Think Courageously with Deb Cummins Stellato

In this episode of the podcast, I am stepping into the arena and sharing my journey of Daring to Lead. 

I share my 5 "AHA" moments from my training and how they gave me powerful insight into #thinkingcourageously. 

From stepping into the arena and armoring up to lessons learned on self-compassion and self-judgment, I share this powerful experience with the hopes of inspiring courage for my listeners. 

I revisit my values reset, insights into the "F" word...feedback. 

And finally, I share a painful personal story about Learning to Rise and owning my story. And why writing my SFD (s**tty first draft) is allowing me to step up during this month of Domestic Violence Awareness. 

There's never been another like her. And when Ruth Bader Ginsburg died in September, the outpouring of support and loss of a national treasure, was palpable. 

Like most women, I felt like I had lost a role model. A #shero. An absolutely fierce lioness who lived a life of courage. And I wanted to honor her by sharing how she lived a life of #thinkingcourageously.

So I called in members of my squad ( and beloved Inkhorn Book Club),  Dr. Nichola Gutgold and Jessica Armstrong. The authors of the children's book, "Growing Up Supremely". 

In their book, the authors share the inspiring, and hardworking lives of the four women justices— Sandra Day O’Connor, Elena Kagan, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, & Sonia Sotomayor.

As we do each week, we look at the role of success, pivots and courage. And how these three words weaved into the life of #RBG.  

Nikki and Jessica share some of their favorite stories about the Justice. We talk about work/life balance, marriage, motherhood, unusual friendships, kindness and values.

It's an up-close and personal look into a woman who made us all think differently.

Jessica Armstrong serves as the Associate General Counsel at St. Luke's Health Network. Dr. Nichola Gutgold is a Professor of Communications at Penn State University-Lehigh Valley Campus.

Like many of my listeners, my guest today has been obsessed with transformation.

“As my life kept changing, so did my business. And then trauma came along and I had a horrible betrayal from my family. And you know how the universe works. So when you don't quite get all the lessons you were meant to learn, you get more opportunities”

I met Debi through a podcast community. I was fascinated by her topic; post-betrayal syndrome.

After researching and conducting a PhD study on how we experience betrayal from a family member or partner, Debi discovered a predictable and proven process taking people from betrayal to breakthrough. That process, coupled with 28 years of health, mindset and personal development training and coaching, enabled her to create a multi-pronged approach to help people heal (physically, mentally, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually) from the trauma of betrayal.

In this episode, Debi shares what she has learned about betrayal. What holds us back? What helps us heal and what happens to us physically, mentally, and emotionally when the people closest to us lie, cheat, and deceive?

Her well-documented and researched 5-step process provides a roadmap back from betrayal.

Together, we take a journey into how #thinkingcourageously and pivots play vital roles in post-traumatic growth and recovery.

About Dr. Debi Silber

Dr. Debi Silber is the founder of the Post Betrayal Transformation Institute and is a holistic psychologist, a health, mindset and personal development expert, the author of the #1 bestselling book: The Unshakable Woman: 4 Steps to Rebuilding Your Body, Mind and Life After a Life Crisis and her newest book: Trust Again: Overcoming Betrayal and Regaining Health, Confidence and Happiness. 

Her recent PhD study on how we experience betrayal made 3 groundbreaking discoveries that changes how long it takes to heal. I

n addition to being on FOX, CBS, The Dr. Oz Show, TEDx (twice) and more, she’s an award winning speaker, coach and author dedicated to helping people move past their betrayals as well as any other blocks preventing them from the health, work, finances, relationships, confidence and happiness they want most.

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For Dr. Heather Evans, the work of Trauma found her. She describes it as a calling.

Human trafficking, labor trafficking and sex trafficking. In this episode, Heather shares her professional journey around courage as therapist working in the trauma space.

We explore the connection between the word courage and trauma. Trauma is an experience that creates powerlessness. Overwhelm. Trauma silences the voice of the survivor. Courage is moving forward in the face of fear.

As a therapist and founder of the nonprofit VAST, Heather shares her wisdom about how we can be ally’s for survivors. It’s all about relationships. To do this work we need to practice humility and have an understanding of power.

And the power of women in community for all of us. Whether it’s through a book club or women’s retreat, we can create opportunities to build sacred spaces sets and be free of judgement. “When we compare, we show up as inferior or superior. We have to guard ourselves against comparison”. We need to lead into vulnerability.

Heather’s next project is Voices of Survivors project. A photovoice  project that powerfully tells the stories of survivors through photography. You can find information about the project at

You can also learn more about VAST by visiting https://vast.ngo/

In this episode, I'm reflecting back on the past 6 months of COVID. And the paradoxical world we are living in. And what being intentional about our personal COVID story is all about.

For my family, it all started on March 15th when my husband had a seizure while standing on line at a grocery store. Although this was a one-time event, he lost his license for six months. And then on March 17th, STAY at Home started. It's taken a lot of pivoting to share our space and for me to be the sole driver in our household.

I also explore in-depth the concept of cumulative grief and how it finally caught up with me. Owning this unhealed pain brought me to a catabolic place. And I've leaned into reigniting my support systems.

And, I also spend time talking about the clarity of purpose I've been able to explore during this time. I've been redefining my own definition of success. Clarifying my passion for building a community of women who can #ThinkCourageously together. 

Finally, I talk about bringing fun and joy back into my life. 

The Minister of Love. Maria Romano is the founder of True Love Knots, a program she created specifically to help those looking for love later in life. An ordained minister and highly sought after professional speaker, she has performed over 3000 marriages. 

Love in a time of COVID? Worried about your "mortality clock" running out for a next chapter relationship? This episode is filled with nuggets of wisdom on #thinkingcourageously about relationships. 

We talk about love, marriage, and the residuals of dealing with past relationships. 

And Maria shares her favorite story of a couple finding love and tying the knot Vegas style. 

Dr. Manuela Powell is a mindset coach whose mission is to help high-achieving women who've lost themselves after motherhood to have the audacity to live as their full authentic selves without feeling guilty. 

For over 17 years, Manuela was a cancer surgeon, in Brazil and in the US, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and New York-Presbyterian Hospital, in New York City. 

After having her second child at 44, she craved more flexibility, freedom, and time with her family, so she put away her scalpel to, instead, dissect women’s soul and help them excise the “shoulds” and the “I’m-not-good-enoughs” from their minds forever, so they can finally stop being everything for everyone, and live the life they yearn for. 

In this episode, we talk Manuela's journey. Listening to the universe. She shares insight into reclaiming your "who" and redefining boundaries. And she talks about the year she pivoted and allowed herself to think courageously about success. 

You can join the sisterhood on her free Facebook group Audacious Motherhood Society, where she’ll guide you in your own transformation.

Here's a startling statistic. One out of every five (20.2%) students reports being bullied. (according to the National Bullying Prevention Center) But how does bullying impact our soul?  

in this episode, fellow iPEC coach, Shannon Ashby Rafalowski, shares her journey from being bullied middle-schooler to her quest for perfection. 

That perfection manifested into a lifetime eating disorder. Bulemia. 

Shannon candidly shares the struggles of hiding behind a mask of addiction, hiding behind somebody else and living other people's values rather than living her own, 

We talk about the power of pivot in embracing being #perfectlyimperfect. The power that each of us has in unlocking limiting beliefs and living our best life.

Let's go. Let's #thinkcourageously together. 

Going solo!  Call it a #Me-Treat or a Time Out.  This week's episode is the story of my 36-hour soul-filled getaway. 

When I felt out of alignment with the universe, I owned it. And I did something about it. I took myself out of the chaos and found some space. I wrote in my journal excessively. I got back in touch with an old friend, my camera. I read a powerful book. I ate alone. I got pampered. 

I listened to the universe. I let my cumulative grief out through tears and words. And, I received some powerful signs from my parents that everything is going to be alright. 

And in doing so, I found what I was looking for...my headspace. And I breathed. 

Christina is a passionate entrepreneur, mentor and coach. After 30 years running sales and marketing teams at big name media brands including Martha Stewart Living and Fast Company, she now helps people and businesses achieve more than they thought possible. . 

In this episode, we learn about this pioneer's vision to claim her most prestigious role "COM-Chief of Me". We talk about courage through the lens of divorce, job change and a cancer diagnosis. Christina provides invaluable insight into redefining success on her terms and the pivots she has made to where she is today.

We'll also give you a glimpse into the fabulous life of being #fiftiesandfearless as we coach each other through our entrepreneurial experiences. 

Join us as we #thinkcourageously and learn more about Christina at  Christinalangdon.com