Great Life Experiment Podcast

Monique Schafer
  • 5.0 (8)
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Welcome to the Great Life Experiment Podcast! Join me, your host Monique Schafer as we grapple with the messy and beautiful, and ever-changing world of our personal and professional lives, and the business world around us. There is no one right way. Let’s experiment together. NEW Episodes on Thursdays Since we all have full lives ... we'll say ALMOST every Thursday :)

  1. 1d ago

    #51 Leaving Money on the Table: How to Negotiate Your Exit ft. KL Shaw

    In this week's episode of the Great Life Experiment, Monique interviews Keri-Lynne (KL) Shaw who shares her journey from corporate CHRO to entrepreneur, emphasizing the importance of proactive negotiation, understanding total compensation, and strategic exit planning. This episode offers practical insights for high performers and anyone looking to maximize their career and financial potential. Key discussions in this episode: The importance of negotiation at every career stageHow to assess and maximize total compensationStrategies for proactive exit planning and negotiationsLessons from corporate leadership on salary and equityOvercoming fears and limiting beliefs around money and careerThe role of coaching and community in career successThe impact of market disruptions on career trajectoriesBuilding a business after leaving corporate roles Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Keri-Lynne Shaw and her mission 01:56 Keri-Lynne's career journey from HR to founder of The Salary Bump 03:30 A pivotal moment during the pandemic: realizing her salary was undervalued 05:56 How to have a conversation about salary and equity with confidence 08:06 The importance of understanding total compensation and benefits 11:50 Debunking myths about negotiating later in your career 17:09 Practical steps to prepare for salary negotiations 22:10 Questions to ask during the interview to gauge compensation 26:58 Strategies for proactively exiting a role with a package 32:56 The differences between proactive exits, reorganizations, and layoffs 36:55 Overcoming fears and mindset blocks around negotiation 40:05 Building a community and support system for career growth 44:08 The power of sharing behind-the-scenes and authentic stories 48:04 Final advice for high performers feeling stuck or undervalued Connect with KLLinkedIn | TikTok | Instagram | Website | Youtube | Podcast | TV ShowConnect with Monique:LinkedIn | Instagram | YouTube | WebsiteAsk MoniqueGot a question that's keeping you up at night? Need a new way to look at a problem?  'Ask Monique' is your chance to get personalized insights. Submit your questions about business, professional life, or personal development, and let's dive into the messy, beautiful, and ever-changing world together.  https://forms.gle/iGZv2bVnhBSXbnbc8

    #51 Leaving Money on the Table: How to Negotiate Your Exit ft. KL Shaw

  2. Aug 6

    #50 Rewriting the Predetermined: Negotiation & Mindset ft. Jacob Warwick

    Many of us move through life believing our future has already been decided—by our upbringing, our circumstances, our career path, or the rules we’ve been taught not to question.  But what if those limitations aren’t fixed at all? In this episode, Monique sits down with Jacob Warwick, known as the “Billion Dollar Man,” to explore how negotiation is really about changing the way we think. Together, they unpack why curiosity is more powerful than confrontation, how challenging predetermined beliefs opens doors to new possibilities, and why the stories we tell ourselves often become the biggest obstacle to creating the life we truly want.  Whether you’re navigating compensation negotiation, a career transition, advocating for yourself, or simply wondering what’s possible beyond the limits you’ve accepted, this conversation will inspire you to rethink what’s negotiable—not just in business, but in life.  In this episode: (00:00) – Introduction (01:05) – Meet Jacob Warwick: The Billion Dollar Man (04:32) – Why Jacob wants to teach negotiation without using the word "negotiation" (13:39) – The biggest mistakes people make before negotiating (18:45) – Internal promotions, confidence, and advocating for your value (24:54) – The "Predetermined" mindset and challenging invisible rules (26:15) – Curiosity as your greatest negotiation advantage (32:30) – Why "No" is often where the real negotiation begins (35:57) – The hidden cost of success and redefining wealth (39:48) – Jacob's extraordinary personal story and rewriting his own future (48:04) – Responsibility, resilience, and choosing your own path Connect with Jacob:Substack Publication | https://www.predetermined.com/ Website | https://www.thinkwarwick.com/ Connect with Monique:Website | https://greatlifeexperiment.com/ Instagram - thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast | https://www.instagram.com/thegreatlifeexperiment_podcastInstagram - @itsmoniqueschafer | https://www.instagram.com/itsmoniqueschafer YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/@GreatLifeExperiment Ask MoniqueGot a question that's keeping you up at night? Need a new way to look at a problem?  'Ask Monique' is your chance to get personalized insights. Submit your questions about business, professional life, or personal development, and let's dive into the messy, beautiful, and ever-changing world together.  https://forms.gle/iGZv2bVnhBSXbnbc8

    #50 Rewriting the Predetermined: Negotiation & Mindset ft. Jacob Warwick

  3. Jul 30

    [Preview] Navigating Career Change: Negotiation, Pivots, Exits & More

    A quick look at what's coming on the Great Life Experiment Podcast. After weeks of conversations with executives and leaders navigating change—at a breakfast with 40 SVP and C-suite folks in San Francisco, connecting with her network, and a tech and media industry council event—Monique kept hearing the same theme: careers, businesses, and personal lives are all in transition, and none of it is linear. This preview introduces an upcoming series digging into that messy, exciting, exhausting reality. Here's the lineup: Negotiation & Influence — with Jacob Warwick (out August 6th)Career Pivots — reinventing and changing directionExits — what happens when you transition out of a companyNew Careers — branching out and building something of your ownTime Off — sabbaticals, breaks, and the space in between No one's story is linear. They're all messy, full of a wide range of emotions—and this series brings together the tactical, the personal, and the mental models to meet you wherever you are. Have a topic you keep wrestling with, a guest suggestion, or a book recommendation? Reach out at info@greatlifeexperiment.com or find Monique on Instagram and LinkedIn. Connect with Monique:Website | https://www.greatlifeexperiment.comInstagram - thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast | https://www.instagram.com/thegreatlifeexperiment_podcastInstagram - @itsmoniqueschafer | https://www.instagram.com/itsmoniqueschafer YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/@GreatLifeExperiment

    [Preview] Navigating Career Change: Negotiation, Pivots, Exits & More

  4. Jul 2

    #49 Heartnomics: Power in Emotions and Alignment in Business & Life (ft. Hanna Bauer)

    Burnout doesn’t happen overnight. Long before we reach exhaustion, our emotions, our relationships, and even our bodies begin telling us that something is out of alignment. The question is: are we paying attention? In this episode, Monique welcomes multi-time CEO, Six Sigma Black Belt, and Heartnomics founder Hanna Bauer to explore a new way of thinking about leadership - one that builds resilience before burnout even takes hold.  Drawing from her experience surviving childhood heart diseases, leading organizations through constant transformation, and helping teams thrive through change, Hanna introduces Hearnomics — a leadership philosophy that brings heart and execution together. Rather than seeing emotions as distractions, she explains why they’re some of the most valuable data leaders have, and how learning to listen to them can create healthier people, stronger teams, and more resilient organizations.  Together, Monique and Hanna unpack why sustainable leadership isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about building the kind of resilience that allows both people and performance to flourish long before burnout becomes the cost of success. Whether you’re leading a business, a team, or simply navigating a demanding season of life, this conversation will challenge the way you think about success and what it truly means to lead well. Because the strongest leaders aren’t the ones who wait until they’re burned out to change. They’re the ones who build a life and a leadership that make burnout far less likely in the first place.  In this episode: (03:16) - Understanding Heartnomics: The Intersection of Emotion and Execution (06:53) - Emotions as Data in Business (09:30) - The Role of Emotions in Organizational Health (14:24) - Identifying Signals of Disengagement and Burnout (17:38) - The Importance of Human Connection in Leadership (21:45) - Why Self-Care Is One of Your Greatest Leadership Responsibilities (23:29) - The Power of Deceleration (35:15) - The Heart Framework: How Heartnomics Turns Values Into High-Performing Teams (36:10) - The BEAT Method: Turning Awareness into Action (39:11) - How Resilient Leaders Turn Failure Into Forward Momentum (42:01) - How to Lead with Purpose Instead of Constant Presence Links and Resources: The HEARTnomics CORE Alignment Diagnostic - Free Audit | https://heartnomics.com/#audit  Connect with Hanna: Website | https://heartnomics.com/  LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/bauerhanna/  Connect with Monique: Website | https://www.thegreatlifeexperimentpodcast.com/  Instagram - thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast | https://www.instagram.com/thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast Instagram - @itsmoniqueschafer | https://www.instagram.com/itsmoniqueschafer  YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/@GreatLifeExperiment  Ask Monique Got a question that's keeping you up at night? Need a new way to look at a problem?  'Ask Monique' is your chance to get personalized insights. Submit your questions about business, professional life, or personal development, and let's dive into the messy, beautiful, and ever-changing world together.  https://forms.gle/iGZv2bVnhBSXbnbc8

    #49 Heartnomics: Power in Emotions and Alignment in Business & Life (ft. Hanna Bauer)

  5. Apr 23

    #48 How One Conversation Can Reignite Your Creative Spark

    You don’t always need more discipline to find your creative spark again. Sometimes, all you need is one conversation.  In this episode, Monique reflects on what happens when creative energy begins to fade under the weight of a full, demanding life, and how, unexpectedly, one conversation can shift everything.  What starts as a reflection on corporate pressure, survival mode, and creative depletion becomes a powerful reminder: creativity is often reawakened through connection, not isolation. And the real shift happens when you stop trying to push through alone, and instead start paying attention to the people, conversations, and environments that bring you back into alignment with your energy, clarity, and creative spark.  In this episode: (01:31) - The Tension Between Corporate Demands and Creative Energy (02:11) - The Subtle Signs You’re Becoming Disconnected (03:18) - The Power of One Conversation (04:08) - Why Community and Connection Matter More Than You Think (04:51) - Simple Ways to Reconnect with Your Creative Spark Connect with Monique: Website | https://www.thegreatlifeexperimentpodcast.com/  Instagram - thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast | https://www.instagram.com/thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast Instagram - @itsmoniqueschafer | https://www.instagram.com/itsmoniqueschafer  YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/@GreatLifeExperiment  Ask Monique Got a question that's keeping you up at night? Need a new way to look at a problem?  'Ask Monique' is your chance to get personalized insights. Submit your questions about business, professional life, or personal development, and let's dive into the messy, beautiful, and ever-changing world together.  https://forms.gle/iGZv2bVnhBSXbnbc8

  6. Apr 2

    #47 The Quiet Worry: Why You’re Not Behind in the AI Race

    AI is moving fast, and the pressure to keep up can feel even faster. In this episode, Monique unpacks the quiet guilt many professionals are experiencing as AI reshapes workflows, product strategy, and the future of work. From internal company initiatives to the endless stream of LinkedIn hot takes, it’s easy to feel like everyone else has already figured out the tools, the language, and the pace of change.  But the reality is far more nuanced.  Monique shares what teams are actually seeing inside product and business environments — the gap between compelling demos and scalable execution, the tension between speed and business value, and why the real differentiator is not fluency alone but clarity on the outcomes you’re solving for.  In this episode: (00:53) - March catch-up, full seasons, and operating through personal and professional intensity (03:15) - The growing pressure professionals feel around AI fluency (05:12) - The truth about AI adoption: everyone is still learning (07:11) - The difference between compelling demos and scalable enterprise execution (08:13) - Governance, trust, collaboration, and the reality of implementation (10:33) - Why outcomes and business value matter more than the tools themselves (11:41) - How leaders can build confidence through experimentation (12:43) - Progress not perfection Links and Resources:   AI Daily Podcast | https://open.spotify.com/show/32wqFTVolFKfKZ6kPVmHoD   Connect with Monique: Website | https://www.greatlifeexperiment.com Instagram - thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast | https://www.instagram.com/thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast Instagram - @itsmoniqueschafer | https://www.instagram.com/itsmoniqueschafer  YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/@GreatLifeExperiment  Ask Monique Got a question that's keeping you up at night? Need a new way to look at a problem?  'Ask Monique' is your chance to get personalized insights. Submit your questions about business, professional life, or personal development, and let's dive into the messy, beautiful, and ever-changing world together.  https://forms.gle/iGZv2bVnhBSXbnbc8

  7. Feb 26

    #46 Reclaiming Your Agency

    So often we find ourselves frustrated at work, in teams, in family, or in friendships, because someone else isn’t showing up the way we think they should. We get stuck waiting for them to act, to decide, and to fix things. And in that waiting, we surrender the control that’s always been ours.  In this episode, Monique dives deep into the concept of reclaiming your agency, emphasizing the importance of reclaiming personal power in various aspects of life, including relationships and workplace dynamics. Whether it’s navigating constant urgent requests at work, negotiating expectations with a team, or stepping back from relationships that no longer align with your values, this episode is a reminder that you always have a choice, and real change comes when you take action.  In this episode: (01:16) - Understanding “Agency”: The Power of Choice (02:18) - Waiting for Others to Change (And Why That Fails) (03:13) - Identifying and Addressing Agency in Group Dynamics (05:43) - Protecting Your Energy and Structuring Your Time (06:29) - Negotiation as a Leadership Tool (07:17) - Resentment as a Signal You’ve Lost Control (09:00) - When Values Are Fundamentally Misaligned (10:32) - Taking Action: Your Right to Change Links and Resources: Book - Set Boundaries, Find Peace: A Guide to Reclaiming Yourself | https://a.co/d/01s96IQB  Connect with Monique: Website | https://www.thegreatlifeexperimentpodcast.com/  Instagram - thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast | https://www.instagram.com/thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast Instagram - @itsmoniqueschafer | https://www.instagram.com/itsmoniqueschafer  YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/@GreatLifeExperiment  Ask Monique Got a question that's keeping you up at night? Need a new way to look at a problem?  'Ask Monique' is your chance to get personalized insights. Submit your questions about business, professional life, or personal development, and let's dive into the messy, beautiful, and ever-changing world together.  https://forms.gle/iGZv2bVnhBSXbnbc8

    #46 Reclaiming Your Agency

  8. Feb 19

    #45 Leading with Clarity: How to Manage Your Workload Without Burnout

    Leadership isn’t about doing it all. It’s about making clear decisions, defining accountability, and protecting your team’s energy. In this episode, Monique draws insights from a quarterly business review to explore how leaders can prevent cognitive overload while maximizing team performance. She highlights the power of clear roles, well-defined accountability, and strategic prioritization - not just to keep projects on track, but to protect people, sustain productivity, and drive meaningful outcomes.  In this episode: (00:54) - Quarterly Business Review and Leadership Accountability (02:21) - Too Many Ideas, Not Enough Boundaries (03:52) - Action Steps for Clarity & Accountability (06:25) - Delegation and Ruthless Prioritization Connect with Monique: Website | https://www.thegreatlifeexperimentpodcast.com/  Instagram - thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast | https://www.instagram.com/thegreatlifeexperiment_podcast Instagram - @itsmoniqueschafer | https://www.instagram.com/itsmoniqueschafer  YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/@GreatLifeExperiment  Ask Monique Got a question that's keeping you up at night? Need a new way to look at a problem?  'Ask Monique' is your chance to get personalized insights. Submit your questions about business, professional life, or personal development, and let's dive into the messy, beautiful, and ever-changing world together.  https://forms.gle/iGZv2bVnhBSXbnbc8

    #45 Leading with Clarity: How to Manage Your Workload Without Burnout
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About

Welcome to the Great Life Experiment Podcast! Join me, your host Monique Schafer as we grapple with the messy and beautiful, and ever-changing world of our personal and professional lives, and the business world around us. There is no one right way. Let’s experiment together. NEW Episodes on Thursdays Since we all have full lives ... we'll say ALMOST every Thursday :)

Information

  • Creator
    Monique Schafer
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    52
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Monique Schafer
  • Show Website
    Great Life Experiment Podcast

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