The Knowing Podcast | Emotional Intelligence, Business Growth, Personal Development

What happens when you spend 2 months in a coma, face a near-death experience, and return with a new perspective on faith, family, and business?

In this powerful episode of The Knowing Podcast, host Christene Marie sits down with Craig Andrews, a husband, survivor, Marine veteran, and marketing strategist, to unpack the life-changing lessons he’s learned about resilience, reconciliation, forgiveness, and building trust: both in relationships and in business.

Craig’s story is a miracle. From being told he wouldn’t survive 24 hours, to awakening and rebuilding his life, Craig shares raw experiences that will inspire you to rethink what really matters. He also dives into the world of high-ticket marketing and why vulnerability and truth-telling are the secret ingredients to building lasting trust with clients.

✨ Whether you’re navigating relationships, running a business, or simply trying to live with more intention, this conversation will leave you with tools, hope, and a fresh sense of perspective.

0:00 Intro

0:20 Podcast Intro

0:59 Craig Andrews Introduction 

1:49 The day everything changed: Craig’s near-death covid story

7:56 Dreams, coma, and distorted reality

13:01 How the near-death experience reframed marriage & relationships

20:17 Reconciliation, forgiveness, and letting go of bitterness

24:24 Splinters in marriage: toothpaste, toilet paper & small annoyances

35:44 Ripples in a pond: prioritizing relationships

43:43 Marketing: emotional bonds with customers

55:29 Vulnerability and flaws build trust

58:50 Why charging creates transformation & accountability

CTA's

📚 Craig and Karen Andrew's Book: Hope That Won't Die 

https://www.amazon.com/Hope-That-Wont-Die-Survivors/dp/1991123256

📚 Craig's Andrew's Book: Make Sales Magical:

https://www.amazon.com/Make-Sales-Magical-Faster-Higher/dp/1991123280

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 👉 Share this video with someone who needs hope or encouragement

 👉 Comment below: What’s one takeaway from Craig’s story that inspired you?

 📣 Listen to the full podcast on all platforms: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-knowing-podcast-emotional-intelligence-business/id1779161225

🔖 #KnowingPodcast #CraigAndrews #EmotionalIntelligence #MarriageAdvice #Entrepreneurship #FaithAndBusiness #Forgiveness #Resilience

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Craig Andrews is the founder and Principal Ally of allies4me, a marketing agency helping businesses with high-ticket offers (from $20K to $2M) stand out, build trust, and attract their ideal clients. After a near-death experience that left him in a coma for two months, Craig now combines personal resilience with professional expertise to help entrepreneurs create offers that resonate and transform.

🐦 Twitter/X: @allies4me

What does true reconciliation look like? With ourselves, with others, and with God? In this powerful episode of The Knowing Podcast, host Christene Marie sits down with Dustin Reichmann, entrepreneur, husband, father, and founder of Seven Figure Leap, to explore emotional healing, forgiveness, sobriety, and presence.

Dustin shares his journey of growing up in hardship, finding faith, reconciling with his father, and how he now helps others transform their lives and businesses through community, values, and vulnerability. Christene and Dustin dive deep into themes of identity, trauma, letting go of control, and living fully in the present moment.

0:00 Intro

0:36 Podcast Intro

1:16 Guest Intro

4:00 Our Top Values Come From Vacuums

11:22 Forgiveness Vs. Reconciliation

17:38 "You're A Miracle"  How Community Helps With Healing

22:47 From Unresolved Pain to Learning Core Values

28:45 The "75 Hard" Challenge 

38:42 Letting Go of Control and The Need to “Know”

42:10 Presence as the Antidote to Anxiety

46:15 Healing and Forgiveness through Faith and Release

51:45 How to Connect with Dustin & Closing Reflections

📘 Free Resource from Dustin

Inside, you’ll find:

♠️75 Day Hard Challenge Discussed in Episode: https://andyfrisella.com/blogs/articles/what-is-75-hard

📚Books Recommended in this Conversation: Immortal Diamond by Richard Rohr

💡 If this conversation resonated, subscribe for more deep talks on emotional intelligence, faith, relationships, and business.

#TheKnowingPodcast #Reconciliation #HealingJourney #FaithAndBusiness #EmotionalIntelligence #Sobriety #Presence #Podcast

Dustin is the founder of Seven Figure Leap, a company helping entrepreneurs and leaders grow their businesses through community, podcasting, and relationship-driven strategies. After being featured on over 100 podcasts, Dustin is passionate about teaching others how to share their stories authentically and build deeper connections that fuel business growth.

✨ What Dustin offers:

🌐 Website: https://7figureleap.com/

Email: [email protected]

 📧Book a complimentary strategy call here: https://7figureleap.com/call

From breakdancing world championships to building multi-million-dollar companies, Joe Stolte has lived a life defined by bold moves, resilience, and vision. In this episode, Christene Marie and Joe dive deep into emotional intelligence, entrepreneurship, creating a vision bigger than yourself, and lessons learned from the edge—whether in business, parenting, or ju-jitsu.

🎙 Topics We Cover in This Episode:

0:00 Intro

0:12 The Knowing Podcast Intro

0:50 Joe Stolte Intro & Life Alignment Through Values

2:55 The Story of How Joe Met His Wife & His Breakdancing Career

8:18 Joe's Vision and Christ-Modeled Relationship Goals 

17:57 Why Most of Us Aren’t Awake to Our Desires

25:27 Teaching a 5-Year-Old the Art of Entrepreneurship

34:00 How Far Can I Go? Curiosity as a Growth Driver

40:21 Ju-Jitsu Lesson: Turning Toward Your Problems

42:01 Creating a Vision Bigger Than Yourself

47:00 Business Lessons: Speed of Implementation & Focus

48:40 Final Reflections & Integration of Life + Business

✅ Subscribe to The Knowing Podcast for more inspiring conversations: https://www.youtube.com/@TheKnowingPodcast

📚 Books Recommended in this Episode: Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

#TheKnowingPodcast #JoeStolte #Entrepreneurship #Vision #LifeLessons #SelfAwareness #Motivation #BusinessTips #PersonalGrowth #Relationships #Parenting #Mindset

📲Follow + 📌Connect with The Knowing Podcast:

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🔹 Invite Christene to speak: https://christenemarie.com/speaking/

Joe Stolte is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and speaker with over 20 years of experience building and scaling businesses. He’s a five-time founder with three successful exits and is currently working on his fourth. Joe’s unique journey began as a professional breakdancer, winning two world titles with the Massive Monkeys crew and helping bring breaking to the Olympics.

Today, Joe blends his passion for entrepreneurship, emotional intelligence, and performance coaching to help individuals and companies achieve their highest potential. He’s the CEO of Daily AI, a platform helping small businesses and thought leaders create AI-powered newsletters for their audiences.

🌐 Website: https://daily.ai/

In this episode of The Knowing Podcast, Christene Marie sits down with Hal Kramer, an Air Force veteran turned assisted living entrepreneur, who is radically reshaping what end-of-life care can look like.

From helping wheelchair-bound residents walk again to confronting the overlooked emotional pain in aging adults, Hal’s approach flips the traditional system on its head. His secret? Asking one simple question: “What are your goals?”

Together, they explore:

Whether you’re caring for a loved one, questioning the healthcare system, or curious about what’s possible when we listen deeper—this episode is for you.

00:00 – You Don’t Need Assisted Living?

💡 Loved this episode? Subscribe to hear more honest, transformative conversations that blend emotional intelligence with business, health, and legacy.

#TheKnowingPodcast #HalKramer #AssistedLivingReform #EmotionalIntelligence #HealthyAging #ChronicIllnessReversal #VeteranLeadership #KnowYourself #HealthcareInnovation #CarnivoreDiet #IntermittentFasting #AgingWithDignity

Hal Cranmer is a former Air Force pilot and the founder of A Paradise for Parents Assisted Living, a network of residential care homes in Arizona designed to offer seniors a better, more personalized quality of life. After spending over two decades in aerospace and manufacturing, Hal transitioned into elder care with a mission to create a different kind of assisted living experience—one where people get healthier and even return home.

Guided by his military background and entrepreneurial spirit, Hal focuses on nutrition, movement, emotional healing, and dignity as cornerstones of care. He has helped residents reverse diabetes, regain mobility, and experience dramatic cognitive improvements—all while reducing dependence on medications and institutional models.

“We’re not trying to keep people in assisted living. We’re helping them get well enough to go home.”

 🔹 Website: https://aparadiseforparents.com/

What if the truth isn’t fixed—but evolving?

In this soul-stretching episode, Christene Marie sits down with content strategist and thought leader Atiba de Souza to unpack what it really means to know—yourself, your partner, and the stories that shape us.

From how love languages change over time, to using AI for self-reflection, to a jaw-dropping fact about rocks producing oxygen… this conversation spans emotional intelligence, science, faith, and truth itself.

Whether you're navigating relationships, leadership, or your own internal work, this episode will make you pause, question, and re-see everything.

⏱️ Chapters:

0:00 Intro

0:19 Podcast Intro

0:57 Atiba's Intro

5:40 When love languages shift: Listening with new ears

10:00 "The lens of knowing" and being misunderstood

15:00 The changing love languages with your kids

21:20 AI, trauma, intuition, and the body’s signals

28:30 Rocks make oxygen?! Science and spiritual perspective

32:06 Faith, belief, and moral absolutes

43:48 Seeing others clearly: Closed vs open perspectives

51:30 Why truth needs movement to stay alive

59:25 “He could have…”: Regret and living fully

1:01:36 Final reflections: Humility, honesty, and becoming

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#TheKnowingPodcast #AtibaDeSouza #EmotionalIntelligence #ChristeneMarie #Truth #Leadership #SelfAwareness #FaithAndGrowth #LoveLanguages #Healing #AIandTrauma #PerspectiveShift

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Atiba de Souza is a content strategist, entrepreneur, and speaker who helps brands build human connection through video storytelling and SEO. Known as the "Content Superman," Atiba helps purpose-driven companies and thought leaders get seen and stay trusted online.

He blends data-driven SEO expertise with real emotional resonance to create content that converts and connects.

🖥️ Website: https://clientattractionpros.com

In this raw, honest, and often surprising conversation, Phillip Nathraim joins Christene Marie to explore how past experiences shape our identity, relationships, leadership, and emotional patterns — often without us realizing it. From corporate leadership to inner child work, Phillip unpacks how business, boundaries, family, and healing all intersect.

Together, they dive into:

-Why we keep repeating old patterns

-How hiring should start with self-awareness

-Healing beyond what’s “normal”

-Emotional intelligence in leadership

-And the moment a TV show saved Phillip’s life

-Whether you're a founder, a parent, or someone on a personal healing journey — this episode will hit home.

⏱️ Chapters:

0:00 Intro

0:19 Podcast Intro

0:57 Guest Phillip Intro

2:28 Maturing Through Entrepreneurship

7:10 Don’t Hire a Fish to Climb a Tree 🐟

10:40 Why Employees Disengage (It’s Not What You Think)

15:10 How to Build for Team Success

20:30 Our Perceptions Are Shaped by Childhood Narratives

28:53 Stop Fixing Your Weaknesses. Hire Them.

32:43 The Wheel of Fulfillment: Mapping Inner Priorities

43:00 Family Systems, Boundaries & Redefining Belonging

57:27 Fear Around Money

1:01:19 What Intuition Really Is (And How to Trust It)

Phillip's Free Offer:

🧠 Take the Predictive Index Free Assessment:

https://www.execucom.co/forms/free-assessment

Phillip's Book Recommendation:

📚 The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D. Wattles

👍 Like this episode?

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🎧 Listen on all major podcast platforms.

🔖 Hashtags:

#KnowingPodcast #ChristeneMarie #PhillipNathan #LeadershipDevelopment #EmotionalIntelligence #HealingJourney #InnerWork #TraumaRecovery #PredictiveIndex #SelfAwareness #Boundaries #Entrepreneurship

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🙋‍♂️ About the Guest: Phillip Nathan

Phillip Nathan is a leadership strategist, speaker, and emotional intelligence guide helping founders and teams align from the inside out. He's the co-founder of Execucom, a behavioral intelligence and team performance platform that combines predictive analytics with coaching to help companies hire, inspire, and lead better.

Through his work, Phillip bridges business strategy and inner transformation — using tools like the Predictive Index and frameworks rooted in recovery, self-awareness, and neuroscience. He also speaks widely about emotional resilience, trauma-informed leadership, and faith-centered growth.

🔗 Website: https://www.execucom.co/

🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phillipnaithram/

🔗 Instagram: @phillipnaithram

🧠 Take the Predictive Index Free Assessment: https://www.execucom.co/forms/free-assessment

In this powerful episode of The Knowing Podcast, host Christene Marie sits down with wealth coach and investor Tamar Hermes to explore what it really means for women to know their financials, own their worth, and invest in alignment with their values.

You’ll learn why mixing personal and business money keeps women disempowered, how to start a peaceful “money ritual,” and why net worth is often misunderstood. Plus, Tamar offers a special invitation to work with her directly.

⏱️ Chapters

0:00 Intro

0:35 Podcast Welcome

1:14 Guest Introduction

3:15 Why Wealth Is Personal (Especially for Women)

9:12 “Dropping In”: How to Ground Before Financial Decisions

12:01 When Financial Clarity Fuels Self-Love

13:10 Master Mind Offer: Women Growing Wealth

19:03 How to Create a Money Ritual You’ll Actually Enjoy

24:04 Business Money ≠ Personal Money

28:01 “Is This Money Even Mine?”: The Stewardship Shift

34:41 Net Worth ≠ Salary: Women Underestimating Their Wealth

39:00 “Just Turn on the Light”: Christene’s Final Reminder

✅ Subscribe for more episodes on emotional intelligence, business, and self-awareness.

📩 Want to work with Tamar? Book a Wealth Activation Session below.

🧠 Apply what you learned: Take 5 minutes this week to sit with your money.

👇 Drop a comment: What’s ONE mindset shift you had after watching this?

#KnowingPodcast #WomenAndWealth #MoneyMindset #EmotionalIntelligence #TamarHermes #FinancialFreedom #NetWorth #MoneyWisdom

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🔹 Invite Christene to speak: https://christenemarie.com/speaking/

👤 About Tamar Hermes 

Tamar is a wealth coach, real estate investor, speaker, and founder of the Women Growing Wealth community. She helps women build aligned financial strategies, grow their net worth, and invest with confidence. As a former high-earning employee turned entrepreneur and investor, Tamar brings a holistic, emotionally intelligent approach to money.

What Tamar Offers:

-Wealth Activation Sessions

-Investment Education for Accredited Investors

-Community: Women Growing Wealth Mastermind

🌐 Website: wealthbuildingconcierge.com 

📸 Instagram: @tamarhermes

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tamar-hermes-53b9114a

What if the darkest seasons of your life became the foundation of your greatest clarity?

In this soul-deep episode of The Knowing Podcast, host Christene Marie sits down with Sammy Aslam—entrepreneur, former convict, and the heart behind Alyshaan Fine Rugs—to explore identity, emotional safety, love, addiction recovery, and the surprising transformations that happen in solitude.

From how prison shaped his inner world to the intimacy and safety he’s found in his marriage, Sammy brings humor, wisdom, and raw truth to the table. You’ll leave this conversation reflecting on what parts of yourself are worth keeping—and which ones it’s finally time to release.

0:00 Intro

0:30 Podcast Intro

1:08 Sammy Guest Intro

4:27 Addiction, Loyalty & the Bond That Survived It

10:52 KPIs for Healthy Relationships? Yes, Please

16:00 The Power of Being Deeply Understood In Relationships 

18:37 Emotional Protection vs. Codependency

26:17 Christene’s Story: Pain, Protection, and Childhood Illness

34:17 Understanding as a Bridge to Empathy

41:00 How Prison Made Me Who I Am

44:07 Identifying Who You Want to Be (Through Books)

50:30 Final Reflection: Knowing You Still Have Work To Do

📚Recommended Books to Read discussed in this episode: 

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

As a Man Thinketh by James Allen

💬 Comment below: What part of this conversation stayed with you?

#TheKnowingPodcast #SammyAslam #EmotionalIntelligence #FromConvictToCEO

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🔹 Learn more at: https://www.theknowingagency.com/

🔹 Sign up for Christene Marie’s Newsletter: https://christenemarie.com/receive-newsletter/

🔹 Invite Christene to speak: https://christenemarie.com/speaking/

Sammy Aslam is the co-owner of Alyshaan Fine Rugs, Arizona’s premier destination for high-end, ethically sourced, and design-forward area rugs. Located in Scottsdale and serving luxury clients across the U.S., Alyshaan is renowned for its integrity, curated quality, and unmatched customer service.

Sammy brings the same thoughtfulness, emotional intelligence, and clarity to his work in the rug industry as he does to his life and relationships. Whether you’re furnishing a space—or healing one—you’ll feel the difference.

🔗 Visit: www.alyshaan.com

In this raw and resonant episode of The Knowing Podcast, Christene sits down with Dmitri Smirnov, entrepreneur, ad strategist, husband, and father of two, to explore the emotional journey of becoming an adult—one where you learn to hold grief and joy, fear and hope, truth and contradiction, all at once.

From growing up as an only child and navigating early identity confusion, to redefining freedom, parenting, and the power of silence—this conversation touches both the cerebral and the soulful.

🔑 Topics include:

Whether you're navigating personal transitions, parenting from a place of growth, or reclaiming your voice—this episode will meet you right where you are.

⏱️ Chapters:

0:00 Intro

0:24 Podcast Introduction

1:03 Introducing Dmitri

4:24 Only Child and Living in Freedom

10:30 Unspoken Rules & Painful Baseball Lessons

15:55 Names & Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

20:00 Awakening and Gratitude

34:12 The Real Definition of Adulthood

38:16 Grieving While Showing Up

41:00 Becoming Your Own Caretaker

49:21 Shower Thoughts & Modern Meditation

56:58 Processing vs Avoiding

👇 Leave a comment: What’s a contradiction you’ve learned to hold as truth?

👉 Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of emotional health, identity, and impact.

🔔 Don’t forget to hit the bell so you never miss a moment of Knowing.

#TheKnowingPodcast #EmotionalIntelligence #Adulthood #InnerWork #SelfDiscovery #ChristeneMarie #DmitriSmirnoff #EmotionalMaturity #GratitudePractice #ModernMasculinity #PodcastChapters #KnowYourself

📲Follow + 📌Connect with Host Christene Marie

🔹 Follow The Knowing Podcast on Instagram: @theknowingpodcast

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🔹 Learn more at: https://www.theknowingagency.com/

🔹 Sign up for Christene Marie’s Newsletter: https://christenemarie.com/receive-newsletter/

🔹 Invite Christene to speak: https://christenemarie.com/speaking/

Dmitri is a performance marketing expert and Founder and CEO of Big Life Marketing. With a unique mix of creative intuition and analytical rigor, he helps purpose-driven entrepreneurs craft messaging that converts and stories that resonate.

More than a strategist, Dmitri is also a philosopher at heart—known for weaving emotional intelligence into everything from marketing to marriage.

🔗 Connect with Dmitri:

This episode of The Knowing Podcast goes straight to the heart of modern entrepreneurship—where high achievement meets emotional exhaustion. Christene Marie sits down with digital entrepreneur and agency owner Adam McChesney, who opens up about chasing success, losing himself, and the powerful moment he chose alignment over accolades.

🔑 Together, they explore:

Whether you’re building a business, navigating complex relationships, or in the middle of a personal reckoning—this one will hit deep.

0:00 Intro

0:30 Welcome to The Knowing Podcast

1:08 Introducing Adam

4:40 The Story of Adam's Father's Business

8:03 A Business Exit That Brought Up Healing Generational Patterns

10:27 The Lie Entrepreneurs Tell Themselves: "I’m Doing It For My Family"

16:13 Christene on Religious Conditioning & Reclaiming Intuition

19:30 Avoiding Conflict and the Cost of Sweeping Things Under the Rug

24:46 Adam on Pattern Recognition and Taking Ownership

28:53 Drawing a Line in the Sand: Choosing Alignment Over Achievement

34:30 Defining Relationship KPIs for Business and Life

46:55 Subconscious Distractions and the Power of a Mental Audit

#KnowingPodcast #AdamMcChesney #EmotionalIntelligence #BusinessAlignment #Entrepreneurship #InnerWork #KnowYourself #LeadershipJourney #BurnoutRecovery #ConsciousBusiness #PersonalGrowth #BusinessBoundaries #FoundersLife #MindsetShift #AuthenticLiving #DigitalMarketing #MastermindCommunity #SelfReflection #EmotionalWellness #HealingThroughWork

—

📲Follow + 📌Connect:

🔹 Follow The Knowing Podcast on Instagram: @theknowingpodcast

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🔹 Learn more at: https://www.theknowingagency.com/

🔹 Sign up for Christene Marie’s Newsletter: https://christenemarie.com/receive-newsletter/

🔹 Invite Christene to speak: https://christenemarie.com/speaking/

—

Adam McChesney is a St. Louis-based digital marketing expert, speaker, and entrepreneur who helps service-based businesses grow through SEO, lead generation, and personal branding. After exiting a multi-million-dollar agency partnership that no longer aligned with his values, Adam launched his own agency and a mastermind community that teaches business owners how to grow authentically and profitably.

🔗 Website: https://adammcchesney.com