Ashley Nardello is an empowerment specialist and Boudoir photographer located in Worcester ma! She is passionate about helping women on their healing journey. She teaches women that learning to love yourself in images leads to a more fulfilling life, a more empowered personality, and stronger self-confidence. 

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"The main point I want to convey is the importance of creating a space that empowers and uplifts women of all ages, colors, and identities. This inclusive environment is crucial because it provides inspiration and motivation for women who have faced obstacles or self-doubt. When they see other women who share similar backgrounds and experiences achieving success, it gives them the confidence to pursue their dreams and overcome limitations."

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Adriana also known as Adri Maria, is your everyday Bronx girl with a heart of gold and a slick mouth! As a true New Yorker, it is in her blood to hustle. She has a relentless passion for success, no matter what the task is. She’s innovative, personable, and pertinacious. With a resilient spirit and spunky zeal, she has taken her talents all across the US. Living by the quote Faith > Fear, she believes that her path has already been created for her and she just has to keep moving forward. Risk-taking has played a vital role in her life and she loves sharing her story. Founder of @Catchmesaying and Adri Maria Consulting, she knows that the commitment to her success is tied to the success of others and the people she has a chance to interact with.

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"Embrace the belief that our path is already laid out for us. Trust that there is a predetermined journey awaiting us, guiding our steps towards our destined destinations."

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Luanne Westerling has 30 years of facilitation, training, leading, and teaching experience, both in higher education and the financial services sector. She returned to the corporate environment at MAPFRE Insurance, Webster, Massachusetts, as a Talent Development Program Manager, where she was responsible for leadership development and training programs, outreach to colleges and universities for talent acquisition, and serving as the Director of the Women’s Leadership Network.

Recently, she has returned to higher education at Harvard Medical School, Human Resources, as a Talent and Development Program Manager, where she designs and conducts leadership-based programming for staff and oversees a mentorship program for mid-career staff members to assist them in their professional development journey.

Prior to these positions, she served as the Associate Dean for Business at Nichols College in Dudley, Massachusetts. In this role, she oversaw a faculty of 50 and taught in the disciplines of leadership, management, communication, and professional development. She also developed and led a student leadership development program aimed at developing students' professional skills to provide them with a personal advantage in the job search process and workplace. Finally, she is also a facilitator for the MBTI (Myers Briggs Personality Assessment) and enjoys analyzing personality profiles as part of the examination of the importance of emotional intelligence in all of our interpersonal relationships.

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Natalie is the author of The Power of Trust: How Top Companies Build, Manage, and Protect It and President of Success Through Trust. She’s been named one of the world's Top Thought Leaders in Trust for five consecutive years in a row by Trust Across America. Other leaders who have been named include Howard Schultz, founder and CEO of Starbucks, and author Steven Covey. Natalie is recognized as one of Canada’s Most Inspiring Women Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs and has been nominated for the 2023 RBC Canadian Women Entrepreneurs Award of the Year. She’s on a mission to help business owners and leaders grow their companies by helping them build relationships of trust with their customers and colleagues. Natalie’s training programs,
the trust measurement system, tools, and her proprietary framework for building trust are based on science and evidence.

She is a regular podcast guest and writer, a contributor to Forbes, and featured in Economist Impact as a "Business Trust Expert."

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"Continuous learning and collaboration are essential to personal and professional growth. Collaborating with people from different industries and backgrounds can provide valuable insights and knowledge that can enhance our skills and perspective. I think that's really important. And I find that very fulfilling."

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LinkedIn

Website

Award-winning author of ABC Worry Free and Are You a Bird Like Me?, Noel is an anxiety coach and neuroeducation consultant specializing in workshops and one-on-one sessions for kids and adults on anxiety and stress, executive function, and growth mindset. Often referred to as "Neuro Noel," she transforms key neuroscience findings into simple applications that appeal to how the brain learns best and reduce the impact of stress on learning, behavior, and performance. She receives great joy from helping others develop new skills and experience success in areas they didn't think possible.

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"It's completely normal to experience moments of anxiety from time to time. One effective technique to counteract it is to practice slow, deep breathing. Taking this big step toward focusing on our breath is crucial because anxiety often leads us to take short, shallow breaths. By intentionally slowing down and engaging in deep breathing, we send a signal to our brain and body to regain control. It's like pumping the brakes and reestablishing a sense of calm."

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LinkedIn⁠

⁠Website

Racquel T. Knight is a social entrepreneur who aims to help the underserved pursue their dreams and passions. through business development, community engagement, and charity work ventures. Racquel T. Knight is the Central Massachusetts Women Business Center Director at the Center for Women and Enterprise. She is also the founder and board chairperson of a US-based nonprofit that provides comfortable learning environments for kids attending schools in rural and remote Jamaica. In addition, Racquel is the founder and CEO of RKnight All About Business Services, which provides business development, consultation, marketing, and branding services to for-profit and nonprofit businesses.

Knight has a diploma in secondary teaching, an associate of science degree in general agriculture, and a BA in Global Citizenship with a specialization in management, and is currently pursuing her master’s in business. administration with a specialization in marketing. Racquel considers herself a servant leader.
and enjoys networking, collaborating, and being involved in the business. In addition, she continues her passion for ensuring that kids attending school in rural and remote Jamaica receive a quality education.

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"I'm telling you if you're not strong in what you believe in, sometimes you can be led astray. And I've learned a few lessons where I've had to, like, put my foot down, even knowing what the consequences will be. But it also, you know, brings forward better results from my experience."

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A creative leader in communications and marketing with expertise in event management, brand activation, media relations, corporate communications, and audience engagement, Amy Peterson is Chief of Staff to City Manager Eric D. Batista in the City of Worcester, where she concentrates on communications and administration. Amy has held communications, marketing, and project management positions within the City Manager’s Office and previously served as the Director of Marketing for the DCU Center's Arena and Convention Center. She is a graduate of Worcester State University and now serves on the Board of Trustees as well as the Executive Board for Discover Central Massachusetts.

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"Own your story and avoid comparing your journey to that of anyone else because the things you are going through are unique to you and cannot be compared to anything else because they don't happen the same way for everyone. So, own it. I believe that feeling in control begins the instant you take charge of the narrative and claim ownership of the story."

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Linkedln

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Blog

Heather Leah, As an accomplished and strong businesswoman, Heather wanted to create and attract the most important aspect of her life—an even match when it came to romantic love and partnership. Heather’s journey involves nine marriage proposals and her soul’s continued evolution catalyzed by being in a relationship with each of the men in her book, the recently released "Is He Mr. Right or Mr. Right Now? Consciously Create Your Love Story by Heather Leah

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"Love yourself first. Discover your passions, preferences, and boundaries. Embrace everything that makes you unique, and celebrate what you bring to any relationship. With a full cup, you will attract incredible people who appreciate and adore you."

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Website

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Shelley Kay is a leading career coach and speaker and an expert in changing the way women work so they can expand their leadership and maximize their impact at work—without burning out. Shelley leverages her 10+ years of work as a top HR leader for Fortune 100 companies like Google, PepsiCo, and GE to help women experience what it means to thrive in their careers. Shelley is committed to helping high-achieving women have it all: job satisfaction, career success, and a life outside the office.

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"As you're approaching a transition, you get to choose between the discomfort of what you know and the discomfort of pursuing what you don't know yet. And just reminding you that there's going to be discomfort either way. Don't underestimate the possibility of what could happen if you pursue the other discomforts."

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⁠LinkedIn⁠

⁠Website

Suzanne Graham Anderson is the founder and CEO of Positively Suzanne LLC, a lifestyle brand whose tenets are to inspire, motivate, and empower. She has written a book called Detoxifying Leadership, hosts a podcast called Sit Down With Suzanne, and is a life and empowerment coach who focuses on empowering others to be the best versions of themselves. She is a passionate advocate of the "You are enough movement" and has mentored and guided individuals of all ages to pursue their dreams and be the best they can be. 

Suzanne is a woman of God, a wife, a mother, a minister, an entrepreneur, an author, a podcast host, a coach, a mentor, an event planner, an event host, a motivational speaker, and a mortgage loan officer. She is driven by her passion for helping others be the best versions of themselves and empowering women everywhere.

Episode Highlights:

Key Takeaway:

"Women have historically received little assistance and have not been welcomed into many spaces, much fewer rooms. This is especially true for women of color, black women, and women who resemble me or you, who are currently battling for access to such settings. For pay equity, the fight is still on. So many things still need to be won. Why should we fight each other? Another woman is not our rival; instead, she is a strength of ours."

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Website