The Preamble

In this episode, Ashley Rose Reeves joins Sharon to hear the story of one of Texas’s most iconic business owners: Mary Kay Ash. Tired of being passed up for raises and promotions to her male colleagues in the 1960s, Mary Kay drew up her own business plan, armed with enthusiasm, charm, hard work, and five thousand dollars. By the early 90s, Mary Kay Cosmetics made over a billion dollars annually and became the largest direct seller of skin-care products in the United States. Learn about the savvy, smart, pink Cadillac-driving woman who started it all. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, Sharon talks with Dr. Becky Kennedy, a clinical psychologist who was recently named “The Millennial Parenting Whisperer” by TIME Magazine. Dr. Becky and Sharon have a conversation about communicating the tough topics with our kids; how and when to share current event news so they feel safe. Dr. Becky argues that it’s not always the information that feels scary and off-putting, but the act of having to process it alone. As parents, it's our responsibility to support our children through our loving, supportive presence and guided conversations. Children need to learn distress tolerance in order to accomplish big, meaningful things, and we help by teaching them AVP: acknowledge, validate, and permit. Acknowledge that something is happening inside of you, tell your feelings why they make sense, and give your body permission to feel what it’s feeling. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, Sharon is joined by This American President Podcast host Richard Lim. Together they “nerd out” on facts about an under-the-radar president who was more influential than he’s often given credit for: Andrew Jackson. Listen in as they swap their favorite facts about his blasphemous parrot, Poll, his early capture as a prisoner of war, his propensity for dueling, and even how his opposition to the electoral college shaped the future of federal politics. Andrew Jackson was very instrumental in the early growth of Nashville, and the state of Tennessee. It was there that he met and married his wife, Rachel… who was already married to someone else. While in office, he also completely paid down America’s national debt by vetoing many spending bills. He was a president who reflected the people: both their great flaws and their great abilities. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, Sharon is joined by FOX News and Forbes contributor, Richard Fowler, to talk about storytelling and how it shapes American politics. Richard shares how and why storytelling plays a powerful role in our democracy; people will not always remember the policy, but they will always remember the story attached to it. As well, Sharon and Richard explore how storytelling helps humanize others, enabling us to see them as an individual instead placing them in a collective category of people. Sharon and Richard discuss why polarizing issues do not have to be strictly black or white and why it is important to see the shades of gray. Join Richard and Sharon as they teach us how to empathize through listening to others’ stories and how we can spark change by telling our own. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, Sharon and guest Kelli France talk about the not-so-stellar history of the construction of Mt. Rushmore in the Black Hills of South Dakota. A sacred place to the Lakota, Tunkasila Sakpe Paha, or Six Grandfathers Mountain, was transformed in the 1920s and 30s into what we know as Mt. Rushmore. The mountain’s complicated history includes broken treaties, a white supremacist sculptor, 14 years of construction, scads of dynamite, and the 60-foot tall faces of Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln. Join Sharon and Kelli to hear facts about the iconic national memorial, and find out what’s in store for its future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In today's episode, Sharon sits down with author and podcast host, Kate Winkler Dawson, to discuss the ways in which we talk about and consume true crime. Kate and Sharon ruminate on why the true crime genre is especially appealing to women, and how Kate feels a responsibility to the women in true crime; they are often the victims we leave behind in order to follow the movements of men who make up the majority of the perpetrators and the investigators. Join the conversation to learn more about The Bender Family, Kate’s research process, and what evidence collecting may look like in an all-digital future. Parental discretion advised due to the overall theme of crime and violence. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In today’s solo episode, Sharon dives into some of the unique stories of South Carolina’s beautiful barrier islands. The Sea Islands in South Carolina populate the coastal Lowcountry region and are rich in history, natural beauty and… monkeys. Join in as Sharon takes us on a tour, telling tales of famous authors, big sea battles, a mid-century Coney Island of the South, the culture of the Gullah, and Morgan Island’s colony of four thousand Rhesus monkeys. (No, you’re not allowed to pet them, or even step foot on the shores of their South Carolina island home!) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, author and speaker Carlos Whittaker joins Sharon once again to discuss everything from 150 year old log houses to how Gen Z will be the generation to break our serious reliance on life-as-performance on social media. The iconic duo swaps thoughts on chickens, Nirvana album art, and more serious topics like fear of the unknown, critical race theory, and the messiness of history. How do we reconcile our greatest national heroes and achievements with the idea that many people have been harmed along the way? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, Sharon sits down with Taylor Wolfe, comedian and lover of wigs, to talk about Rhode Island’s most famous lighthouse keeper, Ida Lewis. A strong swimmer and rower, even as a petite woman, Idawalley Zoradia Lewis faithfully kept the lamp lit at Lime Rock Light Station and rescued as many as 36 people from drowning during her lifetime. These feats of heroism catapulted her to nationwide fame in the mid-1800s and even led to a visit from President Ulysses S. Grant. Ida was sixteen when she made her first rescue, and sixty-three when she made her final rescue, earning the title of the bravest woman in America. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode, Sharon is joined by author Catherine Price, whose new book, The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again explores the concept of fun and why it’s a necessary part of the human experience. Catherine set out to pinpoint the definition of “fun” and she found that universally fun experiences meet three criteria: playfulness, connection, and flow. Catherine explains why play is so much easier when we’re children, and how passive “fun” like scrolling through social media, is not an equal stand-in for active fun. Learn how to create the habit of noticing daily delights and embrace opportunities for fun. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices