After the sudden death of her 12-year-old son Jack, Anna Whiston-Donaldson felt lonely, heavy with guilt and uncertain if she could ever be happy again. Anna began to courageously share her family's tragedy + the puzzling, unclear territory of grief in hopes of helping others, first through her blog and then her New York Times bestselling book Rare Bird and children's book A Hug From Heaven. Writing has helped Anna find comfort + strength. Today, Anna shares how to find hope within impossible ci...
Oct 15, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Season 11Ep. 298
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. "Don't walk in front of me… I may not follow. Don't walk behind me… I may not lead. Walk beside me… just be my friend." - Albert Camus Today I share the profound impact my friend Rusty Keeley had on my life. He was encouragement when I needed a lift. Sage advice when I needed wisdom. A connector when I needed a new opportunity, a pat on the back when I needed approval and frequently a kick ...
Oct 12, 2020•7 min•Season 11Ep. 297
In my late twenties, I did not believe in myself. Before I realized I had a story worth sharing – or in the truth that we all have a story worth sharing – my longtime friend, Rusty Keeley, believed enough to invest in having me speak to his company. He was my first client. That inflection point launched my speaking career. He then directly and indirectly introduced me to more than 100 speaking clients. He wanted nothing out of these introductions other than to see a life-giving story spread into...
Oct 08, 2020•58 min•Season 11Ep. 296
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. "Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in." ― Isaac Asimov Our assumptions of others say far more about us than they do about the person or group of people we are judging. In a darkened marketplace with so much negativity and certainty of opinion, maybe living with a little more humility and acting a little less on assu...
Oct 05, 2020•9 min
Twenty years ago, Greg Holder left corporate America because of an unyielding ache to make a difference. Since then, Greg has been lead pastor of The Crossing, non-denominational church, passionately calling tens of thousands of people from a diverse spiritual backgrounds to consider what it means to follow Jesus in today's world. Today, Greg shares how many slowly, over-time begin to lead less satisfying, less fulfilling, less hopeful lives and how to break that cycle. This conversation will re...
Oct 01, 2020•55 min•Season 11Ep. 294
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. I've interviewed and met some of the most remarkable recording artists in the world. I've never met an artist with a heart as beautiful as Eric Genuis' nor heard a song as beautiful as the one he composed for his daughter Anastasia. While waiting for her to recover from one of her early surgeries, he opened his journal and wrote his commitment, prayer, promise, lyrics – a song he could sere...
Sep 28, 2020•5 min•Season 11Ep. 293
Sara Evans is a fan-favorite, multi-platinum country artist with hits like Born to Fly and Suds in the Bucket spanning decades. Today, Sara shares about her simple, idyllic childhood on her family's tobacco farm, a tragic accident that grew her faith and a look behind-the-scenes at the inspiration for her new book and her most iconic songs. Her genuine and resilient spirit will leave you inspired. SHOW NOTES: Sara grew up on her family's tobacco farm in the rural Missouri town of New Franklin wh...
Sep 24, 2020•59 min•Season 11Ep. 292
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. My friend, many of us today find ourselves in a less than ideal reality. It's true. But that doesn't concern me – I've endured far worse. What does concern me is that we are beginning to risk losing the brilliant, galvanizing power of a collective hope in tomorrow. We're overlooking our greatest strengths, namely personal accountability, collective diversity and ferocious optimism. We've be...
Sep 21, 2020•8 min•Season 11Ep. 291
Composer and pianist Eric Genuis began his music career with a simple philosophy: never say no to an opportunity to perform. Today, he has played for millions of captivated audiences around the world and reaches even more hearts and ears through the music he writes for film and television. What do I admire most about Eric? ...That he chooses to share his amazing talent to bring joy, grace and dignity to people in prisons, hospitals, rehab centers, nursing homes and inner-city schools through his...
Sep 17, 2020•1 hr 11 min•Season 11Ep. 290
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. Twenty years ago Bill Clinton was in office, Mark Zuckerberg was in high school, Amazon was a forest in South America and John O'Leary was a single man having dinner with an old friend. An old friend that would someday become my beautiful wife, Beth. *** My new book IN AWE is now available... and became an instant bestseller! Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash...
Sep 14, 2020•4 min•Season 11Ep. 289
Mary Marantz would have been her family's third generation of loggers in rural West Virginia; an impoverished life filled with days of hard, dangerous work. But, one choice Mary's father made sparked a much different path for her: He used what little money he had to buy learning materials to prepare her for school as he saw education as her opportunity to lead a big, beautiful life of her choosing. Mary joins us today – a Yale graduate and recent author of the book Dirt: Growing Strong Roots in ...
Sep 10, 2020•55 min•Season 11Ep. 288
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. "Only through our connectedness to others can we really know and enhance ourselves. And only through working on ourselves can we begin to enhance our connectedness to others." – HG Lerner Have you ever visited with someone you expected to be completely different from you, but soon discovered great similarities, the feeling of connectedness, and the gift of a budding friendship? I experience...
Sep 07, 2020•6 min•Season 11Ep. 287
Are you facing obstacles that seem impossible? Have you made so many mistakes that forgiveness seems unreasonable? Have you lost hope that you can pull yourself back up? Today's episode is for you. Just three months after her first sip of alcohol, Tiffany Jenkins was on her way to a decade long opioid addiction. From varsity cheerleader to high school dropout; dating a sheriff to committing two dozen felonies: Tiffany shares her hard-won journey to redemption and sobriety. This emotional convers...
Sep 03, 2020•56 min•Season 11Ep. 286
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment Today, every topic broached is immediately polarizing and leads to rigidly drawn lines between two opposing sides. Join me as I share how to veer away from this hostile, divisive path and instead draw a new inclusive one. *** My new book IN AWE is now available... and became an instant bestseller! Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy....
Aug 31, 2020•8 min•Season 11Ep. 285
We've all heard laughter is the best medicine, and according to Forbes , laughing has science-based benefits that stimulate healing, strengthen relationships and promote brain activity. As we're facing headwinds of divisiveness, negative headlines and mounting stress, comedian Trey Kennedy brings some much-needed reprieve. You may be familiar with his tasteful humor + poignant parodies like "couples during quarantine", "millennials at a hardware store" and "moms pre-pandemic" that have earned te...
Aug 27, 2020•46 min•Season 11Ep. 284
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. We see things not as they are, but as we are." - Immanuel Kant The above is one of my favorite quotes and comes from a poet who wrote eloquently and extensively on living a more meaningful, impactful and worthwhile life regardless of the challenges around us. With all the challenges we face as individuals and as a society, I thought today might be a good day not only to send our own childre...
Aug 24, 2020•5 min•Season 11Ep. 283
Patricia Heaton is one of TV's most recognizable and beloved female leads from her role as Debra Barone on the long-standing comedy Everybody Loves Raymond. Today, the three-time Emmy winner shares about the unexpected + sudden loss of her mother as a child, the pockets of hope that kept her acting dream alive + how she's thriving in her "second act" of life as an ambassador for World Vision. This warm conversation will remind you that no matter what stage of life you're in, crisis can serve as ...
Aug 20, 2020•1 hr•Season 11Ep. 282
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. A good teacher is like a candle – it consumes itself to light the way for others. - Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Today I share an open letter of gratitude to teachers, who have historically been selfless in serving youth, and today more than ever. My friends, our educators have demonstrated repeatedly in the midst of turmoil, natural disasters, human tragedies and ordinary life their commitment to...
Aug 17, 2020•8 min•Season 11Ep. 281
Dr. Gary Chapman is just the man to turn to for help on strengthening our most important relationships. Two decades after publishing his continuous New York Times bestseller The 5 Love Languages , millions of readers credit him with saving their relationships by providing simple and practical ways to communicate their love. As we face great uncertainty, there is a profound need for love in our life. Today's encouraging conversation will inspire you to better express your love + develop stronger ...
Aug 13, 2020•36 min•Season 11Ep. 280
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. Today I share about the difficult times we're experiencing and how it's easy to get stuck in the negativity. You'll hear what it means to actually live and learn one simple thing to reestablish meaning in your life. *** My new book IN AWE is now available... and became an instant bestseller! Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy. Visi...
Aug 10, 2020•6 min•Season 11Ep. 279
Lori Allen is one of the world's foremost experts on bridal couture and the central figure of TLC's longstanding reality show Say Yes to the Dress: Atlanta . Today, Lori shares about owning Bridals by Lori for four decades, overcoming breast cancer and why she thinks marriages during the COVID-19 pandemic are among the strongest she's ever seen. SHOW NOTES: Growing up, Lori parents instilled strength, selflessness and self-sufficiency which created security. God's grace and Elmer's glue: In thei...
Aug 06, 2020•49 min•Season 11Ep. 278
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. "Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms - to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way." - Viktor E. Frankl My friend, as you step into your Monday and begin your week, determine to control what you can and let go of what you can't. As you prepare for the unknowns ahead, choose to unclench your fist, let go of ...
Aug 03, 2020•10 min•Season 11Ep. 277
Jillian Michaels is a world-renowned fitness expert, distinguished nutritionist and wellness entrepreneur. As one of the original trainers on the hit reality TV series The Biggest Loser , Jillian Michaels has built an empire in the health + wellness arena including being an 8-time New York Times bestselling author, publishing numerous successful fitness DVDs and launching the award-winning Jillian Michaels Fitness app. Today, Jillian opens up about her struggle with childhood obesity, facing rid...
Jul 30, 2020•50 min•Season 11Ep. 276
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment as I share this timely poem. May you know love. The kind that makes you better, that challenges you to grow. Walk in loving kindness and you will feel the invisible tether that connects us all. May you live a life of purpose. Seek knowledge from young and old. Different and same, gentle and sharp. Live with your eyes wide open. See the beauty, the goodness, the miracles but also the struggle...
Jul 27, 2020•4 min•Season 11Ep. 275
In honor of the return of MLB baseball this week, we're thrilled to have Major League Hall of Fame shortstop Cal Ripken Jr. as our guest. Cal is the epitome of dedication + perseverance. In his 21-year career, he earned his way into the record books numerous times, most notably when he broke Lou Gehrig's longstanding record of consecutive games played – with 2,130 games. Today, Cal is an author, speaker + philanthropist. Our conversation will surprise you – we talk about baseball but even more a...
Jul 23, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Season 11Ep. 274
"The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well." - Ralph Waldo Emerson "It's not about you." These are the first four words of one of the bestselling books of all time. Through the principles put forward by Rick Warren in The Purpose Driven Life , we are reminded that to discover what most stirs our heart, ignites our passion and elevates our lives: We must begin with the surpri...
Jul 20, 2020•6 min
"We have tremendous opportunity ahead to heal." At seventeen years old, Brian Walsh found himself clinging to life after being caught in a burning building as a volunteer firefighter. Managing excruciating physical and mental pain for decades, today Brian is leading an inspired life as a financial planner, philanthropist, father and friend. In our conversation, Brian shares the quote above + what it means for all of us in this season of unyielding unrest. His hard-won resilience + tenacity will ...
Jul 16, 2020•48 min•Season 11Ep. 172
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. "Listen with curiosity. Speak with honesty. Act with integrity. The greatest problem with communication is we don't listen to understand. We listen to reply. When we listen with curiosity, we don't listen with the intent to reply. We listen for what's behind the words." ― Roy T. Bennett How do you respond to those with differing views than yours? As a society, we are choosing to self-isolat...
Jul 13, 2020•5 min•Season 11Ep. 271
Recently, a dear friend shared the work of journalist Mike Max and his coverage of George Floyd's murder and the protests, destruction and marches in Minneapolis in the following days. Mike had covered the sports beat for 34 years at the CBS Minneapolis station and chose to use his longstanding relationship with the community to work to calm the hostile environment, spark meaningful conversations and capture the real-time experiences of the grieving community. Today, Mike shares his firsthand ex...
Jul 09, 2020•52 min•Season 11Ep. 270
Join me every Monday for a quick burst of inspiration on our Live Inspired Podcast Monday Moments segment. During this season of full of challenges, change and the unknown it's more important than ever to recognize that some of these difficulties can be used for new birth, reconciliation and hope for the future. Today, I share a poem written by Samuel Ullman that emphasizes the optimistic power of youth. Youth by Samuel Ullman Youth is not a time of life; it is a state of mind; it is not a matte...
Jul 06, 2020•5 min•Season 11Ep. 269
