The Very Brave Podcast

“Bravery builds bravery. So when you do one brave act, when you take one step, you can almost always take the second one.”

We have had so many brave female voices grace the waves of this podcast and are excited to share so many more. This time it’s the voice of the one-of-a-kind Kathrine Switzer, a.k.a Marathon Woman. Kathrine was the very first woman to ever run a Boston Marathon and has since been working to empower women in sports. 

In 1966 Kathrine decided she wanted to run in a marathon. She trained for months before entering the 1967 Boston Marathon with her trainer Arnie, her boyfriend at the time Tom, and one other. She was the only woman running in the marathon and the first to ever wear a bib. 

What she didn’t expect was to be physically attacked by one of the people organising the event that year. Despite viewing herself as a strong, independent, and certainly capable woman, she found herself feeling true fear. 

Rather than quit, she continued to run and she finished the race. Because sometimes bravery means running away. 

Listen as Kathrine shares her story and what bravery means to her. She has spent a lifetime helping to define what it means to be a woman in sports and her insights are invaluable. Running brave indeed!

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“Definitely trust yourself. You don't have to please everybody, you cannot please everybody, so you might as well make sure that you are making yourself happy.” - Jayne Lewis

Jayne Lewis has a burning passion for the brewing process that brings us beer and wine. She co-founded Two Birds, Australia’s first female-founded brewery, and Drinks Agents for Change, a not-for-profit that encourages diversity and inclusion within the drinks industry. 

Having studied brewing at university, Jayne loved the creative aspects of brewing beer which allowed her to bring anything she could think of to life in the form of a brew. Channeling her creativity into a male-dominated industry did not come easily, but she succeeded nonetheless.

Finding the bravery to insert her genius into a male-dominated space allowed her to open up other avenues of bravery as well. By being an advocate for the #MeToo movement and searching for ways to give an equal voice to women, especially in the drinks industry. 

Jayne encourages women to be brave by making decisions with themselves at the forefront. These actions don’t make you selfish in her opinion, rather it takes a particular kind of bravery to set boundaries in your life and leave the people-pleasing attitude at the door. 

Once you can embrace the courage it takes to move past your failures, view them as learning experiences, and put yourself first - you embrace what it means to be an unapologetically brave woman.  

Listen in to hear Jayne’s story and how she’s rocking the boat in a male-dominated industry by bringing the voices of women to the forefront. 

Links & Resources: 

Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram | Twitter

Ready to start living your life bravely and boldly? Click here to be inspired to make your next brave move with daily brave messages delivered straight to your inbox!

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“Progress comes from people being willing to go into the voids where many avoid.”

Is there a middle ground for women to discuss their sexuality and sexual needs outside of the medical or commercialized sex conversations? Not yet, but Paulette Stout is making brave waves to change the narrative. Listen in to hear her story and learn about her book, Love, Only Better. 

Paulette had a non-traditional upbringing. She was raised by a single father who provided well enough for her, but didn’t know how to talk about sex, sexuality, and appropriate sexual relationships. She went out into the world and simply had to figure it out. 

As a result, she had a hard time connecting with partners and finding her own pleasure, and she had no forum for voicing her concerns. As she’s grown in her relationship with her husband, she realized that she needed to share her story so she could be a beacon for others going through the same things. 

That’s where her book comes in. Love, Only Better is highly autobiographical and showcases the journey she’s traveled to find love, pleasure, and acceptance for herself and her needs. 

Listen as she shares her story, the bravery she had to summon in order to publish her book, and what brave moves she’s making next. If you love, love and romance, this is the episode for you!

Links & Resources: 

Paulette’s Website

Ready to start living your life bravely and boldly? Click here to be inspired to make your next brave move with daily brave messages delivered straight to your inbox!

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“The moment that you actually stop being apologetic and you own who you are, there's great resistance from the outside world.” - Jacqueline Nagle

Mother of four and red wine enthusiast, Jacqueline Nagle, is setting the stage for brave women everywhere. As a person who loves language and communication, Jacqueline currently works with subject matter experts, assisting them to commercialize and create viable businesses through the lens of speaking, pitching, and sales. 

Stepping into her confidence and fulfilling the roles she was meant to fulfill took a fair amount of bravery, as her story shows. To get where she is today, Jacqueline first had to learn how to find her voice and use it effectively. Being brave enough to make the small decisions that lead to something big is how she has found her success.

Realizing her bravery in her late twenties and really stepping into her voice shortly thereafter, Jacqueline learned that there are multiple facets of bravery and, sometimes, we must embody more than one. She has demonstrated internal bravery in her experiences by adjusting her leadership style to be more inclusive of those around her. She has also had to demonstrate bravery by showing up and being present for others in the face of heartbreaking tragedy. 

Unfortunately, as women begin to embrace their bravery and bloom into who they are, the pushback and resistance they face can be difficult to navigate. For Jacqueline, the biggest struggle that came with that pushback was that it was not felt so much by men - who tended to stand beside her and champion her along - but by other women. For there to be true progress for women, we need to be brave enough as a collective to stand beside each other and lift each other up for our successes, no matter how big or small they may seem. 

Listen to the full story here to get the scoop on the brave moves Jacqueline has made and how supporting the bravery of women is the first step to having a voice that is heard. 

Links & Resources: 

Jacqueline Nagle

Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter

Ready to start living your life bravely and boldly? Click here to be inspired to make your next brave move with daily brave messages delivered straight to your inbox!

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“I don't always take the most trodden road, but I take the right road for what I'm designed for and what I'm called to do in life.” - Kiri-Maree Moore

Kiri-Maree Moore was born in New Zealand, lived most of her life in Australia, and has spent the last several years traveling the world. As a young girl, she was often spoken down to and told that she was different, not smart enough, and didn’t think like other people.

Nothing in Kiri’s life was handed to her and she had to work very hard to excel in her life, despite those who told her she could never be more than what they thought she was. She tackled her introversion and shyness head-on as she learned what it meant to be brave, stand confidently, and live the purpose she was meant for.

In 2012, she founded Decision Velocity Global where she assists entrepreneurs by helping them break through their fears, insecurities, and past baggage to take them to the next level of their businesses and mindsets. Her model focuses on decision-making and removing indecision from business to bring big results to her clients. 

By taking control of her life and her purpose she found what it meant to be a brave woman and to be confident in her voice. With confidence in hand, she faces failures and mistakes head on with the bravery to confront things rather than run from them. 

She started from being told as a young girl that she would not amount to anything and by taking hold of her life in a brave way, she is now changing the lives of entrepreneurs and helping them bring the best versions of themselves to their businesses. Listen in to hear her story and what bravery looks like to her.

Links & Resources: 

Facebook |Instagram | LinkedIn

Ready to start living your life bravely and boldly? Click here to be inspired to make your next brave move with daily brave messages delivered straight to your inbox!

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“I just really try and show up every day. I think that's the most important thing, for me, as a brave and courageous and kind and calm and confident human.”

You are the asset. You are the glue keeping things together. So you need to take care of you. This was made painfully clear to Shannah Kennedy as she navigated a lucrative but life stealing career in sports. 

She was Jerry Maguire. She was buying and selling athletes for various teams and she very much lost herself in the job and the identity that it gave her. She was amazing at her job, but it took so much from her. 

What she didn’t realize was that her career was literally stealing the life from her. She ended up with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and was in bed for a couple of years. Not days, not weeks, not months, years. That was when she realized she needed a better plan. 

Shannah needed a better life plan. And it wasn’t just her who needed it. The athletes she was working with needed a life plan as well. They’d planned for their careers, but what came next? 

She took the brave step to become a life coach and abandon her corporate career and that’s when things really started to get interesting. She is now an author, speaker, and consultant and every single new thing required a great deal of courage and bravery. 

Listen as she shares her story and her brave moves. What would it take you to take a leap of faith and start living life with a plan? 

Links & Resources: 

Shannah’s Website

LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook

Ready to start living your life bravely and boldly? Click here to be inspired to make your next brave move with daily brave messages delivered straight to your inbox! 

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“Courage I think is the key essence of leadership. And you have to have courage if you want to lead. You have to have courage if you want to be an authentic leader.”

Senator Sarah Hanson-Young did not get into politics as a way to find fame and fortune. As she states, politics is not an easy job to have. Especially not as a single mother and a person who feels very deeply for others. 

But there are so many lives that she touches through her ability to be the voice for those less fortunate and to stand up against injustice. It’s those lives that she is working to change for the better and so she continues her work in politics. 

Her bravery in standing up for women in politics, standing against acts that harm the Earth, and speaking up for those who would otherwise be voiceless is not only notable, but also admirable. 

She is affecting true change in the world despite the fact that it is supremely uncomfortable for her. But for her, bravery is a mixture of strength and vulnerability. Without that discomfort and that vulnerability, then there is no bravery. 

Listen as she shares her story, her passions, and why she’s working so hard to make the world a better place, one policy at a time. Her thoughts on not just bravery, but also brave action, are ones that you certainly won’t want to miss. 

Links & Resources:

Sarah’s Website

Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

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“Fear is actually the first vital ingredient of bravery. Because without fear, we don't get to summon our courage.”

At no point in my life has anyone ever tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Hey Rachael. Now’s the time to make your move.” That’s just not going to happen. There isn’t anyone out there looking out for us in such a way, which is why you have to pick yourself. 

Seth Godin said, “Reject the tyranny of being picked, pick yourself.” And no truer words have been spoken. Aside from the fact that no one is going to alert you as to the right time to take action, what is it that makes us feel as if we need external validation to act? 

Why are we constantly seeking approval from others before we make a brave move? 

One of my very own super powers in life is being able to see the gaps in business or industry and fill them. I haven’t waited for anyone else’s approval before taking action. I have also taken a very masculine approach to building my business in that I’ve leaned into hustle when I probably shouldn’t have. 

We as women are not encouraged to think of our feminine intuition and energy as strengths. But they are! I want to empower you to listen to your instincts and understand what they are telling you. 

I also want to empower you to leave the waiting area and take action. Each day, find a way to pick yourself in a way that gets you closer to your goals and dreams. Remember, no one is coming to hand opportunities to you. You have to find them and be willing to take action when they present themselves.

How will you pick yourself today? 

Links & Resources:

Brave Media Network

Facebook | Instagram

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“We often hear this phrase, "We can't be what we can't see," but I tend to stray away from that because otherwise we're just waiting for someone else to give us permission.”

If something has never been done before, how do we as humans pluck up the courage to go out and do it? To say, I can do this, even if no one else has? Layne Beachley has some interesting insights on this concept because she’s been one of those people. 

Layne is the most successful surfer in the world. Not the most successful “female” surfer, the most successful surfer period. She has won the world championship seven times, a feat no other surfer has accomplished. 

But how did she do it? How did she keep pressing on when it seemed as if no one but herself thought it was possible? 

First, she didn’t back down from the challenge. Throughout her life she experienced some terrible challenges, but rather than feel defeated by them, she chose to use them as motivation. 

Her ability to use an otherwise negative situation to create a positive outcome is truly remarkable. Listen as she shares her story and what bravery means to her. She’s changing the channel on the negativity and inspiring us all to do the same. 

Links & Resources: 

Layne’s Website

Instagram | LinkedIn

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“These young girls growing up can see the world and see themselves, that's how we start to make changes because you can't be what you can't see, and I think we're starting that journey, we're getting better, but we've still got a long way to go.”

This is a world filled with uncertainty, division, and in many cases, hate. But there are so many people out there with voices and experiences that need to be shared. Lorna Deng is the co-founder of a social enterprise designed to help BIPOC job seekers raise their voices. 

Lorna is a South Sudanese refugee who immigrated to Australia over twenty years ago. She found it difficult to find her place in Australian society which made her childhood quite hard. 

When she entered the workforce, she found that she had the same problem. Despite being well-qualified for positions, her voice wasn’t being heard. As she finally found her foothold, she realized she needed to reach back and help others up. This is how DivTal was born.

DivTal was launched during the height of the global pandemic and required quite a bit of bravery to get off the ground. Employers weren’t hiring and an over-represented number of BIPOC professionals were out of a job. Lorna knew she couldn’t sit back and do nothing. 

Listen as Lorna shares her story and what it means to her to be brave. We live in a world that is more connected than ever, but instead of uniting us, it seems to be dividing us. It’s time to change that. Lorna is making some very brave moves and you won’t want to miss it.

Links & Resources: 

DivTal

Lorna on LinkedIn

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