The Ambition Code

Julie Kellman Reading
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The Ambition Code is a premium podcast and conversation series about ambition, identity, career, reinvention, leadership, and the defining moments that shape who we become. Hosted by Julie Kellman Reading, the series features deeply human conversations with remarkable people who have built extraordinary lives across business, culture, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership, and personal evolution. At its core, The Ambition Code explores ambition as a force that moves through every part of life - how we start, how we rise, how we navigate the unexpected, and how we break through into what comes next. Through honest and powerful conversations filled with humanity, humor, hard-earned experience, and real-world advice, the podcast gives listeners the knowledge and clarity to build momentum and move forward with confidence through every pivot, transition, risk, reinvention, and defining moment in their lives. Built for those entering the workforce, entrepreneurs, creatives, leaders, and anyone standing at the edge of a new chapter, The Ambition Code asks the bigger questions: What would you tell the younger version of yourself? How do you keep moving when the path is unclear? What does your journey teach you about purpose, resilience, legacy, and becoming who you are meant to be? The Ambition Code is a guide to running through open doors, and a bold reminder that your life is waiting for you.

  1. 3d ago

    The Future of Mental Health for College Athletes: AthleticMind

    With Founders Tremaine Grant, Jelanna Salas Olivera & Dr. Tracey Hathaway College athletes are trained to perform. To push harder. Recover faster. Stay focused. Compete. Win. Get back up when they lose. But what happens when the pressure, identity, and emotional weight of competing at an elite level become too much? And what if we could recognize when an athlete is struggling before they ever reach a crisis? This week on The Ambition Code, Julie sits down with Tremaine Grant, Jelanna Salas Olivera, and Dr. Tracey Hathaway, the founders behind AthleticMind, a future-forward, human-centered platform reimagining how college athletes manage mental performance, mental health, and overall well-being. Their individual journeys could not have been more different. Tremaine was a Division I athlete, technologist, and lifelong builder whose own experiences with injury, depression, fitness, and entrepreneurship eventually led him to begin developing fitness platform PulseCheck. Jelanna's path began with something deeply personal: watching her own son, a college athlete, experience a devastating physical and psychological crisis that exposed how much can be happening beneath the surface of athletic achievement before anyone recognizes the warning signs. And Dr. Tracey Hathaway brings decades of experience as an athlete, coach, athletic administrator, researcher, and advocate who has seen firsthand how often student athletes carry enormous pressures privately while the people around them see only strength and performance. Then their paths collided. What began as two separate companies working on different sides of the same problem became something much bigger: AthleticMind. The platform brings mental performance and mental health together, creating what Tremaine calls a "mental weight room" where athletes can actively strengthen skills including focus, emotional regulation, composure, visualization, and cognitive reframing while also creating a clearer, ongoing picture of their emotional well-being. Through check-ins, journaling, wearable data, reflection, and AI-assisted pattern recognition, Athletic Mind is being designed to help recognize when something may be changing for an athlete and, when additional support is needed, connect that athlete to qualified human care. And that human connection is essential. As Tremaine says in this conversation, AI can be intelligent, but wisdom comes from human experience. That philosophy sits at the center of AthleticMind. Technology can help identify patterns humans might otherwise miss. It can organize information, provide context, and support better decisions. But it should never replace the judgment, experience, empathy, and wisdom of the people actually caring for another human being. This conversation is about the future of college athletics, but it is also about something much bigger: what becomes possible when technology is built around human beings rather than instead of them. It is also an extraordinary story about purpose. About following an idea before you completely understand where it is taking you. About building, failing, pivoting, listening, and continuing forward. And about the extraordinary things that can happen when three people pursuing their own individual missions suddenly realize they may have been building different pieces of the same future all along. IN THIS EPISODE Why the emotional highs and lows of elite athletics require the same attention we give physical performance Tremaine's journey from teaching himself to code and competing as a Division I athlete to becoming a founder What injury and the loss of an athletic identity can do to an athlete emotionally Jelanna's son's experience and the moment she realized there was a major gap in the way college athletes were being supported Dr. Tracey's experience as an athlete, coach, administrator, and researcher Emotional regulation, cognitive reframing, focus, and the concept of the "mental weight room" How Tremaine, Jelanna, and Dr. Tracey found one another and realized their technologies belonged together How check-ins, wearable data, journaling, and other signals can help build a more complete picture of how an athlete is doing Why early detection matters Human-centered AI and why technology should support human decisions rather than replace them Why the wisdom of human experience remains irreplaceable CONNECT WITH THE FOUNDERS Tremaine Grant Founder & CEO, Pulse Intelligence Labs, Inc. Tremaine Grant on LinkedIn Media / Company Contact: press@pulse.ai Pulse Intelligence Labs / Pulse Jelanna Salas Olivera Co-Founder & Co-Executive, auntEDNA.ai Email: Jelanna@auntEDNA.ai Jelanna Salas Olivera on LinkedIn auntEDNA.ai Dr. Tracey Hathaway Co-Founder & Co-Executive, auntEDNA.ai Email: tracey@auntedna.ai Dr. Tracey Hathaway on LinkedIn auntEDNA.ai THE AMBITION CODE Created, Hosted & Executive Produced by Julie Kellman Reading Produced by Love + Daydreams Music by Moby Gratis / @moby.gratis A Love + Daydreams Production CONNECT WITH JULIE + THE AMBITION CODE Email: podcast@loveanddaydreams.com Love + Daydreams Instagram: @TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: @TheAmbitionCodePod Love + Daydreams Instagram: @loveanddaydreams Listen to The Ambition Code on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Amazon Music, iHeart and wherever you get your podcasts. Do you know someone who would be great for The Ambition Code? DM us on Instagram at @TheAmbitionCodePod. Your Life Is Waiting for You. Content note: This episode includes discussion of mental health crises. If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, available 24/7 in the United States. You can also chat at 988lifeline.org.

    The Future of Mental Health for College Athletes: AthleticMind

  2. Oct 23

    How to Train Your (AI) Agent + Other Useful Skills for Getting Hired

    "Job hunting is on my bucket list" said no one, ever. Because honestly? It may be the worst job ever. It takes up your time, it doesn't pay you, and somehow you're expected to remain enthusiastic while navigating résumés, applications, interviews, uncertainty, rejection… and a job market that seems to be changing while you're applying. Fun! But here's the good news: there's more in your control than you think. In this solo episode of The Ambition Code, I'm talking directly to anyone who is job hunting, navigating a layoff, thinking about a career change, or simply looking around and wondering, Where do my skills fit now? Especially as AI and technology transform industries, the goal isn't to erase everything you've already accomplished and start over. It's to understand the value of what you already know, learn how to translate it, keep adding new skills, and make it incredibly easy for the right person to see what you can do. We talk about: • How to translate years of experience into language a new employer or even a completely different industry can understand • Why your job title may not tell the whole story of what you're actually capable of • How to put your AI assistant to work in your job search • Staying current without feeling like you need to learn every new technology on Earth • Building a portfolio and digital footprint that actually represents you • Presenting your talent, judgment, experience, and accomplishments with confidence • Using your network more thoughtfully and making it easier for people to help you • Finding affordable ways to reskill, learn, or even explore an entirely different career • And why a difficult job market may also be an opportunity to finally investigate something you've always wanted to do Most of all, this episode is about not giving up. Your career may be changing. Your industry may be changing. The way people get hired may be changing. But your experience still matters. Your judgment matters. Your ability to learn matters. And you have more power than you may realize in how you present yourself and what you do next. Resources mentioned in the episode Create a portfolio with Canva: https://www.canva.com/create/portfolios/ American Job Centers - U.S. Department of Labor: Career services, job-search assistance, training referrals and other employment resources. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/training/onestop CareerOneStop - Training & WIOA Resources: Explore training programs and possible workforce-development resources in your state. https://www.careeronestop.org/LocalHelp/EmploymentAndTraining/find-WIOA-training-programs.aspx LinkedIn Learning through Los Angeles Public Library: If you're in Los Angeles, LinkedIn Learning is available free with an LAPL library card and PIN. Check your own local library, too - many offer learning resources you may already have access to. https://www.lapl.org/digital-library/linkedin Registered Apprenticeship: Explore opportunities that combine paid work with training. https://www.apprenticeship.gov/career-seekers And I want to hear from you! Have you recently landed a job? Found an unusual way to get noticed? Changed industries? Built a portfolio that opened a door? Discovered a tool or strategy that made your search easier? Please DM me or leave a comment. I'd love to do a follow-up episode featuring ideas from listeners - and if you've become a total whiz at navigating this new job market, maybe you should come on the podcast and tell us how you did it. Connect with The Ambition Code Created + Hosted by Julie Kellman Reading Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAmbitionCodePod Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ambition-code/id6790585618 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033P0xatKPFsBNimqb32rb Love + Daydreams: https://www.LoveAndDaydreams.com Email: podcast@loveanddaydreams.com You've got this. It isn't easy. But when you get focused on what you want and strategic about how you go after it, you give yourself a much better chance of getting there. Your life is waiting for you.

    How to Train Your (AI) Agent + Other Useful Skills for Getting Hired

  3. Oct 13 ·  Bonus

    WEEK TWO! Vote For The Ambition Code in Top Host!

    You guys are AMAZING! 💜 Thank you SO much for all the love, support, and VOTES! We're officially in WEEK TWO of the TOP HOST competition with Ryan Seacrest and iHeartRadio, and I'm bouncing between 1st and 3rd place in my group! 🏆 🔥 TODAY IS A BIG ONE! Votes count DOUBLE until 9 PM! 🔥 So even if you've already voted, PLEASE VOTE AGAIN! Every vote makes a difference, and I would LOVE to get back to that #1 spot and STAY THERE! Thank you for helping me take *The Ambition Code* to the next level! I appreciate you all more than you know! ❤️ 👇 VOTE NOW! LINK BELOW! 👇 #TopHost #TheAmbitionCode #iHeartRadio #RyanSeacrest #WomenWhoPodcast

  4. Oct 8

    Say Yes to Uganda: And Other Truths About Navigating Change

    Say Yes to Uganda: And Other Truths About Navigating Change Want to know a secret about me? I really don't like change. But there are different kinds of change. Good change? New opportunities? LOVE those. The kind that comes out of nowhere and changes everything in your life? No thank you. But as we all know, change happens. We don't always get to control it, and we definitely don't always know how it's going to turn out. Sometimes, what feels completely disruptive in the moment can eventually open the door to something we never could have seen coming. And that's really what this episode is about: the change you choose, the change you don't - and what you do with both. A few years ago, when I was newly separated and my life felt like it had been turned completely upside down, a woman gave me a piece of advice I have never forgotten: Say yes to Uganda. She told me that when her own marriage ended, she decided to start saying yes to things she might previously have talked herself out of. A dance class? Yes. A party? Yes. An invitation? Yes. Something new and healthy that pushed her outside the life she already knew? Yes. Eventually, one of those yeses took her all the way to Uganda. I didn't literally go to Uganda. But I took the lesson. And soon enough, invitations started showing up in my own life. I said yes to as many as I could. One of those yeses became a gift I never could have planned for - something that entered my life only because life had changed enough to make room for it. And that's what Say Yes to Uganda came to mean to me. Its a mantra I use to this day. It doesn't mean running away, reinventing yourself every five minutes, or convincing yourself that everything happens for a reason. It means remembering that even when you cannot control what has happened, you can still participate in what happens next. In this solo episode of The Ambition Code, I'm looking at the psychology of change - why we cling to what's familiar, why a fresh start can feel so powerful, and why fear can make us stay when we should go or run when we should stay. We're talking about the difference between commitment and fear, courage and escape, voluntary and involuntary change - and one of my favorite truths from this entire episode: Problems are portable. You can change the relationship, the job, the city, the house, the friends - maybe even buy some excellent new throw pillows - but wherever you go, you still bring yourself with you. So maybe navigating change isn't about constantly searching for a completely new life. Maybe it's about asking better questions. What am I moving toward, or running from? What is this change showing me, and what is mine to decide? And most importantly: What do I want from this change? Because we don't always get to choose the beginning of a new chapter. But we do get a say in how we write what comes next. Sometimes that starts with a huge decision. And sometimes it starts with one tiny yes. Say yes to Uganda. THE AMBITION CODE The Ambition Code is about ambition, identity, reinvention, career, relationships and the choices — expected and unexpected — that shape our lives. Created, Hosted & Executive Produced by Julie Kellman Reading Produced by Love + Daydreams Music by Moby Gratis A Love + Daydreams Production Listen to The Ambition Code on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and everywhere you get your podcasts. FOLLOW THE SHOW Instagram: @TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: @TheAmbitionCodePod CONNECT WITH JULIE  LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/juliekellmanreading LOVE + DAYDREAMS Website: LoveAndDaydreams.com Instagram: @loveanddaydreams For guest inquiries, creative partnerships, production inquiries and more, visit LoveAndDaydreams.com. If this episode spoke to you, follow The Ambition Code, rate and review the show, and send this episode to someone navigating a change of their own. Your Life Is Waiting For You.

    Say Yes to Uganda: And Other Truths About Navigating Change

  5. Oct 7 ·  Bonus

    Vote for The Ambition Code on TOP HOST! With, Ryan Seacrest + iHeartRadio! ❤️

    VOTING IS OPEN! 🎙️❤️ I'm so excited to be in compeition for Top Host with Ryan Seacrest and iHeartRadio - for The Ambition Code! Your vote could help give me the incredible opportunity to host six episodes of an iHeartRadio podcast. If you love The Ambition Code, I would be so grateful for your support. Vote now  and please share the link with your friends, family, group chats, coworkers, yoga classes… everyone! Thank you!  Every vote matters. ❤️ VOTE FOR THE AMBITION CODE NOW - LINK : https://tophost.org/2026/julie-kellman-reading Thank you!

    Vote for The Ambition Code on TOP HOST! With, Ryan Seacrest + iHeartRadio! ❤️

  6. Oct 1

    Michael Levitt + Building a Legacy: Purpose, Persistence & Baylen Out Loud

    Michael Levitt + Building a Legacy: Purpose, Persistence & Baylen Out Loud Some people spend their careers waiting for the right opportunity to find them. Michael Levitt has spent his life creating the opportunity, asking the question, finding the way in—and then making something unforgettable once he gets there. He started early. Long before he became an acclaimed executive producer, Michael was already bringing people together, following his curiosity and figuring out how to turn an idea into something real. That instinct would eventually become an extraordinary career spanning live events, awards shows, game shows, unscripted television and some of the most memorable moments in entertainment. His credits include the Billboard Music Awards, TV Land Awards, Scream Awards, Daytime Emmy Awards, Hollywood Squares, Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, Skin Wars, the Michael Jackson Memorial, and many more. But even a body of work this deep and accomplished doesn't fully explain Michael - or the tenacity, heart and sheer force of will behind it. I've known him for close to two decades - we produced Bravo's first A-List Awards together with Kathy Griffin - and what has always struck me is the way he moves through a room and through his life. Michael lights up a room, and then somehow makes sure the spotlight lands on everyone else. He is warm, funny, relentlessly creative and genuinely interested in people. He has the rare ability to make something feel possible before anyone has figured out exactly how to do it. And underneath that bright energy is enormous tenacity. When Michael believes in an idea, he stays with it. When one route closes, he looks for another. And when something becomes important to him personally, he has found a way to give it a much larger purpose. That combination of instinct, persistence and heart has led to some of the most meaningful work of his career. His passion for dog rescue grew into nationally televised programming including Fox's Cause for Paws, All-Star Dog Rescue Celebration, American Rescue Dog Show and Stanley Pup (with the NHL) taking the skills and relationships he had built over decades in entertainment and using them to help animals find homes. And then there is Baylen Out Loud. Michael discovered Baylen Dupree on TikTok and saw far beyond a viral video. What followed became an award-winning TLC series filled with humor, family, vulnerability and enormous heart - a show that allows audiences to know Baylen as a young woman building a life, rather than allowing Tourette syndrome to define her. Michael describes that shift beautifully in our conversation, you won't want to miss this. And maybe that says something important about Michael's work as a whole. He sees people. He sees possibility. And after decades of making television, he is increasingly interested not simply in whether something will entertain an audience, but in what it can leave behind. This conversation is about much more than producing. It is about knowing your value before someone else validates it. Having the courage to ask for what you want. Understanding when a "no" actually means not this way, not yet. Learning to pivot without abandoning the thing you believe in. Staying relevant by continuing to learn. Following the things that matter to you - and eventually asking whether the skills you spent your life building might be useful for something bigger than yourself. Michael talks about work ethic, rejection, reinvention, kindness, risk, purpose and the responsibility that can come with success. He also speaks candidly about an entertainment business in profound transition and why creativity now requires more resourcefulness than ever. And through it all is one of my favorite things about Michael: he has never confused ambition with taking up all the oxygen in the room. His version of ambition has room for other people. It has room for kindness. It has room for joy. And increasingly, it has room for impact. As Michael reflects near the end of our conversation, the work he is proudest of has given him something greater than another credit: the knowledge that what he created mattered to someone. He hopes the life he is building will leave behind "a legacy that matters." In this episode The courage to ask for what you want Knowing your value before anyone gives you permission to claim it Why rejection doesn't always mean the idea is wrong Turning persistence into possibility Building a career across multiple lanes without allowing yourself to be pigeonholed Creating the moments audiences remember How to pivot when the original plan stops working Navigating massive industry change Finding purpose inside the skills you already have Using success and influence in service of something you care about The instinct that led Michael to Baylen Out Loud What Baylen and her family have taught us about humanity, compassion and difference How dog rescue became both a calling and a creative mission Why kindness and ambition are not opposites Building work - and a life - that leaves something meaningful behind The Ambition Code takeaway You do not have to know exactly how the dream is going to happen before you begin moving toward it. Ask. Follow the instinct. Believe in the idea. Learn the workaround. And when your experience finally meets something you care deeply about, pay attention. That may be where ambition becomes purpose - and where a career begins to become a legacy.     ABOUT MICHAEL LEVITT Michael Levitt is the President and Executive Producer of Michael Levitt Productions, an Emmy-nominated producer specializing in live event and unscripted programming. His extensive body of work includes Baylen Out Loud, Stanley Pup, American Rescue Dog Show, Skin Wars, Hollywood Squares, Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, Scream Awards, TV Land Awards, Daytime Emmy Awards, Billboard Music Awards, the Michael Jackson Memorial and many more. Michael is also a longtime animal rescue advocate whose passion for rescue has inspired multiple national television franchises. CONNECT WITH MICHAEL Michael Levitt Productions Website: michaellevittproductions.com IG: michaellevitt_1     THE AMBITION CODE The Ambition Code is a podcast about ambition, identity, reinvention and what happens when the life or career you imagined begins to change. Through honest conversations with extraordinary people—and solo episodes exploring the questions many of us are asking privately—Julie Kellman Reading looks at how we move through change, take risks, trust ourselves and keep building lives that feel meaningful. Your Life Is Waiting For You. CREDITS Creator, Host + Executive Producer: Julie Kellman Reading Guest: Michael Levitt Produced by: Love + Daydreams Music: Moby Gratis / @moby.gratis A Love + Daydreams Production LISTEN, WATCH + FOLLOW The Ambition Code Instagram: @TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: @TheAmbitionCodePod Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and everywhere you get podcasts. CONNECT WITH JULIE + LOVE + DAYDREAMS Julie Kellman Reading / Love + Daydreams Email: podcast@loveanddaydreams.com Website: LoveAndDaydreams.com Instagram: @loveanddaydreams LinkedIn: @juliekellmanreading For podcast, production, creative partnership and business inquiries: LoveAndDaydreams.com.

    Michael Levitt + Building a Legacy: Purpose, Persistence & Baylen Out Loud

  7. Sep 24

    Dermot McCormack - The Art of Being Human

    The Art of Being Human How to Navigate AI, Change & the Future Without Losing Yourself Guest: Dermot McCormack - CEO, Investor, Media Futurist & Technology Advisor There is so much noise right now about AI, jobs, technology and what the future is going to look like. Dermot McCormack brings something we could all use in the middle of it: clarity. Dermot has spent his career at the leading edge of media and technology, navigating enormous periods of disruption and helping companies understand what may be coming next. But what makes his perspective so compelling isn't simply how much he knows about technology. It's how deeply grounded he is in humanity. In this episode of The Ambition Code, Julie and Dermot step back from the headlines to ask a much bigger question: As technology becomes more powerful, how do we make sure we don't lose the things that make us human? This is a conversation about AI and the future of work - but it's also about instinct, fear, risk, reinvention, resilience, human connection, critical thinking, purpose and learning how to move forward when you don't know exactly where you're going. Dermot shares why he believes our human-anchored skills may become more valuable, not less, in the years ahead - and why the people who learn how to combine the extraordinary capabilities of technology with judgment, creativity, empathy, experience and independent thought may be uniquely positioned for the future. It's also a reminder that when the world around you changes, the answer isn't always to hold tighter to the life you already built. Sometimes you have to redefine the problem, reboot the dream, and simply start to move before you know exactly where the road is going. ABOUT DERMOT McCORMACK Dermot McCormack is a CEO, investor, media futurist and technology advisor who has spent decades working at the intersection of media, technology, innovation and business. Throughout his career, he has helped build, lead, advise and invest in companies navigating major periods of technological change. His perspective on the future is informed not only by where technology may be headed, but by a deep interest in people, culture, human behavior and the forces that shape how we live and work. Connect with Dermot: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dermot100/ THE AMBITION CODE The Ambition Code is about ambition, identity, reinvention and what happens when the life or career you imagined begins to change. Through honest conversations with extraordinary people - and solo episodes exploring the questions many of us are asking privately - host Julie Kellman Reading looks at how we move through change, take risks, trust ourselves and keep building lives that feel meaningful. Your Life Is Waiting For You. CREDITS Created, Hosted & Executive Produced by: Julie Kellman Reading Produced by: Love + Daydreams Music by: Moby Gratis / @moby.gratis A Love + Daydreams Production CONNECT The Ambition Code Instagram: @TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: @TheAmbitionCodePod Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts. Julie Kellman Reading / Love + Daydreams LinkedIn: @juliekellmanreading Website: LoveAndDaydreams.com For podcast, production, partnership and business inquiries: Love + Daydreams | LoveAndDaydreams.com

    Dermot McCormack - The Art of Being Human

  8. Sep 16

    Susette Hsiung + The Making of a Remarkable Leader

    Susette Hsiung + The Making of a Remarkable Leader Leadership, Curiosity, and the Courage to Do Things Your Own Way There are careers defined by achievement. And then there are careers that become legacies. For more than four decades, Susette Hsiung built one of the most remarkable careers in modern entertainment. She began in the defining early years of MTV, helped launch the comedy channel that would become Comedy Central, moved to Singapore at just 30 years old to help launch MTV Asia and two 24-hour networks, and ultimately spent nearly three decades at Disney, rising to Executive Vice President of Network Production Management and Operations for Disney Channels Worldwide. Along the way, Susette and her teams oversaw thousands of hours of programming and more than 100 Disney Channel Original Movies, with work spanning many of the shows and franchises generations of families grew up with - including Hannah Montana, High School Musical, Descendants, Zombies, Phineas and Ferb, Kim Possible, Raven's Home, The Proud Family, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and many more. But this episode isn't really about the credits. It's about what Susette learned while earning them. Again and again, she stepped into opportunities before she had a roadmap for exactly how they would unfold. She took on new industries, new formats, new countries and increasingly bigger responsibilities - driven not by certainty, but by curiosity, a willingness to learn, and the confidence to keep moving toward the next challenge. And then, as she rose to the highest levels of the business, something equally important happened: Susette turned what she had learned into an investment in other people. She became known not only for what she accomplished, but for how she led - building exceptional teams, developing talent, creating opportunities, mentoring emerging executives and helping people see possibilities in themselves that they may not yet have seen. I know that personally. I am incredibly fortunate to call Susette one of my own mentors. Her guidance has influenced my career and the way I think about leadership, opportunity, growth and what it means to bring people with you along the way. That is what makes this conversation such a gift. Whether you are just beginning your career, stepping into leadership, wondering whether it is time to take a risk, navigating an industry in transition, or thinking about what you want the next chapter of your life to look like, Susette offers the perspective of someone who has been through all of it - and is willing to share the experiences and lessons that she has learned. We talk about the courage to take on something you have never done before. How to keep investing in yourself throughout a long career. Why curiosity can be more useful than having all the answers. How great teams are built. What meaningful mentorship looks like. How leadership evolves as responsibility grows. And why success ultimately has to be defined by something deeper than a title. Now retired from Disney, Susette is turning her attention toward family, herself, and the work that matters most to her - including a deep commitment to Autism in Entertainment, an organization helping people on the autism spectrum explore their creative passions, build community, develop their skills and pursue careers in entertainment.  Learn more at AutisminEntertainment.org/Ambition. There is decades' worth of wisdom in this conversation, but perhaps the most powerful lesson is also the simplest: You can build an extraordinary career without following someone else's blueprint. You can remain curious. Keep learning. Take the opportunity. Build the team. Invest in people. Change direction when you need to. And you can do it your own way. In This Episode A conversation about leadership, ambition, mentorship, risk, curiosity, reinvention, building exceptional teams, investing in yourself, navigating change, and creating a career - and ultimately a life that reflects what matters most to you.     About The Ambition Code The Ambition Code is a podcast about ambition, identity, reinvention and the choices that shape a life - through intimate conversations with people who have built extraordinary careers and lives on their own terms. ✨Your Life Is Waiting For You.✨ Credits Created, Hosted & Executive Produced by: Julie Kellman Reading Produced by: Love + Daydreams Music: @MobyGratis ✨A Love + Daydreams Production✨ Connect The Ambition Code Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and everywhere you get podcasts. Love + Daydreams Creative studio developing and producing podcasts, series, branded content and storytelling for every platform. loveanddaydreams.com For podcast, production, partnership and business inquiries: Love + Daydreams | loveanddaydreams.com

    Susette Hsiung + The Making of a Remarkable Leader
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

The Ambition Code is a premium podcast and conversation series about ambition, identity, career, reinvention, leadership, and the defining moments that shape who we become. Hosted by Julie Kellman Reading, the series features deeply human conversations with remarkable people who have built extraordinary lives across business, culture, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership, and personal evolution. At its core, The Ambition Code explores ambition as a force that moves through every part of life - how we start, how we rise, how we navigate the unexpected, and how we break through into what comes next. Through honest and powerful conversations filled with humanity, humor, hard-earned experience, and real-world advice, the podcast gives listeners the knowledge and clarity to build momentum and move forward with confidence through every pivot, transition, risk, reinvention, and defining moment in their lives. Built for those entering the workforce, entrepreneurs, creatives, leaders, and anyone standing at the edge of a new chapter, The Ambition Code asks the bigger questions: What would you tell the younger version of yourself? How do you keep moving when the path is unclear? What does your journey teach you about purpose, resilience, legacy, and becoming who you are meant to be? The Ambition Code is a guide to running through open doors, and a bold reminder that your life is waiting for you.

Information

  • Creator
    Julie Kellman Reading
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    19
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026
  • Show Website
    The Ambition Code