A Canadian, an American and a Brit walk into a bar… for a light-hearted discussion about alcohol. Our experiences of it and our social obsession with it. Are you into it, or over it?

Cindy Villanova is an author, consultant, entrepreneur and public speaker. She’s also a seventh degree black belt, master instructor and the owner of a martial arts studio in Austin, Texas.

Cindy’s parents were a mixed race couple in the early 1960s in southern California. They faced prejudice but stressed to Cindy and her brother the importance of an education, and growing up to be ‘good’. Cindy worked hard and was an ‘A’ student. She had big dreams to be a lawyer and to enter politics, but instead she became pregnant as a teenager by her boyfriend, a very troubled young man. She chose not to give up the baby. It was one of many forks in the road of her life.

While there were two “failed marriages”, many physical injuries from her martial arts practice and financial troubles along the way, there were also triumphs and turnarounds. Her book Don't Fight Mad generously chronicles these many painful twists and turns. She parallels what mixed martial arts taught her about digging in, when she most wanted to give up.

Episode 24: Lead Your Life with Your Heart

Özlem is a daughter and sister. She is a nomad having lived in several countries. It seems a place is not simply a destination but an opportunity to experience life in that place on as many levels as possible.

Episode 21 - Blue skies

This is Part 2 of my conversation with Miranda Kamal where we share more of her story and some of mine.

Miranda is the Head Coach and Executive Director of the Mentoring Junior Kids Organization or MJKO for short. She’s been through a lot. She’s a sexual assault survivor, and an aspiring competitive boxer who suffered a career ending back injury.

Season 2, Episode 17 - Impossible is an opinion

Diane Haché, is a mother and grandmother. She lived most of her life in New Brunswick on the east coast of Canada. She started a goat farm, knowing nothing about them, built a business. She grew the farm to roughly 200 goats and then sold it after 10 years.