You are not your job title. That’s where this conversation begins.

Today on Experience Over Expectation, I sit down with Theresa Hummel-Krallinger (Theresa H.K.)—two-time Emmy winner, author of Make Waves, President & Chief People Officer at High Five Performance, university professor, and a stand-up comic of 20+ years. She’s helped job seekers since 2003, and she’s seen every season of the market—hot, cold, and confusing.

Theresa’s “Boat Model” is the kind of simple, sturdy thinking we need right now:

• Rudder – your direction
• Hull – your skills/experience
• Sails – your reputation and brand (degrees, certs, public work)
• Motor – your network that moves you even when there’s no wind

It’s humane, practical, and—most of all—doable.

Watch on YouTube: Two-Time Emmy Winner Theresa H.K.: The Playbook to Beat a Cold Job Market (paste your YouTube link here)

Pre-order my book: Experience Over Expectation — Let Go of the Plan, Live on Your Terms →

https://www.marymccorvey.com/

• Why we confuse identity with employment—and how to separate them
• How a comic’s eye for everyday life makes you a better communicator at work
• The Boat Model and how to sketch your own “career vessel”
• Networking for introverts (relationship-first, not schmooze-first)
• What leaders get wrong about retention (hint: tell people they’re top talent)
• Financial right-sizing so a job loss isn’t a life collapse

• Don’t park your soul at the door. You bring your whole self to the work—humor included.
• Tend the garden year-round. Help others before you need help. That’s real networking.
• Stay out of complacency. Keep learning, keep building reputation signals, keep showing your work.
• Live within your means. Overextension turns a layoff into a crisis.
• Leaders: say the quiet part out loud. If someone’s top talent, tell them. It matters.

Draw your boat, honestly.

• What’s your rudder pointing toward? If unclear, write what good looks like for you.
• Is your hull strong? Which skills need reinforcement?
• How full are your sails? List visible proof of credibility (projects, posts, certs, talks).
• Does your motor start? Name 10 people you could help this month—then do it, no asks attached.

Save your sketch. Revisit quarterly.

• 00:00 – Why identity ≠ employment
• 02:00 – The origin of Make Waves and helping job seekers since 2003
• 04:00 – Stand-up comedy for work: building the “humor muscle”
• 10:28 – The Boat Model: rudder, hull, sails, motor
• 15:45 – The twin traps: complacency and overextension
• 18:18 – Networking that feels human (and works for introverts)
• 23:07 – Retaining top talent: tell them they’re top talent
• 26:21 – Making waves by leaving corporate to build your own thing
• 27:58 – Ikigai: joy, skill, need, and pay—finding the overlap

I invited Alan Lazaros on Experience Over Expectation because his story hits the heartbeat of this project: when life veers off script, you can either cling tighter to the plan—or you can build something truer.

At 26, Alan survived a car crash that forced a reckoning. He was already “successful” by the world’s measures, but the inner story didn’t match. That tension became fuel. Today he’s the founder/CEO of Next Level University, leading a global team and hosting a Top-100 podcast with 1M+ listens across 175+ countries. The work? Helping people pursue their version of success—not the one they were handed.

• My Founder Cycle (conceive → decide → resource → execute) and how many of us run that loop without naming it.
• Alan’s “Out-” framework—a deceptively simple sequence: Outfocus, Outrisk, Outwork, Outlearn, Outgrow, Outskill, Outtool, Outlead, Outlast.
• Social courage vs. the performance of success. Are we building reputations… or character?
• Boundaries & belonging as you grow. How to find your “absolutely people” (and kindly release the “absolutely not”).
• What to tell a 12-year-old about responsibility, humility, and belief.
• The one question Alan asks himself constantly: Why?

• YouTube: https://youtu.be/11ZvDQ2g3ls
• Podcast: https://feeds.captivate.fm/experience-over-expectation/
• Alan’s world: nextleveluniverse.com

1. Name one place you’re performing for the plan.
2. Ask why (five times if you have to).
3. Replace the performance with one honest action that serves who you actually are.
4. Tiny moves count. They compound.

My book Experience Over Expectation arrives September 23, 2025. If the message resonates—letting go of rigid timelines and living on your terms—pre-orders are open at marymccorvey.com. Early readers help more than you know.

Pre-Order EOE E-Book

Thank you for being here—for the stories, the courage, and the curiosity to keep asking why. That’s how we grow.

With gratitude,

Mary

Welcome back to Experience Over Expectation. Today’s episode sits right at the intersection I love most: purpose, creativity, and the courage to pivot. I’m joined by Neeti Keswani—host of Luxury Unplugged, brand/story coach, and author of the bestselling Live Your Dreams, Be You. We talk about “inner luxury,” the spirituality of work, and how to tell a brand story that actually feels like you.

Watch on YouTube

• Inner Luxury, defined. How purpose-driven leaders blend high performance with grounded values.
• AI + spirituality. Using tools like ChatGPT for reflection and clarity—plus where human intuition still leads.
• Message–Mindset–Marketing. Neeti’s triad for brand clarity that sounds like you on paper and in the room.
• Identity shifts. Clearing emotional blocks that keep founders from speaking their truth.
• The pivot. Neeti’s move from corporate consulting to creative work—and the courage that took.

1. Inside-out audit: Write your top three values. Now check your last three posts, pitches, or conversations. Do they reflect those values in tone and content? Where’s the gap?
2. One brave sentence: Craft a single sentence that names what you really do for people. Test it out loud, not just on paper.
3. AI as mirror, not master: Ask ChatGPT: “Act as a reflective coach. Help me frame my core message to [audience] in human, conversational language. Push back on clichés.” Then refine it until it sounds like your voice.

• Neeti’s reminder that “perfection is procrastination in a tuxedo”—ship the work.
• The elegant pairing of soulful success + measurable impact (yes, you can have both).
• The practical difference between content you can type and conviction you can speak—and how coaching bridges that gap.

Host of Luxury Unplugged, brand/storytelling coach, and author of Live Your Dreams, Be You. Neeti helps entrepreneurs align message, mindset, and marketing so their story lands with clarity and heart.

Find her: search “Luxury Unplugged podcast” on your platform of choice or Instagram.

• 🎧 Watch/Listen on YouTube
• 🌐 MaryMcCorvey.com — updates, essays, and upcoming episodes
• 📘 Pre-order Experience Over Expectation — out September 23, 2025 (pre-orders help more than you know)

We talk a lot about “taking control” of our lives. Jeff Sorensen took something deeper: radical ownership. After a near-death experience, years of addiction, and a cartel prison cell in Mexico, he discovered a quiet power inside the chaos—the breath, the pause, the choice.

This isn’t a redemption cliché. Jeff maps the very human path from reaction to response, from “my story defines me” to “my story refined me.” If you’ve ever felt stuck, mislabeled, or like something is missing even when life looks “fine,” this one’s for you.

• Remembering who you are beyond labels (not your diagnoses, job title, or past)
• The moment he realized suffering is optional—even in a concrete cell
• Breath as an anchor: how to stop spiraling and create space to choose
• Radical ownership → self-mastery → conscious creation (the service-driven kind)
• The “Ethan vs. Liam” morning—two tiny choices, two different lives

→ Watch on YouTube: [link]

If you prefer audio, this will also be on the podcast feed shortly.

00:00 Who Jeff serves and why “remembering” matters

03:25 Near-death, the voice, and choosing to come back

06:06 Addiction, Mexico, the cartel setup, and prison

10:45 Release, study, rebuilding a meaningful life

12:44 Radical ownership begins (the mirror moment)

18:28 When “something’s missing” in an ordinary life

21:22 Self-love without judgment → loving others differently

24:10 Triggers, breath, and the mechanics of self-mastery

29:25 From ownership to mastery (it’s simpler than we think)

31:24 Ethan vs. Liam: two mornings, two outcomes

38:18 Conscious creation: a life that ripples beyond you

1. Sit. Put one hand on your belly.
2. Inhale through the nose for a count of 4.
3. Hold for 4.
4. Exhale gently for 6–8.
5. Repeat 5 cycles. Then ask: “What response would serve best right now?”
6. Tiny practice, huge leverage.

Jeff Sorensen is a transformational leader, international facilitator, and co-author of the bestselling Ignite Your Inner Spirit. He founded Breath Army and Light Force Training Academy, helping leaders and emerging visionaries move through trauma, reclaim their voice, and live in alignment.

Do you want tighter interviews, sharper jokes, and a real plan for building relationships that actually open doors? This episode is for you.

Steve Cooper—stand-up comic, host of Cooper Talk and Coop’s Comedy Corner, and the mind behind Cocktails/Coffee with Cooper—joins me to share what most people miss about comedy, conversation, and connection.

• Stage confidence you can use anywhere: How Steve went from a freshman “Mr. Stockton” bit to headlining rooms—and what that journey teaches about presence.
• Comedy as a craft (not chaos): The real difference between improv and stand-up, why “thinking on your feet” is a trained skill, and how to work a room without working blue.
• Jokes that land: Stories vs. one-liners, building bits you can actually remember, and the rewrite habit that keeps material alive.
• Networking that doesn’t feel gross: Inside Steve’s organic meetups and how to build a reputation people vouch for.
• Interviewing like a pro: Why listening beats scripts, when to ditch the pre-written questions, and how to keep guests (and audiences) fully dialed in.
• Media reality check: Are podcasts replacing late night? What still works—and what’s just noise.

• New comics or creators trying to find their voice on stage and on mic
• Podcasters who want interviews that breathe (and get shared)
• Professionals who need connection skills that aren’t fake or forced
• Anyone who loves Philly’s creative scene and wants the behind-the-curtain view

• 00:53 The talent-show spark that started everything
• 05:16 Philly’s comedy scene and earning your chops
• 11:32 Improv vs. stand-up—how to stay nimble without losing your act
• 14:59 The joke-writing workflow (that isn’t really “writing”)
• 19:44 What 1,000+ interviews taught Steve about listening and preparation
• 25:32 Podcasts, late night, and where audiences are actually spending time

Find Steve’s shows and guest gallery: CooperTalk.net

Listen to Cooper Talk and Coop’s Comedy Corner wherever you get your podcasts.

If this episode hits home, subscribe to Experience Over Expectation—and share it with a friend who’s building their voice in public. Your future self (and your audience) will thank you.

🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts

🌐 Visit: marymccorvey.com

📘 Get the book: Experience Over Expectation — coming this September! Pre-order at marymccorvey.com

What if the key to success isn’t more planning—but better strategy and bold execution?

In this episode of Experience Over Expectation, Mary McCorvey sits down with Thom Boharsik—Air Force veteran, former Google and Accenture leader, and co-founder of Outlaw Star Collective—to explore what it means to be a strategic renegade in life and business.

Thom breaks down:

🔹 Why adaptability—not perfection—is the real superpower

🔹 How to lead across radically different cultures (military, tech, consulting)

🔹 The moment he chose entrepreneurship over the corporate ladder

🔹 Why “don’t fear momentum” is a life motto worth living

🔹 How personal strategy can help you drop off kids, launch companies, and stay aligned with your values

Whether you're building a career, a company, or a life with purpose—this episode will challenge your assumptions and help you redefine what success really means.

🧭 Let go of the plan. Live on your terms.

Chapters:

00:00 – Welcome & Intro to Thom

01:00 – What It Means to Be a Renegade

04:00 – Navigating Air Force to Accenture to Google

06:30 – Life Strategy vs. Life Planning

09:30 – Marriage, Momentum & Commitment

12:00 – Veteran Identity & Civilian Purpose

17:00 – Leadership for Everyone (Not Just Vets)

22:00 – Visualizing Success, Handling Chaos

26:00 – Final Thoughts: Be the Renegade

💬 What does being a renegade look like in your life? Tell us in the comments.

🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts

🌐 Visit: marymccorvey.com

📘 Get the book: Experience Over Expectation — coming this September! Pre-order at Marymccorvey.com

First impressions are stubborn—research suggests it can take 8–10 new interactions to change them. Executive coach and author Karen Kaufman (K Partners) joins me to unpack personal presence, relationship management, and what golf reveals about leadership: pace, temperament, and trust. We talk brand vs. reputation, updating self-image, women in business golf, and Karen’s book MAGIC: Making a Good Impression Count—On & Off the Golf Course. Plus a gift: her one-page “Factors of Leadership.” Pre-order Experience Over Expectation at marymccorvey.com.

What happens when your pain is dismissed and your symptoms ignored? If you're Rebecca Lyons, you turn your story into a solution for millions.

In this powerful episode of Experience Over Expectation, Mary McCorvey sits down with Rebecca Lyons, founder and CEO of HerSay, an AI-powered health companion that helps women advocate for their own care. Diagnosed with stage 4 endometriosis after years of misdiagnosis, Rebecca didn't just seek healing—she sought change.

Together, we discuss:

💡 How Rebecca went from corporate strategist to startup founder

🧠 Why women's pain is so often dismissed—and what HerSay is doing about it

🤖 The ethical, empowering potential of AI in healthcare

👩‍⚕️ How to speak your truth in the exam room—and be heard

💪 What it means to build while battling chronic illness

This episode is a masterclass in courage, clarity, and reclaiming your voice.

🎧 Subscribe now and follow the journey at https://hersay.ca

#HealthTech #WomensHealth #StartupFounder #AI #ChronicIllness #Endometriosis #ExperienceOverExpectation #RebeccaLyons #MaryMcCorvey #HerSay