About your co-hosts ...
Fawn Germer
I once worked for a bully bosshole who didn’t like strong women, so he really couldn’t stand me. “You will never be more than you are right now: a reporter,” he ordained.
Well, geez. Some of us have great mentors and I had a great TORmentor. The good news is, he was totally wrong.
I’m a four-time Pulitzer Prize nominee, best-selling author of nine books including an Oprah book and ranked fourth on the Global Guru list of best motivational speakers worldwide.
But I am far more proud that, when I fell down in my career – and I fell down plenty – I got right back up and fought.
My first book was rejected by every major U.S. publisher, but I persevered until it became a No. 1 best-seller. I kept writing the Oprah Winfrey Show until one of my 29 letters was noticed by Oprah’s people and my book was an Oprah book.
My obstacles always held my greatest opportunities. When I hit the wall, I just need to take the next step, and then the next, knowing that sooner or later, I will get to where I need to go.
I live in Dunedin, Fla. with two magnificent cats and a ridiculous black dog who is my adventure partner and closest confidant. I’ve always made time to prioritize what I love beyond my work.
I want my obituary to say, “Fawn Germer, a badass adventurer who loved and was loved, died suddenly. She cared about humanity, her faith and was a good daughter, partner, friend. She sure loved her pets. Fawn was a passionate swimmer, cyclist and kayaker whose motto was, “Never waste a sunset.” And, oh yeah, she wrote books, spoke all over the world and was an investigative reporter. She lived by the Japanese proverb: “Fall Down Seven Times, Get Up Eight.”
Visit me at fawngermer.com .
Michelle Brigman
After I tackled a particularly complicated problem, my former boss asked me, “Have you ever failed at anything?” I laughed and thought he was crazy. My life was full of missteps, bruises, and bad decisions. What he meant was that, no matter the challenge, I always figured things out. The more I thought about it, I realized that growing up in small town Texas, with a momma that taught me no matter what life threw my way, whether self-inflicted or not, get up, dust yourself off, learn, and keep going. That is my story: resilience, growth and determination.
Who knew that a small-town Texas girl would evolve into a a senior executive, building industry winning programs for iconic companies and brands?
Through my passion for problem solving and helping people, I innovated the confluence of social media and customer satisfaction – in the very beginning of the beginning – at Dell, winning seven industry awards, including #1 social brand. I created Citi’s real-time customer and digital listening engine, winning IT Exec of the Year and national corporate innovation recognition. I designed and implemented strategies that improved loyalty, traffic, and engagement for 7-Eleven’s 11,000 stores.
Leveraging my recognition as a top customer experience professional, I consult with other brands to create and deliver great employee and customer experiences. I also teach leadership and work-life balance through my company , The Brave Advantage. My purpose is to help others find the courage to design and live life on their terms.
I live in the Dallas area and have a son, daughter and a pound dog named Buddy.