Inclusion Starts With Asking: Jenna Udenberg on Disability, Advocacy and the Courage to Speak Up
The Audacious Living PodcastShow Notes
What if creating a more inclusive world begins with something much simpler than having all the answers?Sometimes it starts with being willing to ask, listen, speak up and recognize that everyone deserves to have their needs seen and respected.───Signature Quote“We know better, so now we need to do better.”───Why This Quote MattersJenna's words capture the heart of this conversation: awareness is only the beginning. Real inclusion requires us to turn what we know into action and have the courage to challenge systems that can do better.───Episode DescriptionWhat does it really mean to build a world where people's needs aren't treated as "special," but simply human?Jenna Udenberg has been a manual wheelchair user since childhood, and her experiences with disability, accessibility and advocacy have shaped how she thinks about resilience, relationships and the responsibility we have to one another. Rather than simply accepting inaccessible systems, Jenna has learned to ask better questions, speak up and challenge people with the power to create change.In this conversation, Jenna and Audley explore the courage required to ask for help, the difference between happiness and hard-fought joy, the importance of community, and why inclusion begins with authentic communication. Jenna reminds us that progress doesn't happen simply because we recognize what's wrong. It happens when we decide to do something about it.───This Episode Is For You If...• you want to better understand accessibility and inclusion• you're learning how to advocate for yourself or others• you've struggled with asking for help• you're navigating adversity while trying to hold onto joy• you believe awareness should lead to meaningful action───Guest BioJenna Udenberg is the founder of Above and Beyond With U, a Minnesota-based nonprofit focused on increasing accessibility and inclusion, both physically and attitudinally. Diagnosed with juvenile arthritis at age seven and a manual wheelchair user since age eight, Jenna brings lived experience to conversations about disability, access and belonging.Before moving more deeply into accessibility education and advocacy, Jenna spent 19 years as a music educator. Her journey eventually led her into community leadership, where she discovered the power of using her experiences not simply to tell her own story, but to challenge assumptions and help create better systems for others.At the centre of Jenna's work is a deeply human idea: leave spaces and people better than you found them. Her approach to advocacy is rooted in relationships, honest conversations and the belief that creating a more inclusive world is something we have to do together.───Guest Links🌐 Above and Beyond With U → https://aboveandbeyondwithu.org📖 Memoir: Within My Spokes → Available on Amazon and wherever books are soldJenna also shares her work through Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.───Listen on Major Platforms🎧 Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/2jVR6V7X2kRiCCDXE0FTyl?si=IR3TsfEWR3WA6BzfBRnVXQ🍎 Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-audacious-living-podcast/id1547447345📦 Amazon Music → https://music.amazon.ca/podcasts/9f7902bb-dec8-4bd9-918d-d1fef21b7c67/the-audacious-living-podcast?ref=dm_sh_pGv57yQvAmAQVp2IIaXoDwtFt───Call To ActionEnjoying the show?Share this episode with someone who needs to hear this.⭐ Leave a review:👉 https://ratethispodcast.com/audacious
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You have an idea. Maybe you have had it for years, sketched on a napkin or sitting in a journal. The difference between you and the inventor on QVC is not talent. It is knowing the right way to move. Signature Quote "Do not share your information until the ink dries." Lisa learned the hard way that an unprotected idea is a vulnerable one. This line from her book is the rule she lives by, and the one she wants every new inventor to hear first. Lisa Ascolese, known as The Inventress, has spent decades turning everyday frustrations into products that sell. Her first invention came from being embarrassed to breastfeed in public, so she created the Bosom Buddy nursing cape. A sock she used to tie her hair into a church-ready bun became the Bun Tie, her first product on QVC. A lost pair of scissors while wrapping gifts became the Wrap and Store organizer, which sold out on QVC. In this conversation, Lisa shares what inventing the right way actually means. Do your due diligence. Build a working prototype before you ever call a patent attorney. Do not add so much to a simple product that it can never get made. And keep your idea close until it is protected, because the naysayers will talk you out of it before it has a chance. She also talks about the audacity it took to pick up the phone and call buyers and celebrities, including a 30-year relationship with Dionne Warwick that started with one cold call, and why she founded the Association of Women Inventors and Entrepreneurs to lift other women up. This is a practical, no-fluff conversation for anyone sitting on an idea. This episode is for you if... - You have an idea sketched somewhere and no clue what to do next - You have wondered whether to patent first or prototype first - You want to get a product onto QVC, HSN, or a store shelf - You have been burned before and want a trustworthy guide this time - You believe inventors should lift each other up Lisa Ascolese is known as The Inventress, a name her publicist coined years ago and one she has since trademarked. Born in London and raised in Brooklyn by West Indian parents, she was inventing as a child, taking things apart around the house and making them work for her. Her first product, the Bosom Buddy breastfeeding cape, sold nationally and internationally, and she went on to sell multiple products on QVC, including the Bun Tie, the Wrap and Store organizer, and the Perfect Pockets organizer, which she later redesigned for HSN. Today Lisa helps inventors go from a napkin idea all the way to the marketplace, teaching them to do it the right way with due diligence, working prototypes, and protected ideas. She is the founder of the Association of Women Inventors and Entrepreneurs, now celebrating its 13th year, and host of The Inventors Podcast. Her book is "The Inventress Guide to Inventing the Right Way: All or Nothing, Now or Never." Her mission is simple: lifting each other up two hands at a time. 🌐 Website: https://inventingatoz.com/ Her podcast, The Inventors Podcast, and her social channels are all linked from her website. Listen on Major Platforms 🎧 Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/2jVR6V7X2kRiCCDXE0FTyl?si=IR3TsfEWR3WA6BzfBRnVXQ 🍎 Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-audacious-living-podcast/id1547447345 📦 Amazon Music → https://music.amazon.ca/podcasts/9f7902bb-dec8-4bd9-918d-d1fef21b7c67/the-audacious-living-podcast?ref=dm_sh_pGv57yQvAmAQVp2IIaXoDwtFt Enjoying the show? Share this episode with someone who needs to hear this. ⭐ Leave a review: 👉 https://ratethispodcast.com/audacious