Her Story of Success

Latest Episodes:

Caroline Hobby "Getting Real" Navigating Fear to Find Peace Nov 13, 2018

Show notes

As a member of the Top 40 country music trio Stealing Angels, Caroline Hobby thought she'd landed just where she always wanted — on the top rungs of the music business. But when the trio broke up and her dream crumbled, she was forced to re-envision her life and begin a journey toward a meaningful new career.

Host of the popular celebrity podcast "Get Real!" and entertainment correspondent for CMT, Caroline tell us what she learned about the meaning of success during her two appearances on the CBS TV show "The Amazing Race." She also shares the lucky break that landed her a job as a song plugger and brought her back to Nashville, how she copes with the hills and valleys of life, why it's important to make your self-talk more positive and affirming, and how she's learning to feel more comfortable during periods of rest. "Say your life is a train, you either hop off on that first breakdown and you live there — you live in that failure and you think you're done, or you grab a lesson, you pick yourself up … and you start walking forward."

The Voices Behind Her Story of Success Oct 30, 2018

Show notes

Why would two busy young women with career, family and volunteer commitments take on the challenge of starting a podcast? Find out what launched Leah and Ellen on their journey to share the stories of high-achieving women, an endeavor that's become all-the-more relevant in the #metoo era.

This time around, our podcast hosts turn the tables and interview each other about their career paths and the personal challenges they've faced. For Leah, a turning point came when she found the courage to leave her small-town Tennessee home and make a life-changing new start as a flight attendant. For Ellen, landing her dream job on Wall Street didn't bring the personal fulfillment she'd hoped for. Together, they've pursued a shared dream: creating a supportive community where women can connect and support one another on the road to success.

Cordia Harrington: The 'Bun Lady' Shares Her Recipe for Success Oct 16, 2018

Show notes

After establishing herself as a successful McDonald's franchisee, Cordia Harrington was determined to take her career to the next level by becoming a supplier for the world's largest restaurant chain. Her efforts were rejected 31 times before McDonald's finally gave her the go-ahead to launch a bakery business. Today Cordia, also known as "the bun lady," is CEO of The Bakery Cos., which sells more than $100 million of buns and other baked goods annually to McDonald's, grocery stores and other institutional clients.

Cordia relates the inspiring story of running her first McDonald's as the single mother of three young sons. She tells us how her company strives to help its employees reach their full potential, why she tries to be transparent about the struggles she's faced, and why helping others in the business world make connections has become the most fulfilling part of her work.

Retta Gardner: The Importance of Raising Your Hand Oct 02, 2018

Show notes

Retta Gardner's career proves that you don't have to leap from company to company to work your way to the top. For more than two decades, Retta has stayed with Guaranty Trust Mortgage Co., one of the top 100 mortgage companies in the U.S., making herself visible along the way and seeking out challenging new assignments whenever she could. She's now CEO of the billion-dollar mortgage lender, and she credits a strong work ethic and continuous learning as key factors in her rise to the top.

Retta gets real about leaving a newborn baby to go back to work and shares her thoughts on the importance of taking credit for your own ideas, what she learned from her predecessor as CEO and the best way to deliver bad news.

Diana Warner: The Taylor Swift Effect Sep 17, 2018

Show notes

Fashion and jewelry designer Diana Warner learned something special about success from observing Taylor Swift, who surrounds herself with fiercely loyal and protective people. Diana calls it the "Taylor Swift effect" — the desire to build a network of supporters who protect you so you can give back to the world. "I wasn't really aware of how to say no," she tells us, and unless you learn how to say no, "you don't have anything left to give."

Diana shares the story behind the 2005 launch of her successful fashion and jewelry brand – a favorite of red carpet celebrities and TV shows like "Gossip Girl." She tells us why you have to be vulnerable to be creative, what our clothes communicate to the world about who we are and why she strives to make customers feel comfortable in her stores.

Jessica Harthcock: Pushing Past the Obstacles to Success Sep 04, 2018

Show notes

At the age of 17, Jessica Harthcock suffered a catastrophic spinal cord injury during a gymnastics training session, leaving her paralyzed from the chest down. Though doctors told her she would never walk again, she learned to walk unassisted after six years of intensive therapy. That same determination led her to launch Utilize Health, a growing business that helps patients find the best treatment for neurological conditions.

Jessica tells us what it was like to be thrust into the fragmented world of recovery and rehabilitation, why her family was instrumental in helping her bounce back, how she and her husband Adam combine their roles as spouses and company executives and how she persevered in the long search for angel investors to finance her business.

Mignon Francois: Believing in the power of your own ideas Aug 21, 2018

Show notes

Mignon Francois's family was drowning in debt and down to their last $5 when a neighbor knocked on the door and placed an order for 600 cupcakes from her fledgling home bakery in Nashville's Germantown neighborhood. Mignon decided to take the last few dollars she had and buy ingredients to bake more cupcakes, a decision that ultimately "got us out of debt, out of brokenness and turned us into the number one bakery in Tennessee."

Founder and CEO of The Cupcake Collection and mother of six, Mignon tells us how she followed through on her dream of starting a business, how her company has created a legacy for her children and why she wants to hold the ladder for others climbing the rungs toward success.

Misty Mayes: A CEO in the Role of Servant Leader Aug 07, 2018

Show notes

Misty Mayes believes that every organization and every person is capable of positive change — an attitude that led her to launch a management consulting firm that has garnered national business awards and won acclaim for its commitment to community service. Misty formed Management Solutions in 2002 after a successful career as an industrial engineer and project manager, all while raising three sons with her husband Sam. She once turned down an opportunity to meet with President Obama so she could attend her son's championship soccer game in Tennessee. " I think we as women can beat ourselves up over all the things we miss, but I try to focus on the things that I was there for. Its a day-in, day-out struggle," she says of her efforts to combine parenting with her management role.

Marcie Allen: A Music Industry Visionary Redefines Success Jul 24, 2018

Show notes

After a decade in the music business, Marcie Allen "saw a huge void that was waiting to be filled" and launched MAC Presents, an agency that creates partnerships between leading brands and top artists like the Rolling Stones and Foo Fighters. The agency's success has made Marcie a powerful figure in the music industry, but she's quick to reveal that her climb to the top was marked by challenges, stumbles and setbacks — as well as a personal reappraisal of what success really means.

Marcie tells us how attending 16 different schools made her a stronger person, why it takes "a stomach of steel" to start a business from scratch, how she put the pieces of her life back together after a divorce and why she never schedules a meeting before 11 a.m.

Holly Coltea: When Career Meets Motherhood Jul 10, 2018

Show notes

Holly Coltea moved to New York City as a young woman and achieved many of her lifelong goals — working for a Madison Avenue ad agency, earning her M.B.A and succeeding in the corporate world. But like many young women, she found that having children forced her to re-evaluate the direction of her career. "When you have kids, it is clear as day — what you need to be doing and what you don't need to be doing," she says. Holly chose to get off the corporate treadmill, move back to her hometown with her husband and three daughters and become a franchisee for a fitness studio, a transition that brought her both success and flexibility.

Holly tell us about the importance of having a mentor, the challenges of re-entering the workforce after a break, the benefits of being a franchise owner and the opportunities that come with finding work-life balance.

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