Creatures of Change Episode #3: Rosa Castano on Leaving the Family Business to Forge Her Own Path

By Valerie Martin

Rosa Castano Creatures of Change Podcast

When I first met Rosa Castano in 2019, she was kicking ass and taking names in the tourism industry— which is BIG business here in Nashville. Fast forward 3 years and 1 pandemic later, and she’s now a mom and CEO of her own business offering wellness coaching/education services to businesses and individuals.

Rosa is one of those dynamic people whose personality and gifts far exceed anything I could say in writing. In this conversation, we explore not only her own personal career pivots, but also what she has learned from embracing changes, big and small. Rosa truly walks her talk, and was a joy to sit down with for this conversation. I hope you love it!

🎧 To listen to the episode, stream from the podcast player below, or search & subscribe to Creatures of Change on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

About Rosa

Rosa Castano spent more than five years as a seasoned expert in the Tourism & Hospitality field, leading sales campaigns across the country for two of the largest tourist industries in the Nashville, TN market. Like many others in the space, Castano was forced to pivot to a new path after the COVID-19 global pandemic put a halt to her tourism career. The shift allowed Castano to take the time to re-evaluate her career aspirations, landing her with an industry she has long been passionate about: the wellness industry. Throughout her years working successful careers in the tourism and corporate sectors, Castano knew wellness would always be a priority for her life.

Outside of work, she completed a 200HR Yoga Teacher training in 2019. With this certification, Castano began to lead yoga classes for her former employers’ wellness programs. Since the pandemic, Castano completed an additional certification adding a 200HR Meditation Teacher training. With the full time focus on wellness, Castano is trailblazing ahead with her business where she offers Workplace Well-Being both in the Corporate Setting and for Individual One-on-Ones.

Follow Rosa on IG @wellbeingwithrosa

Additional Links + Resources

Did you love this episode? Please leave a review, tell a friend, and subscribe to Creatures of Change for a new episode every 2 weeks!

Creatures of Change episode archives and show notes

Watch the video version of the podcast on my YouTube channel (click subscribe! 💜)

Want to be a guest or know someone who should be? If you or someone you know has an interesting and inspiring story about change, or want to be considered for coaching with Val on a future episode, reach out to creaturesofchangepodcast@gmail.com, or direct potential guests to our submission form at bit.ly/creaturesofchangeguest.

Sister podcast Bodyful

✨ In Tennessee and looking for therapy? Check out The Gaia Center.

Get the monthly Gaia Center newsletter with exclusive content & tips from our therapists

✨ Learn about coaching, speaking, and other stuff Val is up to


Click Here for More About Creatures of Change

Creatures of Change Episode #2: Ray Holloman on the Liberation of Change, from Gender to Work from Home

By Valerie Martin

Ray Holloman (often at his most hilarious in tandem with his wife Alicia) is one of those people whose facebook posts cause you to actually cackle.

He’s witty, kind, silly, freakishly productive, obsessed with dinosaurs— and until 6 years ago, was living in a body that didn’t feel like his own.

In this episode of Creatures of Change, Ray shares about how transitioning his gender not only resulted in feeling more at-home in himself than he’s ever felt, but also equipped him to embrace all kinds of other changes, including leaving a company he’d been with for 12 years.

We also talk about balancing change with routine, because the comfort zone is NOT an inherently bad place to hang out. Also, for real, read Ray’s bio below… the man is HELLA impressive. I hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed having the conversation!

🎧 To listen to the episode, stream from the podcast player below, or search & subscribe to Creatures of Change on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

About Ray

Ray Holloman is a Black, transgender man that lives in the south. His unique identity gives him the ability to see multiple sides of marginalized communities. Ray currently works doing Disaster Recovery for a large tech company. Ray has a Bachelor of Business Administration from Belmont University, and Masters degrees from Lipscomb University and Tennessee Tech University. Ray is married, with 4-ish dogs, 20-ish chickens and 9-ish quail.

Ray has worked with groups including the Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition, Trans Empowerment Project, Nashville Technology Council, and other various nonprofits. He currently chairs the New Leaders Council Pride Caucus Transgender education subcommittee, is on the Vanderbilt University Medical Center LGBTQ+ Advisory Board, and chairs the Tennessee Department of Health HIV Prevention Transgender Task Force. Ray enjoys sharing his story to educate the public about transgender and queer people. In his limited spare time, he enjoys farmstrong, quilting and cooking.

Additional Links + Resources

Did you love this episode? Please leave a review, tell a friend, and subscribe to Creatures of Change for a new episode every 2 weeks!

Creatures of Change episode archives and show notes

Watch the video version of the podcast on my YouTube channel (click subscribe! 💜)

Want to be a guest or know someone who should be? If you or someone you know has an interesting and inspiring story about change, or want to be considered for coaching with Val on a future episode, reach out to creaturesofchangepodcast@gmail.com, or direct potential guests to our submission form at bit.ly/creaturesofchangeguest.

Sister podcast Bodyful

✨ In Tennessee and looking for therapy? Check out The Gaia Center.

Get the monthly Gaia Center newsletter with exclusive content & tips from our therapists

✨ Learn about coaching, speaking, and other stuff Val is up to


Click Here for More About Creatures of Change