Left Standing Podcast Por Cara Kovacs arte de portada

Left Standing

Left Standing

De: Cara Kovacs
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A space for healers, witches, goddesses, and radicals who do meaningful work in a system that makes it more difficult than it needs to be. This is where you come to remember your why and reclaim your story.

carakovacs.substack.comCara Kovacs
Ciencias Sociales Economía Gestión y Liderazgo Liderazgo
Episodios
  • Grief, Work, and the Performance of Being Okay
    Apr 8 2026
    This episode is a continuation of my last post—about grief, work, and what it means to keep showing up inside a system that doesn’t pause when things fall apart.Today, I’m speaking more directly about the tension I think so many of us are quietly holding:What it means to be a human being living through real pain… while also being someone who is expected to function, produce, lead, and show up. (Also show up for who? For our community, for ourselves, for the capitalist?)We’re living in a time where grief is not rare. It’s not exceptional.It’s ambient. It’s layered. It’s ongoing.And yet, most of us have never been taught:* what grief actually does to the body (I think this and classes on how to have hard conversations and do your taxes would have been more relevant than say, geometry…)* why your capacity changes when you’re in it (from a biological perspective)* how to navigate work, relationships, and visibility while your internal world is fundamentally altered (as it would be, of course, if something traumatic happened to you)So instead, we make it mean something about us.That we’re less disciplined.Less focused.Lazy, even.What if nothing is wrong with you?What if the exhaustion, the brain fog, the emotional volatility, the desire to pull back—or the need to keep going—are not personal failures, but biological and psychological responses to what you’re carrying?I also talk about something I don’t think we name enough:The way capitalism—and more specifically the attention economy—intensifies our experience of grief.Not just because we’re expected to keep producing,but because we’re continuously exposed to crisis, trauma, and information in a way no human nervous system was designed to process.So we’re not just grieving our own lives.We’re absorbing the world.And then asking ourselves why we can’t focus.This is not an episode about doing grief perfectly. It’s about removing the expectation that you should.If you’re in a season where things feel heavy—personally, collectively, or both—this episode is for you.🤍 A NoteYou don’t owe anyone a perfectly articulated explanation of what you’re going through.You don’t have to perform being okay.And you are allowed to both:* need support* and continue showing up in ways that feel sustainableThose things are not in conflict.🔗 Sources & Research Mentioned* Stahl, S. T., et al. (2019). Bereavement leave and its impact on employees. * National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (2022). Impact of repeated exposure to trauma and stress.* NBC News – Your Brain on Grief (video segment on neurological effects of grief)* Reuters (2026). Attention economy, infinite scroll, and user engagement research This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe
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    37 m
  • Magic Is Everywhere with Xenia Viray
    Mar 18 2026

    This week’s episode is a conversation with Xenia Marie Ross Viray, who is the creator of the platform and iterations of Myths of Creation, an interdisciplinary artist who—quite literally—gets paid to be herself.

    Not in a “personal brand” way.

    In a devotional to creativity, consciousness, and resonance kind of way.

    We talk about what it actually looks like to build a body of work—and a business—without contorting yourself for the algorithm.

    Inside the episode:

    * Why your “content” might actually be your laboratory, not your marketing

    * The difference between authenticity and unmasking (and why one of them is much scarier)

    * How trying to “perform for the algorithm” quietly erodes the very thing that makes people choose you

    * What it means to create from resonance instead of strategy—and then translate it into something people can understand

    * The trap of constant visibility, especially now

    We also go deeper than business.

    Into the emotional, political, and psychological reality of being online right now:

    * The dissonance of building a business on social media while being harmed by it

    * What it means to be a sensitive, creative person in a time of constant crisis and information overload

    * How algorithms fracture reality—and why it’s getting harder to actually talk to each other

    * The grief of losing intergenerational understanding (and the question: where are our elders?)

    And then—because we can’t not—we go cosmic.

    We talk about:

    * Creativity as a portal for new consciousness

    * Art, music, and even the Olympics as evidence that joy and expression can shift collective energy

    * The idea that we’re not just resisting broken systems—we’re being asked to create entirely new ones

    One of the most grounding threads throughout the conversation:

    You don’t have to do it all the same way.

    Some people are here to resist.Some are here to rebel.Some are here to create.

    Most of us are doing all three—just in different proportions, at different times.

    And none of those roles are more valuable than the others.

    If you’ve been feeling:

    * burnt out by social media

    * confused about what to share (or whether to share at all)

    * caught between wanting to grow your business and wanting to opt out of the noise

    * or quietly craving a more human, more magical way of moving through your work

    this episode will meet you there.

    Not with a formula.

    But with a reorientation back to yourself.

    PS. At the end of this episode I got a push notification that reminded me it was recorded on my grandfather’s birthday. When you get to the end, you’ll be glad I mentioned that.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe
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    46 m
  • A peek inside my $108,500 month
    Mar 11 2026

    This week on the podcast, I’m breaking down the most profitable month I’ve had: $108,500 in sales.

    But this isn’t a “here are my secrets to making money while you sleep” episode. Because sure, the money came in over the course of a month, but it is because of the systems, community and IP I have spent years building.

    This is a conversation about what it actually looks like to build a profitable business when you’re a feminist, a service provider, and someone with complicated feelings about capitalism.

    Inside the episode, I talk about:

    * Why getting money into the hands of marginalized people is an important part of our political work

    * The strange reality of being good at capitalism while actively critiquing it

    * The long, messy path from not qualifying for an apartment lease to being approved for an $800k mortgage

    * What most people get wrong about “six-figure months” in the coaching industry

    * The less glamorous truth behind this launch—including personally reaching out to 400 people and still getting ignored by most of them

    I also share the real throughline behind my results: not viral content, not hacks, not a brand-new offer.

    Just relentless iteration, deep attention to what clients actually need, and a business model built around making people feel seen at every stage—from first contact to long-term client relationships.

    If you’ve ever wondered:

    * whether making money while critiquing the systems that force you to work without protecting your basic rights can coexist

    * why your offers aren’t converting even when the work is good

    * what ethical selling actually looks like in practice

    this episode pulls back the curtain.

    Not on a fantasy version of entrepreneurship—but on the slow, strategic work that actually builds a sustainable business.

    Listen to the episode and join my email list to get first access to the next time I launch.

    Grab a sneak peek into my business model here.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe
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    25 m
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