Left Standing

Hosted by Cara Kovacs

Business Entrepreneurship

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May 2026

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About the show

A space for healers, witches, goddesses, and radicals who do meaningful work in a system that makes it more difficult than it needs to be. This is where you come to remember your why and reclaim your story. carakovacs.substack.com

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May 12, 202634 min

A peek behind-the-scenes of how I launch

Hello dear ones,I get asked constantly whether people are still buying coaching in 2026. And I have thoughts. A lot of them. Including actual numbers from my business, which I am going to share with you because I think you deserve to make decisions based on real data and not vibes (though personally I have wasted a lot of money buying because of vibes…).This episode is a sneak peek behind the strategy I use to launch — not the inspirational version, the actual version. What I spend on ads, what my conversion rate is, why my October launch made $30k instead of $50k and what I did about it, and the behind-the-scenes of an $108k month in February.Here is what we get into:The real math. 650 webinar signups, $2,500 in ads, an 8% conversion rate, a $108k month. What all of that actually means and why you can’t just copy the numbers without understanding the system underneath them.Why ads will not save you if your organic marketing isn’t already working. I know that’s not what you want to hear. I’m telling you anyway.Why free calls are basically dead as a lead gen strategy in 2026 and what actually works instead.The meta thing I do when I teach a webinar that most coaches never figure out — which is that I’m selling the entire time and it doesn’t feel gross, and that is not an accident, and you can learn how to do it.What happened to my October launch when someone threatened to sue me over my podcast name in the middle of open cart, got it deleted from the internet, and how I made the revenue back anyway.Why entrepreneurship is a gamble no matter how long you’ve been doing it — and what it actually feels like from the inside when you’ve been at it long enough to stop fully panicking about that.Feminist Business Framework is open now. This is the last round at this price — it increases permanently after this cohort. Doors close May 20. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

May 5, 202655 min

A Woman In A Male Dominated Industry, AI and her first 5-figure launch

Stacey Champagne is a cybersecurity executive, an insider risk specialist, and the founder of Women’s Cybersecurity Alliance — a private network built for experienced women in cyber who are done being the most qualified person in the room and somehow still getting passed over for the next thing.She joined the Feminist Business Framework in September 2025, became a 1:1 client, and had her first five-figure launch in March 2026. This episode is her telling you exactly what that journey looked like from the inside.Some of what she said that I’m still thinking about:She originally underpriced her offers because of the feedback you may have gotten, too (someone insinuating they were “too high”). The low prices felt safe. What she didn’t realize until we worked through it together was that the low prices were building the wrong room — attracting people whose values weren’t aligned with hers, who had opinions about what she should be charging, who were never going to be her people. The moment she priced for who she actually wanted to work with, those people showed up. Immediately.She also talked about the days mid-launch where nothing was happening. No sales, just silence, and a completely relatable inner dialogue of “what if nobody buys.” I told her what I tell everyone: people buy on the last day, often in the last hour, but there is no fix for normal feelings. And then the launch closed and she had her first five figures.We got into the coaching industry, specifically the gap between what ICF certification programs teach you — essentially, ask good questions and never share your own experience or expertise — and what people actually need when they hire a coach. Stacey is a coach herself and came into the Feminist Business Framework partly to learn the tactical stuff nobody had given her, and partly, in her words, to watch how I sell so she could understand it from the inside. That part of the conversation is worth the listen if you have ever felt like the business side of your practice is a language you were never taught to speak.She is also a decade deep in cybersecurity and has things to say about using AI tools as an entrepreneur that are not scary and not hype — just: here is what you are actually opting into by default, here is why clicking allow all is the kind of decision that feels fine until it isn’t, and here is why the idea that women are behind on AI might be less of a data point and more of a narrative someone is running on purpose.Stacey is brilliant, honest, and very funny. This is a good one.If you want to get into the work that took her from underpricing to a five-figure launch, I’m hosting a free workshop next week. Details here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

April 22, 202644 min

Leah Gervais on Passive Income, Pragmatism, and the Part of Business Nobody Warns You About

Leah Gervais has built close to $4 million in revenue all while being the stay-at-home-parent of two kids under five in New York City. She is strategic, pragmatic, and genuinely one of the most generous people I know. She showed up in a big way the morning my grandmother died and didn’t ask a single question. That’s the kind of person she is.In this episode we get into the mechanics of scaling:* What it actually looks like when you decide to go from $50k months to $65k months. * Why the first thing you often have to do to scale is spend more money * How to tell the difference between a business decision that needs data and one that just needs you to trust yourself. * Leah shares what her top five lead generation sources actually are right now (freebies didn’t make the list — listen before you panic) * And, why webinars aren’t dead, they’re just slower than they used to be.We also talk about something that I think will land differently depending on who you are and where you’re coming from: the tension between holding a structural critique of the system you’re building inside of, and actually building inside it anyway. Leah and I are not identical in how we hold that tension. She is pragmatic in a way I deeply respect and occasionally push back on. I carry more of the systemic weight in how I frame this work, in part because of the specific clients I serve and in part because of my own lived experience as a disabled person who built this business because I needed to, not because it sounded freeing.We don’t resolve the tension neatly. I don’t think it can be resolved neatly. But I think it’s one of the more honest conversations I’ve had on this podcast about what it actually means to build a values-aligned business inside a system that was not built for most of us.If you have found yourself stuck between your politics and your pragmatism — or between your grief about the system and your need to build inside it anyway — this one is for you.Leah Gervais is a business and marketing mentor based in New York City. Find her at leahgervais.com and on Instagram. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

April 8, 202637 min

Grief, Work, and the Performance of Being Okay

This episode is a continuation of my last post—about grief, work, and what it means to keep showing up inside a system that doesn’t pause when things fall apart.Today, I’m speaking more directly about the tension I think so many of us are quietly holding:What it means to be a human being living through real pain… while also being someone who is expected to function, produce, lead, and show up. (Also show up for who? For our community, for ourselves, for the capitalist?)We’re living in a time where grief is not rare. It’s not exceptional.It’s ambient. It’s layered. It’s ongoing.And yet, most of us have never been taught:* what grief actually does to the body (I think this and classes on how to have hard conversations and do your taxes would have been more relevant than say, geometry…)* why your capacity changes when you’re in it (from a biological perspective)* how to navigate work, relationships, and visibility while your internal world is fundamentally altered (as it would be, of course, if something traumatic happened to you)So instead, we make it mean something about us.That we’re less disciplined.Less focused.Lazy, even.What if nothing is wrong with you?What if the exhaustion, the brain fog, the emotional volatility, the desire to pull back—or the need to keep going—are not personal failures, but biological and psychological responses to what you’re carrying?I also talk about something I don’t think we name enough:The way capitalism—and more specifically the attention economy—intensifies our experience of grief.Not just because we’re expected to keep producing,but because we’re continuously exposed to crisis, trauma, and information in a way no human nervous system was designed to process.So we’re not just grieving our own lives.We’re absorbing the world.And then asking ourselves why we can’t focus.This is not an episode about doing grief perfectly. It’s about removing the expectation that you should.If you’re in a season where things feel heavy—personally, collectively, or both—this episode is for you.🤍 A NoteYou don’t owe anyone a perfectly articulated explanation of what you’re going through.You don’t have to perform being okay.And you are allowed to both:* need support* and continue showing up in ways that feel sustainableThose things are not in conflict.🔗 Sources & Research Mentioned* Stahl, S. T., et al. (2019). Bereavement leave and its impact on employees. * National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (2022). Impact of repeated exposure to trauma and stress.* NBC News – Your Brain on Grief (video segment on neurological effects of grief)* Reuters (2026). Attention economy, infinite scroll, and user engagement research This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

March 18, 202646 min

Magic Is Everywhere with Xenia Viray

This week’s episode is a conversation with Xenia Marie Ross Viray, who is the creator of the platform and iterations of Myths of Creation, an interdisciplinary artist who—quite literally—gets paid to be herself.Not in a “personal brand” way.In a devotional to creativity, consciousness, and resonance kind of way.We talk about what it actually looks like to build a body of work—and a business—without contorting yourself for the algorithm.Inside the episode:* Why your “content” might actually be your laboratory, not your marketing* The difference between authenticity and unmasking (and why one of them is much scarier)* How trying to “perform for the algorithm” quietly erodes the very thing that makes people choose you* What it means to create from resonance instead of strategy—and then translate it into something people can understand* The trap of constant visibility, especially nowWe also go deeper than business.Into the emotional, political, and psychological reality of being online right now:* The dissonance of building a business on social media while being harmed by it* What it means to be a sensitive, creative person in a time of constant crisis and information overload* How algorithms fracture reality—and why it’s getting harder to actually talk to each other* The grief of losing intergenerational understanding (and the question: where are our elders?)And then—because we can’t not—we go cosmic.We talk about:* Creativity as a portal for new consciousness* Art, music, and even the Olympics as evidence that joy and expression can shift collective energy* The idea that we’re not just resisting broken systems—we’re being asked to create entirely new onesOne of the most grounding threads throughout the conversation:You don’t have to do it all the same way.Some people are here to resist.Some are here to rebel.Some are here to create.Most of us are doing all three—just in different proportions, at different times.And none of those roles are more valuable than the others.If you’ve been feeling:* burnt out by social media* confused about what to share (or whether to share at all)* caught between wanting to grow your business and wanting to opt out of the noise* or quietly craving a more human, more magical way of moving through your workthis episode will meet you there.Not with a formula.But with a reorientation back to yourself.PS. At the end of this episode I got a push notification that reminded me it was recorded on my grandfather’s birthday. When you get to the end, you’ll be glad I mentioned that. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

March 11, 202625 min

A peek inside my $108,500 month

This week on the podcast, I’m breaking down the most profitable month I’ve had: $108,500 in sales.But this isn’t a “here are my secrets to making money while you sleep” episode. Because sure, the money came in over the course of a month, but it is because of the systems, community and IP I have spent years building.This is a conversation about what it actually looks like to build a profitable business when you’re a feminist, a service provider, and someone with complicated feelings about capitalism.Inside the episode, I talk about:* Why getting money into the hands of marginalized people is an important part of our political work* The strange reality of being good at capitalism while actively critiquing it* The long, messy path from not qualifying for an apartment lease to being approved for an $800k mortgage* What most people get wrong about “six-figure months” in the coaching industry* The less glamorous truth behind this launch—including personally reaching out to 400 people and still getting ignored by most of themI also share the real throughline behind my results: not viral content, not hacks, not a brand-new offer.Just relentless iteration, deep attention to what clients actually need, and a business model built around making people feel seen at every stage—from first contact to long-term client relationships.If you’ve ever wondered:* whether making money while critiquing the systems that force you to work without protecting your basic rights can coexist* why your offers aren’t converting even when the work is good* what ethical selling actually looks like in practicethis episode pulls back the curtain.Not on a fantasy version of entrepreneurship—but on the slow, strategic work that actually builds a sustainable business.Listen to the episode and join my email list to get first access to the next time I launch.Grab a sneak peek into my business model here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

February 18, 202637 min

The Fine Print You’re Ignoring (And Why It Might Cost You)

This week on Left Standing, I’m joined by Taylor Tieman, founder of Legalmiga — and one of the few internet-savvy attorneys actually translating legalese into language you can understand. (She also loves astrology! Big plus!)If you’re a creator, coach, course seller, influencer, or small business owner… this episode is basically your gentle (but firm) legal wake-up call.Taylor breaks down:* Why securing the Instagram handle is not the same thing as protecting your brand* What most entrepreneurs forget to check before naming a podcast, course, or program* How trademark issues usually only come up after someone gets a scary letter* Why legal documents are written to be confusing — and who that benefits* The checklist every online business should have (even though no two businesses are the same)We also get into the reality creators don’t talk about publicly:* Speech clauses in brand contracts that can legally restrict what you say online* The financial consequences of breaching a sponsorship agreement* Why some creators stay silent during political moments (and why it’s not always cowardice)* The real tension between personal values and contractual obligationsTaylor also shares her perspective as a lawyer navigating a time when the legal system feels slow, reactive, and often outpaced by harm — including her thoughts on corporate PR language (including statements from companies like Home Depot) and the mishandling of sensitive document releases related to the Epstein Files.If you’ve ever thought:* “I formed an LLC, so I’m good, right?”* “I’ll deal with trademarks later.”* “That clause probably won’t apply to me.”This episode is your sign to listen first and Google later.Because sometimes the most radical thing you can do as a business owner… is read the fine print. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

February 10, 202614 min

It’s Not Them. It’s You. (And That’s Actually a Relief.)

* “No one signed up.”* “My audience doesn’t engage.”* “People can’t afford to work with me.”* “The algorithm hates me.”You’re spiraling about whether your content is cringe, too political, too woo, too much.In this episode, I make a bold (and admittedly spicy) claim:It’s not your people or the algorithm, babe. It’s you.Not in a shamey way.In a liberating way.The real problem with most marketingMost people aren’t thinking about their clients when they post.They’re thinking about:* their ex’s mom’s opinion of their content* that girl from high school who may see you calling yourself a coach and judge* former coworkers who could be lurking* their MAGA auntBasically, people who would never hire you anywayIf you’re contorting your message to avoid being judged by people who aren’t your clients, you’re not doing marketing—you’re doing reputation management for an imaginary audience.And that is a terrible business strategy.The relief no one talks aboutHere’s the exhale:Your marketing isn’t about you.Yes, people will misinterpret you.Yes, parasocial weirdness will happen.Yes, someone will project something untrue onto you.They’d do that anyway.So tell me again why you want a business on the internet if you’re unwilling to be seen by the people you’re actually trying to help?Being a business owner ≠ just doing the workIf your dream is to open your laptop and have clients magically appear so you can stay in your zone of genius all day, there are jobs for that. Truly.But owning a business means:* helping people find you* giving them a reason to trust you* showing up even when it’s uncomfortable* understanding that being “in service” also requires visibilityYou don’t get to skip the part where you’re the one steering the ship.The bottom lineYou get to be scared.You get to be uncomfortable.You get to be annoyed, frustrated, and triggered.But if you want impact, untapped income, and actual autonomy?It’s not the algorithm.It’s not your audience.It’s not “them.”It’s you.And if you want it—I believe in you.🎧 Listen to the full episode for the unfiltered version, the metaphors, and the tough love that makes this all land. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

February 4, 202651 min

What the data says about how political stance impacts business revenue

If you’ve ever thought:“I care deeply about what’s happening in the world, but I’m terrified of saying the wrong thing and nuking my business”—this episode is for you.This episode is not a call for everyone to start posting infographics between launch emails. It’s a reckoning with a harder question:What does it actually mean to operate from your values under capitalism—and what happens when you don’t?First: let’s talk about scroll rage (s/o @hottranslifecoach for coining this term)You know how road rage works? You’re behind someone driving ten under the speed limit, you’re swearing, spiraling, projecting. Then you pass them and it’s a 92-year-old woman gripping the steering wheel for dear life. And you feel terrible.Social media is that—but no one ever passes the car.People don’t know you. They don’t know your context, your history, your lived experience, or what unprocessed trauma is showing up in a tiny bit of screen that can’t possibly hold nuance. They just see a fragment and unload their nervous system onto it.This is the water we’re all swimming in when we talk about “showing up consistently” online. Whether that’s political, as a business owner, or to hopefully make your ex feel bad when you post a thirst trap. Scroll Rage is the offloading a troll has into that space that makes you feel like the 92-year old driver—like you’re hanging on for dear life.An obvious reminder: Everything is political.Being a woman is political.Being white is political.Being chronically ill is political.Providing healthcare is political.Providing therapy is political.Running a business under capitalism is political.The question isn’t whether your business is political.It’s whether you’re conscious about how.In this episode we discuss what it means to front your politics in business.Plus I give you some tea about how this played out for big companies who had a lot more money to throw around, and therefore a lot more to lose (and gain) by sharing their politics online.The point is not to make a case for performative ally ship (quite the contrary, as most of the research showed that if a brand seemed to be performing it negatively impacted sales) but more to explore how activism impacts capitalism…ya know, just for funnies.What the research actually showsA University of Arizona study on corporate sociopolitical activism analyzed hundreds of activism events across 150+ U.S. firms and found:* When a company’s political stance aligned with its stakeholders, stock value increased (~0.7%)* When it misaligned, stock value dropped (~2.45%)* Sales followed the same pattern: alignment = growth, mismatch = declineTranslation:People don’t punish values. They punish incoherence. But honestly—by a really nominal amount…Another 2025 study in the Journal of Business Research confirmed that:* Consumers are not a monolith* Political ideology shapes brand loyalty* Activism polarizes—but not randomlyYou don’t lose “everyone.” You lose people who were never actually aligned with you in the first place.So… should you be political in your business?Here’s the actual answer:* If your politics are integrated into why and how you work → yes, probably.* If your politics would actively prevent people from accessing essential care or services → maybe not front loaded in your marketing, but still privately of course.* If you’re posting to look “on the right side” without education or action → absolutely not.* If your value is privacy and you do your activism offline → that is still a value.Being political doesn’t mean being loud.It means being in integrity with yourself.A note on education and responsibilityHaving a take means doing the work.Paying educators. Reading. Learning. Being wrong and repairing.Not outsourcing your conscience to Instagram slides.Creators and educators I deeply respect who are POC and more qualified to teach you about social justice than I am:* Adrienne Maree Brown* Patrisse Cullors* Susanna Barkataki* Jenan Matari* Rachel Cargle* Blair ImaniThere is no excuse for being uninformed. There is grace for being in process.Final spicy truthStaying “neutral” in public while privately benefiting from systems of harm is still a political choice.People saying that their value is “protecting their nervous system” are not anyone I would hire to help me heal via way of spiritual bypassing.Resources Cited:Academic Sources (Politics & Consumer Behavior):* NBER Working Paper — The Musk Partisan Effect on Tesla Sales (2025). https://doi.org/10.3386/w34413* University of Arizona — The Price of Taking a Stance… https://news.arizona.edu/story/price-taking-stance-how-corporate-sociopolitical-activism-impacts-bottom-line* Journal of Marketing — Corporate Sociopolitical Activism and Firm Value https://doi.org/10.1177/0022242920937000* Journal of Marketing Research — Should Your Brand Pick a Side? https://doi.org/10.1177/0022243720947682News & Reported Impact:* Bud Light Boycott Effects Endure — Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/aliciapark/2024/07/18/bud-light-boycott-effects-endure-brand-drops-to-third/* Bud Light boycott impact summary — Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bud_Light_boycott* Did Starbucks Lose $12B from Boycotts? — Snopes. https://www.snopes.com/news/2023/12/07/starbucks-12-billion-loss-due-to-israel/* Ben & Jerry’s co-founder resigns — Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/business/ben-jerrys-co-founder-resigns-citing-loss-independence-under-unilever-2025-09-17/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe

January 21, 202625 min

A pep talk for making 2026 your best year in business

Here’s a story a lot of values-driven business owners are telling themselves right now:I don’t have the capacity.I’m overwhelmed.I’ll do it when things calm down.And listen — that story makes sense. We’re living in late-stage capitalism during a genuinely destabilizing moment in history. Of course you’re exhausted. Of course your nervous system is fried. Of course everything feels harder than it used to.But here’s the uncomfortable truth I unpack in this episode: that story is also keeping a lot you stuck.Not because it’s wrong — but because it’s incomplete.👉 Before you read any further, if you want the practical version of this conversation (not just the philosophical one), come to Burn It Down and Build It Better on Feb 2–3. It’s free, it’s live, and it’s where I teach the systems that actually support sustainable, ethical growth in 2026.Systems Aren’t the Opposite of Care — They’re What Make Care PossibleOne of the biggest myths I see in feminist, healing-centered spaces is that systems are somehow antithetical to artistry, intuition, or care.They’re not.They’re just the boring part.And entrepreneurship does require doing boring, annoying, sometimes frustrating things — the same way having a body requires stretching, or having good dental hygiene requires flossing, or having a long-term relationship requires staying when it would be easier to bail.You either decide you’re willing to do things you don’t love in service of what you do love — or you outsource your power to circumstance and call it “capacity”.“I’m Not a Tech Person” Is Not a Personality TraitIn the episode, I talk about how often “I’m not a tech person” or “systems just aren’t my thing” is less about truth and more about gendered conditioning.Caretaking, healing, emotional labor? Feminized.Infrastructure, logistics, systems? Masculinized.And opting out of the latter doesn’t make you more values-aligned — it often just keeps you dependent, underpaid, exhausted, without leads, and resentful.Learning the practicalities of business is a self loving choice.It doesn’t mean you have to be a content creator or coder…but it means you understand what you need to know to grow.You Don’t Need Infinite Capacity — You Need DirectionI’m not telling you to work yourself into the ground. That’s not trauma-informed, and your nervous system matters here.I am saying that waiting for a mythical future where you suddenly have more time, more energy, and fewer responsibilities is a losing strategy.What actually changes things is making a non-perfect choice that moves you closer to the long-term solution you want:* Investing before it feels fully comfortable* Asking for support instead of white-knuckling it* Building systems once so you’re not reinventing the wheel every monthMost people burn more energy avoiding action than taking one strategic step.2026 Is About Real Connection, Not TricksAI isn’t killing service-based businesses. If anything, it’s raising the bar on how we show up—in a way I think is ultimately good for the consumer.People are more discerning. More skeptical. More tired of vague promises and generic “value.”Which means:* You have to know why your work is different* You have to communicate like a real human* You have to market like you actually give a shit about the person on the other sideIf you don’t know what makes your work different, it’s not a marketing problem — it’s a clarity problem.And that’s fixable.If This Episode Hit, Here’s Your Next StepThis episode is about stopping the self-abandonment disguised as burnout — and choosing to build something that actually supports you and the people you serve.If that resonates, join me in class. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit carakovacs.substack.com/subscribe