Firestarters with Shannon Watts

Emily Amick is a lawyer, journalist, and political analyst who served as counsel to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. She created @EmilyinYourPhone to give people her insider insight into the political process and help them find ways they can take action. Her first book DEMOCRACY IN RETROGRADE: How to Make Changes Big and Small in Our Country and in Our Lives was an instant New York Times bestseller.

In this conversation, we discussed how reclaiming our place in democracy helps alleviate the doom spiral, how civic engagement can bring us together in community again, how we can begin to address the extremism in politics and the media, how to demystify the political system and help women overcome imposter syndrome, and what the antidote to modern loneliness is.

Connect with Emily: Instagram | Website | Substack

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Jessica Mackler is the president of EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, working to elect Democratic pro-choice women at every level of the ballot. She is a veteran political strategist known for her political smarts and sheer grit, and a dedication to doing whatever it takes to get the win. She has spent more than two decades in Democratic politics.

In this conversation, we discussed why it’s essential that the Democratic Party supports women candidates, Jessica’s experience as a Democrat, a woman, and as someone who runs an amazing organization that helps women run for office, why we can’t overlook problematic behavior from Democratic candidates, and how there’s a double standard for men and women in politics.

Connect with Jessica: LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | Website

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Amber Goodwin is a lawyer, organizer, and public safety advocate who has spent her career working with communities and fighting for safety, health, and opportunity. She currently serves as an Assistant District Attorney in Travis County, where she is fighting the good fight against gun violence. She is running for Austin City Council because this moment demands leadership that listens, organizes, and delivers.

In this conversation, we discussed how the 2015 shooting in Charleston inspired her fight against gun violence, how you can accomplish big things with small groups of people, why she decided to run for Austin City Council, and how affordability is a big issue for her constituents and how it goes hand-in-hand with violence prevention.

Connect with Amber: Instagram | Website | Donate

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Ann Warner has spent more than two decades advocating for the rights of women, girls and gender-expansive people around the world. Today, she serves as Executive Director of the Collaborative for Gender + Reproductive Equity (CGRE), a growing community of donors and foundations uniting to advance gender, reproductive, and racial equity. Ann joined CGRE to grow its network of funder partners and grantee partners to build a movement of collective power that creates durable, lasting change. She also served as the founding Chief Executive Officer of the Women’s Rights and Empowerment Network (WREN), which is now one of the leading gender and justice advocacy organizations in the Southern United States.

In this conversation, we discussed how building collective power comes from working in partnership with incredible people, her goal to create the conditions for women and girls to be able to thrive, how abortion bans are interfering with the ability of women and people to determine what is best for them and their families, the coordinated political attack on transgender people, and how we can’t stand by idly and assume that the rights we have now are permanent.

Connect with Ann: LinkedIn | Website

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Reshma Saujani, is a leading activist, an author, the founder of Girls Who Code, the founder and CEO of Moms First, host of My So-Called Midlife podcast, and executive producer of the new documentary No Country for Mothers. Named one of TIME’s Women of the Year in 2026, Reshma has spent more than a decade building movements to fight for women and girls’ empowerment.

In this conversation we discuss No Country for Mothers, which argues that American motherhood has been deliberately designed to divide and distract women through false culture-war choices like “trad wife vs. girl boss.” We also talk about how childcare was once a bipartisan policy, how New York City’s universal childcare can be a model for what’s possible, and making childcare and paid leave defining voter issues in the midterms.

Connect with Reshma: Website | Instagram | Substack | Documentary

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Kerry Docherty cofounded the lifestyle clothing brand Faherty with her husband and his identical twin. Kerry is someone who is passionate about using creativity and community to cultivate joy. Kerry is the author of the children’s book Somewhere, Right Now, and also recently published her memoir, Selfish, about rebelling against meeting other people's needs, and instead focusing on meeting her own.

In this conversation, we discussed how becoming a writer has always been Kerry’s dream, why she compares writing a memoir to an archaeological dig, how putting yourself first can be a gift to other people, how it feels to reclaim the word “selfish”, how writing Selfish affected her husband and their marriage, and how to deal with blowback in a world that tells women to be small.

Connect with Kerry: Instagram | LinkedIn | Website | Buy her books

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Congressman D Goldman proudly represents New York’s 10th Congressional District. He’s running for re-election to get justice for our most vulnerable New Yorkers, tackle corruption and wealth inequality, and defend our democracy. Dan has spent his entire career as a public servant and, since joining Congress in 2022, Dan has emerged as one of the most effective progressive fighters in Washington.

In this conversation we discussed how the biggest concern Dan’s constituents in New York have is the economy and affordability, his proudest achievements in office and his priorities going forward (healthcare, immigration, and more), why the issue of gun safety is so important, and the biggest difference between Dan and his opponent in the upcoming primary.

Connect with Dan: Instagram | Website | Facebook | Donate

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Susan Piver is the New York Times bestselling author of many books, but her latest is Inexplicable Magic: Meditation for Mystics. Susan has an international reputation as a skillful meditation teacher. She’s been a student of Buddhism since 1993, and in 2012, she founded The Open Heart Project, the world’s largest online-only dharma center.

In this conversation, we discussed what inspired Susan to write her latest book, why meditation is self-optimization and not just a “life hack”, how meditation wakes up our own wisdom, why the goal of Buddhism is to supersede the ego, how to balance being open and spiritual with having boundaries, and how you don’t have to be religious to take part in meditation.

Connect with Susan: Instagram | Substack | Website | Buy the book

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Alexis McGill Johnson is is a longstanding champion for social and racial justice, a respected social and cultural organizer, and a tireless advocate for reproductive rights and access to high-quality, affordable health care. She is also the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Planned Parenthood Federation of America, a national nonprofit organization that is the country’s most trusted name in sexual and reproductive health and rights.

In this conversation, we discussed why defunding Planned Parenthood threatens the full range of care that is offered (cancer screenings, birth control, STI testing, and so much more), the significant impact of patients no longer being able to use Medicaid at Planned Parenthood facilities, what has changed in the past 4 years since Roe v. Wade was overturned, why Democrats need to keep speaking up about abortion and reproductive rights, and why it’s so important to donate and support your local Planned Parenthood.

Connect with Alexis: Instagram | LinkedIn | Donate

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.

Jordan Wood is a former Capitol Hill Chief of Staff and pro-democracy advocate. Barricaded at the Capitol during the January 6th Insurrection, Jordan recognized the threat of Trump’s election-denial movement and co-founded the bipartisan organization democracyFIRST to combat Trump’s attacks on our constitution and the rule of law. Now, Jordan is running for Congress in Maine and will fight to rein in Wall Street and Big Pharma, stop Trump’s lawless ICE agents from terrorizing Maine, and so much more.

In this conversation, we discussed how coming from a family of public service helped Jordan find his calling, the impact that January 6th had on his decision to start democracyFIRST, his strong stance against corporate donors and super PACs and gun violence, and how voter cynicism is something he’s fighting against in Maine.

Connect with Jordan: Website | Instagram | Facebook | Substack

If you’re looking to unleash your potential, find your personal, professional, or political fire, and to connect with a community who is doing the same, click here to learn more.