Ep.77- Call for Powerful Role Models with Janel Schalk

In this episode, Lia is joined by Janel Schalk, a cybersecurity genius. They discuss the significance of physical presence, shattering stereotypes, and reflect on body language cues that convey leadership and power. The discussion broadens to the need for representation of strong women, particularly within the IT and security fields. Role models who authentically embody their power while embracing their femininity. Movies like "Legally Blonde" and "Ocean's 8" serve as examples, sparking a thought-provoking conversation about the representation of women in powerful professions.

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Host: Lia Bliss on LinkedIn and Instagram

Guest: Janel Schalk on LinkedIn

Find Lia’s book here: Everything Is Your Fault by Lia Bliss

Podcast Manager: Kimberly Smith

Transcript

You’re listening to Master Your Bliss Life. Join Kiera Masters and Lia Bliss as they dive into the magical, mysterious, and mundane elements of life, helping you to master your purpose and find your bliss.

Lia:

Okay. Here we are, ladies and gentlemen. Hot guys and gals on their walks. I am here with Miss Janel Schalk. Is that how you pronounce your last name?

Janel:

Yep. That's it.

Lia:

Janel Schalk. We met in Las Vegas, the place where I meet all my best friends, apparently. And in preparation for the episode. I'm like, oh, yeah. We talk about manifesting and journaling and vision boards. And you said, I don't do any of that.

Janel:

I don't. I don't do any of that. No. 

Lia:

But what is your –

Janel:

I said I have a whiteboard, and I don't do anything.

Lia:

What is your, like, Best self care thing that you do. Like, we all have a thing.

Janel:

Just in general. Okay. Well, I'm actually starting. I have started something new, for my self care. So I have been not in the healthiest, definitely not in the healthiest physical shape of my life and been working through things, with, my parents’ health declining and things like that. So, the last couple of years haven't been the greatest from a mental health perspective either. So I've been really focusing for the last many months on mental health, like figuring out my feelings. And experiencing all of those feels about what my parents are going through and how I'm processing all of that, and I've really neglected my physical self. So this new thing, it's not, it's like my new lifestyle is what I'm calling it because I'm gonna have to keep doing it forever.

Lia:

Yes.

Janel:

I gain and retain weight very, very easily. And I am a couch like, I my life is It's like playing it's working, playing video games, and watching things that make me laugh or cry or whatever, you know, movies and those and stuff like that with my husband. So, none of those things are, like, conducive to good physical health. So I have started actually 6 days a week. I've got on my whiteboard a little workout schedule. So on Mondays Thursdays, I do arms and And I do rowing, and this is all in our basement. And then on yep. And on Tuesdays Fridays, I do, legs.

Lia:

Okay.

Janel:

And on Wednesday, I take, like, a 40-minute walk. And then on Saturdays, I take, like, an hour and a half, 2-hour walk.

Lia:

So you're doing your hot girl walk?

Janel:

I'm doing my hot girl walk on those days. Mhmm. And exploring, parts of our neighborhood and outside of our neighborhood, actually, as we walk, we end up doing about 5, 5 and a half miles on Saturdays. And so that's been really fun. We saw some cool Halloween decorations, this past Saturday. And so I like just focusing on that to get myself moving and I'm forcing myself to get up. So, like, my natural rhythm would be probably to wake up at, like, 1 or 2 and then go to bed at, like, 3 or 4 or 5. You can't do that while you're working, so I haven't been doing that. But, for a really long time. But I think if I was left to my own devices and was independently wealthy, I would just I would become like I a creature of the night. A night. Of the night. Yes. But obviously can't do that with working, so I have been getting up, you know, really right before my 1st meetings and everything of the day. But I've changed that. I'm now getting up around 6 or 7.

Janel:

Doing my workout. Getting energized for the day, which is actually helping me really get a lot of stuff done with work and around the house, which is I've found was an unexpected bonus, I guess, of starting this. And then I've also totally radically changed how I'm eating, so we're not, we used to live off of DoorDash and stuff like that because it's so so delicious and I would be so exhausted. Exactly. I'll be so exhausted at the end of every day, That I did not wanna cook meals. So we would be like, oh, let's get Mexican food. Oh, let's get Thai food. Oh, let's get whatever. You know, these amazing delicious things that we now have At our disposal because of DoorDash, and Uber Eats and all of those things. And so

Lia:

Sponsor us?

Janel:

Say that again?

Lia:

Or if DoorDash or Uber Eats wants to sponsor this episode, then–

Janel:

I know. I know. Yeah. Please. Feed us. But yeah. So I've kind of I've kind of cut back on that actually, and, pretty radically. And now we're doing grocery shopping a couple times a week so we can always have fresh fruit and vegetables and I'm doing, like, this Mediterranean-type of diet? So, basically, a whole foods diet? 

Lia:

Without the weird structure of the whole food.

Janel:

Yeah. Yeah. And It's like, okay, you can eat more than just tzatziki, and cucumbers, and tomatoes. Like, I'm allowing myself to eat the things that, I want to eat as long as they fit kind of the model of of the reason behind the Mediterranean diet, which is Like, 9 to 13 servings of vegetables a day and lean protein or high fat, like, omega 3 protein, like fish, like tuna and mackerel and stuff like that. So we're eating a lot of smoked salmon and other things.

Lia:

Oh yeah.

Janel:

But just like totally changing radically changing my physical experience from a day to day perspective is what I've been focusing on this month.

Lia:

There. I love it. Of all the times, I know. I just I have a personal trainer that I work with, and we've been doing kind of, like, maintenance all summer. And then she was like, Cool. We're gonna start with your, structured fat loss phase. And I'm like, woo. Over the holidays? 

Janel:

Yep.

Lia:

Okay.. I guess I have a lot of self control that I'm not aware of yet. But – 

Janel:

Yeah. You can do it. I know. My self control has been so so so bad, but something just like switched off in my head. Well, I'll tell you what it is. And hopefully hopefully, she'll never hear this podcast. But my mom and I were having a conversation. I was visiting her, just a a few weeks ago.

Lia:

Mhmm.

Janel:

And we were having a conversation around diabetes and prediabetes, or prediabetics. I'm not sure what the right word there is. I don't have diabetes. I'm not my doctor hasn't told me that I'm prediabetic. But she is prediabetic and I mean, she's in her seventies. You know, she's gone through a lot of stuff in her life too, from, like, a physical perspective. And we were just having this conversation around what causes diabetes in older folk, and we were having a disagreement about about that. And then she said something like, do you think because I'm I am overweight. And she said, do you think that you could lose a 100 pounds in a year? And I was like, yeah. Absolutely. And she is like basically said that she didn't think that it would be possible because of, like, metabolic syndrome and all other kinds of things. And so that I was like, I will be losing a 100 pounds in the next 12 months.

Lia:

She said bullshit and you said Bet.

Janel:

And that's and that's basically what I need to lose to be where I want to be, you know, well within kind of A healthy range. And for my height, I'm very tall.

Lia:

Yes. I’m a tall person and then I meet this like – So how tall are you? 6’2”?

Janel:

I'm 6’1” without shoes on. Yeah.

Lia:

Okay. So you were in heels when we met.

Janel:

Yeah. 

Lia:

I'm like, this Amazon. This goddess. Oh my god. Love that. I love tall women. I love. I always I like I love wearing platform shoes. I'm like, I wanna look at LeBron James when I walk in a room.

Janel:

That's right. That's right. Because you can see everything so much better, man. Like, you can just see, You can it's it's not it's like a totally different experience of the world than what I imagine people that are more average in height?

Lia:

Yes.

Janel:

I think experience, especially for women because we're surrounded by, like, big people all of the time. And you kinda go through life in a different I think in a different, In a different way when you can, like you just, like I I think about it sometimes when I'm walking through the airport and I can just see over everything.

Lia:

Yes.

Janel:

I don't even have to pay attention to, like, all the faces around me or all the bodies that are, like, surrounding you in the airport. Right? You can just look above it, And it's just like this I don't know. This weird sense of freedom, I guess. 

Lia:

Just space. Of being out there. 

Janel:

Yes. Yes.

Lia:

Of the people.

Janel:

Yes. Yes. But then you get on a plane, and it's like, oh, okay. Planes are built for shorter people.

Lia:

Well, I think there's just something about that, like, yes, you can see over everybody, but you are more visible. – Yes. – People just look at you more.

Janel:

That is definitely the case for me as well. And I actually think some of the professional success that I have is in part, not all. Right? But in part due to my height because I am a fairly, this is gonna sound like I'm blowing smoke up my own butt. But I I'm a fairly commanding presence in a room, I think.

Lia:

I'll say it. Yes. You have a huge presence, Great big energy. And we've talked a lot about this on this podcast specifically about people with presence. And that's something so attractive about someone who can who can hold both physical and energetic space with a strong commanding sense of, like, calm. Right? It's not it's like the pick me girls. Right? Women who take up a lot of space in the effort to get attention don't hold that that same big space as someone who can be calm and handled and have this majesty about them while right? While holding Yeah.

Janel:

No. I agree. I agree. It's like you don't need to be loud and crazy to have attention on you. Yes. You just it's, I think paying attention, it’s making eye contact. It's owning your physical space that you are taking up Instead of trying to pretend that you don't exist or instead of, like, on the 1, you know, one side of the spectrum or being, like, massively animated and, either physically or, you know, voice-wise and trying to demand that attention. There's this really nice sweet spot, I think, in the middle where You can, you people notice that you're there. – Mhmm. – Because of how you're existing in your space. I don't know how That's to describe.

Lia:

Beautifully well said. Yes. Because there's yes. You may take up Any amount of physical proximity. Right? Your body can't not exist. But then there's the And we can call it the auric field. We can call it the energy bubble. We can call it whatever we want. But there is this kind of zone around you that you can either shrink to try to make yourself smaller or you can expand to train, engage additional presence. Where it's like, okay. I'm just gonna be here. And it comes there are certain things. So I was talking to my boyfriend about this because he carries a ton of big masculine presence. And for women, I feel like when I think about, in my body taking up more space energetically, that showcases right through my heart space where it's like, I'm gonna throw my shoulders back. I'm gonna lead with my sternum. I'm gonna be in this space where my posture gets better, my head moves. I saw some lady do a… some lady, I will actually find who it was because she was absolutely brilliant.

Lia:

She talked about the subtle things that you can do to encourage, like, a belief in your leadership ability based on your physical appearance. One of them is the way that you hold your head. And if your eyes are always looking the same direction that your nose is looking, you tend to seem more calm. But if your eyes are, like, darting around and you're like and you know what I'm thinking about until…

Janel:

That's amazing. I'm like, they can't see me right now, but I'm kinda turning around in my office and looking where my nose is pointing. That's amazing.

Lia:

But it's more of a kind of thing. 

Janel:

Everybody do it. Everybody, like, lead with their nose. Look to your left, look to your right.

Lia:

Right. And then also lead lead with your sternum and to kind of –

Janel:

I love it.

Lia:

– Shoulders back, right, for women. But for men, that powerful center of gravity, I guess you can say, is a little bit lower.

Janel:

Yeah. I would agree with you completely. I've never thought about what we're talking about right now, but everything that you're saying is like insane.

Lia:

Right. And all of a sudden you're like, oh, yeah. That makes a lot of sense.

Janel:

It does makes like, men lead with yeah. Like, well, they show a lot of their power through, like, their legs and how they're displaying their legs, For example, like, you've got, like, super spreaders. You've got, like, the super spreaders with your legs, like, 9 million years away from them on each side. You've got, like–

Lia:

That's super cool.

Janel:

People that, like, sit back and cross at the ankle. You've got The knee crossers of 2 different types. You know, you've got you've got all this stuff. So, yeah, you're right.

Lia:

I can see you having, like, a strong core Yeah. Situation. Yeah. We're talking about here. That BDE for real for real. Yeah. Right? And it's, and so there's that presence that you don't have to, right, look down on someone, but to be  –

Janel:

Oh, no. Never.

Lia:

Comfortable and aware, I think.

Janel:

Yeah.

Lia:

So my my youngest my youngest, my only son is Almost 10. And he took yoga for a long time because they had, like, a kid's yoga class when I would go to yoga. And the body awareness that it gave him, I think, helps him have more presence. Just to, like sense. Right? Because those the In the teenage years when you, like, lose control of the proportions of your – Yeah. – And you're like awkward.

Janel:

Yeah. Oh, my word. Am I?

Lia:

You lose that sense of, like, Calm presence. But yes. Absolutely. Absolutely. And and I love what you said about, like, Being a woman, being willing to take up space, not just physically, but also energetically, and having the confidence to do so. We sat, we sat next to each other at a fabulous chef's kiss fabulous women's Kind of –

Janel:

 Women in Technology breakfast. Yeah.

Lia:

Yes. Women in Tech. And it was so fun. And afterwards, I was there with my dad boss, and he made a comment about how a lot of the women on the panel were wearing pink. And this was definitely Yeah. It was right

Janel:

after the Barbie. Yeah. Yeah.

Lia:

Yeah. It was and I told him, I said, yeah. Because Barbie said we could.

Janel:

That's right.

Lia:

Because Barbie said we could, and we I well, I talked about it a little bit afterwards that it's like yes. The permission to remind each other that we need to take, and we are allowed to take that space.

Janel:

Yes. And to be feminine, and to still have value and worth and a voice and a seat at the table.

Lia:

Yes. I was at a legal conference And so you and I met, and then 2 weeks later, I went to another conference in Las Vegas, and it was a legal conference. And the women in tech versus the women in legal was, I would say, a night and day difference. I think this is my hypothesis. This is the Church of Lia. I don't know if this is true or not, but It seemed as if women in legal have been have been doing it longer. They seem to have had more of a foundation of femininity than women in tech do. I feel like expanses of women in tech have been that there's a little bit more fight to be had, and it's still a little bit of a rocky foundation for femininity in women in tech.

Janel:

Okay. 

Lia:

Versus…

Janel:

That's interesting. Okay. Well, I'm not I don't know a whole lot of lawyers. I have family, that 1, 1 or 2 of them are lawyers, but I you know, that's it. And, I want you know, it's kinda like we don't have a feminine rock star, like, movie person that is in technology. Whereas, they had, like, Elle Woods from From Legally Blonde, which I freaking love those movies. So I am I am a goth.I wear, like, I wear all black.

Lia:

I've As I say, I saw this

Janel:

Yeah, witchy sort of. Love. I yeah. Like, I'm not an overtly pink person, but I very much embrace my femininity in my own way, I guess. So you don't, you can still be very feminine without being chock full of colors. But but I love, I absolutely adore Elle Woods and the whole character and everything because it showed, it was like I'm not gonna say it's the OG Barbie because Barbie was along was around way before, but from a movie perspective. Right? Like.

Lia:

Yes.

Janel:

Like, it showed that you could be extremely intelligent. Mhmm. Really fun to be around. Really passionate about a lot of interesting things including, like, really, like, traditionally female things. Yes. And and we can have a whole conversation again and that's some other time about gender and all of that kind of stuff. – Right. – But, you know, these traditionally female type of things and be really colorful. And you don't have to lose yourself, you know, like, she went through this process of kind of losing herself for a while while she was trying to be what she thought she needed to be in order to be this person she thought she needed to become. And then, you know, that discovery of, like, no, I can still be myself. I can still be super happy. I can still be bubbly. I can still wear pink and crazy outfits and Dress my dog up and all of these things.

Lia:

Mhmm.

Janel:

And I can still be the biggest badass in the room and, you know, be like this amazing lawyer and this amazing friend and everything. And I think that that's so incredible, but we don't really have and I'm the first thing that popped to my mind, and I love Sandra Bullock. I I think she's an amazing actress. And I actually really like this movie, but I think the movie is called Net. And she is, basically, she's a computer person who doesn't leave her home ever. And she is very much a shut-in. She is very, very smart and very good at what she does, but she doesn't have that. She's not she's not expressing herself in any way other than being basically terrified of the world around her and not wanting to interact with it. And that's like what we have to that's that's our role model in technology are these little hackers that sit in their basements and they don't leave the world. Right? And so I feel like we really need to have these instead of in movies where the beautiful feminine woman is always, like, being saved by the man or whatever, like, we should have really strong female – Yeah. – characters and, like, all of these different types of professions, technology, whatever, that really own their space and own what they're doing, and how they're doing it, and still own that they are themselves, if that makes sense. I feel like I'm rambling a lot.

Lia:

But No. No. Because the stereotype rate, it's like this the hero, right? It's a spy movie. Right? You've got the hero man. You've got the woman that gets saved, and then you got the guy in the chair, right, as they say in Spider Man. And it's like, them, that is really the thing. The only one I can think of, speaking of Sandra Bullock, is Ocean's 8. And Rihanna plays, Rihanna, queen of the universe, plays, like, a hacker, and she's, like, their tech chick.

Lia:

But it's such a small role. Right? It's not like Legally Blonde or Barbie or something where it's like, this profession has a strong, powerful, a feminine female character who has to go through the hero's journey. And truly, it's more of, like, the female hero's journey. It's like rejecting femininity, going out into the world to try and embrace the masculine, realizing femininity was the answer all along, and coming back around to it.

Janel:

Right. Right.

Lia:

And there's – Interesting. – There's not that in technology for women in a there's It's just yeah. There's not there's not one.

Janel:

She does actually save herself in the net, so I gotta give her a little bit more credit than what I'm saying. But I still don't feel like she's not –

Lia:

No one wants to be her.

Janel:

– like a person. It's not that she's a woman. She's like a per I don't know. I don't know what I'm saying, but I feel like it would be amazing to have something like an Elle Woods for IT people, for security people. Somebody who's just really embracing their woman.

Lia:

Yes, I think I mean…

Janel:

And all the amazing things that come with that.

Lia:

There's a lot I think if we I mean, I I live on LinkedIn as we know. So the person that comes to mind is Allie Miller. I don't know if you follow her on LinkedIn.

Janel:

I don't.

Lia:

She is fantastic. Everyone should go follow her. She is an AI influencer and has been on AI for years and years years. But she's very young. She did I think during the lockdown, she just did, like, digital nomad stuff and is a consultant for technology. And it's like, oh, yes. Here's a real life person that we can idolize, but it is… Yes. There hasn't been a cultural shift in the technology space yet for the celebration of the classically effeminate woman.

Janel:

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Which I'd love to see that.

Lia:

I'd love to see it, but also, like, hot goths that I love that.

Janel:

Hot goths. Hot goths. Hot goths near you.

Lia:

Hot goth. Near you.

Janel:

That's funny.

Lia:

And then you said something about, like, being a gamer. I'm like, damn, she's so cool. Just this hot goth gamer girl, badass boss lady. Okay. Put that on your next business card. 

Janel:

Yep. Do you like playing video games?

Lia:

I have never I had I had some bad experiences. I'm not big into being –

Janel:

Oh, no. A bad experience with a video game?

Lia:

Oh, just with the men who played the video games.

Janel:

Okay. Well, there is that. I mean I

Lia:

think it's great.

Janel:

I actually end up usually playing, like, male characters in video games, and I don't have to deal with any of that. It's when you're playing like an online game with a whole bunch of people that are also playing that game, and then you're playing like a female, like but that doesn't, doesn't that suck that you have to play a male character to not just be bothered and –

Lia:

To mask your gender.

Janel:

And yeah. Yeah. I start I actually have started playing more female characters now in video games, and I'm really enjoying it. Because I think I had to figure out I think I had to believe in myself before I could, like, put it out there that I was a woman playing video games, if that makes sense. Like like, I've been playing video games for, well over 3 decades, three and a half, 4 decades. And I had to, Man, it took me a while to figure out, that I was cool with, like, being known as a woman playing a video game, I guess. Because I didn't want I I didn't wanna be treated any differently.

Lia:

Yes.

Janel:

While I was playing it and I didn't want people to be like, Oh, she's a girl, so she can't do this. Or, oh, she's not gonna be able to DPS something because she should be a healer because she's a girl. Like,

Lia:

Right? 

Janel:

You know stuff like that. 

Lia:

I've played enough Dungeons and Dragons that I know the stereotypes are written.

Janel:

They're they're nice. I played Pathfinder, which is just like drug Dungeons and Dragons every Sunday with my group of friends here, and my husband.

Lia:

Incredible. See, and that's, I would say that I have been known to publicly denounce video games that I only because I've had… So my ex-fiance basically was like, I don't need to help around the house or have a job. I've just do video games. It was one of those. So I've always been, like –

Janel:

That’s different.

Lia:

Right. That's just a loser.

Janel:

Yeah. But it's Well, I mean, that's definitely somebody who needs to do some some work in different areas or maybe have somebody help them do some work in different areas. I don't know. But Yeah. I mean, in the beginning. There are like, when some new games come out, like, there are there are things that that suffer on my side, but But I always show up to work. I always bathe myself and brush my teeth and show up to work.

Lia:

And that's what's important. But I think the representation of it, like I mean, okay. If we're now we if we now have a sliding scale of, like, Legal being the most female inclusive and video games being the least female inclusive.

Janel:

Would just not, I would not have guessed that legal was so inclusive like that. That is really impressive.

Lia:

I think there are more women lawyers than there are male lawyers in the United States. 

Janel:

That's amazing. 

Lia:

I'd have to Google that stat, but It was it was a very interesting conference. The it was wow. Yeah. And then I go to I go to Comic Cons, and I go to all the things and talk about the difference the difference.

Janel:

Yeah.

Lia:

Right? And it's all these things. Right? Like, cosplay is not consent, where we're dealing with the whole potential horror.

Janel:

A lot of I do cosplay. Yeah. So I I understand that. Yeah. I go to Dragon Con. Well, We we went to Dragon Con every year until 2020, and then, I haven't been ready to be back in, like, big, big, big crowds like that, but we're going we're gonna start again next year. So we did take 4 years off, I guess, it turned out.

Lia:

But You what do you cosplay as? Oh my gosh. You are the most complex person. Oh, I was. Oh, please.

Janel:

We caught well, let's see. I did a Victorian Poison Ivy. Oh. So I made –

Lia:

Oh my god.

Janel:

I made I I made a big, a big outfit and corset and this huge skirt and this Great. Like Ivy. And I had, you know, Ivy’s all over it and and everything, and I put it all together and I was really, really proud of it. And then No one knew what I was trying to do, so I was pretty disappointed in that one. One.

Lia:

It's a time warp.

Janel:

I like coming up with my own creatures and creations, so, My I made this kinda warrior outfit for my husband and which matched, this, like, fire. Like, I was, like, a fire queen or something. So I made this giant, like, Fire outfit. I know they won't be able to see it, but I can I can show you a picture of it? But, you know, it's stuff like that. And then I do a lot of silly things like, oh my gosh. I just blanked on the name of it. Where you're It's the alternate history. Why am I just blanking on this name?

Lia:

Yeah. Alternate history.

Janel:

It's well, yeah. But there's, like, a name for it. It doesn't whatever. I'm I'm blanking on the name, but you dress up as if you are from A couple 100 years ago or a 100 years ago, but technology has evolved. Steampunk. Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Steampunk. It's been I've been talking all day long, so I my brain is, like, empty at this point.

Lia:

So, like, we're just talking about mush now.

Janel:

Yeah. Exactly. So, I do some well steampunky things, and then for next year we've got this idea where I'm gonna be the queen of hearts, Or excuse me, the queen of spades because it has to be gothic.

Lia:

Is that pink black? Yeah.

Janel:

It has black. And, and my husband is gonna be the knave of spades. Like, if you're familiar with Tim Burton's, Alice in Wonderland movie. The goofy guy who's the Knave of Hearts. He's got the eye patch, you know, and he's like obsessed with bigness. Yes. And so I'm gonna do a spade version for my husband for that kinda character. And then I'm gonna do a a queen of spades costume for me. Inspired by Inspired a lot by, by the Tim Burton type of feel, but also taking inspiration from a few different few different sources. But it'll be, you know, a big big costume with lots of spades. I'm gonna have a big staff with a spade on the top and everything. You can't see it, but I've got the PVC pipes in the corner of my office here to to start working on the staff.

Lia:

That is so and where can I find you when I need to see this in person?

Janel:

Oh, well, it'll be at DragonCon in Atlanta, Georgia next year. It's –

Lia:

Oh oh, you big deal deal. Oh, in Atlanta. If you want to put a Dragon Con in Atlanta, anybody, check out the queen of spades.

Janel:

Yes. And I've done like an ice queen. I guess there's a lot of queens in the things. I like to feel powerful, guess when I'm in my costumes. But that's the kind of stuff that that we do.

Lia:

Oh my gosh. This, I could talk to you literally for the rest of the day. No. I don't need to work anymore. This is it. So fun. Funny. Now this I don't even know how to wrap this up in more in so much of the sense of, like, don't judge a book by its cover. Every single person you meet is the most interesting person you'll ever meet.

Janel:

I agree. I have this well, I have this incredible business idea, but I'm not gonna share it so that nobody does it. But I think, like, being able to just hear people speak about things that they are really interested in is such an incredibly thing and a fascinating, like, premise for a podcast or for anything. For a book, like, just a collection of random people. Like, if you went out to random people in the city and we're just like, hey, spend half an hour and just, like, talk with me. And then you make, like, an anthology book about it. This is something that you should do. You're like, you should make you should make an anthology book about people's random stories and conversations. It's like, that New Yorker who made, who made a documentary. It's on I think it's on Max. A New Yorker documentary. But he just goes around, and talks to, like, all kinds of random people, and it's a series. And he's kinda silly and, a little awkward and all of this. And I cannot remember the name of it. I'm not very good at

Lia:

One of my favorite ones on Instagram right now is, like, the meet cutes of New York. He'll just walk through with someone and be like, you guys a couple? Tell me the story of how you met. And I love that. I love that. I think I was at, I think it was actually at the tech conference I met you at. I was talking to somebody, and it was like, oh, how did you meet your wife? And he was like, “Oh, online, like, on Tinder”. And so much of the meet cute stories are going away because of the digital space.

Janel:

Oh. My boyfriend and

Lia:

I have, like, The world's greatest meet cute, in my opinion. I won't share. I've shared it many times. But long story short, I was on a date with someone else. He was the waiter. I picked him up.

Janel:

Oh.

Lia:

And we didn't, and then we didn't date for 10 years.

Janel:

Oh, wow. Okay. So it took a minute.

Lia:

Took a long time. Yeah. – Yeah. – So but though I love the meet cute stories. But, anyway, we could do this all day. We are wrapping

Janel:

up our You gotta wrap up.

Lia:

We're wrapping up our walks. What is, if someone wanted to find you, what's the best way for them to find you? Instagram, LinkedIn?

Janel:

Oh, on LinkedIn. Yeah. I don't do social media besides that. So –

Lia:

So there's no one to witness Your magical creations, except for people who attended.

Janel:

I've shown up in DragonCon videos that other people have made, but that's it.

Lia:

Oh, talk about FOMO. If you don't go, you won't see it.

Janel:

That's right.

Lia:

Incredible. I love it. Well, thank you so much for being here today.

Janel:

Thank you.

Lia:

We'll chat again soon. You're just right down the street, so we just hang out all the time.

Janel:

Yeah. That would be great. Okay. I think it does the show that I was calling is “How to with John Wilson.” Check it out. It's really interesting. I think that you would find it really interesting and maybe your listeners would too. It's on, HBO, which I think is now Max.

Janel:

And it's just all these interesting encounters that are just random, with this inter– you know, odd odd kind of fellow that talks about stuff and, I think it would be I think it would be fun. Yeah.

Lia:

Cool. Alright.

Janel:

Well, thanks so much for having me.

Lia:

Of course. This episode, like all episodes, is sponsored by Lunar Herbals. Check out some mushroom mocha. It's about that time of year where we need some mushroom mocha in our lives. So check that out. Love you all so much. I'll see you real soon. Bye.

You have been listening to Master Your Bliss Life. Make sure to check out the show notes for any relevant links and follow Kiera and Lia on Instagram and LinkedIn.