17. How to be with yourself

20. To decide is to be disciplined

What if discipline is just making a decision? What does it look like to move away from carceral, capitalist definitions of what it means to be disciplined toward a more neutral, self-led definition? In a world where we’re overtly and covertly told how to live, it’s more important than ever to be sovereign in how we move through our relationships. In this episode, we explore: * Why traditional definitions of discipline limit our authenticity * Centering ourselves * Being fully responsible * Identity work as a foundation for discipline * Tools for decision-making guidance * Homework at 34:54 - Decision-making experiment Resources mentioned: * Discipline and Punish, Michel Foucault * https://michel-foucault.com/key-concepts/ [https://michel-foucault.com/key-concepts/] * Self Compassion, Kristin Neff * Power Vs. Force, David R. Hawkins * Energy Alignment Flowchart - @kemimarie [https://x.com/kemimarie/status/1879322621759889869?s=46&t=Q2LQZmLdp0v7FswMS58LwA] What is your relationship to discipline?When I say the word discipline how does the body respond?What comes up when you think about when you are engaging in a practice of discipline. What feelings come up, what thoughts, what is that shape it takes, has it changed over time? How does it look in practice? When it comes to making decisions in your life, how does it feel to make decisions for yourself? Are there areas where it’s easier, harder?Do you find yourself struggling to decide, often, sometimes, seldom, never, maybe in certain situations over others. How about decisions where other people are involved?How does it feel to know whether something is a yes or a no? big decisions? Every day decisions?How about in your relationships? How does it feel to decide whether to pursue a connection with someone or not? How does it feel to decide on what you want in your relationships?How do you know the decisions are formed? What influences them? How does it feel to decide on how to behave in relationships with others? Book a free 30-minute coaching consult call ⁠here [https://calendly.com/hopefularomantic/free-consult]⁠. Let’s connect! @hopefularomantic [https://www.instagram.com/hopefularomantic] on ig <3 https://victoriayeung.coach/ [https://victoriayeung.coach/]

19. Why settle?

Settling is never worth it! To settle in relationships, career, business, or life usually comes from roots of scarcity and fear. Tapping into possibility and expanding your sense of trust and belief is what brings you into honest connections. In this episode, we explore: * Common beliefs behind settling * Why it’s not worth trying to make unaligned situations work * Fear of settling * Clarifying your desire * Sovereignty to build honest relationships * Homework at 39:25 - Journal prompts: 1. What does enough mean to you? 2. How do you make decisions? How do you know you made the ‘right’ decision? How do you know you made the ‘wrong’ decision’? 3. What would your life look like if you never settled again? What would it feel like? 4. What can you do differently this week to get 1% closer to that life? Send in your relationship-related question for a chance to be featured on a future episode! You can send in a short ~1 minute voicenote or short written question to hopefularomantic@gmail.com [hopefularomantic@gmail.com], with the subject line: Podcast question. Book a free 30-minute coaching consult call ⁠here⁠ [https://calendly.com/hopefularomantic/free-consult]. Let’s connect! @hopefularomantic [https://www.instagram.com/hopefularomantic] on ig <3 https://victoriayeung.coach/ [https://victoriayeung.coach/]

18. Pedastalizing romance limits the love you receive

When romance is prioritized over all other types of connection, we end up missing out on a lot. If you’re looking to cultivate real, authentic, connection, it starts with questioning the stories we’ve been sold about love and relationships so we can create space for possibility… including but not limited to, better friendships. In this episode, we explore: * The power of authentic connection * Romance and relationship hierarchies * Cultural norms that hinder deep friendship * Ace perspectives on friendship * Setting standards for friendship * Homework at 40:11 - NEWS list Resources mentioned: * Emergent Strategy, adrienne maree brown * The short instructional manifesto for relationship anarchy, Andie Nordgren [https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/andie-nordgren-the-short-instructional-manifesto-for-relationship-anarchy] * Relationship Anarchy Smorgasbord [https://www.readyforpolyamory.com/post/the-relationship-anarchy-smorgasbord] * NEWS list example [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RZbQm4ty-1Opd5XHhlDff0LbUp8y_TsE8c-1qkhaNgE/edit?usp=sharing] Send in your relationship-related question for a chance to be featured on a future episode! You can send in a short ~1 minute voicenote or short written question to hopefularomantic@gmail.com [hopefularomantic@gmail.com], with the subject line: Podcast question. Book a free 30-minute coaching consult call ⁠here [https://calendly.com/hopefularomantic/free-consult]⁠. Let’s connect! @hopefularomantic [https://www.instagram.com/hopefularomantic] on ig <3 https://victoriayeung.coach/ [https://victoriayeung.coach/]

17. How to be with yourself

Being able to connect with others means first connecting deeply with yourself, by yourself. Labels and identities aside, what does it look like to fully be with oneself? To live life where you are at the center of it? In this episode, we explore: * Embracing periods of freedom and solitude * Detachment * Meeting your needs * Life as a personal experiment * Living in full presence * Homework at 24:02 - Imagination experiment Books mentioned: * The Art of Loving, Erich Fromm * You Are The One You’ve Been Waiting For, Richard Schwartz Send in your relationship-related question for a chance to be featured on a future episode! You can send in a short ~1 minute voicenote or short written question to hopefularomantic@gmail.com [hopefularomantic@gmail.com], with the subject line: Podcast question. Book a free 30-minute 1:1 coaching consult call ⁠here [https://calendly.com/hopefularomantic/free-consult]⁠. Let’s connect! @hopefularomantic [https://www.instagram.com/hopefularomantic] on ig <3 https://victoriayeung.coach/ [https://victoriayeung.coach/]

16. Everyone wants intimacy, no one wants to be vulnerable - The Drama Analysis

This week we’re breaking down romantic tropes and myths vs. true intimacy using scenes from THE DRAMA (2026). Warning: there are light character development spoilers within, but the main plot twist will not be revealed, however feel free to bookmark this one and come back to it if you want to go into the movie totally blind. In this episode, we explore: * Romance as performance * Why intimacy can’t be rushed * How intensity gets mistaken for intimacy * Building trust in relationships * Key parts of a strong relationship foundation * Homework at 41:55 - Shadow work Resources mentioned: * THE DRAMA, Kristoffer Borgli (2026) * I Stumbled Across My Boyfriend's ChatGPT and It Ended Our Relationship, Lindsey Hall [https://lindseyhallwrites.substack.com/p/i-read-my-boyfriends-chatgpt-and] * The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity, Esther Perel More movies: * CERTIFIED COPY, Abbas Kiarostami (2010) * SICK OF MYSELF, Kristoffer Borgli (2022) * COMRADES, ALMOST A LOVE STORY, Peter Chan Ho-Sun (1996) * IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, Wong Kar Wai (2000) * PAST LIVES, Celine Song (2023) * BEFORE SUNSET, Richard Linklater (2004) * SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE, Ingmar Bergman (1974) * FORCE MAJEURE, Ruben Östlund (2014) * THE ONE I LOVE, Charlie McDowell (2014) Shadow Work: * Meeting the Shadow, Connie Zweig, Jeremiah Abrams * The Dark Side of the Light Chasers, Debbie Ford * Existential Kink, Carolyn Elliott Send in your relationship-related question to be potentially featured on a future episode! You can send in a short ~1 minute voicenote or short written question to hopefularomantic@gmail.com [hopefularomantic@gmail.com], with the subject line: Podcast question. Book a free 30-minute coaching consult call ⁠here [https://calendly.com/hopefularomantic/free-consult]⁠. Let’s connect! @hopefularomantic [https://www.instagram.com/hopefularomantic] on ig <3 https://victoriayeung.coach/ [https://victoriayeung.coach/]