Welcome to Failing Forward with Ados, a limited-run series featuring teens and young professionals with Cincinnati roots who have faced challenges, felt despair and then found a way forward. Our Ados series is hosted by Indian Hills High School junior Annie Schumann.

On this episode, Annie interviews Jack Browner, a Cincinnati native who started experimenting with drugs and alcohol at age 13 and later began battling addiction and depression. Today, Jack has been sober for more than a year and tells us how his journey taught him to ask for help and be a beacon to his siblings and others.

Are you or someone you know struggling with addiction? The resources below can help.

- National Helpline (1-800-662-4357) run by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/national-helpline

- Narcotics Anonymous. https://www.na.org/

- Alcoholics Anonymous. https://www.aa.org/

- National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255). https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/

Susan Branscome has found success in the male-dominated financial industry by knowing her worth, asking for what she wants and taking initiative—or as she likes to say getting the salt. The managing director of NorthMarq Capital joins us on episode 46 to discuss her career journey, which has included starting and later selling her own business. She also shares who her first female role model was and just this month launched her own podcast, Leading She.

Find Leading She on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher and Spotify. https://www.leadingshe.com/

As an 11-year-old, Kate Nelson started getting sick—really sick. Doctors eventually diagnosed Kate with ulcerative colitis that progressed into colon cancer. Her adolescent years were tough on her and her family, but looking back, she realizes that period of her life taught her not to sweat the small stuff.

Today, Kate is the co-founder of Change Guides, a consulting firm that helps organizations navigate change. On episode 45, she discusses how her self-published book became a best-seller on Amazon and why we all should embrace the hard situations in life.

Find more information about “The Change Management Pocket Guide” and other books Kate Nelson has co-authored here: https://www.changeguidesllc.com/products/books.html

Cincinnati native Pete Ruppert believes there are no straight lines to the top—even for a successful executive and Harvard Business School graduate like him. One of his first trials was as a student at DePauw University when he was academic probation and nearly missed the chance at an internship that later changed his life. And like most every entrepreneur, Pete has had his businesses fail, too.

On episode 44, the St. Xavier High School alum and current CEO of Fusion Education Group talks about overcoming his fear of asking for help, the champions who have helped him through his failures and his mini-book, Limitless: Nine Steps to Designing Your Extraordinary Life.

Want a copy of Limitless? Email Tracy at mailto:[email protected]

Deni Tato doesn’t see failures. She sees mismatches between expectations and reality. The CEO of Corporate Consciousness has always been that way, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t struggled. By age 21, she had two kids and an unsatisfying relationship. Years later, she sold her commercial furniture business at the onset of the recession and had to make extreme cuts to her family’s lifestyle.

On episode 43, Deni shares how she reinvented herself as a certified Enneagram teacher, trainer and coach. One of the biggest things she tells her clients—and reminds herself—is the importance of self-compassion. By not judging your actions and making time for your physical and emotional health, you can more fully step into who you are. That’s why Deni has been practicing transcendental meditation for decades.

Learn more:

https://www.corpconsciousness.com/

Meet the Enneagram assessment: https://www.corpconsciousness.com/about-the-enneagram/

Meditation for beginners: https://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/a24750828/meditation-for-beginners/

Cory Carlson had a successful career in corporate America, but he still felt stuck. So, he hired an executive coach and began focusing on his personal life—his wife, his children and himself—with greater intention. It might sound counterintuitive, but those changes actually helped Cory in his professional life, too. He came to work as a better leader for his team and started mentoring his direct reports to make similar changes in their own lives.

Today, Cory is a full-time leadership coach and the author of “Win at Home First.” He joined us for episode 42 and discusses marriage, forgiveness, how to be vulnerable as a CEO and the importance of interrogating the internal agreements we make. Even if you don’t have a traditional 9 to 5, his story will inspire you.

Order a copy of “Win at Home First” here: https://www.amazon.com/Win-Home-First-Inspirational-Work-Life/dp/173376710X/

Learn more about Cory at https://www.corymcarlson.com/.

Kamree Maull is a proud Unilever employee and founder of Unbox3d but he wasn't always showing the world who he really is. As a student at University of Cincinnati, Kamree had to learn to navigate an environment that wasn’t as welcoming to a black man like him. He lived a double life in which many of his classmates didn’t know the real Kamree, and soon, he was facing an identity crisis.

How many times have you played a role or became a certain person to fit in?

On this episode, Kamree reminds us to live as our authentic selves and shares how he learned to say “Nah, fuck that” to the expectations that other people might place on him through his side hustle, Unbox3d, which started in July 2018. Combining his love of storytelling and slogan T-shirts, Unbox3d seeks to challenge the status quo and inspire cultural change through personal testimonials and philanthropic initiatives.

To learn more about Unbox3d, visit https://www.unbox3d.net/.

Read about Meek Mill and criminal justice reform here: https://time.com/5256757/meek-mill-symbol-prison/

Molly Wellmann has a trademark giggle that regulars at Japps can recognize well. But before opening her own bar and being voted the nation’s best bartender, Wellmann faced a devastating loss when her fiancé was killed.

Her grieving process changed her, and Wellmann learned to be gentle with herself and starts each day by asking herself: What amazing things will happen today?

On this episode, Wellmann also shares how she got her start in bartending, the importance of asking for what you’re worth and why she takes Sundays off.

In 2011, Devon Blythe was in a car accident that changed the trajectory of her life. The accident activated symptoms from a brain malformation Devon was born with. That led her to discover the benefits of practicing holistic wellness and inspired her to become a holistic health practitioner with her own studio, The Balance Effect.

The last time you had a bad day, did you notice that your body was physically strained? On this episode, Sarah Brown interviews Devon Blythe, who shares how feelings of failure physically manifest in the body and how to counteract that through developing mindfulness. A highly intuitive person, Devon also explains the first time she realized she was a medium.

Find Devon on Instagram at @thebalanceeffect or on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devon-blythe-959515159/

Sarah Brown interviews Lynn Watts, a diversity and inclusion speaker and facilitator.

Do you ever feel ashamed of slavery, segregation or racism? Well, as Lynn says, shame is like quick sand, it gets deeper and deeper so step into courage and give people grace. She also shares a powerful story of what happened to her at Johns Hopkins while facilitating, around unconscious bias. It's a story you won't forget.

We also have some bonus content on marriage. Lynn is in her second marriage and shares that marriage is a mirror -- a reflection. And if you don't fix the issue the first time, it will repeat itself. She said, you get to repeat your mistakes until you get it right. We think that happens not just in marriage but in all relationships.