Empowered Conversations

Marc Paisant struggled early in his adult life – with his weight, his confidence, anxiety, and depression. He had a few bad experiences with therapy but never gave up. He decided that he was worth it. ‎He dropped over 100 pounds. But even after getting in shape, he realized he needed to combine his physical health and his mental health – to work on both together. Now he is a certified personal tra...

If you have ever felt like you "should be further along" in your personal growth – or wondered why the same patterns keep showing up – this conversation will come as a relief. ‎‎Dr. Leslie Newman is an author and speaker who wrote A Daily Dose of Happiness. She helps people navigate life's challenges – especially in relationships and transitions – so they can feel more clear, steady,...

Jessica Danel is a former childcare who built a million-dollar preschool business from the ground up. She is a mom of three, a wife of 25 years, and a woman who stepped away from her thriving business to focus on her daughter's special needs – then earned her Master's Degree. ‎Now she has written a memoir: Bucket List from a Redneck Girl– a raw, hilarious, and deeply heartfelt collection o...

Craig Parks has worked with kids for decades as a camp director, a kids musician, and a proud dad of two – including a son on the autism spectrum. He has trained hundreds of people how to effectively work with children to elicit their best and be lifted by the experience. ‎His A to E Parenting method helps parents lift the mundane into the memorable and increase the joy while reducing the stress o...

Willie Blake grew up with dyslexia, diagnosed in first grade. For years, he believed he was broken. He spent most of his life trying to catch up, hide, and be someone he wasn't – chasing perfection, pleasing people, and constantly second-guessing himself. ‎Then he got tired of surviving. He made a decision: if he was going to live with this, he was going to lead with it. ‎Now Willie is a high-...

Renee Calhoun is a therapist who accidentally discovered that human trafficking was already sitting in her therapy room. She thought she was treating trauma, addiction, and toxic relationships. What she realized was that many of her clients were surviving coercion and exploitation that even trained professionals fail to recognize. That realization changed how she understands human behavior complet...

Sylvia Worsham is a warrior of light and faith. Her superpower is her ability to see the silver lining in challenges – not as toxic positivity, but as a genuine, hard-won perspective. ‎She is a 3x bestselling author, spiritual transformation coach, and host of the Release Doubt, Reveal Purpose podcast. But her journey didn't start on a stage. She had a miraculous recovery from a medical compli...

Most trauma therapy keeps women stuck in their pain – talking about it over and over, reliving it for years. Anissa Hudak believes that is exactly what keeps them trapped. ‎Anissa is a neuro-somatic therapist and a two-time sexual trauma survivor. She is also the daughter of a Vietnam Veteran and a military spouse. She helps women retrain their nervous systems – so they can finally feel safe in th...

Why do so many high-achieving people – who are successful in every other area of their lives – keep attracting toxic relationships? Why do they tolerate what they would never accept in their careers? And why does the same destructive pattern keep showing up? ‎‎Anutza Bellissimo is a behavioral skills coach, certified anger management specialist, and founder of the Stress & Anger Management Ins...

Today's conversation is for men who feel lost. For men who feel like they're just going through the motions. For men who have achieved what they were supposed to achieve – but still feel empty, directionless, or disconnected from their own lives. Maxim Shapiro lived without direction for years. He thought he was on the right track, but still felt depressed and lacked pride in himself. Deep...

Melissa Schulz is a parenting coach and Board Certified Behavior Analyst recognized as the "Best Parenting Coach in the United States for 2025" by Evergreen Awards. She has a Master's in Psychology and spent 12 years running an in-home behavioral health company serving kids with autism. She is also a mom to three kids – two of whom are neurodiverse. ‎In this episode of Empowered Conv...

Deacon Margaret O'Connor is a former chaplain, a Eucharistic minister, and a woman on a mission. She believes the Catholic Church has been hiding something for centuries – a truth about women's leadership in the early Church that could change everything. In her book, Scandal in the Shadows: The Original Priest – Mother Mary, Margaret uncovers evidence that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was ac...

Frank Healy is one of about 100 people in the world with hyperthymesia - Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory. He remembers every day of his life since he was six years old. He is now 64. ‎He remembers the emotions attached to each memory and relives them. The good ones. And the painful ones. ‎‎To survive, he had to learn how to release the feelings from the bad memories. So he studied psycholo...

Zander Phelps spent a decade traveling the globe with nothing more than a pack on his back and a sack in his pocket. Along the way, he discovered a profound truth: the universal language of love is play. ‎Whether juggling on a street corner or kicking a footbag in a remote village, Zander found that play breaks down cultural barriers and opens doors to genuine human connection. His mantra? Play Wi...

‎For decades, we've been told that personality is fixed. That you either have certain traits like confidence, resilience, emotional stability or you don't. Dr. Shannon Sauer-Zavala's research challenges that assumption.‎ ‎She is a clinical psychologist, professor, and personality change researcher. Her work shows that traits like confidence, emotional resilience, and communication styl...

Johnzelle Anderson grew up mixed race in 1990s Roanoke, Virginia feeling like an outsider in every room. Born to a disengaged West African father and a volatile white mother, he experienced childhood abuse, neglect, and racism. The only safety he had was his grandmother's love and an inner voice that promised a better future. ‎Now he is a licensed therapist and the author of Mixtape: A Memoir–...

Carlos Reyes has been in the health and fitness industry for 35 years. He works with 50+ active individuals who want to combat the aging process in the most efficient and effective way – so they can continue to perform at a high level at life, at work, and at play into their 60s, 70s, 80s, and beyond. ‎His unique approach to fitness focuses on the practical, the possible, and the productive – with...

Paul Voss is a dad of eight. Three and a half years ago, his youngest was diagnosed with autism. Like many families, he and his wife were thrown into a world of sleepless nights, constant stress, and feeling like nothing was working. ‎Out of that chaos, Paul wrote his first book: Autism Sucks: Finding Hope in the Chaos. He didn't write it as an expert or a clinician. He wrote it as a tired dad...

Diagnosed with schizophrenia 50 years ago. Dale Walsh experienced total psychosis, was hospitalized nine times over five years, and was extracted from Dartmouth College. Then something shifted. He has been psychosis-free for 34 years, lived independently for 40 years, and now dedicates his life to helping other families navigate the same journey. His mantra: "Recovery is always an option.&quo...

Vandana Atara Noorah grew up in a dysfunctional home with emotionally unavailable parents. She overcame significant barriers to become a spiritual teacher, learning to heal herself and reparent her inner child. Now a Usui Reiki Master, Inner Child Mentor, and Shamanic Soul Retrieval Facilitator, she helps energy-sensitive empaths speak their truth and discover their soul purpose. In this episode,...

How do we think about communication, intelligence, and human potential? Darcy Day believed what experts and society told her about Down syndrome. She accepted what she was told about her son Brady's abilities. His speech was difficult to understand, and he could never fully express his thoughts. She thought she knew his limits.‎ ‎Then everything changed. Brady began communicating by spelling o...

Michelle Ford holds a Master's in Public Health. She understood the science of wellness. But in her late 30s, she became a single working mom and within one month, her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, her father needed quadruple bypass surgery, and her sons' father terminated his parental rights. Her career stalled because she chose to be available for two generations.‎ ‎She had th...

‎Armin Brott has spent more than two decades helping millions of men become the fathers they want to be and that their children need them to be. ‎He is a nationally recognized authority on men's health and a pioneer in the field of fatherhood. His bestselling books, including The Expectant Father, The New Father, and The Military Father, are considered classics. He also writes the nationally s...

As a young man, Jai Roza drifted away from his childhood faith. He sought meaning in alternative traditions, games, stories, and even spirits. Eventually, he concluded that life wasn't worth living so he decided to end it early. ‎‎Then an unexpected phone call came. A flash of hope in the darkness. A voice Divinity aware of his situation. That moment course-corrected his walk from an early gra...

Catherine Lang-Cline is an award-winning CEO who built and sold a multi-million-dollar business after 20 years. Her company landed multiple spots on the Inc. 500/5000 list, and she was honored as "Most Admired CEO." ‎‎Before that, she bounced through several career paths. She realized she wasn't built to play small or follow someone else's rules. So she co-founded a company, boot...