Bailey Blaies is living her dream life: she’s a lawyer with her dad, she has an adorable boyfriend, and she’s managing adulthood with a smile.

But under the surface, Bailey’s battles with her self-esteem were bigger than most saw. Join her and host Greg Stephens to talk about her long-term battle with Alopecia where she endured middle school just as all her hair was falling out and later avoided the dating scene because of it.

Despite all of the difficulty surrounding her diagnosis, Bailey counts herself grateful today for her experiences. Today, she shares what she’s learned about being cognizant of the types of people she surrounds herself with, from her 6th grade friend posse to her college community, ultimately concluding that “It’s just hair!”

Bailey continues her story about her battle with Alopecia and finding worth in herself despite her lack of hair as a woman. She explains to host Greg Mohr the emotions associated with a disease that insurance won’t pay to help despite her 80% hair loss, leaving her to make difficult financial decisions as an adult.

Bailey also shares a story outlining the dating scene for someone with Alopecia–one experience in particular that “validated” her thoughts on staying away from boys. You may be surprised by her outlook, however: her self esteem and worth as a human is not defined by one aspect of her life. Avoiding pain is also avoiding growth.

Get inspired by her journey and, above all, gain her advice to those who may be struggling with their own physical or mental battle and are just looking for a little bit of hope in part two of this Shot of Inspiration.

About Bailey Blaies

A personal friend of Greg’s, Bailey is a lawyer in Dallas, Texas for patent litigation at Caldwell Cassady & Curry. Her dream to be a lawyer originated from her father and uncle’s long-term history in law. She went to Pepperdine Lawschool and is licensed in Texas and California.

Bailey has battled alopecia most of her life. Yet, even when she was in high school and things seemed to shut down, she took on life with zest and hasn’t let her disease stop her from traveling and living her life to its fullest since.

Enjoy this special Mother’s Day-themed episode on A Shot of Inspiration with the woman that changed host Greg Stephens’ life the most: his mother, Sylvia Stephens. Take a look into her life as the preacher’s unconventional wife, doing her best to be a mom though she wasn’t around children growing up.

Despite this, Greg tells you how his mom acted as resident seamstress, gardener, woodworker, plumber, granite worker, upholsterer, and more, many of these skills self taught from television programs until she was master, particularly of the three piece mens suit.

In her 80s today, she shares her biggest insights about being a mother with adult children. Hear how this amazing woman used some of her most disappointing life experiences as a kid to become a better mother because of it. This wife, working nurse, and full time mom has many inspiring and unique experiences to share, including her conviction to “Never underestimate the power of Epson salts.”

Get your Kleenexes ready, because when today’s topic is shared between guest Jeff Hunter and host Greg Stephens, they both shed tears. But rest assured, this episode on a Shot of Inspiration is one filled with miracles and hope.

On 9/7/97, a regular sunny day in the garden, Jeff and his wife found their day taking a turn for the absolute worst when their 16-month-old son went missing by a two-acre pond. Tune in to hear how the following events unfolded to show the hand of God, from the instrumental role of an eight-year-old neighbor kid to a couple of puppies playing in the yard to a full congregation of people halting their worship services to offer a prayer and quite literally usher in a miracle.

Now, despite the fact that the odds were stacked against his son that day including bacterial water, a seven to 10-minute timeline, and a location inconveniently out in the country, Jeff’s son is doing better than ever today. Gain hope with their belief that “There’s something out there that helps us along the way.”

“Your daughter can’t sit criss-cross like the other kids. What is wrong with her?”

Guest Diana Jones explains the despair behind this teacher’s harsh words and the complications surrounding her quest to find answers for her baby girl’s physical impediments. She began thinking that nothing was wrong, to hear their daughter just needed motivation, to hear “It’s just her tight heel cords.” When Diana finally got a real answer, she was devastated.

After facing years of infertility and then visiting doctor after doctor, hearing

her daughter had muscular dystrophy and would likely perish early was more than she could bear. “We had gone through so much just to get her here that we wouldn’t allow the thought that something could be wrong.”

Today on A Shot of Inspiration, Diana takes us along with host Greg Stephens on the first part of her inspiring journey to help her daughter and somehow save herself from darkness at the same time–all the while refusing to follow the notion to “Don’t try because there’s nothing you can do to help.”

Diana’s quest to help her daughter keep hope through her muscular dystrophy continues in part two on A Shot of Inspiration. She and host Greg Stephens resume their conversation about handling the early dark days for Diana following Sophia’s diagnosis by surrounding herself with only positivity, from watching Oprah to reading empowerment books.

Consider with them what resigning actually means and understand that there’s a difference between surrendering and resigning. Diana relates her firsthand experience that once you allow yourself to surrender, God is in the details (For her, his presence came down to a recurrence of her daughter’s name in the people offering help).

Discover the power of hope and the immeasurable effect of pursuing answers–despite others’ conviction to give up. As she and her husband decided to invest endless amounts of time, money, and sacrifice to get Sophia to Mexico for stem cell research and then on to Ukraine, Sophia’s life transformed from falling 30 times a day to walking 4 miles with her friends.

The truth is: It takes a lot of sweat and tears to create miracles, but the impossible is absolutely possible. Find the faith you need to continue through the rest of Diana’s incredible family story.

Welcome back to our second episode of A Shot of Inspiration, where host Greg Stephens is delighted to introduce you to the first inspiring guest, Michael Ramos. Michael shares his incredible, multifaceted journey as a musician, landing gigs with bands you may recognize and experiencing vertigo as he played for stadiums filled with thousands.

Hear how it all began, starting with “the biggest piece of shit piano” and an excuse to get out of math class. Yet, when Michael first sat down at that piano, the connection he made with the keys launched him into a lifetime of searching out opportunities to recreate that musical high.

Gain Michael’s insight into how he went from making $400 a week to no more than $75 and was never happier. Hear how he got to where he is today, with experience in everything from disco tracks to film scores. Hear some memorable stories along the way, including a year’s worth of track-recording hibernation and even a truck break-in that resulted in an extra accordion.

The discussion with Michael Ramos continues as he picks up the story of his incredible journey as a musician in episode two of A Shot of Inspiration. Hear how, despite the fact that he had never wanted to be a band manager, Michael is now managing director of an entire label.

Join his and host Greg Stephens’ discussion on the hidden difficulties of “going on the road,” separated from family while watching others gather to hear his music, and how this supports Greg’s belief that artistry means loving deeply (and sometimes, painfully). Despite this, Michael shares his conviction for staying in the game and dealing with the moments where he wanted to turn back and quit it all.

Additionally, Michael talks about the musician that has inspired and uplifted him throughout his career, his semi-expensive but always fruitful trick for writer’s block, and his plans for the future in composition and recording, to retirement and beyond.

EPISODE 1

Greg Stephens is interviewed by Josh Tapp

Welcome to the opening episode of A Shot of Inspiration, where host and founder Greg Stephens takes a seat as interviewee to share his inspiring, two-year journey of cleaning up messy past relationships–from ex-bosses to ex-girlfriends. Greg shares with interviewer Josh Tapp how this led him to discover his passion for helping others to have better, stronger relationships, starting with the ones that matter most.

Hear the heart-wrenching story of Greg’s father as the last man on Greg’s lengthy list of relationship repairs where, in a three-day period, Greg went from thinking he’d be disowned from his father to making plans with the man who would become his best friend.

Greg shares his conviction that when our relationships are strong, we do well in life. Join his incentive to start asking yourself the questions prompted by this show. How are YOU responsible for the only things you can control? As Greg says, “You have to find that space within you and write your own narrative for your choices.” Make the choice to stop going it alone and be a “we-centered” member of humanity–today.

About Greg Stephens

Greg is a Master Certified Trainer,  focused on providing individual and team coaching. He specializes in communication skills, leadership, team building, mediation, executive coaching, and advising. He also provides 360 and behavioral assessments for individuals and teams, motivation, and cultural assessments.