Episodi
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Daniela Ruiz or as some know her, Nani, is a Creative Coach, Facilitator, and Education & Inclusion Advocate. In this episode:
Sara and Nani and I talk about the gifts and challenges of being a multipotentialite.
Nani shares the story of how a difficult situation at work inspired her to explore stand up comedy as a creative outlet and how she has used it to create a unique offering as a facilitator that helps companies reimagine inclusion and collaboration.
They also discuss their perspectives on access to professional development opportunities.
About Daniela:
Driven by a passion for creating environments where individuals and teams can thrive, Nani has built a career spanning education, tech, and social impact. From founding Austin’s first Spanish immersion Montessori preschool to coaching over 800 professionals into life-changing roles, Nani specializes in transforming challenges into opportunities and scaling meaningful impact.
If you are looking for an incredible career coach, or someone who can help bring more humor and levity into your workplace, you can find Daniela- Nani- Ruiz
on LinkedIn: in/soydanielaruiz/
Or on Instagram: @soynaniok
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On this episode of Ace of Pentacles, Sara chats with Jeff Nixa about using shamanic practices to gain more clarity on our career and purpose.
Jeff shares his knowledge of shamanic healing and vision quests, which he also shares in his book; The Lost Art of Heart Navigation: A Modern Shaman's Field Manual.
Sara and Jeff also reflect on the shamanic counseling session that Sara had with him last year and how we might all use some of the practices that Jeff shares in his book to gain more clarity on our life’s purpose, overcome fears, and develop a deeper connection with our intuition.
About Jeff:
Jeff D. Nixa, J.D., M.Div, is a shamanic practitioner, teacher, and writer. In 2010 he founded Great Plains Shamanic Programs, an array of counseling, healing, and educational services, including 1-on-1 fire talks, seminars, university classes, outdoor retreats, and wilderness trips.
Jeff has published two books: The Lost Art of Heart Navigation: A Modern Shaman's Field Manual and his first novel, Something Sacred Grows Here.
To learn more about Jeff’s work and additional resources, you can visit greatplainsguide.net
To find a shamanic practitioner or teacher near you, you can visit shamanicteachers.com
Jeff can be reached directly at [email protected]
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Episodi mancanti?
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In this episode of Ace of Pentacles, Sara sits down with Michael Escobar. Sara and Michael used to volunteer together for an educational non-profit. In this episode, they dive deep into a thought-provoking discussion about the American education system. They explore how well—or poorly—we're equipped for the real world, the pivotal decisions behind choosing our majors, careers, and jobs, and how those choices shape our life stories as well as our perception of success.
Michael shares the story of how he made the decisions that guided his education and career journey and Sara and Michael talk about different ways that people approach decision making, charting their path to what they believe is success.
From ancient Greece to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, to Matthew McConaughey, to SLC Punk, this conversation is rich with tidbits on how we figure out how to do life.
About Michael
Michael Escobar grew up in Los Angeles and is a proud product of California public schools. After earning his bachelor's degree in Latin American politics and economics from UC Berkeley, he started a career in insurance and risk management touching on earthquake modeling, maritime law, civil engineering and green energy. As an underwriter he helped insure the construction of the San Francisco Chinatown subway tunnel and the renovation of SFMOMA. Subsequently moving into risk management, he worked on the construction of a solar power plant in Puerto Rico and the extension of BART into San Jose. Currently he is the risk manager at Greenbacker Renewable Energy and lives in Berkeley with his family, occasionally pursuing his hobbies of road cycling and playing guitar.
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Welcome back to Ace of Pentacles. Today we chat with Shaena Harrison about the power of networking.
Shaena is a Professional Wing Woman, Networking Expert, and Superconnector—and as she puts it, a “recovering” event producer who lost four jobs in three years. Through the power of networking, Shaena landed new opportunities and used AI to launch her own business. Now, she helps leaders, teams, and event producers build meaningful connections that last, transforming awkward introductions into game-changing opportunities.
If you’re looking to build your networking muscle, make more meaningful connections, or need help looking at job loss or career wayfinding in a new light, I think you’ll find some great tips in this episode. I hope you enjoy the conversation with Shaena Harrison.
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In this episode, We chat with Surbhi Singh, a Registered Nurse at the Neurosurgical ICU at Stanford Hospital.
Surbhi has over a decade of experience in critical care across Trauma, Medicine, Cardiovascular, and Neurosurgical ICUs. In addition to her role as an RN, Surbhi has earned her Family Nurse Practitioner degree and is Clinical Faculty at USF.
According to the CDC, 46% of health workers reported often feeling burned out in 2022, up from 32% in 2018. In this episode, Surbhi shares her best practices and strategies for preventing burnout, managing your mindset and maintaining your wellbeing in high stress work environments.
About Surbhi:
Surbhi T Singh, MSN, NP-C, PHN, CCRN is a Registered Nurse at the Neurosurgical ICU at Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, Ca.
Surbhi’s nursing career spans a decade, with a background in critical care focused on Medicine ICU, Trauma ICU, Cardiovascular ICU, and Neurosurgical ICU.
Surbhi earned her Family Nurse Practitioner degree which also allows her to teach as Clinical Faculty in Nursing at the University of San Francisco.
Surbhi’s teaching career gives her the opportunity to give back to the nursing community by sharing her knowledge and skill with the next generation of nursing professionals.
Surbhi grew up in Fremont, California and moved to Los Angeles to pursue both her undergraduate and graduate degrees in Nursing. There, she started her career at Providence Saint John’s in Santa Monica in 2015. In 2019, Surhi returned to the Bay area when she was offered her position at Stanford.
Surbhi greatly values lifelong learning and says that she learns from her students and her patients every day.
She is inspired by the stories of the patients and students she serves in her role as a healthcare professional and an educator. For Surbhi, their stories and witnessing their resilience is part of the reason that she is honored to be doing the work that she does.
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In this episode, Sara sits down with Niharika Ray, a friend and someone she volunteered with for several years at an educational non-profit.
A few years ago, Niharika chose to leave her job as a senior software engineer at Airbnb to join that same non-profit as a full time staff member.
In this episode, Sara and Niharika talk about what it's like to make a career move early in your career that is very different from what you thought you wanted at one point, and what everyone around you expects from you. Niharika talks about her decision making process, what drove her to make specific, intentional career moves, and how she used logic to make sense of an intuitive calling.
The conversation with Niharika reminds us of how much power we hold to make decisions about our lives and our careers.
More about Niharika and her journey:
Niharika Ray is the Chief Operating Officer of Minds Matter Bay Area (MMBay), an organization that she first joined as a volunteer math instructor in 2016. Between 2016 and 2022, Niharika served in a variety of volunteer capacities, from leading the junior instruction team, to serving as volunteer co-Chief Community Officer from 2020 to 2022, a role where she oversaw mentee and volunteer recruitment and engagement, parent and guardian and mentee alumni engagement, and volunteer training – all during a global pandemic. Outside of her time as a volunteer in MMBay, Niharika was a senior software engineer at Airbnb from 2015 to 2022.
At Airbnb, she was a member of three different infrastructure teams, focusing on scaling both internal tools and airbnb.com. She holds a BS in Computer Science with a minor in Computational Finance from Carnegie Mellon University. In 2022, Niharika quit her job as a software engineer to become MMBay’s second full-time hire, where she continued to focus on scaling, but in an entirely new context.
In 2022, MMBay rebranded from "Minds Matter San Francisco" serving students in one site, to becoming a regional "Minds Matter Bay Area" organization, and in August 2024, MMBay launched its second site in San Jose, while continuing to grow and stabilize operations in the San Francisco site.
More about Minds Matter Bay Area: mindsmatterbay.org
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In this episode, Sara speaks with an old colleague, Fadi, about using our values to find alignment and purpose in our careers. Fadi shares his career journey, learning to let go of fear, and surrendering to what is meant for him rather than chasing what we've been conditioned to believe we need in order to be happy. Books recommended by Fadi: The Untethered Soul and The Surrender Experiment by Michael A. Singer Fadi's podcast: Imshi Imshi Information on the heart-brain connection that was referenced by Sara is based on research from the HeartMath Institute (Science of the Heart, Volume 2) About Fadi: Fadi Hindi is a bold advocate for living unapologetically true to your values, no matter the cost. His journey from Baghdad to Silicon Valley is a powerful testament to the transformative power of ambition, resilience, and purpose. Fadi has not only navigated corporate spaces but transformed them by refusing to compromise on what matters most: integrity, faith, and authenticity. From fleeing conflict to becoming a key Operator in the tech ecosystem — leading teams through massive growth transformation — Fadi’s career reflects the strength of bridging divides and fostering talent, all while staying deeply rooted in his beliefs. What sets Fadi apart isn’t just his success, but how he’s achieved it: on his own terms. Known for speaking truth to power, even when it’s uncomfortable, he leads with values-driven conviction. For Fadi, faith means trusting in your purpose, instincts, and the process itself — not just in work, but also in life. On this episode of Ace of Pentacles, he’ll share how these principles have shaped his unconventional, zigzagging career path, and how surrendering and embracing uncertainty has been key to his well-being and success. Listeners will be inspired to rethink their approach to work, make bold, purpose-driven decisions, and design careers that align with who they truly are. Episode filmed and produced by Bryan Dahl | IG: @dahl.memoirs
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Hi! I'm Sara. In this episode, you'll hear about my background, what personal and professional influences led me to becoming a coach and starting this podcast. Justin and I talk about the way I've designed and discovered my way from a career in education to working at companies like Tesla, Amazon Square, and Instacart.
Tune in to learn about who this podcast is for, and how it might be able to help someone design and discover your way to a fulfilling career.
Plus: I reveal why this career strategy and wellness podcast is named after a tarot card!
About Justin:
As an educator, coach, and creator of the Living Once Twice podcast, Justin's mission is to help individuals from all backgrounds unlock their power to design a life they are passionate about living. With 13+ years of experience in Higher Education Justin enjoys serving, mentoring, and developing students and staff. A Western New York native, Justin earned his B.A in Communications & Masters of Public Administration from SUNY Brockport.
Learn more about Justin's work:
Podcast: Living Once Twice
IG: @justinoliver716
Episode filmed and produced by: Bryan Dahl | IG: @dahl.memoirs
