Advertise on podcast: Experience Junkies

This week, I am joined by Marisa Wheeling Cielsuk, a Transformative Leadership and Executive coach for women. As a lover of the outdoors, Marisa is no stranger to challenges. She faced her profound fear of heights and submitted to Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa, which eventually helped her to find joy and purpose in her life. As we dived deeper into the conversation, Marisa shared her journey on climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and how it helped her create a new perspective and purpose in life.  In this episode, Marisa emphasizes the value and learnings you can get in embracing your journey and how your successes or failures in life don’t define you. She also gave insights about climbing our regular summits and the value of being content in the valley. In this reflective episode, listeners will understand why we need to celebrate the small wins in our lives every day. Follow Marisa on Instagram  You can also find Marisa on her LinkedIn You can listen to Marisa’s song selection on the show's Spotify playlist. Join the Experience Junkies Discord to talk directly to Deanna, show guests, and other listeners!   Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Marisa!    Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis

In today’s episode, I am joined by John Pistotti who has managed complex events logistics at hotels, universities, convention centers, and outdoor venues. His humble beginnings in the field of hospitality started when he joined the banquets team at the Playboy Mansion. This has led him to many experiences as a technical director which serve as his learning curve to attain the success that he has. John has been passionate about helping with powerful experiences and events. As we dive deeper into our conversation, John shares how small growth can lead you to success and we also discussed the importance of knowing what your audience truly needs when creating successful experiences and events.  In this episode, John also breaks down the full value proposition of digital, virtual, and hybrid events. He gave a lot of insight in this episode which will surely make you realize how to appreciate each step along your career and experience creation journey.   Tune in to this jam-packed episode and hear exactly how “small steps” can lead to “big milestones”.   Follow John on  Twitter You can also find John on LinkedIn You can listen to John’s song selection on the show's Spotify playlist.   Join the Experience Junkies Discord to talk directly to Deanna, show guests, and other listeners!   Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Paige!    Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis

Brett Musco is a Boston-based project manager, triathlete, and long-distance runner who sat down with me to share his story. He began his endurance sports journey in 2017, completing a 1.8 mile open water swim, and has been continuing to seek new adventures ever since, including his first Ironman in 2021. As we dive into our conversation, Brett shares how he began his triathlete journey and what are the factors that drive him to pursue triathlon. He will also share how having a supportive family and community can help someone be successful in triathlon. Brett shared a lot of gems from this episode that will challenge you to go out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself to do better. Tune in to this powerful episode and learn how we can possibly challenge ourselves to push past our perceived limitations and enjoy the journey to becoming our best selves.   Follow Brett Musco on Instagram and LinkedIn You can also find Brett on his  Website You can listen to Brett’s song selection on the show's Spotify playlist. Join the Experience Junkies Discord to talk directly to Deanna, show guests, and other listeners! Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Heidi!    Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis

Travel and tourism can enrich the lives of anyone - if you’re purposeful about your journeys and interactions with the people you encounter. In today’s episode, I am joined by Paige McClanahan, a travel journalist and podcast host of the “Better Travel Podcast.” She has lived in five countries on two different continents since she left the United States in 2008. Paige has been passionate about inspiring people to travel ever since. As we dive deeper into our conversation, Paige shares what she learned as a travel journalist and what it means to travel “better”. In this episode, Paige gave a glimpse of what life is like for locals in high tourism zones, the good the bad…and everything else. She also gave insights on how we can travel in a way that will leave a positive impact on the world. Tune in to this fantastic episode and hear what exactly “better travel” is and why it’s important today.   Follow Paige on Instagram and Twitter You can also find Paige on her website and the Better Travel podcast. You can listen to Paige's song selection on the show's Spotify playlist. Join the Experience Junkies Discord to talk directly to Deanna, show guests, and other listeners!   Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Paige!    Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis  

There is no innovation without pushing past fear. Today, I am joined by Heidi Legein, the founder and the chief executive Guru at the Mice Guru. She is the creator of “The Digital Trip” - a virtual and immersive destination showcase series; and the “Digital Disruptor” an innovative, and transformative hybrid event concept. She is known for her strong will of going beyond the boundaries. As we dive into the conversation, Heidi and I talk about many important topics ranging from creating amazing experiences to innovating in the workspace. This episode is mainly about not being afraid of innovating and failure, for it can make us a winner in the end. Heidi gives us a mini motivational speech in this episode which will surely help you innovate and feel like a winner every single day.   Follow The MICE Guru on Instagram and Twitter You can also find The MICE Guru on Facebook, and LinkedIn You can listen to Heidi's song selection on the show's Spotify playlist.   Join the Experience Junkies Discord to talk directly to Deanna, show guests, and other listeners!   Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Heidi!    Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis

Career breaks have been such a taboo subject for so many years and today you’ll know why it’s a beautiful thing.  In this episode, I’m joined by Katrina McGhee who is a career break and sabbatical coach and expert. She helps individuals create the break of their dreams even when it feels impossible. The main goal of Katrina is to provide a pathway to creating a life you celebrate, rather than “tolerate”.  As we dive into the conversation, Katrina shares what she learned from stepping away from corporate America and how it changed her life. There are countless quotable moments in this episode that will surely help you re-evaluate your life goals. She talks about a myriad of topics from financial freedom to letting your desire be bigger than your fear.    Tune in to this amazing episode and hear how Katrina changed her life by choosing herself.    Follow Katrina McGhee on LinkedIn and Facebook   You can also find Katrina at https://www.kmcgheecoaching.com/ You can listen to Katrina’s song selection on the show's Spotify playlist.   Join the Experience Junkies Discord to talk directly to Deanna, show guests and other listeners!   Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Katrina’s experience!    Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis

Today, I am joined by Liz Lathan who is the Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Haute Companies which is comprised of strategic marketers, problem solvers, brand stewards, innovators and many more. Liz oversees marketing for all of Haute brands.    Liz joined me today to talk about what “Haute” is all about and what it means to be a “Hautie”. In this conversation, listeners will get a glimpse of how they tackle creating experience strategy for campaigns, conferences and other activations. Liz also talked about their groundbreaking research on “Return on Emotion” and the 5 key emotions that you need to evoke for your clients in order to drive revenue.    Tune in this insightful episode and learn from Liz as you build your event strategy.    Follow Liz on LinkedIn and Twitter You can also find Liz at http://eventphilosopher.blogspot.com/ You can listen to Liz's song selection on the show's Spotify playlist.   Join the Experience Junkies Discord to talk directly to Deanna, show guests and other listeners!   Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Liz!    Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis  

Buckle up for some interesting conversations in Season 2 of the Experience Junkies Podcast, coming April 2022!

I capped off 2022 with a two week family vacation - spending Christmas in Europe! During this experience, with a group that spanned ages 9 to 67, so many thoughts ran through my head. So this solo episode is a bit different, as I provided my top ten takeaways I've learned through intergenerational travel.  Reflecting back on this trip reminds me of the song "Love Train" by The O'Jays. You can listen on the show's spotify playlist. Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Show Website

Listen in to my chat with Anne Nevel to talk about a fun event she created for female entrepreneurs and leaders with a child-like spin! Anne is currently the Vice President, Industry Education for the Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA). Prior to joining HDA, she was responsible for the oversight of the education and certification programs for various associations. A graduate of Florida State University, she is passionate about learning and connecting people for the purpose of sharing and growth, which drives her personal pursuits. These pursuits include volunteering with multiple non-profits and creating a safe space for entrepreneurial women to connect, learn, share, and grow – The Sleepover.     Check out more information on The Sleepover.  You can also find Anne on Instagram and LinkedIn. You can listen to Anne's song selection on the show's Spotify playlist. Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from the sleepover!  Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis

Experience Junkies Oasis is a safe space for us to process our experiences and the emotions they elicit. After each full podcast episode, we'll stop by the Oasis to debrief what we've learned. The theme of Season 1 Episode 5 was - SHIFT. Take 90 seconds to affirm SHIFT in your life with me! Watch episode five on YouTube to see photos and video from the experience. Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Show Website Music by John Yasutis

Sabrina Meyers is the ultimate Global Citizen - she's lived in four countries, speaks a handful of languages and loves to travel. It only makes sense that her career has centered on events and hospitality! Listen to our conversation as Sabrina shares her career experiences, global travel and what she wishes to share with the world about the events and hospitality industries! Follow Sabrina on Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube. You can listen to Sabrina's song selection on the show's Spotify playlist. Watch the visual episode on YouTube to see photos from Sabrina's journey!  Follow the show on Instagram Follow Deanna on Instagram Intro music by John Yasutis