Armed & Generous

In this episode, I'm excited to welcome platinum producer Rick Steel to the show. Rick is an independent music producer of major recording artists such as French Montana and has collaborated with the likes of P Diddy at Bad Boy Records to name a few…I mean who hasn't right?    He's excelled in his craft by following the beat of his own drum and staying outside of the system. Rick and I talk about his early days in the music industry, his first major producing gig with Ja Rule (where would I be without by baby), his work with French, Diddy and others to help restore broken systems globally and his work locally with young people through his New York music studio.    As you can tell, Rick's always looking for ways to give back, often enlisting the help of fellow collaborators in the music industry to donate and get the word out.  If you're someone who loves music, loves stories and are looking for ways to break out of the everyday and do something extraordinary while giving back along the way, then this episode is for you. 

On this episode, I'm joined by Andy, Ben and Narendra of Day by De. This giveback side gig provides “farm to family” solutions in impoverished communities in Zambia. They're a group of talented, driven guys who started a non-profit on top of their already busy professional schedules. They focus on building schools, gardens and chicken farms to help offset the economic disparity in rural Zambia. Together, these projects have helped over 3,000 Zambians to date with a goal of helping many more in the years to come. Outside of their work with Day by De we hit a range of topics including goat wrestling, how much smarter Ben is than me (hint, it's a lot) and the challenges of working within subcultures in one country. True to the Armed & Gen framework, these guys are using their 9-5 skills to bring about change to those in need. Narendra is an entrepreneur and is involved in real estate which translates into an unstructured, nonprofit world where he's standing up projects without any guidelines given to him. Andy is a commercial photographer who brings his creative skills to the table to bring the brand to life. And Ben is an environmental engineer who helps oversee the project work and operates as a jack of all trades for the organization. They combine to create a dream team who provides 300-700 chickens per community and help build schools as well, with a goal of a sustainable business model. Their aim is to do 3-5 of these projects per year and they can't do it alone. To learn more about Day by De and to donate to help support a project, visit the official site and follow on Facebook. Now to work on some goat wresting moves...

Mark Inkrott stopped by Armed & Generous to talk about his time in the NFL, his passion for agriculture, the value of hard work and how he got involved with the hunger crisis. Mark was drafted by the Carolina Panthers then played for the New York Giants and spent one NFL Europe season. In his professional career, Inkrott played 15 games, caught 15 passes and scored one touchdown. Following his NFL career, Mark earned a MBA in Marketing and Leadership from Ohio Dominican University. We dive into a range of topics from his roommate and mentor Kurt Warner to my chances at an NFL career and then some more serious takes on building a career that counts along with his insights on food insecurity in the US and what can be done about this challenging issue. Mark gets real about what it's like to go from the top 1% of your craft in the NFL to the bottom of barrel in the business world. He bounced around and tried teaching and coaching. That's where he learned some valuable lessons that birthed in him a new, profound direction. But it wasn't until he landed in the dairy industry where things really started to crystalize for him in terms of purpose and passion. His next move was to start his own thing with an old friend with a continued focus on food management, agriculture marketing, and all thing related to the food supply. Within his for-profit efforts in the cooler management sector, Mark and team have spun up a nonprofit arm called Fresh Has No Boundaries to augment the work other partners are doing. For example, only 10% of food pantries can accommodate fresh veggies, meat and dairy products due to lack of refrigeration; something Mark is trying to change. One tactic he's using is the Park It Market that provides a best-in-class experience for those in food deserts to have access to fresh, high nutrient foods. With 42 million American's who are food insecure, 13 million children living in a food insecure home and another 13 million living in food deserts. This is a massive problem but Mark has his gridiron energy and is ready to tackle hunger. Learn more about Mark and all things Fresh Has No Boundaries Park It Market and Cooler Management to see how you can get involved.

Jenna Tanenbaum drops by Armed & Generous to talk career advice and a bit of bathroom humor--she does work for a toilet paper company after all. Jenna has a had number of twists and turns in her career from joining startups that became major brands, starting her own business then selling it, or leading growth for a global brand. No matter what she does, Jenna always comes back to a desire to help others in her work. She's currently the head of growth marketing for the DTC toilet paper company, Who Gives a Crap where they provide a sustainable product and give away 50% of their profits to help build bathroom solutions in developing countries. Learn more at https://us.whogivesacrap.org/ or follow in Instagram @whogivesacraptp to see what they're up to these days.

In this episode we'll hear from Calvin Cooper. He's an award-winning venture capitalist turned entrepreneur who took his years of VC experience with fintech, blockchain and smart city technology and is leveraging that to develop and launch an incredible new concept called Rhove, which empowers everyone to invest in and own real estate…not just a handful of developers and investors. Rhove inspires everyday people to share and discover projects and gives them the opportunity to build wealth by investing in the places they love, all with the same goal: building community. To learn more and download the Rhove app, visit rhove.com/getapp.

When you hear the name the Wright Brothers what comes to mind? Maybe you think of airplanes or bicycles or maybe you think of New Kids on the Block (you've got the right stuff baby). After listening to this episode you might just think about...water. After all it's something that these brothers think about often and something millions of people around the world think about every single day as they don't have access to clean water. But the Wright Brothers have taken very unique paths on their Armed & Generous journeys. Abe Wright is an award-winning engineer who walked away from a leadership track at Johnson and Johnson to become the Chief Technology Officer of Design Outreach which is a non-profit focused on developing humanitarian solutions for the world's most pressing issues. Clean water is one of the issues he and his talented team tackle with innovations like the Life Pump+ (no, it's not a new streaming service, although it does stream water). And his brother Luke Wright is an artist/entrepreneur who took his love for clay making and turned it into a successful give-back business. He's the founder of Mud Love, a purpose-driven brand that makes personalized mugs, jewelry and much more in their ceramics studio. And every product purchased provides 1 week of clean water to someone in need. With over 1 million weeks of clean water donated and counting. If you're someone who has a passion for people and planet and are looking for ways to use your talent and experience to give back then this episode is for you. The guys share how they navigated from idea to launching their respective orgs and provide practical ideas and tools for how you can do the same. They teach us that no matter where you work or what you do for a living, you can make the jump to something new or rework your current craft into a give back machine.

In this episode we'll hear from Rob Smith and Joseph Brim. By day, Rob is a fashion industry leader and bit of mad scientist--I should know, I work with Rob at UpWest where he leads the Production and Sourcing team. Joe, also known as the Creativangelist, is an award-winning graphic designer, entrepreneur and creative strategist. Together they formed a grassroots movement called Breaking Bread which works to bring opposing views into the same space to have authentic conversations. Their goal is to break down barriers and build bridges through meaningful conversations. They break down their backgrounds and formulas for using their gifts and talents to create meaningful change in the world by facilitating and distributing through provoking conversations and content. We dive into a broad range of topics but come back to the desire and discipline to always be authentic, to bring your best self and to shho up in a way that pays respect and honor to those who have invested in us. Rob and Joe work tirelessly to live a life well spent and to provide perspectives and platforms for others to do the same. They're taken the road less traveled and are living the Armed & Gen life by not wasting their potential but instead maximizing it. To learn more and get involved with Breaking Bread follow on Instagram @breakingbread_letstalk

In this episode we'll hear from Isabelle and Michael Marantz. They come two totally different worlds, but they're united by a passion to help others using their skills, talents, resources and networks. Isabelle has a background in sustainable development and Michael comes from the land of video and film production. They get candid and talk about the early days of starting businesses, finding their footing in their careers and then landing jobs at the United Nations, getting clients like Google and having a full New York experience…but also never being satisfied with only building a career or a craft. This power couple believes everyone wants to do good but recognize it's not always easy to make that a focus in life. And they give us ways to start small and snowball do-good efforts using our areas of expertise to create change. After cofounding a marriage they started a non-profit of their own called Stories for Good where they harness the power of story to drive positive change in the world. To learn more and get involved with Stories for Good visit storiesforgood.org.

In this episode we'll hear from Chris Schortgen, a fashion model who's also a philanthropist. I met Chris at a photo shoot and was blown away. He's had all of the success and status of a model and actor but that wasn't enough to just be successful, he seeks after significance as well. Chris has a heart for others and has taken steps to take a stand for those in need. He's truly living the Armed & Generous life. He says the solutions to make a positive impact in the world are already out there. You just have to connect the dots. He certainly connected a few dots for me during our conversation and I think he will for you too. Another male model, Derek Zoolander, might have had his Center for Kids Who Can't Read Good but that's nothing compared to the clean water charity Chris founded called 100 for All.  Chris gets real in our conversation and is vulnerable enough to share about his experience on trip to Cambodia that changed his life along with how he leveraged his community and career for charity and practical ways in which he took 100 for All from an idea to a thriving non profit. Let's dive in and see how Chris can help us become Armed & Generous. To get involved with 100 for All visit https://100forall.org/ or follow them on Instagram @100forall 

As a creative marketer with a heart for others, I've spent my entire professional life wresting with questions like: Could I have more purpose at the center of my career? Could my company take a stand for something bigger than business? How do organizations that care about people and planet outpace the competition? That's what the Armed & Generous podcast is all about; learning from those who have answered these questions and found a way to create incremental impact in the world. And they'll show us how doing good leads to growth. Upcoming guests include: ◦ A fashion model who became a philanthropist ◦ Filmmakers who tell stories for good ◦ PhD Engineers who now use their super smarts to solve the clean water crises ◦ And many, many more who are Armed & Generous. We'll learn together from these guests what it means for everyday people like us to cash in our industry equity and take a STAND to fill in the cracks the world has left behind. In the future there will be two types of organizations and leaders; those who only stand for themselves and those that stand for something bigger than themselves. And I believe the ladder of those will be standing strongest in the years to come. So, if you're ready to start to leverage your success for more significance then hit the subscribe button, share with your friends and coworkers & listen along as we discover how to live a double bottom line life...how to become Armed & Generous. Find out more at Armedandgen.com Let's do this. -Luke