Plucking Up with Liz Bohannon

If you’re not familiar with Arianna Huffington’s highlight reel, here’s a rundown: She is the founder and CEO of Thrive Global and the founder of The Huffington Post. Arianna is the author of 15 books and has been named to Time Magazine’s list of the World’s 100 Most Influential People and Forbes Most Powerful Women List. Thrive Global, her company, is a leading behavior change tech company that a...

In our season finale, Liz shares her favorite moments from previous episodes (which was a daunting task considering there's so much wisdom, humor, and authenticity in each one). If you're tuning into the podcast for the first time, this is actually a perfect beginner's episode because Liz does not only talk about highlights from episodes that stood out to her, but also some serious behind the scen...

Janice Bryant Howroyd is the founder and CEO of The ActOne Group, an award-winning company in the human resources industry. The ActOne Group is a multi-billion dollar business she started with just about $1500 in savings. But Janice is more than an incredible businesswoman with tons of accolades and accomplishments under her belt. Janice has lived a phenomenal life that, while filled with challeng...

Today's guest, Debbie Millman is an accomplished figure and leader in the design world. She is an author, educator, curator, and the host of the podcast Design Matters, one of the world’s first and longest-running podcasts. Debbie is the author of six books, ”How to Think Like a Great Graphic Designer” and “Brand Thinking and Other Noble Pursuits.” She also co-founded the world’s first graduate pr...

Today's guest, Soman Chainani, is an insanely successful fantasy novel series that would become, first, a New York Times bestseller and second, a soon-to-be major motion picture on Netflix! He is behind “The School For Good and Evil,” a book series that has sold more than 2.5 million copies and has been translated into 30 languages across 6 continents. We’ll talk about Soman’s two biggest influenc...

Caroline Paul, is a writer who previously had a 13 and a half year career as a firefighter. She is the author of several books including her memoir “Fighting Fire” and “You Are Mighty: A Guide to Changing the World” which came out just as teens around the country were taking a stand against gun violence in 2018. In this episode, Caroline, who saw herself as a scared little kid, shares how adventur...

Todd Henry is a sought after international speaker and author of 5 books that’s been translated in dozens of languages. Todd has helped hundreds of thousands of people generate brilliant ideas and do the best work of their lives. In this episode, Todd takes me back to 2005 when he started The Accidental Creative podcast, which now has millions of downloads. And yes, you heard it right, I said 2005...

Ashlee Eiland is a leader, pastor and writer. She is the author of “Human (Kind): How Reclaiming Human Worth and Embracing Radical Kindness Will Bring Us Back Together.”  Ashlee is a gifted speaker and truth teller. In this episode, Ashlee and I talk about how growing up in an all girls school helped shape who she was — including why it never crossed her mind to play small. In our wide-rangin...

Alexa von Tobel, this week's guest, has a quintessential highlight reel. She is the founder and former CEO of LearnVest and the New York Times- Bestselling Author of "Financially Fearless." She launched Learnvest in 2008, in the middle of the financial crisis, and sold the company in 2015 for $375 million! In this episode, Alexa shares how her journey at Learnvest — from start up to exit — was a p...

Sarah Bessey is the author of the best-selling and critically-acclaimed books “Jesus Feminist” and “Out of Sorts: Making Peace with an Evolving Faith.” She’s a sought-after speaker at conferences, churches, and universities around the world.  I love this conversation because Sarah is so brutally honest about her journey as a writer. She literally lived to tell the horrors of rejection from bo...

Our next guest pretty much grew up under the very bright, often blinding lights, of Hollywood. Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt is the daughter of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, and is the oldest of four siblings. Katherine carved out her own path and became a writer. She is a New York Times best-selling author , debuting her career with her first first book “Rock What You’ve Got,” a book...

Do you feel like you envisioned an incredible year, and all of a sudden, something hits you out of nowhere like a ton of bricks? Hello 2020! Well, that feeling of a gut punch right when stuff is getting good is part of what you’ll hear in my conversation with this week’s guest, designer Rebecca Minkoff. Her namesake global fashion brand is best known for its accessible luxury handbags accessories...

Khristi Lauren Adams had a realization that young women of color, particularly Black girls, always had to share the space and that their voices are very rarely the center of stories we read and hear about. This week, you'll hear my conversation with Khristi, author of the “Parable of The Brown Girl” — recommended as one of the books by Black authors to read by top media outlets like Vogue, Essence...

Bob Goff is the New York Times bestselling author of “Love Does” and just one of the wonderful humans I’ve come to know. He is a recovering lawyer who founded a nonprofit also named Love Does, a human rights organization operating in countries including Uganda, Nepal, Somalia, and Iraq. Bob is also a speaker and the host of the popular podcast, “Dream Big”. In this episode, Bob, with much humor an...

In 2010, Jaime Schmidt founded personal care company Schmidt’s Naturals in Portland, Oregon — right in her very own kitchen. She scaled her company and 7 years later, sold it to legacy brand Unilever. But, if you’ve been listening to our podcast, you know we won't be focusing on that highlight reel. In this episode, Jaime talks to me about the things that didn’t go well in her journey, including a...

Alex Elle is the author of multiple books and journals including “After the Rain”, “Neon Soul” and “Today I Affirm: A Journal That Nurtures Self-Care.” Alex provides a safe space for healing and understanding through writing retreats and workshops and has built a social media community of nearly a million followers. To deal with depression and explore healing, Alex found writing as her refuge. Now...

Ten years ago, Alli Webb, took on a mission of providing blowouts in beautiful spaces — and being the best in the game!  Alli founded Drybar, a salon that didn’t do cuts or color and only offered blowouts. From its first salon in Brentwood California, Drybar is now a multimillion-dollar business with a hundred locations throughout the US and Canada. While you might be more familiar with Alli’...

We have often villainized social media, but knowing the artist, poet, and author Morgan Harper Nichols is an honest testament to the power of the platform to be used for good. “ All Along You Were Blooming ,” is an illustrated collection of poetry and prose from Morgan who has collaborated with brands like Coach, Adobe, LiveNation, and Aerie. Her MHN stamped poetry and art continue to get shared b...

Today’s episode shares the first(and only) interview I was able to record in person, right before the world was turned upside down by COVID-19. I look to today’s guest, Sadie Lincoln as a kindred spirit. Sadie is a Portland success story who co-founded barre3, a fitness company focused on teaching people to be balanced in body and empowered from within. In the months since we recorded this episode...

The Bachelor star and host of iHeart Radio’s "Almost Famous" podcast Ben Higgins joins me this week to talk about life post reality TV (including getting a legit award for being the ‘Most Googled Breakup’ in 2017!) More than the fame he acquired, Ben has been able to leverage his platform and recognition to do humanitarian work. As president and co-founder of Generous International, a ‘for-purpose...

Today’s guest is entrepreneur and investor whose last name you might recognize, Randi Zuckerberg! Creating Facebook Live and winning two Tony Awards as producer of Hadestown and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!  are among Randi’s many accomplishments. In this episode, Randi gets honest about her failed ventures after leaving Facebook. She’ll also talk to me about cultivating vulnerability,...

Jo Saxton is an author, leadership coach and the host of the podcast “Lead Stories: Tales of Leadership and Life.” Jo was born in London and is the daughter of Nigerian parents. In this episode, Jo shares how she went from aspiring journalist to pastor -- and how her evolving faith led her to what she is doing now. She talks about how her multicultural upbringing shaped who she is, and how she’s n...

On our first episode, I talk with a personal hero and truly an icon in the literary world, Elizabeth Gilbert! "Eat, Pray, Love", the # 1 New York Times bestseller that catapulted Elizabeth to success, sold over 12 million copies and was adapted into a film starring Julia Roberts in 2010. In our conversation, Elizabeth and I talk beyond the accolades she's received and the dizzying fame she found h...

Do you ever look at successful people and get stuck in their highlight reel? We then look at our own mess ups and feel alone, broken and not cut out for the job. Hosted by founder and social entrepreneur Liz Bohannon, Plucking Up! is a podcast that talks about failures beyond the platitudes and how celebrated authors, entrepreneurs, artists and leaders in their own field moved past mistakes and wr...