BEACHWOOD, Ohio — Melinda Smith is the Director of Operations and Business Development at Rent a Daughter Senior Care by day and a podcast owner by night.
What You Need To Know
- The podcast “Heart Mojo with Melinda Smith” aims to help listeners meet challenges in life
- The podcast is hosted by Melinda Smith. She beat breast cancer and now battles Parkinson’s disease
- With the help of newclevelandradio.net, the podcast is available on all podcasting platforms
In 2015, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, and just recently was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
“I had no history, I was a fitness coach and in really, really good shape,” Smith said. “I never smoked, drank moderately, never did drugs, healthy person, but yet I got breast cancer, I was not the poster child for that.” Recently, I have a new diagnosis of Parkinson’s, which kind of came unexpectedly.”
Her podcast, “Heart Mojo with Melinda Smith,” started by talking about her journey.
“…and having a few cancer individuals on, cancer survivors, people who are actively dealing with cancer, but then it kind of morphed into life’s challenges because not everybody has cancer, thank God,” Smith said. “But you may have a challenge that you’re dealing with and I want to be able to find things that help you get through that.”
While going through cancer treatments, she would film videos of herself talking about the ups and downs and everything in between.
“Just talking about going through the process, talking about sleepless nights, talking about running to the bathroom and making a joke out of it and saying it’s okay to feel this way. It’s okay to be mad, it’s okay to be sad, but it’s all in your perspective,” she said. “You have to try and look at the good things that are coming out of going through chemotherapy, for example, you’re fighting cancer.”
Talking about her journey helped her get through the toughest of times and find that positive perspective. What started as more of a vlog turned into a radio-style show that’s now a podcast.
Through bringing on diverse guests like motivational speakers, authors, and everyday ordinary people, she’s hoping to help others get through their own challenges. The podcast is a passion project she said is also her calling.
“I don’t make any money at it. It’s just something that I do because I feel it’s important. It’s my way of giving back to the world,” said Smith. “I’ve had a lot of different types of people on, and whether they’re going through the challenge themselves and have come out the other side or whether they’re there to help you get through something that you’re dealing with, whatever that may be. If they have a way to help you, that’s what I want to do with the podcast. I want to help people survive their challenges.”
It’s also a support outlet that sends out positivity to people whose lives feel doused by negativity.
“Today we’re going to talk about happiness and that challenge of being happy and finding happiness through difficult times,” said Smith. “I just always look for the next message to get out to someone because I feel like that’s my goal in life, that’s part of my journey to get a hopeful message and a way to help somebody get through whatever they’re going through in that day.”
She aims to help people look at life through a different lens, no matter their circumstances. She said she knows sometimes life’s not fair, but everyone only has one life, and she’s living hers and wants others to do the same.
“I’m grateful for every day that I have. I have seen the dark side as they say, and I know where it can be and I’m grateful. I’m grateful for waking up every day and I’m blessed to have as many people as I have come up to me and tell me that it’s helped,” said Smith. “Listen, if I have to go through all of these crazy illnesses that I’ve gone through, something good better come out of it and I think it does.”
“Heart Mojo with Melinda Smith” is available on all podcast streaming platforms and on YouTube. The podcast is currently virtual, so Melinda has had guests on from all over the U.S. and world.
