This conversation with Brian Recker centres on what happens when the belief system you built your life around no longer feels honest or humane.

We talk about growing up inside fear based religion, the cost of belonging to high control systems, and what it means to start questioning ideas that once felt untouchable. Brian reflects on the quiet tension of knowing something is harmful while still being afraid to let it go, and the emotional fallout that can follow when identity, community, and certainty begin to unravel.

There is a recurring thread throughout this episode around fear versus compassion. Between belief as control and belief as care. Between inherited frameworks and the slow work of rebuilding a way of living that puts humanity first. Rather than arguing for or against religion, this conversation stays with the experience of deconstruction and the patience required to find meaning without coercion or shame.

What comes up in the conversation

In this episode, we talk about:

• Growing up inside fundamentalist Christianity and separation from the world
• The loss of belonging that often comes with changing your mind
• Fear as a tool of control, and how it shapes identity and behaviour
• Deconstruction, grief, and the “death of a dream”
• Rebuilding faith, values, and community without fear
• Choosing compassion over certainty

About Brian Recker

Brian Recker is a writer, speaker, and public theologian exploring Christian spirituality beyond fear, shame, and exclusion. He spent eight years as an evangelical pastor before stepping away to re-examine faith, power, and belonging through a more humane and inclusive lens.

Brian is the author of Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love, and shares his work online through writing, teaching, and community conversations focused on deconstruction, compassion, and change.

Links & resources

Brian on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/berecker/

Brian’s website: https://www.brianrecker.com/

Hell Bent by Brian Recker (affiliate link): https://amzn.to/3Zt4LGy

About the podcast

12 Steps to Success is a podcast about what happens when the path you were on stops making sense.

Hosted by Eric Mackay, the show centres on honest conversations with people navigating change, pressure, identity shifts, recovery, and redefinition. These are not success stories or instruction manuals, but real conversations about how people live inside uncertainty and keep moving without false certainty.

Stay connected

Website: https://twelvestepstosuccess.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/twelvestepstosuccess

This conversation with Nyeesha D. Williams explores what happens when the structures you’ve relied on begin to fall apart, and the work required to rebuild without rushing to make sense of it too quickly.

We talk about setbacks and how disorienting they can feel when the path you were on suddenly stops making sense. About loss, disruption, and the pressure to keep moving forward even when you’re unsure what you’re rebuilding toward. Nyeesha reflects on moments where certainty disappeared, plans unraveled, and the focus shifted from outcomes to honesty about where she really was.

There is a recurring theme in this episode around rebuilding without performance. Around resisting the urge to frame difficulty as growth too quickly, and instead allowing space for grief, recalibration, and quieter forms of resilience. Rather than searching for neat lessons, this conversation stays with the reality of rebuilding slowly and with integrity when things do not go to plan.

What Comes Up In the Conversation:

In this episode, we talk about:

- Navigating setbacks without rushing to reframe them

- The emotional cost of holding things together when they are already breaking

- Rebuilding identity and direction after disruption

- Leadership in moments of uncertainty and loss

- Finding steadiness again without pretending clarity has arrived

About Nyeesha D. Williams:

Nyeesha D. Williams is a leader, operator, and community builder working at the intersection of purpose, culture, and connection. Her work focuses on creating spaces where people can be honest about where they are, particularly during periods of change, disruption, and transition. She is the founder of The HAUS, a membership-based community designed to support people navigating growth and leadership without pressure to perform certainty or resilience before they are ready.

Links & Resources:

Website: https://www.nyeeshawilliams.com

LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram: @nyeeshad

The HAUS: https://www.jointhehaus.com

Instagram: @jointhehaus

About the Podcast:

12 Steps to Success is a podcast about what happens when the path you were on stops making sense. Hosted by Eric Mackay, the show centres on honest conversations with people navigating change, pressure, identity shifts, recovery, and redefinition. These are not success stories or instruction manuals, but real conversations about how people live inside uncertainty and keep moving without false certainty.

Stay Connected:

Website: https://twelvestepstosuccess.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/twelvestepstosuccess

This conversation with Christopher Brereton centres on what happens when the identity you built your life around no longer fits as cleanly as it once did.

We talk about momentum and how easily it can turn into something you hide behind. About being known for a particular role, skill, or output, and the quiet unease that can surface when you realise you are still moving, still producing, but no longer sure who that movement is really serving. Christopher reflects on moments where forward motion stopped feeling like progress and started to feel like avoidance.

There is a recurring tension in this episode between building and becoming. Between the satisfaction of creating systems, companies, and portfolios, and the harder work of asking what kind of life those systems are meant to support. Rather than chasing reinvention, this conversation stays with the discomfort of re examination and the patience required to let a more honest direction emerge.

What comes up in the conversation

In this episode, we talk about:

• Momentum as both a strength and a defence mechanism
• Identity beyond titles, roles, and output
• The pressure to keep building even when direction feels unclear
• A portfolio mindset applied to work and life
• Slowing down long enough to ask harder questions about impact

About Christopher Brereton

Christopher Brereton is a fractional product and operations leader working at the intersection of product, energy, health, and long term impact. His work is guided by a portfolio mindset and a clear purpose of amplifying positive impact for people and the planet.

Christopher currently leads energy management systems work at MARA and serves as Head of Portfolio Acceleration at MOHARA. He is the founder of Product Hang Partners and is building The Folder, a platform rethinking estate planning as a living system rather than a static document.

Links & resources:

• Website: https://christopherbrereton.com
• Product Hang Partners: http://producthang.com/
• MARA: http://mara.com/
• MOHARA: http://mohara.co/

About the podcast

12 Steps to Success is a podcast about what happens when the path you were on stops making sense.

Hosted by Eric Mackay, the show centres on honest conversations with people navigating change, pressure, identity shifts, recovery, and redefinition. These are not success stories or instruction manuals, but real conversations about how people live inside uncertainty and keep moving without false certainty.

Stay connected

• Website: https://twelvestepstosuccess.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/twelvestepstosuccess

This conversation with Mo Hiromoto sits inside a familiar but often unspoken place. Knowing that something needs to change, without yet having language for what that change looks like.

We talk about what happens when momentum keeps you moving but leaves little room to listen. About staying busy, staying capable, staying productive, while slowly losing contact with what you actually want. Mo reflects on the experience of quieting the noise, not to arrive at quick clarity, but to make space for it to emerge in its own time.

There is a strong thread in this conversation around patience. With yourself. With the process. With the uncertainty that comes before decisions feel solid. Rather than chasing outcomes, we spend time on what it means to notice signals, question inherited expectations, and resist the urge to rush forward just to feel resolved.

This episode lives in that in-between space, where nothing is fully formed yet, but something is clearly asking for attention.

What comes up in the conversation

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why clarity cannot be rushed, and what happens when you try
• Staying stuck out of fear, even when movement feels necessary
• Learning to listen beneath noise, obligation, and expectation
• First generation wellness and the work of changing patterns
• Creating space for joy without treating it as something to earn

About Mo Hiromoto

Mo Hiromoto is a wellness coach and educator whose work focuses on self awareness, intentional change, and helping people reconnect with what matters to them when navigating transition or uncertainty.

Links & resources:

• First Generation Wellness:https://www.firstgenerationwellness.com/
• Website: https://www.mohiromoto.com
• Bio site: https://bio.site/mohiromoto

Connect with Mo:

• Instagram: @mohiromoto
• TikTok: @mohiromoto_
• YouTube: @mohiromoto
• Email: mo@mohiromoto.com

About the podcast

12 Steps to Success is a podcast about what happens when the path you were on stops making sense.

Hosted by Eric Mackay, the show centres on honest conversations with people navigating change, pressure, identity shifts, recovery, and redefinition. These are not success stories or instruction manuals, but real conversations about how people live inside uncertainty and keep moving without false certainty.

Stay connected

• Website: https://twelvestepstosuccess.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/twelvestepstosuccess

This conversation with Marni Wandner explores what happens when burnout does not arrive as a breaking point, but as a slow erosion.

We talk about creative ambition, responsibility, and the quiet ways people lose themselves while trying to be useful, capable, and reliable. Marni reflects on building a career in an industry that is supposed to generate joy, and the moment she realised that something essential was missing, even though everything looked fine on the surface.

There is a lot of honesty in this episode about resistance to change, the fear of not knowing what comes next, and the tendency to override internal signals in order to keep moving. Rather than framing burnout as failure, this conversation treats it as information, something asking to be listened to rather than pushed through.

It is a thoughtful discussion about agency, identity, and learning how to notice when the way you are working no longer matches the life you want to be living.

What comes up in the conversation

In this episode, we talk about:

• Burnout that develops gradually rather than dramatically
• Resistance to change and uncertainty about direction
• Creativity, pressure, and responsibility in the music industry
• Learning to listen to internal signals rather than override them
• Redefining usefulness and success on your own terms

About Marni Wandner

Marni Wandner works with individuals navigating stress, burnout, and career transitions, particularly in high pressure and creative environments. Her work focuses on helping people build sustainable ways of working without losing themselves in the process.

Links & resources:

• Website: https://marniwandner.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/marniwandner
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/futurepresentco

If you are interested in speaking with Marni about stress management, burnout, career transitions, or thriving in high pressure environments, you can schedule a free call here:

https://calendly.com/marniwandner/free-consult-call

About the podcast

12 Steps to Success is a podcast about what happens when the path you were on stops making sense.

Hosted by Eric Mackay, the show centres on honest conversations with people navigating change, pressure, identity shifts, recovery, and redefinition. These are not success stories or instruction manuals, but real conversations about how people live inside uncertainty and keep moving without false certainty.

Stay connected

• Website: https://twelvestepstosuccess.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/twelvestepstosuccess