Barbara Brown Taylor is an Episcopal priest, college professor and NYTimes best-selling author of numerous books including “Leaving Church” and “Learning to Walk in the Dark”. Her latest “Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others” from HarperOne comes out March 12. She was named by TIME magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world, for her exquisite ability to articulate her struggle with doubt and disillusionment, perfection and authenticity, and encourage people to be more fully human. Barbara’s capacity to hold the rawness of vulnerability, especially around failure, and trust that suffering and darkness is a period of reformation is truly inspirational.

Find out more about Barbara @: www.barbarabrowntaylor.com

Author Douglas Segal of the recently published book “Struck: A Husband’s Memoir of Trauma and Triumph” and his wife Susan Segal, share their terrifying story of Susan and their daughter’s tragic near fatal head on collision with a bus and Susan’s journey of recovery. After breaking nearly every bone in her body, including her pelvis and neck, and surviving a massive brain bleed and intense delusions and hallucinations, Susan’s story comes alive through her husband’s detailed documentation of the experience. In this fascinating conversation, Susan is also able to tell her part in this miraculous story. What’s remarkable and inspiring is the way the couple took this tragedy and found ways to appreciate life, community, connection and a deeper love between them.

Pick up Struck at this link or at your local bookstore.

Jessica Winther is an Actress, Comedian and Writer and shares her journey of trying to be a perfect parent and how her son’s chronic illness launched her into the reality of the imperfection of parenting. Revealing her painful journey, she uses humor and honesty to articulate the fear and uncertainty that encapsulated her experience. Her story is a fascinating one of letting go of control and yet not allowing her fears to dictate her. From crisis to awakening Jessica’s inspiring story shows how the love and dedication of one mother to her son changed both their lives.

Follow Jessica on Instagram @: www.instagram.com/jtwinther

And Facebook @: www.facebook.com/jessica.e.winther

London based journalist Marianne Power talks about her recent book “Help Me! One Woman’s Quest to Find Out if Self Help Can Really Change Your Life!” Her journey of reading one self help book a month for one year and living by the rules of these books to see where it took her is a fascinating glimpse into the world of self-help and the failure that is so easy to experience on this intense quest for wellbeing. Exhilarated by the confidence she gained by persevering through her challenges, she was also surprised by the exhaustion she experienced from such constant self-examination. Her honest portrayal of going out of her comfort zone and diving deep into the under belly of herself was profound. After multiple ups and downs, she realized her expectations of a perfect life at the end of the year was impossible to attain. What came out of this incredible experience of soul searching was the understanding that she was perfect in all of her imperfections and the messiness of being human.

Connect with Marianne @: www.twitter.com/thehelpmeblog

Actress Brooke Smith from “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Silence of the Lambs” shares how she overcame childhood traumas in part by just “showing up” in spite of her overwhelming emotions. She also talks about her own challenges as an adult, both in work and parenting, where she very openly expresses her self-doubt and lack of clear answers in how to face these challenges, despite her many successes. Brooke’s openness and vulnerability about life will resonate with everyone.

You can follow Brooke @: www.twitter.com/Iam_BrookeSmith

Jonathan Fields is the best selling author, entrepreneur, and founder of The Good Life Project, an online and educational program aimed at helping people live a better life, both personally and professionally. He is also the host of the world famous podcast The Good Life Project Podcast and travels the world sharing his research and wisdom on the human condition and human potential. Jonathan brings an incredible blend of science and spirituality to the pursuit of wellbeing and shares years of experience in his search for a life well lived. His approach to failure is inspiring, as he seeks meaning and purpose where there is stumble and uncertainty, allowing for huge growth and potential. He offers practical steps and interventions to walk through the failure zone and see it as a chance for a better life.

Find out more about Jonathan and the Good Life Project @: www.goodlifeproject.com

Tommy Tomlinson, journalist and author of “The Elephant in the Room” speaks about his struggle with weight and his chronicle of profound self-discovery and weight loss. After his sister died from complications of obesity, Tommy knew that at 460 lbs he needed to turn his health around. After many years of failed diets and exercise regimes, he knew he needed a different approach, one that addressed the underlying factors to his relationship with food. In an honest and painful effort to understand how he got to be so heavy, Tommy went on a search for truth. He looked at his childhood and the blue collar culture in which he was raised. He sent a questionnaire to his closest friends and interviewed his mom and wife, asking for their honesty in order to help confront the most painful and shameful parts of himself. He shares his experience of surviving throat cancer and how that propelled him further on his journey towards wellbeing.

Tommy’s book is the inspiring story of looking deeply into one’s darkest parts and the courageous search for a better self.

You can learn more about Tommy @: http://tommytomlinson.com

Author, speaker, relationship and life advice expert Liz Pryor opens up about her experience of getting pregnant at 17 and being sent away to a home for pregnant teens by her mother. Liz describes the shame her parents felt about her pregnancy and how it impacted her so strongly that she kept the experience a secret for 28 years when she finally shared it with her siblings and friends. Although being sent off alone to have her baby, giving it up for adoption and then hiding it from everyone for so many years was extremely difficult, Liz explains that it shaped who she is as a person and as a parent and led her on a path of helping others.

Find out more about Liz @: www.lizpryor.com

Jia Jiang is an entrepreneur, author and TED speaker who adapted the card game “Rejection Therapy” and created a blog, products and services to further explore rejection. He talks about how the experience of rejection is universal amongst all human beings and discusses the value of rejection in the process of becoming fearless. He shares his research of actively seeking out rejection for 100 days straight and learning that it can be less painful and destructive than anticipated. The experience helped to desensitize him and diminish his fear of rejection so that it no longer drove his decisions. He has used his ability to turn rejection into something positive to push him to pursue his dreams.

Find out more about Jia @: rejectiontherapy.com

Follow Jia on Twitter @: www.twitter.com/JiaJiang

Actress, writer and mother Gwyn McColl describes her harrowing yet eye opening experience of enduring a 5150 – the official legal code for restraining someone involuntarily for 72 hours due to erratic and potentially dangerous behavior. Gwyn’s story illustrates how a balanced person with no history of mental illness can experience manic behavior when the perfect storm of events come together. She describes with incredible insight and honesty how she survived this episode and what its impact has been on her and her family.