Best Cher Hale Podcasts (2024)

1
Pause & Explore: Rediscovering Your Existing Resources 4:21

7M ago4:21

4:21

Erica and India discuss their intentions for the shows Pause on the Play® and Flaunt Your Fire®. After nearly 300 combined episodes, they pause to explore how to use them as continued resources and how to stay in the loop about future projects. Ready to dive deeper? Keep in touch and find out what we’re up to at pauseontheplay.com…

1
Decolonizing Health and Nutrition with Dalina Soto 50:05

8M ago50:05

50:05

Diet culture is everywhere. What we consider healthy. What we consider unhealthy. The foods that we’re taught are good for us and the ones that we’re told to stay away from. How we think about food, health, and wellness is shaped by a culture steeped in white supremacy culture. There is so much more nuance available to us around food, health, welln…

1
Accidental Entrepreneurship, Success, and Owning Your Values with Amanda McKinney 36:21

8M ago36:21

36:21

So often, our goals and the way we feel about success come from what we’re supposed to want, what we’re supposed to do, and how we’re supposed to act and feel once we achieve those goals. But being truly satisfied with our achievements means defining success outside of the “shoulds.” Amanda McKinney joins Erica for a replay from a live conversatio…

1
Tokenism and Gaslighting at Work with Gabi Day 38:21

9M ago38:21

38:21

How do your identities impact the way you show up at work and how you interact with work culture? How we move through the world is influenced by white supremacy, colorism, and capitalism, and it can have profound impacts on our working life and our physical and mental health. And while none of us can extract ourselves entirely from these systems, i…

1
Bringing the Body Back to the Whole Self with María-Victoria Albina 51:24

9M ago51:24

51:24

Have you ever felt like you betrayed yourself? We live in a culture that teaches us to forsake our own wants in favor of serving others. We operate from a place of “I’m fine,” and get stuck in functional freeze, even when from the outside it appears we’re successful. María-Victoria Albina joins Erica for a discussion about resentment and obligation…

1
Letting Go to Make Space 16:36

10M ago16:36

16:36

As seasons shift, our thoughts may turn to growth and transformation. And it’s worth taking a pause to consider what you might need to let go of in order to continue to grow. Erica shares her thoughts on releasing the ideas and narratives you no longer want to hold, creating space to grow, and affirmations to support you along the way. In this disc…

1
Letting Go of Perfectionism in Goal-Setting with Betsaida Lebron 44:51

11M ago44:51

44:51

Goal-setting can bring out the perfectionist in many of us. When our goals don’t account for our imperfect humanity, it leads to burnout and feeling like a failure. Getting stuck in the mentality that there is one course of action or one right way to do things doesn’t honor what we learn and experience along the way, even when things don’t go to pl…

1
Your Values Come with You: Shaping Company and Brand Values and Culture 24:59

12M ago24:59

24:59

Your values are the foundation for every single thing that you do. Yet sometimes, we think we have to leave those values at the door when we go to work, whether in our own businesses or as team members for others. But your values come with you wherever you go. Erica and India discuss rethinking how your values show up in your business, getting expl…

1
Capacity, Responsibility, and Community in Shifting Systems 19:53

12M ago19:53

19:53

Doing the work of shifting systems toward equity and equality can take a massive toll physically, emotionally, and spiritually. It’s easy to feel like you’re not doing enough when you’re working against systems that existed long before you. But it’s important to remember that it’s not your debt to pay. Erica shares a reminder about the debts that w…

1
More Than Labels: Aligning Your Clients with Your Values with Cher Hale 24:04

1y ago24:04

24:04

When you’re working toward creating more equity in your business, it can be tempting to use demographic labels to diversify your client list and work with underrepresented communities. But assessing a potential client for fit is about more than labels. Guest host Cher Hale discusses why she chose to shift her business to working exclusively with un…

1
Building Your Thought Leadership in the Speaking Industry with Danielle Tucker 46:08

1y ago46:08

46:08

Getting involved in the speaking industry is one way to build your thought leadership and support yourself or your business. But that journey isn’t the same for everyone. There is more work that needs to be done to make the speaking industry more equitable. Danielle Tucker joins Erica for a conversation about the speaking industry, building thought…

1
Leadership Is An Action, Not A Trait 21:21

1y ago21:21

21:21

We tend to think of being a leader as something someone is or isn’t. But a concept of leadership that focuses only on the individual misses the inherently social nature of being a leader. Erica discusses what it means to be in leadership, why leadership is social, and why leaders must consider the collective whole. In this discussion: How the commo…

1
Towards Liberation: Building a Business Based on Your Values with Jeffrey Shiau 52:31

1y ago52:31

52:31

While many business owners want to do business differently, there is no one-size-fits-all checklist for building a business that supports collective liberation. But there is plenty of shame, guilt, and expectation around how to do business. Yet shame and guilt can actually stifle our growth and perfection is neither a reasonable goal nor expectatio…

1
Beyond Acknowledgment: Connecting with the Land and Environment 33:45

1y ago33:45

33:45

Many of us live lives that are disconnected from the land and our environment. The process of learning about the traditional stewards of the land you’re on, and honoring the environment can have impacts that go beyond land acknowledgments. India joins Erica for a discussion about acknowledging and honoring the land, what Erica has learned about gar…

1
Embodiment, Agency, and Choicefulness with María-Victoria Albina 52:04

1y ago52:04

52:04

Labels like co-dependent, perfectionist, and people-pleaser get used constantly. We’re told we shouldn’t be those things. But for many of us, those labels stem from survival skills we learned in our early lives. And reliance on labels can actually undermine our ability to heal from these behavioral patterns. María-Victoria Albina joins Erica for a …

1
Word Choice Is an Opportunity to Match Your Impact with Your Intent 20:16

1y ago20:16

20:16

There are words that we use so often that we rarely stop to consider the impact that they can have. The word but is often used when we discuss things like Black History Month. “It’s important but, it’s the shortest month of the year…” The word but negates what comes before it. When you use the word but you may be negating the lived experiences and …

1
Celebrating Black Innovation and Joy in Black History Month 28:09

1y ago28:09

28:09

Black History Month often curtails the true scope of Black history to a few key periods of time, but Black history is much more than the history of enslavement or the Civil Rights Movement. Black history is full of innovation and joy, and it’s being made all around us. Erica and India discuss the importance of recognizing and celebrating Black joy …

1
Community and Interdependence as Counterbalances to White Supremacy 18:09

1y ago18:09

18:09

Getting clarity on how you want to be in community–whether one-on-one, in a group, or taking time to process on your own before coming back to the group–helps create interdependence by fostering a community of choice that benefits that collective whole. Erica digs into showing up as yourself and how fostering interdependence creates counterbalances…

1
Biases in Health Care and Medical Gaslighting: A Conversation with Andrea Nakayama 55:16

1y ago55:16

55:16

Systemic biases can have profound impacts on how we receive medical care and support. Members of marginalized communities may be brushed off, misunderstood, misdiagnosed, and mistreated within the medical system, sometimes with catastrophic effects.Andrea Nakayama joins Erica for a discussion about bias, medical gaslighting, a systems approach to h…

1
Reflection Pause: Where We Are and Where We've Been 44:52

1y ago44:52

44:52

A new year is often a time of reflecting on the past and planning for the future, but it’s important to remember that where we are right now matters. And as content creators, it matters that you share what’s going on with you and not forget yourself in the process of interviewing others or providing value through teaching. Erica and India get toget…

1
Charging Your Worth as a WOC and Being an Imperfect Ally 1:12:01

1+ y ago1:12:01

1:12:01

“Charge your worth.” It’s a common refrain, but it can carry a different weight for members of the BIPOC Community in ways that make it difficult to resonate with. And unpacking it isn’t always an easy process. In this replay from Elaine Lou Cartas’s Color Your Dreams podcast, Erica, India, and Elaine unpack what it means to charge your worth as wo…

1
A Broader Perspective on the Beginner's Mindset with Parker Stevenson 56:42

1+ y ago56:42

56:42

Sometimes it feels like you have to know everything. Or at least pretend that you do. It takes self-awareness and vulnerability to admit that we don’t know what we don’t know. But adopting a beginner’s mindset, and reminding ourselves that there is always something out there to learn, keeps us open to opportunities and connections along our journey…

1
Independence vs Interdependence: What's the difference? 44:45

1+ y ago44:45

44:45

In the United States, we live with a cultural narrative of hyper-independence. We make it on our own. But there is nothing we do that isn’t in some way supported by someone else. The often invisible labor of others allows us to perpetuate the lie that we are independent. Humans are interdependent by nature and communities can’t exist without interd…

1
Examining Interdependence vs Individualism 19:50

1+ y ago19:50

19:50

Participating in modern society is interdependent by nature. But in the United States, individualism and exceptionalism are part of the dominant narrative of how we relate to success, failure, and each other. Erica discusses how the winter holidays can be a useful illustration of how interdependence and individualism show up for us in school, work,…

1
We Are On Pause Until 2023. 3:34

1+ y ago3:34

3:34

If you’ve taken in the last few episodes, you may be aware that inside The Pause on the Play® Community, we have a curated exploration called Create Space to Take Care of Yourself. This month, we’re leading by example and taking some time to care for ourselves, so the podcast will be on pause until January 3, 2023. In the meantime, dig into the arc…

1
Reconsider the Holidays and Social Programming 48:01

1+ y ago48:01

48:01

Fall and winter holidays are steeped in traditions for many of us, from Thanksgiving turkey to Christmas lights. Whether they came into our lives with our families of origin or through later relationships, it’s worth considering how those traditions do or don’t align with our values, and if we can reshape them, or shape new traditions that honor ou…

1
Pausing Is A Privilege 34:33

1+ y ago34:33

34:33

Creating space to pause is vital to our well-being and to the ability to make the impact we want to create by participating meaningfully in change. But pausing isn’t accessible in the same ways to everyone. In many ways, the ability to pause is a privilege. Erica and India discuss the intersection of pausing and privilege, with some key examples of…

1
Creating Space To Take Care Of Yourself 53:43

1+ y ago53:43

53:43

Many of us struggle to give ourselves time and space that isn’t taken up with work, family, friends, television, music, anything to distract us from silence. But reconsidering your normal, and living with your values and the impact you want to create, takes time. It requires that we learn how to get comfortable with stillness, and to care for ourse…

1
Autonomy, Personal Ownership, and Consent: A Conversation With Shannon Collins 1:04:53

1+ y ago1:04:53

1:04:53

While many of us are familiar with discussing consent in the context of sexuality, consent shows up in so many other areas of our lives. Consent may seem like a simple yes or no, but there are layers to what makes up true consent, and access to it can be a privilege. Shannon Collins interviews Erica about how consent shows up in everything from hea…

1
Decolonizing Time and Relearning Indigenous Cyclical Time with Ixchel Lunar 52:35

1+ y ago52:35

52:35

Many of us are accustomed to viewing time as a resource we never seem to have enough of. The pace of our lives pushes us to constantly “make the most” of our time. That pace has a profound impact on us physically, emotionally, and spiritually. But other ways of relating to time, outside the colonial paradigm, are possible. Ixchel Lunar and Erica di…

1
How To Reconsider Imposter Syndrome 19:48

1+ y ago19:48

19:48

People talk about imposter syndrome all the time, in relation to how they feel at work or in social situations or just in life. But do you know where the term comes from? Erica revisits episode three of the podcast and gives her perspective on what imposter syndrome really is and how it can show up in our lives. In this discussion: The popular conc…

1
Profit Without Oppression: Getting into Nuance with Kim Crayton 1:15:52

1+ y ago1:15:52

1:15:52

There has been a lot of conversation about dismantling systems of oppression over the last few years. But too often, this conversation stalls before turning into action. It’s not enough to have language to explain concepts and systems of supremacy, disrimination, and exploitation or to simply take in information. Kim Crayton joins Erica for a wide-…

1
Ditching Business-As-Usual with Racheal Cook 54:27

1+ y ago54:27

54:27

Business and work culture are always changing. And with more people pursuing entrepreneurship, whether they’re following their passion or because running their own business is the only way to juggle work and life, there are more opportunities for us to impact how we do work. To create the change we want to witness, and cultures that are more inclus…

1
What We Learned About Creating Partnership Programs with Laura Sprinkle 1:10:19

1+ y ago1:10:19

1:10:19

Many of us are familiar with affiliate partnership programs and how they can help market our businesses and grow our audiences. And partner programs can be an appealing way to bring your offer to a wider range of people without having to use marketing methods that aren’t in alignment with your values. But advice about building an affiliate program …

1
Getting Comfortable Breaking the Rules of Business with Brooke Monaghan 42:47

1+ y ago42:47

42:47

When it comes to our businesses, there are a lot of rules and “right” ways to do things that we’re told are just how it’s done if we want to succeed. But it doesn’t have to be that way. You can choose to do things differently. Brooke Monaghan joins Erica to discuss how she shows up in her business, reconsiders her normal, and rejects the rules in o…

1
Values Hijacking, Capitalism, and Systemic Change with Tara McMullin 1:06:45

1+ y ago1:06:45

1:06:45

Many of us are aware of how our business values can get co-opted by the values and structures of capitalism. What may be less obvious is how our personal values can also be influenced by capitalist thinking. Capitalism is more than an economic system. Capitalism is a fundamental part of our politics, culture, and how we navigate our personal and pr…

1
Ancestral Trauma, Inner Child Wounds, and Healing with Evelyn Huynh 45:23

1+ y ago45:23

45:23

Every one of us has an inner child, where our subconscious minds store emotional experiences from childhood. And those experiences and emotions shape the lens we bring into the present. For members of the BIPOC community, inner child wounds often intersect with the ancestral and generational traumas of the community. Healing is not easy work, espec…

1
Legal Agreements: Integrating Your Values and Creating Consent with Autumn Witt Boyd 51:11

1+ y ago51:11

51:11

Most of us understand the concept of consent when it comes to bodily autonomy and permission. We know what it means to agree to or decline physical interaction. But consent has implications in many areas of our lives and businesses, and it can become confusing to consider how a broader definition of consent impacts the actions we take in relationsh…

1
Conscious Communication in Life and Work with Elaine Lou Cartas 1:00:33

1+ y ago1:00:33

1:00:33

Communication in the workplace can be fraught. Bringing together groups of people with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives can create situations ripe for conflict and miscommunication. But we can shape workplace cultures where people feel witnessed, appreciated, and respected. Elaine Lou Cartas joins Erica and India for a discussio…

1
Misconceptions of Slang, Tone Policing, and TikTok with EK Powell 57:39

1+ y ago57:39

57:39

Tone policing is a way of invalidating what someone is saying because of how they’re saying it. It goes beyond literal tone–too loud, too brash, too animated–and extends to using slang or African American Vernacular English and beyond. It often assumes that the speaker is uneducated, rendering their opinions or experiences as null and void. EK Powe…

1
Diverse Perspectives: Reconsidering the Meaning of Success 46:27

1+ y ago46:27

46:27

Success is difficult to define. Everyone has their own take on what it means, and there is often a difference between how we think about success and how it shows up in reality. India and Erica discuss how they have defined success in the past, how the meaning of success has evolved, and share the perspectives of members of the Pause on the Play® Co…

1
Integrated Values, Grounded Growth, and Marketing with Amy Jacobus 45:40

1+ y ago45:40

45:40

When you decide that you want to make an impact and create change with your brand and your platform, you have to get clear on your values. And those values have to be explicit to you, your team, your clients, and your audience. Amy Jacobus reconnects with Erica to reflect on how refining and implementing her values throughout her company has impact…

1
Maroon Communities: The History of Black Brilliance and Freedom with Dr. Crystal Menzies 51:27

1+ y ago51:27

51:27

There is so much history that we don’t learn in school. Colonial and white supremacist historical narratives rarely acknowledge the history of Black resistance and rebellion, or the free Black communities created by Maroons, some of which still exist to this day. Dr. Crystal Menzies joins Erica to discuss the past and present of Maroon communities,…

1
Common Misconceptions About Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Work 34:03

2y ago34:03

34:03

We often discuss misconceptions that people have around various topics like marketing, community, visibility and branding, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work. And it’s important to regularly revisit these topics, to dig in, debunk, and recenter the myths and misconceptions that come up with them. India Jackson joins Erica to discuss common m…

1
This Isn't My Norm: Reconsidering Mental Health with Therapist Amenah Arman 42:15

2y ago42:15

42:15

Reconsidering your normal is essential to clarifying and living your values. But it isn’t a one and done process. Reconsidering your normal is a journey that holds space for where you’ve been and what’s possible in the future. Amenah Arman joins Erica to discuss how reconsidering her normal has impacted how she shows up in her business, in her valu…

1
Are Standard Ideal Client Profiles Racist? with India Jackson 32:17

2y ago32:17

32:17

Most business owners have been told at some point that they need to have an ideal client profile. These profiles are meant to be tools to figure out who we’re marketing to and who we’re selling to. But in practice, they create a Frankenstein of demographics that don’t reflect real people. These amalgamations of traits are also heavily rooted in whi…

1
Company of One? Why Company Culture and Values Still Matter 26:09

2y ago26:09

26:09

When we are the only person working for our brand, we can have a false sense of not having anyone to answer to, no reasoning that needs to be vetted before we make decisions. But if we don’t create culture for ourselves, are we deprioritizing the importance of having an understanding of our company culture? Erica shares her perspective on why it’s …

1
The Integration of Personal and Professional Life with Guest Host India Jackson 38:50

2y ago38:50

38:50

Learning for the sake of learning is never the thing. Talking for the sake of talking doesn’t do it either. Conversations and content are the places we start, but they have to become part of how you create action, how you learn and unlearn, so you can move through the world in a more equitable way. India interviews Erica about what she’s integratin…

1
Confessions On Diversity In The Workplace With Damion Taylor 39:11

2y ago39:11

39:11

What can happen when we take the time to actually talk about the challenges that we're experiencing at work, the way that we're feeling, the things that we're experiencing, and ways that we can do it differently? We need to bring forward the experiences that we’re told, implicitly or explicitly, that we shouldn’t discuss if we want to make progress…

1
Why You Can't Just Operationalize DEI 22:01

2y ago22:01

22:01

As we move away from some of the urgency that surfaced in 2020 around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, it remains vital to continue doing the work. DEI isn’t a box you can check and say you’re done. You can’t schedule learning and unlearning. Erica discusses why DEI is an ongoing project that requires emotional investment and openness and why it c…

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Cher Hale Podcasts

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