Live Inspired Podcast with John O'Leary

What would you do if you knew today was your last?

At nine years old, that wasn't a hypothetical question for me. It was my reality.

After being burned on 100% of my body in a gasoline explosion, I was given less than a 1% chance to survive the first night. Although I survived that night, and the following five months in the hospital, the prospect of death never faded. It felt closest, though, on the nights before surgery.

Because ...

Erik Weihenmayer is an adventurer, bestselling author, and motivational speaker… but he's perhaps best known as the first blind person to summit Mount Everest. After losing his vision as a teenager, Erik refused to let blindness define his limits. Instead, he became a world-class climber, kayaker, and co-founder of No Barriers—a global movement helping people turn adversity into possibility.

Today, Erik shares how losing his sight ...

In a world overflowing with pessimism, cynicism, and negativity, what might happen if we chose something different? What might change if we instead stepped into life with hope, optimism, faith?

I get to see what that looks like almost every day through the life of my daughter, Grace.

She lives with a powerful posture toward every aspect of life: ...

Masami Sato is the Founder and CEO of B1G1 (Buy1Give1), a global giving movement that has helped thousands of businesses turn everyday transactions into acts of generosity. A two-time TEDx speaker and best-selling author, Masami has helped inspire more than 394 million acts of kindness worldwide.

Today, Masami shares how a lonely childhood led her to travel the world with little money and even fewer words, how witnessing both pover...

Ten years ago this week, ON FIRE was released.

When the book first went out into the world, I wasn't expecting bestseller lists, translations into a dozen languages, or a feature film. My hope was far simpler: to honor the people who saved my life.

In sharing their stories, my hope was simple: to remind readers that they, too, could be part of someone else's miracle.

Because what made these heroes remarkable wasn't supernatural pow...

Chris Seilkop is a four-time Paralympian and longtime member of the U.S. men's sitting volleyball team. After losing his leg in a lawnmower accident at just seven years old, Chris refused to let tragedy define him. Instead, fueled by resilience, family support, and a love of sports, he built a life defined by perseverance. Along the way, he competed on the world stage, served others through his work with the YMCA and mentored indiv...

Years ago, I spoke with 40 business owners. The goal of the event was to bring together some of the highest achievers, connect them with one another, and expand their businesses and their lives.

Wondering what success even meant to them, I kicked off the session by asking what they would do professionally if they could achieve anything and knew they could not fail.

Today, we're joined by Lauren Abraham, a leader helping guide the national Student to Student Program of the Newark Institute, as well as two student participants of the program: Yehudah Greenberg and Ayden Nelson. Through this program, Yehudah and Ayden are boldly stepping into conversations that many adults shy away from and sharing stories, traditions, and lived experiences in an effort to replace stereotypes with understanding....

Nearing the end of a hectic week of speaking, I could feel it coming.

What began as a raspy voice at the start of one talk turned into a whisper by the end. As a sinus infection intensified, my throat swelled, swallowing hurt and my body ached, but the hardest part wasn't the pain.  It was the silence brought on by laryngitis.

For a man who makes...

Mary DeMuth is a bestselling author, international speaker, host of the Pray Every Day podcast, and has devoted her life to helping people heal from difficult stories. And yet, before guiding others toward hope, Mary was a little girl growing up in chaos, navigating abuse, neglect, addiction, and the loss of her father.

Today, Mary shares how to move from victim to survivor to healer, why lament is not weakness but faith refusing t...

Early in life, I learned an important truth that would guide the rest of my life: growth rarely happens in comfort.

It happens in supply closets when scarred knees are stretched, at dinner tables when you're forced to relearn how to pick up a fork, and on screen porches when you're reminded that the can of gasoline isn't chasing you anymore.

Grow...

Candace Lightner is the founder of MADD: Mothers Against Drunk Driving and We Save Lives, nationally and internationally recognized organizations reshaping America's response to drunk driving. After her 13-year-old daughter, Cari, was killed by a repeat drunk driver in 1980, Candace transformed unimaginable grief into a grassroots movement that has saved more than 600,000 lives and led to the passage of over 700 state and federal l...