When Vanessa Wedderburn was laid off, the professional disruption was only the beginning. What followed was something harder to name — a slow unraveling of the identity she had built around her work, and what opened up in its place.

In this conversation, Vanessa talks about what it's like to sit inside that uncertainty — the disorientation of not knowing who you are beyond what you do, the grief of losing something you didn't choose to let go, and the winding process of rediscovering yourself in the middle of it.

To carry with you:

• Who am I without the roles I’ve been carrying?
• What might become possible if I let go of what no longer fits?

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Vanessa Wedderburn is a communications strategist and storyteller who has spent her career helping school districts and organizations build trust through clear, thoughtful communication. She writes about her own experience of navigating transition on her Substack, Notes from Vanessa. Vanessa can be reached on LinkedIn and at vwcreativestrategy.com.

Say hello. I'd love to hear from you.

I'm Jennie Snyder, a leadership coach and the host of Traveling Companions. I created this podcast for anyone standing in that uncertain space between who they've been and who they're becoming. You don't have to travel it alone.

Podcast artwork by Desirae Rivera (desirae.design)
Music "Through the Years" by Roots and Recognition, The Bittersweet

🌐 travelingcompanionspodcast.com | 📧 [email] | [LinkedIn]

Welcome to Traveling Companions: Stories of Becoming. I'm your host, Jennie Snyder. This is a podcast about the in-between — those threshold moments when we can no longer go back to who we were, and who we're becoming isn't yet clear. If you've ever stood in that space — or find yourself there now — you're not alone. In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Kellie Sanders — an educator, school leader, and leadership coach who has spent her career in service of other people's becoming.

Ten years into teaching, Kellie heard a woman at a backyard party mention that she had been a middle school principal. Her head whipped around. In all her years in education, she had never seen a woman in that role. That moment — what Kellie calls her "unicorn" — set off a chain of crossings she never could have mapped in advance.

In this conversation, Kellie traces the arc of her becoming: the lightning-bolt epiphany in a middle school classroom. The slow pull toward school leadership that cost her a relationship. And, the grinding doubt of two early principalships that left her asking a hard question — what's the common denominator here? Me. She talks honestly about the tension between calling and selfishness, the difference between a voice that invites and one that compels, and what it took to keep stepping forward even when she wasn’t sure which way to go.

To carry with you:

• Where in your life have you heard a voice calling you toward something you couldn't yet fully see?
• When doubt has made you question your direction, what has helped you find your footing again?

____________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Kellie Sanders spent over thirty years in education — as a teacher, principal, and district leader. She is the co-founder of Lifeline for Courageous Leadership and co-author of The Courage to Lead and The Courage to Grow. She works with leaders navigating change and growth. Kellie can be reached at lifeline4leaders.com.

Say hello. I'd love to hear from you.

I'm Jennie Snyder, a leadership coach and the host of Traveling Companions. I created this podcast for anyone standing in that uncertain space between who they've been and who they're becoming. You don't have to travel it alone.

Podcast artwork by Desirae Rivera (desirae.design)
Music "Through the Years" by Roots and Recognition, The Bittersweet

🌐 travelingcompanionspodcast.com | 📧 [email] | [LinkedIn]

There are moments when you know you can't go back. And what's ahead isn't clear yet.

In this episode I'm turning the lens inward — sharing a threshold that shaped me, what it asked, and what it made possible.

Not quick fixes. No shortcuts. Just the honest territory of what it asks of us to put something down and step anyway.

"We cannot hold on to things and enter. We must put down what we carry, open the door, and then take up only what we need to bring inside. It's a basic human sequence: gather, prepare, put down, enter."
— Mark Nepo, The Book of Awakening

If you've ever stood in that uncertain place — or find yourself there now — this one is for you.

Say hello. I'd love to hear from you.

I'm Jennie Snyder, a leadership coach and the host of Traveling Companions. I created this podcast for anyone standing in that uncertain space between who they've been and who they're becoming. You don't have to travel it alone.

Podcast artwork by Desirae Rivera (desirae.design)
Music "Through the Years" by Roots and Recognition, The Bittersweet

🌐 travelingcompanionspodcast.com | 📧 [email] | [LinkedIn]