Lean into Love

About Lean into Love

Welcome to the "Lean into Love" podcast where we delve deep into the heart, exploring the dynamic interplay between love and fear and the transformative journey of self-compassion. Join me, your devoted host Gina Velez, as we embark on a quest to understand how choosing love over fear and practicing self-compassion can lead to profound personal and collective change.

Publisher

Gina Velez

Category

education · religion & spirituality

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

22 Aug 2023

Latest episode

17 Sept 2026

Latest episodes

33 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   17 Sept 2026

   LiL: 28 | Finding Home w/ Yvonne Hsiume

   What does it mean to feel truly at home—in our spaces, our bodies, our relationships, and our lives? In this episode of Lean Into Love, Gina sits down with Yvonne Hsiume, a licensed real estate agent and business development professional, to explore career transitions, family, faith, community, and the surprising ways our physical spaces can shape our internal worlds. Yvonne shares her journey from 14 years in her family’s manufacturing business to building a new career in real estate, and how the threads of hospitality, service, feng shui, and her relationship with home have followed her throughout her life. Together, they explore what it means to choose love over fear, create spaces that support the lives we want, feel at home in our bodies, cultivate meaningful community, and practice discernment in our relationships. At the heart of the conversation is a simple but powerful question: Where can we choose connection today? In this episode: Navigating career transitions and new seasons of life Family, communication, and choosing love through conflict Feng shui and the energy of our spaces Feeling at home in our bodies The healing power of movement and community Discernment, intuition, and self-trust Faith, hope, and finding meaning in life's difficult seasons Choosing connection in everyday moments Connect with Yvonne: 📧 yvonne@delrayresidential.io (mailto:yvonne@delrayresidential.io) Ready to lean into your own next chapter? If you're feeling called to rewrite your story, reconnect with yourself, or explore your life from a deeper spiritual perspective, I’d love to support you. Work with Gina: Explore therapy or spiritual coaching to help you move through life transitions, deepen self-trust, and create a life that feels more aligned with who you are becoming. www.ginavelezwellness.com

2. 

   3 Sept 2026

   LiL: 27 | The Creative Journey w/ Scott Barnhardt

   This episode features Scott Barnhardt, an actor-writer and independent education consultant (college coach) who guides creative students through goal-setting, applications, and college decisions. Scott shares his path from a theater-loving childhood and professional acting career to earning an MFA in playwriting at UCLA, discovering a passion for teaching, leading as director of the Musical Theater Conservatory at the Orange County School of the Arts, and launching his own consulting business. Scott reflects on performing in the original Broadway cast of The Book of Mormon, using that period to transition careers, and explains he is finishing a book, The Creative College Journey. He also speaks about caregiving, grief after losing his mother and best friend, choosing love over fear through acts of service, and how self-compassion and service define a life leaning into love. 00:00 Meet Scott 00:15 What Scott Does 01:21 From Theater to Consulting 04:19 Building a Values Business 06:48 Entrepreneur Advice 09:51 Artists and Money 12:38 College Costs and ROI 15:06 Early Theater Roots 17:33 Finding Safety in Art 20:07 Supportive Stage Parents 22:52 Original Book of Mormon 28:21 Eight Shows a Week 29:35 Broadway Mental Grind 31:03 Choosing Grad School Exit 32:19 Aging In Entertainment 34:58 Teaching Sparks New Path 37:05 Pandemic Theater Leadership 38:30 New Business And Book 39:53 Grief Choosing Love 45:32 Boundaries In Caregiving 48:05 Living With Grief 51:38 Afterlife And Synchronicity 53:46 Numbing Versus Rest 56:27 Leading With Love 57:51 Where To Find Scott Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scottbarnhardt (https://www.instagram.com/scottbarnhardt) Website: https://www.creativecollegejourney.com/ (https://www.creativecollegejourney.com/) If this conversation resonated with you: 💛 Share this episode with someone who needs a reminder that their pain—physical or emotional—is interconnected and worthy of care. 💛 Leave a review to help more listeners find conversations like this. 💛 Visit www.ginavelezwellness.com (http://www.ginavelezwellness.com) to begin working together! Therapy in CA, Coaching everywhere.

3. 

   28 Jun 2026

   LiL: 26 | Embracing the Gray w/ Francisco Ortega

   Today’s guest is Francisco Ortega, who reflects on migration, identity, vulnerability, and the lost art of deep conversation. He shares how self-doubt and imposter syndrome can fuel humility and growth, and opens up about the shame that once led him to fabricate parts of his story in order to belong. Francisco recounts immigrating from Jalisco, Mexico, living in Tijuana apart from his parents, and arriving in the U.S. in 1978 — experiences that shaped his sense of dual identity. He also discusses his men’s group, his work around dialogue, and how writing an autobiographical-fictional book led to deeper conversations with his family and daughters. Together, we explore performativity, certainty, yoga, religion, impermanence, and what it truly means to “lean into love” through vulnerability, curiosity, and connection. 00:00 Why Conversation Matters 01:23 Imposter Syndrome Talk 02:42 Doubt as Fuel 04:04 Men’s Group and Honest Mirrors 06:20 Immigrant Roots and Identity 10:41 Shame and Reinventing Yourself 14:36 Authenticity and the Self 16:16 Happiness Culture and Isolation 19:28 Seeing Family with New Questions 23:59 Parenting Power and Indoctrination 27:58 Seminary Years and Service 33:41 Religion, Control, and Kindness 39:57 Living Beyond Binary Labels 41:58 Beyond Gender Binaries 45:43 Certainty as Violence 47:45 Living in the Gray 50:11 Rage and Hard Questions 52:20 Yoga Leadership Impermanence 54:43 Performative Culture Anger Economy 01:03:25 Eternal Return Gender Roles 01:08:52 Leaning Into Love If this conversation resonated with you: 💛 Share this episode with someone who needs a reminder that their pain—physical or emotional—is interconnected and worthy of care. 💛 Leave a review to help more listeners find conversations like this. 💛 Visit www.ginavelezwellness.com (http://www.ginavelezwellness.com) to begin working together! Therapy in CA, Coaching everywhere.

Who has been a guest on Lean into Love

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Natalie Saenz
• Bella Casperson
• Jen Trevour
• Tim Cherry

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

11 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

4 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 14 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

7

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

51