Category Archives: Episodes

“Molly” the Army Wife -169



This is truly a matter of life or death. -”Molly” Anonymous Army Wife

No matter what your politics are, there is a gigantic humanitarian crisis going on right now in Afghanistan. When the last plane left Kabul on August 31, 2021, thousands of people including Americans and Afghan interpreters and their families were left behind. Many news outlets are ignoring this story, but the truth is that acts of violence are being perpetrated by the Taliban as you are reading these show notes. Enter, “Molly”… that’s not her real name. She is an Army wife who needs to remain anonymous. Molly is working together with other military spouses to create an underground, long-distance life line for our allies in Afghanistan. The Taliban will show no mercy toward Afghans who served as interpreters during the 20 year war, and service members who worked alongside these men are determined to honor their code of honor to leave no one behind. In this interview, Molly describes what she has experienced trying to save lives behind enemy lines, including stories about what is happening to women and girls under Taliban rule. www.evacuateourallies.org and www.nooneleft.org. #AfghanEvac


Hildy Grossman -168



I hate the word “no”. I hate the words “you can’t do it” and I hate “its been done before.”
-Hildy Grossman

When she was just a little girl growing up in Cincinnati, Hildy Grossman knew that singing on a stage would be part of her life. Her father was the owner of a famous night club called The Beverly Hills Country Club and among the many A-list performers who appeared there, Lena Horne was her favorite. Years later, the jazz singer with an impressive repertoire would become one of the founding members of the Follen Angels, singing timeless jazz tunes, songs from the American songbook, and even Cabaret songs in German, French and Russian. The mother of two and a clinical psychologist by day, Hildy developed her talents as a director and producer with the creation of the Devotion Follies for 10 years. When a surprise lung cancer diagnosis shook her to her core, she harnessed more of her boundless energy to create a non-profit called Upstage Lung Cancer which has raised over 3 million dollars earmarked for cutting edge, early detection and research. In this inspiring interview, you will meet a woman who has spent her life developing her talents, and using them every day. For this passionate singer, producer, director, playwright, novelist, podcaster, fundraiser and clinical psychologist, the sky is the limit. #upstagelungcancer


1 More From the Floor -167



There’s a new Candy O in town. She’s a little less driven about what’s ahead and lot more grateful for what is right in front of her. – Candy O’Terry

By the time I release this podcast, it will be 49 days since I seriously injured my lower back. Some people call it “blowing out your back”, and that’s actually a pretty good way to describe it.
I have a herniated disc at L4 and L5 and S1 where all the nerve roots are covered with the material that ruptured from the disc. When that happens, the pain is unbearable because those nerves get all fired up. I can’t even begin to tell you how much agony this injury has caused me, and how much I have learned from it. In this episode, I’ll introduce you to a 98 year old woman named Eloise who was my roommate in the hospital for three days. They say that people come into our lives for a reason, and I’m so glad Eloise came into mine. We may only have known one another for 72 hours, but the lessons she taught me changed my life forever. I may have taught her how to be a little more patient, but she taught me to be grateful for exactly where I am in my life.


4 Life Lessons From The Floor -166



Every once in a while, we have to get thrown down on the floor to see the world from a new perspective. That’s where we come to understand what really matters. That’s where we press the re-set button and learn some of life’s greatest lessons. -Candy O’Terry

I’m recording this episode in bed, flat on my back with a ruptured disc. After a 5 day stay in the hospital, I’m still in a lot of pain, but I didn’t want to miss this time with you. I’ve been thinking long and hard about the life lessons I’ve learned this week, so I came up with 4 life lessons from the floor…and my hope is that they might just help you if you are ever faced with an injury or an illness and you need some guidance, or a virtual hand to hold….maybe even a laugh…or a smile. And please forgive how I sound. One of the many things I’ve learned down here is that you become smaller. Your voice loses its power, you feel diminished, weak, a burden and kind of like a loser. It’s humbling down here, and that is lesson #1 from the floor.


Emily Tamilio -165



In the spotlight, a dynamic healthcare leader who is a champion for women’s health. Emily Tamilio is a registered nurse who is a member of the Beth Israel Lahey Health Women’s Leadership Council and Emerson Hospital Auxiliary. She has worked in leadership roles in health systems, start-ups and as a consultant, and is proud of her work for the the 131 year old Deaconess Abundant Life Committee’s leadership team. And there is so much more to this story. Raised outside of Boston in a strong Armenian family, bound together by the Armenian genocide, Emily often heard the stories both grandmothers told her about escaping their country to come to America. She learned at a very early age that life requires giant doses of courage. She is a mother and a breast cancer thriver who always sees the glass as hall full, choosing a heart full of gratitude that in turn feeds her persistence. No stranger to obstacles in her path, she tunes out negative talk, believing that fear is what stops us in our tracks. According to this exceptional woman, “fear is false evidence appearing real.” In this interview, Emily shares news about co-hosting her first podcast called “Bridgin” which will focus on fostering equity through connection. For a dose of positive energy you can use, just hit that download button.


Caroline C. Werner -164



A wise person once told me:  show up, speak your truth and don’t be attached to the outcome. -Caroline C. Werner 
Make no mistake about it, Caroline C. Werner is a superstar in the field of HR.  She’s the Senior Vice President, Global Talent for Korn Ferry with over 8,000 employees in 50 countries.  In this role, she responsible for talent acquisition, operations, learning and development, administration, human relations business strategies and more.  How can there possibly be enough hours in the day for this dynamic, successful, young woman?   And if she does find one minute of spare time, what does she do with it?  In this interview, we learn that Caroline was raised to rise and shine. Her tireless work-ethic and can-do attitude have served the young executive well, and the sky is the limit. #thestorybehindhersuccess #youngprofessionals 

Chris Vasiliadis -163



Success to me is being in alignment with what is important to you and following through on that in your actions and in your behavior, in your words. -Chris Vasiliadis

Meet Chris Vasiliadis, founder of Priority Wellness www.prioritywellness.com and author of the book Ignition: A Professional Woman’s Guide to Energized, Burnout-Proof Living. She has reinvented herself many times. In fact, she’s worked in high-tech with roles in systems engineering, computer security, cryptography, software project management, and as Director of Performance Improvement…and then she started down her entrepreneurial path flexing her artistic muscle as a make-up artist and then as a marketing consultant. But it was a health crisis in 2005 that rocked her world and inspired her to shift her mindset and adjust her compass. In this interview, Chris shares her wisdom about how managing your energy has far greater results than trying to manage your time. A self-described “recovering Type-A personality, Chris shares how she deliberately created a more healthy, active life for herself and you can, too. The secret is: you have to make it a priority. #storybehindhersuccess #prioritywellness


Karla MacDonald -162



Look around and find people who you want to be like or who you want to learn from. Make sure they see who you are, and what you can do. -Karla MacDonald

With so much attention on the rollout of the vaccine, delivered to the world in record time, I wanted to find a woman in a leadership role in the pharmaceutical world who could give us a bird’s eye view on the industry. Enter Karla MacDonald, Vice President, Communications & Patient Advocacy at Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals. With 20 years of experience working in life sciences, Karla has the knowledge and the insight about how clinical trials work, why patient advocacy matters, and how the scientific community has responded to the pandemic. I also wondered how much progress has been made by women and minorities in “big pharma”, and how much more work is yet to be done. Born and raised in Canada where her heroes were scientists, Karla shares the story of her childhood and the many gifts her parents passed on to her, including her father’s words of wisdom: “always sit in the front of the class and make sure the professor knows your name.” For a tutorial on what it’s like to climb the ladder and succeed in the pharmaceutical industry, just hit that download button #lifesciences #pharmaceuticals


Dr. Tamika Jacques -161



Every child is unique and every child has a skill. It is up to us parents to guide them and be attentive to those skills. -Dr. Tamika Jacques

Meet Dr. Tamika Jacques, mother of three and workforce specialist with a doctorate in Educational Leadership Science. She’s the author of two groundbreaking books: A Brown Girls Guide to Employment & Networking, and her latest: A Brown Parents Guide to Preparing Our Children for Employment in the 21st Century. Using the many challenges she faced over the course of her own career, Tamika’s goal in writing the book has been to open up the conversation between parents and their children around recognizing and tapping into passions and interests sooner than later. A third-generation Cape Verdean-American from Bridgewater, MA., Tamika was prepared by her parents to deal with a world that would judge her by the color of her skin. In this interview, she offers tools and techniques to shepherd the next generation of brown children toward actively creating opportunities for themselves. Says Tamika: “Never let anyone put you in a box because of their own racial bias. Dream big. Be who you are, because that is when you are going to shine.” For a dose of parenting advice that will put your child on a pathway toward success, hit that download button.


Krisanthi Pappas -160



There are paths of life that aren’t easy and the music industry is certainly a difficult one. If you don’t love it, don’t do it. But if you love it, you have to do it. -Krisanthi Pappas

Massachusetts native Krisanthi Pappas has been using her gifts and talents as a singer, songwriter, musician, arranger, recording artist, and live performer since she was about eight years old! A classically trained pianist, she would sing for the traffic stopped outside her house at the red light, singing songs like ABC by the Jackson Five. Throughout the course of Krisanthi’s career, her wide range of singing styles have gotten the attention of national publications like Jazz Times Magazine and All Music Guide whose writers have compared her to Norah Jones and Diana Krall, Karen Carpenter, Carole King and Bonnie Raitt. She’s a full-time entertainer who has opened for Sheryl Crow, Steely Dan, Heart, Queen with Adam Lambert, The Doobie Brothers, Chicago, Chuck Mangione, Branford Marsalis, and the list goes on and on. Krisanthi’s success as a songwriter has earned her many awards and her songs have found homes on popular TV shows and in films, surpassing 3 million spins on Pandora, with her single “One Slow Dance A Day” at the top of that list. In this interview, she takes us along for a ride through her career, including the stories behind her songs, what it takes to sustain a career in music, her devotion to her fans, and charity work on behalf of the fight against breast cancer. Her latest song “Hug A Million Times” is an anthem for anyone who has yearned to see friends and family during the pandemic. www.krisanthi.com.
https://smarturl.it/HugAMillionTimes