The WTF Podcast: Pivot Out of the Funk with Molly Smith

Molly Smith
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Self-Improvement

Life looks fine, but inside you feel off—that’s the funk. I’m Molly Smith, your host and recovering perfectionist. My mission: equip 1M people to spot the funk fast and pivot out with aligned action, emotional clarity, and a little humor. Expect relatable conversations, real turnaround stories, and doable practices you can use today to reset your energy and feel like yourself again.

  1. 6d ago

    Ep 57: The Weight of Maybe: Why You Already Know What You Need to Do | Hope Firsel

    You already know something needs to change. You've probably known for a while. But you keep going back and forth, waiting for some kind of certainty that never comes, because the idea of choosing wrong feels like it could break everything. So you stay. You carry it. And the weight of that unmade decision starts to take more from you than the decision itself ever could. Hope Firsel knows that weight. After infertility, stage three cancer, and the end of an 18-year marriage, she'll tell you that divorce was the hardest, not because of what came after, but because no one could make that choice for her. This conversation is about what happens when you stop waiting for the "right" answer and start trusting the one you already have. How to stop letting fear run the show. How to finally put the backpack down. If you've been carrying something you're afraid to decide, come sit with us. If you'd like a free session with Hope, text "Molly" to (773) 848-9349. Join the Get the Funk Out community: Chapters 00:00:00 When You Know Something Has to Change But Can't Act Yet 00:02:11 From Corporate Change to Personal Transformation 00:03:40 Five Years of Infertility: The First Uninvited Change 00:05:05 Stage Three Cancer with Two Toddlers 00:06:39 The Hardest Change: Why Divorce Was Worse Than Cancer 00:09:05 The Weight of Maybe: Sitting in the Decision for Years 00:09:56 Building Self-Trust When No One Can Decide for You 00:11:00 Taking Off the Heavy Backpack: When the Decision Brings Relief 00:14:02 Internal Family Systems: Meeting Your Parts with Curiosity 00:18:00 The Breath, the Feelings Wheel, and Finding Your Center 00:20:53 The Most Common Fear: Letting Go of the Life You Envisioned 00:21:58 When Two Parts Are Fighting: I Can't Do This vs. What If I'm Wrong 00:22:57 On the Other Side of Fear Is Freedom

    Ep 57: The Weight of Maybe: Why You Already Know What You Need to Do | Hope Firsel

  2. Sep 23

    Ep 56: What Happens When Helping Becomes Your Identity | Jesse Crosson

    Do you feel most valuable when someone needs you? Being the helper, fixer, or person everyone counts on can bring real purpose. It can also make it difficult to know where caring for others ends and your identity begins. After serving 19 years of a 32-year prison sentence, Jesse Crosson built a large social media following by sharing an honest look at incarceration, restorative justice, and second chances. In this episode, Molly goes beneath the story so many people know to explore where Jesse’s drive to help came from and why it became so difficult to separate his value from what he did for others. Together, they examine the complicated relationship between self-worth and helping, how meaningful work can quietly become your identity, and what burnout can reveal about the cost of constantly proving your value. If you’ve ever tied your worth to productivity, achievement, or being needed, this conversation may help you recognize your own patterns, put language to something you haven’t known how to name, and feel less alone as you learn how to be without always doing. You’ll also find Molly’s free Self-Worth Rewired meditation here: https://nextbeststep.co/resources If you’re working through a funk and feel stuck, you don’t have to navigate it alone. Continue the conversation inside the Get the Funk Out community, where we can help you unpack what you’re experiencing and take your next step forward: Join the Get the Funk Out community (https://www.skool.com/get-the-funk-out/about) Chapters 00:00:00 When Helping Becomes Your Only Value 00:02:03 Growing Up Believing You're a Mistake 00:04:19 The Pendulum: Selflessness to Selfishness 00:05:48 Finding Cocaine and Losing Everything 00:07:31 The Night That Changed Everything 00:16:12 138 Years: Hearing the Sentence 00:18:03 Survival Mode: The First Years Inside 00:19:46 Meditation and the Space to Breathe 00:23:09 Becoming the Helper Again—But at What Cost? 00:26:25 Getting Out and Building a Life on the Outside 00:28:42 When Your Cup Runs Empty 00:33:40 Learning to Just Be Enough

    Ep 56: What Happens When Helping Becomes Your Identity | Jesse Crosson

  3. Sep 16

    Ep 55: How to Rebuild Self-Trust After a Setback | Amberly Lago

    Have you ever experienced a setback that made you question whether you could trust yourself again? A broken promise, relapse, burnout, or difficult decision can leave you buried in shame and believing that all your progress has been lost. But beginning again doesn’t mean beginning from nothing. In this episode, Molly talks with Amberly Lago about rebuilding self-trust after a setback and finding your way back to the practices, relationships, and priorities that keep you grounded. You’ll learn how to recognize the warning signs that you’re drifting out of alignment, interrupt the cycle of shame, establish healthier boundaries, and rebuild confidence by keeping small promises to yourself. Whether you’re navigating recovery, overcoming burnout, or simply going through a season when you don’t feel like yourself, this conversation offers practical tools, honest encouragement, and a hopeful reminder: a setback isn’t the end. If you’re working through a funk and feel stuck, you don’t have to navigate it alone. Continue the conversation inside the Get the Funk Out community, where we can help you unpack what you’re experiencing and take your next step forward: Join the Get the Funk Out community - https://www.skool.com/get-the-funk-out/about Chapters 00:00:00 When You Break a Promise You Kept for Years 00:00:31 The Motorcycle Accident Isn't the Story Today 00:01:47 When Life Got Really Good and Really Full 00:02:41 The Little Things Started to Slip 00:03:54 The Trip That Was Supposed to Be Time Off 00:05:37 One Pill and Five and a Half Years Lost 00:06:34 The Morning After: Calling Her Sponsor in Tears 00:08:29 Why She Couldn't Pretend It Didn't Happen 00:10:30 The Deep Moment That Built Self-Trust 00:11:21 Starting Over as a Newcomer 00:15:33 The Non-Negotiables That Keep Her Grounded 00:19:35 What the Mornings Looked Like Before the Relapse 00:21:35 Taking Inventory: What Brings Joy and What's a Waste 00:22:34 The Energy Exchange: Who and What Drains You 00:24:25 The Signs You're Getting Off Course 00:25:22 Every Yes Is a No to Something Else 00:26:54 This Year's Motto: Keep It Simple 00:27:22 How's That Working for You? 00:27:52 Where to Start When You've Stopped Doing the Things 00:29:09 The Clarity That Comes From Cutting Out Sugar and Alcohol

    Ep 55: How to Rebuild Self-Trust After a Setback | Amberly Lago

  4. Sep 9

    Ep 54: How to Navigate Your Way Through the Funk

    What if nothing is falling apart… but you still know something feels off? The funk doesn’t always look like a crisis. Sometimes you’re working, taking care of everyone, meeting deadlines, and doing all the things—and quietly carrying more than anyone realizes. And sometimes, it takes hearing someone else’s story before you start recognizing pieces of your own. As The WTF Podcast celebrates its one-year anniversary, I’m sharing what a year of conversations has taught me about recognizing the funk, why awareness is only the beginning, and what it actually looks like to start navigating your life differently. Because getting out of the funk usually isn’t one giant breakthrough. It’s learning to recognize what’s happening sooner, understand what you’re feeling, and make a different choice. Not perfectly. Differently. And those small moments add up. Ready to go beyond recognizing the funk and start learning how to navigate it? Join the Get the Funk Out Community for practical tools, a personalized journey, and live guidance to help you move through the funk and feel more confident in your next step. https://www.skool.com/get-the-funk-out Chapters 00:00:00 When Someone Else's Story Feels Like Yours 00:01:00 One Year of the WTF Podcast 00:02:02 The Funk Doesn't Always Look Like a Crisis 00:03:02 The Quiet Weight You've Gotten Used to Carrying 00:04:05 You Don't Have to Wait Until You're Falling Apart 00:04:43 Recognizing the Pattern Underneath the Story 00:06:03 Awareness Is Not the Finish Line 00:07:30 The Little Moments That Actually Matter 00:08:37 What the Next Year Means for This Show 00:09:32 Beyond Talking About It: Actually Practicing It

    Ep 54: How to Navigate Your Way Through the Funk

  5. Sep 2

    Ep 53: How to Trust Yourself When You Know Something Has to Change | Mariah Runions

    What do you do when something in your life doesn't feel right—but you keep wondering, What if I'm the problem? When you don't trust yourself, it's easy to second-guess what you're feeling. Is this just a hard season? Do I need to work on myself? Am I expecting too much? Or is something in my life actually telling me it's time for a change? In this episode of The WTF Podcast, my conversation with Mariah Runions explores what can happen when you stop looking outside yourself for the answer and start doing the work to build self-trust, self-compassion, and clarity. You'll discover how to: Recognize the difference between a rough season and something you can no longer ignore Build enough self-trust to stop constantly second-guessing what you know Take care of yourself when you're in the middle of the funk and so much feels outside your control Because personal growth doesn't always make the decision easier. Sometimes it simply gives you the clarity to see what you couldn't see before—and the courage to trust yourself with what comes next.  If you've been questioning a relationship, a career, or any part of your life that no longer feels right, this conversation will help you get curious about what you already know—and take your next best step. Connect with Molly: https://www.instagram.com/mollypositivepants/

    Ep 53: How to Trust Yourself When You Know Something Has to Change | Mariah Runions

  6. Aug 26

    Ep 52: The Achievement Trap: Why Success Won't Make You Feel Worthy | Natasha Kostalas

    What happens when you finally achieve the thing you thought would make you feel successful… and you still don’t feel like enough? Natasha Kostalas knows that cycle well. After pushing herself to the breaking point in her career, she found a new sense of confidence and purpose through fitness—only to discover that the same drive to prove herself had followed her into bodybuilding. In this episode, Natasha shares the hidden cost of high achievement, burnout, body image struggles, and tying your self-worth to what you accomplish. We talk about what happens when success becomes part of your identity, why reaching the next goal doesn’t automatically make you feel worthy, and the powerful shift that happens when you stop asking your achievements to prove your value. If you’ve ever thought the next promotion, goal, accomplishment, or version of yourself would finally make you feel like enough, this conversation is for you. Connect with Natasha: https://www.instagram.com/natashakostalas Connect with Molly: https://nextbeststep.co https://www.instagram.com/mollypositivepants/ https://www.facebook.com/molly.m.smith.90

  7. Aug 19

    Ep 51: If Your Doctor Says "Everything's Normal" but You Don't Feel Fine, Listen to This

    Have you ever sat across from a doctor and been told, “Everything looks normal,” when you know damn well you do not feel normal? Maybe you’re exhausted. You’re gaining weight even though you’re doing all the right things. Your brain feels foggy. Your hormones feel completely out of whack. Or maybe you just have this gut feeling that something is wrong—but because your labs fall within the “normal” range, you’re told you’re fine. My guest today, Dr. Jamie Gilliam, knows exactly what that feels like. Before becoming a PhD in integrative medicine and founding the Heal Your Body Clinic, Jamie owned a gym and spent her career in health and fitness. She thought she understood what it took to be healthy. And then her own health started to unravel. She began experiencing symptoms she couldn't explain. She went to doctors again and again looking for answers, only to hear the same things: Your labs are normal. You're fine. It's anxiety. But Jamie knew something was wrong. And she was right. There was something very wrong. What happened next completely changed the trajectory of her life—and ultimately led her to the work she does today helping thousands of people who have been told the exact same thing. In this episode, we’re talking about medical gaslighting, what “normal” labs may not be telling you, why learning to listen to your body matters, and how to advocate for yourself when you know something isn't right. Because if you've ever walked out of a doctor's office wondering, “Am I crazy? Is this really all in my head?”—you need to hear this conversation. Connect with Dr. Jamie Website | TikTok Connect with Molly Website Instagram Facebook YouTube

  8. Aug 12

    Ep 50: What to Do When Life Doesn't Go the Way You Planned

    What do you do when life changes in an instant? A phone call. A conversation. A betrayal. A diagnosis. One unexpected moment... and suddenly everything you thought you knew feels uncertain. In this episode, I share one of the most personal stories I've told on the podcast—not because the details of my story are the point, but because every one of us will have moments that divide our lives into "before" and "after." The question isn't whether the unexpected will happen. The question is: Who will you be when it does? I'll take you inside that moment and walk you through the exact process I use to keep from getting stuck in the funk when life doesn't go according to plan. It's the same process I return to whenever life knocks the wind out of me, and it's become the foundation for how I move through uncertainty with greater clarity, intention, and self-trust. In this episode, we'll talk about: Why naming what you're feeling is the first step toward moving forward. How to stop reacting and start responding with intention. The difference between what's within your control and what's not. Why curiosity is more powerful than self-judgment. How to take your next best step—even when you don't have all the answers. If you're walking through an unexpected season right now, I hope this conversation reminds you that you don't have to figure everything out today. You just have to take your next best step. If this is your first episode of the WTF Podcast, welcome. This conversation is a great introduction to the process I teach for navigating life's unexpected moments—and I hope it's one you'll come back to whenever you need it. Chapters 00:00 Welcome & What to Do When Life Doesn't Go the Way You Planned 01:41 The Unexpected Moment That Changed Everything 02:18 When I Couldn't Name What I Was Feeling 02:55 Why I Still Use a Feelings Wheel 03:42 Creating Space Instead of Spiraling 04:12 What I Could Control (and What I Couldn't) 05:15 The Process That Helped Me Move Forward 06:20 What to Do When Life Knocks the Wind Out of You 07:18 Your Next Best Step

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About

Life looks fine, but inside you feel off—that’s the funk. I’m Molly Smith, your host and recovering perfectionist. My mission: equip 1M people to spot the funk fast and pivot out with aligned action, emotional clarity, and a little humor. Expect relatable conversations, real turnaround stories, and doable practices you can use today to reset your energy and feel like yourself again.

Information

  • Creator
    Molly Smith
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    58
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 8a7d0f80-3810-11f1-a709-a9c6fd0a4d0b