Life Stories Podcast with Shara Goswick: Real People. Inspiring Stories. Making a Difference.

In this episode of Life Stories, I talk with Ilene Marcus, author, speaker, leadership coach, and inventor, about managing annoying people, understanding our own reactions, and finding ways to handle life’s challenges with kindness and humor. Ilene shares lessons from her years in executive leadership, her experiences with cancer and an unexpected career setback, and how those challenges shaped her perspective on resilience. ...

In this episode, Ashley Hicks shares the heart behind her book, Sleeping Beauty: The Why and How to Live a Life of Sexual Purity. Drawing on more than 20 years of working with teenage girls, she explains why sexual purity goes beyond rules and abstinence. It’s about understanding our identity in Christ, protecting our hearts, and making thoughtful choices in relationships.

We also discuss setting boundaries, choosing supportiv...

Life Stories is celebrating four years! In this special anniversary episode, I look back on another year of conversations, connections, and incredible people who are making a difference in the world.

I share some of my favorite highlights, including interviewing 94 people, reconnecting with someone who helped build my confidence, meeting fellow podcasters in person, and stepping outside my comfort zone by participating in an online ...

What does it really take to build a strong blended family when everyone comes into the relationship with their own history, traditions, parenting styles, and challenges? Amy shares the honest story of blending her family with her husband Chris, including the trial and error of bringing their children together, learning how to parent as a team, and creating a home where every child felt like they belonged.

Amy also opens up about som...

What do you need to know before you suddenly find yourself caring for an aging parent?

Nicole Hilgenkamp, founder of Your Parents Keeper, shares practical advice for preparing before a crisis happens. We talk about the importance of getting important documents in order, understanding the different stages of caregiving, preventing falls, and building a caregiving team.

Nicole also shares some of the regrets she has from caring for he...

What if the young adult you think is stuck or unmotivated is actually dealing with anxiety, overwhelm, or a lack of the right support? Returning guests Blake Baumann and Pickens Calhoun join me to talk about the evolution of their work at Ideal Minds, where they help neurodivergent young adults build independence, confidence, executive-function skills, and direction.

We also talk about their expanded work with parents, why communica...

What if you’re not too old to start something new?

After 35 years in Human Resources, Kirk McCarley became a career and life coach, helping people consider new possibilities and take steps toward what they want to do. We also talk about his work with ESPN, teaching Spinning, and the lessons he has learned from pursuing such different interests.

Kirk also shares about his book, Thoughts for My Kids...and Other People’s Ki...

In this solo episode, Shara shares a few personal and podcast updates, including the book she’s reading that is challenging her as a mom of an adult son with autism. She also talks about the changes she’s making to her podcast booking process, a new autism-related project she’s working on, and upcoming milestones: four years of podcasting and her 300th episode.

Shara also reflects on learning to trust what ...

What if being a good dog owner starts with learning to see the world through your dog’s eyes?

Darin O. Saw-Bellisario, Ph.D., creator of the Good Owners Guide to Dogs, joins me to talk about why he left a successful career in science and management consulting to help dog parents find reliable information. We also talk about the information chaos online, understanding individual dogs and why he created dogGPT to make t...

What happens when two people love each other but come from very different cultural and family backgrounds?What happens when two people love each other but come from very different cultural and family backgrounds?

In this episode, Pesa and Whitney Shayo share their experience of building a marriage across cultures: Pesa is from Kenya and Whitney is from Kansas. After 22 years of marriage and raising four daughters, they&rsquo...

:::In this episode we discuss the dangers of human trafficking and there is mention of sexual abuse. If you are someone you know feels they are in a possible trafficking situation, please contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 and https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en:::

In today's episode, Lea Marie shares her powerful story of surviving human trafficking and explains why she is now passionate abo...

In this episode, I’m talking with Michael Flannery, a musician, sound designer, professor, and author whose career has taken him from a college dorm-room recording studio to a major-label record deal and opening for Outkast on their Stankonia tour. Michael shares what happened when a song he recorded in his dorm room unexpectedly became a hit, what it was like performing for thousands of people, and how he rebuilt his career ...

In this episode, I talk with Mike Wysocki about career readiness and helping students make informed decisions about their future. Mike shares what he learned after spending 30 years in tech sales, why he believes students shouldn’t simply choose a career based on money or someone else’s advice, and practical ways they can explore different careers before committing. We also talk about networking, job shadowing, trades, ...

In this episode, I talk with Forrest McSweeney, founder of The Uplift Project, a nonprofit working with small business owners and families in remote communities in Guyana. Forrest’s connection to South America began when he was just three years old, traveling with his father and experiencing communities and cultures far beyond the typical tourist destinations. Those early experiences gave him a lasting perspective on how diff...

Today I’m talking with Chef Steff about food, music, community, and the courage to take a chance on yourself. From her childhood as her mom’s “sous chef” to creating private culinary experiences and her “Good News is on the Menu” project, Steff shares how cooking became a way to connect with people and bring more joy into their lives.

We also talk about stepping outside your comfort zone, ...

In this episode, I talk with Marcus Walker, CEO of Daily Bread Ministries in San Antonio, about what it really means to help people who are experiencing poverty and food insecurity. Daily Bread rescues food that would otherwise go to waste and provides it to churches and community organizations, but Marcus explains that the ministry is about much more than putting food on someone's table. Food is a tool for building relationships, ...

Today I’m talking with Allan Glanfield, a Canadian entrepreneur, husband, and dad who decided that waiting for “someday” wasn’t good enough. Allan and his family packed up their lives, rented out their home, and began traveling the world with their two young children. From Greece and Italy to France, England, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, their family has embraced a lifestyle centered around spending ...

Today I’m talking with Jobert E. Abueva about burnout, life transitions, and what it means to pause long enough to really ask ourselves what matters. Jobert shares how his successful career running Clairol Herbal Essences eventually led him to a point of burnout where he realized he had been ignoring his own wellbeing. That experience became the turning point that inspired The Janus Plan, a six-step framework built around loo...

Today I’m talking with Kim Rogers, better known as the viral “Worm Queen.” Kim spent more than 20 years working in Western medicine before her own long battle with chronic illness, endometriosis, Lyme disease, mold, and parasites led her on a very different healing journey. After feeling dismissed and without answers, Kim decided to become her own patient advocate, and that decision eventually changed the directio...