

Teach Me How To Adult
Gillian Berner
Adulting isn't easy, but we got you. Teach Me How To Adult is a smart, unfiltered podcast on everything you never learned growing up, because let’s be honest, no one prepared us for this. Between landing your dream job, crushing your love life, learning to invest, mastering your mindset and figuring out how to be happy along the way, there’s a lot to navigate.
Join host Gillian Berner every week for expert interviews and game-changing advice on how we can all live our best lives. There’s more than one way to adult, and it is not always linear. So follow along as we figure it out together.
Join host Gillian Berner every week for expert interviews and game-changing advice on how we can all live our best lives. There’s more than one way to adult, and it is not always linear. So follow along as we figure it out together.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 17, 2025 • 14min
If You Hate Small Talk, You Need These Conversation-Starters For The Holidays (The 12 Questions That Will Make People Love Talking To You) | The Quickie
Between the holiday parties, family dinners, office events, and end-of-year gatherings... the holiday season can be a lot. (Even for extroverts like me.) If you’ve ever felt socially drained, awkward, anxious, or stuck in mind-numbing small talk during the holidays, I gotchu. This episode will hook you up with powerful conversation starters and questions you can keep in your back pocket to help you navigate social situations with confidence, steer conversations away from awkward topics and political landmines, and actually feel connected to the people around you.Whether you’re an introvert, extrovert, cutting back from relying on drinking at parties, or just tired of endless small talk, learning how to ask better questions is one of the most underrated communication skills you can have.Research shows that the best communicators ask up to 20 times more questions than the average person... and that people consistently underestimate how much others crave meaningful conversation. So don't worry about making it weird... thoughtful questions aren't awkward, they're impactful. ✨Tune in to hear about:The most interesting and fun conversation starters Why asking good questions releases oxytocin and builds closenessQuestions to avoid small talk, create real connection, and bond the roomReflection questions to spark meaningful year-end conversationsForward-looking questions for intentions, growth, and the new yearHow to redirect uncomfortable topics with boundaries and graceWhy curiosity is the ultimate hack for social confidence and overcoming social anxietyFor advertising and sponsorship inquiries, please contact Frequency Podcast Network.
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Dec 15, 2025 • 6min
ICYMI: Expert Advice On Managing Debt Going Into The Holidays, And Setting Sustainable Money Goals for 2026, with Nicole Stanley
Welcome to today’s ICYMI, where we kick off the week with a quick game-changing tip from one of our guests that you might have missed. Spending can be hella stressful heading into the holiday season, and if you're struggling with debt or with setting up realistic financial goals for the coming year, this is a must-listen reminder for overcoming financial stress and toxic money patterns.A healthy money mindset is the missing ingredient for a lot of people's financial security. So we’re throwing it back to this sustainable financial advice from finance coach Nicole Stanley on dealing with debt, setting realistic money goals, and her own journey to get debt-free. Nicole Stanley is the Founder & Head Financial Coach of Arise Financial Coaching. After battling crippling financial anxiety in her early twenties, Nicole enrolled in her first personal finance course and made changes to go from 30K in debt to building over a quarter-million in net worth for her family at age 27. Arise Financial Coaching has now served over 600 clients and has been featured in TIME, Yahoo Finance, & CNET.Listen to our full episode with Nicole here.Tune in every Monday for an expert dose of life advice in under 10 minutes.Follow Nicole:On Instagram: @arise.financial.coachingArise Financial Coaching
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Dec 10, 2025 • 1h 5min
Rethinking Drinking? The Alcohol-Free Shift That Rewires Your Confidence, Dating, Mental Health & Social Life, with Amanda Kuda
Sober-curious? You don’t need a “drinking problem” for alcohol to quietly hold you back and sabotage your potential.I’ve come a long way from my party days, and it’s clear to me now how much self-abandonment, anxiety, and numbness I was employing to uphold the drinking culture around me. Since l’ve switched to a limited drinking lifestyle, I’ve never felt more myself.In this episode, we’re joined by Amanda Kuda, alcohol-free life coach, speaker, and author of Unbottled Potential: Break Up With Alcohol and Break Through to Your Best Life. Amanda teaches a modern, empowering approach to personal development and self-actualization through the lens of elective sobriety—no rock bottom necessary.Whether you’re looking to cut back, reassess your relationship with drinking, or explore what an alcohol-free lifestyle could do for your energy, confidence, dating life, and emotional wellbeing, this conversation is packed with vulnerability and insight.We cover the psychology, emotional triggers, and identity shifts behind mindful drinking, and tools to live alcohol-free without relying on unreliable willpower.Tune in to hear:Amanda’s story of becoming alcohol-free without being an alcoholicModerators vs. Abstainers: Which archetype are you?How alcohol impacts your energy, intuition & personal growthWhy even “light” drinking affects confidence, emotional regulation, creativity, hobbies, and connectionHow alcohol gets in the way of real connectionDating without alcohol: Building confidence without liquid courageWhat we’re trying to numb when we drinkWhy willpower isn’t enough—and what actually worksThe need for nervous system regulation, habit replacement, and a realistic timelineHow to start your alcohol-free journey in a way that sticksFor advertising and sponsorship inquiries, please contact Frequency Podcast Network.
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Dec 8, 2025 • 8min
ICYMI: Emotional Hunger vs Physical Hunger: Cravings And Food Triggers Decoded, with Amber Romaniuk
Welcome to today’s ICYMI, where we kick off the week with a quick game-changing tip from one of our guests that you might have missed. Trigger warning: Binge-eating and purging. Are you tuned into the difference between physical and emotional hunger? We're throwing it back to this helpful advice from Amber Romaniuk on how to identify emotional eating triggers, and tools to combat cravings that are rooted in emotional soothing. Amber is an Emotional Eating, Digestive and Hormone Expert, with 10 years experience helping women create body confidence, intuition and optimal health through mindset healing, self-care and overcoming self-sabotage with food. Her podcast “The No Sugarcoating Podcast” has over a million downloads. Amber overcame her own emotional eating journey after gaining and losing more than 1000 lbs combined and spending 5 years balancing her hormones and digestion. Now she helps others achieve Body Freedom so they can experience true confidence and health.Listen to our full episode with Amber here.Tune in every Monday for an expert dose of life advice in under 10 minutes.Follow Amber:https://amberapproved.cahttps://instagram.com/amberromaniukhttps://amberapproved.ca/podcast/https://www.youtube.com/@amberromaniukFor advertising and sponsorship inquiries, please contact Frequency Podcast Network.
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Dec 3, 2025 • 20min
End-of-Year Reset: Prompts & Audits To Reflect, Reset And Plan Your Best Year Yet
If you want to start 2026 off strong, it's all about ending 2025 with intention. We’re rapidly approaching the end of the year (HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?), and I have a rigorous reflection process for tracking the highs, lows, and lessons of the last 12 months.You need to understand where you’ve been to plan where you’re going, so in today’s episode, we’re breaking down how to do a powerful year-end audit, reflect on your biggest lessons, and “soft launch” your New Year goals so you have real momentum heading into 2026. I’m walking you through my full reflection process, including the journaling prompts, assessments, goal-setting exercises, and year-in-review questions I use to evaluate what worked this year… and what absolutely did not.This episode is for anyone craving clarity, direction, and a more aligned year ahead.You’ll learn how to map your biggest wins, your patterns, your energy drains, and your most valuable lessons, and then turn all of that insight into actionable goals you can start testing before January 1st.As a bonus, I created a free Year-End Audit & Goal-Setting Guide, which you can download here to accompany this episode!Tune in to hear more about:Leveraging the holiday slowdown to get ahead and test-drive new goals/habitsWhy we should give our new goals a trial run before January startsThe journaling prompts I use to reflect on the year’s biggest lessons and takeawaysMeasuring your satisfaction using the Life Balance WheelA game-changing exercise for auditing your time and how you spent your energy this yearHoning in on areas for improvement, and setting SMART goals for each categoryThe power of a guiding quote or mantraEverything we cover in today’s episode is available to download in our free year-end audit, get your guide today and get a head start on your new year planning. You’ve got this.Resources mentioned:End Of Year AuditHow to set SMART goalsHow To Design A Life Of Purpose, Using IkigaiFor advertising and sponsorship inquiries, please contact Frequency Podcast Network.
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Dec 1, 2025 • 6min
ICYMI: Try This Wellness Reset To Break Out Of A Bad Mood
Welcome to today’s ICYMI, where we kick off the week with a quick game-changing tip from past episodes that you might have missed. If you’re feeling stuck, super down, or struggling with seasonal depression, this throwback advice for boosting your mental health and pulling yourself out of a spiral is exactly what you need right now. We cover how mindfulness, breathwork, and cold therapy can rewire your mood, because sometimes you need to make self-care and wellness your entire personality to help get you out of your head and into your body.Listen to our full episode here.Tune in every Monday for an expert dose of life advice in under 10 minutes.For advertising and sponsorship inquiries, please contact Frequency Podcast Network.
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Nov 26, 2025 • 37min
Overcome The #1 Issue In Relationships To Build Secure Attachment And Confidence In Love, with Trevor Hanson
Struggling with relationship anxiety and fear of intimacy or rejection? This episode will guide you through anxious and avoidant attachment patterns, to the core healing that can help us find confidence and security in relationships.I’m joined by Trevor Hanson, a marriage and family therapist who has helped thousands of individuals and couples heal attachment wounds and build secure, connected, confident relationships. His work has been featured by the Gottman Institute, and he’s the founder of The Art of Healing, where he teaches frameworks for transforming insecurity into emotional safety.We break down the real reasons we often feel insecure, anxious, avoidant, or fearful in relationships… and how to finally feel secure, grounded, and confident in love. You’ll learn the tools, communication shifts, and emotional skills that create safe + connected relationships.In this episode, we cover:How to build real confidence in relationships (and the cost of not working on your confidence)Why insecurity, fear, and jealousy appear — even in good relationshipsPractical tools for anxious attachment self-soothingWhy fear is the #1 killer of relationships and how to move through itHow avoidant partners can build emotional intimacy without feeling overwhelmedFear-based motivation vs love-based motivationHow to navigate communication “landmines’How to support a partner who feels fear or anxiety in the relationshipThe TEMPO framework and how it interrupts anxious spiralsFollow Trevor on InstagramTrevor's website: https://theartofhealingbytrevor.com
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Nov 24, 2025 • 7min
ICYMI: Is It Safe To Quit Your Job Right Now? How Do You Navigate Back-To-Office Mandates? with Emily The Recruiter
Welcome to today’s ICYMI, where we kick off the week with a quick game-changing tip from one of our guests that you might have missed. Have you been debating whether to quit your job or stick it out? In this uncertain job market and economic volatility, it's hard to know what to do, so we're throwing it back to this helpful advice from Emily The Recruiter, plus her insights on how to handle back-to-office mandates if you've been working remote.Emily Durham—aka Emily the Recruiter—is a career coach, content creator, and host of the Clock In Podcast. With millions of views across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, Emily is known for her no-BS advice on how to land your dream job and deal with workplace dynamics like a boss.Listen to the full episode with Emily The Recruiter here.Tune in every Monday for an expert dose of life advice in under 10 minutes.Check out our first episode with Emily here.Follow Emily on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Nov 19, 2025 • 24min
We Don’t Have Hobbies Anymore… And It’s Making Us Depressed & Bored. Here's How To Start A New Hobby
Somewhere along the way, we stopped having hobbies… and honestly, it’s making us depressed. Between burnout, money-making, doom-scrolling, and constantly trying to be “productive,” most people don’t do anything just for joy anymore. We’re disconnected from ourselves, our creativity, and from each other.It’s time to rekindle our sense of play and curiosity. So in today’s episode, we’re breaking down why hobbies are essential for your happiness, confidence, and emotional well-being, and how finding a hobby you love can reduce loneliness, boost your mood, increase creativity, and bring FUN back into your life. Because your whole personality shouldn’t be work and TikTok.If you’ve been feeling disconnected, bored, or stuck in autopilot, tune in to learn how hobbies can help energize you and break up the monotony of adulthood.In this episode, we cover:• Why adults have lost the joy of hobbies • The science: how hobbies act as a natural antidepressant and reduce anxiety, burnout & loneliness• Why hobbies boost self-esteem and confidence• The link between popular hobbies and nervous system regulation• Why “wasting time” is actually good for your brain• How to choose a hobby based on what you loved as a kid• The ultimate list of hobbies for every style of activity• The difference between Type 1 fun vs. Type 2 fun• How hobbies help you connect with friends & build communityHobby Ideas Mentioned in This Episode:Tennis, pickleball, hiking, gardening, rock climbing, weightlifting, walking clubs, horseback riding, volunteering with animals.Pottery, calligraphy, painting/drawing, photography, crocheting, collaging, baking, singing and choirs, learning an instrument.Cold plunging, meditation, yoga, reading + book clubs, puzzles, Mahjong, chess, learning a new language, deep-diving a niche interest for fun.For advertising and sponsorship inquiries, please contact Frequency Podcast Network.
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube

Nov 17, 2025 • 5min
ICYMI: The Link Between Immune System & Gut Health, Boosting Immunity, And Fixing Gut Health After Antibiotics, with Abbey Sharp
Welcome to today’s ICYMI, where we kick off the week with a quick game-changing tip from one of our guests that you might have missed.Flu season is upon us, so we're throwing it back to this helpful advice from Abbey Sharp on boosting your metabolism, and restoring your gut health after dysbiosis from antibiotics. Did you know 70% of our immune system is housed in our gut? We cover the surprising link between your gut microbiome and your immune system, mental health, skin, hormones, and more, and why fibre is the unsung hero of gut health and immunity.Abbey is a Registered Dietitian (RD), a cookbook author, a TV nutrition expert, a YouTuber, host of the podcast Bite Back, and the founder of Abbey’s Kitchen. She dismantles diet culture with science and sass, and her core philosophy is that a pleasurable relationship with food, your body and your self is the fundamental secret to good health.Listen to our full episode with Abbey. Tune in every Monday for an expert dose of life advice in under 10 minutes.Follow Abbey:Abbey's KitchenAbbey's Podcast: Bite BackOn IG: @abbeyskitchen/
Sign up for our monthly adulting newsletter:teachmehowtoadult.ca/newsletter Follow us on the ‘gram:@teachmehowtoadultmedia@gillian.bernerFollow on TikTok: @teachmehowtoadultSubscribe on YouTube


