Shameless Leadership

Piers Kowalski is an average father of two with a not so average story.

Born and raised in Colorado, Piers lived and worked on the west coast for 11 years before moving back to Colorado with his wife. He started building a career in his dream field of performance psychology, his wife went back to school for nursing, and they had two children. They seemed to be living a typical life. But at the age of 36, Piers was seven years, two kids, and two dogs into marriage when he discovered he was transgender. He was afraid he was going to lose everything and everyone he loved.

On a mission to change the world, Piers shares his story of pain, self-discovery, fear, love, and hope to help others better understand the transgender experience, community, and humanity.

We have had parents of trans kids on the show in the past, but Piers is our first trans parent to come on the show. I am so grateful and honored that he said yes. This was a really special and important conversation. I hope you’ll listen and then share it widely.

Listen in to hear Piers share:

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How do you get people to do what you want them to do?

How do you help people make decisions that will benefit them?

How do you help people see the potential they have to be leaders, culture shifters, and culture shapers?

How do you move people to action?

This might sound daunting, I know. But here’s the thing… You are already doing this in your parenting. You help your children make decisions. You help your children see their potential. You walk them into opportunities that serve them. You probably also cheer for and champion your partners and friends when they are doing something great.  

How can you take the next step to become someone who inspires others to take action, to step into their gifts to lead, to advocate for themselves and others?  

You can do this. I’m going to give you 4 steps to do it. 4 steps to inspire your children, partner, parents, friends, and co-workers to become better action takers.

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Sonora Jha is the author of the memoir How to Raise a Feminist Son and the novel Foreign. After a career as a journalist covering crime, politics, and culture in India and Singapore, she moved to the United States to earn a Ph.D. in media and public affairs. Sonora’s op-eds, essays, and public appearances have featured in the New York Times, on BBC, and elsewhere. She is a professor of journalism and lives in Seattle.

I recently discovered Sonora and her book, How to Raise a Feminist Son, on Instagram. I got her audiobook and was hooked by the end of her introduction. Sonora is a phenomenal storyteller and truth teller. She is a magical combination of professor, comedian and friend as she digs into her life as a single mom who left India to bring her son to Seattle and raise him as a feminist as she built a family around them. I couldn’t be more excited and delighted to be sharing her with you all today. 

Listen in to hear Sonora share:

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Madeline Reeves is the founder & CEO of Fearless Foundry, a creative consultancy that supports ambitious humans in building branding, marketing, and business development strategies that allow them to make a meaningful impact in the world. Madeline is an outspoken force for promoting equity, collaboration, and community in business and she spends her time working with clients, creating content, hosting the Finding Fearless podcast, and leading her growing team. 

I have had the pleasure of interviewing Madeline as well as being interviewed by her and I can tell you she is the real deal.  She walks the walk and lives the values she has posted on her walls and on social media. It’s been awesome getting to know her as we’ve guested on each other’s podcasts! 

Listen in to hear Madeline share:

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Luvvie Ajayi Jones is a two-time New York Times bestselling author, sought-after speaker, and podcast host who thrives at the intersection of humor, media, and justice. Her critically acclaimed books Professional Troublemaker: The Fear-Fighter Manual (2021) and I’m Judging You: The Do-Better Manual (2016) were instant bestsellers and established her as a literary force with a powerful pen. Her newest book Rising Troublemaker: A Manual for Teens is out NOW!

Luvvie is a proud disruptor who has been featured in NPR, Forbes, Inc, Fortune, Chicago Tribune, and more. She has disruptively graced the stages of Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter, and Nike and many more top brands. Her renowned TED talk "Get Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable" has over 8 million views, has been transcribed into 23 languages, and has placed her in the Top 1% of TED Talks of all time.

Born in Nigeria, bred in Chicago and comfortable everywhere, Luvvie enjoys laying

around in her plush robe, eating a warm bowl of jollof rice in her free time. Her love

language is shoes.

Listen in to hear Luvvie share:

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For a few years now I have walked you all through building Summer Bucket Lists. I love that a number of you have taken on this tradition with your families. It is such a fun and meaningful tradition.  

When I told Vinnie I was going to record an episode on Summer Bucket Lists, he lit up. “Mom, it’s time to make ours!!” I asked him if he had any advice for all the Shameless Moms who are getting ready to make their Summer Bucket Lists and he told me, “You should put a lot of fun things on your list.”  

So, FUN is the official #1 rule of Summer Bucket Lists. 

In this episode I walk you through why Summer Bucket Lists are so special and meaningful as a family tradition. Then, I share a few (very loose) rules for building your Summer Bucket List. Lastly, I give you 3 steps/categories to use when creating your Summer Bucket Lists:

After you listen to this episode, please create your Summer Bucket Lists and share them to inspire other mamas to make theirs. And make sure to tag me @shamelessmomacademy so I can see all the FUN you are planning this summer. (Don’t forget the FUN.)

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Neill Williams is a Master Certified Life and Productivity Coach, host of “The Unbusy Your Life” podcast, and creator of the Unbusy Entrepreneur Mastermind. Only after ditching her own belief that success was measured by the number of hours worked was Neill able to achieve true lifestyle freedom while juggling her roles as a mom, wife, Master Certified Coach, entrepreneur and employee. Now, she helps too busy high-achieving online entrepreneurs simplify their schedules to 30 hours or less for more time and lifestyle freedom.

Listen in to hear Neill share:

How she scaled her corporate job from 60 hours a week to 30 hours a week

Why she set a goal to quit working overtime hours after proudly being the employee with the most overtime hours for a long time

How to negotiate cutting work hours without cutting your salary

The two questions you should ask if you want to work fewer hours

The powerful difference between making a To Do List vs a Done List

How to shift your mindset around productivity and what you can get done in shorter time frames

Why she thinks “productivity” is an outdated concept that needs to be rethought

Why scheduling is a self care tool

How traditional jobs reinforce mom guilt and unnecessary busyness - and how the pandemic massively compounded this

How to catch yourself when you’re worrying about someone’s reactions to you

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I started dreaming up this episode last Sunday. The next day, the Supreme Court was outed on their plan to own our bodies. The next day, our family was hit with Covid.  

By the time I sat down to record this, what I wanted to say shifted quite a bit. I was seeing this conversation through a totally different lens.  

As you listen in, I want you to deeply understand how to honor yourself as well as how to keep showing up for the hard stuff - the stuff that is so critically important in our world right now. This episode gives you permission and guidance on how to do both.  

In honor of Mother’s Day, let me confirm for you that you are an excellent mother. Full stop. And here are a few gifts I share with you, as you hold space for your excellence:

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Leah Carey is a sex and intimacy coach and host of the podcast “Good Girls Talk About Sex.” She works with people eager to explore new avenues of their sexuality and fulfill their greatest desires, like: diving back into the dating pool after a long time away, having first-time queer experiences, investigating consensual non-monogamy, or learning how to communicate about kink.

This work was not an obvious life choice for Leah. Growing up with an abusive father, she learned to be a VERY “good girl.”

She got involved in a series of emotionally abusive relationships, always convinced that SHE was the problem – not pretty enough, smart enough, or sexually skilled enough. And because she wasn’t having pleasure during sex, so she was convinced she was broken.

At age 42, life threw Leah an opportunity to build a new story: with both parents gone and no siblings, she could put aside the family mythology of the “good girl.”

She began challenging her old beliefs about worthiness, attractiveness, and desirability. Watching her phenomenal growth, friends started seeking her out to help them do the same.

Today, Leah works with women JUST LIKE YOU to reflect their true sexual nature back to them, without the judgment, shame, or fear that can get in the way of seeing it for themselves.

Listen in to hear Leah share:

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Last week we went on the spring break trip we had been planning for 4 years. We started planning this trip well before the pandemic hit and then had to cancel it and wait. And wait. And wait.  

Over the last 2 years, we have done a decent job of taking time as a family to get away in ways that felt safe(ish). Things like road trips and camping trips. And these have all been great. But we were definitely missing bigger vacations and longer getaways to places further from home.  

Last week, we spent a week on the tiny island of Isla Mujeres, just off the coast of Cancun, Mexico. It was the dreamiest trip (in spite of me completely throwing my back on Day 2.) The trip was dreamy because of its natural beauty - white sand beaches and the lightest turquoise water - but also because of how we managed the trip.  

In this episode, I share 3 things that made this trip exactly the respite I didn’t know I desperately needed. I hope these 3 things inspire you to take a vacation this summer - in whatever way is accessible to you. I’m guessing you need a break - perhaps desperately so. You might not even realize how badly you need it. I certainly didn’t.  

Listen in for some serious vacay inspo! 

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