Are you ready to plan a graceful corporate exit? Learn how to turn an unexpected layoff into a meaningful new chapter.

Being laid off after over a decade in the workforce can feel devastating, but for many, it serves as a necessary wake-up call. In this conversation, Shannon Baird shares her personal journey through job loss and how she moved from exhaustion to finding a new purpose. We discuss the reality of burnout recovery and how to reclaim your identity when your job title no longer defines you.

Whether you are currently feeling stuck or actively exploring a professional pivot, this episode offers practical guidance for your next steps. We talk about giving yourself permission to leave environments that no longer serve you and how to approach a career transition with curiosity instead of fear. You will walk away with a clearer perspective on how to design a life that aligns with who you want to be.

KEY TAKEAWAYS
1. You don't need a breakdown or a layoff to give yourself permission to leave. Building your plan first turns the exit into a decision instead of an emergency.
2. Confidence comes from taking action, so messy action beats waiting for the perfect plan.
3. Tapas and surrender go together: take the inspired action, then loosen your grip on the result, and process goals make that easier.
4. "Who do I want to be?" is a more useful question than "What do I want to do?"
5. Everyone has a slice of genius to build on, and it doesn't have to become a massive company.

RESOURCES MENTIONED
Shannon's Substack: https://shannonbaird.substack.com/
The 2-Hour Corporate Exit Launchpad: https://get.theshannonbaird.com/the-2-hour-corporate-exit-launchpad
Quiz, What Corporate Has Forced You to Abandon
Topics mentioned: leaving corporate, layoff, burnout, permission to leave, messy action, tapas, surrender, process goals, journaling, productivity poisoning. Book referenced: Reality Transurfing by Vadim Zeland.

ABOUT SHANNON BAIRD
Corporate Exit Strategist, Founder of The Clean Exit

After 11 years in corporate, I got laid off on Valentine's Day. Best thing that ever happened to me. Now I help burned-out corporate women build a Clean Exit: replace the paycheck first, then leave, so nobody has to blow up their life to get their life back.

Substack: https://shannonbaird.substack.com/
The 2-Hour Corporate Exit Launchpad: https://get.theshannonbaird.com/the-2-hour-corporate-exit-launchpad

HI, I'M RACHEL CLINE

I'm a life coach and yoga teacher, and I work with the woman who did everything right and built a life that looks good from the outside but can't quite find herself in it anymore. I spent years building exactly that life before I found my way back through yoga, the body, and a lot of deep inner work. Now I help you come home to yourself, so you can hear your own voice again, trust it, and feel whole right now.

Free classes and mindful tools
https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/resources

Weekly reflections and practices
https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/newsletter

Instagram (podcast)
https://www.instagram.com/radiantlyrootedwithrachel

Ready to hire a life coach? Don't just look at testimonials, learn how to find the right fit for your personal growth.It is easy to get swept up in a polished online presence or impressive testimonials when you are ready to make a change. But the reality of working with someone can look quite different once you are in the sessions. I want to help you move past the marketing and focus on whether a coach truly aligns with your needs.We will cover how to assess the coaching fit by paying attention to your own energy and intuition. You will learn specific questions to ask before signing a contract and how to identify coaching red flags that indicate a mismatch. Finding a mentor is a significant coaching investment, and this guide helps you ensure you are choosing a partner who supports your specific path.Subscribe for weekly personal growth tips, and let me know in the comments what qualities you prioritize when looking for support.00:00 Podcast Hire Life Coach01:58 Step 1: Get Clear on the Help You Need04:10 Step 2: Find a Coaching Style That Fits06:11 Step 3: Training & Lived Experience07:52 Step 4: Notice How You Feel Around the Coach09:37 Step 5: Questions to Ask Before You Hire13:55 Red Flags to Watch For17:12 Read Testimonials & Weigh the Investment18:44 How to Know You've Found the Right Coach19:21 Coach vs. Therapist & Other FAQs22:16 The Identity Reset & Closing

If you've been googling how much a life coach costs, I'm so glad you're here. I looked at publicly listed midlife coaching prices in 2026, and they run from $55 for a single session to more than $11,000 for six months of private coaching. In this episode we talk about what that range actually pays for.

I once spent a lot of money on a high-ticket business coach, and it went so badly that I seriously considered giving up on coaching altogether. A big part of it was that I had no idea what questions to ask before I signed up, which I think is far more common than most of us admit.

We get into whether coaching is worth the money, how a coach is different from a good friend and from therapy, the questions I wish I'd asked before hiring a coach (and how I'd answer each one myself), and the red flags I'd watch for, starting with pressure.

RESOURCES MENTIONED
My current coaching packages, including pricing, what's included, and my cancellation and refund policies: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/coaching
Apply for private coaching with me: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfrG-7BwhijkanRP02fSHnYIq1dBYWX_MXjlKi-QJ9Xto7UvA/viewform
Do You Need a Life Coach? 7 Signs It's Time in Midlife: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/signs-you-need-a-midlife-transition-coach/
How to choose the right life coach for a midlife transition: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/how-to-choose-the-right-life-coach-for-a-midlife-transition/

ABOUT RACHEL
I'm Rachel Cline, a life coach and yoga teacher. I work with the woman who did everything right, checked every box, and built a life that looks good from the outside but can't quite find herself in it anymore. I help you get off the hamster wheel and come home to yourself, so you can hear your own voice again, trust it, and feel whole, not someday, but now.

If anxiety has started to feel like your new normal and the things that used to help aren't touching it anymore, this guided EFT tapping practice helps you calm midlife anxiety and come back to your body in about 15 minutes.

Download the free printable tapping guide: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.myflodesk.com/tapping

EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) tapping is a tool I've kept in my back pocket for years, and lately I've been reaching for it a lot more. I'll walk you through each tapping point, and then we'll tap through three rounds together: naming what you feel, honoring why it's here, and coming home to your body. We'll close with a few minutes of mindful breathing to help your nervous system settle.

If you're listening in the car, just listen along for today and come back to tap with me when you're parked or at home. You can repeat the words after me or change them to fit what you're going through. There's no way to do this wrong.

Tapping is a supportive practice and doesn't replace medical or mental health care. If your anxiety is new, getting worse, or affecting your sleep or health, please talk with your doctor.

Resources
Free printable tapping guide: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.myflodesk.com/tapping
Midlife transition coaching: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/coaching

About Rachel
I'm Rachel Cline, a yoga teacher and midlife transition coach. I help women in midlife move through identity shifts by coming home to themselves, so they can hear their inner knowing again, trust it, and step into the woman they're becoming.

Free classes and mindful tools: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/resources
Weekly newsletter: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/newsletter
Instagram: @radiantlyrootedwithrachel

Prefer to tap along on video? Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/G3mnQNjASck

If you've read the books, taken the courses, and know exactly what you need to do but still feel stuck in analysis paralysis, this episode is for you. We're talking about why information isn't the same as transformation, and how two yoga principles, discipline and surrender, can help you find your next aligned step in midlife.

I don't know about you, but I like knowing where things are going, and more than once I've set something aside, even something I really wanted, because it was taking too long or it felt too hard. In this episode I talk about how information overload and our fear of the unknown keep us waiting for clarity and confidence before we move, when so often it's taking that first step that builds them. Then we get into tapas, which I like to think of as the discipline of devotion, and Ishvara Pranidhana, surrendering the outcome, and how the two work together so you can do your part and loosen your grip on what happens next.

In the second half, I guide you through a grounding breath and visualization practice where you bring to mind something you've been resisting or putting off, walk a path until it splits at a fork in the road, and notice what shows up in your body as you step toward that thing and as you let it go. If you're driving, save this part for later.

In this episode:
Why knowing what to do doesn't change much until we actually do it
How analysis paralysis and fear of the unknown keep us from taking the first step
Tapas, the third niyama, and the fire that fuels transformation
When our drive for self-improvement comes from insecurity, and whether we're fixing things that aren't really broken
What surrender means in yoga
A guided embodied practice to feel your way toward your next aligned step

Book a Reset with me
If you did the practice with me and realized you're standing at a crossroads of your own, I'd love to invite you to book a Reset.

It's a 90-minute Zoom session where we slow everything down, look at where you're feeling stuck and what's actually asking to change, use somatic practices to get you out of your head and back into your body, and create a simple three-step plan for what comes next.

You'll also have seven days of voice and text support with me afterward, so when you notice yourself slipping back into second-guessing, I'm right there to help you keep taking the next aligned step. It's a good fit if you're not ready for a longer coaching commitment yet but you know you need some help getting steady on your feet.
https://calendly.com/radiantlyrootedyoga/identity-reset

Get grounded guidance each week
Practices, reflections, and resources to help you move through midlife with more clarity, self-trust, and intention.
https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/newsletter

Free classes and mindful tools
https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/resources

Stay connected
Instagram: @radiantlyrootedwithrachel

If something in this episode resonated with you, I hope you'll send it to someone in your life who might need to hear it too. Sometimes we just need a reminder that we're not the only one standing at that crossroads.

Radiantly Rooted with Rachel is hosted by Rachel Cline, yoga teacher and midlife transition coach for women.

Wondering if you need a life coach? These are the 7 signs I see most often in midlife women who feel like they've lost themselves, and what coaching actually looks like when you're ready.

So many of the women I work with are capable, confident, and have built a good life, and then something shifts and they don't feel like themselves anymore. Maybe a relationship ended, or you outgrew a role you've held for years, or a dream you carried for a long time doesn't fit anymore. Maybe you're standing at a crossroads, or grieving something nobody else seems to notice.

In this episode I walk through the 7 signs it might be time to work with a life coach during a midlife transition, then answer the questions I hear most often from women who are curious about coaching but not sure it's for them.

The 7 signs:
1. A relationship has ended and you're figuring out who you are now
2. You've outgrown a role you've held for years
3. Success came and you're struggling to accept it
4. You've outgrown a dream you used to hold onto
5. A new decade has you taking inventory of your life
6. You're standing at a crossroads and can't hear which way to go
7. You're moving through grief and don't feel like yourself

The Identity Reset Session
A 90-minute session plus seven days of voice and text support, for the woman who's ready to hear her own inner knowing again and trust it. I'd love to work with you: calendly.com/radiantlyrootedyoga/identity-reset

Free classes and mindful tools: radiantlyrootedyoga.com/resources
Come say hi on Instagram: @radiantlyrootedwithrachel

Why Knitting Is Actually Nervous System Regulation with Alice O'Connell

Knitting may be one of the most accessible forms of nervous system regulation there is, and today's guest has spent years teaching people how to use it that way.

Former TV and theatre actress Alice O’Connell is the founder of Learn to Knit, having first picked up the craft on sets like Doctor Who and Silent Witness. Today, she uses her 20+ years of global teaching experience, and her own journey using craft as a sanctuary during breast cancer treatment, to show how knitting can cultivate mindfulness, regulate the nervous system, and build self-compassion.

We talk about why repetitive movement tells your nervous system it's safe, why the beginner stage is where the real self-compassion work happens, and why so many women in midlife are picking knitting back up right now. Alice also shares two student stories about recovery that stayed with us both.

Connect with Alice O'Connell

Her self-paced knitting course: https://www.learntoknit.nl/pre-recorded-knitting-lessons

Her website: https://www.learntoknit.nl/

More from Radiantly Rooted with Rachel

Catch every episode here: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/podcast

Prefer to watch? This episode is also on YouTube: https://youtu.be/h8KflFJr33o

I used to smoke a pack a day, and somewhere along the way, without ever really planning it, I became a marathoner. This week I'm telling you that whole story, and what was actually going on underneath it, because it was never really about cigarettes or running shoes.

If you're in the middle of your own identity shift right now, I'd love to help you find your way through it: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/coaching

It was about deciding who I was going to become before I had any proof I could pull it off, and that's what an identity shift really is. Some of the shifts we go through are ones we reach for, like quitting smoking or stepping into a new role. Others show up whether we want them to or not, like a relationship changing shape or a house feeling emptier than it used to. Either way, it's still a shift, and shift means change, and change can be scary even when part of you already knows it's the right thing.

I'll walk you through my own story first, then pull it apart a little so we can talk about identity shifts more broadly, and I'll give you a short exercise to help you find your own big goal if you don't know yet what it is.

If any of this is landing for you today, and you're in the middle of your own identity shift, I'd love to explore mentorship with you. I keep my one on one spots small on purpose because I pour so much energy into the women I work with, and you can find it here: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/coaching

About Rachel: I'm a life coach and yoga teacher, and I work with the woman who did everything right, checked every box, and built a life that looks good from the outside but can't quite find herself in it anymore. I spent years building exactly that life before I found my way back through yoga, the body, and a lot of deep inner work. Now I help you get off the hamster wheel and come home to yourself, so you can hear your own voice again, trust it, and feel whole, not someday, but now.

Free classes and mindful tools: https://radiantlyrootedyoga.com/resources

Come say hi on Instagram: instagram.com/radiantlyrootedwithrachel

You can also watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FNYuxN5EONA