The Kindred & Brave Project

Episode 12: Sharing Stories to Amplify Experiences // A Conversation With Amy Kugler

Amy Kugler is a media executive, writer, and founder of BEAM - a venture that illuminates the unseen corners of motherhood with human-scale storytelling. BEAM sheds light on the diverse and, often, untold experiences that shape a parent’s journey by building public/private partnerships with advocacy collaborators through expert-led, interactive events and deeply resonant storytelling. She also hosts BEAM Stories, a radio show and podcast.
 
Her two-decade career is built on driving holistic content strategy, spanning industries from global health and government agencies to enterprise (including Microsoft and Amazon) and female-founded startups. Her writing has appeared in Forbes, INC Magazine, NBC’s TODAY.com, The Washington Post, Thrive Global, and The Seattle Times, among other outlets. 
 
She calls Seattle, WA home with her husband, two children and husky. You can find her swimming or stand-up paddle boarding on Lake Washington. 
 
In this episode we discuss:
BEAM & how this passion project was born.
What emotional wellness means to us and how to gauge this as a spectrum. 
Connection with ourselves and others + how connection is related to courage and trust. 
How Amy has experienced grief in her motherhood journey and how she’s learning to carry it .
Please remember to rate, review, and follow The Kindred & Brave Project podcast - it means so much!
 
Join The Kindred & Brave Project Community For Free Here // https://the-kindred-brave-project.mn.co/share/TzWRkWXOCmSjh5Pw?utm_source=manual
 
Check Out FREE Virtual Events This Month //
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/collective-cut-womens-meet-up-tickets-843667280547
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/collective-cut-womens-meet-up-tickets-844968151487
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/collective-cut-womens-meet-up-tickets-844970478447
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/grief-patch-a-virtual-grief-support-group-tickets-830420659547
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/collective-cut-womens-meet-up-tickets-844971401207
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/grief-patch-a-virtual-grief-support-group-tickets-834745455127
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/grief-patch-a-virtual-grief-support-group-tickets-835066736087

Episode 11: Friendship in Mid(ish) Life Wrap Up

In this episode, Mandy finishes the Friendship series with tips from the U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy’s Together The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World. 
 
Mandy wraps up the series by making connections between the four books and 7 key takeaways about friendship. 
 
Free groups & meetings coming up! 
 
The Grief Patch: Grief Support Groups here // https://www.eventbrite.com/e/grief-patch-a-virtual-grief-support-group-tickets-825752376587?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl
Collective Cut: Women’s Virtual Meet Up here //
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/collective-cut-womens-meet-up-tickets-844968151487?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl
 
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Episode 10: The Seeds of Friendship & Community

In this episode, Mandy uses the book We Should Get Together - The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships by Kat Vellos to examine more of the ways to make friends and find communities.  
 
This book helps give us a roadmap to understanding why we need friendships, how to make them and take better care of them, and shares valuable insight into more ways that we can grow or change our own behaviors to not only be better friends, but to find them as well. Kat plants the Seeds of Connection: Proximity, Frequency, Compatibility and Commitment.
 
EXCITING NEWS! The first month of free events is available! Check out the events here: 
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/grief-patch-a-virtual-grief-support-group-tickets-825752376587
 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/843667280547?aff=oddtdtcreator
 
Remember you can join our conversation in our FREE Mighty Network Community here: https://the-kindred-brave-project.mn.co/share/TzWRkWXOCmSjh5Pw?utm_source=manual
 
Check out Messy(ish) Mid - a writing spot to honor the honest stories about traversing through mid life - with brave hearts and curious souls. 
https://kindredcoaching.substack.com/
 
Resources:
https://weshouldgettogether.com/book

Episode 9: The Inner Work of Understanding Friendship

(Friendship in Mid(ish) Life Series)
 
In this episode, Mandy uses Dr. Marisa Franco’s book “Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make--and Keep--Friends” as a guide for digging deeper into the realm of friendship in mid(ish) life. 
This is an episode that will help you turn inward to get curious about how your own past impacts who you are as a friend.
Dr. Franco states “attachment theory helps us understand why people interpret the same events in a friendship so differently.”
Mandy shares some of the biggest takeaways from the book & discusses how we can use them to think about how we tend to & cultivate our friendships & communities. 
Sign up to join our free community - The Kindred & Brave Project //
https://the-kindred-brave-project.mn.co/share/TzWRkWXOCmSjh5Pw?utm_source=manual
Listen to more Dr. Franco here // 
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/179-how-to-fix-our-loneliness-with-dr-marisa-g-franco/id1564530722?i=1000599471209
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/180-the-secret-to-making-keeping-friends-with-dr-marisa/id1564530722?i=1000599874955
 

Episode 8: Finding Yourself to Find Your People

(Friendship in Mid(ish) Life Series)
In the first episode of our friendship in mid(ish) life series; Mandy explores the book “Braving the Wilderness” by Brené Brown. 
 
We take a look at why it’s important to be friends with, or “belong” to ourselves first, as we navigate how to connect with others and be in community. 
 
Mandy digs into some of the actionable practices from the book to help us add to our socio-emotional toolkit. 
 
“True belonging is the spiritual practice of believing in and belonging to yourself so deeply that you can share your most authentic self with the world and find sacredness in both being a part of something and standing alone in the wilderness. True belonging doesn’t require you to change who you are; it requires you to be who you are.” Brené Brown 
 
Please head to  https://the-kindred-brave-project.mn.co/share/TzWRkWXOCmSjh5Pw?utm_source=manual to join our network, The Kindred & Brave Project for resources from this episode continue the conversation!

Episode 7: Finding Friends & Community is Mid(ish) Life

(Friendship in Mid(ish) Life Series)
In this episode, Mandy brings the topic of friendship to the forefront. As we grow older; our lives change, and some of our friendships likely do too. This process is natural and layered with grief, anxiety, and possibility. 
 
IT’S HERE: the soft launch for The Kindred & Brave Project Mighty Networks COMMUNITY. A space to keep these conversations going and help us continue the learning. More to come next month!
 
KBP Purpose: We bring together women in mid(ish) life to explore their passions and support each other through life's transitions so that we can grow, communicate, and heal in a way that connects to our values and fosters community. 
 
For Now: Go to kindredandbrave.com and sign up for the KBP Community! It’s free! 
 
If you have any questions; email Mandy @ Mandy@kindredandbrave.com
 
Mandy shares the first “series” topic - making friends & finding community in mid(ish) life using 4 books as foundational knowledge & inspiration.
 
Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World by Vivek Murthy
Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make - And - Keep Friends by Marisa Franco
Braving The Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging & The Courage To Stand Alone by Brené Brown 
We Should Get Together: The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships by Kat Vellos 

Episode 6: The Courageous Act of Grieving

*Trigger Warning* Pet Loss
In the first episode of 2024, Mandy shares the story of losing a beloved family member, a pet. She talks about the complexities of grieving while holding space for your children to do the same. Mandy reminds us that pet loss is real loss and that the grief that accompanies that loss is valid. 
We learn about the buckets of courage as defined by Brené Brown and how to watch others living into that ordinary courage, such as asking for what you need. 
Please like, subscribe, & leave a review wherever you listen to your podcasts - it means the world to me! 
Episode #6 Practices:
Check out this article about Brené’s Netflix special “A Call to Courage” and what it means to be brave
Take some time to reflect on times you leaned into courage - maybe had a tough conversation, set a boundary with a loved one, or reached out for support during a hard time.
How does it feel to recognize that these are vulnerable and brave acts? Take some notes about what other emotions come up when you remember what it feels like to be brave and to practice “ordinary” acts of courage. They are nothing ordinary. 
Resources:
Brené Brown: A Call to Courage on Netflix
The Universe Has Your Back card deck by Gabby Bernstein 
Services we used for Luna:
https://fromhome2heaven.com/
https://faithfulcompanion.com/
 

Episode 5: To The Point - Creating Space For a New Year

In this short episode, Mandy talks about the dichotomies we face around the holiday season. She shares two practices that she uses at the end of the year to gain perspective on what we hope to feel in the new year as well as what we want to let go of. 
Episode 5 Practices: 
Make a list of how you want to feel in 2024. What words come to mind? For example - some of my clients have said “calm, open, present, expansive, authentic”. Keep that list nearby and give it some time - as the days pass, do certain words feel more true or important than others?
Around the new year take the time to have between 1-3 words picked out and in sight. Maybe they are on your fridge, in your office, on your phone screen. This is a small and very easeful step into gaining some perspective about what you want more of in your life. 
The next practice that I love to do around this time of year is about letting go. 
Think about what you want to let go of, or leave behind in 2023. What isn’t serving you anymore? What feels heavy? What is causing extra stress? 
If you want to take this practice one step further, something I do on New Year's Eve is write down what I want to leave behind in the old year on a small piece of paper. I go outside and place it in a can or glass and light it on fire - it’s a liberating feeling.
Resources:
The Desire Map by Danielle Laporte 
Morgan Harper Nichols - artist & author 
BIG NEWS COMING SOON - sign up for my email list here to get access to a new community, beta coaching, and giveaways!

Episode 4: Exercising Empathy During Seasons of Grief

In this episode; Mandy talks about how to actively practice empathy. She discusses the steps of empathy that Dr. Brené Brown uses in her research how building our empathy muscles could foster connection with our loved ones when they experience grief. We also learn about some common empathy misses and how to repair and reconnect when we screw empathy up (because we will). 
 
Please like, subscribe, & leave a review wherever you listen to your podcasts - it means the world to me! 
 
Episode 4 Practices:
1. Check out this short video from Brené Brown about the difference between sympathy & empathy 
2. Consider the steps of empathy she discusses & think about which step you’d like to improve on (for example - how could you build your perspective-taking muscle?)
 
Resources:
Brené Brown Atlas of the Heart book 
 
Empathy Misses download 
 
Sign up for my newsletter to get first access to something exciting next month
 
People I’ve Loved - Thoughtful & Handmade Gifts 

Episode 3: Holiday Hustle, Repair, & The Mental Load

In this episode, Mandy shares more details about their family journey through ADHD with her son. The story may feel familiar - stress boils over and the connection between parent and child is broken. Insert Dr. Becky Kennedy - Mandy shares Dr. Becky’s most important parenting strategy and what it looked like for her and her son. 
We introduce the topic of “The Mental Load” and what many women are experiencing as they navigate their careers, motherhood, household tasks, the holidays, etc. 
Listen through to the end for a special giveaway perfect for Christmas! 
Episode 3 Practices:
Write permission slips: I give myself permission to do, be, feel, ______. Permission to feel. 
Consider any relationships (children or other) to try Dr. Becky’s repair strategies with. What could it look like to circle back and take responsibility for an action or behavior to aid in connection?
Try a new transition technique - after work, before school, in between dinner and bed. How might you take 30 seconds to wash away your thoughts or heavy feelings before moving to your next task? 
Resources:
Dr. Becky Kennedy - https://www.goodinside.com/about/
Ted Talk - 
The Mental Load 
The Sacred Self-Care Oracle Card Deck 
Check out Mandy’s ornaments //
https://kindredandbrave.com/ made to raise funds to help support the production of this podcast. 10% of the proceeds donated to https://togetherrising.org/ in honor of Mandy’s mom, Diana Jankus
For an opportunity to win THREE ornaments:
Share this podcast episode on your FB and/or Instagram page AND tag Mandy @kindredcoaching 
Follow The Kindred & Brave Project on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and write a review
Complete these actions by Friday December 8 
Winner will be announced Monday December 11!