Have you ever been asked, “What salary are you looking for?” and suddenly forgotten every impressive thing you’ve ever done?

In this episode of Work Besties Who Podcast, Jess and Claude sit down with Megan Applegate, a former recruiter and Talent Acquisition Director, to talk about one of the most stressful career conversations: salary negotiation.

Megan shares what professionals often misunderstand before the negotiation even starts, why knowing your market value matters, how to build proof around your experience, and why you should not wait until the offer stage to think about compensation.

We also talk about creating a “brag book,” asking your work bestie to help you remember your wins, using salary ranges strategically, and why there is often more to negotiate than just base pay.

By the end of this episode, you’ll have a simple Work Besties salary check-in you can use before your next interview, review, or offer conversation.

Learn more from Megan follow her at 

Megan Applegate | Career Dev & Professional Branding Expert (@dreamjobahead) • Instagram photos and videos

Resume Writing Services - Executive Design for Professional Success – Career Blueprint Solutions

Megan Applegate, CPC | LinkedIn

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What does it really mean to know your worth?

In this episode, Dr. Cynthia Coy joins us for an honest and empowering conversation about self-worth, confidence, boundaries, and the inner work it takes to fully recognize your value.

Too often, people look for outside validation to define who they are. But true worth is not based on applause, titles, relationships, or approval from others. It comes from knowing who you are, what you bring, and what you deserve.

In EP 98, we explore how understanding your worth affects every area of life — from relationships and career choices to healing, growth, and the standards you set for yourself. This episode is a reminder that your value is not something you have to earn. It is something you have to believe, protect, and walk in.

If you’ve ever questioned yourself, played small, or accepted less than you deserve, this conversation is for you.

Listen now and be reminded to stand confidently in who you are.

Contact Dr Cynthia Coy 

Linkedin

Facebook

Instagram

Youtube

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Have you ever read the books, made the plan, and still frozen when it was finally time to ask for more?

In this episode, we talk with Jennifer Kornoely about why that happens — and why confidence around money usually does not grow in silence. We explore how women are taught not to talk about money, why information alone rarely turns into action, and how trusted community can change the way women price themselves, negotiate, and see their own value.

We also get practical. Jennifer shares how conversation helps women move from learning to action, how to think about market rate, why documenting your accomplishments matters, and what to do before asking for a raise or negotiating for more.

In this episode:

•  Why so many women are still uncomfortable talking about money 
•  The “learning triangle” and why reading alone is not enough 
•  How community builds confidence, accountability, and action 
•  What trusted salary and rate conversations can actually sound like 
•  How to prepare before asking for a raise 
•  Why you need an accolades folder and a CYA folder 
•  One simple question to ask when someone is underpricing herself 

If this conversation resonated, share it with a work bestie and start the money conversation this week.

Want to learn more or Join Jennifer's Book Club? Find details here https://www.shereadssheleads.com/

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Have you ever looked at your paycheck and thought, “Wait… is this it?” Or watched someone else get promoted while doing work that looks a lot like yours?

This episode is all about helping you ask for more at work — whether that means salary, a promotion, better boundaries, or new opportunities. We talk through one of the biggest myths in the workplace: that if you work hard enough, someone will automatically notice and reward you. Then we break down a simple three-part framework to help you advocate for yourself more clearly: Proof, Position, Pause. 

We also cover:

•  how to lead with results instead of emotion 
•  why clarity matters more than hinting 
•  how to prepare for the ask before the conversation starts 
•  why silence after your ask is powerful 
•  small ways to practice negotiation before the stakes feel big 

This week’s challenge:  Share this episode with your work bestie, practice your script out loud, and make one clear ask this week. 

FYI Key States with Mandatory Salary Range Posting: California, Colorado, New York, Washington, Illinois, Rhode Island, Maryland, Nevada

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Jess and Claude tackle one of the biggest career questions many of us quietly carry: How do you know whether to stay, shift, or go? This conversation is not just about work. It is about confidence, energy, identity, relationships, and the ways work can start following you home. Together, they unpack why awareness comes before any big career decision and why the real question is often not just “How do I feel at work?” but “Who am I becoming because of what is happening at work?” 

Throughout the episode, they explore what patterns show up when stress takes over, how high-capacity people often default to doing more instead of facing what is actually true, and why some career pivots are not dramatic exits but smaller shifts in communication, boundaries, or how you advocate for yourself. Jess and Claude also reflect on the difference between a difficult season that stretches you and a harmful pattern that starts to reshape you.

They close with practical questions to help you check in with yourself:
 -Where has work started affecting how you see yourself?
 -What patterns have you been normalizing that deserve closer attention?
 -And what truth do you already know, but have been afraid to say out loud? 

This episode is a reminder that not every hard moment means it is time to leave, but every hard moment is worth noticing. Sometimes clarity does not arrive as a lightning bolt. Sometimes it begins as a pattern you finally stop ignoring.

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How do you know when a relationship needs repair… and when it’s revealing a dealbreaker?

In Episode 94, we sit down with Shelley Badayos to unpack one of the messiest questions in love, friendship, and work-bestie relationships: what is actually fixable, and what is costing you too much to keep normalizing?

We talk about attachment patterns, why we repeat what feels familiar, the difference between awareness and acceptance, and what it really looks like to move from insight into action. We also explore how these same relationship dynamics show up in platonic and workplace relationships, especially when a friendship starts to shift, feel one-sided, or quietly stop feeling mutual.

Inside this episode:

•  fixable problems vs. true dealbreakers 
•  awareness vs. acceptance 
•  repair, boundaries, and changed behavior 
•  the friendship formula and why work friendships change 
•  how to tell if a relationship needs a conversation, a reset, or something more honest 

If you have ever found yourself wondering whether a relationship is asking for repair — or revealing something deeper — this conversation is for you.

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In this episode, we sit down with David Prosper, aka The Clarity Guy, for a conversation on career pivots, overthinking, burnout, and what it really takes to move forward when you don’t have the full plan.

David shares why clarity is not about knowing the entire outcome — it’s about identifying your next right step. We talk about why high performers often get stuck, how overthinking keeps people trapped, and what to do when you’re successful on paper but no longer feel aligned with your work.

We also walk through a real-time example of David’s coaching process, where he helps us break down a press kit challenge into one simple next action. Later, we get into the emotional side of clarity: anxiety, ambiguity, reacting versus responding, and the difference between feelings that are valid and feelings that should not drive your decisions.

If you’ve been waiting for certainty before making a move, this episode is your reminder that progress comes before clarity — not after.

What we cover

• Why the biggest myth about clarity is thinking you need the full outcome
• The question that cuts through overwhelm: What is my next right step?
• Why smart, ambitious people overcomplicate simple decisions
• How to know whether a career pivot is really necessary
• The difference between reacting to pain and responding with intention
• David’s framework for getting unstuck: state, story, and system
• Why overthinking can become a prison
• The meaning behind David’s compass and the idea of finding your north

David Prosper
Instagram: @theclarityguy_

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Elena Donskaya had the career, the title, the team, the family, and everything that looked like success from the outside. But inside, something felt off.

In this episode, Elena opens up about the moment she realized her “first mountain” wasn’t fulfilling what it had promised, how she began listening to the whispers of her intuition, and what eventually led her from Wall Street into coaching women through burnout, identity shifts, and self-reconnection.

We also talk about what a feminine energy coach actually does, why so many high-achieving women feel numb or disconnected, how overthinking fuels burnout, and why clarity often starts with slowing down enough to hear yourself again.

This conversation is for anyone who has ever thought: I did everything right… so why doesn’t this feel right?

In this episode, we cover:

• Elena’s breaking point after achieving the “dream” on paper
• Why success doesn’t always equal fulfillment
• What feminine energy coaching means in practice
• How intuition can show up in everyday life
• The role of stress, burnout, and disconnection in high-achieving women
• Why identity shifts matter more than just changing habits
• How to tell when it may be time for a pivot
• Why clarity comes from space, stillness, and self-trust

Connect with Elena:

• Instagram: @elenavisionary 
• LinkedIn: Elena Donskaya, MBA 
• Skool community: Awakened Woman Academy

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Have you ever opened LinkedIn, seen someone announce a new job, and immediately started rethinking your entire life? Or had a normal Tuesday and one email made you think: maybe I should become a florist. If that’s you, welcome to career clarity and pivoting—the Work Besties way.

Jess & Claude break down how to stop making decisions in panic after one bad meeting and start gathering real data about what’s actually going on. You’ll get:

• A Stay / Shift / Go decision framework
• A 5-factor scorecard to stop arguing with yourself
• Several clarity experiments you can try this week 
• A Work Besties Clarity Sprint you can do with a trusted friend in 12 minutes
• Our March Community Challenge: Your Ideal Day 

This month is all about momentum, not mayhem—so instead of waiting for clarity to arrive, we’re helping you move a little so clarity can follow.

Clarity comes from action: use small experiments to generate data 

Books cited:

What Color is Your Parachute

Working Identity: Unconventional Strategies For Reinventing Your Career by Herminia Ibarra

PIVOT: The Only Move That Matters Is Your Next Move by Jenny Blake

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In this episode of Work Besties Who Podcast, Jess and Claude sit down with executive coach and leadership strategist Kathryn Booker-Veloz to answer the question so many professionals struggle with: How do you show up authentically—without oversharing and regretting it later?

Kathryn breaks down what real workplace authenticity looks like (hint: it’s not perfection, and it’s not bringing every personal detail to work). You’ll learn a simple “intent vs. impact” check before you speak up in a meeting or post on LinkedIn, how to “read the room,” and how to build trust while still keeping healthy boundaries. Plus, Kathryn shares how leaders can create “breathing points” for their teams and why younger generations are demanding more humanity at work.

What you’ll learn

• What “authentic” actually means at work (and why perfectionism backfires)
• The difference between being real and oversharing
• Kathryn’s 10-second visibility check: intent vs. impact
• How to share stories that build trust (without crossing personal boundaries)
• What to post (and not post) on LinkedIn
• How leaders can create psychological safety—without losing credibility
• How to find (or become) a “work bestie” when trust feels risky

Guest

Kathryn Booker-Veloz — Executive coach & leadership strategist, founder of Influence Leadership Lab. She has coached 300+ leaders in high-stakes environments where visibility, power, and reputation matter.

Work with Kathryn

Kathryn is offering a complimentary 1-hour coaching call to help you work through a real challenge in real time.
Website: kathrynexecutive.com

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