Just & Joyful with Kristin Carver Smith

Kristin Carver Smith

Are you trying to build a better world, yet you find yourself taking care of everyone in the process? Perhaps you’re focused on creating more justice and more joy for others, but somehow you ended up forgetting about yourself? Us too.  On the Just and Joyful with Kristin Carver Smith podcast, we’re unpacking a critical truth. In order to create a more just and joyful world, we first have to create a more just and joyful life for ourselves. Come join us as we get into the details with leaders, mental health professionals, and experts across industries who are invested in creating justice and joy for themselves so they can go out and create the same for their communities and the world.  A just and joyful world is possible. Let’s build it together.

  1. 5d ago

    The New Fashioned Co: The Rise & Reimagining Work | Just & Joyful S2E2

    Ever been curious about The New Fashioned Co? Today, we’re dishing on it.  On this episode of Just and Joyful, host Kristin Carver Smith is joined by Angelina Burkholder to dissect the rise and fall of The New Fashioned Co., the agency KCS built to offer sustainable representation to brands and leaders working to create a more just and joyful world. Come peek behind the scenes to see what it looked like to dream up and then build a business founded on shared values and a desire to reimagine work and representation. And yes, we’re keeping it real about the challenges we met along the way. Join us as we travel back in time to chat about:  The struggles and joys of starting a new business during the pandemic Where the idea of “new fashioned” originated and why it had to be built into the DNA of the business An early pivot that determined the entire direction of The New Fashioned Co. and the offerings the business provided What we built well and why we were so motivated to reimagine the workplace ⏱️ Timestamps & Chapters: 00:00 - What Happened to The New Fashioned Co.?  01:50 - 14 Years in PR & the Desire to Build it Differently 04:51 - Transitioning from 1099 Contractors to Creating a W-2 Agency 06:57 - The Origin of The New Fashioned Co.’s Name 10:41 - Creating an Accessible PR Course During 2020 12:28 - Dreaming Big: The $16k Investment & "Cricket" Launch 18:16 - The Big Pivot: How 13 Course Sales Launched a Full PR Agency 23:00 - Preparing for a Business Launch & Rapid Workload Expansion 27:46 - Building DEI & Workplace Equity Into the Business DNA 29:15 - Overcoming Underdog Energy & The Fear of Becoming Bad Leaders 31:34 - Looking Ahead to Part 2: The Fall of TNF Co. #JustAndJoyful #TheNewFashionedCo #KristinCarverSmith #PRagency #EntrepreneurshipStory #WomenInBusiness #ValuesBasedBusiness #WorkplaceCulture #PodcastPart1 #PRStrategy Have you ever had a business idea pivot into something completely unexpected? Share your story in the comments below!  🔗 Connect & Subscribe: Watch Season 2 Episode 1 of Just & Joyful to catch up on the full journey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ny2Q6d0vG7E Subscribe to the channel for Part 2: The Fall of The New Fashioned Co.! Follow on Instagram: @JustAndJoyfulPodcast

  2. Oct 1

    Mental Health Check-Up: Healing After Hospitalization | Just and Joyful S2E1

    How do you rebuild after experiencing a mental health crisis?  To kick off season two of the Just and Joyful podcast, host and executive producer Kristin Carver Smith (KCS) marks two years since her mental health hospitalization, offering an honest mental health check-in on what life has looked like since then. Tune in to hear Kristin share more about her journey, both the trauma and the healing. In this deeply personal season premiere, Kristin reflects on the transition from sterilizing her environment with neutral tones to welcoming back color, creativity, and joy. She discusses why consistency matters when doing the hard work of getting well, how to stop getting stuck exclusively on the "justice" part of changing the world while forgetting the necessity of joy, and why curiosity must replace judgment in our healing journeys. During the episode, Kristin will touch on:  How consistency mattered for her in showing up to do the work and get well againWhat it’s looked like to create a just and joyful life for herself instead of trying to help everyone else do it firstWhy it’s easy to get stuck on the justice part of creating a more just and joyful world while forgetting the necessity of joy The power of curiosity over judgment when exploring stories and experiences of mental health struggle and crisis Looking ahead to Season two: what’s next, including new guests, more humor, and upcoming music projects⏱️ Timestamps & Chapters: 00:00 – Welcome to Season 2 of Just & Joyful 01:46 – Why This Podcast Exists: A Community for Nuanced Conversations 02:58 – Two Years Later: Reflecting on Hospitalization and Recovery 04:30 – The Metaphor of Wallpaper: Moving from Sterile Neutrals Back to Color 07:43 – The Power of Consistency in Mental Health Work 09:20 – Creating a Just and Joyful Life for Yourself 11:38 – Bringing Humor and Curiosity Back Into the Healing Process 13:20 – Don't Get Stuck on Justice Without Joy 16:30 – What's Coming in Season 2: Music, Journals, and New Guests 19:39 – Sneak Peek at Episode 2: What Happened to New Fashion Co? 🔗 Connect & Subscribe: Subscribe to the channel for more episodes on designing a just and joyful life and the mental health journeys that pursuit takes us on.  Follow on Instagram: @JustAndJoyfulPodcast #JustAndJoyful #MentalHealthRecovery #MentalHealthCheckIn #KristinCarverSmith #BurnoutRecovery #Season2Premiere #HealingJourney #WomensWellness #mentalhealthawareness #mentalhealthmatters #mentalhealthcare #mentalhealthsupport #intentionalliving

  3. May 28

    Silence Your Inner Critic & Find Permission to Speak with Samara Bay

    Are you struggling with how to stop overthinking every time you need to speak up? In this episode of the Just & Joyful podcast, host Kristin Carver Smith (KCS) sits down with Samara Bay, the global expert on leadership out loud and author of the bestselling book, Permission to Speak, to help us understand some of the complicated dynamics that keep so many of us quiet. If you’ve ever wondered how not to overthink your presence in the room, this conversation serves as a roadmap. Drawing on her decades of experience in helping celebrities, politicians, executives and more find their authentic voice, Samara discusses the transition from a "hard brain" to a "soft brain" and why learning to silence your inner critic is such a crucial step toward finding permission to speak. Whether you are preparing for a major presentation or just want to know how you can stop overthinking in daily life interactions, these insights will help you show up human and whole the next time you speak. ✨ In This Episode, We Discuss: Identifying the Inner Critic: How to change the conversation happening inside your headHow Not to Overthink: Using the "Soft Brain" technique to access your intuitionPermission to Speak: Why even Hollywood's biggest stars need help finding their authentic voicePublic Speaking Tips: The three critical questions Samara always asks herself (and her clients) when preparing for a speaking engagementEmbracing the Spirit of Mischief: Why mischief is such a crucial ingredient in speaking out loud and sharing our stories  00:00 – Finding Permission to Speak with Samara Bay 02:38 – How Your Inner Voice Impacts Your Wellbeing 06:12 – Tips for Public Speaking from a Hollywood Dialect Coach 08:51 – How to Stop Overthinking When You're in the Spotlight 11:42 – Finding Your Authentic Voice in Any Room 14:41 – Overcoming Your Inner Critic: Creating a Sense of Safety 18:45 – The Truth About Perfectionism and How to Not Overthink Everything 25:00 – Soft Brain vs. Hard Brain: The Secret to Finding Your Authentic Voice 28:35 – Moving from Scarcity to Abundance in Your Leadership 🔗 Connect with Samara Bay: ➤ Website: https://www.permissioninc.co/  ➤ Get Samara’s Book: https://www.permissioninc.co/book ➤ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samarabay ➤ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samarabay/  Subscribe to Just & Joyful for more honest discussions about mental health that’ll help you feel less alone and get curious about your experience.

  4. May 7

    Returning to Work After a Mental Health Leave & Rediscovering Ambition with Bianca B. King

    How do you return to work after a mental health emergency without falling back into burnout? In this powerful episode of the Just & Joyful Podcast, host Kristin Carver Smith (KCS) and Bianca B. King (founder of Pretty Damn Ambitious™) provide a tactical roadmap for shifting from extractive, traditional ambition to a regenerative Joyful Ambition™ framework, and the ways survival ambition can show up through it all.  Bianca shares her incredible journey, from leaving home at 13 to building a marketing agency that has generated over $280M in revenue, and the pivotal moment her husband’s health crisis forced her to redefine success. By breaking down the "Ambition vs. Burnout" conflict, Bianca explains how to leverage your drive as a sustainable resource—ensuring your professional success (like her own $1.6B in transactions) never comes at the cost of your personal well-being. If you’ve ever felt like your business was flourishing while your personal life was in a "winter" season, or if you’re trying to navigate the return to work after burnout or a mental health emergency, this conversation is your roadmap. ✨ In This Episode, We Discuss: Survival vs. Joyful Ambition: Why traditional ambition is often extractive and how to pivot.The Seasons of Business & Life: Navigating a "Personal Winter" while your "Business Summer" is in full bloom.The Ambition Axis: Tactical tools to help you claim and harness your drive sustainably.The Recovery Process: How Kristin and Bianca recalibrated their lives after burnout.Ambition vs. Motivation: Why understanding the difference is critical for long-term success. ⏱️ Timestamps & Chapters: 00:00 - Redefining Ambition after a Mental Health Emergency 01:43 - Bianca B. King: From $700 to $1.6 Billion in Transactions 03:57 - When Your Business is in Summer but Your Life is in Winter 06:47 - How Ambition Ebbs and Flows During Personal Crises 09:33 - The Birth of Joyful Ambition™ 12:40 - Identifying "Survival Ambition" (Ambition at all costs) 15:49 - Coming Back from the Pit: The Reality of Burnout Recovery 19:37 - Becoming the "Ambition Architect" 24:45 - The 5 A’s of Joyful Ambition Framework 27:35 - The Power of Stillness and Internal Sounding Boards 🔗 Connect with Bianca B. King: ➤ Website: https://prettydamnambitious.com/ ➤ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iambiancabking/ ➤ The Ambition Axis: https://ambitionaxis.com/ ➤ Bianca’s Newsletter: https://newsletter.prettydamnambitious.com/ ➤ Bianca’s Private Podcast: https://biancabking.substack.com/  Subscribe to Just & Joyful for more honest discussions about mental health that’ll help you feel less alone and get curious about your experience.

  5. Apr 23

    Getting Dressed Again After a Mental Health Crisis with Brandi Johnson

    Welcome back to another guest episode of Just and Joyful! On this week’s guest appearance, Kristin is joined by Brandeis (Brandi) Johnson, a Style Alignment Strategist and the founder of Brandeis Nicole, a bespoke style and image consulting firm for high-impact women navigating growth, visibility, and reinvention, to talk about getting dressed again after experiencing a mental health emergency.  When we get dressed in the morning, most of us aren’t thinking about how our choices highlight the state of our mental health. However, Brandi says the two are much more intertwined than we imagine. In this episode, she breaks down just how much of an impact clothes (and all of our conditioning around what we wear) has on how we show up to ourselves and the world through the various seasons of our lives. Tune in for more on:  How style differs from fashion, plus ways to untangle our personal style from industry fashion (and why this shift is critical) Ways our relationship to style changes throughout different seasons of our livesWhy it’s not frivolous or foolish to care about how we look and how to break down this belief How to start seeing style as a tool we can leverage to our benefit instead of viewing it as a moral judgment  Why Brandi thinks there’s nothing more dangerous than a woman who feels herself  To learn more about Brandi, explore her links below.  Brandi’s Website: https://www.brandeisnicole.com Brandi’s Instagram: https://instagram.com/brandeisnicole Brandi’s Free Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/styleforsmartcookies Brandi’s Podcast: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/undeniable-style/id1889658203Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5NXoCbY3fJWMOoXineHDyK?si=06uiDtXUQWOucQv2_XKCYw Signup for Brandi’s email: https://brandeisnicole.kit.com/email Brandi’s Free 3-Day Style Challenge (kicking off May 20): https://brandeisnicole.kit.com/538293ed3f

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Are you trying to build a better world, yet you find yourself taking care of everyone in the process? Perhaps you’re focused on creating more justice and more joy for others, but somehow you ended up forgetting about yourself? Us too.  On the Just and Joyful with Kristin Carver Smith podcast, we’re unpacking a critical truth. In order to create a more just and joyful world, we first have to create a more just and joyful life for ourselves. Come join us as we get into the details with leaders, mental health professionals, and experts across industries who are invested in creating justice and joy for themselves so they can go out and create the same for their communities and the world.  A just and joyful world is possible. Let’s build it together.