top of page
Rediscover Joy
In The Messy Middle
Hello, you MESSSY Humans!
Wait, Did I just call you messy? I sure did. Because I am messy, you are messy; it's part of the human experience. There is no way to go through life without being messy. Weeping is messy. Grieving is messy. Joy can be messy and frenetic, but would we change joy?
Heck no!
I once read the story of a lady that spent her whole life not smiling so she could avoid wrinkles. She didn't smile at the birth of her child, or other huge life moments. And did she have great skin? Yes, but at the expense of what????
I know these messy moments help me feel deeply alive, and for that, I am truly grateful for my life. I also teach others through my mess. I teach you and everyone around me what it looks like to endure and experience joy, even in the midst of the mess. So try to truly embrace the messiness in your life, recognizing that it’s part of what makes you fully human. Examine it, like a scientist looking through a microscope. Investigate your life.
What is the mess trying to tell you, to teach you?
Who can you help with your story?
No matter where you find yourself in life today, it’s imperative to take care of your mental health. Check out our Mental Health Battle Plan.
Rachel On The Road
Your Story Isn't Over
The Best Is Yet To Come
With gut-level honesty, award-winning storyteller and former national sportscaster Rachel Joy Baribeau shares her own story of changing the narrative of her life from stuck, overwhelmed, and anxious to confident in her identity and joyful in her life's purpose.
With the odds stacked against her, Rachel became the first female sportscaster to host on SiriusXM College channels and hosted the very first College Football Playoff National Championship game. She has shared the secrets to her trailblazing journey with over 100,000 fans and students through her live events and her movement, I'm Changing the Narrative.
"Rachel Baribeau presented to the San Francisco 49ers
2025 Rookie Class and made a tremendous impact on the souls of our young men. Rachel provided several key takeaways, challenged our players to look inward to assess their areas of growth, highlighted their strengths and inspired them to maximize their opportunities in life. This was one of the most engaging and impactful sessions we've had during my 8 year tenure with the organization and I can't wait to have her back."
Austin Moss Il, Senior Director of Player Affairs & Development
San Francisco 49ers
Reset Your Soul With
ICTN Soul Retreat
 |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
You’ve spent years showing up, working hard, carrying responsibility, and being who people needed you to be. You’ve built a life, and in so many ways, you’ve done it well. But there comes a point where you can feel that something inside of you is tired in a way that rest alone doesn’t fix.
You were never meant to live disconnected from your own soul. What your heart is asking for now is space. Space to slow down enough to hear yourself again. Space to feel what’s been buried under the pace of your life. Space to reconnect with God, with your purpose, and with the part of you that knows who you are without all the roles you carry.
That is what we create at the I’m Changing the Narrative Soul Retreat.
The I’m Changing the Narrative Retreat is for helpers, protectors, leaders, world changers, and people who are ready to reconnect with their purpose, refill their cup, and rediscover the joy of being fully alive.
Find what brings you joy and live a life that is full of purpose and passion. Host, Rachel Joy Baribeau, is a former national sportscaster who travels the US speaking on mental health, joy, courage, and discovering purpose and passion.
She knows firsthand how important it is to find what makes you happy and go for it. Whether you're just starting on your journey or you're looking for ways to make your current path more joyful, the Joystarters podcast is for you. Tune in today and start living your best life
%20(1).png)
Joystarters With Rachel Baribeau
Check Out Rachel's Keynotes
Whether Rachel is speaking on a national stage, recording a podcast, or sharing a conversation over coffee, she approaches every interaction with the same goal. She wants people to walk away with more hope, more courage, and a deeper understanding of their value.
Her work is not about creating followers. It is about helping people believe in themselves, reconnect with their purpose, and carry that encouragement into the lives of others.
Built on Belief in People
“My mission is simple: leave people better than I found them."
— Rachel Joy Baribeau
Taking Off the Mask
"People are starving for authenticity in a world full of performance."
— Rachel Joy Baribeau
Rachel has built a movement around the idea that vulnerability is not weakness. It is strength. In a culture that often rewards appearances over honesty, she invites people to take off the mask and have real conversations about mental health, purpose, relationships, faith, and healing.
Her message resonates because it is not polished perfection. It is real life. And when people experience authenticity, they often find the freedom to become more authentic themselves.
We All Want More Joy
But What Happens When Life Kicks You In The Gut
It's rare that a book actually makes you a better human, but that's exactly what Rachel Baribeau has done in Relentless Joy.
Laura Rutledge
ESPN Sports host and reporter
I always encouraged the young men in my football program to surround themselves with people who will make their lives better. At the top of that list for me is Rachel Baribeau. Her book, Relentless Joy, is a fantastic read for all ages.
Coach Bill Snyder
former head football coach of Kansas State University
A Deep Breath for Your Soul
Subscribe to Weekly Newsletter!
Each week, Rachel Joy Baribeau brings you a pause in the middle of the noise a space to slow down, feel seen, and reconnect with what’s true. Through heartfelt stories, faith-filled perspective, and gentle encouragement, her words meet you right where you are and remind you that even in the middle of uncertainty, there is still purpose, still hope, and still a way forward.
If your heart feels tired or your spirit feels stretched, this is your place to reset and be filled back up.
You’ll receive one email each week... no flooding your inbox, no 47 follow-ups, no “just circling back” energy.
About Rachel
Award-winning Storyteller, Inspirational Speaker, Author, Changing the Narrative Founder, Transformative Coach, Host of the Joystarters™ Podcast, First Female SiriusXM ESPNU Host (College Sports Nation), and Former National Sportscaster.
In 2016, ground-breaking national sportscaster Rachel Joy Baribeau penned a piece for Gridiron Now entitled, "College Football is Breaking My Heart." The game she loved was becoming unrecognizable. Negative news stories dominated the game, and no campus seemed immune. Most broadcasters would have left it at that.
Not Rachel. Rachel developed the #ImChangingtheNarrative movement with lost souls and student-athletes in mind and a belief that one crooked course made straight is everything.
One misstep not taken means one less victim in the world. And one less life thrown away because of a split-second bad decision. Rachel uses powerful stories with refreshingly raw vulnerability from her own personal journey to show others they have the power to change the narrative and find their purpose in life.
While the message originated as purpose, passion, and platform, over a seven-year span and 100-plus campuses, it now has spread to corporations, churches, prisons, halfway houses, high schools, junior highs, K-5, LEO, and more! Her topics have expanded to mental health, being a KING/QUEEN/ROYAL every day of your life, finding JOY/purpose, and interpersonal relationships, as Rachel was a victim of domestic violence herself.
bottom of page