Happiness Sold Separately

Sara Haines has one of the most recognizable voices in American television, and she built it by refusing to pretend she had it all figured out. In this conversation with Jason Hensley, Sara opens up about growing up as the third of four kids in Newton, Iowa, feeling invisible in her own family home videos, and spending her early years chasing the feeling she got on a volleyball court or a show cho...

Scott Lackey has been fired from his own company twice. The first time cost him $3 million. The second time cost him $20 million and the company he built from nothing. He's a U.S. Army veteran. An Ironman. A pastor. A husband. A father. And now, an author of a book that does not flinch. In this conversation, Scott and Jason go where most men refuse to go. They talk about the "make it happ...

NYT Bestselling author Chip Leighton left a six-figure corporate career in his 50s to become a creator — and his kids wrote the foreword to his new book roasting him for it. This is that conversation. Chip is back on Happiness Sold Separately with Jason Hensley to talk about "Dad, Could You Not?: A Dad's Guide to Being Less Cringy" — but this goes well beyond dad jokes. They get into...

There’s a quiet shift happening—and it’s not showing up in headlines, it’s showing up in how kids handle pressure, failure, and reality. In this episode, Jason talks with MLB columnist Ken Davidoff and pediatrician Dr. Harley Rotbart about what youth sports used to teach—and what’s being lost. They get into entitlement, participation trophies, parental pressure, and the emotional consequences of r...

She didn’t expect to end up there. What started as a way to survive in Los Angeles turned into something much heavier—something that changed how she saw herself, relationships, and the world. In this episode, Kendra Bates shares her journey from OnlyFans to Suddenly Amish , and the internal shift that forced her to walk away from everything she thought she wanted. This is a raw conversation about...

Most men think they’re doing everything right — working hard, providing, showing up. But what if that’s exactly where things start to break down? In this episode, Jason sits down with leadership coach Mitchell Osmond to unpack the silent crisis facing men today. From emotional disconnection to identity loss, this conversation reveals why so many marriages fail quietly and what it actually takes to...

Abby Johnson has shared her story publicly for years—but this conversation goes deeper. In this episode, we explore what’s happening inside abortion clinics today through the eyes of former workers—many of whom are leaving with lasting psychological trauma. Some stories are so serious that attorneys had to be consulted before they could even be shared. This isn’t about headlines or politics. It’s...

What happens when the life everyone admires… isn’t actually the life you’re meant to live? Jonathan Cave spent years climbing toward what most people would call success — a respected legal career and a clear path to senior partnership. From the outside, everything looked perfect. But inside, something didn’t feel right. In this episode of Happiness Sold Separately , Jonathan shares the moment he r...

What if technology allowed you to talk to someone you lost years ago? In this episode of Happiness Sold Separately, Jason sits down with entrepreneur Miles Spencer, founder of Reflecta, an AI platform designed to preserve a person’s memories, voice, and personality so future generations can interact with them long after they’re gone. The concept is already sparking strong reactions. Some people be...

At 18, Rob Scheer aged out of foster care with nothing but a trash bag and nowhere to go. Homeless and alone, he slept under bridges, hid in libraries at night, and still managed to graduate high school. Decades later, he would turn that pain into purpose by founding Comfort Cases, an international nonprofit providing backpacks filled with essentials to children entering foster care — because dign...

Most of us learned about Pearl Harbor. Few of us learned what happened across Asia. In this episode, I sit down with Jenny Chan, Director of Pacific Atrocities Education, to talk about the untold human stories of World War II — including the horrifying reality of Unit 731 and why millions of deaths in Asia are rarely discussed in Western classrooms. We talk about: Historical amnesia Media narrativ...

Why do talented people still fail? In this episode of Happiness Sold Separately, Jason talks with psychology professor and talent agent Albert Bramante about the real reason performers stall out: self-sabotage . They unpack rejection, identity, confidence, mindset, and the mental traps that quietly derail creative careers. This conversation goes beyond acting — it’s about how fear, doubt, and atta...

For 25 years, Ken Wortley served as a Christian pastor — preaching traditional theology while privately carrying a truth he believed could destroy everything. In this deeply human conversation, Ken shares the emotional and spiritual cost of living a double life, the collapse of his marriage, estrangement from his sons, and the painful freedom that came with finally telling the truth. This episode...

Burnout has become normalized in modern work culture, but what if it’s actually the clearest signal that something underneath is broken? In this episode of Happiness Sold Separately , Jason talks with business strategist and author Nicole Chiclana about why long hours don’t equal loyalty, why “being indispensable” is a dangerous myth, and how companies slowly lose their humanity when systems matte...

John Kammer lost three of his closest friends — including one to suicide — and for years he avoided grief the only way he knew how: bury it, outrun it, and numb it. But one moment changed everything. While experimenting with AI, John built a warm, comforting “presence” modeled after a lost friend, finally said the words he never got to say, and the response triggered an emotional release he hadn’t...

Some stories don’t fade with time. They wait. In this powerful episode of Happiness Sold Separately , host Jason Hensley sits down with board-certified psychiatrist Dr. Dawnmarie Risley-Childs for a raw, deeply honest conversation about survival, trauma, and what it really takes to heal. Dr. Risley-Childs shares her personal journey through decades of domestic violence, sexual violence, and comple...

In this powerful episode of Happiness Sold Separately , Jason Hensley sits down with US Navy veteran and “Unfiltered Wisdom” founder Robert Greene for a raw, no-BS conversation about trauma, PTSD, men’s mental health, addiction and the real pursuit of happiness. Robert opens up about his childhood—watching his mother flatline on Christmas Eve, growing up with an abusive, alcoholic father and stepm...

In this deeply human episode, Jason talks with financial consultant and lifelong caregiver Shelly Grimm , whose story begins with one of the earliest documented cases of Crohn’s disease in the United States. At five years old, Shelly became the primary caregiver for her mother, navigating poverty, chronic illness, and emotional isolation. The weight she carried shaped her understanding of family,...

In this explosive conversation, former jewel thief Larry Lawton reveals the untold truth behind the criminal empire that made him the most notorious jewel thief in United States history. Larry takes us inside the inner circles of the Gambino crime family, sharing raw, unfiltered stories about the mafia bosses he worked under, including men connected to Murder Incorporated and the legendary Albert...

What happens when faith becomes control—and family becomes captivity? In this gripping episode of Happiness Sold Separately , host Jason Hensley sits down with Welcome to Plathville ’s Lydia-Grace Meggs, who opens up about growing up in a deeply fundamentalist household, the trauma of obedience, and the painful moment she chose freedom over family. Lydia shares her journey from isolation and abuse...

At 21, Ruth Soukup died in the back of an ambulance. Doctors said she had a 10% chance to live. Two decades later, she’s a bestselling author, millionaire entrepreneur, wife, mother — and survivor. In this raw, unfiltered conversation with host Jason Hensley , Ruth reveals: Her suicide attempts and miraculous survival The long road through depression and six hospitalizations Losing everything — ma...

Dr. Tony Dice’s life reads like a movie — firefighter, paramedic, Navy SEAL, private security contractor… and then a full-blown crystal meth addict. In this episode, he sits down with Jason Hensley for one of the most brutally honest interviews ever recorded. He talks about the darkness that followed him home, the moral injuries that haunted him, and the night he almost lost his son because of add...

Doctors didn’t believe her. They said it was all in her head. After years of pain, misdiagnosis, and being dismissed, Trinity Lothian finally discovered the truth — an autoimmune disease attacking her nerves and body. But instead of giving up, she became a world-class wheelchair fencer and competed on the Paralympic stage . In this deeply human conversation, Trinity opens up about the darkness, th...

Scott Michaels (Dearly Departed Tours) joins Jason to reveal one of the most chilling details of the Manson murders: Charles Manson once knocked on Sharon Tate’s door — months before the killings on Cielo Drive. In this powerful conversation, we dive into: The disturbing web connecting Manson, the Beach Boys, and Hollywood’s elite Why the murders shocked America in 1969 and still haunt us today Be...

Healthcare is broken — but not in the way you think. In this powerful conversation, Jason and Eva Minkoff dive deep into the overlooked ingredient that could change everything: human connection . Eva shares her personal journey that led her to investigate why empathy and compassion are the real keys to health, happiness, and healing. Together, they expose: Why empathy is worth more than medicine i...