The Messy Mucky Middle https://www.instagram.com/shannonschottler/ Pinecast (https://pinecast.com) en-USShannon Schottler Shannon Schottler smschottler@gmail.com no The Messy Mucky Middle https://www.instagram.com/shannonschottler/ https://storage.pinecast.net/podcasts/covers/b293458f-26fc-4341-a19c-caa43a5be133/Podcast_Cover.png episodic Copyright 2026 real people sharing their real stories of life + career transitions 11: Caitlin – Masked Urban Planner to Truthful Yoga Teacher + Guide https://pinecast.com/guid/2a9fbfaa-84f3-4550-8885-c6d0f69a788c Tue, 13 Dec 2022 11:40:00 -0000 00:45:29 What do you do when you're tired of masking the truest parts of who you are? Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Caitlin to discuss her messy mucky middle between corporate urban planner and yoga + wellness teacher and guide. You'll especially love this episode if... ·      It’s time to stop masking and start expressing your truthful self ·      You long to leave a corporate desk job and step into entrepreneurship  ·      You’re wondering if it’s ok to leave a job without a new job  ·      You’re feeling stuck and not sure how to unstick yourself ·      You’re considering quitting a whole industry entirely ·      It’s time to stop trying to control external perceptions and just BE YOU ·      You worry people will think you’re crazy for giving up such a great career ·      You want to learn to flow with life instead of fight it all the time   Get excited!    Connect with Caitlin: 

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 11 10: Nicole - Burned Out Business Owner to Life on Her Terms https://pinecast.com/guid/35e5678c-6238-4ebb-9aa8-5871824eae22 Tue, 29 Nov 2022 11:40:00 -0000 00:53:10 What do you do when your family life, business, and environment want to change all at once? Find out... Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Nicole to discuss her messy mucky middle between being a burned out business owner to living life on her terms…all with a new baby and a city change happening at the same time. You'll especially love this episode if... ·      Many parts of your life are shifting all at once  - work, family, environment…all of it ·      You’re making a transition into parenthood  ·      You’re an entrepreneur longing to change things up in your business ·      You’re ready to release believing things will always be hard for you ·      You want to redefine what the markers of success are for YOU ·      You struggle with rest & restoration—where to start?! ·      It’s time to stop masking parts of yourself professionally and be honest about who you really want to be ·      You long to be more playful after years of perfectionism    Get excited!    Connect with Nicole: 

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 10 09: Jessica - From Being "Just Fine" to Lit the F*ck Up! https://pinecast.com/guid/4c0b20b3-fdc7-4d67-8684-7458904ef672 Tue, 15 Nov 2022 11:40:00 -0000 00:38:48 What do you do when your entire business stops overnight (thanks, global pandemic!)? Let's find out. Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Jessica to discuss her messy mucky middle between being just fine to being lit the fuck up. You'll especially love this episode if... · You have to start a new chapter with no clue what wants to happen next · You want to know how people move through the fear & self-doubt in messy middles · You’re considering making a transition into coaching · You’re asking yourself “who am I to do this thing I want to do next?” · You’re ready to release needing to do things in a certain order, perfectly, or completely · You want to shift from being a people pleaser to pleasing yourself first · You’d love some encouragement to stop thinking and start TRYING the new thing!

Get excited!

Connect with Jessica:

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 9 08: Angie - Meeting a Lifelong PhD Goal & Wondering What's Next https://pinecast.com/guid/2d174371-6864-4d7a-aa6f-ce20db76e97c Tue, 08 Nov 2022 11:40:00 -0000 00:45:09 What do you do when you finish a lifelong learning goal and wonder what's next? Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Angie to discuss her messy mucky middle following meeting a lifetime goal of obtaining her PhD and wondering what comes next. You'll especially love this episode if... ·      You just accomplished a major life goal…but now what?! ·      You’re considering many different possible paths and aren’t sure how to choose ·      You want inspiration to experiment & try before you commit  ·      You want to leverage the wisdom of your body more ·      The people are good. The work is good. The mission is good…but you’re not feeling good in it.  ·      You want permission to change your mind! ·      You wonder what people do when the transition doesn’t go as they might have thought   Get excited!    Connect with Angie: 

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 8 07: Marisa - Semiconductor Sales to Back to School at 30 https://pinecast.com/guid/5bf2a29e-19fa-40dc-a5fc-222dbf216cda Tue, 01 Nov 2022 10:40:00 -0000 00:39:39 What do you do when your life is so FULL on the outside, but feels empty on the inside? Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Marisa to discuss her messy mucky middle between semi-conductor sales to going back to school at 30. You'll especially love this episode if...

· You feel like you’ve been living from someone else’s playbook and long to find your own · You fantasize about quitting your job and taking a year off to travel the world · You long to find your own voice · You have all the “right” things but something still doesn’t feel quite right · Life feels very empty inside despite being packed so full on the outside · You’re afraid that no one will hire you again if you take a break · You want to trust the voice inside you · You’re ready to unwind an inherited generational pattern of survival · It’s time to turn down the voices outside of you and turn up the one inside

Get excited!

Connect with Marisa:

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 7 06: Alicia - Corporate Climber to Community-Minded Entrepreneur https://pinecast.com/guid/a6321af0-d8f9-4fd4-bb75-f97be2cd55b8 Tue, 25 Oct 2022 10:40:00 -0000 00:51:28 What do you do when you're ready for a new challenge? Let's find out... Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Alicia to discuss her messy mucky middle between burned out corporate climber to community-oriented entrepreneur. You'll especially love this episode if... ·      You’re burned out on Corporate America ·      You long for a career that aligns to the communities you most long to serve ·      You’re an Enneagram 1 &/or want to break up with perfectionism ·      You want to release needing to know how the story ends before you let yourself start it ·      You wonder what restoration can look like for “I’m not a napper” type A folks  ·      You know WHO you want to serve but aren’t sure about HOW ·      You’re curious what it’s like to own a caregiving franchise  ·      The idea of figuring out your future alone sounds intimidating AF (PS: you don’t have to)   In the episode Alicia generously tells us... ·      What was ending in her life when this messy middle story begins? ·      How did you feel at this point where things were ending?  ·      Did you feel confident when this messy middle story began?  ·      Did she take any time to restore herself? What did that look like for you?  ·      What helped you restore from that burned out place?  ·      What role did reflection play in the process of figuring out what came next?  ·      Were there different possible paths you considered? ·      How did she know what the “right” next move was throughout this messy middle? ·      What does “good” feel like in your body?  ·      What was harder than she expected getting into the franchise/business?  ·      What was easier than she expected?  ·      Was there ever a point where she doubted?  ·      What did she learn in the in between time?  ·      How did her community or support system shift or change during this time? ·      Does she still feel like she’s in a messy middle of sorts?  ·      What does she want other people to know who may be navigating similar transitions? ·      What’s most important to her now at this new point in her life? 

Get excited!    Connect with Alicia: 

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 6 05: Mia - Nonprofit Public Health to Licensed Esthetician https://pinecast.com/guid/81b8ab2c-7407-4d9c-9fd9-d90557090934 Tue, 18 Oct 2022 10:40:00 -0000 What do you do when you lose your job and you don't want to stay in the same field? Take a listen! Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Mia to discuss her messy mucky middle between exhausted overachiever in the nonprofit public health space to aligned risk taker working as a licensed esthetician. You'll especially love this episode if...

  • You’re an exhausted overachiever pressuring yourself to stay in a field you no longer love
  • You’re curious about a nontraditional non-desk job career change
  • You long to find a workplace, path, community where you feel like you BELONG
  • You want to take more aligned risks
  • You’re moving through a job loss
  • You’re worried people will judge you for the career change you want to make
  • You want to learn how to trust yourself more

In the episode Mia generously tells us...

  • What was ending when her transition story begins?
  • What emotions was she experiencing when things were coming to an end?
  • Did she feel confident in the beginning phase of her journey?
  • How did you figure out what wanted to happen next? What role did reflection play?
  • How did she experiment with a possible new career path? 
  • How did she feel when she started to thrive in the new path?
  • What did it feel like to finally feel like you BELONG? 
  • Were there other possible paths she considered? Or was it esthetics all along?
  • Were there any ways of being she had to experiment with? Like risk taking perhaps?
  • What was harder than she expected? And easier?
  • Was there ever a point where she doubted?
  • What did she learn about herself as she sat in the middle?
  • Did she worry people would judge her for this career change? 
  • Does she still feel like she’s in a messy middle of sorts?
  • What does she want others to know who are going through their own middle right now?

Get excited!

How you can connect with Mia:

How you can connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 5 04: Amy Young - Workaholic People Pleaser to Feminine Powerhouse https://pinecast.com/guid/55766a0f-34d2-4b7f-9c63-23a51bca2e19 Tue, 11 Oct 2022 10:40:00 -0000 What do you do when your business, relationship, city, and identity all want to change at once? Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Amy Young to discuss her messy mucky middle between workaholic, performer, and codependent people-pleaser to the calm, boundaried, authentic Feminine powerhouse she is today. You'll especially love this episode if...

  • You’ve checked all the boxes but something still doesn’t feel quite right
  • You want to live a life that’s true to you instead of what’s expected
  • You identify as a people pleaser, overachiever, or over-worker and want to make a shift
  • You’re over the city where you’re currently living
  • You’re moving through a breakup
  • You’re curious about equine & somatic therapies
  • You’re intrigued by the idea of patriarchal deprogramming
  • You want permission to take your transition at your pace and have your own process
  • You want to learn how to be with your body & what it’s asking for
  • You long to slow down—to offer yourself a pace you’ve never allowed yourself to live at before

In the episode Amy generously tells us...

  1. What was ending in her life & identity when her transition story begins?
  2. What emotions was she experiencing around those endings?
  3. Did she feel confident about making all these moves?
  4. What did she do first when she knew she had to make changes?
  5. What role did restoration play in her messy mucky middle story?
  6. Was there any resistance to taking time to restore herself? To slowing down?
  7. What about reflection? Did she engage in reflection at all through this time?
  8. What about experimentation? How did she experiment during this transition?
  9. How did she KNOW what the right next move was for her?
  10. Was there ever a point where she doubted the direction she was heading in?
  11. How did she learn & grow in the messy middle?
  12. What's most important to her know at this new point in her life?

Get excited!

Connect with Amy:

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 4 03: Eden - Cerebral to Embodied https://pinecast.com/guid/475eaa14-79aa-4fbf-bab0-0e1f678e1431 Tue, 04 Oct 2022 10:42:00 -0000 What do you do when you move across the country and want to change how you connect with others and yourself? Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Eden to discuss her messy mucky middle between being in a cerebral place of hypervigilant constriction (for some very good reasons!) to an embodied soft openness that is ready for connection. You'll especially love this episode if...

  • You're making a move across the country by yourself
  • You're curious about somatics and embodiment (we talk about it a lot!)
  • You're the child of an immigrant - you're a part of "the first" community...first in your family, community, lineage to do many things
  • You've felt intense pressure to be perfect, focused, and produce...
  • ...and now you want to find a place of enoughness and take a stand for your joy! You want to feel FREE and playful again!
  • You're wanting to release an independent self-sufficient mindset and shift into loving interdependence
  • You thought it was safer to lead with smart cerebral self and now you want to lead with your heart, soul, body
  • You want to grow in SWEETNESS to yourself
  • The transition you're wanting to make is more than just a career shift. It's a whole way of BEING shift.

In the episode Eden generously tells us...

  1. What was ending in her life when this transition began?
  2. How did she feel in those early days of letting go?
  3. Where did the healing journey begin for her? What did it look like?
  4. How did you navigate shifting relationships with friends and family as you changed?
  5. How did she know what the right next step was during this time?
  6. What does good feel like in her body?
  7. Does she ever doubt herself? What does she do in those moments?
  8. What did she learn in this in between time?
  9. Does she still feel like she's in a messy middle of sorts?
  10. What does she want other people to know about moving through transitions?
  11. What's most important to her now at this new point in her life?

Get excited!

Connect with Eden:

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 3 02: Shawn Bergeth - Supply Chain to Therapist https://pinecast.com/guid/88968635-92be-40ae-97ab-dacac80c4155 Tue, 04 Oct 2022 10:41:00 -0000 What do you do when you've been climbing a corporate ladder for 25 years and just can't do it anymore? Episode Notes

This week I sit down with Shawn Bergeth to discuss his messy mucky middle between being a big fancy executive in supply chain for over 25 years to now being back in school to become a therapist and coach. You'll especially love this episode if...

  • Your identity has been centered around what you do and you don't want it to be anymore
  • You want to know how a major change like this works with a partner, children, and bills to pay
  • You think you might want to talk to a therapist/coach but you're nervous
  • You want to learn about the journey of going back to school in your 40s
  • You're wondering what it's like to be an intern again at 47
  • You want to know how to detach from your ego
  • You're curious about psychadelic therapeutic approaches
  • You're feeling nervous or judging yourself about how long a transition might take
  • You're moving through a layoff

In the episode Shawn generously tells us...

  1. What was ending in his life when this transition began?
  2. What was the linch pin moment where he knew he was done with his supply chain career?
  3. How did he feel in those early days of letting go?
  4. What role did reflection play in this transition?
  5. Did he take any time to rest and restore? What did that look like for him?
  6. What was it like to go back to school in your 40s?
  7. How did he experiment his way into this career change?
  8. How did he know what the right next step was during this time?
  9. What was easier than he expected? What felt harder?
  10. Does he ever doubt herself? What does he do in those moments?
  11. What did he learn about himself in this in between time?
  12. How has his community and support system changed?
  13. Does he still feel like he's in a messy middle of sorts?
  14. What does he want other people to know about moving through messy middles?
  15. What's most important to him now at this new point in his life?

Get excited!

Connect with Shawn:

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 2 01: Sarajane Case - Coach to Writer https://pinecast.com/guid/1a701ff0-a09b-40b3-9b55-3096bce0a41e Tue, 04 Oct 2022 10:40:00 -0000 00:46:50 What happens in the messy mucky middle between being a full time coach and a full time writer? Let's find out! Episode Notes

This week I sit down with author and Enneagram & Coffee podcast host Sarajane Case to discuss her messy mucky middle between full time coach and full time writer + podcaster. You'll especially love this episode if...

  • You're interested in the Enneagram and maybe even are an Enneagram 7
  • What you think you want to move toward feels kinda big & scary
  • You wonder if it'd be more fun to keep dreaming about doing it vs. being it
  • You want inspiration & prompts for reflection time
  • You want ideas on what to do when self-doubt creeps in
  • You're curious about what the lifestyle of a writer/podcaster is like
  • You want to shift from anxious busyness to becoming a grounded stable force
  • You wonder how can you possibly be grounded in the chaos of life?

In the episode Sarajane generously tell us...

  1. What was ending in her life when this transition began?
  2. How did she feel in those early days of letting go?
  3. What did her version of rest + restoration look like?
  4. How is she experimenting with these newer identities?
  5. How did she know what the right next step was during this time?
  6. What does good feel like in her body?
  7. Does she ever doubt herself? What does she do in those moments?
  8. What did she learn in this in between time?
  9. How is her lifestyle different?
  10. How has her community and support system changed?
  11. How does it feel to claim her identity as a writer + podcaster now?
  12. Does she still feel like she's in a messy middle of sorts?
  13. What does she want other people to know about moving through transitions?
  14. What's most important to her now at this new point in her life?

Get excited!

Connect with Sarajane:

Connect with Shannon:

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

]]> no 1 00: What is a Messy Mucky Middle? https://pinecast.com/guid/4ed477f5-7473-4bc0-89a4-050e91e72fda Sat, 24 Sep 2022 14:34:10 -0000 Before we dive in to the interviews let's answer 3 quick questions - What is a messy mucky middle anyway? Why am I so passionate about them? And who the heck am I? Episode Notes

In this episode we talk about:

The 4 key elements of most messy mucky middle transitions Why messy mucky middles matter And who am I?

]]> no 1