She’s Smart

What happens when the life you've built no longer feels like the life you want? This week on She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Ashley Napoli, founder of Living Lotus and Living Well, to talk about self-worth, reinvention, and learning to trust yourself enough to make a change. After 18 years as an English teacher, Ashley followed her intuition into a new chapter as a yoga instructor, coach, and re...

Who do we trust—and why? This week on She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Dr. Kira Ganga Kieffer, a scholar, writer, and professor of religious studies at Fairfield University whose work explores the intersection of religion, health, medicine, and belief. Kira’s first book, Unvaccinated Under God: Religion and Vaccine Hesitancy in Modern America, opens the door to a much bigger conversation: How do...

This week on She’s Smart, Maria sits down with author Isabela Livino to talk about her debut novel, An Immaculate Deception. Set in 1877 Brazil, this Gothic story follows Madalena, a young woman caught in a world of love, fear, religion, guilt and obsession. Isabela takes us behind the book—from the moment she knew this was the story she needed to write to the influences of Dante’s Inferno, philos...

Susan Curtin, Chair of the National Coast Guard Museum Association and former member of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. Susan’s connection to the Coast Guard is deeply personal. Her father, J.D. Power, credited his own Coast Guard service with helping shape the man and leader he became—and years later, Susan would follow in his footsteps and serve herself. In this episode, Susan and I talk...

From producing over 400 episodes of Maury to launching the wildly successful On Par with Maury Povich podcast, Holly Mirabella has spent her career helping people tell their stories — and in this episode of She’s Smart, she shares some of her own. We talk about the evolution of media, intuition, reinvention, motherhood, building a company from the ground up, and the “superpower” Holly developed af...

On this episode of She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Samantha Miller, co-founder and CEO of Cadence OTC , to talk about the future of reproductive healthcare access — and why access matters more than ever. From emergency contraception and pharmacy deserts to the push for over-the-counter birth control, Samantha shares the inspiring story behind building a mission-driven pharmaceutical company focu...

In this episode of She’s Smart, I’m joined by Veronica Taylor, Wealth Advisor at Ellevest — a women-led platform helping women invest, grow their wealth, and make smarter financial decisions. Veronica shares her journey from a 20-year career as a Creative Director into wealth management, and how breaking free from living paycheck to paycheck changed everything. We talk about why so many women feel...

Fertility is just the beginning of this conversation. This week, I sit down with Aimee Raupp—best-selling author of Yes, You Can Get Pregnant and The Egg Quality Diet, and a leading voice in women’s health and fertility. With over two decades of experience, Aimee blends Western science with Eastern medicine to help women better understand what’s really happening in their bodies. We talk about the...

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Tanvi Gandhi—naturopathic physician, licensed acupuncturist, and integrative psychiatry provider—for a conversation that feels both grounding and eye-opening. With a background in science from UCLA and research at the NIH, Dr. Tanvi now blends modern medicine with holistic practices to support the full connection between mind, body, and spirit. And in this conv...

In this episode of She’s Smart, I sit down with Christine Short, Head of Research at TMX Group, to unpack the world of financial markets in a way that actually makes sense. Christine has spent over 15 years analyzing corporate earnings and decoding what she calls the “body language” of companies—the subtle signals that reveal what’s really happening behind the numbers. Her work has been featured i...

USA Today bestselling author Emily Liebert joins me today on She’s Smart to talk about the fascinating world of writing—from crafting bestselling novels to ghostwriting books for celebrities. Emily’s career has taken her from producing specials at ABC News to serving as Editor-in-Chief of The WAG magazine, and eventually to becoming the author of multiple novels including Pretty Revenge and Perfec...

What happened to teen culture? This week on She’s Smart, Maria sits down with media insider turned culture-builder Paula James-Martinez — former Fashion Director at Refinery29, founder of Purple Diary, documentary filmmaker, and now the visionary behind Cuqui, a new teen magazine designed to give kids their MTV back. In a world where the algorithm shapes everything, Paula is building something tan...

Perimenopause. Hormones. Anxiety. Sleep changes. Night sweats. Brain fog. If you’ve been wondering, “Is this just stress… or is something actually shifting?” — this episode is for you. Today I’m joined by Dr. Katie Takayasu, integrative medicine physician and founder of Wellness Insights in Darien, Connecticut. Dr. Katie blends traditional Western medicine with evidence-based complementary therapi...

Catherine Morrissey is the President of White & Warren, the luxury cashmere brand known for timeless essentials and uncompromising quality. In this episode, Catherine shares what it’s like to lead a heritage brand founded by her mother while guiding it into its next chapter — thoughtfully, intentionally, and with a deep respect for craft. We talk about Catherine’s path from Calvin Klein to the...

In this episode, I’m joined by Ginger Richardson, founder of Kiin Sauna, a mobile wood-burning sauna and cold plunge experience based in Fairfield, Connecticut. Ginger shares why she started Kiin, what it really looks like to build a business from scratch as a single mom, the physical and mental benefits of sauna and contrast therapy, the ancient roots of sauna culture, and how collaboration and c...

In this episode of She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Donnie Soddu, founder of High Light Rituals and a shamanic practitioner whose work bridges science, intuition, and healing in a truly thoughtful way. Donnie’s path is anything but linear. With a background in neuropsychology, research, and the corporate world, she once studied perception, sensory experience, and how humans understand reality—bef...

In this episode, I sit down with Michelle Yun Mapplethorpe — Director and Chief Curator of the Katonah Museum of Art — for a conversation that opens up the world of art in the most accessible, inspiring way. Michelle shares her path through MoMA, the Asia Society Museum, global exhibitions, and creative work that has taken her around the world. We talk about how to truly see art, how to start coll...

Today on She’s Smart, I sit down with media strategist and founder Samantha Yanks, whose 25-year career spans Vogue, O, The Oprah Magazine, Hamptons, and Gotham. We talk about her transition from legacy media to building The Connecticut Edit with her daughter, the importance of community, and why AI—when used intentionally—can actually amplify human connection. Samantha shares her perspective on i...

Karen Ackley spent more than 30 years inside the Central Intelligence Agency, rising into the CIA’s Senior Intelligence Service — the highest leadership level in the Agency. She served as Deputy Chief of Station in Europe and the Middle East, Deputy Chief of Operations in the Counterterrorist Center, and Executive Assistant to the Director of the CIA. She later spent 28 months in Baghdad as the se...

In this episode of She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Ellen Scherer Crafts — producer, storyteller, and creative force behind the Emmy® Award-winning documentary Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street. Ellen shares her incredible journey from producing live boxing matches for HBO and Caesars Entertainment to leading global experiential events and founding Macrocosm Entertainment with her husband,...

This week on She’s Smart, Maria sits down with Christina Roughan, the acclaimed interior designer and founder of Roughan Interiors, a global design firm with offices in Weston, Connecticut, and New York City. Christina shares her incredible journey from the fashion world—working with Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger—to building a thriving design business known for its timeless, livable, and effortl...

This week on She’s Smart, I’m joined by Irene Chen, co-founder of the California-based accessories brand Parker Thatch. Irene and I share roots in the same little pocket of Northern California, and we instantly connected over that shared sense of home. In this episode, Irene shares how she and her husband built Parker Thatch from the ground up — starting with a single roll of canvas and a sewing m...

Dr. Carla Caturia has worked with more than 10,000 teens and families as an elite mindset coach specializing in emotional intelligence. In this episode, we explore how parents can guide their kids without hovering, why resilience and independence matter more than perfection, and the practical tools families can use to create more harmony at home. https://thehouseofrise.com/

Broadway veteran Jodi Stevens Bryce joins me to share her journey from New York stages to mentoring the next generation of performers. We talk about her family’s deep roots in music, her Broadway debut in Jekyll and Hyde, and the resilience it took to recover from a vocal injury. Jodi also opens up about finding balance through yoga and mindfulness, the joy of teaching, and how community cabaret n...

Nikki Glazer — Owner and Director of Brand at GrayBarns — joins Maria to share the story of transforming a historic inn into a modern gathering place. From her early days at Google working on experiential pop-ups, to carrying on her family’s legacy in real estate and design, Nikki brings a unique perspective on hospitality, creativity, and community. In this episode, we talk about: The history and...