Surrendering to the Signs

In this moving and energising episode, Laura is joined by Maria Medrano, CEO and Co-Founder of Inspirame, tech executive, mother, and first-generation pioneer, to explore how faith, education, and an unwavering belief in possibility can change not just one life, but generations.
Maria shares her remarkable story, from growing up in a working-class immigrant family in California to becoming the first in her family to graduate high school and college, building a career in Silicon Valley, and ultimately dedicating her life’s work to ensuring others can see, and access, the paths available to them.
This conversation weaves together themes of spirituality, grief, resilience, education as liberation, and the quiet ways our loved ones continue to guide us after they’re gone. It’s a powerful reminder that signs often arrive through people, through opportunity, and through a deep inner knowing that we are here to give back what we’ve been given.
What You’ll Hear in This Episode
Maria’s early life story and the influence of her parents’ strength and values

Being the first in her family to go to college and what that really took

How teachers became early “signs” and champions of possibility

Navigating criticism, doubt, and being told she didn’t belong

The loss of Maria’s mother and how her presence continues in a new form

How grief sharpened Maria’s commitment to personal growth and purpose

The creation of Inspirame as an embodiment of legacy and love

Helping young people navigate education systems without shame or confusion

Resources & Links
Inspirame, a technology platform dedicated to simplifying access to education and career pathways for underserved communities
Visit www.surrenderingtothesigns.com 
Music Featured
The music in each episode of Surrendering to the Signs has been carefully curated to enhance the episode, below is a list of all tracks featured.
List of Music
This Is an Adventure _Song by Kyle Preston
Living the Dream _Song by Rynn
Passion _Song by Yestalgia
El Río Fluye _Song by Reuven Bransburg
Heart and Soul _Song by Dreams Are Here

In this expansive, philosophical, and deeply grounding conversation, Laura is joined by longtime mentor, friend, and executive coach Joel Kimmel to explore one of the most fundamental questions of our time:
Who are we being  and how is that shaping the world we’re living in?
Drawing from near-death experiences, decades of leadership work, and a lifetime of inquiry into language and awareness, Joel shares a radically compassionate way of seeing life, one that moves beyond right and wrong, success and failure, and into honor, contribution, and presence.
Together, Laura and Joel explore how language doesn’t just describe our reality, it creates it. From the difference between “to-do lists” and “to-have-happen lists,” to listening beyond the thinking mind and into the quiet intelligence of being, this episode invites listeners to slow down, soften certainty, and discover new possibilities hiding in plain sight.
This is not a conversation about fixing the world but about seeing it differently, and allowing what wants to happen to unfold.

What You'll Hear In This Episode

Joel’s near-death experience and the three truths that shaped his life

Why who we are being matters more than what we are doing

The difference between intuition and embodied awareness

Why teams (and families) thrive when being is acknowledged

Listening to the inner voice without letting it dominate

Resources & Links
Self: The Vast World Behind Our Words — Joel Kimmel & Judy Kimmel
Visit www.surrenderingtothesigns.com 

Music Featured
The music in each episode of Surrendering to the Signs has been carefully curated to enhance the episode, below is a list of all tracks featured.
List of Music
Easy to Love - Instrumental Version _Song by Saggie
 Night Patterns _Song by Florian
Darklouds _Song by Out of Flux
 Clarity_Song by Roie Shpigler
 Butterfly_Song by Ian Post
Dreamy_Song byYehezkel Raz - Creative Cut
Highway - Song by Yarin Primak - - Instrumental version
Never Die- Song by Noa Lembersky - - Alternative Version

In this spacious, and deeply nourishing conversation, Laura is joined by leadership coach Nancy Larocca Hedley to explore the subtle art of completion, discernment, and listening to the body as a source of truth. Nancy brings wisdom from the world's spiritual traditions to her work with leaders, team facilitation, and leading in her community.
Together they reflect on how endings are not failures, but sacred thresholds, portals into the next chapter of becoming. From leaving long-held roles and relationships, to closing chapters at work, to making space for creativity, rest, and truth, Nancy shares how honorable closure has become one of her most powerful spiritual and leadership practices.
They talk about discomfort as a doorway, the difference between mental resistance and bodily knowing, the courage to have crucial conversations, and why our lives so often unfold through the unexpected rather than the planned.
This episode is a gentle invitation to slow down, notice what is complete, and trust what is quietly asking to be born.
What You’ll Hear in This EpisodeHow Nancy learned to trust her body as her primary compass
A powerful story of leaving Yahoo after a series of life signs
The subtle signals that tell us when something is no longer ours to do
The Enneagram as a tool for liberation rather than identity
Laura and Nancy’s reflections on the “helper” archetype and self-care
Why discomfort is often the doorway to freedom
Letting go of caffeine, alcohol, and habits that no longer serve the body
The difference between being busy and being available

Resources & Links
The Yamas (particularly non-stealing / right use of energy)The Enneagram (as a tool for ego awareness and freedom)Yoga philosophy and Kriya Yoga lineage (Yogananda, Roy Eugene Davis, Ellen Grace O’Brien)
Visit www.surrenderingtothesigns.com 
Music Featured
The music in each episode of Surrendering to the Signs has been carefully curated to enhance the episode, below is a list of all tracks featured.
List of Music

Easy to Love - Instrumental Version _Song by Saggie
Fold _Song by nuer self
Echoes of the Forest _Song by Thomas Ben Tov
Wakening_Song by Shai-li Paldi
Were Looking Up_Song by Chris Mason
Almanac_Song by Seth Parson
Same Side - No Lead Vocals_Song by Lemon J

In this deeply human conversation, Laura sits down with her longtime friend Tim Winters to explore the winding, painful, and ultimately transformative journey of addiction, surrender, and recovery.
Tim shares his story with remarkable openness, from a teenage sense of not quite belonging, to decades of alcohol and drug use that slowly narrowed his world, to the quiet, devastating moment when he realized he could no longer save himself.
He recounts the unforgettable car ride when his daughter-in-law drove him, without telling him where they were going, straight to rehab. A moment of fear, resistance, and finally surrender that would change the trajectory of his life.
What unfolds is not just a story about addiction, but about identity, worthiness, masculinity, grief, spirituality, and what happens when we finally stop running and let ourselves be helped.
What You’ll Hear in This Episode
This episode is a powerful reminder that healing rarely arrives the way we expect but often exactly when we are ready.
How early shame and identity struggles shaped Tim’s inner world
Why alcohol and drugs became a way to feel connected, confident, and safe
The slow progression from “social” use to silent dependency
Why “just don’t drink today” became a life-saving reframe
How anxiety and depression lifted only after sobriety began
The power of routine, community, and spiritual practice in recovery
How meditation and prayer became unexpected anchors
What Tim wishes people understood about addiction, recovery, and compassion
How small signs and nudges now guide his life in ways they never could before
Resources & Links
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)
Father Martin’s Ashleigh House treatment center
Visit: surrenderingtothesigns.com
Music Featured
The music in each episode of Surrendering to the Signs has been carefully curated to enhance the episode, below is a list of all tracks featured.
List of Music
March the Machine -  One Day - Creative Cut
James Forest - Emergency
Ben Winwood  - Intimacy
Wav Two - Sakura

In this deeply resonant and wide-ranging conversation, Laura is joined by Jana Hendrickson, executive coach, researcher, and global citizen, to explore what it truly means to follow the signs even when fear, uncertainty, and practical logic are present.

Jana shares her extraordinary life journey, from growing up in East Germany with no spiritual framework, to a life shaped by intuition, somatic wisdom, faith, and profound trust in the unseen. Through vivid stories, turning away from Paris at the last moment, leaving a marriage she loved but had outgrown, years of nomadic living, and ultimately finding home. Jana illustrates how the body often knows the truth long before the mind catches up.

Together, Laura and Jana reflect on the discomfort of the “in-between,” the myth of instant clarity, the role of fear as a compass, and the difference between spirituality and religion. They also explore how social media, synchronicity, and shared stories can act as catalysts for courage and how our own brave choices quietly give others permission to make theirs.
This episode is a powerful reminder that surrender is not passive, it’s an active, embodied practice of listening, trusting, and moving forward one honest step at a time.

What You’ll Hear in This Episode:
Jana’s first profound experience of listening to her body’s wisdom
How “the pull” feels in the body and how to recognize it’
The difference between clarity and certainty and why clarity often takes time
Jana’s journey through divorce, grief, and radical self-trust
Nomadic living, synchronicity, and saying yes without a roadmap
How social media can act as a modern conduit for signs and connection
Why our stories matter and how sharing them gives others courage

Find Jana on Instagram at @iamjanahendrickson or connect with her on LinkedIn. She is currently completing her doctoral research in professional coaching and human development and is passionate about integrating spirituality, philosophy, neuroscience, and somatic intelligence into leadership practice. Jana’s work invites leaders to move beyond performance alone and into alignment, depth, and wholeness.

Resources & Links
World Domination Summit (Chris Guillebeau)
Brené Brown (early speaking work)
Nancy Duarte – The Arc of Storytelling
Marie Forleo’s B-School
The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss
Tony Robbins coaching methodology
David Deida’s work on polarity

Visit: surrenderingtothesigns.com

Music Featured
The music in each episode of Surrendering to the Signs has been carefully curated to enhance the episode, below is a list of all tracks featured.
List of Music
Maya Pacziga - Winter in Paris
ANBR - Mon Amour
Nuer Self - Indigo
Kyle Preston - Cafe de Philosophie
Jozeque - Seal
Saggie - Easy to Love - Instrumental Version