What happens when God gives you an assignment—but nothing around you seems to support it?

In this episode, I'm sitting down with Sheila Libali, speaker, testimony advocate, and host of the My Sister’s Keeper Podcast, to talk about obedience, faith, spiritual warfare, and trusting God’s timing—even in seasons of waiting and uncertainty.

Sheila shares her powerful journey of losing her job, facing repeated rejection, and navigating a season where doors seemed to stay closed. Instead of giving up, she leaned deeper into God through prayer, fasting, and unwavering faith—declaring that what she was experiencing did not align with who God called her to be.

Through that season, God gave her a vision that would later become My Sister’s Keeper, a Christ-centered platform created to amplify women’s real-life stories of healing, restoration, and testimony. But the journey didn’t come without challenges—missed opportunities, financial strain, and moments where she questioned if she should continue.

This conversation is a powerful reminder that when God calls you, He equips you—and your obedience will be tested before it is established.

If you’ve ever felt discouraged, overlooked, or unsure if you should keep going, this episode will encourage you to stay faithful, trust God’s process, and walk boldly in your assignment.

In This Episode, We Discuss

• Trusting God during seasons of rejection and waiting• How prayer and fasting can shift your perspective and direction• Recognizing spiritual warfare and staying grounded in faith• Why obedience matters more than comfort or convenience• How God provides resources, people, and opportunities for your assignment• The power of testimony and why your story matters• Stepping into purpose even when you don’t feel fully prepared

About Sheila LaBarre

Sheila LaBarre is a speaker, testimony advocate, and host of the My Sister’s Keeper Podcast, a Christ-centered platform dedicated to amplifying women’s stories of faith, healing, and restoration.

She is passionate about helping women embrace their journey, trust God in every season, and recognize that their story has the power to bring hope and glory to God.

Podcast: My Sister’s Keeper
Email: mysisterskeeperpodcast@gmail.com

Connect with the Host

Giselle Quintanilla
Founder of Ready Writer Services, LLC
Author | Publishing Strategist | Podcast Host

Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.com
Instagram & Facebook: @gisiquin

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And remember:
Show up every day like it’s Day One.

What happens when high achievement leads to burnout and forces you to rediscover who you truly are?

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Catherine Johnson, leadership and wellness coach, speaker, and founder of The Nellowe Company and SJE Consulting Group, to explore the deeper work of authentic leadership and personal alignment.

Dr. Johnson shares the powerful story behind her turning point with burnout and how it led her to rethink leadership, identity, and purpose. Drawing from more than three decades of experience across healthcare, finance, manufacturing, marketing, and leadership development, she explains why true leadership begins with learning to lead yourself first.

Together, we dive into the concept that “vulnerable leadership" does not equate to weakness. There is a space for strength in vulnerability.

This conversation will challenge you to ask the deeper questions:

• Who are you really leading?• Are you living in alignment with your purpose?• And what would happen if you removed the masks and showed up as your authentic self?

Dr. Johnson also shares how burnout can become a catalyst for transformation—and how reconnecting with identity can unlock clarity, confidence, and impact.

If you’re a leader, entrepreneur, professional, or someone navigating a major life transition, this episode will inspire you to step back into alignment with who you truly are.

• How burnout can become a turning point for personal transformation• Why authentic leadership starts with leading yourself first• The balance between masculine and feminine leadership energy• How identity and purpose shape your leadership style• The importance of courage, choice, and connection in life and leadership

About Dr. Catherine Johnson:

Dr. Catherine Johnson is a leadership and wellness coach who helps individuals and organizations align identity, purpose, and impact.

With more than 30 years of professional experience across multiple industries, she brings strategic insight and real-world wisdom to leaders seeking authentic influence.

She is the founder and CEO of The Nellowe Company and SJE Consulting Group, where she helps leaders strengthen their brand presence, elevate their message, and expand their influence through storytelling, media, publishing, and strategic consulting.

Dr. Johnson is also the creator of the Neuro Identity Brand™ and S.H.E. Identity™ frameworks, designed to help individuals reconnect with who they truly are and lead with clarity, authenticity, and confidence.

Key Takeaways:

✔ Courage helps you move through fear✔ Your external environment reflects your internal alignment✔ Connection is essential to meaningful leadership and growthConnect with the host, Giselle Quintanilla:

Creative Coach & Publishing StrategistFounder of Ready Writer Services, LLC

Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.comInstagram & Facebook: @gisiquin

In this powerful episode, I sit down with trauma coach, mediator, and author Kandace Rather to talk about healing trauma, reclaiming your story, and learning how to walk through grief with faith.

Kandace shares her deeply personal journey of overcoming childhood trauma, navigating years of shame and pain, and ultimately discovering how healing begins when we allow ourselves to face the parts of our story we once tried to hide. Through her work helping women heal from past trauma, Kandace explains why inner child healing, grief work, and emotional awareness are essential steps in personal growth and spiritual transformation.

Together, we explore what it means to disrupt the false stories trauma creates, take back your voice, and step into the identity God originally intended for you. Kandace also shares how grief can either harden our hearts or tenderize them — and why choosing healing allows God to redeem even the most painful parts of our story.

If you’ve ever struggled with past trauma, shame, grief, or feeling disconnected from your purpose, this conversation will encourage you to begin the healing process and remember that your story is not over.

• What trauma does to the stories we believe about ourselves• Healing your inner child and reclaiming your identity• Why grief must be processed rather than avoided• How faith and therapy can work together in healing• The importance of being seen, heard, and supported• Recognizing emotional triggers and responding with awareness• How God redeems painful chapters of our lives

Kandace also shares a Day One Move to help listeners begin recognizing emotional triggers and slowing down to become aware of what is happening internally before making decisions from trauma.

Website: www.kandacerather.com
Book: With You Now: An Invitation to Heal Your Inner Child
Available on Amazon, Kindle, and Audible

Connect with the HostGiselle Quintanilla
Creative Coach & Publishing Strategist
Ready Writer Services, LLC

Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.com
Instagram & Facebook: @gisiquin

If you're honest, how many times do you press through the days, weeks, and months without thinking twice about where time went?

In this solo episode, I take a beat to reflect on the lessons learned during the first quarter of 2026 and share an important truth about navigating business, purpose, and faith: sometimes success isn’t about pushing harder — it’s about learning when to pivot and when to pause.

As we move toward the second quarter, let's take inventory of where we are in our goals, vision boards, businesses, and personal growth. Whether you feel like you’re ahead, behind, or somewhere in between, this episode offers encouragement and perspective on how to move forward intentionally with God leading the way.

I'm sharing real experiences from my own journey this year — including turning down a promising project, shifting plans for the business website relaunch, and learning to be honest about capacity, alignment, and calling. Something can be good, but still not be the assignment God has for you.

This episode is a reminder that planning and preparation matter, but so does surrender. When we allow space for God to redirect our plans, we create room for the right opportunities to unfold.

If you’ve been questioning your progress this year, feeling pressure about goals, or wondering whether to continue, shift direction, or take a step back — this episode will help you approach the next quarter with clarity, wisdom, and peace.

In This Episode, We Discuss

• Why it’s important to evaluate your progress as each quarter ends• The difference between pivoting and pausing in business and life• Recognizing when an opportunity is good but not God's for you• Being honest about your capacity and alignment with God• Planning, preparing, and surrendering your goals to God• How flexibility allows you to grow without breaking

Connect with the Host

Giselle QuintanillaCreative Coach & Publishing StrategistFounder of Ready Writer Services, LLC

Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.com Instagram & Facebook: @gisiquin

In this deeply moving episode of the Day One Podcast, I sit down with Carrie Eaton from Elgin, Texas — author, caregiver, and woman of unwavering faith — for a powerful conversation about grief, redemption, and the healing power of God’s love.

Carrie vulnerably shares the heartbreaking loss of her 3-year-old daughter in 1995 due to a tragic accident. She opens up about the overwhelming grief that followed — a season where life felt colorless, where she describes only seeing black and white, and where she turned to substances in an attempt to numb the pain.

But her story does not end in despair.

Carrie shares how God met her in the deepest, darkest pit of her life, redeemed her, restored her, and lovingly challenged her to forgive herself. That journey of healing led her to write her first book, Walking in the Fullness of Joy after Tragedy. She holds onto the hope that she will one day see her daughter again in Heaven.

Today, Carrie continues walking in faith. Her second book, Faith Without Borders, chronicles her faith journey over the past three years as she cares for her 92-year-old mother in Texas — a season where God continues to show Himself faithful.

This episode is for anyone navigating grief, guilt, loss, or the long road back to joy. It is a reminder that redemption is possible, healing is real, and joy can return — even after tragedy.

• Losing a child and surviving unimaginable grief

• The emotional and spiritual effects of trauma

• Using substances to cope — and finding true healing

• God’s redemption in dark seasons

• The challenge and freedom of self-forgiveness

• Writing through pain as part of healing

• Faith that sustains across decades

Carrie Eaton is an author and woman of faith living in Elgin, Texas. After losing her 3-year-old daughter in 1995, she experienced a season of deep grief and despair. Through God’s grace, Carrie found healing, restoration, and renewed joy, which led her to write Walking in the Fullness of Joy after Tragedy.

Her second book, Faith Without Borders, reflects her recent journey of faith while caring for her 92-year-old mother. Carrie’s story is one of redemption, resilience, and unwavering hope in God’s promises.

📩 Connect with Carrie Eaton:
Facebook @carrieeatonConnect with Giselle QuintanillaInstagram & Facebook: @gisiquin
Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.com

If you are walking through grief or carrying guilt that feels too heavy — this episode is a reminder that God’s loving light can reach even the darkest places.

Listen now and take your next Day One move.

In this powerful episode of the Day One Podcast, Assata Michelle Thomas, founder and CEO of Assata Michelle Enterprises, shares the deeply personal origin of her new book, Forward Only: Speak Power. Live Change, reflecting on a dark season in her past when she was facing potential jail time.

We discuss how this circumstance, many years ago, long before the leadership roles and recognition she holds today, set the path to her destiny. During that challenging period, she began speaking affirmations over herself, declaring truth over circumstances that did not yet reflect the future she believed God was preparing her for.

She opens up about how difficult it was to speak life during that time, and how there were moments she chose not to speak at all because she understood the weight and power of words. In those moments, she surrounded herself with people who spoke affirmations over her, helping her stay aligned with where she was going rather than where she was.

This episode is a reminder that transformation doesn’t begin when everything looks better; it often begins when you decide to speak differently.

We also discuss the courage required to redefine relationships that cannot accompany you into new seasons. Growth demands clarity, boundaries, and the willingness to move forward — even when it means leaving certain connections behind.

• How affirmations shaped her future long before success

• Speaking power during life’s darkest seasons

• Why silence can sometimes protect your future

• The role of community in personal transformation

• Redefining relationships as you grow

• Living “forward only” — even before you see results

Assata M. Thomas is the founder and CEO of Assata Michelle Enterprises and the author of Forward Only: Speak Power. Live Change. A nationally recognized reentry strategist and systems-change leader, she brings over two decades of experience advancing equity, public safety, and workforce access for people impacted by the criminal legal system.

Today, she serves as Executive Director of Reentry for the City of Philadelphia, leading citywide strategy and cross-sector collaboration. Her leadership is grounded in lived experience and the belief that language, intention, and forward movement shape both personal transformation and systemic change.

If you are navigating growth, redefining relationships, or learning to speak life over your future before you see it, this episode will remind you that your past does not disqualify you. It may be the very thing that prepared you.

Listen now and take your next Day One move.

Connect with Assata Michelle Thomas:
www.assatamichelle.net

Connect with Your Host, Giselle QuintanillaInstagram & Facebook: @gisiquin
Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.com

In this deeply moving episode of the Day One Podcast, host Giselle Quintanilla sits down with Daniela Roman, international best-selling author, speaker, survivor advocate, and founder of Daniela’s Delicious Delights, LLC, for a conversation about healing, heritage, and turning pain into purpose.

Daniela shares how growing up Italian shaped her relationship with food—not as a chore, but as an expression of love, creativity, and connection. That early joy in cooking later became a source of healing and purpose. She opens up about surviving domestic violence and sexual trauma, and how the encouragement of her husband, Emilio, gave her the courage to share her story publicly, believing that stories don’t just heal, they save lives.

Her powerful book series, Behind Closed Doors: I Survived Domestic Violence, and You Can Too, reached #1 Best New Release status on Amazon and continues to amplify the voices of women who have endured trauma, with a 4th edition set to release in 2026. Daniela also shares the heart behind her book Big Bear Wisdom, written in honor of her father, who was her greatest inspiration.

Today, Daniela blends advocacy, authorship, and culinary creativity to help women (especially mompreneurs) reclaim confidence through her Kitchen Confidence course, encouraging them to nurture both their families and their dreams.

• Growing up Italian and finding joy in cooking

• Healing from domestic violence and sexual trauma

• The role of support and encouragement in sharing your story

• Why stories can save lives

• Honoring legacy through authorship and creativity

• Empowering mompreneurs through confidence and nourishment

• Turning survival into purpose and advocacy

Daniela Roman is an International Best-Selling Author, Speaker, and Survivor Advocate whose work empowers women to reclaim their power after trauma. She is the founder of Daniela’s Delicious Delights, LLC, where she brings healing and joy through nutritious meals rooted in her Italian heritage. A former co-owner of the Mediterranean Café at the University of Pennsylvania, Daniela now blends culinary expertise with empowerment through her Kitchen Confidence course. Her mission is to touch lives globally through storytelling, advocacy, and nourishment (body and soul).

Connect with Daniela Roman:
Website: https://www.danielasdeliciousdelights.com
Email: info@danielasdeliciousdelights.com

Connect with Your Host, Giselle QuintanillaInstagram & Facebook: @gisiquin
Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.com

In this powerful episode of the Day One Podcast, I sit down with Raquel Soto, CEO of Your GPS for Success, to talk about what it really means to stay faithful to what God placed on your heart — even when doubt, fear, and discouragement try to creep in.

Raquel shares how God has been teaching her to press past emotions, surrender outcomes, and trust the calling on her life. She breaks down how imposter syndrome is often a story rooted in fear, not truth, and why understanding how we are created emotionally helps us create boldly and obediently.

This episode is a reminder that your emotions don’t disqualify you — they invite you to surrender deeper and move forward with intention.

• How to stop doubting what God called you to do

• Pressing past feelings without ignoring them

• Why imposter syndrome is a fear-based narrative

• Understanding emotions so you can create freely

• Learning to surrender control and trust God fully

• The 1% Rule — showing up daily for what God called you to

Raquel’s Day One Move:
Do the 1% God is asking of you today. Obedience compounds.

Raquel Soto is an Authority Amplifier and Identity Architect who helps faith-driven entrepreneurs anchor into who God created them to be. Through custom anthems, award-winning anthologies, and her TV show One Breakthrough Now, she turns messages into movements and stories into legacy — empowering women to show up boldly, confidently, and unapologetically called.

Connect with Raquel:
👉 https://yourgpsforsuccess.net/

If you’ve been wrestling with doubt, fear, or hesitation — this episode will remind you that God doesn’t call you to perfection, but to obedience.

🎧 Listen now and make today your Day One move.

Connect with Host, Giselle Quintanilla

Instagram & Facebook: @gisiquin
Website: www.readywriterservicesllc.com