The Favourite Self Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

How do you make the switch from the path others expect you to follow to the path of true alignment and authenticity?

In today’s episode of The Favorite Self Podcast, Carly welcomes Maria Tassi, co-founder of High Vibe Women and The Social Snippet, to dive into the transformative power of embracing your truest self. Maria opens up about the moment she realized that her life felt like it was mirroring outdated narratives and the steps she took to release those stories, ultimately stepping into an aligned role as a leader in purposeful business.

She shares how her entrepreneurial path wasn’t planned, but rather, serendipitous, filled with challenges that ultimately led to expansion and growth. Her story will resonate with anyone feeling lost or out of alignment in their own lives and offers practical insights on how to move through fear and embrace your unique inner wisdom. 

If you find Maria’s story inspiring, please leave a like and review on this episode and share it with someone who could use it. 

Key Takeaways:

• Everything is happening for you, not to you.
• True alignment comes when you honor your unique strengths and trust that your path to success will look different from others’.
• Fear is not something to overcome, but rather, a companion on your journey.
• Vulnerability is one of your greatest strengths, connecting you to yourself and your community.
• Expanding into our most aligned selves means leaving behind narratives that no longer define or serve us.
• What it means to show up as your favourite self.

Maria’s Links:
Instagram: @_mariatassi / @highvibe.women / @thesocialsnippet
Website: https://www.thesocialsnippet.com/
https://www.highvibewomen.ca/

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast

What if the thing holding your business back isn’t your strategy, but your self belief?

In this episode, Carly shares why your business can only grow to the level you feel safe holding. Through personal stories of rebuilding after loss, manifesting dream opportunities, and stepping into greater visibility, she explores how identity, self trust, and subconscious beliefs shape the results you create far more than strategy alone.

Carly also introduces her concept of your favourite self, the version of you that already exists within you and feels most grounded, present, and aligned. This episode is a reminder that growth does not come from becoming someone else. It comes from trusting yourself, choosing expansion before you feel fully ready, and learning how to hold more of what you truly want.

If this episode resonates, make sure to follow and subscribe to the podcast, and share it with someone who needs this reminder today.

Key Takeaways:

• Your business can only grow to the level you feel safe holding
• Strategy supports growth, but identity determines how far it can take you
• Self belief is built through action, resilience, and self trust, not perfection
• Your favourite self is not a future version of you, but the most aligned version already within you
• Visibility, confidence, and expansion grow when you feel safe being seen
• You do not need to know the whole path, only the next step

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast

What if learning to breathe could change the way you heal, lead, parent, and live?

In the first guest episode of The Favourite Self Podcast, Carly sits down with breathwork facilitator, author, and founder of The Being Method, MJ Buckner, for a powerful conversation about breathwork, nervous system regulation, emotional healing, motherhood, and entrepreneurship.

MJ shares how breathwork first became a lifeline for her as a child, how it supported her through grief, stress, and major life shifts, and how it eventually became the foundation of her work. Together, she and Carly explore emotional honesty, self trust, identity, and what it really looks like to build a business and a life that feel aligned with who you are.

This episode is for the woman who wants to feel more grounded in her body, more connected to her emotions, and more supported in the way she leads, parents, and grows. If this conversation resonates, be sure to follow and subscribe to The Favourite Self Podcast, and share it with someone who needs to hear it too.

BioMJ

MJ Renshaw is the founder of The Being Method, a somatic breathwork certification that trains coaches and practitioners to use breathwork for nervous system regulation and emotional healing. Her work focuses on the science of breath and how breathing patterns influence stress, trauma, and physical health.

She is also the creator of The Being Method App, a breathwork platform designed to help people integrate somatic practices into daily life, and best selling author of How to Cry, a book exploring the role of emotions in healing and human health. Through her teaching and speaking, MJ focuses on bridging physiology and spirituality, helping people understand how the body processes emotion and how breath can be used as a practical tool for change.

MJ Links:
INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/beingmethodbreathwork/
CERTIFICATION COURSE https://beingmethod.squarespace.com/beingmethod
BREATHWORK SUBSCRIPTION https://beingmethod.squarespace.com/being-portal
MONTH FREE OF BREATHWORK GIFT https://being-method-the-science-of-energy-healing.teachable.com/purchase?product_id=6036291 

Key Takeaways:

• Breathwork can support nervous system regulation, emotional healing, and stress relief

• Listening to your body helps you build self trust and make more aligned decisions

• Emotional honesty creates deeper connection with yourself and the people around you

• Motherhood and entrepreneurship both ask you to expand your emotional capacity

• You do not need to become someone else to grow, you need to come back to yourself

• Sustainable success is built in a way that supports your health, values, and real life

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast

In this very first intro episode to the podcast, Carly shares a bit about her journey, how she moved from hiding behind other people's stories to finally embracing her own, the inspiration behind the concept of “favorite self”, and how it’s shaped the path she’s on today. This podcast is all about getting real, digging deep, and exploring what it means to show up as your truest, most aligned self.

Key Takeaways
• How Carly went from hiding behind other people's stories to embracing her own
• The moment Carly realized “best self” and “future self” didn’t resonate and how the idea of "favorite self" came to be.
•The journey of building a business and how it led to personal growth and the need for inner work.
• The vulnerability and lessons that came with writing and publishing a book, and how it shaped Carly’s current path.

Enjoyed this episode? Make sure you're subscribed to the podcast, leave a review and share this episode with someone you know who you know will love it too!

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast

What if the discomfort you feel around visibility is actually a sign that you are growing?

In this episode of The Favourite Self Podcast, Carly shares the behind the scenes of launching the podcast, navigating a major visibility stretch, and moving through the fear that can come with being more fully seen. She opens up about the emotional side of sharing your work, the reality of receiving criticism, and why growth often asks you to trust yourself before you feel fully ready.

Carly also reflects on the journey of writing and publishing her book, and how that experience taught her that visibility is not just mindset work, but nervous system work too. If you have been feeling the stretch of putting yourself out there, sharing your story, or owning your voice in a bigger way, this episode is for you.

If this episode resonates, be sure to follow and subscribe to The Favourite Self Podcast, and share it with someone who needs to hear it.

Key Takeaways:

• Visibility will often feel uncomfortable before it feels safe

• Confidence is built by taking the step, not waiting to feel ready

• Being seen will stretch your identity, your self trust, and your nervous system

• Sharing your story can open doors, deepen connection, and create real impact

• Discomfort is not always a red flag, sometimes it is the doorway into your next level

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast

What if the real reason you have hit a ceiling in business has nothing to do with strategy and everything to do with what your nervous system feels safe holding?

In this episode of The Favourite Self Podcast, Carly sits down with High Performance Business and Leadership Coach Sarah Lambert for a powerful conversation about business growth, identity, nervous system capacity, personal brand, and motherhood. Sarah has helped hundreds of women scale their online businesses in a way that feels aligned, sustainable, and deeply supportive, blending high level strategy and brand building with subconscious identity work and nervous system informed leadership.

Together, Carly and Sarah reflect on a decade of entrepreneurship, the inner shifts that often come before the external results, and what it really means to expand your capacity for more money, more visibility, and more of the life you want to hold. Sarah shares how her own growth required her to move beyond hard work and hustle, and into a new level of self trust, embodiment, and leadership.

If this episode resonates, be sure to follow and subscribe to The Favourite Self Podcast, and share it with someone who needs this conversation too.

Sarah's Bio

Sarah Lambert is a High Performance Business and Leadership Coach for Entrepreneurs and a Mom of 2. Her work has helped hundreds of women scale their online businesses in an aligned and easeful way using Nervous System Informed Strategy and Leadership. She combines high level strategy and brand building with subconscious identity and nervous system work in a way that allows people to create unmatched results while feeling their best. 

Key Takeaways:

• Business growth is not just about strategy. It also depends on what your nervous system feels safe holding

• The next level of money, visibility, and success requires an identity shift, not just more hard work

• Real capacity is built by staying with discomfort instead of rushing to fix, avoid, or control it

• A strong personal brand gives you space to evolve, pivot, and grow while bringing your audience with you

• Sustainable success comes from alignment, self trust, and leadership that supports the life you actually want

Sarah's Links

Instagram: www.instagram.com/thesarahlambert 

Upcoming Event: https://herlegacycollective.co/her-legacy-live-2026/ 

Freebie: https://learn.therosewoodagency.com/offers/8JY8MXv9?coupon_code=CARLY 

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast

What does success look like when the version you once chased no longer fits the season you are in now?

In this episode of The Favourite Self Podcast, Carly sits down with Kristina Bartold, co-founder and CEO of The Social Snippet, co-founder of High Vibe Women, and host of Community, for an honest conversation about entrepreneurship, motherhood, ambition, community, and the identity shifts that come with building a business while growing a family. Kristina shares how becoming a mom reshaped her definition of her favourite self, moving her from constant motion and visibility into a season that feels more spacious, grounded, and rooted in home, while still leaving room for impact, growth, and meaningful work.  

Together, Carly and Kristina talk about worthiness, abundance, boundaries, scarcity, and what it really looks like to redefine success as your life changes. Kristina opens up about the early growth of The Social Snippet, the power of community in building a business, and the reality of trying to hold both a booming business and a deeply present family life at once. This episode is such a powerful reminder that success is allowed to evolve, and that you do not have to choose between being ambitious and being present.  

If this episode resonates, be sure to follow and subscribe to The Favourite Self Podcast, and share it with someone who needs this conversation too.

Kristina's Bio:

Kristina Bartold is the co-founder and CEO of The Social Snippet, co-founder of High Vibe Women, and host of the Community podcast. She helps entrepreneurs and small businesses grow their communities through social media, podcasting, and meaningful connection. Kristina is passionate about building businesses rooted in community, impact, and authentic relationships.

Key Takeaways:

• Success can change shape as your life changes, and that does not mean you are losing yourself

• Motherhood can shift your priorities while still expanding your ambition and impact

• Building a business through community and relationships is powerful, but it also requires stronger boundaries as your capacity changes

• Scarcity and hard seasons are part of entrepreneurship, but the right people can help bring you back to perspective

• You do not have to choose between meaningful work and meaningful family life, but you may need to redefine what success looks like in this season

Kristina's Links:

High Vibe Women Full Day Event: https://www.highvibewomen.ca/october-2026-event

Kristina's Website: https://kristinabartold.ca/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristina.bartold/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinabartold/

Community Podcast: https://kristinabartold.ca/podcast

Agency: https://www.thesocialsnippet.com/

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast

What if your business, your relationships, your clients, and even your kids are all reflecting something back to you?

In this episode of The Favourite Self Podcast, Carly shares the powerful concept of the mirror effect and how your internal world shapes what you experience externally. She explores how this shows up in branding, marketing, leadership, motherhood, and personal growth, and why the patterns you keep noticing in your life are often not random. They are reflections.

Carly breaks down how your brand does not just mirror your audience, it mirrors you. From self trust and visibility to leadership and self worth, she unpacks the deeper identity work that has to happen before strategy can fully land. She also introduces her mirror framework and shares why the most important shifts happen when you stop trying to fix everything outside of you and start transforming from within.

If this episode resonates, be sure to follow and subscribe to The Favourite Self Podcast, and share it with someone who needs this reminder too.

Key Takeaways:

• Your external reality often reflects your internal beliefs, patterns, and self perception

• Your brand is not just a marketing tool, it is an identity amplifier

• Strategy alone will only take you so far if your identity and nervous system have not caught up

• The patterns showing up in your business, leadership, and relationships are often mirrors, not mistakes

• Real transformation starts when you stop judging what the mirror shows you and start getting curious about it

Email sign up/waitlist for new offer: https://webofwords.ca/#newsletter 

Carly's Links
Website: carlyottaway.com / webofwords.ca
Instagram: @‌itscarlyottaway / @‌webofwords_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlyottaway
Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@favouriteselfpodcast