In her mid 20's, Betsy Clark, Mindset coach, master teacher, and all around "Woman of Joy", squandered most of her family inheritance.  She lost her money, her voice, and her soul in business.  Vulnerable, alone, and deeply ashamed because she hadn't lived up to her "family expectations" Betsy COULD have stopped living at that moment,  She didn't and what she did do was learn to BE. She went on to discover her SUPERPOWER and that came out due to her values and vision.  She had to "let go of the past she wished she had!"  Actually, with some self-forgiveness, forgiveness of others, and a "Why Not Me" attitude, she learned to trust - trust with calculated risks.  Grateful today for her life's lessons, she is a master mindset coach to many entrepreneurs and is occasionally called a "Purveyor of Active Hope!"  We all get to choose and sometimes it's not easy, but it's "rich and juicy when we get on the other side!"  All of us go through tough times and it's best to remember "I do enough.  I have enough.  I am enough and for THAT I am GRATEFUL."  Enjoy our conversation - it takes what seems complex and simplifies it into a nutshell, to create clarity and focus for you!  

Parenting can be difficult ESPECIALLY if you are a single parent, dad or mom! Keith Jowers spent his career in law enforcement working with kids and many of them had “difficult” family situations and enjoyed walking into his office for a PAUSE in their day. Keith is the Founder of Dads4Life, and as a “Dad Coach” and mentor, he uses his experience as a single dad and many years of raising a responsible child, as the foundation for his advice, encouragement and non-profit work. From rock band in the 60s to joining the military as a young man (needed to get his hair cut, argh!) to more than 30 years on the police force, Keith has seen it all and although much of his time was “part-time dad”, he always had a FULL TIME HEART. Today is the time to leave a legacy and to leave the world better than you found it. Join Debby and Keith in a conversation that starts with DAILY CONNECTIONS and remember, “a smile can change the outcome!”

Do horses have emotions? Can they cry? What do they "say" when a leather saddle is strapped to their back and some big stranger jumps on top? Horses tolerate humans but they're STRESSED when most riders are on top! And BTW, ever thought about leather being a dead animal?!! Just as humans FEEL, so do horses, and Hugh Vail, Founder of Mustang Medicine, provides personal insights and vulnerabilities on how The Ranch Rules are the KEY to elevating our lives and the world around us. Experience how WILD MUSTANGS can tame the wild in us together in a safe environment. What is Virtue? According to Hugh, virtue is character excellence in all things and those give us power and strength. Mustang Medicine is about putting ourselves and horses in circumstances that are difficult but best sited for our best development in character excellence (wisdom, courage, kind.) It's time to embrace gratitude - and No complaining, No blaming, No shaming, and No sorry wasted...join us and see if there is a purpose to your pain!

Contact Hugh Vail

Debby Montgomery Johnson, Founder of The Woman Behind The Smile, Inc, #1 Best Selling Author, International Speaker, Entrepreneur, and a Podcast host, is a woman on a mission. In her book, “The Woman Behind The Smile” she shares her personal experience with a love that turned into betrayal and financial disaster and she removes the mask of shame and shows others how to do the same. Many of us have something, something we’re hiding, something we’re ashamed of, something that through no fault of our own keeps us hidden from each other and the world.

Debby is on the Board of Directors of The Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams (SCARS). She has appeared on “The Dr. Oz Show”, CBS This Morning, The Mel Robbins Show, The Tamron Hall Show, WPEC CBS Channel 12 and WPTV NBC Channel 5, in addition to being featured in the Palm Beach Post. She is regularly called upon by reporters for expert commentary about relationship fraud.

Debby is just like you – a woman on a mission to live an authentic, joyful life as the Woman WITH the Smile rather than behind it. She is available for speaking engagements. Visit www.TheWomanBehindTheSmile.com or [email protected] to connect with Debby.

Mustang Medicine

Today's special Stand Up & Speak Up is a conversation with "Ms. Texas" a survivor of an online relationship scam.  This scam started off with playing a game on Words with Friends and a "mutual friend" became our survivor's "love" and then worst nightmare.  For the first time we went into a courtroom (The Eastern District of Texas) as members of The Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams (SCARS) as our survivor presented her Victim Impact Statement to the Judge, the Prosecutors, the FBI, ICE, the Defense team, and the SCAMMER.  

This is a survivor's story - each is different and unique in some aspects but ALWAYS similar in overall scope and format.  Relationship fraud is a CRIME against a victim/survivor and telling our stories, Standing Up & Speaking Up, is an important step in the recovery process.  

Our special guest today became a hero/SHERO to the millions of survivors around the world who will probably never have the opportunity to tell their stories in a courtroom and who will never feel justice prevails.  But we can live vicariously through this story and celebrate the outcome.  One small step for victims in Texas will lead to one GIANT step against relationship fraud across the globe!

Important Take-aways:  REPORT your scam immediately to www.anyscam.com and www.IC3.gov.  REPORT your scam to the FTC, FBI, and local law enforcement and look at www.romancescamsnow.com for their guide to reporting, 3 Steps For New Victims.  Check out shop.againstscams.org for help and support guides and join SCARS Facebook support groups.  You are NOT alone.   

Born in South Africa to German parents in the 1930s, Werner Berger knows what it's like to live without his dad around on a daily basis. Did growing up in an "uncomfortable" situation allow him to stretch and adapt and ultimately shape him into being an amazing leadership coach and Guinness World Record Holder? Werner says he hit rock bottom at one point, after he retired FROM something and not TO something, and when challenged to write down 3 things that he would love to do before he died but probably WOULDN'T do, what do you think he wrote? Find out in our conversation and more leadership gems. (Hint - Kilimanjaro, Matterhorn, Everest Base Camp!)

"Be completely present and linked to your environment."

This is Part 1 with Stand Up & Speak Up with Werner Berger. Check out Part 2, Making the Climb with a Friend!

Debby Montgomery Johnson, Founder of The Woman Behind The Smile, Inc, #1 Best Selling Author, International Speaker, Entrepreneur, and a Podcast host, is a woman on a mission. In her book, “The Woman Behind The Smile” she shares her personal experience with a love that turned into betrayal and financial disaster and she removes the mask of shame and shows others how to do the same. Many of us have something, something we’re hiding, something we’re ashamed of, something that through no fault of our own keeps us hidden from each other and the world.

Debby is on the Board of Directors of The Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams (SCARS). She has appeared on “The Dr. Oz Show”, CBS This Morning, The Mel Robbins Show, The Tamron Hall Show, WPEC CBS Channel 12 and WPTV NBC Channel 5, in addition to being featured in the Palm Beach Post. She is regularly called upon by reporters for expert commentary about relationship fraud.

Debby is just like you – a woman on a mission to live an authentic, joyful life as the Woman WITH the Smile rather than behind it. She is available for speaking engagements. Visit www.TheWomanBehindTheSmile.com or [email protected] to connect with Debby.

#Guinness World Record #Werner Berger

Season 2, Episode 28: Stand Up & Speak Up with Debby Montgomery Johnson and Akshay Nanavati, Pt 1

Who is Akshay Nanavati and what is FEARVANA? You’ve come to the right place to get answers to those questions and more! Does your background/childhood set you up for things to come? Rollercoasters terrified him yet he walked in front of convoys in Iraq. He partied with the best of them as a young man and then lived with the demons of alcohol and drugs and a self-destructive life style. Find out how “Blackhawk Down” was the pivot point in his life. Akshay is a man on a mission and he’s headed to Antarctica in about a week. “Fearvana” represents our collective power to transcend our fears and our suffering in service of something greater and he’s encouraging us all to rise above our struggles and fighting hard, day after day after day, to become the legend we were born to be. Known to many as “Inspiring. Humble. Servant leader. Selfless. Generous. The kind of guy who makes you remember you can do anything you make up your mind to do.” I found Akshay to be vulnerable, unapologetic and incredibly courageous in spite of his fears/foibles. I honor him for his SERVICE as a US Marine. I’m inspired by his ability to not just LOOK inside of himself but to take action to pause, reassess, and move forward. Follow his adventures on www.Fearvana.com.

This is Part 1 with Stand Up & Speak Up with Akshay Nanavati. Check out Part 2, The Pursuit of Happiness.

Is the "Pursuit of Happiness" which is a fundamental "RIGHT" given to us through the Bill of Rights, unattainable? What is the definition of happiness? Is it "when I get the next promotion...when I make $1M?" How can we be "happy" when life is full of struggles? How do we get past the "Why Me?" and find our purpose through our WORTHY STRUGGLE? Akshay Nanavati has an interesting perspective that "suffering is a training ground for self transcendence" and when mom says "Man Up", did he listen? Fall in love with the journey of life and realize that "Happiness is not the elimination of sadness, it is the ability to find the GIFT in sadness!" This is Part 2 of an extraordinary conversation with USMC Veteran, Adventurer, Entrepreneur Akshay Nanavati and we were honored to talk to him before he leaves for his South Pole Expedition!

Born in the Republic of Georgia and rejected by her father because she was a girl - the firstborn was supposed to be male - and then mocked by her grandparents because of her Russian last name, Ilona Parunakova has lived her share of "No's."  She's now on a mission to be RESILIENT and uses the negatives in her life to share how owning your story can lead to positive outcomes.  Ilona found her voice and is Standing Up & Speaking Up for all who lost their voice due to family criticism, cultural differences, and intolerance.  Ilona is a direct descendant of Armenian Genocide survivors during WW1 and survived the wartime in the Republic of Georgia right after the collapse of the USSR. Over the years Ilona has succeeded in turning her disparities from war, losses, struggles to fit in and every "No" in her life, into her SUPER Powers!

International Best-selling Author, Motivational Keynote Speaker, Life Coach and Founder, IP Resilience.  

He's turning BLUE...Emergency rooms...his sweet COOs are really indications of fluid on his lungs.  Can you imagine anything worse than seeing and hearing a surgeon say "Your two month old needs open heart surgery NOW?" Samuel was diagnosed with Super-Ventricular Tachycardia (SVT) AND severe mitral valve regurgitation- DOUBLE WHAMMY. R.L. Shawver speaks to Debby Montgomery Johnson on this episode of Stand Up & Speak Up about his family experiences with his son, Samuel..."For This Child I Have Prayed" powerfully speaks to the strength, tenacity, and faith of a father and his unconditional love for his child.  R.L's words to himself gave him power over his adversities.  His struggle to be a "people pleaser" came to a head when the hospital parking attendant told him to move his car - "Say WHAT?" Personal "failures" throughout his life (relationships, weight challenges, and even his allegiance to his faith) haunted him UNTIL his courage got him to STAND UP & SPEAK UP.  There really are NICE guys out there and R.L. Shawver is one of them.  Join us now for his life story which guides parents through a child's major medical experiences. Thanks to Beyond Publishing and Michael D. Butler for assistance in publishing "For This Child I Have Prayed, 6 Heart Surgeries, 18 Months by R.L. Shawver and A Gift Called Fearless by Debby Montgomery Johnson.

On this episode of Stand Up & Speak Up, Publisher and Founder of Parker House Books, Candi Parker and Debby Montgomery Johnson have a fun conversation about the WHYs and HOWs of writing and publishing your book. Candi published Debby’s first book, The Woman Behind The Smile – Triumph Over the Ultimate Online Dating Betrayal, and since 2017 the two have enjoyed writing/publishing articles in the monthly Positive Tribe Magazine.

Candi says the word “Authority” begins with author and once you’ve published you’ve become an “Expert” in that arena! What’s the “best” way to publish – it depends and Candi has some answers for YOU. Your story is important, if only to leave a legacy for your family. Your story is important, if ONLY to help one person survive a crisis. Your story is IMPORTANT, so write it! Find out how The Woman Behind The Smile is helping women across the globe understand how easily it is to be taken by a relationship scam and how important it is to STAND UP & SPEAK UP and get your power back!