
Friend Forward
This is a podcast for modern women looking to understand the complexities of female friendship. Hosted by Danielle Bayard Jackson --female friendship coach and educator-- Friend Forward provides research, strategies, and tough-love truth to answer your questions about how to navigate relationships with other women. Tune in every week for new insights about how to create and maintain better female friendships. (And in between episodes, follow along on TikTok at @thefriendshipexpert or IG @daniellebayardjackson)
Latest episodes

Nov 14, 2023 • 7min
Girl Problems: “I’m contemplating a friendship breakup… but how do I navigate this when I have to see her every day?”
The podcast addresses a listener's question about ending a friendship with a coworker, providing advice on navigating the situation. It also discusses the challenges of a friendship where plans are consistently unfulfilled and offers strategies to address the issue.

Nov 9, 2023 • 19min
How To Show Up For A Friend Who Is Going Through A Divorce
You get a message and your heart sinks - “I’m going to do It, I’m going to ask him for a divorce”, it says. You knew your friend and her husband have been having trouble, but you didn’t know it would end up this way, and now you’re wondering how best to show up for her. Data shows that 50% of marriages end in divorce, often happening around the 8-year mark, and the process can take anywhere from 3 months to a year, and can cost up to $7000 for each person – so clearly, this is a time when our friend needs our support. In this episode of the Friend Forward Podcast, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson explores exactly how to do this, and speaks to two guests, both of whom have personally experienced divorce, and reflect on how their friends showed up for them. Olivia Howell is the co-founder of Fresh Starts Registry, which has been mentioned in The Cut, Forbes and the Wall Street Journal. It’s a one-stop shop for everything you need to begin again, and Danielle sits down with Olivia to speak about her experience of divorce and the specific things her friends did to help her survive at the time. This week, Danielle is also joined by Jasmine Chanelle. Jasmine has nearly 100k followers on Instagram, who follow along for her insights about how to enter into and thrive in entrepreneurship. But when she started sharing her own story of being a single mom and transitioning out of a marriage, she had even more women follow along for the journey. In this episode, she speaks to Danelle about her experience of divorce, and the role her friends played in supporting her. And as always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework. To connect with Olivia, you can find her on Instagram, and you can check out Fresh Starts Registry via their Instagram page or their website. To connect with Jasmine, you can find her on Instagram, or via her website. And to explore Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at https://www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson Want to join our Book Club and see what we’re reading this month? Join us here. And Click the ‘Follow’ button now, to never miss an episode. Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward To explore coaching with Danielle visit www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching Join our private group chat for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing info@tellpublicrelations.com

Nov 2, 2023 • 15min
About To Break Up With A Friend? Listen To This First
Learn how to mentally and emotionally prepare for a tough conversation with a friend that may lead to a friendship break or breakup. Explore the potential reactions and emotions that may arise when ending a friendship. Discuss the challenge of accepting differing perceptions and narratives in a friendship ending. Discover the four crucial truths to consider before initiating a friendship break or breakup.

Oct 31, 2023 • 8min
Girl Problems: "How do I keep my Distance with an Ex-friend while not Letting our Friendship Break-up Impact my other Friendships within our Group?"
In this podcast, the host addresses how to keep your distance from an ex-friend without affecting other friendships within your group. They offer tips on relocating to a new city, establishing new norms, and managing mutual friends. Strategies are also discussed for maintaining distance without impacting other friendships, including addressing unkindness and nurturing individual relationships.

Oct 26, 2023 • 16min
Women without kids - The Silent Judgements We Make About Childfree Friends, with guest Ruby Warrington
You’re at a dinner and everyone’s having a lovely time, but you can’t help but notice that for the last 35 minutes the conversation has centred around everyone’s kids, and maybe that’d be okay if you had children too, but you don’t, and you don’t plan to anytime soon. Here on the Friend Forward Podcast, we’ve discussed infertility and how to support friends who are on challenging journeys toward trying to have children, but we haven’t spoken too much about friends who have actively chosen not to have kids, and the silent judgements that we might make about those friends. Today on the Podcast, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson is joined by Ruby Warrington, author of the book ‘Women Without Kids: The Revolutionary Rise of an Unsung Sisterhood’ to discuss the issue. They explore the reasons why some women choose to be childfree, some of the assumptions we might make about friends who make that choice, and how to foster understanding and support within friendships where one has chosen to have children, and the other has definitively chosen not to. And as always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework. There is even more to this conversation between Danielle and Ruby, so to access the full discussion, as well as study guides, questions and activities, you can join the Friend Forward Private Group Chat at www.betterfemalefriendships.com Click the ‘Follow’ button now to not miss an episode. To connect with Ruby Warrington, you can reach her at her Instagram. To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward To explore coaching with Danielle visit www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching Join our private group chat for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing info@tellpublicrelations.com

Oct 19, 2023 • 13min
Three Surprising Downsides Of Being The "Extroverted Friend"
Extroverts thrive on having lots of people in their social network, and there’s research that points to the benefits of having a large, expansive network, such as being happier, healthier and even getting better sleep. However, there are also some surprising downsides to being an extrovert too, and in this episode of the Friend Forward Podcast, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson explores both the upsides of having this kind of outgoing spirit and the three surprising downsides that come with operating in this way too. Whether you’re the extrovert of your friendship group, or whether you’ve always been curious about the sides of your extroverted friend that you don’t know, tune in this episode to hear Danielle’s expert insights on the matter. And as always, stay tuned for this week’s homework. If you’re enjoying the Friend Forward Podcast, click the ‘Follow’ button now to not miss an episode. To continue the conversation, dive even deeper and access extra resources, come and join the Friend Forward private group chat, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward And remember, you can send us your comments and questions, and join the Friend Forward Group Chat at www.betterfemalefriendships.com To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward To explore coaching with Danielle visit www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing info@tellpublicrelations.com

Oct 17, 2023 • 6min
Girl Problems: "How can I maintain my friendships when my time is limited?"
Welcome to "Girl Problems" a bi-weekly segment from the Friend Forward podcast, coming to you every other Tuesday. Today's episode addresses a listener’s question about what is a reasonable expectation of a friend when it comes to the issue of time and how, when time is limited, can friendships be maintained. Tune in as our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson offers her helpful insights on the matter. If you want to submit a question of your own, visit us at Betterfemalefriendships.com or drop us a DM or a voicenote at Instagram at @friendforward. Click the ‘Follow’ button now to not miss an episode! To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward Explore coaching with Danielle at www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching To join our private group chat, access extra resources and take the conversation further, visit https://www.patreon.com/friendforward

Oct 16, 2023 • 25min
BONUS EPISODE: How To Support A Friend In Times Of 'Minority Stress'
When a tragedy strikes in a way that hits really close to home, it can be physically, emotionally and psychologically devastating, and sometimes this pain is exacerbated by a lack of care and understanding from the people we love the most. For many minorities, we know the feeling well when we have a certain identity that’s not shared with the majority, which means that we can sometimes find ourselves feeling isolated by the continuous stressors in our world that others might not even recognise. Today we are sharing a bonus episode of the Friend Forward podcast, where our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson speaks with Dr. Dani Rosenkrantz about minority stress – what it looks like, the toll it takes on your body and mind, and ways to support friends who are going through these kinds of situations. This interview was recorded one month ago, before the major humanitarian crisis that is unfolding in certain parts of our world occurred, but unfortunately, it will always be timely. Right now, you likely have friends or social connections with people who are connected in a personal way to these events, who might be terrified that their families are among those being innocently persecuted, or who are frustrated that their people have been oppressed for years and haven’t received the media coverage they feel they are due. As friends, we want to be there for these people in these times of minority stress in a way that makes them feel seen and heard and supported, even though their experience might be well beyond our range of understanding and relatability. Tune in for Danielle and Dr. Dani Rosenkrantz’s advice regarding ways you can do this and as always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework. Click the ‘Follow’ button now to not miss an episode. And remember, you can send us your comments and questions, and join the Friend Forward Group Chat at www.betterfemalefriendships.com To get in touch with Dr. Dani Rosenkratz, you can reach out to them at Instagram or at https://www.bravespacepsych.com/ To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward To explore coaching with Danielle visit www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching Join our private group chat for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing info@tellpublicrelations.com

Oct 12, 2023 • 14min
Seven Things Your Married / Partnered Friend Wants You To Know
There’s the engagement party, the bachelorette party, the wedding shower and then the big day itself - so many celebrations to mark a women’s transition into partnership, and when someone makes this change, they often struggle to keep their friendships intact during the process. Last week, on the Friend Forward Podcast, we explored some of the causes of tension that can arise between friends when those life changes create a sense of separation, and our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson provided the married and partnered amongst you with seven things that your single friend wants you to know. This week is for you single women, as Danielle shares the seven things that your non-single friend wants you to know. Ultimately, the goal of the Friend Forward Podcast is to bring understanding between us and to ultimately bring us closer, and so the objective of both today’s episode and last week’s is to broaden your perspectives and hopefully develop compassion within you for your friend’s experience, so that we can maintain harmony in face of these life changes. And as always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework. Click the ‘Follow’ button now to not miss an episode. To join the Group Chat, and access the research study referenced in this episode, and to send Danielle your questions, head to www.betterfemalefriendships.com To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward To explore coaching with Danielle visit www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching Join our private group chat for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing info@tellpublicrelations.com

Oct 5, 2023 • 15min
Seven Things Your Single Friend Wants You To Know
We know that friendship is vital to everyone’s health and wellbeing but for the single woman, female friendship especially feels like a lifeline. Single women tend to exclusively turn to their friends for emotional support and companionship, and as the number of single women has increased nearly 20% in the past 10 years, more women are buying houses and raising children together under these platonic bonds. So what is female friendship to the single woman? And how does she stay connected to her friends who are partnered? In today’s episode of Friend Forward, our resident friendship expert Danielle Bayard Jackson shares with you the seven things your single friends wish that you knew, so that as a partnered woman, you can develop more understanding, perspective and compassion for friends who are walking in their single session. And as always, stay tuned to the end for this week's homework. This episode also features an excerpt from Danielle’s interview with Meagan Ayana, the founder of Single Girl Club, who shares her own thoughts on friendship as a single woman. And married and partnered women, in next week’s episode, it’s your turn. Danielle will be exploring the things that you wish your single friends knew. If you want to join the conversation and share your thoughts, hit us up anytime on Instagram or reach us at www.betterfemalefriendships.com Click the ‘Follow’ button now to not miss an episode. And remember, you can send us your questions on Instagram or at www.betterfemalefriendships.com To get in touch with Meagan Ayana, you can connect with her at Instagram and explore her Single Girl Club here To explore more of Danielle’s friendship expertise, connect with her at www.instagram.com/daniellebayardjackson Stay updated with the latest episodes and podcast updates at https://www.instagram.com/friendforward To explore coaching with Danielle visit www.betterfemalefriendships.com/coaching Join our private group chat for extra resources, at https://www.patreon.com/friendforward Book Danielle to speak at your upcoming conference or event, by emailing info@tellpublicrelations.com