Being Human with Leana Deeb

In this solo episode, Leana breaks down everything she has learned over five years of building a consistent morning and night routine — not the aesthetic influencer version, but the real, practical habits that actually changed how she shows up every single day. She opens up about who she used to be before any of this: a night owl, binge eating late, doom scrolling until she fell asleep, completely undisciplined. And she gets into exactly how she got out of it and why her faith is the foundation everything else is built around.This one is for every woman who keeps saying she wants a morning routine but cannot figure out why she still cannot make it happen.

Leana gets into:

→ Why your morning routine actually starts the night before — and what happens when you skip that step

→ The 10-3-2-1 rule for winding down and why it works

→ Why nothing good happens past 10pm — and how to actually believe that

→ How to lock your apps at night so your phone stops making the decision for you — Opal and Brick

→ Why picking up your phone first thing in the morning spikes your cortisol and sets your whole day back

→ The one hour morning rule — what to do instead of reaching for your phone

→ Why she does not start her day with caffeine and the 90 minute rule that changed her energy

→ Getting sunlight, reading one page of a book, and writing out what you are grateful for before the day starts → How her morning prayer anchors everything — and why without it the whole day feels off

→ Why she wakes up early to take Arabic and Spanish classes and how her night routine makes that possible

→ Skincare, hair care, dental hygiene, planning your outfit and prepping your meals as acts of self-care — not chores

→ Journaling at night — affirmations, what went well, how to improve, and a brain dump to clear your mind

→ What the Quran says about the night being made for rest and the day for work — and why that changed how she sleeps

→ Why consistency in your sleep and wake schedule matters more than the number of hours you get

→ A reminder that your routine will look different in different seasons — and why that is okay

"If you have time for yourself before the day starts, you can take on the world in any way." — Leana Deeb

TOPICS DISCUSSED

(00:00) Intro — Who Leana Used to Be Before Any of This

(02:17) Why Your Morning Routine Starts With Your Night Routine

(04:28) Finding Your Motivation — Why Prayer Changed Everything

(06:53) The 10-3-2-1 Rule — Journaling, Rituals & Locking Your Apps

(09:07) Building a Night Routine You Actually Love — Skincare, Affirmations & Brain Dumping

(11:30) What the Quran Says About Rest & Why God Made the Night for Sleeping

(13:46) Morning Habits — No Phone, Sunlight, Gratitude & Prayer as the Foundation

Stay connected with Leana Deeb:

Instagram: @leanadeebb / @beinghumannpodcast

TikTok: @leanadeeb / @beinghumannpod

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In this episode, Leana sits down with Jun Yuh — creator, entrepreneur, and founder of Creator College, one of the most impactful content creation communities in the world. Jun built his entire following from a college dorm room in Philadelphia with no support system, a biomedical engineering degree, and a shattered iPhone 12. He was doubted by everyone around him, posted into the void for years, and still kept going. This conversation is part content masterclass, part deeply personal story — and it does not hold back.

This one is for anyone who has ever wanted to put themselves out there but talked themselves out of it before they even started.

Leana and Jun get into:

→ How he started posting fitness and fashion content in his parents' basement during quarantine — wearing his brother's clothes

→ The zoom call moment where his classmates posted his TikTok link to 300 people and made fun of him

→ Why being judged is a sign you are doing something right — and how he finally started to believe that

→ Six years of building in loneliness with no one in his corner who actually understood what he was doing

→ How an engineering mindset helped him reverse engineer content — studying formats, hooks, pacing and story arcs

→ Why your first 200 views matter more than you think and how one person in your DMs can change everything

→ The moment he discovered Creator College and why he almost did not do it

→ What it actually takes to build an audience — and why packaging what you already know is the whole strategy

→ The difference between chasing virality and building a community that lasts

→ His daily routine and why his entire life has become the business

→ The over-optimisation trap — sleep scores, routines, and why he thinks we are doing too much

→ Growing up watching his dad work construction with no choice in his sacrifices — and how that shaped everything

→ Becoming the financial provider for his family at 24 and the complicated emotions that come with it

→ How money changes relationships — and the ongoing tension between generosity and boundaries

→ Reconnecting with his mom after 14 years apart and what that taught him about assumptions and perspective

→ Why he believes life is not fair — and why he stopped resenting it

→ What it means to be human — and why his answer is empathy

"Perspective drives performance. The way that you view what you do affects how you do what you do." — Jun Yuh

TOPICS DISCUSSED

02:34 Joon’s Start in Content Creation06:52 Overcoming the Fear of Judgment10:27 Loneliness, Doubt & Finding Support13:27 Sharing Your Struggles & Building Your Story18:50 Believing in Yourself Before Anyone Else Does20:32 Faith, God & Finding Contentment25:57 Consistency, Systems & Using AI for Content31:07 The “Younger You” Principle for Finding Your Niche39:49 Money, Success & Choosing Impact Over Metrics45:09 Finding Purpose, Phone Addiction & Burnout

Stay connected with Leana Deeb:

Instagram: @leanadeebb / @beinghumannpodcast

TikTok: @leanadeebb / @beinghumannpod

Stay connected with Jun Yuh:

Instagram, TikTok & YouTube: @jun_yuh

Podcast: Creator Unplugged

Community: Creator College

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In this solo episode, Leana takes the struggles you sent in through her Q&A box and works through them one by one. Scrolling, staying up late, music and binge eating all came up again and again, and she believes they share one root: a constant need for stimulation that leaves us feeling low, lost and without purpose.

She talks about it as someone still in it. She shares what changed her relationship with her phone, the 10-3-2-1 rule she uses to get to sleep earlier, why she still catches herself playing Drake in the car, and why quitting music cold turkey made her resent her faith. She gets candid about lust and self-control and why a relationship won't fix it. She also opens up, for the first time, about binge eating while living in New York.

Throughout, she brings it back to faith, science and self-compassion: God is loving, you can start again as many times as you need, and awareness is the first step.

Leana gets into:

→ The top struggles Gen Z shared, and the constant need for a dopamine high behind them

→ Why we scroll, and how locking your apps changed her relationship with her phone

→ Replacing your phone with a gratitude journal first thing in the morning

→ Gary Brecka's 10-3-2-1 rule for going to sleep earlier

→ Music, the hadith, and why quitting cold turkey made her resent her faith → Why fear mongering yourself into faith doesn't work

→ Why you should never beat yourself up when you fall back

→ Binge eating in New York, gut health, and the 80/20 vs. 90/10 rule

→ Journaling, gratitude and affirmations

"You can scroll your life away, and you'll look back five years from now and still be living the same life." - Leana Deeb

TOPICS DISCUSSED

(0:00) Intro: The Struggles of Gen Z

(1:21) Scrolling and Locking Your Apps

(6:57) Replacing Your Phone With a Gratitude Journal

(10:26) Gary Brecka's 10-3-2-1 Rule for Better Sleep

(13:27) Music, Faith and Self-Control

(21:31) Why You Shouldn't Go Cold Turkey

(25:16) Porn, Masturbation and Overcoming Lust

(33:01) Don't Beat Yourself Up When You Fall Back

(33:24) Binge Eating and the 80/20 vs. 90/10 Rule

(39:06) Journaling, Gratitude and Outro

Stay connected with Leana Deeb:

Instagram: @leanadeebb / @beinghumannpodcast

TikTok: @leanadeeb / @beinghumannpod

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Leana sits down with Iskra Lawrence, model, mental health advocate, and founder of Saltair, one of the fastest-growing body care brands in the country.

Iskra takes it back to growing up in a small town in England, entering a modeling competition at 12, and being watched by agencies through puberty while her changing body was treated like a problem. She opens up about developing an eating disorder, being told she was too curvy for straight-size modeling and too small for plus-size modeling, and the breaking point when she realized she was never the problem. The industry was.

She shares how she rebuilt her sense of self through affirmations, began pitching herself directly to brands at 19, and eventually created a career on her own terms.

Iskra also gets candid about losing herself postpartum during the pandemic, unexpectedly losing her Aerie contract, and how a five-minute shower became the inspiration for Saltair. She breaks down why she still does not take a salary from the company, why she prioritizes long-term financial security over a luxurious lifestyle, and what it means to build generational wealth.

Leana and Iskra also talk about motherhood, ambition, being the breadwinner in a marriage, finding a partner without ego, and why having a successful career does not mean having everything perfectly together.

Leana and Iskra get into:

→ Entering the modeling industry at 12 years old
→ Being told she was too curvy, too commercial, and too womanly at 14
→ Developing an eating disorder while trying to control her body
→ Being rejected by plus-size agencies for being too small
→ Realizing she was never the problem, the industry was
→ Cattle calls, rejection, comparison, and body dysmorphia
→ Using mirror affirmations to rebuild her self-worth
→ Why women are taught to view attractiveness as currency
→ Pitching herself directly to brands at 19
→ Her dad eventually quitting his job to work alongside her
→ Loving pregnancy but completely losing herself postpartum
→ Losing her milk supply during the formula shortage
→ The five-minute shower that inspired Saltair
→ Losing her Aerie contract and feeling disposable again
→ Why owning her own company gave her control over her future
→ Faith, ambition, and her “why not me?” mindset
→ Why she does not take a salary from Saltair
→ Moving to New York with $15,000 and living with five models in a one-bedroom apartment
→ Choosing future financial security over luxury today
→ Why women need to talk more openly about money
→ Her goal of retiring her parents and creating generational wealth
→ Redefining what success actually looks like
→ Motherhood, dishes in the sink, missed workouts, and giving herself grace
→ Being the breadwinner in her marriage
→ Finding a partner without ego
→ Writing letters about things that felt too difficult to say out loud

“At that breaking point, I realized I was never the problem. The industry was the problem.” — Iskra Lawrence

TOPICS DISCUSSED

(00:00) Preview + Intro(01:22) Starting Modeling at 12 Years Old(03:20) Developing an Eating Disorder in the Modeling Industry(08:02) Body Dysmorphia, Mental Health & Rebuilding Self-Worth(12:33) Postpartum Identity Loss & Finding Herself Again(14:32) How Saltair Was Born(17:24) Moving to Austin & Stepping Away From Her Old Life(18:56) Losing Her Aerie Contract & Feeling Disposable Again(23:13) Faith, God & the “Why Not Me?” Mindset(26:31) Building Saltair Without Taking a Founder Salary(30:35) Money, Sacrifice & Building Long-Term Financial Security(34:27) Redefining What Success Actually Means(37:42) The Reality of “Doing It All” as a Working Mom(41:31) Being the Breadwinner in Her Marriage(43:43) Communication, Partnership & Writing Each Other Letters(47:45) What Does It Mean to Be Human?

Stay connected with Leana Deeb:
Instagram: @leanadeebb / @beinghumannpodcast
TikTok: @leanadeeb / @beinghumannpod

Stay connected with Iskra Lawrence:
Instagram: @iskra / @saltair
TikTok: @iskra / @saltairbody

Thank you to our sponsors!

Go to curehydration.com/Leana and get 20% off your first order with promo code LEANA.

Take control of your health with Superpower. For a limited time, listeners get $50 off their Superpower membership. Head to Superpower.com and use code LEANA.
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In this solo episode, Leana says the things she has been sitting on for a while. She opens up about the plastic surgery trend taking over social media, why she thinks it is dangerous for women to project it onto each other, and the moment she realized getting her lips done at 18 was never going to fill the gap she was trying to fill.

From there she gets into feminism and whether it actually makes room for every woman, what the conversation around Afghanistan gets wrong about Islam, and why she believes covering up gave her power back rather than taking it away. She talks openly about being a former hardcore feminist who thought the hijab was oppressive, and what changed.

She closes with the softer half of the conversation: why beauty is something God loves, and the everyday habits that make her feel most in tune with her feminine.

Leana gets into:

→ The plastic surgery trend on social media and why she felt she had to speak on it → Why this is not a jab at women who have had work done, but at women projecting it onto others → The money argument: what a surgery budget could do as an investment instead → God designing you uniquely and what it means to change that → Picking apart your face and body even when nothing is wrong with either → Getting her lips done at 18 and the cycle of wanting to keep going → Why you will never feel enough externally if you do not feel enough internally → What feminism actually fought for, and what subjective feminism has become → Whether feminism accepts every woman regardless of what she chooses for her body → Afghanistan, Iran and forced hijab, and why she does not stand with it → Covering the eyes is not in scripture, and extremist groups do not represent Islam → Education, business and why a woman's money is her money in Islam → Why showing your body to be accepted might be its own form of oppression → Knowing exactly what attention her old clothes were bringing her → How covering up felt like taking her power back → Head covering in Islam, Christianity and Judaism, and why modesty is not male centered → Mary, peace be upon her, and living in alignment with the women of that time → Studying the Quran, the Bible and the Old Testament side by side → Why every person practicing a faith believes theirs is the truth → Being okay with being disliked and living in your truth anyway → Letting go of attachment to this worldly life → Why beauty is loved by God and does not need to be hidden from yourself → Her full list of habits for feeling feminine: natural fibers, skincare, cleanliness, food, movement, and getting ready for no one but you

"If you don't feel enough inside, you're never going to feel enough externally, even if you get the work done." - Leana Deeb

TOPICS DISCUSSED

(0:00) Intro and What We Are Covering Today

(0:38) The Plastic Surgery Trend That Inspired This Episode

(1:54) What That Money Could Do Instead

(2:32) Didn't God Design You Beautifully?

(3:29) Why It Is Never Enough

(4:07) Getting My Lips Done at 18

(4:45) Where Are the Feminists?

(5:42) Forced Hijab Is Not Islam

(6:20) Education, Business and a Woman's Money

(8:01) Is Showing Your Body to Be Accepted the Real Oppression?

(8:58) I Used to Be the Biggest Man Hater

(10:16) How Covering Up Gave Me My Power Back

(10:54) Head Covering in Islam, Christianity and Judaism

(11:13) Mary, Peace Be Upon Her, and the Veil

(12:48) Everyone Believes Their Faith Is the Truth

(14:04) It Is Okay to Be Disliked

(15:01) Not Being Attached to This Worldly Life

(15:58) God Created Beauty and God Loves Beauty

(16:36) Habits to Feel In Tune With Your Feminine

(22:37) Outro

Stay connected with Leana Deeb: Instagram: @leanadeebb / @beinghumannpodcast TikTok: @leanadeeb / @beinghumannpod

Thank you to our sponsors!

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