Women of the Bluegrass

In this episode, we welcome Amanda Kelly from the Southeast Kentucky Economic Development (SKED), an expert in economic development for small businesses. Amanda has extensive experience working with entrepreneurs to start, grow, and expand their businesses. She is passionate about empowering individuals and communities through entrepreneurship and business ownership. Amanda emphasizes the importance of having a team to support you...

Join us in this episode as we dive into the world of rural healthcare with our special guest, Annie Carter. As a healthcare administrator and passionate advocate for improving healthcare in underserved areas, Annie shares her journey and valuable insights into the challenges and triumphs of transforming rural communities. Discover the strategies behind her successful physician recruitment efforts, the power of word of mouth in buil...

Show Notes:

• Episode: Empowering Leadership: Creating Trust and Collaboration for Success
• Guest: Audrey Davis, Vice President of Member Experience, Ashland Credit Union

Summary:

In this engaging episode, Audrey Davis, a seasoned leader in the banking industry, shares her insights on fostering trust, collaboration, and innovation within teams. Audrey's passion for the employee experience and belief in the significanc...

In this episode of Women of the Bluegrass, host Jordyne Carmack speaks with Marianne Worthington, a teacher, editor, and writer from southeastern Kentucky. Marianne is the co-founder of Still: The Journal, an online literary magazine, and has received numerous awards for her writing and poetry. We discuss the pursuit of creative work, her book of poetry The Girl Singer, and how finding a group of like-minded authors encouraged her ...

In this episode of Women of the Bluegrass, the host Jordyne Carmack interviews Renee Collins Cobb about growing up around music and business, supporting local musicians through advocacy and leadership development, unconscious bias, and more.

About this week's guest: Renee Collins Cobb is the President/Owner of Collins Consulting Group, Listen Locally, LLC and is the Executive Director of Room 17 Productions, a nonprofit organi...

In this episode of Women of the Bluegrass, host Jordyne Carmack interviews Reda Shemelya, Corporate Human Resources Director for the Forcht Group of Kentucky, about her 24+ years of experience in human resources at Walmart and the lessons she learned about professional agility and building deep relationships. Reda's story serves as a reminder to develop a deep understanding of oneself as a professional and to be a student of so...

In this episode, host Jordyne Carmack interviews Karen Roberson, Regional Vice President at TransAmerica, who shares her leadership journey starting from working in her family's grocery store at a young age. Karen emphasizes the importance of listening, learned during her diverse experiences in a vary of direct sales businesses, in building relationships and how it supports her in her role today. She also talks about finding on...

Knock your next presentation outta the park by beginning with a strong opening line - otherwise known as a hook.

In this short episode of Women of the Bluegrass designed to improve your leadership and communication skills, I pause to chat about presentation skills and the importance of starting strong in any upcoming presentation.

Three strategies you can try today:

• Shock & Awe with a Statistic
• Ignite the Brain wit...

In this episode of Women of the Bluegrass, host Jordyne Carmack interviews Shelby Morrison, Executive Assistant for Revolutionary Racing Kentucky and a community leader in Ashland, Kentucky. They discuss the personal and professional challenges that come with leadership roles, including increased visibility and exposure to criticism. Carmack emphasizes the importance of taking time to consider new opportunities and developing copin...

Let's hear it: What critical life event has shaped your approach to your craft, your leadership, your life?

In today's episode, host Dr. Jordyne Carmack collects answers to this important authentic leadership question from artists, award winners, musicians, friends, and community leaders as they walk the red carpet at the Appalachian Arts and Entertainment Awards in March 2023 in Prestonsburg, Kentucky.

If you're enjo...

In today's episode, we welcome Hannah Whitaker, owner and founder of Rediscover - Central and Eastern Kentucky's first eating disorder outpatient clinic to the show. Driven by her personal experience of recovering from anorexia, Hannah founded Rediscover to provide a necessary resource to the communities in her region. In this episode, she shares her story and we chat about early warning signs of disordered eating, strategi...

We’re all still learning something new about ourselves each day – but sometimes those discoveries can put your life and your career on a different trajectory. I’m your host, Jordyne Carmack, a leadership development and communication skill coach in London, Kentucky - and you’re listening to Women of the Bluegrass, a leadership development podcast for and about women leading the way in Kentucky industries.

My guest today is Carole J...

Hear it from someone who is doing it - training the next generation of employees is rewarding, but takes empathy to do well. A mom of teenage boys (and a little girl!) and owner of Sauced: Pizza, Pasta, and Salad in Bell and Laurel counties alongside her husband Mike, today's guest chats with Jordyne about motherhood, entrepreneurship, working with (and raising) teenagers, and her own journey into entrepreneurship. Grab a slice...

In this episode, Women of the Bluegrass host Jordyne Carmack shares a quick introduction and explores the value of one of her favorite tools - the leadership assessment. Every few months, this podcast will take a brief pause to examine different leadership ideas and tools in a short, 15-minute episode. These "breaks" from the regularly scheduled interviews are an opportunity to introduce new ideas and freshen up familiar ...

If you can’t clap on beat or draw a stick figure, don’t worry – today’s guest is here to point us in the direction of those who can. You’re going to love the vibrant enthusiasm she brings to her storytelling and her advocacy on behalf of musicians and artists in Appalachia. My guest today is Jill Hamlin, the assistant director of Fine Arts for Big Sandy Community and Technical College in Prestonsburg, Kentucky. In conjunction with ...

While we all hope to make a profit with our business, many businesses begin with a mission in mind first. The product or service flows from that – the purpose, the heart of the entrepreneur behind it to make a positive impact on their community. But when challenges arise – whether it’s learning new skills or navigating a pandemic – it takes courage and wisdom to take the right steps forward. My guest today is Kendra Smallwood, owne...

Whether you’re an experienced supervisor or brand new to leading others, the ability to nurture and bring out the best in those you lead is key to organizational success. In today’s episode, we’ll explore one strategy that can help you coach the individual contributors in your organization toward self-discovery and growth. Today’s guest is Dr. Sarah Adkins, department chair for the Health, Exercise, and Sport Science program at Uni...

Sometimes difficult circumstances are precisely what launch us into life-changing opportunities, and, as my guest today shares, into new adventures and the possibility for transformation in our communities. My guest today is Meagan Brannon, the founder of Sprinkles of Hope, a non-profit bakery in Maysville in Mason County Kentucky. With a background in nursing, her true calling in life came after her oldest son, Ben, was diagnosed ...

Launching and running a small business is a bit like having and raising a child – and as today’s guest and mom of four shares, the key to success in raising a family and running a business is sometimes in holding it loosely, especially when it grows and changes. In this episode of Women of the Bluegrass, Sam Stovall, the owner of FTD Bakery and Community Room in Prestonsburg, shares her experience participating in eastern Kentucky ...