.jpg)
Gladness & Hunger with Leanne W. Smith
Author/Professor Leanne W. Smith sits down with key individuals to mine the magic of their vocational stories. Inspired by Frederick Buechner who said the key to a career satisfying to both soul and pocketbook was to find “where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet," this podcast is geared to writers, students, story lovers, and anyone seeking inspiration for their own vocational journey.
As a fiction writer and business professor at Lipscomb University with a heart to teach students how to build sustainable careers that actually feed their soul, Smith's deep gladness is in sharing messages of hope and inspiration like these.
Episodes
29 episodes
DJ Farris: “Honoring Place & Family”
DJ Farris is a realtor, avid outdoorsman, and lover of history. He says, “My study of history has taught me the importance of place, home, and family. Where you live and do business—the spaces we occupy at home or at work—those things mat...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 5
•
34:48
.jpg)
Dr. Earl Lavender: “To be Fully Trained”
Earl Lavender first came on my radar in 1985 when he ran 100 miles in a day as a fundraiser for Lipscomb Athletics. Earl has had wide influence not only in my own life, but in the lives of countless others, in the U.S. and abroad, in both bibli...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 4
•
36:59
Joe Ivey: “Strategy, Influence & Active Disremembering”
Joseph M. Ivey has an impressive resume with words like Harvard Business School and World Economic Forum on it. He has led several organizations, served on boards, and contributed his expertise to a number of non-profits. Then, in November of 2...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 3
•
40:11
Bonnie Blaylock: “Writer, Podcaster, Beekeeper”
It’s my honor to talk with Bonnie Blaylock in this episode, author of Light to the Hills, a historical fiction novel about a pack-horse librarian in Appalachia. Bonnie is also co-host of the popular “Just Ask Your Mom” podcast, and she’s a beek...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 2
•
30:35
Season Four: “Amy Cuddy, the Sabbath & an old Accounting Ledger”
As Season 4 of Gladness & Hunger is launched, three stories are strongly on my mind: A TED Talk by Amy Cuddy that I recently shared with a special group of women at Deborah Johnson Rehabilitation Center. The importance of Sabbath, which inc...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 1
•
21:03
Dave & Sydney Clayton: “Ripples of Love”
My husband, Stan, and I met Dave & Sydney Clayton of Ethos Church when they were undergraduates at Lipscomb. Even then, they were social influencers on a wider-than-average scale. Here, they talk about raising sons to be fathers, the transf...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 9
•
45:39
Marianne Richmond: “Writing for the Unique Everybody”
Marianne Richmond is a children’s author and illustrator whose books have sold in the millions. Coming out of a painful childhood, Marianne has learned to listen for the commonalities. While we al...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 8
•
34:54
Dr. Jan Harris: “Contributing a Verse”
I have long admired Dr. Jan Harris, English professor, poet, and Fellow for Faculty Wellbeing on Lipscomb’s campus. When I was paired with her this academic year in a professional development program, I felt like I had won the lottery. In this ...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 7
•
33:10
Vivi Radiro: “A Witness of Resilience”
In this episode, it is a special honor to share the story of Vivi Radiro, a young woman who has come to cancer research study as a career goal by way of a rocky start in a dirt-floored hut in Kenya. A line from a book written by Jenny Radler, a...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 6
•
26:53
Dr. Richard Goode: “Pursuing the Life of the Mind”
When a student suggested that Richard Goode visit Death Row, it started a chain reaction that led to Richard launching the LIFE program (Lipscomb Initiative for Education) at the women’s prison in Nashville. His story begins with higher educati...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 5
•
32:50
Garrett Dickerson: “The Plan & The Purpose”
I first met Garrett Dickerson when he was a student at Lipscomb. Now, several years, a graduate degree, and a number of occupational lanes later, he is laser-focused on bringing his best to a singular vocation: following God’s plan and purpose ...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 4
•
30:40
Honoree Corder: “A Marketing Mastermind”
In this episode, Honoree Corder—author, TEDx speaker, and publishing strategist—shares some of her marketing genius. When Mark Victor Hansen told her on a chance encounter at a conference that she needed...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 3
•
32:45
Kenneth Robinson: “A Lifelong Learner”
From the time he was a kid, there was something different about Kenneth Robinson. Kenneth is one of four boys who all played college football. Three of them, including Kenneth, went on to play professionally. But what he really loved best was r...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 2
•
29:54
Season Three: "Sun After Rain"
In this episode, I talk about my personal storms of the past five years. While I love sharing other people’s stories and the wisdoms they’ve learned, I am not at all comfortable sharing my own. But for reasons I cannot explain, I felt called to...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 1
•
14:55
Dawn Petchell Luepke: “A Kingdom-Centered Strategist”
Petchell Luepke and I were paired on a service project in the spring of 2022, and it was evident from the get-go this woman had a boatload of passion. But it wasn’t until months later that I realized she had a superpower. As a Gallup certified ...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 8
•
40:51
Rob Touchstone: “Turning Coffee into Water”
Rob Touchstone has been busy. In the last decade, he co-founded The Well Coffeehouses, launched a Business as Mission program, and now directs Lipscomb’s Center for Vocational Discovery. Rob’s deep gla...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 7
•
38:38
Phil & Melissa Roe: “Stepping Out in Trust”
In a season when most people wind down after reaching the apex of their careers, Phil & Melissa Roe have chosen a different path. They bought a farm just outside of Franklin, TN and transformed it into a spiritual retreat center. Tune...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 6
•
32:46
Jennifer Pagel: “To be Seen, Known & Loved”
In this episode it is my honor to talk with Jennifer Pagel, a forever friend of 26 years, who has been on a ministry path all her life. We talk about the healing importance of being fully seen, fully known, and fully loved. She is warmth, wisdo...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 5
•
38:00
Dr. Norma Burgess: “Born to be a Trailblazer”
God was at work for this episode. It went like this: Norma, my beloved mentor who moved to Costa Rica, came into my mind sharply on a Tuesday morning. I texted her. Turned out, she was in Nashville only for a day, and it just so happened (God, ...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 4
•
22:09
Brooke O’Dell: “Come Gather at the Table”
In this episode I interview Brooke O’Dell, owner of Sugar Drop sweet supply shop. It was a joy to learn how Brooke’s passion for welcoming folks to the table was cultivated in a small Texas town. Brooke’s se...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 3
•
40:12
Ami McConnell: “Standing in the Gap”
Ami McConnell is a book doctor. She is widely known and deeply appreciated in publishing circles. In 2018 she launched WriterFest Nashville, an annual 2-day gathering of creatives of book, song, and film. Ami shares in this episode tha...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 2
•
30:25
Season Two: "Undercurrents"
In this episode, I explore why the fiction I write and the practical truths I teach are the resonate notes in my own lifesong. It seems everyone has at least one theme that runs like an underground stream in their lives—something that strikes a...
•
Season 2
•
Episode 1
•
12:53
Aidan Miller: “A Story of Gladness & Hunger”
When I invited Aidan to be a guest on this podcast, I told him, “I love hearing how God works in people's lives, and the joy I imagine He feels in watching us give back to the world the very gifts He has given to each of us.” Though Aidan...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 8
•
26:29
Tom Bancroft: “The Making on an Animator (x2)”
Tom Bancroft, a former Disney animator, is helping put Nashville on the map of the animation business. One of my favorite insights from Tom in this episode is when he discusses the importance of moving past the copying stage to actually creatin...
•
Season 1
•
Episode 7
•
31:21