The Horse, the Buggy & the Breakdown That Changed Everything

What if your most painful moment… became the portal to your purpose? In this powerful episode of Unleashed & Empowered, I sit down with the award-winning Melissa Duniam—founder of Leading Rein, equine leadership facilitator, and a rural trailblazer bringing self-leadership and nervous system regulation to women and teams across Tasmania (and soon, Australia). Melissa shares the raw and remarkable story of how a near-fatal accident on her dairy farm forced her into stillness—and led her to completely redefine her identity, purpose, and way of doing business. We dive deep into the healing power of horses, the unconscious patterns we carry into leadership, and how experiential learning in the arena can reveal more truth than a thousand strategy sessions. Whether you’re leading a team or just trying to lead yourself through a season of change, this episode will crack you open in all the right ways. 🔥 If you’ve ever felt like you were built for something more, this conversation will remind you—it’s never too late to reclaim the reins.   🎧 What You’ll Learn in This Episode: (00:33) Melissa’s sliding door moment: from survival mode to soul purpose after a devastating farm accident (04:54) The moment she realised she’d lost herself—and how she began the journey back (07:10) How horses became her unexpected guides into self-leadership, healing, and human connection (08:56) Inside the immersive experiences she now leads for women and corporate teams in Tasmania (10:40) Why horses are the ultimate truth-mirrors for our energy, patterns, and leadership style (13:59) The science and soul of eDISC profiling—and how it reflects what the horses already know (14:37) Winning the 2023 AgriFutures Award—and how it shifted her trajectory and confidence (20:41) Creating safety, softness and connection in rural spaces where women often lead in silence (29:02) The magic of energetic alignment and what happens when you remove the mask (34:50) What performance mode looks like in the arena—and how horses invite us back to presence (40:00) The emotional intelligence of horses and how they reflect pain, truth and healing (45:26) Why Melissa did nominate herself for an award—and how to reframe "selfish" as service (53:11) The big dream: community, legacy, and an online expansion that brings her work to the world (57:27) Melissa’s Human Design surprise: why being a Manifestor changed how she works and rests   About Melissa Duniam – Founder of Leading Rein, Facilitator & Coach Melissa Duniam is the 2023 Tasmanian winner of the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award and the visionary behind Leading Rein—a holistic leadership framework blending personal profiling, human behaviour insights, and experiential learning with horses. Leadership has always been part of Melissa’s story. Inspired by her Pop’s gentle way with horses, and shaped by two decades of dairy farming, motherhood and business ownership, Melissa’s work is rooted in connection, trust, and deep energetic congruence. After a life-altering accident in 2016, Melissa was forced to pause—and rebuild her life with intention. That moment became the foundation for her signature retreats and workshops, which now serve women and teams across Tasmania and beyond. Whether you join her at the Time for You immersion on her beautiful farm, or connect with her corporate leadership workshops, Melissa’s mission is the same: to help you remember your strengths, reclaim your values, and lead from the inside out.   Explore Melissa’s Work 🌐 Learn more about her upcoming immersions, eDISC sessions, and equine leadership events: Instagram: @leadingrein LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-duniam/ Website: https://www.leadingrein.com.au/   Join the Conversation! 💥 Loved this episode? Tag us in your stories and let us know what landed for you! 💌 DM @empowered_by_alice with your biggest aha or horse-whispered truth 🎙️ Subscribe, rate, and review to help us spread this movement across the world. 🎧 Listen now on Spotify & Apple Podcasts