The Mary Marantz Show

Do you find yourself not getting much joy from the things that used to light you up? Do you feel stuck in the breakneck pace of proving and projecting a perfect life?  Out of our own perception of the voices around us, social media, our culture, and even our own expectations, we create and chase our definition of ‘perfect’  So what would happen if we gave up the chase? Wouldn’t anything less than perfect just be ordinary? Today’s guest felt like an ordinary life was a consolation prize to the life she dreamed of but when everything she had worked for fell crumbling to the ground, she began to realize she may have missed the point.  Join Mikala and Mary as they discuss how compliance can be our source of control and what we can learn from our littlest selves as we pursue the ordinary in our life. Tune in today to hear,  Why we need to define our ambition The list that will help you realign your priorities  How to protect your heart while opening your hands with your story   This episode is a powerful example of the impact of truth-telling and the courage it takes to surrender your story. So, whether you find yourself in desperate need of a change or a reminder to reassess your ambition, today’s episode is for you.  Because life isn’t built on the highlight reel, but rather the ordinary moments we experience each and every day. Follow Mikala here! https://www.instagram.com/ordinaryonpurpose/ Check out her new book here: https://www.ordinaryonpurpose.com/my-book For full episodes notes, head to:  https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow More About Mikala: Mikala Albertson is a wife, mother, family practice doctor, author, and wholeness advocate who is passionate about the work of healing in our everyday, ordinary lives. In her recent book, Ordinary On Purpose: Surrendering Perfect and Discovering Beauty Amid the Rubble, Mikala shares the raw and revealing story of how chasing perfect brought her to her breaking point and how she desperately needed to embrace the ordinary in her life. Ordinary On Purpose is an invitation for you to lay down your own endless chase for perfection and embrace this beautiful, messy life exactly as it is, with our perfect, loving God right by your side. Because, life happens in the ordinary, after all.

Chelsey and Stephen Diaz had accomplished every entrepreneur's dream of a successful business, yet the pressure and weight of it all began bearing down on them. What Chelsey and Stephen would experience next, was a string of events that would work to dismantle the limiting beliefs in their lives and open them to the limitless economy of the Kingdom.  Join Chelsey, Stephen and Mary as they discuss strategies to flip the narrative money has over your life and the three limiting beliefs to let go of today. Tune in to hear,  How to shift your perspective from scarcity to abundance The importance of identifying the why beneath your financial goals What the true enemy of creation is This episode is challenging and thought provoking but as Stephen shares, the truth is in the tension. It is in our willingness to be honest about where we are and where we hope to be that we can name what is actually holding us back...ourselves.  If the words you speak become your thoughts that become your beliefs that become your actions and ultimately become your future -- what do you want to say next? Follow Chelsey & Stephen here! https://www.instagram.com/therainmakerfamily/ Check out The Rainmaker Movement here: https://therainmakerfamily.com/ For full episodes notes, head to: https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow   More About Chelsey and Stephen: Stephen and Chelsey are photographers, podcasters, coaches, entrepreneurs and the founding partnership behind The Rainmaker family, a movement of Moms on mission to secure their families financial future. Focused on e-commerce and digital products, they coach families through how to create their own brands, manage manufacturing, and then leverage one of the #1 largest opportunities to sell products online, Amazon FBA. They are passionate about encouraging and empowering two key things through their work, family and finances. Because they believe that deeper connections and financial freedom can enable others to step more into their why and ultimately build a successful business that doesn’t have to be at the cost of their family.  

Never would Mattie Jackson have imagined that at the age of twenty-eight, she would be suddenly widowed just 3 weeks shy of her first wedding anniversary.   Did God cause this to happen? Or, did He just allow it? Amidst the tension of the God she knew and the reality she was living, the only way she believed she could make sense of the pain was by wrestling her way to answers.  So join Mattie and Mary on today’s episode as they discuss the purpose God brought out of her pain and how she is learning to move forward in faith, not fear.   Tune in to hear,  How God redeems in the details The grief rhythm that helped Mattie process her pain Why answers won’t give us the comfort we long for   Mattie’s loss may not hold the same details as your own experience but it is your story, too. Because to live in the depth of love and joy is to open ourselves to the risk of loss and sorrow.  But friend, the absence of the gift we long for doesn’t mean there isn’t also treasure to be found in the midst of our grief.   Follow Mattie here! https://www.instagram.com/mattiejackson/?hl=en Check out her book here: https://www.thomasnelson.com/p/lemons-on-friday/ For full episodes notes, head to:  https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow   More About Mattie: Mattie Jackson is an author, podcaster, speaker, and co-founder of NaSHEville, a women's philanthropic apparel brand serving orphans, widows, and victims of human trafficking. In her first book, Lemons on Friday: Trusting God Through My Greatest Heartbreak, released in November of 2021, she chronicles the first three years of grieving her husband and her marriage. As she shares her grief, her healing, and her unshakeable faith with the world, her single greatest desire is to lead people to hope. "If someone suffering any sort of loss can hear what I've walked through and see hope in my story, then maybe they can walk away seeing a little more hope in their own."  

Jillian Benfield’s life changed in the matter of a 20-second phone call. At the point of absolute destruction, there are more questions than answers, but if you too find yourself surrounded by rubble and ash, Jillian’s healing story is precisely what you need to hear.  Jillian and Mary discuss the possibility at the other end of your pain and the four things to cling to when it all goes wrong. Tune in to hear,  The difference between overcoming and undergoing Why you don’t have to call your unexpected circumstances good What our grief can tell us about what we really have propped ourselves on   In the grip of pain and loss, we would give anything to live a different life or change our circumstances so that we can get back to ourselves. But friend, let today's episode be here to remind you that there will come a moment when you realize you wouldn’t trade your story any longer because of who you have become through it all.  Give yourself over to the process.  Armorless. Honest. Open.  Follow Jillian here! https://www.instagram.com/jillianbenfieldblog/?hl=en Check out her new book here: https://jillianbenfield.com/book/ For full episodes notes, head to:  https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow   More About Jillian: Jillian Benfield is a former TV News anchor/reporter turned author, speaker, military wife, parent advocate, and mom of three living an unexpected life.  In the last eight years, she and her family have lived in  5 different states, experienced a NICU stay and open heart surgery for their second child, a miscarriage, and then a rare diagnosis for their third child. By far, the biggest unexpected moment came though when, at 27 years old, she and her husband found out their second child, Anderson, would be born with Down syndrome. The most difficult and also the most beautiful experience of her life. In her new book, The Gift of The Unexpected: Discovering Who You Were Meant to Be When Life Doesn’t Go As Planned, Jillian shares how she discovered who she was and who God wanted her to become as she opened herself to the pain of that season. She believes the unexpected can help us live into our God-dreamed entireties- that is if we resist society’s insistence to overcome the unexpected and undergo it instead. Because there can be a gift in the unexpected, you made new.  

What does it take for you to start creating?  Do you need a specific rhythm or routine to help you settle into the process? Or, uninterrupted time in your favorite spot at home or out in nature?  Creativity is messy, vulnerable, time-consuming, and hard work. It takes effort and courage to open ourselves to an imperfect process, let alone have the patience to see it through. But what if we stopped viewing it as a hobby and started treating it as a sacred practice? Today, join Ashlee and Mary, as they lean into what really holds us back from creating and how to move creativity from the margins to the marrow of our lives.  Tune in to hear,  What developing film taught her about the creative process Why you really aren’t taking steps to start How to grab onto stubborn hope What the real cost of monetization is The signs to look for when transitioning your passion to full time    The truth is, there will always be a million reasons not to create but the time to start is now. So, whether you feel like you aren’t ready yet or your own expectations are limiting the process, let today be the permission you need to create anyway.  You were made for this. Now, creativity is calling, are you ready to answer?   Follow Ashlee here! https://www.instagram.com/ashleegadd/ Check out her new book here: https://www.ashleegadd.com/book For full episodes notes, head to:  https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow More About Ashlee: Ashlee Gadd is a writer, photographer, and the ultimate hype girl for all things motherhood & creativity. Out of those two passions, she recently released her first book entitled, Create Anyway: The Joy of Pursuing Creativity in the Margins of Motherhood.  One-part commissioning, one-part pep talk, Create Anyway will propel you forward with a renewed sense of energy, purpose, and enthusiasm for stewarding the creative dreams God has planted in your heart. Because no matter the season, creativity does not have to be at odds with your life. 

What is the one part of your life that is not quite right? When asked that, I bet a specific area comes to mind right away. You just…know.  Often, it isn’t until the point of collapse (a marriage, friendship, job loss) that we realize we failed to pay attention to the signs that the foundation beneath us wasn’t as solid as we thought.  Join Alli and Mary to discuss the two key principles to building a firm foundation in Christ – despite hardship. Tune in to hear,  What helped Alli find true freedom in all areas of her life How to overcome the temptation to keep pretending The question you need to ask before you start building anything   Trouble is inevitable in this life but course correction doesn’t have to happen at collapse.  Today is the day we look down and are honest about the foundation we are standing on and realign with the only Foundation worth building on.  Are you willing to believe He is already at work redeeming the rubble?   Follow Alli here! https://www.instagram.com/theallipatterson/ Check out her new book here: https://theallipatterson.com/book/ For full episodes notes, head to:  https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow   More About Alli: Alli is a mother, friend, mentor, wife, speaker and now author of her first book, How to Stay Standing: 3 Essentials for Building a Faith That Lasts - a disarmingly honest look into her own struggles with marriage, work, parenting, and faith, and the three new rhythms she learned from it all for building daily connection with Jesus. As Teaching Pastor at Crossroads Church in Cincinnati, and a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, she is passionate about helping others build a life on the firm foundation of Jesus’ truth and grace through authentic teaching rooted in Scripture. She believes a life with Him is much more than a checklist of beliefs: it’s a life of honesty, joy, risk, adventure, and challenge in relationship with a living God.   

Have you ever felt like you lost yourself? That who you were and who are now just aren’t quite syncing up?  The loves and losses of the last decades had created a life full of joy for Dawn but through it all, she began to slowly shift to the sidelines of her own life. After decades full of morphing and giving to those around her, when she faced the big 5 - 0 she barely knew the person she saw in the mirror. It was the beginning of the end…or so she thought. In today’s episode, Dawn does not hold back on what we can learn from the life long companion of aging and the joy of rediscovering yourself again.  Tune in to hear, What she learned from being asked to take the picture rather than be in it The essential thing to do for authenticity in new seasons What she would have encouraged her 20-year-old self to d Why, in fact, we are more ourselves than we have ever been   Dawn’s battle cry is the reminder we all need that none of us have control of the time we have left but we do have the choice to live life to the fullest right now. So lean in. Don't disappear. No matter the age or stage, the best is yet to come! Follow Dawn here! https://www.instagram.com/dawnrbarton/?hl=en Check out her new book here: https://dawnbarton.com/preorder For full episodes notes, head to:  https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow   More About Dawn: Dawn Barton is a joyologist, speaker, motivator, cancer crusher, Jesus lover, and author. She is ridiculously passionate about working with women and coaching them to levels of success in their personal and professional lives that transcend their wildest dreams. She is proud to use the experiences of her personal journey to help others find happiness and success even in the darkest of days. And, in her newest book, Midlife Battle Cry: Redefining the Mighty Second Half (releasing today!), is empowering women to embrace their Mid-Life years by reframing the obstacles before them as reasons to fully embrace joy wherever they can find it.  

Do you ever feel like building and scaling a business is easier for everyone else?  For Liz and Jessica, courage cornered them early.  After experiencing the impacts of the exploitation of work in communities they loved and the confines of global poverty particularly on women and girls, there was no other decision to make but to take action. And now, over a decade later, they have quite a story to tell.  From tire scrap sandals to the world’s largest fair-trade fashion social selling brand, today’s episode is one you don’t want to miss.   On today’s episode of The Mary Marantz Show, Liz and Jessica share what has oriented them throughout their journey and what guiding principles have shaped their leadership along the way. Tune in to hear,  Why you need to count the cost of your business How to put courage back in the driver’s seat  The purpose that comes with co - creating What curiosity offers us in adversity How collaboration over competition can enrich not only our leadership but our lives    So what are you waiting for? Today is the day you begin to quell the limiting beliefs that have kept you standing still and take the leap. Because some of the most valuable lessons can only be learned in free fall. --------- Follow Liz here! https://www.instagram.com/lizbohannon/?hl=en Follow Jessica here! https://www.instagram.com/jessicahonegger/ Checkout Noonday Collection here:  https://www.noondaycollection.com/ For full episodes notes, head to:  https://marymarantz.com/themarymarantzshow  

Are you tired of trying to keep up with the never-ending cycle of content creation? Do you wish you had the freedom to focus on creating more of what you love and building an authentic business? If you  are longing for a way to optimize your marketing without sacrificing your sanity, today's conversation featuring Jen Olmstead on the Mary Marantz Show is exactly what you need to hear. Today’s episode is a 5 Part Mini MasterClass of Effective Marketing: Do Less Better: The One Thing Jen Started Doing That Changed Her Average Like Count from A Couple Hundred to 10,000 Stop Telling People You Like Coffee: Stop Doing THIS When Writing Your Bio and Start Doing THIS Tell People What To Do: Specific Wording Swaps for Higher Conversions Market With Confidence: If You’re Marketing Isn’t Working, You Might Be Doing THIS Identify Your Low Hanging Fruit: Sometimes You’re Overlooking The ‘Easy’ Thing and Leaving Revenue on the Table   Jen is living proof that in a world calling us to more production, we can not only survive but thrive by choosing to contribute more of ourselves. So, if you have been waiting for permission to let go of keeping up so you can lean into what you love this episode is a must listen.  Because what everyone needs more of is not generic content, it’s more of you.  More about Jen: Jen Olmstead is the co-founder and lead designer of TONIC Site Shop, a template shop for the modern entrepreneur. You might have seen her work for clients like Jenna Kutcher, Chris Loves Julia, Jillian Harris, Bossbabe, Create Cultivate, Wit and Delight, and of course, Mary Marantz. ;) When she's not designing, Jen splits her time cooking, homeschooling, trying to make Instagram fun again, and writing TONIC's famous #longandweird newsletter, where she tells stories and nerds out about great marketing. Follow Jen here! https://www.instagram.com/jenolmstead/?hl=en Order her templates here:  https://tonicsiteshop.com/

Do you have a dream you cannot go a day without thinking about? Do you feel stuck between dreaming and actually taking the steps you need to make it a reality? If you are looking for a catalyst to move from stuck to start, today’s episode featuring Rebecca George is for you.  On today’s episode, join Mary and Rebecca as they discuss the three stages of being stuck, and some practical ways to move forward in faithfulness to the dream God is calling you toward.  On this episode you’ll hear,  How comparison is the invitation to celebration The principal of spiritual sticktuitiveness How to identify striving out of abiding  The power of defining our why   Between our doubts and fears and the very real reality of what it costs to bring something to fruition, there will always be obstacles that can keep us stuck but, we don’t have to stay there. Are you ready to move from staring on the sidelines, to taking faith-filled steps across the starting line of what’s been burning deep inside of you? Then don’t miss today’s life changing episode! More about Rebecca: Rebecca George is an author, speaker, and host of the popular podcast, Radical Radiance. She is passionate about equipping women to pursue their God given dreams and not waste the present moment - prompting her new book, Do the Thing: Gospel-Centered Goals, Gumption, and Grace for the Go-Getter Girl.    Follow Rebecca here! https://www.instagram.com/rebeccadotsongeorge/  Order her book here:  https://www.christianbook.com/gospel-centered-goals-gumption-grace-getter/9780830784356/pd/784355