Ep. 162: Death of the Dream: Finding Faith and Peace After Divorce

Are you holding onto a dream that’s keeping you stuck in pain after divorce? As men, we unconsciously build dreams around marriage, fatherhood, and providing, and when those dreams are shattered by divorce, the emotional fallout can feel like a death of the self. It’s not just the loss of a relationship—it’s the unraveling of an identity we spent years, even decades, constructing.

But sometimes, the only way forward is to let the old dream die so that something more authentic can be born in its place. Listen in as I share reflections about my own divorce, how to break free from the identity shackles it can impose, and how embracing the “death” of these illusions can open the door to a more peaceful, grounded, and present life.

What You’ll Learn:

  • The Stoic reflection on death and how it mirrors the divorce experience.
  • How clinging to the dream breeds fear, blame, and guilt.
  • Understanding the sacred vow and how divorce shatters the dream and identity you built.
  • The trap of casting blame and why it keeps you in denial.
  • My childhood trauma, perfectionism, and the illusion of the perfect father.
  • The freeing simplicity of the present moment—and finding your worth now.
  • How to explore the meaning behind your own dreams and let them go gracefully.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“At death, we stop the dream. When we contemplate our death, we stop the dream and we can then look at the simplicity of life as it exists now.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “The dream is all the things that are built around your sacred vow.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “When the dream starts to have meaning… it shifts your thoughts to thoughts of failure. ‘I am unable to fulfill this dream, therefore, I failed.’ That's not true, but that's what happens when we don't let go of the dream.” - Steve… Share on X

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 161: From Chaos to Peace: Disrupting Toxic Divorce Patterns

What happens when your marriage is over—but you’re still living together? Today we’re tackling one of the most draining parts of the divorce experience: living in invisible divorce. It’s that space where the marriage is broken, but divorce hasn’t happened yet, and the household is steeped in unresolved tension and silent suffering.

Listen in to learn how small mindset shifts and practical actions can break the cycle of reactivity, frustration, and blame. We’ll also explore the concept of “pattern interruption,” why judgment keeps you stuck, and how letting go of control can sometimes open up unexpected solutions.

What You’ll Learn:

  • What the “invisible divorce” phase looks like.
  • How to choose peace over chaos with intentional decisions.
  • Why it’s important to take full responsibility for your emotional response.
  • How judgment prolongs suffering.
  • The importance of letting things unfold and conserving your energy.
  • How physical tension in your body can be interpreted as an emotional signal.
  • Advice for creating pattern disruptions for lasting change.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“Do you want to choose chaos or do you want to choose peace?” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “You have to find a way to be who you want to be, irrespective of how you're being treated, irrespective of whether you feel you're being hurt or harmed or treated unfairly.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “Chaos comes back into your life because… you put yourself in a position of self-imposed suffering by reliving the judgment.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X

Resources:

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 160: How to Hire the Right Divorce Attorney with Family Law Specialist Jaime Davis

Are you facing the overwhelming decision of hiring a divorce attorney and unsure where to start? For many men, the legal side of divorce feels like foreign territory, layered on top of emotional turmoil and financial uncertainty. But getting this step right can set the tone for everything that follows.

In this episode, I sit down with Jaime Davis, an experienced family law attorney, to break down what you really need to know before hiring a lawyer. We cover how to approach separation with clarity, why therapy and building a strong support team matter, and the often-misunderstood world of litigation, mediation, and settlement.

What You’ll Learn:

  • When to consult a divorce attorney.
  • What to ask in your first meeting with an attorney.
  • What to organize and how to work with financial experts.
  • Tips for parenting during separation and avoiding alienating behavior.
  • How the civil court process works in family law cases.
  • Jaime’s five-step framework for divorcing without destruction.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“You need to trust your lawyer like you trust your doctor, and if you don't, you might need to find a new one.” - Jaime Davis Share on X “If you can find a therapist and pay them to address the emotional needs, your dollars are better spent letting your lawyer address the legal needs.” - Jaime Davis Share on X “It is important to understand whether the lawyer you have the consultation with is the lawyer who is going to represent you throughout the process.” - Jaime Davis Share on X

Resources:

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 159: When Divorce News Hits: Processing the Pain of an Invisible Ending

Have you just heard the gut-wrenching words “I want a divorce”—and now find yourself overwhelmed and unsure where to turn? For many men, the breakdown begins long before those words are spoken. It’s slow, often invisible, and recognizing that truth is the first step toward healing.

In this episode, I share my own story—the moment I heard the news, the emotional storm that followed, and the quiet disconnection that had been building for years. We’ll talk about why giving yourself space to process is essential, as well as how this painful turning point might become the doorway to unexpected clarity, freedom, and growth.

What You’ll Learn:

  • Why emotional disengagement often begins long before divorce is mentioned.
  • The emotional rollercoaster that follows hearing “I want a divorce.”
  • How fear, anger, shame, and sadness can keep you stuck in painful loops.
  • Why giving yourself permission to process the news matters more than quick solutions.
  • The hidden costs of misplaced time, energy, and health during divorce.
  • How small shifts in awareness can set the stage for real healing.
  • Why the painful ending you resist may be the door to your next chapter of freedom.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“I didn't know it at the time, but I was in a marriage of loyalty, not of love.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “I found myself in this invisible divorce. I didn't know what it was at the time, but our marriage had gradually transformed in a way that there was a heightened level of disengagement.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “There's a way for you to embrace what it is that you don't like and what it is that you don't prefer.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 158: 5 Virtues Every Man Needs to Heal After Divorce

Do you feel like you’re doing everything right during your divorce, but still stuck in the same painful patterns? Here’s why awareness alone isn’t enough to create the change you desire, and why real growth begins when you start living with intention.

Listen in as I talk about the powerful virtues — patience, curiosity, honesty, perseverance, and love — and how embodying them can shift the way you approach the challenges of divorce. I’ll also share lessons from my coaching experience with men across the country who are working through the deep emotional layers that divorce unearths.

What You’ll Learn:

  • Why understanding something doesn’t mean we’re ready to change.
  • How to be patient with yourself while creating a new relationship with your ex.
  • Why curiosity, not control, is the answer to emotional clarity.
  • The hidden cost of avoiding honesty with yourself and others.
  • How perseverance helps you move forward.
  • What it really means to practice love in the face of pain.
  • Why old habits won’t guide you through a new chapter of life.
  • How building structure helps reduce avoidable costs during divorce.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“Just because you understand something, you've expanded your awareness, doesn't mean that you can take the next step and have complete change.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “How can you judge yourself today under a stance of greater awareness, and then judge yourself and condemn yourself for not doing better when you didn't know?” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “We have to have space for these things we don't like to come into us because it's those very things that we don't like that hold the clues for us to have this self-discovery.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 157: How to Redefine Prosperity After Divorce

What does true prosperity mean after divorce? As someone who built a career in financial planning, I had long equated prosperity with wealth and stability. But going through my divorce stripped me of that illusion and opened the door to something far more meaningful.

Listen in as I share the raw, unfiltered truths I learned about attachment, control, and the illusions we cling to when we think money equals security. I open up about how my divorce shattered the carefully constructed image of financial success I had built—both personally and professionally—and how that unraveling, painful as it was, cleared space for real wealth.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How divorce shattered my illusion of financial success.
  • The illusion of ownership and control.
  • The paradox of prosperity.
  • How divorce creates space to rediscover time, health, and energy.
  • Why our attachment to money can deepen our suffering.
  • Why purpose-driven living is the real wealth.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“It's not that I worship money. It's that attachment to the meaning that money gives me, that warm security blanket that when it's there, I will feel better.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “What you have can never be lost. Heart, wisdom, knowledge, love, peace—these are yours for life.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “In the gains of life, you've given away time, energy, and health to accumulate money. And now that the divorce is here, the divorce is asking you to give up money to eventually reclaim time, energy, and health.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 156: Love or Loyalty: What Was Your Marriage Built On?

Was your relationship truly built on love, or was it held together by loyalty? This is one of those conversations that’s raw, real, and often uncomfortable, but also incredibly freeing once you start peeling back the layers of truth.

Listen in as I unpack the emotional fog, the self-judgment, and the common cycle of trying to make sense of it all, while showing you a new lens with which to view your situation. If you’ve recently been hit with the news of divorce, or you’ve been silently stuck in a marriage that no longer feels right, this episode is for you.

What You’ll Learn:

  • What a loyalty-based relationship really looks like.
  • What most divorces mean for men receiving the news.
  • How to know if reconciliation is genuine or just familiar.
  • My personal story: thinking I was a “good husband” and wondering why it still wasn’t enough.
  • How staying “for the kids” can model unhealthy relationship dynamics.
  • Tips for moving from rumination to reflection.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“The best thing you could do for yourself right now is to get really, really granular on your truth, and you might find that you were in a relationship of loyalty rather than a relationship of love.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “ Tell the truth to yourself, about yourself, and what it is that you want in a relationship.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “You're gonna be spending the rest of your life with a person. So it's really important to get granular and understand what it is that you want.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 155: Letting Go of the Pain: Divorce & Self-Discovery

What happens when the life you’ve built starts to unravel, and you’re left questioning everything you thought you knew about yourself? Today, we dive into the raw, real impact of divorce, especially for men—how it challenges your identity, your role, and everything you once thought was secure.

In this episode, I’m joined by Gary, a listener of the podcast, who is coming on the show to share his story of getting through one of the most emotionally and mentally challenging seasons of his life. Listen in as we talk openly about hidden trauma, the weight of holding it all in, and how to finally shift from just surviving to truly healing.

What You’ll Learn:

  • The pain of losing identity, status, and reputation.
  • Why success doesn’t equal self-worth.
  • The concept of the “second mountain” and rebuilding purpose.
  • How to release pain from divorce, childhood, and beyond.
  • Lessons in ego, self-awareness, and emotional healing.
  • Tools to get unstuck.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“Life isn’t easy for most people. We all have some kind of traumas—whether it’s childhood, military, career, health, or family.” - Gary Share on X “What I really want release after the divorce, going through all this pain, lessons, and rediscovering myself and my life... I want to release a lot of pain from my heart.” - Gary Share on X “Everybody comes into our life for a reason. You're in my life for a reason. I'm in your life for a reason.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X

Resources:

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 154: Blending Families and Healing Hearts: Ed Robinson’s Journey Through Divorce and Rediscovery

How do you rebuild your life and family after divorce when you’re still healing yourself? In this episode, I sit down with my good friend and fellow coach, Ed Robinson, to tackle that question and more. You may know Ed as a seasoned executive and leadership coach, but today, he’s joining us not to talk about performance or leadership, but to share his personal story of divorce and healing.

Listen in as we talk about the emotional rollercoaster of divorce, parenting through pain, and finding purpose again on the other side. You’ll hear Ed speak with raw vulnerability about solitude, self-reflection, and eventually, rediscovering his worth.

What You’ll Learn:

  • The emotional toll of divorce.
  • What it’s like managing responsibilities and finances as a single dad.
  • The realities of shared custody.
  • What dating after divorce looks like.
  • How to blend families with intention, patience, and clear communication.
  • The beauty of building meaningful moments.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“I had to like being with me, so someone else would one day like being with me.” - @robined1 Share on X “Never lower your values or your standards for another human being or a situation… It's best to walk away from that.” - @robined1 Share on X “The big thing that divorce teaches you along the way is being more gentle with life.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X

Resources:

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.

Ep. 153: The Power of Letting Go: How to Begin Your Emotional Healing From Divorce

Divorce can leave lasting legal, mental, and emotional scars that are tough to heal from. The key to recovery, however, is learning to let go. Though it may be easier said than done, letting go is essential for redirecting your energy, finances, and time toward building a brighter future for yourself and your family.

Listen in to hear why we find it difficult to let go, as well as how resistance is delaying your healing. I also discuss the role of ‘faith’ in the 5F model and how to navigate unexpected twists in your divorce journey. You’ll come away with practical steps to help you start letting go and healing from divorce.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How to navigate divorce with the 5F model.
  • The importance of having—and staying true to—your faith.
  • How forgiveness can bring you and your spouse peace.
  • Why freedom should be one of the end goals.
  • How the legal side of divorce is set up with limitations.
  • Alternative methods for divorcing.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“There's nothing that's going to transpire in your legal documents that's going to allow you to fully heal from the effects of divorce. The only thing that permits you to fully heal is the process of letting go.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “Unforgiveness gives the other person the ability to have power over us and keep us locked in.” - Steve Schleupner Share on X “ Once you have a new perception—a perception that says there's an opportunity here, there's something that can be created here rather than a perception that you've been wronged, hurt or harmed or mistreated or lied to—your new… Share on X

Resources:

To enjoy the remainder of this Premier Episode visit our Divorce Support Center on Patreon. New subscribers pay just $3/month, after a 7-day free trial, for my full body of podcast episodes and exclusive community events.

Transform your divorce experience for long-term success. Learn how to manage conflict, elevate relationship dynamics, and enhance financial savvy. Visit www.youtreecoaching.com now, or schedule a free consultation to determine what services might benefit you.