Your Unapologetic Life

I live 30 minutes outside of Chicago. 2.7 million people in that city, and somehow so many of us are lonely, single, and swiping on an app instead of actually meeting anyone.

This episode is about something I noticed when I was in France with my sweetheart and his friends. Europeans are not on their phones like we are. They go out in big groups. His best friend casually mentioned that 10 or 12 people were coming over to my Airbnb, and I thought, that is a lot of humans. And then we went somewhere else and met six more. And then somewhere else and met a couple more. I couldn’t help but notice there were couples everywhere, of all ages, and I think it’s because they are just around each other more.

Meanwhile, we work from home, we stream alone, and our food gets dropped off contactlessly so we never even have to make eye contact with another human being.

In this episode I’m talking about what we can actually do about it. Pickleball, game night, dance classes, solo travel, whatever gets you out of the house and into a room with real people. Because that’s how I met my person, and that’s how you’re going to meet yours.

25 years of dating the wrong men and meeting the right one in Paris in 24 hours taught me a lot about how I was dating, and I want to share all of it with you. When you are ready to stop wasting your time wondering what is wrong with you, because there is absolutely nothing wrong with you, ⁠apply for your free week of 1:1 coaching here.⁠

Or come find me on ⁠Instagram at @morganbarkus⁠ and send me a message. We can go from there!

This episode originally aired on the Sisterhood, Soul, and Strategy podcast with host Stephanie Ross, and I am so glad I get to bring it over here for you.

Stephanie and I had one of those conversations that just goes. We talked about my rock bottom, the moment that changed everything for me, and what it actually took to crawl out of it and build something on the other side. Not the pretty version. The real version.

We get into how dance and fitness became tools for building confidence when I had none, why setting boundaries was one of the most important things I ever learned to do, and how books like You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay showed up exactly when I needed them.

We also talk about the transition from therapy to coaching, why online communities are so much more powerful than people give them credit for, and what I believe to be true about confidence that most people get completely wrong: it is not something you are born with. It is something you build, one small step at a time.

If you have ever hit a wall and wondered how you are going to get back up, this one is for you.

25 years of dating the wrong men and meeting the right one in Paris in 24 hours taught me a lot about how I was dating, and I want to share all of it with you. When you are ready to stop wasting your time wondering what is wrong with you, because there is absolutely nothing wrong with you, ⁠apply for your free week of 1:1 coaching here.⁠

Or come find me on ⁠Instagram at @morganbarkus⁠ and send me a message. We can go from there!

What if confidence isn’t something you have to find before you take action? What if it’s actually something you build by taking action?

That is what Cara Nance and I get into in this episode, and I had so much fun recording it. Cara hosts Tutum Talk and she is a leadership coach who believes that leadership is about presence, not perfection. She asked me questions that made me actually think, and we ended up going everywhere.

We talk about my unconventional path, the disordered eating, the body dysmorphia, the 13 years I spent as an exotic dancer, and the moment I stopped letting other people’s opinions decide how I felt about myself. We talk about how movement and posture change the way you feel in your own body, why your self-worth determines what you will and will not put up with in a relationship, and what it actually looks like to own every chapter of your story without shame.

We also bring it into the workplace, because confidence does not stop at the door when you become a leader. Vulnerability is not weakness. Showing up as a real human being is what builds trust and psychological safety on a team. We talk about that too.

And we talk about something I really believe: you are allowed to try something and pivot. You do not have to have it all figured out before you move. If you don’t try, you don’t know.

This one is candid, funny, and very human. I think you are going to love it.

25 years of dating the wrong men and meeting the right one in Paris in 24 hours taught me a lot about how I was dating, and I want to share all of it with you. When you are ready to stop wasting your time wondering what is wrong with you, because there is absolutely nothing wrong with you, apply for your free week of 1:1 coaching here.

Or come find me on Instagram at @morganbarkus and send me a message. We can go from there!

Stop saying it. Stop thinking it. Stop letting someone else’s opinion of you become the story you tell yourself every single day.

In this episode I’m talking about something I hear way too often from the women I work with: “I’m too much. I’m high maintenance. I’m a lot.” And I have one thing to say about that. Just because it’s someone’s truth does not make it THE truth. You get to decide who you are. Every thought is a choice, so choose wisely.

This one is short, direct, and exactly what you needed to hear today.

If you are tired of crying yourself to sleep wishing you had a partner, or you’re noticing you’re the only single one everywhere you go, come find the Confidence Club. It’s a free weekly community and we meet every Wednesday at 11am CST. Read the book or don’t. Come as you are. Get the calendar invite HERE

And if you are so sick and tired of being alone and you are ready to actually meet your man, schedule a 1:1 call with me and let’s talk about my coaching. My calendar is HERE

If you've ever been gaslit, ghosted, emotionally abandoned, or just constantly waiting to see which version of him was going to show up, this episode is going to hit different.

I'm talking about something I realized mid-voice note with one of my clients. When you've struggled in love and in life, you notice everything. He texted back. He made plans. He held my hand. He introduced me as his girlfriend. Other people would say that's just normal. And that's exactly the point.

When you've had nothing but inconsistent, reactive, or even abusive partners, a secure and loving relationship doesn't feel ordinary. It feels like everything. I will never take it for granted because I know what the other side looks like. And so do my clients.

If you've struggled, you're probably more grateful than most. And that's not a flaw. That's wisdom.

Join Confidence Club, a free weekly book club for women who are done with the wrong ones and ready to call in the right one. Every Wednesday at 11am CST HERE

Ready to work with me one on one? Let's get right to it. Schedule a call and we'll get you started HERE

What if the most confident version of you was so clear on what she wanted that she stopped wasting time on the wrong people entirely? Not because she was picky, not because she gave up on love, but because she finally trusted herself enough to say no thank you and mean it.

In this episode I'm talking about why I created the Confidence Club, why I turned it into a book club unlike any book club you've ever seen, and why this has nothing to do with finding a man and everything to do with becoming a woman who doesn't settle for one who isn't right for her.

This is for the woman who's done swiping and hoping and making excuses. And it's for the woman who has quietly decided she's probably better off alone. Come as you are. Leave more confident than when you arrived.

The Confidence Club is free, it's every Wednesday at 11am CST, and it's 45 minutes that women around the world say genuinely changes their week. Join HERE.

And if you're ready to stop talking about it and actually start moving, one on one coaching with me gets you results fast. I'm in your pocket every single day through voice notes and texts, and women tell me I feel like their best friend from the very first conversation. Schedule a call with me HERE.

Louisa Thostrup is a cop, a former nurse, a leadership coach for individuals and corporations, a mom, and a newlywed who just celebrated her one year anniversary with her perfect person. She's based in Copenhagen, Denmark, and she is one of those women who does all the things and has had to learn the hard way that doing all the things all the time will eventually cost you everything that matters most.

Louisa grew up in a family where appearances and status were everything, became a nurse because her mom thought it was a good idea, and then spent years being so go go go that she forgot to turn off. Now she coaches high achieving leaders to be fully on when it counts and fully present everywhere else. We talk about growing up to care what everyone thinks, how she found her way to coaching, what it took to finally let herself rest, and how she and her husband found each other at exactly the right time.

Louisa and I met in a mastermind and have been sending each other WhatsApp voice notes basically every day since. She's the real deal and this conversation is going to resonate with every woman who's ever felt like slowing down is somehow failing.

Find Louisa on LinkedIn HERE

Follow Louisa on Instagram HERE

Confidence begins here. Every Wednesday at 11am CST a group of women get together to talk about real life, relationships, and showing up more confidently. It's free, it's fun, and it might change your week. Join the Confidence Club HERE

My 1:1 coaching is like no other. Unlimited access to me via voice notes and text. I'm your best friend in your pocket when you're having a crash out, need advice, or just need a hit of my energy. Find out about my coaching HERE

Laura Allen saw a gap in the financial industry and decided to do something about it. Women were being talked to as part of a couple or as a family unit, and child free women were being completely overlooked. So she walked away from a high paying corporate job, spent months in trainings, classes, and exams to get fully qualified, and launched her own financial firm built specifically for women who are choosing to be child free.

In this episode Laura and I talk about what it actually looks like to build wealth as a woman on your own terms, why the financial industry has ignored this community for so long, and how she spotted the gap and had the guts to fill it. We also get real about marriage, the work it takes to build a truly great partnership, and what it means to invest in yourself and each other to become the right person, not just find the right person.

Laura is funny, magnetic, authentic, and completely unapologetic about the life she's chosen. This one's a good one.

Find Laura on LinkedIn HERE.

Confidence begins here. Every Wednesday at 11am CST a group of women get together to talk about real life, relationships, and showing up more confidently. It's free, it's fun, and it might change your week. Join the Confidence Club HERE.

My one on one coaching is like no other. Unlimited access to me via voice notes and text. I'm your best friend in your pocket when you're having a crash out, need advice, or just need a hit of my energy. Find out about my coaching HERE.

Confidence is not a light switch. You're not born with it and you can't just decide to have it one day. It's a skill, and like any skill it's built one uncomfortable moment at a time.

In this episode I'm breaking down why confidence is really about habit stacking. You do the scary thing, whether that's singing karaoke, asking someone to dance, initiating the hard conversation, or telling the guy you're dating that you want exclusivity and you want to know where he stands. You survive it. You realize it wasn't as bad as you thought. And then you do the next hard thing. That's it. That's the whole formula.

This applies to your body confidence, your money confidence, your business, speaking up for yourself, and making sure you're not wasting another second on the wrong person. Confidence grows in every area of your life differently and at its own pace, and that's completely normal.

You weren't born without confidence. You just haven't practiced it enough yet.

Confidence begins here. Every Wednesday at 11am CST a group of women get together to talk about real life, relationships, and showing up more confidently. It's free, it's fun, and it might change your week. Join the Confidence Club HERE!

My one on one coaching is like no other. Unlimited access to me via voice notes and text. I'm your best friend in your pocket when you're having a crash out, need advice, or just need a hit of my energy. Find out about my coaching HERE.

Felicia Hernandez is the founder of Gorditas Way, a body liberation platform and movement for women and LGBTQ+ people of color, author of Gorditas Way: The Ways of an Unapologetic Latina, and the first woman in the country to put on a body liberation conference. Her energy is infectious, her story is powerful, and this conversation had me smiling the whole way through.

Felicia and I met at an event celebrating Latina women and I knew immediately she was someone I needed on this show. We get into her childhood, what it was like growing up in a voluptuous body, how she reclaimed the word gordita and turned it into a movement, and how Bomba, the traditional Puerto Rican dance, became part of her journey to body confidence. We also talk about her upcoming Body Liberation Conference happening September 26, 2026, the first event of its kind in the country, and why she's so fired up about it.

If you've ever been made to feel like your body was too much or not enough, Felicia's story is going to hit you right in the heart.

Learn more about Felicia at gorditasway.com

Follow her on Instagram at @gorditas_way

Grab your tickets to the Body Liberation Conference while you're there.

Every Wednesday at 11am CST a group of women get together to talk about real life, relationships, and showing up more confidently. It's FREE, it's fun, and it might change your week. Join the Confidence Club HERE

My one on one coaching is like no other. Unlimited access to me via voice notes and text. I'm your best friend in your pocket when you're having a crash out, need advice, or just need a hit of my energy. Find out about my coaching HERE