Red Thread: The Fire Within
You are not behind. You are becoming.
Red Thread: The Fire Within is a podcast for women navigating reinvention — quietly, courageously, and on their own timelines. Hosted by Katheryn (Meek) Dunn, a tech leader, mother of four, and woman rebuilding her life after a career-defining plot twist, this show explores what it means to rediscover yourself in the in-between seasons.
Each episode blends personal storytelling, introspection, and bold motivation to help you reconnect with the thread that ties together who you were, who you are, and who you’re becoming.
Here, we talk about:
- Reinvention in real time
- Quiet confidence and soft power
- Grief, identity, courage, and self-trust
- Letting go without falling apart
- Leadership, purpose, and meaningful impact
- Becoming the woman your younger self needed
This is not a show about perfection.
It’s a show about returning to yourself.
If you’re ready to stop comparing your timeline to everyone else’s, if you're craving clarity, connection, and the courage to step into your next chapter — you're in the right place.
Pull the thread.
Your fire is waiting.
Red Thread: The Fire Within
Staying When It Gets Hard: The Quiet Power of Commitment
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Clarity is powerful.
Commitment is quieter.
In this episode of Red Thread: The Fire Within, we move into what often comes after the decision, the part no one glamorizes: staying.
This conversation is about the stretch where motivation fades, novelty wears off, and the real work of reinvention begins. It’s about why commitment matters more than inspiration, and how consistency — not intensity — is what actually creates change.
Drawing from my experience training for and completing a marathon, as well as seasons of leadership, growth, and reinvention, I share what it looks like to stay the course when the work feels repetitive, heavy, or unseen.
This episode is for anyone who’s made a choice, and is now wondering how to keep showing up.
Listener Invitations (Reflection + Action)
As you listen, consider these questions:
- Motivation vs. commitment
What are you relying on motivation to sustain that actually requires commitment instead? - Consistency over intensity
What part of your life needs steady presence right now, not a burst of effort? - Tired or misaligned?
Ask yourself honestly: Am I tired — or am I misaligned? - Reframing commitment
What commitment in your life deserves to be honored instead of questioned? - Redefining success
What kind of success are you actually working toward — one you want to achieve, or one you want to live with?
These aren’t tasks — they’re invitations to listen more closely to yourself.
Why This Matters (Research Foundations)
This episode is grounded in lived experience and supported by research on perseverance and habit formation:
- Grit & perseverance
Psychologist Angela Duckworth, PhD, shows that long-term success is driven less by talent or motivation and more by sustained effort over time (Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance). - Habits & consistency
Research by psychologists Wendy Wood, PhD, and David Neal, PhD, demonstrates that routines and identity-based habits — not fluctuating motivation — are what sustain behavior change over the long run.
Commitment isn’t rigidity.
It’s integrity.
If you’re in a season where staying feels hard, uncelebrated, or lonely, this episode is for you.
The fire isn’t in the spark.
It’s in the staying.
Pull the thread.
Thank you for being here and for pulling on the thread with me.
Every download, share, review, and moment you spend listening helps this community grow into something real, grounded, and heart-led. If this episode spoke to you, please follow the show, leave a review, or support the podcast through Listener Support on Buzzsprout.
Your energy keeps this fire burning and I’m deeply grateful you’re part of this unfolding story.
Pull the thread. Your fire is waiting.