underestimated

J.B. Handley is the best-selling author of How to End the Autism Epidemic and the co-author of Underestimated: An Autism Miracle which he wrote with his now 21-year-old autistic son, Jaime. Their book, Underestimated inspired the new full length documentary, SPELLERS, which challenges the conventional wisdom of 'experts' that non-speakers with autism are cognitively disabled. 

The film blends beautiful cinematography with heart-wrenching stories of eight spellers and provides a strong message for every parent of a non-speaker: your child can do this, too. SPELLERS also demands that teachers, schools, and therapists wake up to the reality that we may have underestimated the abilities of more than 50 million people worldwide.

J.B. is an honors graduate of Stanford University and lives in Portland, OR with his wife Lisa and their 3 children.

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To purchase my book “Welcome to My Life – A Personal Parenting Journey Through Autism” click HERE or visit Amazon.com!

You can easily stay connected to the Living the Sky Life podcast and me in various ways.  Please visit my website www.lauriehellmann.com for all the links.

I'd love to hear what you think, so if listening on the Apple platform, please leave a written review and rating of the podcast!  If you are interested in being a guest on an episode of Living the Sky Life, please contact me!

Being underestimated is one of the greatest competitive advantages you can experience. I had to teach my teenage daughter this lesson this week. In this episode I also share how to show up as your future self, today. 

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Our minds and bodies have the natural ability to respond to stresses and threats to our wellbeing. In psychology, these unconscious responses that help us protect our sense of self are called defense mechanisms. 

One of the defense mechanisms that gets switched on – especially if we want to make up for our shortcomings or setbacks – is called compensation. And while it may help you achieve goals and excel in some areas of your life, overdoing it may cause more harm than good in the long run. 

Especially at times when we feel unseen, unheard, or unappreciated, that’s when our tendency to overcompensate gets triggered. The more that we feel like we don’t matter or we’re not worthy, the more that we want to prove ourselves; and that often leads us to overwork, overcommit, and overthink. These are just some of the “overs” that we need to understand and be mindful of if we want to avoid being overstressed and overwhelmed! 

Overcompensation is a bit tricky because it makes you feel like you’re doing your best; but it’s actually counterproductive, especially for high achievers. 

In this episode, let’s dive deeper into some of the things we overdo that may cause burnout and ultimately hinder us from giving our best and living life to the fullest.  

 Wisdom To Live By: 

• “At the core of everybody, they wanna be seen, heard, and felt like they mattered.  And on the reverse side, all problems come from not being seen, not being heard, and feeling like we don't matter.” – Oprah
• Success is possible without sacrificing your well-being. Actually, unstoppable success is on the other side of prioritizing yourself. – Becca Powers
• We shouldn't be just surviving our days. We should be alive. – Becca Powers 
• The more times you say yes to yourself,  the more confident you will become that this is the way to be. – Becca Powers
• What if you are feeling the “overs”,  what can you do?... Assess and admit that things might be either off track or getting off track. – Becca Powers

Click here for "The Workplace Burnout Survey"

Resources Mentioned:

• Harness Your Inner CEO

Follow Becca:

• Website
• LinkedIn
• Instagram 
• Facebook

"And the Day Came When the Risk to Remain Tight In a Bud Was More Painful Than the Risk It Took to Blossom.” 

- Anais Nin -

How would you feel if you started working in a company that accepted you with a yawn? Like when you are excited to start and to make an impact with your efforts and no one seems to really care.

How would you feel working in a company with a culture that undervalues, underappreciated, and underrecognizes people like you? 

If this resonates, then listen up and listen good!

This week’s episode features a fellow powerhouse, Gina McCarthy, a resilient soul with a High Achievers mindset with the same badass culture. A crucial career pivot led her to move past her own “unders” that were stirring the dark waters that would lead to burnout - and increased her salary by more than 35% in the process!  

Take Inspiration from how Gina took back her own power by:

• Accepting, loving, and being damn proud of herself 
• Choosing to receive and process outside criticism and comments as either positive, irrelevant, or just simply untrue
• Allowing herself to feel motivated and inspired again by what she’s doing
• Avoiding the need to give loyalty to people who don’t reciprocate it
• Finding her people that would check her a** when she’s being “swallowed up” at work

Click here for "The Workplace Burnout Survey"

Wisdom To Live By: 

• I was comfortable. I was loved. I was respected,  but I just wasn't challenged. - Gina McCarthy
• I was told that I was too emotionally invested in my customers. And the problem is I allowed it to be an insult when I should have just flicked my chin and said,  “You're damn right I am!” - Gina McCarthy
• Burnout isn’t abrupt or sudden. It’s a slow drip that bleeds into your system. - Becca Powers
• You can put whatever the hell you want out and say whatever the hell you want to me. But how I receive and process it is on me. - Gina McCarthy
• Sitting in mediocrity is a flame killer. - Becca Powers
• The first layer of burnout is leaving ourselves in situations where we're starting to feel disrespected. - Becca Powers
• Build your support network because you're gonna need it. - Gina McCarthy

Know More About Gina:

Gina is a self-made six-figure technology sales executive and mother of two. Gina’s inspirational story starts when she entered the tech industry in 2011 and worked her way up through the various sales ranks. Starting as a business development rep, she is now a top-performing sales executive managing multi-million dollar sales territories. Gina’s willingness to ack

I appreciate all that I do. I am good enough just as I am. I speak up for myself, I ask for what I want. I claim my power.

- Louise Hay -

Burnout is real and will prevail in your life if you keep tolerating it or denying to yourself that you are, in fact, burnt out. We need to rise against the unders of burnout instead of just accepting what should be unacceptable. Now is the time to take action against it so it doesn’t take over our lives.

Developing self-awareness is an essential step in acknowledging burnout. Recognizing and anticipating the first stage of burnout or the unders will help you overcome it. One way to do this is to stop being a people pleaser and start diverting your attention to yourself. You have to believe that you are good enough and you approve of yourself. It’s time to claim your power!

In this episode, Becca sheds light on the first stage of burnout or the unders and how it leads to the next stage. She shares some examples that trigger the unders by providing real-life scenarios. She also helps people evaluate themselves using a rating scale to know if they are not experiencing burnout or if they are getting closer to it. Hence, early detection is the best prevention for burnout.

Take Inspiration From These Lessons: 

• Burnout is not something that we should power through or tolerate. We should not dwell over burnout all the time, we have to realize that there is a whole big life out there and learn to be alive.
• There are things to ponder when it comes to what’s working and what’s not working in your life, but you must remember that you deserve to fly high and live your best life.
• People get into the overs of burnout when they learn how to put the mask on or to show up differently just to get the acceptance and validation that they are seeking.
• Admitting that you are experiencing burnout is not a sign of weakness, instead, it shows your courage to overcome burnout.
• When people feel unseen, unheard, and underappreciated, they go into perfectionism to prove they are valuable.

Resources Mentioned:

• Power Thought Cards by Louise Hay
• Harness Your Inner CEO Becca Powers
• Claim Your Power by Mastin Kipp 
• The Happiness Recipe by Rebecca Morrison

Burnout out survey link: https://www.beccapowers.com/burnout

Wisdom To Live By: 

I am deeply fulfilled by all I do.  And then I'm flipping it over for extended meaning. Each moment of the day is special to me as I follow my higher instincts and listen to myself. I am at peace with my world and affairs. 

- Louise Hay -

Are you noticing that job satisfaction is practically nonexistent? Do you often feel physically and mentally drained, like your batteries are dead? Some of us can relate to these questions because we have encountered these circumstances, or you might be experiencing them right now. Job dissatisfaction and physical and mental exhaustion are just some of the signs of workplace burnout.  

But how do you know if you are on the verge of burnout and might fall hard on it? First, you might feel that you don’t matter and are not worthy. When these feelings are activated, you might go into overcompensation wherein you worked hard to be validated. Then, you go into the next stage where you start questioning your sense of belonging, which could lead to disharmony with yourselves and your bodies. If you stay on this stage for too long, it could lead to self-devastation. And these are the five stages of burnout that Becca sheds light on in this episode.

As someone who has a good grip on burnout and is certified in trauma awareness, Becca enumerates the five stages of burnout and how those stages are interrelated. She goes on to share valuable inputs about how early detection of the signs and stages will not only save us from its devastating effects but also the people around us. This serves as a reminder that as high-achievers, we should aim for success, but without so much sacrifice and self-sabotage.

Take Inspiration From These Lessons: 

• Burnout is everyone's problem but everyone has a hand in making it better.
• There must be an opportunity for us to pause and recalibrate and say, is this the best way that I can be going about things?
• Sometimes, when we are dealing with shadows in our lives, we want to hide them and we don't want people to think we're not worthy. Instead, we want people to see our value and we want to be validated. With this, we get into overcompensation when wounds are triggered and activated.
• The five stages of burnout are recognizing the unders, and overs, questioning your sense of belonging, disharmony with yourself and your body, and self-devastation.
•  It is the organization or the corporation's responsibility to provide work environments that help their employees thrive.

Resources Mentioned:

• Power Thought Cards by Louise Hay

Wisdom To Live By: 

• Burnout is everyone's problem. It's the individual's responsibility to prioritize themselves enough to get out of that survival state and into a thriving state. - Becca Powers
• 98% of people are actually experiencing either signs and symptoms of burnout or full-on burnout. 98% of workers and professionals are either in or on the verge of burnout.- Becca Powers
• Burnout has been going on for a long time.  It just hasn't been talked about, but it’s really popular now w

Caryn Culver is a life long Tennessean and currently resides in Knoxville with her husband Chad and 3 children. Caryn's middle child, Peyton, was diagnosed with autism in 2010 at the age of two.

Since this time, their family has been on a journey to help Peyton reach his best potential. After visiting doctors and specialists around the country and trying numerous therapies, Peyton has finally found his voice with Spelling to Communicate (S2C).

Peyton, now 14 years old, has made it his mission to help other non-speakers have access to communication programs like S2C. Please visit ThePeytonproject.com for more details.

*To hear my first discussion with Caryn back in 2020 where we discuss parenting and how they found the S2C program, listen to podcast episode 44.

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To purchase my book “Welcome to My Life – A Personal Parenting Journey Through Autism” click HERE or visit Amazon.com!

You can easily stay connected to the Living the Sky Life podcast and me in various ways.  Please visit my website www.lauriehellmann.com for all the links.

I'd love to hear what you think, so if listening on the Apple platform, please leave a written review and rating of the podcast!  If you are interested in being a guest on an episode of Living the Sky Life, please contact me!

Anne Hudson, local Austin on-air personality on 96.7 KISS-FM and KASE101, talks about the challenges she has overcome throughout her career and life and how she pushes through the bad and stays positive.

Jennifer Brazer, Founder and CEO of Complete Controller, talks about her experience starting her business the hard way, the bootstrap way. Listen to real-life experiences where she followed her gut and saved her baby girl's life and how she uses that mentality in everything she does to this day. 

Welcome to Season 2 of Underestimated! In Episode 1 we talk to CEO and Co-Founder of Living Security, Ashley Rose, about running a company with three daughters and a few amazing stories of course. We discuss the journey Ashley took in completing college after having her first daughter, starting her first business, and pivoting her company during Covid. 

Why It’s BETTER To Be Underestimated: The Jerry Seinfeld, Louis C.K. Incident (Ep. 619)

“The ego relies on the familiar. It is reluctant to experience the unknown, which is the very essence of life.” - Deepak Chopra

Bonus episodes of The Aux: https://www.patreon.com/auxoro

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WEBSITE/BLOG: https://www.auxoro.com/

AUXORO PODCAST (guest conversations): https://pod.link/1390263048

Cindy Eckert, CEO of the Pink Ceiling, shares her perspective on the effectiveness of customer obsessed sales. Hosts Dylan Gambardella & Justin Lafazan, CoFounders & CEOs of Next Gen HQ, dive deeper to really learn what investors look for in the pitching process. Cindy encourages female founders to lean into being underestimated & realize the power of gratitude.

SUBSCRIBE TO MOMENTUM NEWSLETTER:

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CONNECT WITH NEXT GEN HQ

🚀Website - https://nextgenhq.com/

🚀Instagram - https://instagram.com/nextgenhq

🚀Twitter - https://twitter.com/nextgenhq

🚀Facebook - https://facebook.com/nextgenhqofficial

CONNECT WITH CINDY

🤝 Social Media - @cindypinkceo

🤝 Website - thepinkceiling.com

Lily Wilker

What: Special Operations Medic working towards PHD

Where: at Fort Bragg, NC

Why: An underestimated Soldier because of her physical size and sex

The military is known for its poor treatment of women in uniform.  We are an organization that values hard charging, barrel chested, red, white, and blue blooded freedom fighting Alpha males.  Staff Sergeant Wilker is one of the most important individuals I have recruited for my Special Operations team.  I met Lily in 2014 at a qualification course.  Prior to this moment I was an under-appreciating, sexist individual that didn’t not think there was a place for women in the military.  This sentiment came from my career as a tanker where women were not allowed in our units.  I thought that women would undermine an organization, especially during combat operations.  We had a young lady at my Combat Outpost (COP) in 2012 in Afghanistan and saw how Soldiers treat women first hand.  For example, when we were attacked by the Taliban all of my guard posts were not manned because my guys went to the woman’s building and tried to “protect” her.  What I didn’t see was that I was completely wrong about women in combat, and that the fault was my own because I didn’t have as tight of a grip on my Soldiers as I thought and that their professional discipline was lacking.  When I was selected to be a member of Special Operations I learned this.  Lily Wilker showed me that a woman that is under 5’ and weighs less than 100lbs could carry a heavier backpack with all of our units ammunition, communication equipment, and food further and longer than myself.  I felt like a fool having this little girl outperform me physically, but then saw her outperform me mentally and emotionally as we were partners through training.  By the end of our training I learned a valuable life lesson that I will never judge a person based on their stereotype, but look at the individual.  I joined a Special Operations Team immediately after graduating the Qualification Course and deployed to Jordan for my first go-around with ISIS.  When I got back it had been a year since I last spoke with Lily, but knew she was a person that I wanted on my team.  I fought tooth and nail upon returning to Fort Bragg to get Lily on my team, and in 2015 she became my medic.  I got to train with her on the team for a year before we all deployed to Lebanon.  After leaving the Special Operations Team I would never deploy again without a woman on my team because Lily taught me that she brings a capability to the team that empowers us to reach greater impacts on the community.  When I deployed to Syria on the greatest fighting force in the world team  and my lesson from Lily had me again fight to get the additional capability on my team, which led to me having two ladies on my team.  Because of the lessons from Lily I was overwhelming successful in Syria to the point that we led the fight that ended with the US winning the war against ISIS.

Lesson Learned:  Women in combat are not a hinderance, but an added capability.  Never assume a women cannot perform until I have tested them.  From my experiences with SSG Wilker I leaned that a tiny girl was capable of outperforming the toughest man (me) physically, and mentally.  She increased the capability of my special operations team to levels I couldn’t have reached without her.  “Alone, and Unafraid.  CAT613”

Courtney Zimmerman

My passion in life is helping others by using my career and personal endeavors I am involved in.

I started my sales career in 2014 doing B2C sales for Colonial Penn and was moved to management due to the feedback from my clients on educating them of the importance of insurance, what different policies cover and help make the best financial decisions to cover the unexpected costs that could happen that the stakeholders saw as important value to coach to my team.

I moved into Tech Sales with SaaS products in 2016 doing B2B sales for multiple start-ups. In 2019 I started my career at Google Cloud selling the full spectrum from the IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS offerings we have.

Why sales and why technology? Sales can give you the chance to help or empower your clients if you are consultative and have a mindset of servitude. Technology can provide a solution invented to solve real life problems to make others life easier, give back time, save money, empower their passions. I want to make an impact and help others by giving them the tools and ideas necessary to live a better life, so working in technology sales was a "no-brainer" decision for the direction in my career.

In my personal life I am a mental health advocate, dog mom of 11 years to my American Eskimo Ellie, an Aunt and cheerleader to Mason and Emma, a little sister and big sister of 5 siblings, outdoor adventurist, theater nerd, comedian, stormchaser, and a writer.

I believe in the power of networking, collaborating, and sharing ideas on any spectrum. Feel free to connect and let's solve some problems!

Linkedin

RestartCBD CEO
Shayda Torabi- Linkedin

Shayda was trying to recover from an auto-pedestrian accident in Austin when she was first introduced to the health and wellness properties of CBD.

During that time, we encountered the frustration of finding quality organic hemp products from trusted suppliers. And as a family of athletes, living in Texas, we wanted a legal product with Zero THC. Realizing very few pure products existed in this market, we decided to create our own. 

After months of research and making the connections needed to deliver a high caliber product, RESTART CBD was born.

We use a pure CBD isolate in our Signature Product Line (Replenish, Recover, Relax and Repair) derived from organically grown industrial hemp with CO2 extraction, 3rd party lab testing for quality, and organic ingredients.

RESTART CBD is Austin’s first locally handcrafted organic CBD wellness brand founded by two sisters, Shayda and Sydney Torabi. 

Free Guide : 10 Must-Have Habits of Ultra-Confident Women

Want to learn what it takes to go from being a people pleaser to a confident self-lover? Learn the habits of high performing women who put themselves first, and still make a difference in the lives of others.

Hi, I’m Vasavi, Licensed therapist with a dual Masters degrees in Special Education and Social Work.  I’m first-generation Indian-American and grew up in a traditional Hindu household on Long Island, New York. Living and going to school in a predominantly all-White town, I struggled with: figuring out my unique identity, the mental heartache of bullying, and shame from outshining the other students in my class due to my strict upbringing and focus on academics. Back then, I longed for acceptance, and believed that I had to dumb myself down in order to fit in, and be welcomed into social circles.

I’m often asked, “How have you been able to get back up no matter what you’ve gone through?”

I am here to help you heal. When you work with me, I help you uncover YOUR way to get BACK up, no matter what you go through.

I believe that when you know yourself, you can do, be, and have anything you want.  As YOU grow through what you go through, don’t forget to check in with yourself. Keep getting to know you.  In order for me to be in the present, I had to be honest about the evolution of self.  From my own mental health illness, divorce, addiction and RECOVERY, I’ve learned that missteps and wrong turns don’t break my love of self. You have the power to overcome your rock bottom moments successfully, and come out the other side stronger.  I am here to help you heal.  I’ve been there.  Now I am present, I am Vasavi.

Free Guide : 10 Must-Have Habits of Ultra-Confident Women