I am drawn to people that choose to be authentic regardless of what the rest of us may think.  Such is the case with Crystal Guenter our InstaSummer 2 guest today.  She has learned through trial and error that the way to be is the way she already is.  No people-pleasing or trying to be all things to all people.  It doesn’t work and will leave you feeling miserable.  Better to be fully who God created you to be.

Crystal feels at home in the Mennonite way of life. It’s a way to ‘act out’ her faith.  I love that she’s made a choice that’s good for her.  Through being modest and conservative Crystal honors her beliefs.  And she’s learned a lot about filling the voids left by people who did the very best they could but left us lacking.  It’s not our fault but it is now our responsibility to find a way to fill them with healthy things.  It is freeing to get to that place.  Just ask Crystal.  She knows.

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

Have you been to Belgium?  Do you know much about the small country? Joane Wallet is today’s Insta Summer 2 guest and she’s happy to fill you in.  Joane does this on social media, particularly Instagram.  My Sweet Belgium, in both English and French, is where  she shares the sights, and history, of her native land.  The pandemic left her with loads of free time to explore and learn all about where she already was.

Don’t you love her giggle?  In our conversation Joane highlighted mental health along with those willing to speak publicly about it as part of their personal journey.  It needs to be normalized, and the stigma removed, for sure.  I also like the wisdom she keeps handy in treating yourself as you would treat your best friend.  It’s a nice twist in reminding us to be good to ourselves.

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

Where to begin with today’s Insta Summer 2 guest, Thomas McBee?   Shall I start with how our conversation inspired me, or that I like what he’s about?  Thomas is fascinated with how things work, including himself.  He believes we’re all connected and that we need to lead by example.

Thomas is becoming wise, not only through his life experiences, but also in reading books that assist in his commitment to personal development.  However you describe that process, the bottom line is wanting to learn about yourself, reflecting and incorporating the knowledge into becoming who you already are.  Sound familiar?

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

We’re starting Insta Summer 2 today.  It’s a series featuring people we’re connecting with on Instagram.  We did this last summer too.  There are good parts to social media and getting to know new people is one of them.

Christina Lim is a jewelry artist and designer who decided to follow her passion no matter what, after a stint in the corporate world.  She claimed “inizi” or “beginnings” in Italian when she took a leap of faith.  Christina wanted to follow, “See where things take you when you’re being you.”

(Thanks in advance for your patience as we navigated a few audio issues during our conversation.)

Many of us would agree when you are doing something you love it doesn’t feel like work at all.  Christina’s choice to work late into the night when things are quiet works for her well, and maybe it would for you too.  Part of the point of this life is to try things and see what feels right.  In as much as you’re able, discard the ones that don’t, but keep the ones that do.   

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

Here is something I really like about traveling.  You get to see a lot of new things and learn about them, but you also get to connect with people.  Anne Rosenberg is one of those people.  Anne is friendly.  She asked us to lunch on our first day and we hit it off.    Full of stories, determination, and fierce loyalty, she is our guest this week for Le Voyage en France.

I respect that Anne doesn’t want to be told what to do.  I relate to the statement as I have a streak of that as well.  It doesn’t mean we aren’t whole, healthy people, we’re wired to bristle when we feel that intention.  And of course you can take anything to the extreme in both directions.   I suspect Anne is an Enneagram 8.  I like her advice to do a bucket list item each year while you can because things happen.  So go to all the places  while you can.  A solid suggestion, thanks, Anne.

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

Oh my goodness.  How delighted I am to share this conversation between me and today’s Le Voyage en France guest, Magomed Voraev.  He was our tour guide in the French Riviera who made going to Monaco for the day simply fantastic or fantastique.  He is equal parts warm, engaging, and passionate.  Plus he’s downright fun.  I will easily remember our time with him as truly memorable and his impact on me as indelible.

Mago is curious.  He uses his inquisitive nature to learn about the people he meets.  I appreciate his philosophy of “no problems, only solutions” as a way to take something that seems insurmountable and break into steps that even his 5-year old daughter, Rose, understands and can do.  And his take on “being free” includes the responsibilities  of being a business owner, a husband and a father.  He simply likes being outside, meeting new people, and working with love to make them happy.  Impressive indeed.

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

Camille Dernis is our Le Voyage en France guest today.  She’s a cruise director with Amawaterways and we were fortunate to have her on our recent cruise down the Rhone from Lyon to Avignon.  She is a delightful individual!  Camille pays attention to detail and and is very personable.  You feel like you are taking a trip with a good friend.  Her love for travel is contagious and it is clear she enjoys her job.

All the moving Camille’s done began her love for new places, new faces and to look for the “Wow!” moments in life.  Then to take those and share them with others.  Isn’t that the ultimate?  To take in the landscape, the history, the beauty, have the adventure, all the while connecting with other people along the way.  Sounds like a good chapter to me!  And it doesn’t have to be far.  Visiting a town nearby, one you don’t go to often, can make for a worthwhile outing.  Where’s your next trip going to be?

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

Bruce Rosenberg is today’s guest.  We met him, and his wife Anne, when they invited us to lunch on the very first day in Lyon as we were all enjoying the town before we embarked on the ship.  It was a lovely outing and we all became fast friends.  Bruce and I share a deep love of movies and TV shows.  I appreciate how Bruce looks at things and also the depth of his character.  Is it any wonder I would invite him onto the show?

It was a delight having this conversation with Bruce.  I learned more about how he looks at the stories told in movies and TV that can become life lessons, how he admires both  Kennedy and Einstein, and the importance of really knowing yourself.  And yes, you can reinvent yourself at any time.  He’s my kind of guy.

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

We begin our Le Voyage en France series today.  In English, the trip to France.  Now that Ron and I are empty nesters, we’re ready to travel.  Today’s guest volunteered to help us navigate our first big trip. Kathy Klage is a woman who came into my life when I was a teenager so, young and impressionable. I paid attention to her love of life and her sense of adventure.  I invited her on the show as she is an avid traveler having done so for work and pleasure.

Kathy gave us some good tips like saying basic phrases in the language of the country you are visiting.  It shows we are thoughtful.  “Thank you” is a gracious way to receive a compliment even if we don’t agree with it.  And I love the simplicity of “Remember who you are” as a seed to plant in our kids and also something for each one of us to remember as well.  Thanks, Kathy.

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you actually did the thing you really wanted to do?  We’ve got  Mark Sparrow on the show today to tell us about his own experience with this.  Mark set out to reach for a goal and not let fear stop him.  He’s a good friend of the show and we had a great conversation about this very topic in Keep Your Dreams Alive, episode 50.

Really, what’s the worst thing that could happen if you went for your dreams?  On the one hand it might not come to fruition the way you imagined.  Maybe it even fails.  Is that really so bad?  I bet you’d learn a bunch on the way and then maybe decide to pivot.   On the other hand, what if it succeeds and becomes more than you could hope for or imagine.  What about that?  Mark makes some excellent points about keeping your dreams alive.  I hope you feel encouraged to pursue yours.  And if we can help in any way, please let us know.

Thank you for being a part of the UY conversation.

The Unabashed You website has a page for each guest of photos, quotes and a blog with embedded audio at unabashedyou.com. You can find the show on other podcast platforms.  Want to lend your support and encouragement? We invite you to follow, rate, review and share.

Social media (direct links):

Facebook

Instagram

If you have questions or comments email us at: [email protected].

We build upon on website visits, social media and word of mouth to share these episodes.  We appreciate growth knowing these conversations help you think, celebrate who you are, and move you in some way.

So be encouraged and continue to listen, read and be inspired. 🍐