Live Inspired Podcast with John O'Leary

Rosie Rivera is one of the most influential and inspirational Latinas in the world. As the bestselling author of God is Your Defender , an international speaker and co-host of marriage podcast  The Power of Us,  Rosie uses her voice to give hope to fellow survivors of sexual abuse. Today, Rosie shares her painful journey and how she found serenity including: the tragic loss of her beloved sister,...

Constant exposure to the often negative 24-hour news cycle can adversely influence our mental health and overall well-being. Today, I share an excerpt for my instant bestselling book  IN AWE to ignite our wonder for life + the limitless possibility for our days ahead. Want to learn how to see the possibilities around every corner?  Enjoy an 80% discount on the  IN AWE ebook when you order through...

Captain Jim Lovell has travelled further into space than any other person and is one of only three to travel to the moon twice. Possibly even more profound, he has witnessed more than 260 sunrises from space .  Infamously the mission meant to be his third trip to the moon, Apollo 13, was cut short when a tank exploded. When I first spoke to Jim in July of 2018, I was in awe – he has been a hero of...

"The very thing you take for granted, others are praying for." – Marlan Rico Lee Few of us ponder honestly the profound fragility and beauty of life at any age. Today I share an experience from my time as a hospital chaplain that woke me up to be far more intentional in savoring the profound gift of each day. The goal of life isn't to number the days to keep score, but in order to live them passio...

Struggle. Financial setbacks. Loneliness. Constant stress. Uncertainty.  These are some of the words audience members recently  shared when I asked them to describe the last 14 months. That is exactly why today's episode is so important: Join me to be reminded that, regardless of your challenges, hope is not canceled. Love wins. And the best of your life is yet to come. I'll share just how mind-bo...

Thirty years ago, Bill Johnson was walking to an Atlanta subway station with two colleagues when his world went dark. A bullet entered one temple and exited the other, leaving him permanently blind. With optimism, honesty + joy, Bill shares his extraordinary journey of learning to navigate in a new, dark world. Hear Bill share how he began to: accept his new reality embrace new ways of doing thing...

Scott Stratten is president of UnMarketing and was named "Top Five Social Media Influencers in the World" by Forbes.com. Co-author of six bestselling books with his business partner and wife Alison, Scott helps organizations see their business through his unconventional + disruptive "unmarketing" lens. Today, Scott reveals the power of having others believe in you, tips you can apply that have hel...

Commitment is an act, not a word. - Jean-Paul Sartre Last week I saw first-hand the selflessness and commitment of caregiving from two shining examples. In addition to watching my mom prepare my dad for surgery, I interviewed Richard Lui, NBC News journalist who was prepared to put his 30-year career on hold to care for his father with Alzheimer's. Today, let's recognize that the work of a committ...

According to the National Alliance for Caregiving, 54 million Americans give care for an ill or disabled family member. Five years ago, NBC News journalist Richard Lui found himself in this group as his father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Today, Richard shares about preparing to leave his 30-year career to care for his father and how the prolonged illness taught him the power of selflessness. W...

Did you hear last week's Live Inspired Podcast with Seth Godin? When I asked one of the greatest marketers, thought leaders and influencers of our time how he wants to be remembered he said: "Someone who made a ruckus. To shine a light; do generous, remarkable work; teach people to teach other people; and leave things better than they found them." Be a ruckus-maker: Do little things consistently w...

Seth Godin is one of the world's most renowned marketing experts, 20-time bestselling author, distinguished speaker and writer of one of the most popular blogs on the Internet. Seth is also one of the most humble people I've ever spoken with + shared profound yet simple, thought-provoking life reflections I can't stop thinking about. Seth's brilliant insights on life, success, failure, and the "au...

The approval ratings in which we view our photos, actions, thoughts and lives is a broken system. A week ago a friend sent me a hilariously negative review he found on Amazon regarding my book On Fire . We spend significant time rating others and ingesting their judgment of us. The goal of our lives is not status or ease, but leading, serving, elevating and inspiring in such a manner that other li...

Celebrating National Siblings Month, my sister Susan O'Leary Ciapciak joined me via livestream for this special episode. We discuss her life-saving role the day of my fire, the challenges of being a working mother of five during a global pandemic, and more! Watch a replay of the livestream on Facebook or YouTube ! If you enjoy this episode... You'll love hearing my episode about adult sibling rela...

Studies show that Americans work longer hours and have more stress-related illnesses than their European and Japanese counterparts.  Bucking this statistic Megan Hyatt Miller is chief executive officer at Michael Hyatt & Co., recently named a 2020 Best Workplace by Inc. Magazine, a ranking of American companies'employee engagement. Megan and her father  New York Times bestselling author + leadersh...

Amy Wolff did everything wrong... and yet it worked. With more than 1,000,000 "tokens of encouragement" displayed across the United States and in over 26 countries, Amy's desire to make a difference is life-saving.  Today, remember that you may get everything wrong. But the simple act of courageously taking the next right step may lead to significance and impact you can't yet imagine. Amy Wolff sh...

Don't give up. You are worthy of love. Your mistakes don't define you. These simple phrases launched a global movement. Overwhelmed by the staggering suicide rates in her small Oregon town, Amy Wolff was determined to support those struggling.  With her husband and two young daughters, Amy anonymously staked 20 yard signs with encouraging phrases across their community, never anticipating it would...

As winter surrenders to spring and the number of those vaccinated soar, our office has been receiving far more requests for both live and virtual presentations including several as their commencement speaker. With less than ten minutes to speak with graduates who are turning the page on an important chapter of their lives, stepping into a post-pandemic world, and likely dealing with significant an...

Research suggests that our experiences in childhood will have a profound impact on the overall wellbeing + trajectory of our life. Never acknowledged by his father and abandoned by his mother at three years old, Steve Pemberton spent his childhood being shuffled through the foster care system where he was abused, neglected and forgotten. Yet small gestures of kindness from ordinary people helped S...

It's easy to not respond... to remain passive, indifferent, busy.   But as I was reminded last week, the most effective, transformational and life-giving leaders are the ones who respond and pay attention. They are the ones who step up and step forward. And, they aren't always the individuals you thought they'd be.

In April 1994, nine-year-old Jeanne Celestine Lakin's parents and nearly all of her adult relatives were some of the one million people killed during the Rwandan government's ethnic massacre. For 100 days, Jeanne and her three-year-old twin sisters hid in bushes to stay safe. Heartbreaking and unimaginable, Jeanne shares her harrowing story of survival, courage and strength. Jeanne reminds us that...

As a child, I never understood why Jack Buck was so generous. Even after his death, I couldn't comprehend why he did so much, so selflessly for some random little boy. Years later, his son Joe shared the reason... In a world where many look for evidence of things that divide, diminish, cause pain or excuse poor behavior, let's seek to be the ones who unify, elevate, reflect hope and take positive...

In the span of a few weeks, Nora McInerny experienced three unimaginable losses: a miscarriage, the death of her father and the death of her husband. Yet in the wake of loss, Nora, host of the popular podcast  Terrible, Thanks for Asking  and author of bestselling books  No Happy Endings  and  The Young Hot Widows Club reminds us that we get to assemble something new from what is left behind. Toda...

"During a period of personal heartache, professional adversity and societal upheaval, I've been encouraged by the words you speak, stories you share and impact your organization is part of. Thank you."  - Mark W., Live Inspired Together Community Member Years ago our Live Inspired team went through the process of clarifying why we do the work we do, what we stand for, and what we hope to achieve t...

Can you imagine losing your ability to see? At 20 years old, this became Christine Ha's reality. Instead of losing faith or focusing on what she had lost, she used it as her inspiration to pursue her life's passion: cooking. Christine joined the competitive cooking reality TV show Masterchef ,   hosted by notoriously hard-to-please celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay. Christine won MasterChef Season 3, h...

"We get so wrapped up in numbers in our society. The most important thing is that we are able to be one-to-one, you and I with each other at the moment. If we can be present to the moment with the person that we happen to be with, that's what's important."  ― Fred Rogers It's easy to simply race through the day, check off the to-do-list, go to bed exhausted, wake up tired, wash and repeat. We seld...