Her Advantage Collective

Katie Branley & Miss K

Navigating the Middle, Together. Change in midlife happens in two ways: by force or by choice. But navigating it doesn't have to be a solo mission. Welcome to Her Advantage Collective, a space where we believe that being a woman is your greatest strategic edge. We have the history, we have the wisdom, and most importantly—we have each other. This isn't about experts teaching you the "right" way. This is two friends—Katie B and Miss K—figuring it out alongside you. With laughter, familiarity, and zero judgment, we explore the stories of women who are reshaping their lives. We dive into the internal struggles we all face and ask the questions that matter: What do you wish you knew? What power did you gain? And what would you tell the woman you were yesterday? If you’re feeling the pull of "what's next" but battling the doubt, crazy hormones, life change, kid shifts, parent support world that comes with it, pull up a chair. You aren't crazy. You’re just waking up to your advantage. Real stories. Real connection. Your advantage.

  1. May 8

    "You're Not Stuck, You're Just in a Moment" Mike Cormier on Finding a New Pace & a New Race to Run

    What happens when the career you spent thirty years building disappears overnight? For Coach Mike Cormier, it was the beginning of the most important pivot of his life. In this episode, we sit down with our very first male guest on Her Advantage Collective, a former Silicon Valley tech warrior turned certified fitness coach and founder of RunFitMind. Coach Mike gets raw and honest about burnout, the identity crisis that comes with job loss, and the life-altering moment that forced him to finally face his mental health. In eighteen months he coached one thousand classes at Orange Theory Fitness. He holds a mental health and wellness coaching certification. And he lives by a belief that we haven't stopped thinking about since we hit record — there is no health without mental health. In this episode we talk about: What it really feels like when your identity disappears with your job titleWhy fitness can become an idol — and how to find the balanceThe stigma of mental health in men and why Coach Mike says it out loud anywayWhat "RunFitMind" means and who it's built forThe one thing Coach Mike wants you to remember if you're in a hard moment right now Change happens by force or by choice. This episode is for every woman who has ever stood in the middle of a pivot and thought — now what. Connect with Coach Mike: InstagramLinkedInConnect with Her Advantage Collective: Substack: The Advantage WritesSubscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with the woman in your life who needs to hear it.

    37 min

  2. Apr 7

    You May Be the Only One Holding You Back Featuring Erann Lincoln

    What if the only thing standing between you and the life you actually want is you? In this episode we sit down with Erann Lincoln — director-level executive in the aerospace and aviation industry, mother of two, wife to one, and someone who knew exactly what she wanted and spent years talking herself out of it anyway. From a breaking point during the pandemic that brought her to her knees, to a deliberate decision to start saying yes, Erann's story is equal parts honest, funny, and deeply relatable. She talks about the structural changes she made to actually make it work, the investments she made in herself that changed everything, and the moment she looked in the mirror and made a decision that every woman in this audience needs to hear. If you have ever felt like you have more to give, this one is for you. In this conversation we talk about: Why saying yes is a decision, not a feeling — and why no one can make it for youThe moment during the pandemic that broke everything open and what she did nextThe structural changes that actually made her career possible — and why she doesn't apologize for any of themWhat she said to herself the day she decided she was done feeling guilty for being ambitiousWhy investing in yourself is not taking from your family — it's the whole point

    34 min

  3. Mar 23

    The Wendi Era: Learning to Be Happy and Heartbroken at the Same Time

    What do you do when life asks you to keep going after losing the people who made it make sense? Wendi Marshall has walked through every mother's worst fear, the loss of her daughter Lauren at 23, and then years later the sudden loss of her husband of 42 years. She didn't just survive. She built a nonprofit, raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in Lauren's name, showed up for her grandkids, and somewhere along the way learned to flirt with the world again. This episode is for anyone who has ever walked through loss and couldn't find the words, and for anyone who has ever loved someone in pain and didn't know how to move toward them without being afraid of breaking them. In this conversation we talk about: Why grief doesn't end and why that's actually okayThe conscious choice to keep moving when staying in bed is so much easierHow to show up for someone who is grieving (hint: just do something specific)What it means to hold happiness and heartbreak at the same timeWhy Wendi is done with the word "widow" and what she's calling this season instead Want to connect with Wendi or share how this episode resonated with you? Head to The Advantage Writes, our Substack community. It's the best place to reach us, stay in the conversation, and go deeper between episodes. We read everything. Her Advantage Collective. Wisdom forged in the hardest seasons of life.

    40 min

  4. Mar 10

    People to Love, Not Problems to Fix

    Are you feeling the "squeeze" of the sandwich generation? This week, Katie and Ms. K sit down with former educator and self-described "recovering fixer" Kim Brakmann for a conversation full of wisdom, laughter, and hard-won grace. Kim Brakmann has always been the one people call. The teacher. The organizer. The fixer. But caring for aging parents has a way of humbling even the most capable among us, and Kim's journey from trying to cure the people she loves to simply being present with them is one every woman in this season needs to hear. In this episode, we dive into: The Perfectionism Trap — Why excellence and perfection are not the same thing, and why one is rooted in prideThe Sibling Renaissance — How the caregiving season can bring siblings back together for a "team maiden name" comebackPractical Midlife Hacks — Lightweight wheelchairs, bed modifications, baby monitors, and the caregiving tools nobody tells you aboutThe Power of Margin — Why saying no to the church nursery might be the yes your soul (and your neighbors) actually need Whether you're deep in the caregiving trenches or it feels like a million years away, Kim's wisdom on leading with love — and seeing the people in your life as people to love, not problems to fix — will stay with you long after this episode ends.

    39 min

  5. Feb 24

    Chemistry, Not Character: How Hormonal Shifts Unmask ADHD with Kristen Vega Glass

    Have you ever hit a wall where your old productivity hacks just... stopped working? Where you felt like you were suddenly struggling to keep up, despite years of being the high-achiever who had it all together? This week on Her Advantage, Katie and Ms. K sit down with instructional designer and systems expert Kristen Vega Glass. Kristen shares the vulnerable moment her internal systems hit a breaking point and the life-changing ADHD diagnosis that followed. It turns out, her struggle wasn't a character flaw—it was a direct result of biological chemistry. In this episode, we dive into: The "Vocal Stim" Revelation: How a casual cubicle moment led to a formal ADHD diagnosis at age 34.The Estrogen Connection: Why hormonal shifts (like postpartum and menopause) can suddenly "unmask" ADHD symptoms that were previously managed or hidden.Calculated Spontaneity: Kristen’s brilliant framework for building systems that allow a neurodivergent brain to thrive without the burnout.Naming the Narrative: How separating her identity from her diagnosis allowed her to trade shame for high-level strategy. If you’re tired of "white-knuckling" your way through brain fog and are ready to start designing a life that works with your biology instead of against it, this episode is your masterclass. Stop apologizing for your wiring. Start leveraging it.

    36 min

  6. Feb 3

    Building Your Second Act with Chandra Reilly: Trading Corporate Skyscrapers for a Life by Design

    ​​"I guess I’ll just try this... and then it ended up being my life." Ever felt like you were coasting on a series of "happy accidents" until life suddenly demanded you get intentional? This week we are sitting down with our very first guest, Chandra Reilly. Chandra spent 25 years in the "physical sport" of high-stakes construction. She was the 9%—one of the only women in the room, riding high on professional momentum, and building a massive professional identity. But when the "Icarus Moment" hit in 2024 and that chapter ended abruptly, she had to decide: chase another title, or finally design a life that fits? We’re getting real about the "gut punch" of a career ending, the weird grief of losing an identity you didn't know you were clinging to, and why Chandra ultimately chose family and freedom in Seattle over another high-rise project. Now, she’s taking all that logic and grit to build her own empire, Travel As You Like It. If you’ve been feeling that midlife rumbling for a change, this conversation is your blueprint for the pivot. In this episode, we’re chatting about: The 9% Reality: The grit required to be the only woman in the executive pipeline (and the 0% metric at the top).2020 as a Reset: Why the pandemic wasn't just a "pause," but a total trauma-informed shift in our priorities.The Icarus Moment: Confronting the stigma of being fired and realizing it’s actually the fastest way to get free.The Power of AND: How to be sad about the door that closed while being obsessed with the one you’re opening.Travel Design: Why 25 years of construction logic makes Chandra the secret weapon for your next soul-filling vacation.Let Chandra Plan Your Next Vacation: Give your 'planning brain' a vacation before your actual vacation. Visit TravelAsYouLikeIt to connect with Chandra. Whether it's a family takeover or a solo reset, she’ll custom-tailor an experience that hits different. Just head to the site, hit the contact form, and let the expert take the wheel!

    39 min

  7. Jan 26

    Quitting or Evolving? Why Midlife Women Are Breaking Up with the Workforce

    Are you standing at a crossroads, and you feel the rumbling for change in your life,? Maybe you have a successful career and you are thinking"I just don't want to play this game anymore"? Or you are wondering what the next chapter holds. You aren’t alone. In this episode, we tackling "The Great Breakup." Kristin and Katie dive deep into why so many midlife women are trading C-Suite titles for passion projects and why the data supports this massive shift. We discuss: The "Validation Gap": struggling to identify as a writer/creator without the corporate paycheck.Why the drop in estrogen and oxytocin (the people-pleasing hormones) is actually your superpower.Kristin’s hilarious journey from P90X "sweat trauma" to fitness instructor.Why this isn't a midlife crisis—it's a midlife evolution.If you are in the messy middle of a transition, this episode is your mirror. You aren't quitting; you’re just getting started.

    36 min

  8. Jan 21

    Season 2 - The Proverbs 31 Trap: Is She a Checklist or a Postcard?

    Welcome to the launch of Her Advantage Collective! We’ve dropped the "AI" from our name to broaden our horizons, but we are keeping the Advantage. In this Season Premiere, Katie and Miss K tackle a topic that haunts high-achieving women everywhere: The pressure to be perfect. Using the Proverbs 31 woman as our case study, we dig into why aspirational figures often feel like a burden rather than an inspiration in our 20s and 30s. But here is the secret of the 40s: We stop reading the "ideal woman" as a Tuesday to-do list, and start seeing her as a vision board for a life built slowly over time. In this episode, we cover: The Rebrand: Why we pivoted from Her AI Advantage to Her Advantage Collective.The Biology of Comparison: Why women are hardwired to "tend and befriend" (and why social media breaks this mechanism).The "Postcard" Metaphor: Why you need to view success as a destination you are traveling toward, not a standard you have to meet by 5:00 PM today.Soul SOPs: How to create Standard Operating Procedures for your life that prioritize rest and Sabbath. Notable Quotes: "Stop trying to be the Proverbs 31 woman on your own strength. It’s not a checklist; it’s a postcard from the future.""I really do think this is the best time of life. I enjoy the collagen in my face, but the feeling of centeredness in my 40s is different than I’ve ever felt before." Loved this episode? Share it with a friend who needs to drop the baggage of perfectionism today!

    36 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Navigating the Middle, Together. Change in midlife happens in two ways: by force or by choice. But navigating it doesn't have to be a solo mission. Welcome to Her Advantage Collective, a space where we believe that being a woman is your greatest strategic edge. We have the history, we have the wisdom, and most importantly—we have each other. This isn't about experts teaching you the "right" way. This is two friends—Katie B and Miss K—figuring it out alongside you. With laughter, familiarity, and zero judgment, we explore the stories of women who are reshaping their lives. We dive into the internal struggles we all face and ask the questions that matter: What do you wish you knew? What power did you gain? And what would you tell the woman you were yesterday? If you’re feeling the pull of "what's next" but battling the doubt, crazy hormones, life change, kid shifts, parent support world that comes with it, pull up a chair. You aren't crazy. You’re just waking up to your advantage. Real stories. Real connection. Your advantage.

Information

  • Creator
    Katie Branley & Miss K
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    14
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Katie Branley & Miss K
  • Show Website
    Her Advantage Collective

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