Why Is Nobody Talking About This

11: The Real Reason Founders Are Reluctant To Adopt AI with Karen Sergeant

Are your proud that, unlike your peers, you aren't using AI? Does it make you feel like a more honest, capable professional? Or could it actually be an excuse like "I'm just not good at tech" that's keeping you behind? This is what we're exploring on today's episode of Why Is Nobody Talking About This with my special guest, Karen Sergeant. Karen's career has taken her from tech to the CIA to founder operations. Through that journey, she's gotten really good at change—and helping others move through ambiguity as well. This conversation changed Kim's entire outlook on adopting AI into her business systems. If you're looking to make the biggest impact you can without burning out or getting in the way of your team, this is your next listen. 
KAREN'S QUOTES
AI can feel like a loss of relevance when you’re being asked to let go of things that made you once feel indispensable
If you're impact driven, get out of delivery so you can impact the most amount of people with your brilliant ideas.
Real-time culture rewards extroverts. It privileges insiders. It's basically gatekeeping.
We're not competing with AI. We're competing with our competitor who uses AI, who can produce results more reliably, faster, and at a lower cost.
FOLLOW 
Karen Sergeant's website
Connect with Karen on LinkedIn
Kim on Instagram @kimwensel
Kim's website
MENTIONS
Join The Bench waitlist!
ChatGPT
Perplexity
Claude

10: LinkedIn And The Cult Of Very Serious Business Personas

Do you feel like you have to shape shift at work? Act a certain way because that's what clients expect a very serious businessperson to do? Whether we like it or not, corporate America takes a masculine approach to leadership. And that, my friend, has trickle down effects to even the smallest businesses. What if I told you things are changing? That by leaning into your soft power and creativity, you could be part of a massive shift—one that asks for presence over power, taking time off over hustling and grinding your way through.
 
HIGHLIGHTS
Why we need more women as leaders and how to embrace both femininity and masculinity at work
How we rank the importance of skill sets and how that's affecting our willingness to slow down
What happens when we try to produce our best work in the margins
The reason that making decisions based on ROI alone will not move you forward in meaningful ways
 
MENTIONS
From Strength to Strength by Arthur C. Brooks
Episode 9: The Traditional Path Rewards People Pleasing
The Creative Act by Rick Rubin
The Bench community for women
 
FOLLOW
Kim's website
Kim on Instagram
Kim on LinkedIn
 
 

9: The Traditional Path Rewards People Pleasing

We laugh about being recovering people pleasers, but where do those tendencies come from? Are we born this way or did we learn to people please as a safety mechanism? In today's episode, Kim speaks openly about events in her younger years that led her to become a people pleaser and how this was reinforced at work. If you've ever wondered why you're motivated to do or say things that appeal to others but aren't necessarily true to you, this is a must listen.
 
Trigger warning: domestic violence is discussed. This episode may not be appropriate for younger listeners.
 
HIGHLIGHTS
How understanding trauma can lead to personal growth
Why the career ladder validates people pleasing
How to say, think, and act with more authenticity and personal alignment
The role of writing in uncovering people pleasing habits
How to trust yourself when you aren't sure if that will be accepted
 
FOLLOW 
Kim on Instagram @kimwensel
Kim's website
MENTIONS
Join The Bench waitlist!
The Tell by Amy Griffin

8: Why It's Time to Ditch Your Five-Year Plan

It feels good to have a plan. When we know where we're headed it's easy to believe we're in control. But, of course, we're not. In this solo episode, Kim talks about how planning too far out can keep us from seeing the opportunities right in front of us. She also uncovers how relying too much on planning can prevent us from ever slowing down and what the fear of success actually looks like.
 
HIGHLIGHTS
How often we should be changing our minds
The number one reason we struggle to pivot
How to make the best decision in the face of change
What the message, "you can't have it all" leads us to believe about opportunities
 
FOLLOW 
Kim on Instagram @kimwensel
Kim's website
MENTIONS
Join The Bench waitlist!

7: Nice and Neutral (And Easily Forgettable) with Jess Harrell

In this episode we're joined by Jess Harrell of The Styled Domicile. You might know her for her bold pattern choices or signature cheetah statue. Or perhaps it's her tagline that called you in: let your freak flag fly in your home...because if you can't be yourself there, where can you? In case you didn't already notice, Jess is someone who enjoys coloring outside the lines...with bright colors. We talk about why trends like white on beige on taupe home decor have become so popular, being comfortable taking up space, and why being different might actually be the goal.
 
HIGHLIGHTS
Why "good taste" is making you boring
Confidence can be practiced and is not innate
The role of nostalgia in personal style
How to find what you like vs. defaulting to liking what you see constantly
The problem with assuming maximalism is only for people who love excess
Why it's so important that, as women, we continue to take up space
FOLLOW 
Jess on Instagram @thestyleddomicile
The Styled Domicile website
Kim on Instagram @kimwensel
Kim's website
MENTIONS
Join The Bench waitlist!
Supercommunicators book
Good Taste is Making You Boring post
101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think
The Road to Tender Hearts
Broken Country

6: Why We Benefit From Staying Stuck

Now that the word “pivot” is part of our daily lexicon, we assume we know what it takes to move from one thing to the next. And why wouldn’t we? There are plenty of talks, books, and masterclasses on the topic. But for some reason we’re still stuck.
 
In this episode, Kim talks through her experiences of pivoting, shedding identities that no longer serve you, and the unmarketable messy middle.
 
THIS EPISODE COVERS
+ How Kim unknowingly was clutching to the identify of “fixer”
+ The importance of recognizing what we gain from our identities
+ What happens when we delay setting boundaries
+ Why the fear of uncertainty will keep us safe and unhappy
+ The most important question you must be willing to ask yourself when  you’re yearning for change.
 
For more information about this show, Kim’s work, or The Bench, visit www.kimwensel.com.

5: Launching With Under 1,000 Followers

Sure, there are courses on email marketing, growing your following, and launching something new. But the people who tend to teach these topics have built a business through a one-to-many model, focusing first and foremost on follower count. So following their advice will never translate directly if you don’t have the reach they have. I’m someone who’s run a referral-heavy business for seven years, without focusing on building an audience and honestly that’s held me back from visibility, marketing, and asking for business. If you’ve held back because you’re used to doing the work rather than than selling the work, get ready because I’m talking to you!
 
I’m sharing the real numbers, timeline, and results of my recent launch for The Bench community. You’ll hear about:
 
+ My founding membership goal and where I ended up
+ The role of a waitlist and application and how these impacted enrollment
+ The role of personal connection and scrappiness in launching
+ Getting comfortable being visible and embodying what you’re selling
+ How much money I invested in the launch
+ Future plans for The Bench
 
As always, you can get on my email list to get first in line for updates and announcements like my book launch, in-person programming, and when The Bench opens back up for membership enrollment in fall 2025.

4: Personal Branding Is Not The Problem

Personal branding is a complex topic. One that if you get it, you get it. But if you don’t, it can seem self-indulgent, unimportant, and trendy. Today I’m challenging the common misconceptions about personal branding and how this view has gained traction. If you’ve ever wanted to step more into the spotlight but were hesitant for fear of coming across as fake or having to spend all day posting content, this solo episode is for you. A few highlights include:
 
+ The reason personal branding is your career insurance policy
+ Disentangling your reputation from your brand
+ Why monetizing who you are can be problematic
+ What it looks like to be authentic rather than dogmatic
+ The role of social media for people who are allergic to self promotion
+ Why the future demands transparency and connection
+ How to embrace the idea of a portfolio career
 
For more on this topic and to be the first to hear about launch dates for my upcoming book and The Bench, our community for women, visit KimWensel.com.

3: Female Friendships Will Save You with Abra Said

Diehard Cleveland Cavaliers fan and creative powerhouse, Abra Said is a self-professed eternal optimist. But that doesn’t mean her path has turned out as she expected. On this episode of Why is Nobody Talking About This?, Abra and Kim discuss loss, the challenges of making new friends as adults, and financial security as a creative person.
 
THIS CONVERSATION COVERS
+ Holding firm with boundaries when your work seems “fun”
+ The profound impact and imprint of loss
+ Celebrating platonic love as much as romantic love
+ What we get wrong about people without kids
+ How we can unknowingly lose ourselves in marriage and parenthood and why that’s such a risk
+ The awkwardness of making new friends as an adult
+ Starting something new and being okay with the uncertainty of it
+ Having enough and still wanting more—money, work, friends, and opportunities
 
FOLLOW
You can find Abra on her newly launched, beautiful website and on Instagram.
 
For more about The Bench, a community for women who love their work but want it to come at less of a cost, visit kimwensel.com/thebench.

2: Anti-Excellence with Lane Clark

The first guest on Why Is Nobody Talking About This? is Lane Clark, a CEO’s best friend and right-hand woman to high-performing leaders. Kim and Lane dive right into the delicate and confusing balance between ambition and contentment. As someone intimately familiar with Kim’s work and deepest professional insecurities (fun!), Lane gets honest about what happens when you have to define success as something beyond money and why it will likely always feel like swimming upstream if you’re choose your own path over climbing the traditional ladder.
 
THIS CONVERSATION COVERS
+ Why anyone would live in the frozen tundra of Northern Michigan
+ The dichotomy of achievement and contentment
+ Why some of us (✋🏼) keep falling back into burnout
+ The real pressure of upholding to traditional indicators of success
+ What happens when we sit in boredom, rather than pushing through
+ The reason many successful individuals feel unworthy of support
+ The bell curve relationship between money and happiness
+ Finding connection in shared experiences
 
FOLLOW
You can find Lane on LinkedIn, her website , and the Knot Work Studio.
 
For more about The Bench, a community for women who love their work but want it to come at less of a cost, visit kimwensel.com/thebench.