Live Inspired Podcast With John O'leary

Depression, anxiety and other mental health issues have skyrocketed among kids, teens and young adults; and this is long before pandemic-related isolation. Dr. Tim Jordan is a developmental and behavioral pediatrician, helping children and their families navigate development and maintain strength, happiness and fulfillment. Dr. Jordan shares his common-sense approach that enables parents to: be more confident and effective reduce conflict and drama remain a strong influence throughout their children’s adolescence   Regardless of the role you play in a child's life, today's conservation will equip you with practical advice to build closer relationships based on trust and understanding. SHOW NOTES: Alongside his wife Anne, Tim founded Camp Weloki for Girls as a safe haven for girls can be heard, be authentic and enhance their social-emotional intelligence. Greater hope or greater despair? While it saddens him that kids go through so much adversity, Tim has hope when he can remove children from their childho

Life, like the weather, is hard to predict. In a marketplace addicted to the 24/7 connectivity through cable news or social media feeds, consider taking a break that will free you to control the things you can, let go of what you can’t and celebrate the unexpected along the way. We too often confuse knowledge with wisdom and conflate someone else telling us what matters with embracing the things that actually do. *** Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy with my instant #1 bestseller IN AWE. Visit ReadInAwe.com today!  *** Did you enjoy this episode? Subscribe, rate & review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. 

How can you boldly walk forward from unfathomably challenging circumstances? Jonathan Pitts, pastor, author and father of four joins us to share how he did exactly this after he tragically lost his wife. Jonathan vulnerably shares his journey of loving Wynter, how he coped with losing her, and how he continues to find peace, strength, and hope in keeping her legacy alive. Our encouraging conversation will remind you that even in the most difficult times, the best of our days remain ahead. SHOW NOTES: Jonathan’s mom, a White German-American, met his dad, a Black man, at a music school in New Jersey. Having an Identity: Growing up in a bi-racial family, Jonathan is thankful his parents raised him with faith as it provided him strength.  As a member of the ROTC program at Drexel University, Jonathan expected to serve his country yet met + quickly fell in love with his wife, Wynter Evans. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 Raising four girls five years old and yo

“Sympathy is easy because it comes from a position of power. Empathy is getting down on your knees and looking someone else in the eye, and realizing that you could be them, and that all that separates you is luck.” - Dennis Lahane   For almost three decades, my dad has been living with the diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. Over this time, he’s lost the ability to walk, drive, and earn. It’s difficult for my dad to speak and lately, becoming more difficult to swallow.   I obviously suspected it was hard, but staying with my dad and caring for him in my mother’s absence gave me a totally different understanding.   In this perplexing season, I encourage you to truly embrace what the world – pain, struggle, dreams, aspirations, wisdom – might look like for those around you.   Sympathy, indifference, despair and anger are common emotions these days. The way to understand, then heal and finally unite requires that we first empathize. *** Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspirat

Are you hoping to be rich in significance + success in 2021? Who isn't, right? My friend, this episode is for you. Over three years ago I started my membership community, Live Inspired IN STUDIO -  community of like-minded friends who join me monthly via webcast to do life together + make the world better, starting with our own. This month’s discussion topic is so relevant, impactful + life-giving that I needed to make sure everyone has access to it!  Today we walk through a step-by-step process (created by my friend + past Live Inspired Podcast guest Jinny Ditzler) that I have completed at the beginning of every year for more than a decade. You'll leave this episode with clear priorities and commitments to achieve significance + success in all aspects of your life this year.   SHOW NOTES: “Life's most persistent and urgent question is: 'What are you doing for others?'" - Martin Luther King Jr. Instead of reflecting on what's going on around us by being a temperature gauge, Bernice King encourages us

Empathy doesn’t excuse poor behavior. Rather, it seeks to understand it and strives to redeem it. Today, as we continue to navigate a global pandemic, face challenges professionally + personally, I encourage you to draw from my grandpa’s wisdom: Surrender yourself for the betterment of someone else. Let go of your former life as individuals and embrace a unified one, together. Be fused fully to whether storms, chart dreams and achieve goals. *** Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy with my instant #1 bestseller IN AWE. Visit ReadInAwe.com today!  *** Did you enjoy this episode? Subscribe, rate & review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Matt Miller is a proven + award-winning leader who focuses on building positive relationships that lead to impactful + measurable change. His motto is “love is key” and I’m honored to share that he joined our team as Lead Live Inspired Coach last year. We first met eight years ago, I was invited to speak at the elementary school where Matt was principal. His devotion, attentiveness and respect for and from the teachers + faculty was unmatched. Even more impressive was his ability to empower young students to become leaders and harness their unique gifts.  Today Matt will share his best tips on how to  strengthen your leadership, liberate yourself from personal + professional challenges and set attainable goals to make 2021 your best year yet. SHOW NOTES: Growing up in the small town of Corning, Iowa, Matt credits his four grandparents as the reason he works hard, wakes up early and enjoys gardening. Even as a young lifeguard, Matt has had a passion for the kids that needed the extra help which led him to be

The words we speak, and those we hear, influence and directly shape the world in which we live. Words are powerful and last week in our nation’s capital we witnessed a clear example of this truth. Five people were killed, dozens injured and one of the most sacred spaces in our country was desecrated. Rather than debate the cause of this tragedy, let’s take pause and heed wisdom from a political voice from our past. Delivered more than five decades ago, Presidental candidate Robert Kennedy speaks to the profound divisions we were and are experiencing as a nation as well as the hope of how we still can heal together. Today, we must extinguish the smug, self-righteous tone many pundits exude – and then we echo – about those with different beliefs than ours. We must acknowledge that the rhetoric has magnified divisiveness, increased hatred and does nothing to benefit any of us. How do we even begin to do this? Well, this week, I encourage you to: Turn off the news. Take a break from social media. Be highly aware

How do you respond when something is seemingly impossible? Especially when it's life or death? At 21 years old, Doug Lindsay developed a rapid heart rate, dizziness and fainting spells which led him to fear that he was suffering the same mysterious illness that affected his mother and aunt. As symptoms became debilitating, Doug dropped out of college and spent the next 11 years bedbound. Doctors were baffled, so Doug scoured medical textbooks in a relentless, 14-year pursuit to not only diagnose the mysterious illness, but also develop the treatment and assemble the team that would ultimately perform the innovative surgery.  If you're seeking a message of hope, perseverance and a reason to believe the best of our days remain in front of us, this episode is for you. SHOW NOTES: “I talk about the role of hope and character in innovation and life. I came to do that after getting sick at 21, spent 11 years homebound + bedbound and when no one knew what to do, I developed the surgery that fixed me.” While descri

“Push away from the spot where you’re stuck to move toward a new destination, perspective.” It is my hope for you to embrace all the hope and joy that are possible in your new year. Please allow this excerpt from my #1 national bestselling book IN AWE to help you see the truth that the possibilities before you are endless, if only you look… (chapter 1, page 5) *** Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy with my instant #1 bestseller IN AWE. Visit ReadInAwe.com today!  *** Did you enjoy this episode? Subscribe, rate & review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. 

"The Enneagram is a tool that awakens our compassion for people just as they are, not the people we wish they would become so our lives would become easier." Ian Morgan Cron is the bestselling author of The Road Back to You and the champion of the Enneagram, an ancient personality typing system that identifies nine types of people + how they relate to one another and the world. Today we’ll discuss how the Enneagram can: Provide a framework for how we can live into our most authentic selves Reveal the wisdom each personality type can offer to others Call out your strengths + transform your relationships in every sphere of life.  If you’d like to become more self-aware in your personal and professional life – this episode is for you. SHOW NOTES: “Who am I, am I really loved, what’s my mission and how do I integrate my brokenness into who I am?” Wounded healer: Ian grew up with an alcoholic father and his own addiction and recovery has helped him help others. During a snow day at 13 years old, Ian had his fir

The grass is always greener… on the side you water. As we pivot away from 2020, what one word will describe your year to come? *** Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy with my instant #1 bestseller IN AWE. Visit ReadInAwe.com today!  *** Did you enjoy this episode? Subscribe, rate & review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. 

At a time that many of us feel there is less to celebrate than usual, today’s guest reminds us that despite the challenges there is so much good! Even better, he shares tips so you can see it for yourself. Jarrett J. Krosoczka, New York Times-bestselling author/illustrator behind the wildly popular Lunch Lady and Jedi Academy series, wrote the graphic memoir Hey, Kiddo that moved me profoundly. In it, he shares about the gift of his grandparents, who raised him because of his mother’s heroin addict.   Today’s conversation will remind you that what you’ve weathered does not have to hinder your opportunity to live a better, bigger, bolder life now. SHOW NOTES: At 3 years old, Jarrett began being raised by his maternal grandparents while his mother was battling a heroin addiction. As the son of immigrants, Jarrett’s grandfather taught his children their lineage and the importance of hard work. Pandora’s Box: As a child, Jarrett used sketching as a way to process his unique situation yet it was when his wife wa

“To be content with little is difficult; to be content with much, impossible.”  ― Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach   "Is that all?" It’s an innocent enough question. Unless it’s being asked  by one of your kids on Christmas morning.   My friends, as you prepare for your holiday season, take pause to celebrate and rejoice in the amazing blessings already present in your life. Be in awe of the fact that the seemingly good and bad of your life have already lead you perfectly to where you are today and providentially to what’s possible tomorrow. And be convinced that the foundation is firm, 2020 almost behind us and the best is yet to come.

Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Jeremy Camp is one of the most successful artists in Christian music with forty #1 radio hits. Today, he is joined by his wife + fellow singer/songwriter Adrienne Camp as they share how they've found strength during life’s greatest heartbreaks. They share how their faith has provided guidance through the unusual circumstances of 2020, why Adrienne encourages Jeremy to share about his first wife's battle with ovarian cancer and the important role of transparency in their marriage. If you're seeking an honest perspective on how to face uncertainty with strength, optimism and hope, this episode is for you. SHOW NOTES: Whatever May Come: “When the rug gets pulled out from underneath us, as Christians we turn to God and as musicians we turn to music.” Listen to Whatever May Come here.  “Through anything I face, running to the feet of Jesus brings healing.” – Jeremy Camp Adrienne grew up in a small South African town where her dad started a small multi-racial Christian school, th

“It is under the greatest adversity that there exists the greatest potential for doing good, both for oneself and others.” – Dalai Lama This time of year, we frequently ask children, "what are you wishing for?" But what if the question was asked of you? What if you could arrange a safe, socially-distant, one-to-one meeting with Santa? Near the end of this wildly difficult year and in the midst of an array of personal challenges we face, I was reminded of a remarkable little boy’s answer to that question. *** Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy with my instant #1 bestseller IN AWE. Visit ReadInAwe.com today!  *** Did you enjoy this episode? Subscribe, rate & review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. 

In 2019, there were 69 million files of child sexual abuse material reported to the National Center of Missing and Exploited Children. As CEO of Thorn, a non-profit founded by Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore, Julie Cordua is driving innovation to connect the tech industry, law enforcement and government to end the viral distribution of abusive material and rescue children faster. Today, Julie shares how they are equipping the front lines and what we can all do to tackle this epidemic. SHOW NOTES: “I’m on a mission to end online child sexual abuse.” Thorn builds technology to end the trade on online child sexual abuse by changing the global systems that respond to this issue to create a safer world for our children. Growing up in a small farming community, Julie’s mom raised her to be independent, caring of others, especially those most vulnerable and with the belief that there is a bigger world to experience. After college, Julie worked with Bobby Shriver, co-founder of (RED) to use the brightest minds of the

“Live every day as if it were your last because someday you're going to be right.” - Muhammad Ali This ‘trivial exercise’ might be the push you need to start living your values and your best life. Assuming a lifespan of 75 years, you can look forward to living 27,375 days. If you’ve graduated high school, you’re down to 20,000. If you’re in your early 30s, you’ve got about 15,000 days left.  If you’re 60, a bit more than 5,000. Personally, I am counting down from 11,680. Being aware of how finite my life is isn’t depressing, but inspiring, convicting, and prods me daily to ensure my life is congruent with my personal values, passion and vocation. With the end in mind, are you letting go of fear, being bold, radiating love and realizing the profound grandeur and goodness of this moment? Are you living in such a manner that both reflects your gratitude for what you already have and your passion to realize even bigger things going forward? Why wait? The meter is running, life is fragile, every single day matters

The odds of surviving a plane crash resulting in one or more fatalities is one in 3.4 million. Today's guest survived two, the odds of which are one in more than 11 quadrillion. In the span of eight years, Austin Hatch survived two plane crashes that claimed five people closest to him. In 2003, eight-year-old Austin Hatch lost his mother, younger brother, and older sister in a plane crash that he survived. In 2011, just days after making his commitment to play basketball at University of Michigan, he survived a second plane crash on which he lost his dad and step-mom. The second left him with brain damage and doctors feared he'd never walk again. And yet, Austin continued to defy odds and went on to play Division I basketball. Today's conversation is a poignant story of thriving through tragedy. If you could use an example of perseverance in action - this episode is for you. SHOW NOTES: "I've had two really bad days in my life. I can't let those two days outshine all the other great days." September 1, 2003:

“Being resentful is like taking poison…. and waiting for the other person to die.”  – Nelson Mandela My friends, how long should you stay mad? I must admit that in my life, and perhaps you’ve found in yours, that even with the door open and the bridge of reconciliation available, I tug on my jacket, turn around in anger, and walk into the cold rain by myself. But going forward, let’s determine to let go of our ego. Let’s choose to ring the bell, meet their smile with ours, and come back into the house. Let’s set down the poison, reenter relationship, and realize the gift of doing life, together. *** My new book IN AWE is now available... and became an instant bestseller! Learn how to rediscover your childlike sense of wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning and joy. Visit ReadInAwe.com today!  *** Did you enjoy this episode? Subscribe, rate & review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.