Unpolished Wisdom

About Unpolished Wisdom

The most interesting conversations happen in the messy middle - between who we were and who we're becoming. Hosted by Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, medical doctor and executive wellbeing coach, Unpolished Wisdom celebrates beautifully imperfect conversations about career transitions, identity shifts, burnout and the quiet wisdom found in uncertainty. Each episode features honest storytelling with people navigating their own messy middles - no polished solutions, just authentic stories about reinvention, letting go, and discovering what matters as life reshapes itself.

Publisher

Katrina Gisbert-Tay

Category

education

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

7 Jan 2026

Latest episode

21 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

16 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   21 Oct 2026

   How Angel Investors Back the Future, with Erika Aquino | The Messy Middle of Purpose and Profit

   What does it take to back a founder before there's a product, a track record, or a single number to prove you're right? Angel investor Erika Aquino joins Unpolished Wisdom to unpack the messy middle of angel investing, and how to balance purpose and profit when every bet is on a future that doesn't exist yet. Erika is an angel investor and strategic advisor to early-stage founders in sustainability, wellness, education, and the future of work. After a career across PR, marketing, business development, hospitality, finance, and education, she moved into angel investing about four years ago to carry on what her father started. Her first bet was a pre-launch company whose entire pitch was a single Figma screenshot. She and host Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay talk about how Erika learned to trust her instincts with no investing background, how she evaluates a founder before there's a product, why she says no even when every box is ticked, and what it feels like to hold real conviction about someone else's future. The heart of the conversation is the pull between profit and purpose. Angel investing is one of the riskiest asset classes, so Erika goes in expecting not to see the money back. She explains why she's moving toward a more structured family office, why access is her key word, and what keeps her hopeful after the bets that didn't land. She also shares practical advice for founders, from warm leads and networking to practicing for a "no." In this episode: What an angel investor looks for in a founder before there is a product Why Erika says no, even when every box is ticked How to start angel investing from around US$1,000 through syndicates Why angel investing is one of the riskiest asset classes How founders can pitch better: warm leads, networking, and practicing for a "no" When the founder who built the company isn't the one to scale it Balancing purpose and profit, and the move toward a family office Unpolished Wisdom is hosted by Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, a medical doctor, executive wellbeing coach, and somatic practitioner based in Singapore. Each episode stays inside the messy, unfinished middle of a life transition, the part most people never talk about while they're living it, in conversation with guests who are either navigating it themselves or guiding others through it. Guest: Erika Aquino, angel investor and strategic advisor. Host: Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, medical doctor, executive wellbeing coach, and host of Unpolished Wisdom.

2. 

   8 Oct 2026

   The Messy Middle of Vulnerability: Scars, Not Wounds | Anna Ong on Storytelling & Leadership

   Anna Ong, storyteller, applied improv coach, and founder of What's Your Story Slam, joins Unpolished Wisdom to unpack how vulnerable you should really be, and why the best stories share your scars, not your wounds. After 15 years on a banking trading floor, Anna walked away to live a year as if it were her last, found her voice through improv in New York, and built Singapore's largest live storytelling stage. She and host Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay start with the painfully shy girl who grew up being told children should be seen and not heard, and trace how she ended up on stage. They talk about the day she quit banking and her body finally let go of years of stress, and what improv and partner dancing taught her about trust, control, and getting out of your own way. The heart of the conversation is Anna's framework for earned vulnerability. A scar is something you've lived through and healed from. A wound is still open, and when you share it in public, your audience ends up holding it. For leaders, the difference decides whether a story builds credibility or just exposure. They also ask a harder question: can a story be told from the messy middle of healing, before the wound has fully closed? In this episode: The difference between a scar and a wound when telling your story Earned vulnerability: how leaders can be honest and still credible Trauma dumping vs authentic storytelling Overcoming stage fright and the fear of being judged Applied improv for leaders, presentations and uncertain times Whether you can tell a story from the messy middle of healing Unpolished Wisdom is hosted by Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, a medical doctor, executive wellbeing coach, and somatic practitioner based in Singapore. Each episode stays inside the messy, unfinished middle of a life transition, the part most people never talk about while they're living it, in conversation with guests who are either navigating it themselves or guiding others through it. Guest: Anna Ong, storyteller, applied improv coach, and founder of WYSH (What's Your Story Huh?) and What's Your Story Slam. Host: Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, medical doctor, executive wellbeing coach, and host of Unpolished Wisdom. #vulnerability #storytelling #leadership #publicspeaking #stagefright #confidence #authenticity #UnpolishedWisdom #singapore #podcast Chapters: 00:00 Intro 02:06 From painfully shy to the stage 05:49 Leaving 15 years of banking 08:40 Discovering improv in New York 13:19 What would you do with one year left? 17:24 The body knows: stress and somatic awareness 21:02 Building What's Your Story Slam 28:19 Why tell your story? 29:43 Scars, not wounds 32:34 Should you show every scar? 34:29 Leading in uncertain times 39:54 Stage fright and fear of judgement 42:45 Authenticity vs vulnerability 45:24 Trauma dumping and earned vulnerability 49:26 Storytelling from the messy middle 52:23 The question Anna is sitting with

3. 

   24 Sept 2026

   The Messy Middle of Divorce: How to have a Boring One

   Iman Ibrahim, divorce strategist, accredited mediator, and founder of Over It Club, joins Unpolished Wisdom to unpack what it actually takes to end a marriage without losing yourself in it. After 19 years inside the legal machinery of divorce as a family lawyer in Singapore and England, Iman walked away from the courtroom to help people navigate the end of a marriage with clarity instead of chaos. She and host Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay go straight into what Iman can't unsee after two decades of high-conflict cases: brilliant, high-functioning people who fall apart the moment it becomes personal, and the children who quietly absorb the fallout. They break down what it actually looks like when kids get weaponized in a divorce, often unconsciously, and the exact language parents use without realizing the damage it does. The conversation makes the case for something most people don't believe is possible: a boring and amicable divorce. Not painless, but not weaponized either, a divorce where the ending doesn't cost you everything else. Unpolished Wisdom is hosted by Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, a medical doctor, executive wellbeing coach, and somatic practitioner based in Singapore. Each episode stays inside the messy, unfinished middle of a life transition, the part most people never talk about while they're living it, in conversation with guests who are either navigating it themselves or guiding others through it. Guest: Iman Ibrahim, divorce strategist, accredited mediator, and coach; founder of Over It Club. Host: Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, medical doctor, executive wellbeing coach, and host of Unpolished Wisdom.

4. 

   12 Sept 2026

   The Messy Middle of Leadership: Leading Self and Others Through Uncertainty

   Angela Cusack, Master Certified Coach and author of Discover the Matrix, joins Unpolished Wisdom to unpack self-leadership, alignment, and how to lead others through real uncertainty. After 25 years in a successful corporate career, Angela walked away with no plan — driven by one question she couldn't outrun: "Who do I claim to be, in contrast to who everybody else wants me to be?" She and host Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay break down the physical signals of misalignment — the nervous-system "nerve endings on fire" feeling — and the practice of naming it out loud before it costs you your voice. The conversation also goes inside Angela's executive coaching work, exploring how leaders stay grounded and lead effectively when uncertainty, not certainty, is the only constant.

5. 

   28 May 2026

   Range, Not Change: Expanding your Identity Without Losing Yourself with Marcus Marsden

   Marcus Marsden is Managing Partner of The Works Partnership and author of Start With Who. He'd built a career helping leaders ask the hard questions — until life asked them of him. In 2019, Marcus unexpectedly found himself leading a company he'd never planned to run. Four months later, COVID shut the world down. In this conversation, Marcus opens up about the difference between change and range, why going against his gut became his greatest leadership tool, and what he learned about comfort zones when crisis takes that option off the table. This is the Season 1 Finale of Unpolished Wisdom — and there's no one I'd rather close this season with. 🔑 In this episode: - Identity range vs identity change in leadership - Leading through crisis and uncertainty - Stepping outside your comfort zone as a leader - The power of difficult conversations - Executive coaching and self-leadership - Building resilience after loss in business 🎙️ Unpolished Wisdom is a podcast hosted by Dr. Katrina Gisbert-Tay, executive wellbeing coach and somatic practitioner, exploring burnout, identity, leadership transitions, and the messy middle of personal growth.

6. 

   12 May 2026

   Physician, Heal Thyself with Dr. Loo Hui Voon

   Dr. Loo Hui Voon is the doctor people find when they've already seen everyone else. An integrative and functional medicine physician, she's built a practice around seeing the whole person — the body, the gut, the trauma, the invisible threads connecting it all. But for a long time, nobody was applying that same lens to her. In this quietly powerful conversation, Dr. Loo and Dr. Kat explore the exhaustion of being the person everyone leans on, the grief medical practice asks you to witness and never process, and the small rituals that make it possible to keep showing up with an open heart. For anyone who holds space for others — and has quietly wondered who holds space for them.

7. 

   26 Apr 2026

   The Power of the Pivot: Reinvention, Identity and Starting Again with Siva Shanker Jayaraj

   In this episode of Unpolished Wisdom, Dr. Katrina Gisbert Tay speaks to Siva Shanker Jayaraj. Siva grew up in a kampong in Malacca with no address and no plan — just an unshakeable belief that having nothing to lose was its own kind of freedom. That belief carried him to Nike, where he spent 11 years building some of the boldest brand experiences in Southeast Asia. Then one night, watching The Greatest Showman on a long-haul flight, he asked himself the question that changed everything: was Nike the circus, or was I? This is a conversation about walking away from the rocket, betting on yourself with no safety net, and what it really means to build a life on your own terms.

8. 

   9 Apr 2026

   When Your Body Keeps the Score with Dr. Suhina Singh

   Dr. Suhina Singh grew up in apartheid South Africa where danger wasn't an exception — it was the baseline. Hypervigilance became her identity. Competence became survival. And for decades, her body absorbed everything her mind refused to feel. Then the pandemic hit. Chronic inflammation, unexplainable pain, and a nervous system finally at its limit forced her into what she calls her first emotional education — a journey that revealed Complex PTSD, possible neurodivergence, and a lifetime of suppressed grief. In this episode, Suhina opens up about forgiveness as physical medicine, learning to name emotions she didn't know she had, and what it finally feels like to stop performing and simply be.

9. 

   29 Mar 2026

   Choosing Yourself in Every New Beginning: Motherhood, Identity and Creative Reinvention with Bianca Yuzon Henares

   What happens when life doesn’t follow the timeline you thought you had to keep? In this conversation, Bianca Yuzon Henares, multidisciplinary artist, dream pop musician, and mother - shares her journey of creative reinvention, identity, and learning to begin again in unfamiliar spaces. From moving countries to stepping into motherhood she never planned for, Bianca opens up about the belief that once shaped her choices, that time was running out, and how letting that go changed everything. We explore what it means to rebuild a sense of self in the midst of transition. The tension between ambition and presence. The quiet shift from measuring worth through output to finding wholeness in who you are now. This is a conversation about starting over, about motherhood and identity, about the courage to stay with the unknown long enough for something new to emerge. Key themes: creative reinvention, motherhood and identity, starting over, self-worth, artist life, personal transformation

10. 

    15 Mar 2026

    Coming Home to Yourself with Jessica Nomi Spain

    Jessica Nomi Spain, board certified nutritionist, health coach, and mother of four, spent decades living without knowing her origins after being adopted at age four following her Korean mother's death. She opens up about the narratives she created to survive—that she was chosen, that everything was fine—and how a DNA test changed everything when she discovered the family who had never stopped searching for her. This conversation explores how our bodies hold our stories, why finding your roots doesn't fix you but frees you, and the moment she realized she'd been rejecting herself all along. From feeling like she had to earn her way into every space to finally settling into belonging.

11. 

    2 Mar 2026

    The Path to Becoming with Terrie Lupberger

    Terrie Lupberger, ICF Master Certified Coach and author of "Uncommon Wisdom at Work," spent seven years writing a book that kept teaching her what she wasn't ready to learn in year one. She opens up about the collective myths we live by—that more is better, that separation protects us, that our worth equals what we produce—and how these invisible stories create endless suffering at work. This conversation explores why we over-effort instead of asking for help, how to hold the paradox of wanting boldness while needing grace, and what it means to declare satisfaction without giving up on growth. From toxic positivity to fundamental well-being, Terrie reveals why bringing our whole humanity to work isn't soft—it's the hardest skill there is.

12. 

    12 Feb 2026

    Navigating the Space Between with Dani Van de Velde

    Dani Van de Velde, meditation teacher, intuitive healer, and author of Spirited, reveals that sometimes the whisper you keep ignoring isn't doubt—it's your soul asking for attention. She opens up about walking away from a successful finance career spanning continents when the dissonance became unbearable, navigating spiritual awakening when the people around you don't understand, and discovering that meditation isn't just wellness—it's the shift from living reactively to living responsively. This conversation explores the space between imagination and psychic perception, why our sensitivity gets shut down and how to reopen it, and the courage it takes to trust what you're feeling even when it doesn't make rational sense.

13. 

    29 Jan 2026

    The Stories that Shape Us with Lyn Lee

    Lyn Lee, the first Asian woman to have served as Global Chief DEI Officer at Shell and bestselling author of Tiny Rice Grains, reveals that even with all her achievements, she still struggles with feeling truly seen. She opens up about discovering that the narratives we inherit about success, belonging, and who we should be don't have to be the ones we keep, navigating imposter syndrome while leading global change, and learning that small ripples matter more than waiting to make a big splash. This conversation explores the gap between visibility and being seen, why self-doubt persists even at the peak, and how each act of reclaiming your truth creates impact far beyond yourself.

14. 

    21 Jan 2026

    Behind Movie Magic with Corinna Vistan and Ian Takahashi

    Corinna Vistan and Ian Takahashi are award-winning filmmakers who have worked on movies and tv shows such as The Suicide Squad, The White Lotus and the Marvel Studios films. Corinna made a decision that seemed crazy to everyone around them—choosing to leave Hollywood success at its peak, leaving her job at Marvel right after Avengers: Endgame, to move their family to Manila. Ian continues to work as a Cinematographer in Hollywood now with a slightly longer commute. They open up about what it takes to pivot when you're already "winning," navigating profound uncertainty as creative partners and parents, and why sometimes the bravest choice is stepping away from everything you've built. This conversation explores the magic behind the movies and the deeper magic of a relationship built on mutual challenge, support, and the courage to reinvent together.

15. 

    7 Jan 2026

    Transitions and Thresholds with Matt Collier

    Matt Collier, founder and CEO of DignifyX, discovered that the darkness we encounter often reflects something we need to see in ourselves. He opens up about leaving a toxic work environment without a backup plan, confronting the narratives he'd been telling himself, and learning that the people who triggered him most were mirroring parts of himself he needed to heal. The conversation explores the uncomfortable space between shadow and light—where real transformation happens when we're brave enough to own our share. For mid-career professionals navigating difficult transitions, entrepreneurs facing their shadows, or anyone learning that growth doesn't follow a neat timeline.

16. 

    7 Jan 2026

    The Mirror of Parenting with Cornelia Dahinten

    Cornelia Dahinten, a Singapore-based family therapist and conscious parenting coach, reveals that the secret to conscious parenting isn't perfection—it's presence. She opens up about raising three children before she had the therapeutic tools she has now, making imperfect choices, and discovering what her kids actually needed from her in the messy middle of motherhood. The conversation explores co-regulation, self-compassion, and why children don't need flawless parents—they need emotionally available parents willing to repair and stay present. For parents navigating their own messy middle, professionals balancing parenthood and career, or anyone seeking a more compassionate approach to relationships.

Reach and audience

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

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

15 ratings