreneur: The Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Sustainable Living from Your Creativity
• Free Resource: Create your own GPT alter ego for creative business advice at www.schulmanart.com/altar 

🌿 Connect with Anna Holtzman:

• Website: annaholtzman.com

This week, I’m sharing something special — a replay of my conversation with Noga Shefi, host of Your Healing Era, a podcast devoted to self-discovery, growth, and transformation.

In this episode, we explore how visibility itself can become a healing practice — one that helps us integrate fear, regulate the nervous system, and show up as our full selves in life and work.

✨ We talk about:
• The nervous-system side of visibility and why it can feel so vulnerable
• Healing visibility wounds, imposter syndrome, and creative blocks
• The link between chronic health patterns and being seen/unseen
• Practical ways to share your voice safely and sustainably
• My personal story from behind-the-scenes TV editor to visibility coach

If you’ve ever felt afraid to be visible, or wondered why showing up online feels so charged, this episode will bring compassion, clarity, and tools you can use right away.

🎧 Listen now on How to Trust Yourself — wherever you get your podcasts.

💛 Connect with Noga:Instagram: @noga.shefiWebsite: nogashefi.comPodcast: Your Healing Era

💛 Connect with Anna:Free workshop: annaholtzman.com/beseenInstagram: @anna_holtzman
Website: annaholtzman.com

In this powerful episode, Anna sits down with Lindsay Pinchuk—award-winning entrepreneur, marketing consultant, and host of the top 2% podcast Dear FoundHer…—for a conversation about growing your business without compromising your values, your nervous system, or your story.

Lindsay built a seven-figure business from a $500 investment, grew a thriving community that reached millions monthly, and led her company through a successful acquisition—all while showing up as herself. Today, she helps women founders cut through the noise and grow with intention, authenticity, and community.

Whether you're building a business or simply learning to show up more fully in your life, this conversation will help you rethink visibility as a form of connection, not performance—and remind you that vulnerability, when grounded, can be your greatest marketing tool.

✨ In this episode, we explore:

• How to share your story in ways that feel empowering, not exposing
• Why your community is your biggest marketing asset (and how to start building one)
• What to do when visibility brings up fear, shame, or self-doubt
• How storytelling builds trust—and how to tell yours with boundaries
• The difference between hustle-driven growth and connection-led expansion

If you're a sensitive entrepreneur, coach, or creative who wants to grow without burning out, this one’s for you.

🔗 Connect with Lindsay:

• Website: lindsaypinchuk.com
• Instagram: @dearfoundher
• Podcast: Dear FoundHer… (available wherever you listen)

💌 Want support growing your heart-led business with more ease and alignment?
Work with Anna: annaholtzman.comFollow on IG: @anna_holtzmanEmail: [email protected]

This week marks ten months since I pivoted How to Trust Yourself from its original focus on chronic pain to the deeper work that had been calling me all along: nervous-system-safe visibility.

In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on what that transition has really been like—the messy, nonlinear, beautifully human process of finding clarity through action.

I share how I started speaking my new direction into being before I felt “ready,” what it’s taught me about fear as a heat map to intuition, and why visibility isn’t something you master once—it’s something you practice, gently and consistently, as you grow.

You’ll hear:

• How intuition leads the way before the mind understands it
• Why clarity lives inside fear, not beyond it
• My 2021 story of hitting record for the first time (and shaking through it)
• How dialoguing with fear through journaling became the core of my method
• The breadcrumb trail that led me to realize this podcast has always been about visibility

And finally, I share the offer that grew directly from this season of unraveling: Your Story, Out Loud — a two-session coaching intensive for sensitive creatives, coaches, and entrepreneurs who are ready to find their voice and share it safely, gently, and powerfully.

✨ Learn more at www.annaholtzman.com/yourstory

Thank you for walking this path with me—through the pivots, the fear, and the evolution.
This next chapter of How to Trust Yourself is about what happens when we trust ourselves enough to be seen.

Episode Summary:
In this powerful conversation, Anna sits down with internationally renowned speaker, Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner, and author Brittany Piper to explore how we begin to rebuild self-trust after trauma—not just cognitively, but somatically. Brittany shares insights from her own healing journey as a rape survivor and from over a decade of work in trauma-informed care, including her transformative Body-First Healing framework.

They talk about the science and soul of nervous system recovery, the fear of being seen, and the courage it takes to step into your voice and visibility after trauma. Brittany also offers a behind-the-scenes look at her new book, Body-First Healing: A Revolutionary Guide to Nervous System Recovery—a practical and compassionate guide to reclaiming safety, regulation, and vitality in your body and life.

Whether you're in the early stages of your healing or years into the process, this episode offers deeply validating, body-centered wisdom to support you on the path of self-trust and recovery.

In this episode, Brittany and Anna discuss:

• The origin of Body-First Healing and how it revolutionizes trauma recovery
• How Brittany rebuilt self-trust in her work, motherhood, and healing
• The tools that helped her regulate her nervous system and reconnect to her voice
• Moving through fear of visibility in writing, publishing, and public speaking
• How to write and share your story from a trauma-informed lens
• Words of encouragement for those beginning the journey of healing and self-trust

Connect with Brittany Piper:
🌿 Instagram: @healwithbritt
🌿 Website & Programs: www.bodyfirsthealing.com
📘 Book: Body-First Healing: A Revolutionary Guide to Nervous System Recovery (available now!)

Connect with Anna:
🌿 Website: www.annaholtzman.com
🌿 Instagram: @anna_holtzman
📧 Email: [email protected]

Episode Description / Show Notes:
I’ve been getting this question a lot lately: what’s the difference between coaching and traditional talk therapy? In this episode, I break it down using a client story (pseudonym: “Kathy”) that illustrates common patterns of hesitation, fear, and overthinking.

You’ll hear how coaching is different: we don’t just talk—we take action. I share how taking the first step, even when you don’t feel ready, opens the door to real progress, how processing fear in real time supports sustainable growth, and why nervous-system-informed guidance is essential for stepping into visibility without burning out.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• The key difference between coaching and traditional therapy
• Why taking action—even small steps—is central to transformation
• How fear and resistance show up and why that’s a feature, not a bug
• The importance of nervous-system support, co-regulation, and reflection
• How to sustain progress while showing up authentically for your work

Who This Episode is For:
Sensitive creatives, healers, entrepreneurs, and coaches who want to take aligned action, show up authentically, and move past patterns of freeze or hesitation.

Resources & Links Mentioned in This Episode:

• Learn more about working with me: www.annaholtzman.com
• Apply for private coaching if this episode resonates

Follow & Connect:

• Instagram: @anna_holtzman

In this powerful and heartfelt episode, Anna talks with Lauren Smallcomb—a certified mind-body practitioner, trauma-informed healer, and author of the forthcoming memoir Golden Child: My Descent to Scapegoat and Rise to Freedom (coming September 2025).

Lauren shares her story of growing up as the golden child in a conservative Christian family system—and the painful unraveling that led her to reclaim her autonomy, identity, and voice. We talk about the hidden cost of perfectionism, the complexities of family estrangement, and the grief and liberation that come with choosing your own wholeness over external approval.

If you’ve ever wrestled with the question, “How much of my story should I share?” or struggled to reconcile your need for connection with your need for authenticity—this episode will speak to your soul.

We explore:

• ​What it means to be cast as the golden child (and how that role can harm)
• ​The double bind of family estrangement: “Do I stay and erase myself, or leave and be erased?”
• ​Rebuilding self-trust after leaving a family system or belief structure
• ​How to share personal stories without retraumatizing yourself
• ​The healing power of grief, creativity, and telling the truth

✨ Connect with Lauren:

• ​Website: flourishtherapy.kartra.com/page/goldenchild
• ​Instagram: @flourish_therapy
• ​Substack: @laurensmallcomb
• ​Book 📖 available now on Amazon: Golden Child: My Descent to Scapegoat and Rise to Freedom
• ​Email: [email protected]
• ​YouTube: @flourishtherapy

🌀 Want support building self-trust in your own creative or entrepreneurial journey?Work with Anna 1:1, join a live workshop, or explore resources at annaholtzman.comFollow Anna on Instagram: @anna_holtzmanEmail: [email protected]

Have you ever had a moment where being visible suddenly felt… dangerous?

In this episode, I share a story I’ve never forgotten—from second grade, when I was the eager kid raising her hand… until my teacher said something that made me shrink. It was one sentence that planted a seed of shame and taught me that being seen might not be safe.

That moment became what I now call a visibility wound—an early experience where being visible led to shame, rejection, or punishment. And the thing is: those wounds don’t stay in childhood. They resurface every time we go to share something that feels vulnerable and meaningful.

Whether it’s launching an offer, posting on Instagram, speaking up in a meeting, or just sharing your voice in a group—you might notice fear, procrastination, or even total shutdown. That doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It means your nervous system is doing its job to protect you.

But the good news is: visibility wounds can be healed. Not through pushing harder—but through compassion, safety, and gentle, consistent practice.

In this episode, I talk about:

• What a visibility wound actually is (and how to spot yours)
• How it shows up in creative and professional life
• Why these moments hit so hard—and how to work with them
• The 4 tools I use with myself and my clients to move through fear
• How visibility becomes easier when we stop going it alone

If you've ever frozen at the first step, ghosted your own goals, or judged yourself for not being more confident—this episode is for you.

🌱 Want Support Healing Your Visibility Wounds?

💻 Watch the free workshop:
Let Yourself Be Seen — a nervous-system-safe approach to being visible without burning out or abandoning yourself. www.annaholtzman.com/beseen

👥 Join the membership:
Seen & Safe — our cozy group coaching circle where you’ll get biweekly support, practical tools, and a safe place to melt fear and take meaningful steps toward your next creative or business leap. www.annaholtzman.com/seenandsafe