The Underlayer

Ever feel like you’re doing “fine” on the outside, but stuck or disconnected on the inside?

You’re not broken, you’re just living above the surface.

The Underlayer is a podcast for mid-life professionals navigating fear, identity, and personal growth, especially when success no longer feels fulfilling.

Hosted by keynote speaker and podcast host David Young, each episode goes beneath surface-level advice to explore the deeper stories shaping how we show up at work, in relationships, and in our own lives.

Through honest storytelling, psychology-informed insight, and the occasional uncomfortable truth, we unpack:

- Fear and anxiety that follow us from childhood into adulthood
- Why clarity and alignment feel harder in mid-life
- How personal growth actually happens (without self-help clichés)
- What it means to find your voice and stop avoiding what matters

You’ll hear solo reflections and conversations with personal growth experts, coaches, and deep thinkers — all focused on one thing:

Understanding what’s really driving your patterns so you can move forward with clarity.



🎧 New episodes every Thursday.


Start with: The Fear That Formed Me — the episode that explains why the thing that scared you most might be what you’re meant to heal.


https://www.buzzsprout.com/2551407/episodes/18358211

Recent Episodes

View all
Wild Golden Gophers, Costco gas, A crazy golf YT idea, and a job update with David Young
17
Aug. 19, 2026

Wild Golden Gophers, Costco gas, A crazy golf YT idea, and a job update with David Young

In this solo episode of The Underlayer, David Young goes beneath the surface of what happens when a new routine is coming, and your brain decides it's the perfect time to build a side quest. We start with a job update: David walks through the new contract role, a genuinely good fit with a hybrid schedule, and why he's still excited to get back to work, earn again, and get out of the house, even when the onboarding timeline refuses to cooperate. Then golf takes over. His oldest son fell hard
Listen to the Episode
Teacher Burnout, Real Self-Care, and running 3,000 days in a row with Sarah Fillion
Aug. 13, 2026

Teacher Burnout, Real Self-Care, and running 3,000 days in a row with Sarah Fillion

In this episode of The Underlayer, David Young sits down with Sarah Fillion, an educational consultant, coach, and keynote speaker with 20+ years in public education, to go beneath the surface of two crises hiding in plain sight: What phones are actually doing to students, and what the system is doing to the people teaching them. We explore a question worth sitting with: What happens to a generation that never learned to be bored? Sarah shares what she's seeing in schools right now as device
Listen to the Episode
Why the Drummer Never Gets Credit (And What That Has to Do With Your Business) — with Stephen Moegling
15
July 29, 2026

Why the Drummer Never Gets Credit (And What That Has to Do With Your Business) — with Stephen Moegling

The fastest way to spot what’s really going on in your business might be to look at a band on stage. Stephen Moegling is a longtime marketer, founder of Band of Misfits, and the drummer in a Led Zeppelin cover band, so we get to use music as a surprisingly sharp mirror for leadership, pressure, and performance. We talk about what crowds actually want to hear, why “rare B-sides” fail, and how hiring a promoter is the same strategic move as hiring the right consultant when growth stalls. From t
Listen to the Episode
Leadership, Communication, Sales/Marketing, and Stand-Up Comedy with Allexis Tuccio
14
July 22, 2026

Leadership, Communication, Sales/Marketing, and Stand-Up Comedy with Allexis Tuccio

Does your organization struggle with communication? Are top performers getting promoted into leadership roles, and then struggling once they get there? Are you a coach who wants to grow a real business, not just post content and hope? In this episode of The Underlayer, David Young sits down with Allexis Tuccio — Master Certified Coach, CEO and founder of EZPZ Coaching, and strategic advisor to C-Suite leaders, to unpack what's actually breaking down inside organizations, and what it takes to ...
Listen to the Episode
Pressure, Patterns, And The Nervous System In A Hyperconnected World with Mandy Morris
13
July 6, 2026

Pressure, Patterns, And The Nervous System In A Hyperconnected World with Mandy Morris

Your nervous system is not broken. It's responding exactly the way it was trained. When email, Slack, social media, and nonstop entertainment flood your brain all day, your body reads "constant input" as "constant threat." A lot of us end up composed on the outside while feeling stuck, reactive, and exhausted on the inside, and we can't figure out why. In this episode, I sit down with Mandy Morris, a licensed professional counselor, executive psychology coach, and EMDR clinician, to unpack ho...
Listen to the Episode
Reframe public speaking and make it your superpower with Amy Arbogast
12
June 29, 2026

Reframe public speaking and make it your superpower with Amy Arbogast

In this episode of The Underlayer, David Young sits down with public speaking coach Amy Arbogast to get underneath one of the most common fears in professional life and figure out what's actually driving it. We explore a powerful question: What if the WAY you've been thinking about public speaking is the very thing making it harder? Amy shares why reframing the goal from performance to connection changes everything: your delivery, your structure, your nervous system, and your relationship with
Listen to the Episode
View all Episodes