S'more Outdoor

Ryan Shauers is a former legislative assistant for Congress who, at the end of 2012, left the working world to climb, hike and explore the American West for a year. He got so caught up in travel and adventure that he just decided to keep going, traveling to South America and later driving through all of Central America.

Join us on Mikes's journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. Mike is a husband, father, writer, woodworker, and occasional thespian. He is also the founder and curator of Wolf & Iron where he helps men heed the high call of manful living with articles and a podcast on classic manly skills and virtues.

Alex Staniforth is a 20 year old adventurer, ambassador and speaker from Cheshire in England. His story is one of overcoming adversity on his journey to climb Mount Everest, where both of his attempts to reach the summit ended in tragedy with the 2014 and 2015 avalanches. He has recently released his first book ICEFALL endorsed by Bear Grylls and is passionate about helping other people to discover the outdoors and their own 'Everest'.

In the latest episode of the S’more Outdoor Podcast I had the pleasure of interviewing Abigail Wise about the outdoors and her journey of landing her dream job with Outside Magazine where she gets to blend her passion of story telling with her passion for the outdoors.   She talks about camping and canoeing the Boundary Waters in Minnesota, camping in a meadow of purple flowers at Fiordland National Park in New Zealand and what it’s like to work at Outside Magazine.

Kate writes the Pacific Northwest Mystery Series for Kensington Publishing, featuring a young journalist, Meg Reed, who bills herself as an intrepid adventurer in order to land a gig writing for Northwest Extreme. Only Meg’s idea of sport is climbing onto the couch without spilling her latte. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and son, where you can find her hitting the trail, at an artisan coffee shop, or at her favorite pub. Better yet—at all three. Buy Kate's books on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

Josh and Heather are the hosts of The First 40 Miles, a weekly hiking and backpacking podcast.  Their family has enjoyed living in some of the most beautiful regions the United States, from the Cascades to the Adirondacks to the Rocky Mountains.  Heather and Josh live in Oregon with their four wonderful children.

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on John’s journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. John is the Founder and Host of EntrepreneurOnFire, an award winning Podcast revealing the journey of today’s most inspiring Entrepreneurs 7-days a week. With over 1 million unique listens a month, EntrepreneurOnFire has inspired Fire Nation to take control of their life and take the Entrepreneurial leap.

Jon was born in London, England, in 1977 and moved to the USA at the age of 10. He and his wife Amy live in the mountains of Colorado with their four children. Jon is an avid outdoorsman. In the winter, you’ll find him snowboarding with his kids. When spring comes and the snow starts melting, you’ll find him riding his mountain bike or motorcycle with friends throughout Colorado. A serial entrepreneur, Jon spent a decade working with well known brands helping them develop and implement innovative marketing strategies. In 2009, he participated in one of the most selective and unique MBA programs in the country, a six month journey working directly with Seth Godin in New York City. In 2011 Jon joined the team at Ransomed Heart where he leads online strategy and helps provide leadership to the And Sons Team. Learn about Jon's new film A Story Worth Living at http://astoryfilm.com/

Lance is the founder of Get Out Together which advocates connecting with others through outdoor and active lifestyles. By day, Lance manages an inside sales team for a large global technology company, by night he’s a husband and father of 4. He attempts to answer the question that so many are plagued with, “how do I find time to get outside?”

James is an underachiever only because he’s constantly expanding his potential by doing something amazing then immediately striving for more knowing that his mind, body, and spirit have been stretched to a new level of possibilities. He’s the author of "Conquer the Entrepreneur's Kryptonite: Simple Strategic Planning for You and Your Business" and "Challenge Accepted!: A Simple Strategy for Living Life on Purpose"  

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Scott's journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. Scott is a Seattle-based adventurer, photographer, and writer, specializing in capturing the most wild, rugged, and pristine beauty of the great Pacific Northwest and beyond. A Minnesota native, Scott has lived in Seattle since 2013 and has come to love exploring the mountains as a way of life.

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Darren's journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. Darren is a Wisconsin author who enjoys camping, hiking, canoeing, and tasty campfire food.  He has been camping since he was a young boy, but only seriously writing for the last 4 years.  Pie Iron Recipes is his first recipe book.  His website is DarrenKirby.com.

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Erin's journey as she shares her experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in her business and life today. Erin is author of "Alaska on the Go: exploring the 49th state with children," and publisher of AKontheGO.com, Alaska's only family travel resource. She also is a regular contributor to the CBS television and NPR affiliates in her hometown of Anchorage, where she writes and presents about family travel and outdoor recreation opportunities in Alaska.

  Paul is a father of four who loves the outdoors and adventure. He's most comfortable on top of a 20000 foot peak, paddling a mountain lake or hiking in the remote wilderness. To him, the outdoors is the healthiest place to be mentally and physically, and a great environment to raise kids. His goal is to use video, photography and writing to share the knowledge, tools and confidence that can make you feel more confident to get outdoors alone, or with family and friends over at The Outdoor Adventure.net

  This episode is dedicated to all you who have lost your hero. The person who taught you everything about life and was the rock in your family. In this episode I share a small part of the journey my dad and I had together and what he taught me about business and life. He died on November 30, 2014 at the age of 77.   

  While in Yosemite National Park for Memorial Day Weekend, I recorded videos and took new product shots of my soap. I had a blast before leaving Yosemite Valley and decided to share how I became known as the Rugged Soapmaker and how the brand for Mountain Man Soap came about. 

  In this episode I share about my Memorial Day Weekend experience in Yosemite, how crowded it was and exciting for me to see so many people playing outside. This is what life is all about… taking time to enjoy the outdoors and experience the Nature Effect. 

  You’ve probably heard it before, we live in a noisy world. Both audio as well as visual. We are constantly distracted by the things in our lives. We allow procrastination to rule our lives. Living this way is unhealthy, for our emotional and mental stability. We can, however, choose to distract ourselves from our digital playground. We can choose to procrastinate and live a better life. 

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Greg's journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. Greg is the founder and CEO of Woodline Adventures. He and his family have enjoyed outdoor recreation for years and have developed various skills used for both family camping and backcountry adventures. Greg enjoys getting out into “the wild” and equally enjoys helping others get away from their Monday through Friday lives in the “concrete jungle” of the city.

  We live in a world full of distractions. Everywhere we turn, there is something that is vying for our attention. Whether it is from the accumulation of stuff, the events we have committed to, or the technology we are constantly connected to. All these things we have invited into our lives have left lift space left for us to do the things we really want to do. At the end of the day, we have very little time left to enjoy the life we most want to live. Our lives our overloaded and we need to make room for the outdoors. 

Tony DiLorenzo is the co-founder of ONE Extraordinary Marriage, co-host of the #1 Marriage Podcast, the ONE Extraordinary Marriage Show and authors of the Amazon bestseller, The 7 Days of Sex Challenge.

  Today, our lives are full of distractions. People all over the world are vying for our attention. It becomes overwhelming at times and we feel like we are going to break down. In this episode I share with you how nature can have an impact on your brain, your mind and the way you feel. How bringing nature to you when you can’t spend more time outside, is the best thing you can do to help experience the benefits of the Nature Effect.   

  Tyler is a founder of The Outbound Collective, a community-driven platform for discovering the best outdoor adventures. He grew up grew up with a passion for getting outdoors in Southern California, but relocated to the Bay Area for school. Its close proximity to the ocean and the sierras has kept him there ever since.

You know how when you stand up too quickly, you get all dizzy and have to grab onto something because you feel like you might fall over? It’s part of the natural balance our bodies are designed to use in order to keep our equilibrium.      We have this strong sense of balance because of the forces in our world, such as gravity, and the way we’re simply designed. Without balance, we would be stumbling all over the place and maybe there would be another force that kept us in our right state of mind. But balance is a powerful thing and we need it to do just about any task we need to. 

Chris is the Last Adventurer, a blogger, social media personality, freelance writer, gear tester, and currently the Outdoor Editor In Chief for Salomon. With over twenty five years of experience in the outdoors, Chris has seen it all, from protecting the natural resources of California as a State and Federal Park Ranger, to exploring, hiking, and mountaineering on three continents and many unique spots.

On average, more than nine in 10 adults (93.3 percent) spend more than two hours each day using a digital device, with more than six in 10 adults (60.8 percent) spending five or more hours on digital devices each day. Whether it's for work or play, using computers, smartphones, tablets and e-readers, TV or video games, all that time can take a toll on the eyes and lead to digital eye strain - The Vision Council. Learn what you can do to help reduce digital eyestrain in your life in today's episode.

  Josh is an avid photographer, writer, hiker and overall lover of adventure and donuts. Currently traveling and documenting my time in California through the website CaliforniaThroughMylens.com and worldwide at SeekTheSunrise.com. Live by the quote "Always make memories over money, you will never regret it.”

Everyone gets a fresh new start to the day. When we wake up, we have a decision to make and we must ask ourselves one question. How will I make today the best day ever?  Most of the time, we wake up and are either excited about the day or are unhappy about what we have to do. And it stems from how satisfied we are in our job or the work we do.    This can lead to lack of clarity and our ability to get and stay focused. I believe hiking is one of the best ways to help us clear our mind and focus. 

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Dustin's journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. Dustin created Engaged Marriage to help other married couples live a life they love, especially when they feel too busy to make it happen.  He's been happily married "up" to his wife Bethany for 14 years and has three kids under the age of 10.  He lives for the outdoors and loves sharing the beauty of God's creation with his family around St. Louis and on their trips away.

Every company, every business, and every entrepreneur has a desire to be more productive. They want to hire the best employees or the best independent contractors to make sure they increase productivity and therefore increase profits.  There may come a point in your life or in your business where you or your employees aren’t very productive.  I believe personal productivity in any position depends on how satisfied you are with your job. How motivated you are to perform. When you’re dissatisfied or burnt out at work, your unproductive behavior affects everyone.    You’ll learn what I did to increase my productivity when I was burnt out at work. 

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Brendan's journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. Brendan is an entrepreneur who helps people make a difference and an income from doing what they love. He is the founder of The Start of Happiness, a community that helps people find what they're passionate about and start to build an income around it.

When you first got married, you had dreams and goals. It was important for you to make sure you were going into your relationship with the right reasons and the ability to take care of your spouse. To support them no matter what when things take a turn in life. It’s the excitement of finding a person you can love that keeps the marriage alive in the beginning and then the constant things you work on to create the life you want with your spouse. But eventually, life happens and stress takes over. You no longer have mental or emotional stability. Since the outdoors reduces stress and builds you up emotionally, and one definition of balance is mental and emotional stability, this is how you will be able to keep from being emotionally drained while balancing work and family. 

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Derek's journey as he shares his experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in his business and life today. Derek is a happy father and husband. He's a typical guy, not an athlete or someone with an extensive amount of time off. He works his outdoor adventures into an otherwise busy life with family and work obligations. He gets outside to recharge his batteries as much as he can. 

What can the Nature Effect do for you? Join us on Rebecca's journey as she shares her experience with the outdoors and how it has an impact in her business and life today. Rebecca is a former Army officer who lives with her husband and two young children in Laramie, Wyoming. They own Just Trails and write trail guides for southeastern Wyoming and Northern Colorado. Rebecca also leads a popular family hiking group in Laramie and writes about women in the outdoors at Hike Like A Woman She's also writing her first book all about hiking with babies and toddlers.

This week I started a new job. It all happened very quickly and had a huge impact on the amount of time I’ve had to work on my topic shows. Even though my time was limited and I’m adjusting to this new schedule, it’s exciting. I am having a blast learning about the company. I am doing something that aligns with my values, dreams and passions. This position allows me to do everything I love to do. Talk to people and sell them on the benefits of getting outdoors. How will this have an impact on the future of S’more Outdoor? One day, my wife and I would like to own a retreat like the place I’m now working for. I will do the best I can do for this new family run business and I am just excited that I get to spend my time doing what I love. 

Pete moved from the East Coast to sunny Los Angeles and has been hitting the trails ever since. You can read about his adventures and his encounter with a bikini-clad panda at Eastwesthike.com and his 140 character thoughts at Twitter.com/adkinla

Adam relishes being an avid backpacker, hiker, and all-around adventure junkie. While he currently spends his time hiking in southern Arizona, he grew up in Missouri, where he was naturally inclined to spend as much time as he could outdoors. Adam’s passion for the outdoors grew as he climbed the ranks of the Cub Scouts and then Boy Scouts, eventually attaining the rank of Eagle Scout. Adam currently runs Hiking The Trail a hiking blog and is the Co-Founder of Epic Social Adventures.

  There’s a lot of information on the internet as well as from those who’ve written articles and books on the subject of work life balance. Some believe we need more balance in our lives and that without it, we’re not happy and stressed. That we’re out of balance because we’re overwhelmed and always on the go. Others believe that balance is stupid, is bunk or that it’s a lie.  In today's episode, I share my thoughts on work life balance, what it really means and how you can achieve it by incorporating the outdoors. 

Alyssa is the founder and CEO of Hipcamp, a company that helps people discover and book amazing places to camp. Their mission is get more people outside. She has a degree from UCLA in Digital Democracy and her deepest passion is helping shape how the internet impacts our humanity and our planet.

Amy Marquis, Co-Director & Founder As a writer, editor, photo editor and film director with nearly 15 years of editorial experience, including nine years atNational Parks Magazine – Amy is uniquely poised to access and produce the most compelling stories about the national parks today. Her award winning Yosemite film, “The Way Home,” inspired the NPX series. She is the editor of The Digital Naturalist, a blog dedicated to improving advocacy video storytelling, teaches a filmmaking class at Boulder Digital Arts, and recently produced a short film for The New York Times. Dana Romanoff, Co-Director & Digital Photographer Dana is a visual storyteller whose images grace the pages of National Geographic, The New York Times and publications worldwide. While working at The Charlotte Observer, Dana was among the team recognized as a runner-up to the Pulitzer Prize in 2007. She’s received international awards and recognition including the Anthropographia Multimedia and Human Rights Award, which brought her film, “No Man’s Land” to worldwide human-rights gatherings. Dana has directed and shot advocacy films appearing at live-events from packed stadiums to film festivals around the globe.

  We live in a time when we are constantly immersed in technology. There is so much noise and distractions in our life, that we sometimes struggle day to day. We just go to through the motions. Studies show, technology is making us smarter, but if we don't have some balance, if we don't spend more time outdoors, it will have a negative effect on us. If you embrace technology, then you need to embrace the outdoors and in this episode, you will learn why. 

Kate is the Content Creator and Community Leader over at Entrepreneur On Fire, a 7 day a week podcast that interviews today's most inspiring and successful entrepreneurs. Kate partnered up with John Lee Dumas, the Founder and Host of Entrepreneur On Fire, after leaving her position as an Account Executive at an advertising and marketing agency in 2013. She is the host of Kate's Take: The EntrepreneurOnFire Audio Blog and author of The Fire Path: Where your passion and our guidance unite!

Brendan owns Brazilian Jiu Jitsu clothing brand - Ok Kimonos which does 6 figures in revenue while he works from 3am to 5am every morning, some nights, and some weekends and has been doing this for the last few years. He has two blogs at Gi Reviews and Ok Kimonos Blog. He is a full time high school assistant principal, trains with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu as well as does strength and conditioning training. Brendan has recently launched his podcast Entrepreneurs and Coffee. The things that matter most in his life are his faith, church and spending time with his wife and son.

It has been said that each of us has one idea a year that could make us millions. We have ideas we get excited about and then after a few weeks, or maybe even a few days, our excitement goes away. We start telling ourselves the idea won’t work or no one will like the idea. But then someone else has been blessed with the same idea you had, runs with it and it’s a success.

Dan is the author of the New York Times best-selling 48 Days To The Work You Love.  If you’ve ever buried your dreams in an attempt to be “practical” or “realistic,” Dan will show you how embracing those dreams is the most practical way to enjoy life and achieve the success you’re looking for.

Tim served five years in the United States Marine Corps, spending the majority of his career as a Marine Security Guard protecting U.S. embassies in Algeria, Russia and Peru. He was inspired to start the 1, 2, Many Project after seeing media coverage of the epidemic of veteran suicide concentrate on the statistics rather than the human beings caught inside the crisis. As a veteran and a survivor of suicidal behavior, Tim wanted to change the conversation to engage the broader community in proactive solutions.

None of us like being sick. It’s an awful feeling and one we would prefer not to experience if we didn’t have to. Sickness, whether it’s from a cold, the flu or food poisoning isn’t enjoyable. A few days of  constant sweats and chills, followed by a few weeks of runny noses and a sore throat.. who wants to deal with that?  You promise to take better care of yourself.    However your body reacts to being sick, you can help to reduce your chances of being sick by doing a couple of things I’ve found to help in my life. 

Brian, a servant of King Jesus, husband to Jodi, father to senve beautiful blessings, is a certified Funhog who loves to share his passion for Jesus and adventure. Brian has been leading people of all ages (6 months to 65) through adventure eperiences for the last twenty years. Part of his gifting is the ability to mold any adventure to the capability of the group. With Brian on the trip you are sure to be challenged no matter what you are doing.

Brady is a San Luis Obispo wedding and landscape photographer, astrophotography workshop teacher, husband, father of two, half marathon finisher, bacon & chocolate lover.

Stress will always be a part of life. It’s necessary for providing challenge to our emotional, mental and physical development. However, chronic stress and our inability to deal with it can cause serious problems with our health and how we adapt to our environment. In my quest to understand how the outdoors can have an impact in your life and help you eliminate the stress you can control, or at least how you react to it, I’m discovering new information myself.

Jonathan Milligan is an author, blogger, speaker and career coach. He has spent the last decade counseling, guiding and directing career professinals on how to pursue meaningful work. Since 2009 Jonathan has been building a portable lifestyle business through blogging. Today, he teaches others the roadmap to doing the same.