Alanna Rizzo knows what she wants and isn't afraid to go after it.  From going back to school so she could make a huge career pivot in her late 20s, to ending a marriage that wasn't the right fit, to confidently knowing she doesn't want kids of her own, to finding incredible success in the male-dominated sports broadcasting world, Alanna makes no apologies for always being herself. She is strong and confident. But don't think that means her path has always been easy.  Quite the opposite.  Easy? No. But worth it? Definitely.

Elsi Pacheco has had little in her life go exactly according to plan--and that's okay.  It's actually more than okay! The unexpected has helped her build the beautiful life she enjoys today. But there were ups and downs getting here. From having a baby at 16 to leaving the corporate world years later with no concrete plans--just confidence in the belief that something better was out there--Elsi has paved her own way. And she wouldn't change a thing.

Like so many of us, it took Ivanka Dekoning time to figure out who she truly is and what makes her happy.  And once she did, there was no looking back.  A true champion of the LGBTQ+ community, Ivanka uses her voice to bring awareness and inclusivity to the fashion and beauty world, while breaking down stereotypes along the way.  But getting to this point wasn't always easy.  And like every story, hers is far from over.

What does it mean to be happily single? For Jessica Ryan it's about understanding you can be fulfilled and energized on your own while also being fully capable of giving yourself and your love to a healthy and supportive relationship. But she didn't just figure it all out overnight. Jess has worked hard to maintain an incredibly busy and successful professional life while also navigating difficult and emotional challenges that have changed her life. As she sees it, there was Jess 1.0 and now there's Jess 2.0. Who knows what will be next.

Regina Bonds thought she knew exactly how her life would go. But when she got pregnant her senior year of high school everything changed. Since welcoming her son, Regina has discovered so much about herself, what she wants and needs in life, and how to have the confidence to go after it. 

For as long as Alexis DelChiaro can remember she hasn't just wanted to be a mom--she has known she would be a mom. But even as she found herself in a happy and loving marriage her dream still seemed out of reach. That is to everyone except Alexis. She has experienced infertility, a failed adoption, and countless setbacks, but as Alexis tells Laura, through it all she always believed her calling was to be a mom and trusted it would happen.

Regina Sather thought she had gotten her happily ever after until she found herself widowed at 33 with a young son to raise. She will be the first to tell you her life hasn't gone the way she planned, but through it all she leaned heavily on her faith and her hope to get through. Regina tells Laura she believes she's just now getting started on all of her potential at the age of 48, because it's never too late to find yourself. 

Wendy Kim grew up believing there was a way she was supposed to live her life. But even as she checked off the boxes of getting married and having kids she felt something was missing. That something was an ability to help women and people of color find and use their voices in a meaningful way. In this episode Wendy tells Laura how she followed her passion by finding her own voice.

Jessica Bloodgood never had a set idea for how her life should go, instead she just let her life happen. In the second half of Laura's conversation with her good friend, Jessica talks about the changes she's made in her career from working on a dude ranch to now becoming a non-profit fundraiser. She also shares how she's dealt with difficult changes in her personal life and having to pivot in ways she never imagined.

Jessica Bloodgood and Laura met in the first two weeks of college back in 1998 and became fast friends. Neither had much luck with relationships in the years that followed until they both got married within three months of each other... 20 years after they first met. But while Laura spent those 20 years constantly worried about being single and wondering if she'd ever find love, Jessica was busy enjoying her life. How could two such close friends have completely different perspectives? Laura and Jessica talk it out in the first half of their conversation.