TEATIME WITH MISS LIZ | Failing Upwards: How Authentic Stories Build Brands and People

What if the moments you once considered failures were actually preparing you for your next chapter?

Grab your cup and join Miss Liz for a creative, honest, and thought-provoking conversation with Hilary Young, Brand Marketing Strategist, Storyteller, and Founder of Hilary Young Creative.

With 20 years of professional storytelling experience, Hilary began her career in television production, working with The Colbert Report, HBO, MTV, VH1, and CollegeHumor.com, including sponsored-content partnerships. Over time, she transitioned into content, branding, and marketing, bringing her storytelling expertise into a new creative chapter.

Today, Hilary helps entrepreneurs and marketing teams discover their authentic brand voices, communicate their stories, connect with the right audiences, and turn those connections into measurable results.

But this conversation goes far beyond marketing strategies, logos, and algorithms.

Together, Miss Liz and Hilary explore what happens when we embrace the stories that shape us, learn from unexpected detours, and recognize that our most meaningful growth often begins when life doesn't go according to plan.

In this episode, we explore:

• The power of authentic storytelling in building brands and relationships.

• Finding your voice and communicating what makes you unique.

• Learning from failure and discovering opportunities in unexpected places.

• Knowing when it's time to evolve, change direction, and begin again.

• Building genuine connections instead of simply chasing attention.

• Why authenticity matters in business and in life.

Born and raised in New York and now living in Philadelphia, Hilary describes herself as warm and open, loves varying shades of pink, and brings three powerful words to our Teatime table:

STORYTELLING • AUTHENTICITY • CONNECTION

Her personal philosophy says it beautifully:

Failing upwards. No regrets. Evolving, always.

These aren't just words for building a brand. They're reminders of how we can approach our own lives, careers, relationships, and next chapters.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

You don't need a perfect story to create connection. You need the courage to own the story that is actually yours—and enough openness to let the next chapter surprise you.

Failure doesn't always mean you're moving backwards. Changing direction doesn't mean you got it wrong. Sometimes, evolving means becoming more of who you were meant to be.

Join Miss Liz and Hilary Young for a conversation about embracing imperfection, discovering your authentic voice, and turning life's unexpected chapters into meaningful stories.

Until next time, keep making a difference one cup at a time.

YOU are all the TEA. Add me, and together we become a TEAM OF CHANGE.

Miss Liz
Do Different. MAKE a Difference.

#TeatimeWithMissLiz #FailingUpwards #AuthenticStorytelling #BrandWithPurpose #StorytellingThatConnects

https://www.hilaryyoungcreative.com/

TEATIME WITH MISS LIZ
Guest: Holly B. Gutwillinger
Canadian Author • Podcaster • Storyteller

🐾 NORTH OF BROKEN: When Rescue Becomes a Two-Way Journey

The Dogs We Save, the Love They Give & Finding Home After Life Breaks Us

What if the animals we rescue end up rescuing us, too?

Grab your cup and join Miss Liz for a heart-centred conversation with Canadian author and podcaster Holly B. Gutwillinger, whose debut novel, North of Broken & Furever Home, launched on February 14, 2026.

Coming from a small northern Ontario town, Holly brings her love of storytelling, family, and animals to a deeply meaningful exploration of the bonds we form with our rescue dogs. Her work invites us to look beyond the act of rescue and consider the healing, trust, companionship, and belonging that can grow when two lives find their way to one another.

A proud mother of two adult sons, Holly holds a certificate in creative writing from the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies and is completing her MFA in fiction at the University of King’s College. She also serves on the board of her local writers’ guild and volunteers with the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.

Holly describes herself with one powerful word: UNSTOPPABLE.

Her favourite colour is blue, and three words that reflect her life are Resilient • Heart-Centred • Empath.

During this Teatime, we explore:

🐾 The emotional connection between humans and rescue animals
❤️ How love, trust, and companionship can help us heal
🏡 What it truly means to find a place where we belong
📚 Holly’s journey as an author and the inspiration behind her debut novel
🌱 Resilience, second chances, and the courage to keep moving forward
✨ Why sometimes the ones we set out to save become part of our own healing

This conversation goes beyond the pages of a book. It is about family, relationships, vulnerability, and the unexpected ways love can change our lives.

Because when we welcome a rescue dog into our home, we may believe we are giving them a second chance. But somewhere along the journey, we might discover that they have given us one, too.

☕ Food for Thought from Miss Liz

“Sometimes we believe we’re rescuing another living being, only to discover that somewhere between trust and unconditional love, they quietly rescued a piece of us too.” — Miss Liz

Join Miss Liz and Holly B. Gutwillinger for a Teatime filled with storytelling, compassion, resilience, and a reminder that home is not always a place. Sometimes, it is a connection that helps us feel whole again.

Pour yourself a cup, bring your love for animals, and join the conversation.

#TeatimeWithMissLiz #HollyBGutwillinger #NorthOfBroken #FureverHome #RescueDogs #AnimalRescue #CanadianAuthors #Resilience #HealingThroughLove #SecondChances #Storytelling

Beyond Survival: From Awareness to Empowerment

Misti Spencer
Author • Speaker • Survivor Advocate • Director of Development & Partnerships, Empowerment Access Foundation

“A survivor’s story is more than what happened to them—it is also what they choose to build afterward.”

Grab your cup and join Miss Liz for a powerful, honest, and necessary conversation with Misti Spencer—author, speaker, survivor advocate, and Director of Development & Partnerships for Empowerment Access Foundation.

Misti brings both lived experience and professional insight to the conversation surrounding human trafficking, exploitation, domestic violence, addiction, trauma, prevention, and the systems that can leave survivors without meaningful pathways forward.

Her memoir, Drinking Beauty and the Seven Narcissists: A Musical Journey, explores a deeply personal journey through childhood exploitation, human trafficking, domestic violence, addiction, difficult relationships, trauma, healing, and survival.

But Misti's story does not end with what she survived.

It is also a story of education, resilience, advocacy, empowerment, and purpose.

A psychology graduate of the University of Central Florida, Misti serves on the Advisory Board for UCF’s Center for the Study of Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery and has contributed to educational curriculum addressing human trafficking.

Today, through her advocacy and partnership work, she is focused on helping turn awareness into meaningful action—connecting survivors with opportunity while bringing businesses, nonprofits, educators, and communities together to create change.

Misti reminds us that survivors should never be defined solely by what happened to them.

They are voices.
They are leaders.
They are advocates.
They are creators of new chapters.

And sometimes, the most powerful thing we can do is not simply tell a survivor’s story, but listen to their voice, believe their experience, and create opportunities for them to help shape the future.

AWARENESS • EMPOWERMENT • PREVENTION

Misti comes to us from Orlando, Florida, USA.

Her favourite colour is purple.

The one word she uses to describe herself is Unique.

On this Teatime table, we’ll explore what happens when awareness moves beyond conversation and becomes action.

We’ll talk about survivor advocacy, prevention, education, partnership, healing, dignity, opportunity, and the importance of creating systems where survivors are not simply supported—but empowered to lead.

Welcome to Teatime with Miss Liz, where we bring real stories, real experiences, and conversations that aren't always easy—but need to happen.

Grab your cup.

Open your heart.

And let's dig deep.

#TeatimeWithMissLiz #MistiSpencer #SurvivorVoices #HumanTraffickingAwareness #SurvivorAdvocacy #AwarenessEmpowermentPrevention #TurnAwarenessIntoAction #DomesticViolenceAwareness #Empowerment #Prevention #SurvivorSupport

Misti's Three Words: