The Ambition Code

"Job hunting is on my bucket list" said no one, ever. Because honestly? It may be the worst job ever. It takes up your time, it doesn't pay you, and somehow you're expected to remain enthusiastic while navigating résumés, applications, interviews, uncertainty, rejection… and a job market that seems to be changing while you're applying. Fun! But here's the good news: there's more in your control than you think. In this solo episode of The Ambition Code, I'm talking directly to anyone who is job hunting, navigating a layoff, thinking about a career change, or simply looking around and wondering, Where do my skills fit now? Especially as AI and technology transform industries, the goal isn't to erase everything you've already accomplished and start over. It's to understand the value of what you already know, learn how to translate it, keep adding new skills, and make it incredibly easy for the right person to see what you can do. We talk about: • How to translate years of experience into language a new employer or even a completely different industry can understand • Why your job title may not tell the whole story of what you're actually capable of • How to put your AI assistant to work in your job search • Staying current without feeling like you need to learn every new technology on Earth • Building a portfolio and digital footprint that actually represents you • Presenting your talent, judgment, experience, and accomplishments with confidence • Using your network more thoughtfully and making it easier for people to help you • Finding affordable ways to reskill, learn, or even explore an entirely different career • And why a difficult job market may also be an opportunity to finally investigate something you've always wanted to do Most of all, this episode is about not giving up. Your career may be changing. Your industry may be changing. The way people get hired may be changing. But your experience still matters. Your judgment matters. Your ability to learn matters. And you have more power than you may realize in how you present yourself and what you do next. Resources mentioned in the episode Create a portfolio with Canva: https://www.canva.com/create/portfolios/ American Job Centers - U.S. Department of Labor: Career services, job-search assistance, training referrals and other employment resources. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/training/onestop CareerOneStop - Training & WIOA Resources: Explore training programs and possible workforce-development resources in your state. https://www.careeronestop.org/LocalHelp/EmploymentAndTraining/find-WIOA-training-programs.aspx LinkedIn Learning through Los Angeles Public Library: If you're in Los Angeles, LinkedIn Learning is available free with an LAPL library card and PIN. Check your own local library, too - many offer learning resources you may already have access to. https://www.lapl.org/digital-library/linkedin Registered Apprenticeship: Explore opportunities that combine paid work with training. https://www.apprenticeship.gov/career-seekers And I want to hear from you! Have you recently landed a job? Found an unusual way to get noticed? Changed industries? Built a portfolio that opened a door? Discovered a tool or strategy that made your search easier? Please DM me or leave a comment. I'd love to do a follow-up episode featuring ideas from listeners - and if you've become a total whiz at navigating this new job market, maybe you should come on the podcast and tell us how you did it. Connect with The Ambition Code Created + Hosted by Julie Kellman Reading Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAmbitionCodePod Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ambition-code/id6790585618 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033P0xatKPFsBNimqb32rb Love + Daydreams: https://www.LoveAndDaydreams.com Email: [email protected] You've got this. It isn't easy. But when you get focused on what you want and strategic about how you go after it, you give yourself a much better chance of getting there. Your life is waiting for you.

You guys are AMAZING! 💜 Thank you SO much for all the love, support, and VOTES! We're officially in WEEK TWO of the TOP HOST competition with Ryan Seacrest and iHeartRadio, and I'm bouncing between 1st and 3rd place in my group! 🏆 🔥 TODAY IS A BIG ONE! Votes count DOUBLE until 9 PM! 🔥 So even if you've already voted, PLEASE VOTE AGAIN! Every vote makes a difference, and I would LOVE to get back to that #1 spot and STAY THERE! Thank you for helping me take *The Ambition Code* to the next level! I appreciate you all more than you know! ❤️ 👇 VOTE NOW! LINK BELOW! 👇 #TopHost #TheAmbitionCode #iHeartRadio #RyanSeacrest #WomenWhoPodcast

Say Yes to Uganda: And Other Truths About Navigating Change Want to know a secret about me? I really don't like change. But there are different kinds of change. Good change? New opportunities? LOVE those. The kind that comes out of nowhere and changes everything in your life? No thank you. But as we all know, change happens. We don't always get to control it, and we definitely don't always know how it's going to turn out. Sometimes, what feels completely disruptive in the moment can eventually open the door to something we never could have seen coming. And that's really what this episode is about: the change you choose, the change you don't - and what you do with both. A few years ago, when I was newly separated and my life felt like it had been turned completely upside down, a woman gave me a piece of advice I have never forgotten: Say yes to Uganda. She told me that when her own marriage ended, she decided to start saying yes to things she might previously have talked herself out of. A dance class? Yes. A party? Yes. An invitation? Yes. Something new and healthy that pushed her outside the life she already knew? Yes. Eventually, one of those yeses took her all the way to Uganda. I didn't literally go to Uganda. But I took the lesson. And soon enough, invitations started showing up in my own life. I said yes to as many as I could. One of those yeses became a gift I never could have planned for - something that entered my life only because life had changed enough to make room for it. And that's what Say Yes to Uganda came to mean to me. Its a mantra I use to this day. It doesn't mean running away, reinventing yourself every five minutes, or convincing yourself that everything happens for a reason. It means remembering that even when you cannot control what has happened, you can still participate in what happens next. In this solo episode of The Ambition Code, I'm looking at the psychology of change - why we cling to what's familiar, why a fresh start can feel so powerful, and why fear can make us stay when we should go or run when we should stay. We're talking about the difference between commitment and fear, courage and escape, voluntary and involuntary change - and one of my favorite truths from this entire episode: Problems are portable. You can change the relationship, the job, the city, the house, the friends - maybe even buy some excellent new throw pillows - but wherever you go, you still bring yourself with you. So maybe navigating change isn't about constantly searching for a completely new life. Maybe it's about asking better questions. What am I moving toward, or running from? What is this change showing me, and what is mine to decide? And most importantly: What do I want from this change? Because we don't always get to choose the beginning of a new chapter. But we do get a say in how we write what comes next. Sometimes that starts with a huge decision. And sometimes it starts with one tiny yes. Say yes to Uganda. THE AMBITION CODE The Ambition Code is about ambition, identity, reinvention, career, relationships and the choices — expected and unexpected — that shape our lives. Created, Hosted & Executive Produced by Julie Kellman Reading Produced by Love + Daydreams Music by Moby Gratis A Love + Daydreams Production Listen to The Ambition Code on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and everywhere you get your podcasts. FOLLOW THE SHOW Instagram: @TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: @TheAmbitionCodePod CONNECT WITH JULIE  LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/juliekellmanreading LOVE + DAYDREAMS Website: LoveAndDaydreams.com Instagram: @loveanddaydreams For guest inquiries, creative partnerships, production inquiries and more, visit LoveAndDaydreams.com. If this episode spoke to you, follow The Ambition Code, rate and review the show, and send this episode to someone navigating a change of their own. Your Life Is Waiting For You.

VOTING IS OPEN! 🎙️❤️ I'm so excited to be in compeition for Top Host with Ryan Seacrest and iHeartRadio - for The Ambition Code! Your vote could help give me the incredible opportunity to host six episodes of an iHeartRadio podcast. If you love The Ambition Code, I would be so grateful for your support. Vote now  and please share the link with your friends, family, group chats, coworkers, yoga classes… everyone! Thank you!  Every vote matters. ❤️ VOTE FOR THE AMBITION CODE NOW - LINK : https://tophost.org/2026/julie-kellman-reading Thank you!

Michael Levitt + Building a Legacy: Purpose, Persistence & Baylen Out Loud Some people spend their careers waiting for the right opportunity to find them. Michael Levitt has spent his life creating the opportunity, asking the question, finding the way in—and then making something unforgettable once he gets there. He started early. Long before he became an acclaimed executive producer, Michael was already bringing people together, following his curiosity and figuring out how to turn an idea into something real. That instinct would eventually become an extraordinary career spanning live events, awards shows, game shows, unscripted television and some of the most memorable moments in entertainment. His credits include the Billboard Music Awards, TV Land Awards, Scream Awards, Daytime Emmy Awards, Hollywood Squares, Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, Skin Wars, the Michael Jackson Memorial, and many more. But even a body of work this deep and accomplished doesn't fully explain Michael - or the tenacity, heart and sheer force of will behind it. I've known him for close to two decades - we produced Bravo's first A-List Awards together with Kathy Griffin - and what has always struck me is the way he moves through a room and through his life. Michael lights up a room, and then somehow makes sure the spotlight lands on everyone else. He is warm, funny, relentlessly creative and genuinely interested in people. He has the rare ability to make something feel possible before anyone has figured out exactly how to do it. And underneath that bright energy is enormous tenacity. When Michael believes in an idea, he stays with it. When one route closes, he looks for another. And when something becomes important to him personally, he has found a way to give it a much larger purpose. That combination of instinct, persistence and heart has led to some of the most meaningful work of his career. His passion for dog rescue grew into nationally televised programming including Fox's Cause for Paws, All-Star Dog Rescue Celebration, American Rescue Dog Show and Stanley Pup (with the NHL) taking the skills and relationships he had built over decades in entertainment and using them to help animals find homes. And then there is Baylen Out Loud. Michael discovered Baylen Dupree on TikTok and saw far beyond a viral video. What followed became an award-winning TLC series filled with humor, family, vulnerability and enormous heart - a show that allows audiences to know Baylen as a young woman building a life, rather than allowing Tourette syndrome to define her. Michael describes that shift beautifully in our conversation, you won't want to miss this. And maybe that says something important about Michael's work as a whole. He sees people. He sees possibility. And after decades of making television, he is increasingly interested not simply in whether something will entertain an audience, but in what it can leave behind. This conversation is about much more than producing. It is about knowing your value before someone else validates it. Having the courage to ask for what you want. Understanding when a "no" actually means not this way, not yet. Learning to pivot without abandoning the thing you believe in. Staying relevant by continuing to learn. Following the things that matter to you - and eventually asking whether the skills you spent your life building might be useful for something bigger than yourself. Michael talks about work ethic, rejection, reinvention, kindness, risk, purpose and the responsibility that can come with success. He also speaks candidly about an entertainment business in profound transition and why creativity now requires more resourcefulness than ever. And through it all is one of my favorite things about Michael: he has never confused ambition with taking up all the oxygen in the room. His version of ambition has room for other people. It has room for kindness. It has room for joy. And increasingly, it has room for impact. As Michael reflects near the end of our conversation, the work he is proudest of has given him something greater than another credit: the knowledge that what he created mattered to someone. He hopes the life he is building will leave behind "a legacy that matters." In this episode The courage to ask for what you want Knowing your value before anyone gives you permission to claim it Why rejection doesn't always mean the idea is wrong Turning persistence into possibility Building a career across multiple lanes without allowing yourself to be pigeonholed Creating the moments audiences remember How to pivot when the original plan stops working Navigating massive industry change Finding purpose inside the skills you already have Using success and influence in service of something you care about The instinct that led Michael to Baylen Out Loud What Baylen and her family have taught us about humanity, compassion and difference How dog rescue became both a calling and a creative mission Why kindness and ambition are not opposites Building work - and a life - that leaves something meaningful behind The Ambition Code takeaway You do not have to know exactly how the dream is going to happen before you begin moving toward it. Ask. Follow the instinct. Believe in the idea. Learn the workaround. And when your experience finally meets something you care deeply about, pay attention. That may be where ambition becomes purpose - and where a career begins to become a legacy.     ABOUT MICHAEL LEVITT Michael Levitt is the President and Executive Producer of Michael Levitt Productions, an Emmy-nominated producer specializing in live event and unscripted programming. His extensive body of work includes Baylen Out Loud, Stanley Pup, American Rescue Dog Show, Skin Wars, Hollywood Squares, Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, Scream Awards, TV Land Awards, Daytime Emmy Awards, Billboard Music Awards, the Michael Jackson Memorial and many more. Michael is also a longtime animal rescue advocate whose passion for rescue has inspired multiple national television franchises. CONNECT WITH MICHAEL Michael Levitt Productions Website: michaellevittproductions.com IG: michaellevitt_1     THE AMBITION CODE The Ambition Code is a podcast about ambition, identity, reinvention and what happens when the life or career you imagined begins to change. Through honest conversations with extraordinary people—and solo episodes exploring the questions many of us are asking privately—Julie Kellman Reading looks at how we move through change, take risks, trust ourselves and keep building lives that feel meaningful. Your Life Is Waiting For You. CREDITS Creator, Host + Executive Producer: Julie Kellman Reading Guest: Michael Levitt Produced by: Love + Daydreams Music: Moby Gratis / @moby.gratis A Love + Daydreams Production LISTEN, WATCH + FOLLOW The Ambition Code Instagram: @TheAmbitionCodePod YouTube: @TheAmbitionCodePod Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and everywhere you get podcasts. CONNECT WITH JULIE + LOVE + DAYDREAMS Julie Kellman Reading / Love + Daydreams Email: [email protected] Website: LoveAndDaydreams.com Instagram: @loveanddaydreams LinkedIn: @juliekellmanreading For podcast, production, creative partnership and business inquiries: LoveAndDaydreams.com.