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Shamelessly Ambitious I Helping Ambitious Women Prevent Burnout + Create Nervous System First Success in Business, Motherhood, & Life
Shamelessly Ambitious is an honest, grounding, and vulnerable podcast for ambitious, emotionally intelligent women who are done proving themselves, tired of living in constant high-functioning burnout, and craving a life and business that actually feel good.
Hosted by Ash McDonald—therapist, nervous-system-first business mentor, and speaker this show blends clinical expertise with lived experience to deliver nervous system tools, embodied strategies, and radical permission so you can expand your capacity, root into emotional steadiness, and build sustainable success that supports your whole life.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, stretched too thin, caught in productivity guilt, or stuck running on stress, this podcast meets you where you are—with therapeutic insights, embodied practices, and heartfelt stories that create real shifts. Whether you’re navigating motherhood, entrepreneurship, or the messy middle of redefining success, each episode helps you slow down, regulate, and return to a felt sense of safety in your body.
With over a decade of experience at the intersection of therapy and leadership, Ash pulls back the curtain on what really works—offering grounded guidance you can apply in real life.
What you’ll hear:
- Honest conversations about burnout recovery, nervous system regulation, and redefining success
- Somatic tools, meditations, and practices that build inner safety and capacity
- Stories of motherhood, mom-life, ambition, and the courage to create a life and business that feel rich and real
If you’re asking the following questions, you’re in the right place:
- How do I stop tying my worth to productivity?
- How do I know if I’m experiencing high-functioning burnout and what do I do about it?
- How do I balance motherhood and leadership without losing myself?
- How do I calm my body when I feel overwhelmed or overstimulated?
This is the podcast for when you’re ready to reclaim peace, expand what you can hold, and create success that doesn’t cost you yourself. Tune in and take the next step toward a regulated, rooted, and deeply fulfilling life.
Shamelessly Ambitious I Helping Ambitious Women Prevent Burnout + Create Nervous System First Success in Business, Motherhood, & Life
139. How I Shift My Perspective For A Rich & Present Life
Life is all about perspective && that’s exactly what we’re diving into today. If you would’ve asked me a few years ago if it would be possible to pack up our three children and hit the road to do what we are most passionate about — exploring, adventuring, and traveling — I would have said you were crazy because that would simply be impossible.
Fast forward, my son asked me what I could do over and over again and not get tired of, I answered with traveling and exploring new places ((he answered with playing video games omg)) and here we are — newly nomads (again) and let me tell you, it’s totally possible. It’s all about perspective. Is there something you’re holding yourself back from because you’re in need of a perspective shift?
THE JUICY HIGHLIGHTS:
• Feeling all the feels during our last day in our Texas home
• How massive of an impact our time in Costa Rica was for me personally & professionally
• The shifts I made in my business to sustain nomadic life
• Looking back on life and reminiscing on how hard I thought things were in the moment — LOL @ current me
• Shifting my perspective for a rich & present life
THE EPISODE BREAKDOWN:
[0:42] Sitting in my beautiful office to record for the very last time
[1:35] The meaning behind the decor in my office & home
[3:00] Emerging as a new woman in Costa Rica
[3:13] Making major pivots to sustain my nomadic business structure
[4:00] Becoming my highest self & the universe letting everything fall into place
[6:50] Insane procrastination… Less than 24 hours and I haven’t packed a single thing
[7:40] What my neighbor said to me at our recent garage sale that sparked this conversation
[8:33] Realizing how life truly is all about perspective (I’d love to go back to the trenches we thought we were in with only one child)
[10:10] Hitting a plateau in my health journey & avoiding discouragement
[10:50] Anything is good when it's good... Same for marriage: My bestie one day and mortal enemy the next
[12:19] The gift of perspective & realizing we aren’t always ready for what we desire
[14:18] What happens when you live in a "when I, then I" mindset
[15:40] Being intentional to create a rich & present life NOW
[16:26] Questions from my son to finesse more video game time
[17:25] Some questions to ask yourself about perspective
MORE ABOUT ASH
I am the definition of duality — I swear like a sailor and break rules like it’s my job, but I also hold incredible space for my clients and work my ass off to help them achieve the success they’re after. But I'm also here for the non-preneur woman, too. My background in counseling gives me a unique perspective on what it means to show up, serve, & create connection for those who feel like they've never belonged before.
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• 1:1 Mentorship
FREE & LOW TICKET OFFERS
• The Passive Program Suite
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