What to Do When You Feel Underestimated with Mary Marantz | E67
Mary Marantz is the three-time bestselling author of Underestimated, Dirt, and Slow Growth Equals Strong Roots and the host of the popular podcast, The Mary Marantz Show. She grew up in a trailer in rural West Virginia and was the first in her family to go to college before going on to Yale for law school. Her work has been featured on CNN, MSN, Business Insider, Bustle, Thrive Global, Southern Living, Hallmark Home & Family, and more. She and her husband Justin, live in an 1880s fixer-upper by the sea in New Haven, Connecticut, with their two very fluffy golden retrievers, Goodspeed and Atticus.
Connect with Mary:
Follow Elle on Instagram: @MaryMarantz
Learn more about Mary’s work: https://www.marymarantz.com
Discover your core driver with the Achiever Quiz: https://achieverquiz.com
Take the “Name the Fear” Quiz: https://namethefear.com
If you’ve ever felt like you’re behind, not enough, or waiting on someone to give you permission, this episode of The Trailblazer Talks will speak straight to your heart.
Author and speaker Mary Marantz joins Courtney for a conversation rooted in honesty, encouragement, and hope. They unpack Mary’s newest book, Underestimated, and talk about what really holds us back from walking fully in what God has called us to.
From perfectionism and people-pleasing to fear and procrastination, Mary shares practical wisdom on building self-trust, letting go of old narratives, and starting small, even when the world underestimates you.
Links from this episode:
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Order Mary’s new book here:
What you can learn in today’s episode:
Why fear shows up most in the places you are called to create
How our self-sabotage often masks a deeper sense of unworthiness
What to do when you feel overlooked or underestimated
Why waiting for external validation will keep you stuck
The spiritual importance of starting small and building trust with yourself
Episode Blog:
Stop Shrinking Back: How to Trust God and Take Up Space
What if the loudest voice holding you back isn't the critic in the crowd but the one in your own head?
This week on The Trailblazer Talks Podcast, I talked with my friend Mary Marantz about her new book, Underestimated, and the quiet ways fear keeps us from walking in the work God has already assigned to us.
Mary’s story is one of remarkable contrast from growing up in a single-wide trailer in West Virginia to graduating from Yale Law School. But what struck me most in our conversation was not her accomplishments. It was how familiar her internal struggles still feel.
She’s lived the very tension so many of us wrestle with: the ache to live fully into our calling, paired with the fear that maybe we’re not enough.
When Fear Becomes the Narrator
Fear doesn’t always shout. Sometimes it whispers.
You’ll never be ready.
Someone else is already doing it.
It’s already been said, already been done.
Mary calls fear a “boring liar.” It’s not original, but it is persistent. And if we’re not careful, we start to treat it like truth.
In her book, she names 14 different masks fear wears: procrastination, people-pleasing, imposter syndrome, overthinking — all sneaky forms of self-sabotage. And the hardest part? We often don’t realize we’re the ones counting ourselves out.
The Shift Starts Small
We tend to think the solution is to go big. Start a podcast, write the book, launch the business. But Mary reminded us that the real shift begins small.
It’s about setting one honest, meaningful goal and keeping your word to yourself.
It’s about becoming a woman who can be trusted with her own calling, not just in public but in private. In the unseen. In the daily, ordinary spaces where character is formed and capacity is built.
God may have called you to big things, but He builds them slowly. He gives us just enough light for the next step.
Start Without Permission
One of my favorite moments in our conversation was when Mary said, “If you wait for the world to give you permission, you’ll be waiting forever.”
That line hit something deep.
We’ve been taught to wait our turn. To let someone else go first. To be polite, humble, quiet. But obedience often looks like taking the first step even when no one’s clapping because you know the assignment came from God.
The world may never fully understand the work He’s given you. But you were never called to make it make sense to them.
You were called to be faithful.
Subscribe to the show wherever you listen! Connect with me on Instagram at @courthopejones.
