Heather Marianna is back on the podcast to chat with Blair about adult friendships, betrayal and a new way to make genuine adult friends. This is her story, and she is RESILIENT A.F.

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

Camp Manifest: https://sunshinesecretofoc.com/camp-manifest-retreat

About the Guest:

Heather Marianna is a powerhouse entrepreneur and the visionary founder of Beauty Kitchen, a brand she launched in 2012 after leaving her 9-to-5 job to pursue her passion for skincare, DIY beauty, and natural ingredients. What began as a YouTube series teaching at-home beauty recipes quickly evolved into a full-scale beauty empire—and she’s been trailblazing ever since.

With years of hands-on experience, Heather has built and scaled multiple beauty brands from the ground up, mastering every facet of the business—from product formulation, pricing, and marketing to public relations, manufacturing, business credit, payroll, and retail strategy. She has even taken a company public and remains the majority shareholder, solidifying her reputation as a results-driven leader who not only talks about success but creates it. Her expertise has been featured in numerous books and articles, earning her recognition as one of the top authorities in beauty brand development and manufacturing.

Beyond brand creation, Heather is also the producer of the #1 Celebrity Gifting Lounge for Oscars and Emmys Week—a premier event that connects brands directly with A-list celebrities, influencers, media, and top industry insiders. Her gifting lounges have helped participating brands secure major media coverage, celebrity endorsements, and increased national visibility. Whether representing beauty, fashion, wellness or lifestyle, the brands showcased at these events benefit from unmatched exposure and credibility.

Heather’s work doesn’t stop at startups. She also coaches established beauty and lifestyle brands looking to reignite growth, expand their markets, or refine their strategies. Through her one-on-one coaching and consulting, she helps business owners identify blind spots, improve pricing and marketing, and develop clear action plans for sustainable success.

Widely known as the Queen of Manufacturing, Heather offers low MOQs (minimum order quantities), flexible production options, and access to over 400 white-label formulas, allowing entrepreneurs to launch or expand their beauty brands with ease. She provides a one-stop solution—offering everything from custom product formulation and branding guidance to business strategy and coaching.

Over the past decade, Heather has empowered countless entrepreneurs, celebrities, and TV personalities to launch and scale their own beauty lines. Her deep understanding of what it takes to move a concept from idea to retail-ready success makes her an invaluable mentor for anyone serious about building a thriving brand.

Heather believes success doesn’t happen by accident—it’s the result of smart strategy, expert guidance, and consistent evolution. Through her digital workbooks, mini-courses, product development packages, and private coaching, she offers tailored support for entrepreneurs at every stage of their journey. Whether launching a new brand or scaling an existing business, Heather Marianna helps clients avoid costly mistakes, fast-track their growth, and build brands that stand out in competitive...

This episode dives into the stories of two coauthors featured in RESILIENT A.F. Skin Deep Stories, Helga and BB.

Helga Magdalen had to be resilient when both her mom and sister had terminal cancer diagnoses in the same time period. This is her story, and she is RESILIENT A.F.

BB Gabriel shares the story of the tattoo that she got to represent the relationship with her sisters, Tara and Bryanne and navigating learning that her little sister was terminally ill. This is her story, and she is RESILIENT A.F.

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

Griefy Gals on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@griefygals

About the Guests:

Helga Magdalen is a mother of two amazing kids, an RN, an intuitive healer and a hypnotherapy intern. She loves to travel, write, spend time in nature, and go on adventures.

Links:

Instagram.com/czechgal1

https://www.facebook.com/helgamagdalen

linkedin.com/in/helga-schoening-a6343885

BB Gabriel is a proud Canadian, a master’s level registered social worker, and an award-winning author with a deep commitment to healing through storytelling. Drawing from her own lived experiences, BB writes powerful narratives that chart the journey from trauma to triumph, exploring the complexities of adversity, grief, and personal transformation. Her work centres on stories of survival and resilience; offering raw, honest reflections on overcoming life’s most difficult challenges.

BB believes that storytelling is not only a tool for personal healing, but also a source of strength and solace for readers who find themselves reflected in the pages. By fostering emotional resilience and encouraging others to process, heal, and evolve, BB creates space for connection, growth, and hope. She aims to inspire, empower, and uplift those who are navigating trauma, grief, and profound change with messages of perseverance and possibility.

Through her writing and professional work, BB is dedicated to giving back by supporting others on their healing journeys and reminding us that we are never truly alone. Her stories illuminate the path from surviving to thriving, offering readers the courage to keep going and the belief that transformation is always possible.

Links:

www.bbgabriel.com

https://www.instagram.com/no.ordinary.love_bb.gabriel

⚠️ Content Note: Some episodes may contain themes that could be distressing. Please take care of yourself while listening, and don’t hesitate to seek support from a mental health professional if needed.

About the Hosts:

Blair Kaplan Venables is a British Columbia-based grief and resilience expert and coach, motivational speaker and the Founder of The Global Resilience Project. Her expertise has been featured on media platforms like Forbes, TEDx, CBC Radio, Entrepreneur, and Thrive Global. She is named the Top Grief and Resilience Expert of the Year 2024 by IAOTP. USA Today listed Blair as one of the top 10 conscious female leaders to watch and she empowers others to be resilient from stages around the world. 'MyStory,’ which is a television show available on Amazon Prime...

Kimberly Rich went from surviving to thriving after the sudden death of her mother by turning her loss into her purpose. This is her story, and she is RESILIENT A.F.

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

About the Guest:

Kimberly Rich received her doctoral degree from Creighton University with a research focus in grief and bereavement. Her journey with grief started following the sudden loss of her mother in 2021. It was then that she first recognized the power of relationship in grief, and also realized the ways that we can fail to support one another as end of life approaches, as well as in times of grief. In the coming months she accepted that her mission would be to improve how we approach death, dying and supporting those who are grieving. She now serves as a death doula, end of life coordinator, and grief educator. She has been published multiple times and has a podcast: The Only Guarantee. Kimberly is based in the suburbs of Chicago, IL but regularly travels to support those in need. You can learn more about her work on Instagram @tomorrowmourningllc or on her website at www.tomorrowmourningllc.com.

⚠️ Content Note: Some episodes may contain themes that could be distressing. Please take care of yourself while listening, and don’t hesitate to seek support from a mental health professional if needed.

About the Hosts:

Blair Kaplan Venables is a British Columbia-based grief and resilience expert and coach, motivational speaker and the Founder of The Global Resilience Project. Her expertise has been featured on media platforms like Forbes, TEDx, CBC Radio, Entrepreneur, and Thrive Global. She is named the Top Grief and Resilience Expert of the Year 2024 by IAOTP. USA Today listed Blair as one of the top 10 conscious female leaders to watch and she empowers others to be resilient from stages around the world. 'MyStory,’ which is a television show available on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Google Play, showcases Blair's life story. She is the host of the Radical Resilience podcast and specializes in helping people strengthen their resilience muscle using scientifically proven methods and guides grieving high performers with her Navigating Grief Framework. The Global Resilience Project’s award-winning book series are international bestsellers, and her fourth book, RESILIENT A.F.: Stories of Resilience Vol 2, will be published in January 2025. In her free time, you can find Blair writing, in nature, travelling the world and helping people to strengthen their resilience muscles.

Links:

https://www.blairkaplan.ca/

https://theglobalresilienceproject.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/blairdkaplan

https://www.facebook.com/blair.kaplan

https://www.facebook.com/BlairKaplanCommunications

https://www.instagram.com/globalresiliencecommunity

Barri Leiner Grant was the caretaker for her dad. This is her story and she is RESILIENT A.F.

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

Griefy Gals on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@griefygals

About the Guest:

Barri Leiner Grant is a well-respected grief specialist. author and founder of The Memory Circle: for those learning to live with loss. As coach, educator and advocate, she holds transformative gatherings and workshops to explore grief tending tools and techniques that foster community, hope and healing. She is a recovering journalist with stints at The Chicago Tribune and Chicago Magazine. Her work has been featured in The Washington Post, Psychology Today, Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper among others. Her popular Substack, Permission Granted, shares more of her personal essays and looks at life and loss through a modern lens. She honors her Dad today who died in January after living with memory loss and Alzheimer's for a decade.

Links

https://barri.substack.com/

http://www.thememorycircle.com/

⚠️ Content Note: Some episodes may contain themes that could be distressing. Please take care of yourself while listening, and don’t hesitate to seek support from a mental health professional if needed.

About the Hosts:

Blair Kaplan Venables is a British Columbia-based grief and resilience expert and coach, motivational speaker and the Founder of The Global Resilience Project. Her expertise has been featured on media platforms like Forbes, TEDx, CBC Radio, Entrepreneur, and Thrive Global. She is named the Top Grief and Resilience Expert of the Year 2024 by IAOTP. USA Today listed Blair as one of the top 10 conscious female leaders to watch and she empowers others to be resilient from stages around the world. 'MyStory,’ which is a television show available on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Google Play, showcases Blair's life story. She is the host of the Radical Resilience podcast and specializes in helping people strengthen their resilience muscle using scientifically proven methods and guides grieving high performers with her Navigating Grief Framework. The Global Resilience Project’s award-winning book series are international bestsellers, and her fourth book, RESILIENT A.F.: Stories of Resilience Vol 2, will be published in January 2025. In her free time, you can find Blair writing, in nature, travelling the world and helping people to strengthen their resilience muscles.

Links:

https://www.blairkaplan.ca/

https://theglobalresilienceproject.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/blairdkaplan

https://www.facebook.com/blair.kaplan

https://www.facebook.com/BlairKaplanCommunications

https://www.instagram.com/globalresiliencecommunity

Blair and Alana sit together, literally, and share a recap of their experience at their second Emmys week gifting lounge, how the gratitude challenge unfolded and what else is going on in their RESILIENT A.F. worlds.

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

⚠️ Content Note: Some episodes may contain themes that could be distressing. Please take care of yourself while listening, and don’t hesitate to seek support from a mental health professional if needed.

About the Hosts:

Blair Kaplan Venables is a British Columbia-based grief and resilience expert and coach, motivational speaker and the Founder of The Global Resilience Project. Her expertise has been featured on media platforms like Forbes, TEDx, CBC Radio, Entrepreneur, and Thrive Global. She is named the Top Grief and Resilience Expert of the Year 2024 by IAOTP. USA Today listed Blair as one of the top 10 conscious female leaders to watch and she empowers others to be resilient from stages around the world. 'MyStory,’ which is a television show available on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Google Play, showcases Blair's life story. She is the host of the Radical Resilience podcast and specializes in helping people strengthen their resilience muscle using scientifically proven methods and guides grieving high performers with her Navigating Grief Framework. The Global Resilience Project’s award-winning book series are international bestsellers, and her fourth book, RESILIENT A.F.: Stories of Resilience Vol 2, will be published in January 2025. In her free time, you can find Blair writing, in nature, travelling the world and helping people to strengthen their resilience muscles.

Links:

https://www.blairkaplan.ca/

https://theglobalresilienceproject.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/blairdkaplan

https://www.facebook.com/blair.kaplan

https://www.facebook.com/BlairKaplanCommunications

https://www.instagram.com/globalresiliencecommunity

https://www.instagram.com/blairfromblairland/

https://www.facebook.com/globalresiliencecommunity

https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-global-resilience-project

blair@blairkaplan.ca

Alana Kaplan is a compassionate mental health professional based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. She works in the mental health field, and is a co-host of the Resilient A.F. podcast. Fueled by advocacy, Alana is known for standing up and speaking out for others. Passionate about de-stigmatizing and normalizing mental health, Alana brings her experience to The Global Resilience Project’s team, navigating the role one’s mental health plays in telling their story.

Engaging in self-care and growth keeps her going, and her love for reading, travel, and personal relationships...

In this episode, Blair Kaplan Venables interviews Sarah Edmondson, an actress and whistleblower of the NXIVM cult, about her journey and experiences. Sarah joined NXIVM in 2005, believing it was a personal development program, but later discovered its darker, cult-like nature. She describes the red flags she encountered, including high-pressure sales tactics and the eventual branding with cult leader Keith Raniere's initials. Sarah emphasizes the importance of self-education, therapy, and community support in recovery. She also discusses the upcoming book she co-authored with her husband, which aims to help others identify and escape from cult-like. This is her story and she is RESILIENT A.F.

Pre-order Sarah's upcoming book on her website at Sarahedmondson.com/book.

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

Be featured in RESILIENT A.F.: Stories of Resilience Vol. 3: https://blairkaplan.kartra.com/page/RAF26

About the Guest:

Sarah Edmondson is a Canadian actress and voice-over artist who has starred in multiple TV series and more than a dozen films. Her whistleblower story following her departure from personal and professional development company NXIVM is told in her memoir, Scarred: The True Story of How I Escaped NXIVM, the Cult that Bound My Life, the CBC podcast “Uncover: Escaping NXIVM,” and critically acclaimed HBO documentary series on NXIVM, The Vow.

Co-hosted by her husband and fellow NXIVM whistleblower Anthony “Nippy” Ames, her podcast, A Little Bit Culty, explores the fads, beliefs, and trends that blur the line between devotion and dysfunction to help people understand, heal from, and avoid abusive situations. Besides her work as an actor and podcaster, Sarah attends conferences and events as a speaker, host, and cult-recovery advocate. Her TEDx talk, “How to spot a cult,” is featured on TED.com.

Links:

Email: sarah@sarahedmondson.com

Website: www.sarahedmondson.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarah.edmondson.752

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahedmondson/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sarahjedmondson

Book:https://amzn.to/4hVquPu

⚠️ Content Note: Some episodes may contain themes that could be distressing. Please take care of yourself while listening, and don’t hesitate to seek support from a mental health professional if needed.

About the Hosts:

Blair Kaplan Venables is a British Columbia-based grief and resilience expert and coach, motivational speaker and the Founder of The Global Resilience Project. Her expertise has been featured on media platforms like Forbes, TEDx, CBC Radio, Entrepreneur, and Thrive Global. She is named the Top Grief and Resilience Expert of the Year 2024 by IAOTP. USA Today listed Blair as one of the top 10 conscious female leaders to watch and she empowers others to be resilient from stages around the world. 'MyStory,’ which is a television show available on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Google Play, showcases Blair's life story. She is the host of the Radical Resilience podcast and specializes in helping people strengthen their resilience muscle using scientifically proven methods and guides grieving high performers with her Navigating Grief Framework. The Global Resilience Project’s award-winning book series are international bestsellers, and her fourth book, RESILIENT A.F.: Stories of Resilience Vol 2, will be published in January 2025. In her free time, you can find Blair writing, in nature, travelling the world and helping people to strengthen their resilience...

Kari Berridge and Aly Rice, two authors in the forthcoming book about tattoos of resilience, RESILIENT A.F. Skin Deep Stories are RESILIENT A.F.

Kari Berridge’s daughter found out about a secret that she had been carrying and is now estranged from her, including her three grandkids. This is her story.

Over four years, Aly Rice lost both of her parents, her dog, her career and her sense of safety after surviving endless harassment and revenge porn - resilience wasn't a choice, it became Aly’s only way forward. Join Aly and Blair as they go deeper into Aly’s story and talk about the mantra she had tattooed on her. This is her story.

Join the RESILIENT A.F. Gratitude Challenge: https://tgrp.myflodesk.com/gratitudechallenge

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

Griefy Gals on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@griefygals

About the Guests:

Kari Berridge is multifaceted and embodies resilience and triumph over life’s challenges. She is a dedicated mother, proud grandma, accomplished fitness coach, successful business owner, and inspiring author.

In her compelling book, “Cut the Anchor”, Kari shares her powerful life journey, beginning with her courageous confrontation of limiting self-beliefs. Her story is a testament to her unwavering spirit, which has guided her through a tumultuous path of heartache and transformation. Battling pervasive feelings of self-doubt, Kari navigated a series of difficult trials, including her struggles with Anorexia, depression, surviving sexual assault, enduring toxic and abusive relationships, facing infidelity, surviving a suicide attempt, experiencing the challenges of two failed marriages, and navigating through single parenting.

Kari’s story is a testament to the human spirit’s unconquerable nature. She broke free from the suffocating grip of negative self-beliefs and dedicated herself to the hard work required to become the remarkable woman she is today. She offers insight into believing in yourself to become the person you were meant to be.

Kari’s message resonates deeply with those who have walked a similar path, demonstrating that it is possible to rise above adversity and emerge as a stronger, more authentic version of oneself.

Links:

https://fit2motivate.net

https://www.facebook.com/kari.berridge

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kariberridge/

https://www.youtube.com/@KariBerridge

Aly Rice is a Resilience + Reinvention expert, coach, host of 2 podcasts and a motivational speaker. She spent over 20 years as a corporate interior designer before being thrust into her new life. In a short span of time, Aly endured the profound losses of both parents, her beloved dog, and a deeply personal betrayal that shattered her world. At her breaking point, she made a pivotal choice: to rise, reclaim her voice, and rebuild from the inside out.

She is an ACC-Credited Coach through the International Coaching Federation (ICF), Certified Imposter Syndrome Coach Practitioner and Certified Success Principles Facilitator, trained by Jack Canfield. She is the host of the Sex, Lies & Tacos podcast, the This Could Get Messy...

Blair and Alana officially kick off season two with a deep dive on their viral TikTok video about grief, chatted about being tatted, and what is to come this season. The sisters are about to begin their publicity tour with their first stop at Harvest, a luxury gifting suite celebrating Emmys week, followed by a “family reunion” in Winnipeg. You can follow their adventures on social media (Instagram, TikTok and beyond). Friends, remember that you are RESILIENT A.F.

Join the RESILIENT A.F. Gratitude Challenge: https://tgrp.myflodesk.com/gratitudechallenge

Buy the books: https://theglobalresilienceproject.com/books/

Be featured in RESILIENT A.F.: Skin Deep Stories: https://blairkaplan.kartra.com/page/tattoo

Griefy Gals on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@griefygals

⚠️ Content Note: Some episodes may contain themes that could be distressing. Please take care of yourself while listening, and don’t hesitate to seek support from a mental health professional if needed.

About the Hosts:

Blair Kaplan Venables is a British Columbia-based grief and resilience expert and coach, motivational speaker and the Founder of The Global Resilience Project. Her expertise has been featured on media platforms like Forbes, TEDx, CBC Radio, Entrepreneur, and Thrive Global. She is named the Top Grief and Resilience Expert of the Year 2024 by IAOTP. USA Today listed Blair as one of the top 10 conscious female leaders to watch and she empowers others to be resilient from stages around the world. 'MyStory,’ which is a television show available on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Google Play, showcases Blair's life story. She is the host of the Radical Resilience podcast and specializes in helping people strengthen their resilience muscle using scientifically proven methods and guides grieving high performers with her Navigating Grief Framework. The Global Resilience Project’s award-winning book series are international bestsellers, and her fourth book, RESILIENT A.F.: Stories of Resilience Vol 2, will be published in January 2025. In her free time, you can find Blair writing, in nature, travelling the world and helping people to strengthen their resilience muscles.

Links:

https://www.blairkaplan.ca/

https://theglobalresilienceproject.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/blairdkaplan

https://www.facebook.com/blair.kaplan

https://www.facebook.com/BlairKaplanCommunications

https://www.instagram.com/globalresiliencecommunity

https://www.instagram.com/blairfromblairland/

https://www.facebook.com/globalresiliencecommunity