Podcasts about Copic

This episode features Darlene Turner from Healing Hands Community Doula Project, which aims to support expectant mothers, particularly in the Black community, through their pregnancy journey. The grant from the Copic Medical Foundation is being used for a program that trains perinatal community health workers to provide extensive support, including birth and postpartum planning, lactation guidance, family dynamics, and more. This initiative primarily serves Medicaid populations, addressing additional complexities such as Medicaid reimbursement, and aims to improve overall birth outcomes. Website -- Healinghandscp.org Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Trying to get stage time at the Laugh Factory in L.A. is a big deal—especially if you're hoping to get in front of Jamie Masada, the guy who helped launch tons of comedy careers. This story's all about the hustle, calling in favors, and navigating the weird world of showbiz politics. It's a real-life peek into how things almost happen in Hollywood—and what you learn when they don't. https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.  Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients. https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.  

People always ask what it's like being a woman in the male-dominated world of stand-up, and the truth is—it's mostly fine… but there are a couple things that drive me nuts. This is a fun peek into what what I've had people say to my face, and how I've handled it! https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.  Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients. https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations

This episode features Liz Warman and Mandy Johnson from the Kansas Health Care Collaborative and focuses on the organization's transition-in-care program that aims to leverage Health Information Exchange (HIE) to reduce care fragmentation and improve health outcomes by developing processes, workflows, and policies in clinics. This initiative is supported by grant funding from the Copic Medical Foundation and the model used has shown significant efficacy in reducing readmissions. The program received a high level of engagement from clinics and hospitals across Kansas and next steps include creating a rural network of facilities using HIE data, with the goal of scaling the model nationally to improve rural healthcare quality and reduce costs. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Imagine flying to Hawaii for a humor keynote, only to have everything shift in a way you never saw coming. As a keynote speaker, comedian, and corporate speaker, I know that timing, adaptability, and engaging an audience are everything—but this was a whole new challenge. With the pressure on and no room for error, I had to think fast and use comedy in business to keep the energy high. What happened next proved that sometimes, the best moments in public speaking come when you least expect them, and that workplace humor can turn any situation into a success. https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.  Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients. https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.

In this episode, comedian and keynote speaker Jan McInnis takes us behind the scenes of a high-stakes convention show that could make or break her career. With pressure mounting from every angle—an intimidating crowd, a skeptical agent, and a fellow comic with a history—she had no idea how the night would unfold. Tune in for a gripping and hilarious story about resilience, surprises, and finding the funny in unexpected places.   https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.   Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients.   https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/   Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations   Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association   Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations   Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,   Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations   Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.  

In this episode, Matt Groves, Copic's General Counsel, talks about the impact of recent federal executive orders and legislation on healthcare providers. He provides general information about new federal initiatives and their potential risks, emphasizing the rapid changes and uncertainty in the legal landscape. Matt explains the differences between executive orders and legislation, and the concept of federal preemption over state laws. The discussion also covers the executive order on gender-affirming care, its implications for funding, and the potential risks for healthcare providers, including criminal and civil liabilities. In addition, the episode addresses issues related to immigration enforcement and abortion, providing guidance on how healthcare providers can navigate these complex legal areas.Note: Episode recorded Thursday 2/20/25 Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Ever wondered what really goes on behind the wheel of a rideshare? As someone who relies on Uber and Lyft for travel, I've had some eye-opening experiences—some hilarious, some frustrating, and some downright nerve-wracking. From reckless drivers to unexpected fare demands and surprising last-minute changes, these rides have taught me a lot about safety, preparation, and the importance of professionalism. Whether you're a frequent traveler or just curious about the wild world of ridesharing, take a listen to the things that happened to me LAST YEAR! https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.   Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients.   https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.    

The episode features staff from AIRnyc—Lola Simpson, Chief Executive Officer; Kathleen Agaton, Chief Impact Officer; and Lydia Baez, Senior Outreach Coordinator and Community Health Worker. AIRnyc received a grant from the Copic Medical Foundation to support their efforts to reduce fragmentation in prenatal and postpartum clinical and social care for high-risk Black and Latinx pregnant persons. The discussion highlights AIRnyc's focus on addressing developmental delays in children and implementing a two-generation model for maternal and child health, which involves working with both mothers and children. Website: https://www.air-nyc.org/Donations https://www.classy.org/give/204085/#!/donation/checkout Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Ever thought you could conquer anything with just a mix of enthusiasm and naivety? In this inspiring and humorous episode, Jan McInnis shares her journey from an ill-prepared novice hiker to an experienced explorer of over 25 national parks. Through tales of daunting trails like Angel's Landing and Old Rag, Jan reflects on the surprising life lessons these adventures offer. This episode is packed with laughs, relatable missteps, and valuable leadership insights on fostering enthusiasm while offering the right guidance. Whether you're a hiking enthusiast, a leader looking to motivate your team, or someone who loves a great story of perseverance and humor, this episode is for you. Discover Jan's "recipe for success" and hear how a simple blend of courage and preparation can lead to big achievements—on trails and in life. Tune in to learn, laugh, and maybe even be inspired to visit a national park! https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.   Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients.   https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.  

For this episode, we sit down with Copic's General Counsel, Matt Groves, to talk about non-compete agreements in the medical field. The discussion starts with looking at the purpose of non-compete agreements such as protecting patient revenue, preventing competition, and safeguarding the investment in recruiting and developing physicians. Matt highlights key legal terminology (e.g., non-solicit, non-disclosure, and liquidated damages clauses), the various ways these agreements are enforced, and how they may vary by state. In addition, he reinforces the importance of seeking legal advice before signing non-competes, especially in situations where you are negotiating terms. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Kathy Copic is founder of Fieldwork Partners, where she works closely with early stage companies on scoping technical projects, getting early ML models into production, and helping them hire. She was interviewed by Lindsay Pettingill, Investment Partner at Village Global, during this masterclass for Village Global founders. Takeaways:Maintain at least three interview touchpoints to thoroughly evaluate candidates — rushing the process means missing vital signals about how well candidates understand your business and culture.Write job descriptions that focus on company mission and concrete first-90-day projects rather than generic skill requirements — this attracts candidates who are genuinely excited about your specific opportunity.Look beyond prestigious company names and degrees — strong candidates often demonstrate their passion through side projects, nonprofits, or other entrepreneurial pursuits.Foster interactive interviews where you're comfortable interrupting candidates — their response to dynamic discussion reveals more about their communication style and fit than scripted questions.Structure work trials carefully to benefit both parties — the best candidates are evaluating your team and work environment just as much as you're evaluating them.When competing with large tech companies, emphasize the concrete impact individuals can have in your startup rather than trying to match compensation packages.Build diverse teams by implementing clear interview rubrics, providing guidance on legal considerations, and equipping interviewers with specific talking points about why diversity matters to your company.For references, consider asking peers rather than managers when candidates are currently employed, but use references extensively to validate your assessments.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform.Check us out on the web at www.villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Want to get updates from us? Subscribe to get a peek inside the Village. We'll send you reading recommendations, exclusive event invites, and commentary on the latest happenings in Silicon Valley. www.villageglobal.vc/signup

This episode features Mary Tucker and Garrett Chism discussing an interprofessional education pilot program between Metropolitan State University of Denver and Denver Health. The program is supported by a grant from the Copic Medical Foundation and focuses on simulation training for nursing and EMT students to improve patient outcomes. The objectives include evaluating critical changes in patient assessment, completing trauma assessments, and demonstrating closed-loop communication. A key aim is to teach students from different disciplines to communicate effectively and understand each other's roles to reduce errors in patient care. Metropolitan State University Nursing Program: https://www.msudenver.edu/nursingDenver Health EMT training program: https://www.denverhealth.org/paramedics Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

As the Chicago Region Trees Initiative Manager at The Morton Arboretum, Colette Copic stewards national and state funding opportunities for healthier and more resilient tree canopies in our communities. This includes helping communities build capacity within their forestry programs through funding opportunities, resources, and training. As an ISA-certified arborist Copic's background includes work in urban and community forestry, tree protection policy, ecological restoration, and community engagement. _______________________________________________________________________Patreon: http://patreon.com/TheMunicipalArboristInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_municipal_arborist/Questions or comments?themunicipalarborist@gmail.comThank you to our sponsors:Davey Resource GroupArbsessionWinkler Tree & Lawn Care________________________________________________________________________

In This Episode Guest: Brandon Copic, Fox Weather Storm Chaser Guest Freak: Jordan Hall, Storm Chaser Brought to you by our Patreon Team Recognize our Patreon Teammates and 2025 BenefitsMMFS brings you STORM-net and HurricaneVision at 10% OFF Shop Storm Front Freaks in The Wx Store Lightning Round: Dirty Minds Weatherfools - We present the fools doing stupid things in weather situations Weather Trollbot 5000 - Trollbot interprets what our weather friends were really thinking when responding to trolls Announce Next Show/Guest(s) Check out our Patreon page for exciting ways to support our podcast and interact with us more! COMING IN 2025…PATREON MEMBERS ONLY ACCESS TO LIVE SHOW AND CHAT!  www.patreon.com/stormfrontfreaks Our Guest: Brandon Copic, Storm Chaser An Ohio native, Brandon started studying meteorology at the age of 12 despite being terrified of storms when he was young.  He was inspired to storm chase by Norm Van Ness, Chief Meteorologist at NBC Toledo 24 and Reed Timmer's chase videos.  Brandon has been chasing for almost 16 years and is a full-time storm chaser providing streams for Fox Weather. 10% OFF for LIFE when you subscribe to STORM-net and HurricaneVision at https://data.mesoscaleforecast.com/account/membership and use the code STORMFRONT at check-out Shop Storm Front Freaks and Outbreak/StormCat5 gear exclusively at thewxstore.com Weatherfools Links Phil - From Fuzzy…Learn From My Complete Failure (TADD) Subscribe to us on YouTube.com/stormfrontfreaks for news when we go live with Storm Front Freaks Outbreak coverage of storms, tornadoes, hurricanes and blizzards Submit your questions or comments about this show to questions@stormfrontfreaks.com or on our social media accounts and we may read it on our next episode! Next Episode…we're starting off Season 10 with a massive, Death Star explosion-level BANG!  We're bringing back the Storm Front Freaks Movie Commentary as we watch Twisters together.  We'll be joined by friend of the show and advisor to the film, National Weather Service's Rick Smith.  It's LIVE Thursday, January 2nd at a SPECIAL TIME AND PLACE!   Join our growing list of Patreon teammates to get the LIVE details at Patreon.com/stormfrontfreaks.  As always, the audio podcast will be available that weekend on your podcast player. Twitter: @stromfrontfreak BlueSky: @stormfrontfreaks YouTube:  YouTube.com/stormfrontfreaks Credits Opening Music: Brett Epstein Closing Music: Gabe Cox Other Music: “Pecos Hank” Schyma from El Reno Blues

We welcome Beth Chow, an occurrence nurse with Copic, who provides some great perspective about the benefits and value of early reporting of incidents. Beth explains the interchangeable terms "occurrence" and "incident" and clarifies what constitutes an adverse event and the types of events you should report to your medical liability insurance carrier. She goes on to explain how Copic's reporting process works, why early reporting does not negatively impact your policy or premiums, and how early intervention programs like Copic's 3Rs Program and Candor help resolve issues and maintain open communication with patients. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Amy Herum, a nurse and patient safety and risk manager with Copic, joins us to talk about the purpose and scope of EMTALA. Amy explains the situations that trigger EMTALA obligations and the definition and assessment of an “emergency medical condition.”The discussion then looks at the requirements and process of transferring a patient under EMTALA, the penalties and consequences of violating EMTALA, and the conditions that end EMTALA obligations such as when a medical screening exam shows no emergency medical condition, the patient is transferred to another hospital in compliance, or when the patient refuses examination, treatment, or transfer and signs an informed refusal or against medical advice form. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

A weekly magazine-style radio show featuring the voices and stories of Asians and Pacific Islanders from all corners of our community. The show is produced by a collective of media makers, deejays, and activists. Host Miko Lee speaks with playwright Naomi Iizuka and graphic novelist/activist Eddie Ahn.   For more information about the show's guests:   the MAGIC THEATRE and PLAY ON SHAKESPEARE present: Richard II A new translated version by NAOMI IIZUKA from William Shakespeare August 21 -September 8, 2024 Tickets available here. Eddie Ahns Advocate SHOW TRANSCRIPT Opening: [00:00:00] Apex Express Asian Pacific expression. Community and cultural coverage, music and calendar, new visions and voices, coming to you with an Asian Pacific Islander point of view. It's time to get on board the Apex Express.   Miko: [00:00:34] Good evening. Welcome to Apex Express. This is your host, Miko Lee. And tonight we're going to talk about retelling stories. So join us as you hop along the Apex Express. Welcome one and all to Apex Express. This is your host, Miko Lee. And tonight we're talking about retelling stories. I had the opportunity to speak to two artists. One is the playwright, Naomi Iizuka and the second is the activist artists graphic novelist Eddie Ahn. So first up, take a listen to my interview with playwright, Naomi Iizuka. Before we recorded the interview, I actually had a chance to talk with Naomi and we worked together many moons ago. We actually were calculating based on our children's ages. We work together in theater at Berkeley rep. And it is amazing to see Naomi retelling, so many stories in so many different cultures and genres. And here we talk about her experience rewriting Richard II which I had a chance to see at the magic theater. It has some absolutely amazing production values, and I encourage you all to go check it out. We'll put a link to the show in our show notes. So check out my interview with Naomi Iizuka. Welcome Naomi Iizuka to Apex Express. We're so excited to have the award winning playwright whose adaptation of Richard II opens at the Magic Theatre August 23rd and runs through September 8th. Welcome Naomi.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:02:30] Oh, thank you so much. I'm so happy to be here and so honored.   Miko Lee: [00:02:34] Well, we're honored to have you. I want to start with my big question, which I adapted from the amazing poet Chinaka Hodges, which is who are your people and where do you come from?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:02:46] That's a beautiful question. I think that my people are adventurous and iconoclastic, and that means that they come from many different places, geographically and also spiritually and artistically. I definitely feel an affinity for the Bay Area. it was the first place I really. Came to in my sort of adult life and I feel a great affinity for theater people and theater artists. we are, I think, a community of artists that come from, you know, all sorts of traditions and we make this evanescent event. And I think there's something really beautiful in that.   Miko Lee: [00:03:31] Ooh, evanescent event. I really like that. That sounds so pretty. I'm wondering what legacy you carry with you from your people.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:03:40] I think, an awareness of history, an awareness of Mystery sort of just beyond your peripheral vision that there are stories that haven't been told that there are tremors and voices just underneath the surface of the every day And a real curiosity about that, and I think that that cuts across a lot of, people in my life who actually are not only in theater, you know, people who are, attorneys and in academia and scientists. I mean, just, I think, I think it's, a kind of an adventurous, um, curiosity. I think that that is what I've inherited.   Miko Lee: [00:04:18] Oh, thank you for sharing that. I'm wondering if that lends itself to the fact that you've adapted a number of classics. We're going to be talking about Richard III, but I know you also did a version of Hamlet that was set in Oakland, Orpheus, and the Odyssey, and Japanese folktales. Can you talk a little bit about what sparks your curiosity around adaptations?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:04:40] That's a great question. I think that adaptations at their best are conversations with ghosts. And I guess I really enjoy that. I enjoy this idea of, in some way being in conversation with. Consciousnesses that are not maybe here on this plane of existence anymore, but have left their thoughts and their, big questions, they've sort of embedded them in these works of art. And so when you adapt Shakespeare or you adapt a Japanese folktale, I feel like you're in conversation with These ghosts and they're wise and they're playful and they're mysterious and they're, challenging. And I, I love that. I love that experience.   Miko Lee: [00:05:25] Aside from the adaptations, have you had personal experiences with ghosts?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:05:30] Oh, wow. I would say yes. but I, I, I maybe not. That's something maybe I don't want to talk about.   Miko Lee: [00:05:39] No worries. I always love to hear. I have had experience with ghosts. So I always love to hear other people's ghost stories. I get it. If you don't want to talk about that's okay. Can you talk with me about this adaptation of Richard II? And I'm wondering how you got involved in this adaptation?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:05:59] Well, it's a commission. So I was asked to adapt or really translate is the word that I think is more accurate, a Shakespeare play. And it, it's a project called, play on where a bunch of contemporary writers were asked to translate Shakespeare. What that means is that we were really asked to do a deep dive into the original texts. I'm going to say plural because I think there are different versions even, and figure out the most muscular, vivid version of Shakespeare. Of Shakespeare that we could figure out for contemporary audiences. So it's less about putting our own spin on something. It's really about really wrestling with that material and finding this muscular Present day version of the material that is true to the original, and that brings to light the original and what sort of underneath the surface, you know, for contemporary audiences.   Miko Lee: [00:07:03] And since Richard II is about power and corruption, and we're in this election season, we just are in the midst of the Democratic Convention, I'm wondering if you see parallels with Richard II and what's happening now in our political realm.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:07:18] I do. I mean, and it's interesting because I think that even though this play is centuries old, it does very much speak to the present moment where you have really different ideas about what is the right direction for a country and for a government and what it means to govern. And I think that I cannot think of more timely questions. And also candidly, this sort of anxiety, that's, I think, an anxiety that we all feel in this moment where there are really You know, strong differences and and we've had some really, difficult divisions in our country and in within our own families. And I, and that is so, so much at play in Richard II. There's, these arguments that people have they're life and death and they're within families and they're within, you know, they're within countries and how they are resolved really changes the trajectory of the future. So yes, 100 percent it's so timely. It's, it's unbelievably timely.   Miko Lee: [00:08:24] And you've done a lot of works that are around, of adaptations, we talked about you doing those, but also you've done a lot of works that are around really intense issues from sexual assault and good kids and refugees and anonymous and unhoused youth and Polaroid stories. What draws you to storytelling? What draws you to the specific stories that you have been telling?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:08:48] I think that there is an answer to that question that is both conscious and aware and unconscious and more subterranean. So what's probably the most truthful answer is, I don't know, there is a kind of curiosity and hunger that I think I've had. I know I've had for my whole life, my whole life that I can remember where I want to know what the story is. I want to, you know, I see a person and I want to know where they came from. you know that, that excitement that I, I suspect many of us feel when you go into a library and you see all those books and you think, what are the stories? So that's the more sort of subterranean, um, sort visceral, impetus for storytelling. I think as I've gotten older and I've thought about it and I've become a teacher, I think that storytelling is incredibly powerful. And I think that how you tell stories and who gets to tell stories is so powerful. And I, and I think I'm perhaps stating the obvious, but I think it's something that I remind myself of on a regular basis. And so. My desire to tell stories that, maybe aren't told or aren't told in a way that is familiar is really deep. I, I think that that's perhaps maybe the most meaningful way that at least I can move through the world and the, and the writers and artists that are around me, the storytellers, dancers as well, and choreographers. I, I, think they share that, this sense that who tells the story and how you tell it. It matters a lot.   Miko Lee: [00:10:20] And so much of this work is really powerful and is really trying to hit at sometimes hidden histories, stories that we don't hear as often. I'm wondering if you think of yourself as an activist.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:10:33] You know, I haven't In all honesty, I don't, but I think I am, I think I am because I feel really acutely, certain things that must be said, and I think I'm realizing that the act of saying them and saying them you know, over time is actually an activist posture, you know, that you, have an engagement with the world that doesn't slacken that, continues over time and you stand your ground. And I think that if that can be something that, I can contribute in some small way. I will feel that there's some meaning to what it is I do.   Miko Lee: [00:11:14]And I'm wondering, because you've done genres, many different genres, from writing for TV, and then also stage, and writing for children's theater and adult theater, I'm wondering if, how each of those play into your writing process. Do you write differently when you write for TV versus stage? Do you put on a different hat to get into character so that you could do that? Do you write differently for children's work? I also see some of your children's theater pieces as being like really around intense issues. So I'm just wondering about how you blend those and if you kind of divide up parts of yourself or what is your approach to writing in these different genres?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:11:51] I think it's a great question. I always start, maybe not always, but I think 99 percent of the time I start with character because I think that when you start with character, you start with humans. And when you start with humans, you start with mystery. And I think that that to me feels like the most exciting starting point, whether you're writing a play for young audiences, or whether you're writing, a translation of a Shakespeare play, or whether you're writing something for television. So I think that's a common thread, starting with the human mystery inside of a life, inside of an individual, inside of their circumstances. that's, I think, the starting point always.   Miko Lee: [00:12:33] And you've been collaborating with Campo Santo and John and now the magic for so many years. Can you talk a little bit about the benefits and or challenges of long term collaboration?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:12:44] Think long term collaboration is perhaps one of the greatest gifts that an artist can be afforded because it means that you have a home and sort of looping back to an earlier question of yours, you have a tribe of people, a community of people that you're connected to and, and you have a shared, responsibility to the storytelling. And that, As I get older, feels so, it feels rare and it feels really precious because I mean, when I work with Camposanto, I just, you know, now I, and I've, you know, talking with Margo or Sean and Catherine Castellanos, I've known them for such a long time and I've watched them work and I've been in awe of their work and they, there's a way that we connect through the work that is, deeper than, than the surface layer, that you're able to sort of plumb depths that you sometimes can't when you're, just starting out working with someone, you know, and they may be a wonderful artist, but you just don't have those years of, knowledge and, trust.   Miko Lee: [00:13:57] Yeah, so many layers that you can rely on and that trust and the connection. Um, I guess they're kind of the family when we were talking in the very beginning, your tribe of people, the theater people.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:14:09] They are very much my tribe of people. I mean, I, I love them and it has felt like coming home, you know, to, to work with them.   Miko Lee: [00:14:16] Yay. I'm wondering if your ethnic tribe growing up in multiple parts, you know, being born in Japan and Indonesia and U. S. and being mixed race, Japanese Latin American, how does that impact your creative process?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:14:33] You know, I think I'm still answering that question. I think one thing that is really heartening is when I was younger, I felt very much like, oh, I don't fit into any box. And there aren't that many people like me that are, you know, multi ethnic and multi racial. And, as I've gotten older now, and I look at, for example, my son's generation, I'm like, that is now, I don't know if it's the norm, but in California, there's, so many people who are, mixed in and the mixtures are, you know, they run the gamut and I think in terms of my own work, maybe what that led to early on was an awareness that. the reality of lived existence for most people is complicated and not easily paraphrasable, and I think that that bred in me a certain humility and also a certain, there's a certain challenge there, you know, like, how do I, How do I evoke the truth of this really complicated reality that is not just my own reality, but, so many of us, right? we're not one thing. We're, we're many things, some of which are not always visible or some of which are in some ways hidden.   Miko Lee: [00:15:46] Have you ever written a play that's a Japanese Latin American play?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:15:51] not explicitly, no. I mean, I think a lot of the plays that I've written, they, they are, I would say, flexible in terms of their casting and in terms of their point of view.And I think that they invite, they invite that kind of collision. But specifically, no.   Miko Lee: [00:16:12] Well, I would be so curious to see your take on, like, the Japanese Latin American kidnapping and incarceration of that whole community. Yeah, there's so many stories that have not been told about the JLA community.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:16:26] So many, yep.   Miko Lee: [00:16:28] I'm wondering if there is a story that you grew up with that you remember your family telling you that's helped to frame your creative process?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:16:36] Oh, wow. That is a really great question. my maternal grandmother, was a, kind of a mysterious woman. And I, I wondered a lot about her and I think there were a lot of secrets in her past. I think she is somebody it's actually less about the stories that were told and more about the questions that not only I had about her, but my mother had about her, my uncle had about her, that we just never fully found out. We, you know, we discovered when she was well into her seventies that she was blind in one eye. She never learned to read or write and it was a little bit unclear. Estranged, I guess, from her family of origin. yeah, it just, there's so many questions about her. I think the other story from my father's side of the family, from the Japanese side of the family, which I have written about, actually, because my father told the story, from when I was, for as long as I can remember, my father was a, was a very young child in World War II and he was Japanese national and he, and he was in Tokyo with his family and their house was bombed. And my father was not in the house. He was supposed to have been in the house, but he, Kind of, he was very little. He was, I think he was like five or six, and he had wandered away. My father, kind of, the moral of the story for my father was always like, you know, don't do what people tell you, because if you do, something bad may happen. So he didn't do what he was supposed to do. He didn't stay put. He wandered away. And, and he, as a result, he survived, you know, and, think That was a story that I, I still think about. and I, if you knew my father, it would make a lot of sense because he has this really, um, very, defiant is not the quite the right word, but he really knew who he was and he wasn't going to sort of take it from anyone. He was just going to, you know, do it his way. and that story felt very much, you know, the origin story of that personality.   Miko Lee: [00:18:35] So he had encouraged you to be a rebel, to kind of be who you are.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:18:40] A little bit. But you know what's so funny is I, you know, growing up, I was not like my father. You know, my father was, you know, he would, he told many stories. I'm not gonna, I can't tell you all of them, but you know, he was kind of a naughty kid growing up and, and he got in trouble, you know, he was, you know, and, and I was not that way. I was the opposite. I was a really, you know, very obedient, good student. Actually, in a strange way, my father, I think had the last laugh because I did turn out to be in my life choices, I think rather rebellious, but that wasn't nobody's meeting me as a, you know, as a teenager or a child would have thought that they would have thought, Oh, you know, what a well behaved, polite, you know, good student and then I turned out to have a kind of a very different trajectory. It's interesting.   Miko Lee: [00:19:24] What's the first play you ever wrote? How old were you? And what was it?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:19:28] I think the very first play I wrote was this very strange play. I was, a senior in college and it was called Betty Ford and the Dream Commandos. I think I have only a copy that's paper because I wrote it on a typewriter. That's how old I am. And I, I, it was a really expressionistic, strange piece that was that they did site specifically, it was short. I think it was maybe a 20 minute play. And I honestly don't remember the story of it. I remember fragmentary moments of it. I remember there was a chorus of dream commandos that were sort of like sort of ninja like and there was a Betty Ford character who was kind of in a haze. Yeah.   Miko Lee: [00:20:12] That is so wacky. Why Betty Ford?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:20:16] God knows. I don't know. I mean, I   Miko Lee: [00:20:18] Betty Ford as like First Lady Betty Ford or Betty Ford as in running the rehab center?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:20:24] Well, I mean, it was the same person and I think you put your finger on it, which is that I This was a woman that I think I, as a young person, I remember watching her on television and thinking, and this was before the sort of drug rehabilitation part of her life. I just thinking like, she has a hard life. She seems, you know, she's smiling, but I, I think behind that smile, well, again, it gets to that human mystery. I, I guess I was curious about her. She seemed like somebody that, Had this persona and had this sort of public facing, way about her, but that there was a lot of sort of still waters run deep about her too. So I think, I think that that was, that made me curious, you know?   Miko Lee: [00:21:07] Oh, I would love to have a reading with playwrights reading their first plays. That would be so fun.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:21:13] That'd probably a little sad. Scary.   Miko Lee: [00:21:17] I, there's a beautiful exhibit art exhibit where they had children's book authors. The, um, this was a museum of children's art did it and they had their work now beside a work they created when they were a kid and in framed and it was so gorgeous because. Everyone really showed that even when they were like five years old, they were already creating their style. So Naomi Iizuka: [00:21:40] That's fascinating. Yeah.   Miko Lee: [00:21:41] So I just love, I would love to see playwrights that from playwrights. Anyways. I'm wondering if you can talk about your daily creative process, like what do you do? I mean, I, I talked to Isabel Allende about this and she said, every morning I get up, I get a cup of tea, I make myself go into this room and I write, even if it's painful. Yeah. And even if it's bad, I'm wondering if you have like a set schedule or how do you do it?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:22:06] I don't have a set schedule. Mainly, I, I wish I, I did, and I may be able to now in my life, but I think for many years just juggling a day job. And, and I, and I still have, you know, I teach and I, I write for television and so it's, it's a little hectic. and I was a single mom. But now my son is in college, I just actually dropped him off. So I think I will have my schedule be a little different. What I do, which is I think related to what you just described, is I make sure that I write every day, but it's not always at the same time. So sometimes if I have the luxury of, a day where I, don't have to be somewhere at 8am, I will write in the morning. And I do like very much sort of waking up, brewing a cup of coffee and, writing. But I also write, you know, late at night. In fact, I was, you know, just dropping my son off at college and, he was asleep. And, I was sort of in a different part of in the Airbnb where we were staying. And I, Just wrote, you know, so I was like, as long as I'm writing a certain amount of time or certain number of pages a day. But I also agree with what you described in Isabella and his process that it's really important to write even when you don't feel like it. And I tell my students that all the time, because, you know, if you just wait till you feel like it, then you know, you may not write very much. So you have to write even when you don't feel like it. And even when it feels like the writing is hard, or it's not what you want it to be. And then it will, if you keep at it, you know, it will be.   Miko Lee: [00:23:32] Thanks. Okay. My last question for you is what are you reading, watching, or listening to right now? First thing that comes to your mind, what are you consuming?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:23:41] That's so great. I am reading, right now this, I guess you would call it a graphic novel Uzumaki, which is kind of iconic. And I had read part of it a while back, but I am kind of reading the whole, like all the volumes. And it's this Very strange, I guess you'd call it J horror, dystopian, comic, but it's beautifully illustrated and the story is really mysterious and compelling. I'm listening to Pod Save America just because it's election season and I'm really curious you know, what those guys have to say. And I haven't seen it yet, but I just actually texted Sean. I'm going to see that this weekend because it just came down to San Diego. I'm going to see Sing Sing with Coleman Domingo and Sean San Jose. And I cannot wait. I'm so excited. I feel like I'm the last person to see it because it was in New York and it was in LA and then it opened in San Diego just as I was like leaving to drop my son off at college. So I'm seeing it this weekend.   Miko Lee: [00:24:41] I just actually was looking at this note from Stephanie Shu saying go see it tonight. I will get you free tickets for Sing Sing. I was just thinking about that. I should go see that tonight.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:24:52] I'm so excited.   Miko Lee: [00:24:53] Me too. Very excited. and Coleman also lovely Bay Area person. Uzumaki, that looks fascinating. Supernatural psychological horror is what is the genre.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:25:06] No, it's, it's, it's really extraordinary. And, the thing is, is the reason I'm, I'm reading it now is I have like the full collected, all the volumes in one sort of giant omnibus. And so I'm reading everything, you know, all of them from beginning to end. I'd read the first, the first one, which is probably the most famous one, but it's great. I mean, even if it's not your cup of tea, it's, it's so cool. I love it. It is kind of my cup of tea, but, but even if it's not, you will love it.   Miko Lee: [00:25:32] Okay. Thank you for the recommendation. we're going to post links for people to buy tickets for the show at the magic. Is there anything else that you'd like to let our audience know about you and your work?   Naomi Iizuka: [00:25:44] I think you covered it. You're a really good interviewer.   Miko Lee: [00:25:49] Thank you so much for joining us on Apex Express. I'm going to see the show this weekend. I can't wait to see it and I'm excited to see what else you create next. Thank you so much, Naomi.   Naomi Iizuka: [00:26:00] Thank you.   Miko Lee: [00:26:01] Next up, listen to Florente Aguilar a Manila born guitarist and composer whose arrangements and composition successfully craft the balance between respect and redefinition of tradition. MUSIC   That was Florente Aguilar, a Manila born guitarist, and you are listening to Apex Express. Next up, take a listen to my conversation with advocate, activist and graphic illustrator, Eddie Ahn. It is quite amazing to hear from an artist, who's an activist, who's telling their story. And tonight it's all about how we retell stories, whether that's rewriting a traditional piece like Shakespeare or rewriting the tale that is your life and doing it. In graphic illustration style. So listen to my interview with Eddie Ahn. Welcome Eddie Ahn to Apex Express.   Eddie Ahn: [00:29:40] Thanks for having me.   Miko Lee: [00:29:41] I'm so excited to be able to talk to you about your new graphic memoir of family, community, and the fight for environmental justice. Loved reading your book and looking at the artistry. It's so powerful. So I want to start with my very first question that I ask many guests, which is who are your people and what legacy do you carry with you?   Eddie Ahn: [00:30:04] Gosh, the book itself covers a lot of my people, particularly my family, myself. I am now, two generations removed, of course, from my grandfather, which the book begins with. he himself was, uh, very brilliant person from all accounts, was a translator for the U S army and South Korean army during the Korean war. And then, I am also, you know, this, the son of immigrants, my mother and father who came from South Korea to the US and really built their careers and their family here. So I think a lot about that migration pattern and how it's influenced who I am today and what I do.   Miko Lee: [00:30:44] And what legacy do you carry with you from those ancestors?   Eddie Ahn: [00:30:48] I think a lot about their successes and failures. so the challenges that they encountered along the way. My grandfather, of course, was A survivor of a lot of trauma he himself went through the Korean War. and then also was separated from his family a lot after, you know, the Korean DMZ, the demilitarized zone was settled. So for him, his life is really one of, Very, very deep trauma and tragedy, having been separated from most of his family. And then he had to go start a new family in South Korea. And a lot of the book covers, the initial kind of devastation he faced. And then later on that the challenges he faced, even as an entrepreneur, very well educated person trying to survive in South Korea and my mother's resentments around that are also covered in the graphic memoir as well. So a lot of it is like, Dealing with that family kind of conflict and also understanding it in the scope of my own life and how I've chosen to pursue nonprofit work to begin with in the United States.   Miko Lee: [00:31:51] Thank you for sharing that. talk to me about the title of the book, Advocate, and what does that mean to you?   Eddie Ahn: [00:31:58] So the title of the book was always meant to have multiple meanings. It was about advocating for oneself, one's own identity, one's own career choice against, very different family expectations. And then it's about professional advocacy. It's about advocating for diverse communities. The nonprofit I work for is called Bright Line Defense, and we do a lot of environmental justice work. And environmental justice is oftentimes the intersection of issues on the environment, race and identity, and the economy, and then grappling with the intersectionality of those issues. There's a lot of complexity in what I do. And part of the title of the book reflects that and advocating again, for oneself. And for other communities.   Miko Lee: [00:32:46] I love this. And I related to this a lot in terms of nonprofit work. I'm wondering if you could share a little bit more about that, about Asian American expectations, particularly your family, Korean American, and the value of nonprofit work.   Eddie Ahn: [00:33:01] For my own family, my parents in particular, I think their expectations for me and what I was going to do with the educational degrees that I obtained. So I went to a really good school, Brown University in Rhode Island, and then I obtained a law degree at UC College of Law, San Francisco. For them, their expectation was, go out, become highly credentialed, and then go make money. Their metrics of success in the US was about a financial metric of success. and for myself, I never quite took to that, for better, for worse, perhaps for myself, which is also covered in the book, but it's also because I valued social work and the active building community, so much and for them, they struggled with that choice. It wasn't exactly what they saw as succeeding in the U S but for myself, it was always incredibly important to do and pursue.   Miko Lee: [00:33:53] I think that power of your convictions really shows up in the book strongly because I think the classic Asian American story, you did the things, you got the Ivy League degree, you got the law degree, and your connection with your grandfather. I'm wondering about your family's feeling about your connection with your grandfather in terms of being an advocate. What was that like for them and the expectations for you?   Eddie Ahn: [00:34:18] That's a great question. in many ways, they saw the connection that I had with my grandfather early on. So even in the book, I describe moments where I'm reading at his feet, you know, from his library collection, and we would talk about different topics. My Korean back then was always, you know, a shaky, maybe at best, it was conversational. But a lot of what he would relate to me were about complex subjects that, at the time, even as a child, I didn't fully understand. But at least I understood the feeling, the depth behind them, which is why I really enjoyed talking to him. I think my mother reading the book has been actually really surprised at the moments of connection I found. For instance, I drew a photo of myself with my grandfather that she didn't even realize existed. So, Seeing how that relationship has unfolded even through the creation of this book, um, for my mother has been actually really interesting to do.   Miko Lee: [00:35:14] Oh, I love that about your mom and kind of getting a another vision of the history just by seeing a photograph but an image you drew of a photograph. There's a beautiful resonance there and the style of illustrations that you do has a, a soft beauty to it that's kind of lyrical. I really appreciate that. I'm wondering if you could talk with us about the inspiration for creating this memoir and in the style that you did in the graphic novel style.   Eddie Ahn: [00:35:45] I love comics because a lot of it is not just about the art and the panel itself. It's how the story actually moves from panel to panel and how the art gets juxtaposed against larger scenes, for instance for myself in doing this graphic memoir, it was a big jump. for myself, like I'm self taught as an artist to begin with. So understanding, you know, things like. Perspective, coloring, anatomy, those are all things I had to learn as I created this particular graphic memoir. and part of the storytelling technique I use in this graphic memoir is also heavily relying on color to move the time periods of the story. So, for instance, my childhood is represented in shades of red. My days in college and up until law school are represented in shades of green. As I start to go through a more transitional stage in life, like getting more deeply into nonprofit work and trying to figure out how to use my law degree, those are all represented in So for me, like I really want to use color to create that sense of era changes and then also create. Flashbacks and flash forwards in the narrative as well that I think you can really only do in comics. I do think comics is a really unique medium in the way, especially if you're evaluating it or reading it in printed format allows you to turn the page back and forth and enjoy it.   Miko Lee: [00:37:12] What came first, the story that you wanted to tell or the images?   Eddie Ahn: [00:37:19] The very first comic I ever posted, because I originally started publishing these graphic memoir comics on Instagram, was about my Oakland Chinatown work. So my first job out of college was as an AmeriCorps member, working as an after school programmer. I taught arts and public speaking for elementary students, third through fifth grade. I think very nostalgically about that time. It was a really great experience overall to work with youth who were really into receiving the best education possible. They went to Lincoln Elementary School in Oakland, Chinatown. it was a lot of thinking about the joyful moments and then balancing against the difficulties of nonprofit work. So I was an AmeriCorps member, and if folks know, how Financially stressful that position can be. It's essentially at the time it was less than a thousand dollars a month for 40 hours a week. So it was a very under-resourced position. Maybe it's one way to put it, as you know, one tries to serve the community as well.   Miko Lee: [00:38:20] So can you share a little bit about your artistic process?   Eddie Ahn: [00:38:24] So I started with fiction when I worked in comics. And in fact, one of the first zines I ever created was, essentially collected comic strips for hyphen magazine, which was a great, Asian American issues magazine. And I really enjoyed telling stories through the lens, essentially the lens of fictional characters. So for instance, I had a talking turtle character that was trying to sell coffee across San Francisco. again, going back to my grandfather, very much patterned after my grandfather's failed entrepreneurial ambitions. So for me, there was a lot of joy in creating these comic strips, mostly illustrated in black and white. so just simple inks. When I started writing my own, graphic memoir, I was thinking more like what were big, ambitious kind of swings. I wanted to take at storytelling, which is why I started doing the more complex color scheme I described earlier. and then part of it was even trying to figure out what was the tone that I wanted to adopt when I even, was creating these comics on Instagram. So for me, like, it started very early on, perhaps in 2016, I started illustrating the first pages on paper. And then I didn't even publish them until February, 2020. So that was roughly like a week or two before the pandemic where I posted the first, comic and then the audience for it on Instagram grew a lot. So from a couple hundred from back then, to now what's probably over 80,000 followers.   Miko Lee: [00:39:56] Oh, that is so exciting. And by the way, I think, you know, this hyphen magazine, we're part of the same family because hyphen is part of the AACRE network that Apex Express is part of too.   Eddie Ahn: [00:40:05] Yes. I'm, I'm a big fan of AACRE to begin with. And yes, I've always had a lot of affection for the generations of leadership that, have essentially built up hyphen over a long period of time.   Miko Lee: [00:40:16] I love that. Can you talk a little bit about how you combine your artistry with your community organizing?   Eddie Ahn: [00:40:23] Yes, I, in the past I created my art through a series of zines, but then I had to learn how to market and essentially promote myself. And I think my community organizing skills did come into play when I was either going to say zine fests or local arts festivals, as well as Essentially creating art shows, solo art shows in San Francisco. So for each, self published comic book, I would essentially do an art show centered around it. and they, the venues ranged, you might know some of these venues like 111 Minna, marvelous coffee and wine bar, which is now closed, dot art bar and gallery. so there were a number of venues that I would set up essentially, a larger kind of act of community building through art. So I think a lot about those days because, this is all pre pandemic. I really enjoyed bringing together, folks in my nonprofit world, as well as, family and friends to come and appreciate, you know, essentially two or three years worth of art creation nowadays, the book tour has been a very different experience. So that's very much, you know, through a more established publisher, Penguin Random House, and then going to, a number of bookstores across the US has been also a really fun experience to do.   Miko Lee: [00:41:41] What have you learned from going to all these different bookstores?   Eddie Ahn: [00:41:45] I've gotten a better sense of history, how book selling actually happens, and New York, for instance, I did a, a large event, over a hundred people came to The Strand, in Manhattan, which has its own very long history in New York's literary scene.   Miko Lee: [00:42:00] Ah, one of my favorite bookstores, The Strand. Yeah. It's so exciting.   Eddie Ahn: [00:42:04] It's a really beautiful venue, where they hold their literary events. So, I've been very fascinated by how people come together around art through the book tour. And, the Strand event itself was a huge joy because it was, Set up as in conversation with another author, and I like to do those events because it feels less like I'm talking at people and more like I'm talking with a person and then seeing the audience's engagement with material, either through some audience members just flip through a couple pages, and then they'll immediately have questions, or they might have come to the event having read the entire book at this point with their own kind of set of nuanced questions. So seeing the whole range of questions through a number of events has been also a very fun experience.   Miko Lee: [00:42:55] And in the book you write about your family's expectations around non profit life, what do they think now about you as an artist, as a graphic novelist, and kind of going on this book tour? Where are they at with your career now?   Eddie Ahn: [00:43:10] My father actually got to experience some public art installations that I'd done in San Francisco. So, there are these utility boxes which are in the middle of the street. And then my art was blown up to essentially be wrapped around them and then displayed. And the art still exists. This was installed way back in 2019. And it's still around today. So for my dad to see that, take pictures of it, touch it with his own hands, I think was a really good experience. He really did appreciate the physicality of that art and how it's displayed in such a public way. Uh, unfortunately nowadays he's too sick to enjoy the book. but my mother on the other hand has read the book and I think One nice coda to, everything that's described in the book, you know, despite all the conflicts with my family about non profit work is that my mother has grown to appreciate what I do a lot, as a result of reading the book. She says she's read it three times now and has cried on each reading, which initially I was worried about because I thought, you know, She was really perhaps, sensitive about our family and how I describe our family conflicts in the book, but it was really more in her own words about how underappreciated nonprofit workers are at times and how she felt. A lot more empathy for them. As a result, I was really surprised by that observation. I really didn't think she would ever care much for what I do for a living. But, yeah, I thought that was a really nice, reaction on our part.   Miko Lee: [00:44:38] Oh, I love to hear that. switching a bit to you as a young organizer, you started pretty young, you know, with AmeriCorps and then working in nonprofit world. With your experience now, what message would you give yourself when you were just starting out as a student organizer?   Eddie Ahn: [00:44:56] Oh, I think at the time I was fairly cheerful about everything. And I, I think that attribute still, endures to this day. I think it's a really important a character trait to have when one does nonprofit work, because I think it's easy to go through life expecting a lot of things to wonder why you aren't getting X, Y, Z, for myself. What I would tell my younger self is, you know, continue with that cheerful attitude, perhaps have better boundaries at times to on average, my employers have been quite good in the nonprofit sphere, but I do think generally it's easy also to work. Perhaps too much, and to demand too much of oneself in service to community. So maybe, one thing I'll tell my younger self is, to pace yourself too and just be more focused on things that, really excited me at the end of the day. you know, the flip side of that, maybe a counterpoint is like, it was important to try out a lot of stuff too. So, I think it all worked out in many ways, just trying out things that it may not have been the most efficient use of my time, but I still learned a lot.   Miko Lee: [00:46:02] Speaking of pacing yourself, you currently have more than a full time job as an executive director of a environmental non profit. You're on several boards and commissions, and just have written this graphic novel. What do you do to take care of yourself?   Eddie Ahn: [00:46:19] Um, I do enjoy, you know, like most people streaming shows and, even one quirk of mine that I enjoy relaying is like, I'm very much into the let's what's called the let's play movement. it's watching essentially other people play video games on YouTube and myself, like I can play a video game. I have, played several, over the last few years that I really do enjoy, but there's something very kind of therapeutic about watching someone else be productive or. perhaps entertaining themselves, without me having to, figure it out myself. So I think part of it is like just being able to relax and just watch a screen is, is, relaxing a form of meditation.   Miko Lee: [00:47:00] Okay. Thanks for that. What do you want folks to understand after reading your graphic novel?   Eddie Ahn: [00:47:08] One interesting thing I've thought a lot about is how the book describes non profit work is not about saving communities. and that sometimes it's referred to in academia as like the savior complex or messiah complex. I do think just being Aware of the complexity of our world and how difficult it is to resolve or fix issues is a core message of the book I hope comes across, and in many ways, comics, you know, is dominated by the superhero genre too, which I think a lot, and of course I love superhero comics to begin with. I do read quite a few of them. And then what I've been fascinated by is thinking through like, Superheroes themselves as characters are out to often fix the world or save the world and so thinking through that dynamic and how this comic is not about that, I think has been a good thing to go through for myself as an artist. So I hope that message comes across despite it being a comic.   Miko Lee: [00:48:15] Thanks for that. I think it's, as opposed to the superhero genre, I see your book more in the personal stories like Pee Booie's The Best We Could Do or Marianne's Persepolis. I see it more in that genre of like really personal family storytelling as opposed to a superhero genre. It's so powerful.   Eddie Ahn: [00:48:38] Thank you. Yes, I agree. I really appreciate those books as well and how they're able to essentially highlight the perspective of the protagonists alongside the environments in which they grow up in, whether it's family or a nation state, etc.   Miko Lee: [00:48:55] And I appreciate how your graphic novel really has your trajectory, you know, going from understanding family, but also really your adult life as somebody that works in the nonprofit field. I think it's really new in that approach. What's next for you?   Eddie Ahn: [00:49:12] Oh, gosh, I am still drawing. I am never wanting to give up on art at the end of the day. I think it's how I've improved as an artist is that I do drive myself to think through, a larger, better project. On Instagram, I'll continue to publish more comics in the future. I am planning through a potential mural project in San Francisco. Uh, it would be very different than the utility box art installations I've done in the past. as for my nonprofit work at Brightline, I'm still very much enjoy it. I have a incredible, team that I work with and I. I've really come to appreciate everything that Brightline has as a result of early years of grinding work that I put in and then to see other people also put in really high quality work for the organization has has been a joy to me personally. So I hope to keep on doing what I'm doing at Brightline for a long time to come. And yeah, I guess we'll find out in the coming years ahead.   Miko Lee: [00:50:14] I like, I, I, one, I'm curious to find out more about the mural, excited to learn more about that, and it sounds like you're going to hold these, both sides of yourself as the artist, as the non profit leader, you're going to continue to do them both. I'm wondering, so much of non profit life is, we're learning by experience, you know, we're, and so I'm thinking about, The connection with being a self taught artist like you're always just learning something. How has being a self taught artist impacted your artistic work and your work in nonprofit world?   Eddie Ahn: [00:50:47] I think it's improved my patience, both in non profit work and in evolving my art style. everything I do is drawn by hand, so I typically just work pencil to paper, ink over pencils, and then finally, Copic markers, their alcohol based art marker, to lay on the color, and that technique essentially evolved over, gosh, uh, eight, nine year period to you and get to where the book is now, the book itself is the culmination of well over 5,000 hours, and each page, you know, on average is probably somewhere between 20 to 30 hours. So just having that kind of discipline to develop everything around the book, has really taught me a lot, I think about life. And then also it's been a nice form of meditation unto itself to just to be able to create art. For that long of a period, over, you know, essentially a long, timeline has, has been really good for my own processes, thinking processes around nonprofit work, because it pushes me to, be creative in the nonprofit work itself.   Miko Lee: [00:51:59] Well, Eddie Ahn, author of Advocate, tell our audience how they can find out more about your work.   Eddie Ahn: [00:52:06] The book can be found, in a number of local bookstores at this point, Penguin Random House has done excellent work in distributing across the US of course, it can be found at most major booksellers, such as Barnes Noble, bookshop.org, et cetera. and they can also find my art online for free on Instagram. The handle is at E H A—those are my initials, Eddie Ahn—comics, as it sounds.   Miko Lee: [00:52:37] Thank you so much. We so appreciate hearing, from you more about your book and we look forward to seeing your murals and seeing the work that you do out in the community.Thank you so much.   Eddie Ahn: [00:52:48] Thanks again for having me, Miko. Really appreciate you.   Miko Lee: [00:52:50] Please check out our website, kpfa.org To find out more about our show tonight. We think all of you listeners out there. Keep resisting, keep organizing, keep creating and sharing your visions with the world because your voices are important. Apex Express is created by Miko Lee, Jalena Keane-Lee, Preti Mangala-Shekar, Swati Rayasam, Aisa Villarosa, Estella Owoimaha-Church, Gabriel Tanglao, Cheryl Truong and Ayame Keane-Lee.   The post APEX Express – 8.29.24 – Retelling Stories appeared first on KPFA.

Sometimes you get an opportunity out of the blue that is HUGE; Here's a quick story of one of mine.  https://www.TheWorkLady.com  Jan McInnis is a top change management keynote speaker and comedian. She uses short funny stories to emphasize her tips on how businesses can use humor to handle change. Jan is a top conference keynote speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.  https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Association. Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securitie Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.

Our guest is Anna Barr, a patient safety and risk manager with Copic, who joins us to talk about terminating the provider-patient relationship. The discussion starts by looking at the main considerations before terminating a patient: trying to mend the relationship by using effective communication and conflict resolution skills, assessing the clinical situation, the risk of abandonment, the possibility of discrimination, and the contractual obligations that may apply. Anna then highlights key termination steps such as notifying and assisting the patient, and documentation. She also talks about the benefits of having a practice-wide policy for non-compliance or disruptive behavior that can help prevent situations that may lead to termination. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

A week of bad shows will kill your spirit. My week working with Larry the Cable Guy saved my career, AND I learned a valuable lesson about failure. Here's a quick story from my days on the road in comedy clubs. https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and even the Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.  Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients. https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations  

This episode features Renee Blattman, a nurse and risk manager with Copic, who has 20 years of experience in the perioperative environment. The discussion focuses on the challenges and risks in this environment—a high-paced, high-volume, and fast-turnover setting, where there is a lot of pressure to keep the patients moving and the OR schedule tight. Renee talks about the growth and trends in ambulatory surgery centers along with the increased risks of discharge and follow-up care, as patients may need more education and support at home. In addition, she highlights how a culture of safety is essential and how this includes being proactive, collaborative, and mindful as a team. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

I had my plane tickets and I was BOOKED. But other stuff happened. Somewhere out there, there's a house wife in Texas who messed up my big break!! Here's the short version of a moment in my life that hurts! https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.  Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients. https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/   Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.  

In this episode, our guest is Heather Westermeyer, a Patient Safety and Risk Manager with COPIC, and the topic is documentation. Heather highlights the role documentation plays in continuity of care—from ensuring an accurate medical history to supporting communication among providers. She also talks about how documentation serves a key purpose in legal protection/defense in medical liability issues and the importance of articulating your thought process. In addition, the discussion touches on best practices, standardized templates and protocols, and the dangers of copying and pasting. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Who knew attending a Cher concert would lead to a life in comedy for ME! AND it was so full of weird coincedences that you just can't make it up. Take a 2 minute listen as to how I got the nerve to get verbalize my goals, which led to the Hollywood Improv. https://www.theWorkLady.com Jan McInnis is a top keynote speaker, funny female motivational speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic. Jan McInnis shows businesses how to use humor in everything from sales to human resources in dealing with staff, coworkers, clients and potential clients. https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations  Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council, Risk associations.    

LaDonna Kelley, a nurse risk manager with COPIC, is the guest for this episode, which looks at patient safety and risk management for geriatric patients. LaDonna tells a personal story about the challenges with caring for this patient population and how certain situational factors impact their care experience. She mentions issues such as hearing limitations, technology, and mobility and being aware of these during interactions. The conversation also examines communication challenges and the importance of clear communication with geriatric patients. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Do you really want to be famous is a quick post about the weekend I worked with Jon Stewart at the Punchline Comedy Club in Atlanta. It gave me a unique perspective on being famous and brought up a few questions. https://www.TheWorkLady.com  Jan McInnis is a top motivational keynote speaker, comedian, master of ceremonies and comedy writer. She uses short funny stories to emphasize her tips on how businesses can use humor to handle change. Jan is a top conference keynote speaker, comedian, Master of Ceremonies, and comedy writer. She has written for Jay Leno's The Tonight Show monologues as well as many other people, places, and groups—radio, TV, syndicated cartoon strips, guests on The Jerry Springer Show (her parents are proud). For over 25 years, she's traveled the country as a keynote speaker and comedian, sharing her unique and practical tips on how to use humor in business (yes, it's a business skill!). She's been featured in The Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for her clean humor, and she's the author of two books: Finding the Funny Fast – How to Create Quick Humor to Connect with Clients, Coworkers, and Crowds, and Convention Comedian: Stories and Wisdom From Two Decades of Chicken Dinners and Comedy Clubs. She also has a popular podcast titled Comedian Stories: Tales From the Road in Under 5 Minutes. In her former life, she was a marketing executive in Washington, D.C. for national non-profits, and she received the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives “Excellence in Education” Award. Jan's been featured at thousands of events from the Federal Reserve Banks to the Mayo Clinic.   https://www.TheWorkLady.com https://youtu.be/BtjxzDn-QLE https://www.linkedin.com/in/janmcinnis https://twitter.com/janmcinnis https://www.pinterest.com/janmcinnis/pins/ https://www.youtube.com/c/JanMcInnisComedian https://www.facebook.com/ComedianJanMcInnis https://www.instagram.com/jan.mcinnis/  Jan has shared her humor keynotes from Fortune 500 companies to international associations. Groups such as . .. Healthcare. . . Mayo Clinic, Health Information Management Associations, Healthcare Financial Management Associations, Hospitals, Abbott Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Kaiser-Permanente, Davita Dialysis Centers, Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Home Healthcare Associations, Assisted Living Associations, Healthcare Associations, National Council for Prescription Drug Companies, Organization of Nurse Leaders, Medical Group Management Associations, Healthcare Risk Associations, Healthcare Quality Associations Financial. . . Federal Reserve Banks, BDO Accounting, Transamerica Insurance & Investment Group, Merrill Lynch, treasury management associations, bankers associations, credit unions, Money Transmitter Regulators Association, Finance Officers Associations, automated clearing house associations, American Institute of CPAs, financial planning companies, Securities, Insurance, Licensing Association  Government . . . purchasing officers associations, city clerks, International Institute of Municipal Clerks, National League of Cities, International Worker's Compensation Fund, correctional associations, LA County Management Association, Social Security Administration, Southern California Public Power Authority, public utilities, U.S. Air Force, public personnel associations, public procurement associations, risk management associations, Rehabilitation associations, rural housing associations, community action associations  Women's Events. . . American Heart Associations, Go Red For Women luncheons, Speaking of Women's Health, International Association of Administrative Professionals, administrative professionals events, Toyota Women's Conference, Women in Insurance and Financial Services, Soroptimists, Women in Film & Video, ladies night out events, Henry Ford Health Centers Women's Event, spirit of women events, breast cancer awareness,  Education . . . School Business Officials associations, school superintendent associations, school boards associations, state education associations, community college associations, school administrators associations, school plant managers associations, Head Start associations, Texas adult protective services, school nutrition associations, Association of Elementary and Middle School Principals, principal associations, library associations  Emergency, safety, and Disaster . . . International Association of Emergency Managers, Disney Emergency Managers, state emergency management associations, insurance groups, COPIC, Salt Lake County Public Works and Municipal Services Disaster Recovery Conference, Pennsylvania Governor's Occupational Safety and Health conference, Mid Atlantic Safety conference and Chesapeake Regional Safety Council,

Anna Barr, a nurse risk manager with COPIC, joins us for this episode to talk about the benefits of using informed consent in your medical practice. Anna highlights how informed consent is a process (not just a form), the goals of shared decision making that guide this, and how it can be a tool to foster trust and understanding with patients. In addition, we look at what situations require informed consent and key considerations in how you approach the process. Anna also explains what informed refusal is, how this differs from “against medical advice,” and provides examples of when you may want to utilize it. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Dr. Susan Sgambati, a colorectal surgeon and medical director with COPIC, is our guest on this episode that looks at the increased use of semaglutide medications driven by the popularity of Ozempic being used for weight loss. The discussion focuses on liability and risk issues, including recently issued FDA warning letters surrounding the use of compounded forms of the medication. Dr. Sgambati talks about how the medication works, side effects, how to assess patients who are interested in these medications, and other considerations as part of your evaluation.      Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Pamela Johnson—a nurse and Senior Manager of Practice Quality and Facilities Risk Management at COPIC—joins us for a discussion about data around patient falls in health care facilities. Pamela highlights the top three areas where falls occur in these settings and talks about top risk factors that contribute to these incidents. She also points to adjustments that can make an immediate preventative impact, such as proper lighting and pathways, the importance of environmental rounds, and dispels major myths about falls and healthcare. CDC STEADI- Older Adult Fall Prevention https://www.cdc.gov/steadi/index.htmlJohn Hopkins- Fall Prevention- https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/preventing-fallsJohn Hopkins- Fall Risk Assessment- https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/institute_nursing/_docs/JHFRAT/JHFRAT%20Tools/JHFRAT_acute%20care%20original_6_22_17.pdf Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

Anna Barr, a nurse risk manager with COPIC, joins us for this episode to talk about the benefits of using informed consent in your medical practice. Anna highlights how informed consent is a process (not just a form), the goals of shared decision making that guide this, and how it can be a tool to foster trust and understanding with patients. In addition, we look at what situations require informed consent and key considerations in how you approach the process. Anna also explains what informed refusal is, how this differs from “against medical advice,” and provides examples of when you may want to utilize it. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

This episode is part of a special series that focuses on organizations that received grant funding from the COPIC Medical Foundation for initiatives that address the issue of reducing fragmentation across care settings. Dr. Zacharias welcomes back Jennifer Disabato, DNP, and William Anderson, MD, who are co-directors for the ImPACT Program and Navigation Hub, which focuses on care coordination for complex pediatric patients as they transition to adult care. Jennifer and Dr. Anderson talk about the progress made in building skilled teams to support patients going through these transitions. In addition, they discuss the other key focus of the program—coaching medical clinics on these transitions through trainings, evidenced-based templates, and resources to address EHR communication challenges and other related issues.   Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

This episode is part of a special series that focuses on organizations that received grant funding from the COPIC Medical Foundation for initiatives that address the issue of reducing fragmentation across care settings. Dr. Zacharias welcomes two staff members from West Mountain Regional Health Alliance—Christina Gair, Executive Director, and Namrata Shrestha, Assistant Director. Grant funding went toward a care coordination effort to support individuals experiencing homelessness with coordination by hospitals, health and behavioral health providers, community organizations and government agencies. The discussion looks at the challenges of coordination across multiple organizations and different workflows, consideration of factors such as social needs (e.g., food, housing, transportation) and behavioral health, and the importance of creating a useful tool that helps “connect the dots” for care teams.    Guest Website: https://westmountainhealthalliance.org/  Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

This episode is part of a special series that focuses on organizations that received grant funding from the COPIC Medical Foundation for initiatives that address the issue of reducing fragmentation across care settings. Dr. Zacharias welcomes Dr. Matthew Gonzales and Dr. Deborah Unger who are affiliated with a grant provided to the Providence Portland Medical Foundation. Grant funding supported Providence and the Oregon Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) Registry for a partnership to build a bi-directional interface which integrates Providence's Epic electronic health record with the Registry. Dr. Gonzales and Dr. Unger discuss about how POLST is designed to respect people's wishes around care/treatment inside and outside of health care settings. They also talk about how POLST is utilizing digital technology to inform others across different systems, the challenge of state-by-state legislation, and the insight gained through the project so far. Feedback or episode ideas email the show at wnlpodcast@copic.com Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.

This episode is part of a special series that focuses on organizations that received grant funding from the COPIC Medical Foundation for initiatives that address the issue of reducing fragmentation across care settings. Dr. Zacharias welcomes Tori Bahr, MD and Katie Stangl who are affiliated with a grant provided to the Minnesota Medical Association Foundation. Grant funding supported Project ECHO, which focuses on the challenge of transitioning youth with medical complexity to adult care in Minnesota. The discussion explains the different conditions that fall under “childhood onset medical complexity” and how the ECHO hub-and-spoke model leverages virtual collaboration to expand expertise and knowledge, and connects providers across different settings to address patient care issues.Show Email- WNLpodcast@COPIC.comGillette Children's Hospital Transitions - https://www.gillettechildrens.org/get-involved/attend-an-event#medical-professionalsLegal Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.    

In this episode, we look at a major challenge in obstetrics (OB) care with our guest, Lori Adams, who is a nurse, COPIC risk manager, and OB expert. Lori talks about her experience in a rural hospital and educating providers. The discussion focuses on “maternity care deserts” where access to OB services is limited or not available. Lori highlights how these deserts contribute to maternal death rates, the disparities we are seeing in certain geographic and demographic areas, and how emergency care units are dealing with OB situations. She also points to the training and education that is being implemented to address this issue and how state-level perinatal collaboratives are working to improve maternal health.Resources mentioned: https://www.marchofdimes.org/maternity-care-deserts-reportEmail the show: wnlpodcast@copic.comLegal Disclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.   

Brandon Copic shares how mental health struggles led him to his darkest moment, how he found the strength to carry on, and why no one should be ashamed of reaching out for help. Follow Brandon on Twitter Like This Tornado Podcast? Leave a five-star review here! Subscribe to the Chaser Chat podcast on Apple Podcasts, […] The post Storm Chaser Brandon Copic appeared first on Fear The Beard Media.

In this episode, we're joined by surgeon and COPIC risk manager, Dr. Jeff Varnell. Starting with the premise that, like driving, the practice of medicine is governed by systemic rules and dependent on individual responsibility, Dr. Varnell uses metaphors and general understandings we hold about driving to illustrate how adverse events in medicine are often avoidable and preventable, like many of our road-based accidents. He invites listeners to examine through a lens of personal accountability the human factors that lead to errors in communication and cognitive bias, including "reckless" versus "risky" behavior.  a Email: wnlpodcast@copic.comDisclaimer: Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.  

Understanding the regulatory environment is key to managing risks associated with working with advanced practice providers (APPs), Dr. Alan Lembitz, COPIC's Chief Medical Officer says. But he cautions providers to understand this isn't always simple. He reminds providers that it's on them to ensure they are following the regulatory rules, which vary based on state and provider type. COPIC has seen cases of plaintiff attorneys alleging APPs practicing outside of the scope of licensure and inadequate supervision. In this episode, Dr. Lembitz breaks down high-risk areas, as well as what physicians and APPs need to know about managing risks in all practice settings.***Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.  On Demand Courses mentioned are restricted to COPIC Insured Providers and not open to the public. 

This episode features Dr. Alan Lembitz, Chief Medical Officer for COPIC, and focuses on uncertainty around federal and state opioid education requirements for medical providers. The conversation examines common questions from “what do I need to do to fulfill my licensure requirements?” to “how do I prove that I am in compliance with these requirements?” Dr. Lembitz also looks at details with the new DEA requirement of eight hours of training around substance use disorders, concerns if providers don't fulfill these requirements, and highlights of COPIC resources that are available to help meet these requirements. Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.  

Dr. Michael Victoroff, a family medicine physician and COPIC consultant with expertise in clinical informatics, is our guest for this episode that focuses on situations where patients may become violent. The discussion examines emotional states in patients, such as frustration or unhappiness, that can escalate into physical conflict and why we have seen a substantial increase in these types of encounters. Dr. Victoroff talks about de-escalation and conflict management skills, our innate flight-or-fight reactions, and the importance of appropriate training for the health care setting. In addition, the conversation explores ethical and legal considerations along with the moral dilemma of protecting yourself while trying to protect others. **Information provided in this podcast should not be relied upon for personal, medical, legal, or financial decisions and you should consult an appropriate professional for specific advice that pertains to your situation. Health care providers should exercise their professional judgment in connection with the provision of healthcare services. The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be, nor is it, a substitute for medical diagnosis, treatment, advice, or judgment relative to a patient's specific condition.  

In this episode, Maria Coryell-Martin shares how her passion emerged out of collaborating with scientists to help tell their stories through art.Sponsored by ConceptsThis episode of the Sketchnote Army Podcast is brought to you by Concepts, a perfect tool for sketchnoting, available on iOS, Windows, and Android.Concepts' infinite canvas lets you to sketchnote in a defined area while still enjoying infinite space around it — to write a quick note, scribble an idea or to keep pre-drawn visual elements handy for when you need them most.The infinite canvas lets you stretch out and work without worrying if you'll run out of space. When combined with powerful vector drawing that offers high-resolution output and complete brush and stroke control — you have a tool that's perfect for sketchnoting.SEARCH “Concepts” in your favorite app store to give it a try.Running OrderIntroWelcomeWho is Maria Coryell-Martin?Origin StoryMaria's current workSponsor: ConceptsTipsToolsWhere to find MariaOutroLinksAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.ArtToolkitArt Tool kit on InstagramArt tool kit recommend seriesArt Toolkit NewsletterJuneau Certified Research ProgramBrushmaker storyGet 10% discount at arttoolkit.com with code SKETCHNOTE10 through June 1st, 2023.ToolsAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.All-in-one Zipper pouchPentel water brushesWaterproof penSketchbookSharpie penPentel brush penPelikano fountain pensCopic multilinersHelvetica pencilsRosemary & Co travel watercolor brushescollapsible cupNo-needle syringeBinder clipsRubber bandsPaper toweliPhone miniProcreateTipsUse a timer and set yourself a very small amount of time to do something.Give yourself the opportunity to play with color, what you see, and don't worry about composition.Paying attention to the world and just letting yourself start with notes just to start that attention.Trust the process.Practice not perfection.CreditsProducer: Alec PulianasTheme music: Jon SchiedermayerShownotes and transcripts: Esther OdoroSubscribe to the Sketchnote Army PodcastYou can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube or your favorite podcast listening source.Support the PodcastTo support the creation, production and hosting of the Sketchnote Army Podcast, buy one of Mike Rohde's bestselling books. Use code ROHDE40 at Peachpit.com for 40% off!Episode TranscriptMike Rohde: Hey everyone, it's Mike and I'm here with my friend Maria Coryell-Martin. Maria, it's so good to have you on the show.Maria Coryell-Martin: Oh, I'm thrilled to be here, Mike. Thank you so much for having me.MR: You're so welcome. I had an opportunity to work with you on your YouTube channel, I think, was that last year or 2021? I can't remember now. It's so all a blur. We had a blast working together and you popped in mind for this season, and I said I need to have Maria on to talk about the work she's doing because she's a really interesting person. It's gonna stretch our listeners' minds a little bit further, which is always a good thing. Why don't you begin by telling us who you are and what you do?MC-M: Great. Well, my name is Maria and I'm an expeditionary artist and also the founder of Art Toolkit. I wear a lot of hats in my work.MR: Exactly.MC-M: Business owner and artist. The expeditionary art part came first. I've always been passionate about art, science, and education. And using a sketchbook is really how I've interpreted the world, and going out and just nonstop sketching ever since I was really little. I brought a few things to share so those of you who pop over to YouTube later.My father was a scientist and so I grew up really curious about his work and the scientific process. Part of his work brought him to the Arctic. He was studying the formation of sea ice. We grew up with Arctic parkas in the closet, and I remember big maps on the ceiling of my room.His work also brought him to Japan where he was invited to teach. This had a big influence on me because we lived down the street from a brush maker in Tokyo. The brush I'm holding up right now is one that he made out of my own hair before I left when I was, I think 11 years old. I would go up there and paint with him and my mom would help, but we didn't speak much of the same language, but the connecting over art was a really important part of my experience.He made this brush as becoming of age gift for me out of my own hair which he told me was a tradition in Japan. Ever since I was young, I've really known that art has this important place and who I am and how I experience the world, and how I can interact with it. That's where that idea of art as a tool started for me as a tool for communication, for education, for learning, for connecting, and haven't really stopped with that.MR: That's really great. And that's led, of course, to Art Toolkit, which is your business that sells materials that encourage that expeditionary art mindset or activity.MC-M: Yeah. With expeditionary art, I went to Carleton College. I grew up in Seattle, Carleton's in Minnesota, and really enjoyed traveling in part, maybe to get away from some of those Minnesotan winters, but had the opportunity to do some terrific study abroad programs, including the South Pacific, which was an art and printmaking program, Mali, West Africa, to study French and local culture and dialects languages. And took myself on some independent projects.Everywhere I went, the sketchbook again was such a part of what I did and how I experienced the world. After graduating Carleton, I had what's called a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship to travel and paint for a year. The Watson basically funds dreams for unique opportunity for 50 select graduates of this consortium of colleges.My particular dream was to travel to remote regions and paint and learn about how the landscape impacted me and the artists I can meet, how the landscape was reflected through their art. Long story short, I got a lot of practice in painting and traveling, and really my passion emerged outta that of collaborating with scientists whenever possible to help tell their story through art 'cause I've always loved science.The Art Toolkit came because I had this puzzle of traveling with art supplies and needing to keep everything portable. As an artist, part of just who I am is I really like to make things and to try and make things better. I was always tinkering every trip with the tools I had.I'm holding up now my first little watercolor palette I made, which just of out of an Altoids tin. And inside it is Sculpey, which I pushed a pencil in to make little holes and spray paint it. You see, Sculpey is really heavy, and so, it's not really like a backpacking pallet, and it's a little bulky.I thought, "I want stuff to be all in one, what can I do better?" Here's another one. This pallet is out of a Lamy safari pencil box or open box. I used this time little plastic pans that I could glue inside the tin. Some of them I put on magnets and held a lot more colors. It's lighter weight than my old mint tin, but still heavy.I had a trip to Eastern Greenland in 2010 with a walrus biologist. It was just really fun trip. We did a lot of sneaking up on walruses to observe them. The scientists were taking tissue samples, which was a cool process because they basically modified a crossbow to shoot a little tiny metal plug into—like imagine the tip of a pencil, you know? That was hollow.It'd take just a little plug of tissue out of the animal to get a little DNA sample. The walrus were sleeping in the sun, and they would grumble when they got poked. And then they'd fall back asleep, like, not a big deal. But sneaking up on these animals, we'd wear these zipper suits like machinist suits over our big warm gear, and we'd be crawling into sand so we wouldn't scare them.This is where the quantity of gear I had with me was really confronting practicality because I had my camera and an audio recorder and my sketchbook and my trusty watercolor box, but it would wiggle down as I was falling in the sand and keeping track of it felt like a challenge.That was the summer that Art Toolkit really started where I came back and my final watercolor palette that set the stage was this little business card tin, I'd adapted and found, okay, now I've got a pallet that can fit inside a zipper pouch and I can take anywhere a lot easier. I started making them myself with the help of a local company that helped with the pouches and making the little pallets. That was over 10 years ago.MR: Wow. Wow. That's really cool. That's I think the best kind of tools where it's not just something you make up and hope that it fits. It's like you actually field-tested everything to get to the point of like, okay, this is really working. I'm sure you field-tested that little business card thing as well to make sure everything worked. Just your nature, right?When you buy something from that a company or a maker, you take advantage of all that fieldwork that you've done, so you know it's gonna work when you get in that situation, it's not gonna fail you.MC-M: Yeah. I try and solve problems for myself. Then there's a point at which you think, with my work as an expeditionary artist that was around my passion for art, science, and education and wanting to go out, but I kept thinking, hey, I really wanna help share this with others and wanna help inspire and empower others for their own education or their own adventures and just going out.And so, I wanted to make tools to share and then kept making them better. Since then, we've done a lot of adapting to this palette from modifying it and changing the materials. We have them in three sizes. As if that wasn't small enough, we've got this really one size because it's so cute. I really like cute little things. My daughter teases me 'cause I'm always seeing your little cute things. Then we've got one that is about twice as big, but still slim.MR: Pretty thin. Slimness. I've got one of your kits, probably your smallest kit which includes a notebook. It's got a pallet and a water brush, and then it's all inside of a nice, pretty small, like a nylon zipper case. It all fits in there. Yep. Right there.We'll have links to Art Toolkit so you can go—if you're listening and you're not looking at anything, you're in the car or something. When you get to your destination, you can pop up a link and look at the breadth of tools. I think the other thing I like about the way you approach things is, well, of course, you're making tools that are tested and purpose-built 'cause that's really cool.The other thing I like is that you really focus on education. Like, having me on to talk about sketchnoting with people that like your tools or you're always doing stuff and then sharing. I think that's a really big key. It's not just that you're making tools, but you're actually showing them in practice and how to use them. It just makes for a whole integrated way of looking at what you're doing, which is really cool.MC-M: Oh, I'm so glad you appreciate that. It's been just central to our values and then the values now of Art Toolkit, you know, it's grown much beyond just me now about, I don't know what it was now, maybe when my daughter was two or three, she's seven and a half now.I realize I needed help with shipping and assembling and brought my mother-in-law in so to be my shipper, and she's still our primary shipper. Finally, got my husband on, and now we've got a team of about eight folks who work, some full-time, some part-time in making it, but really trying to keep those core values.I just think it's so neat. I get a little thrill when I see people out in the world and I get so inspired by other people's work. I suppose it's a little bit selfish in wanting that inspiration, but then the fun of sharing it and delighting.I tell you, Mike, the words that were mantras for me through the whole pandemic was just community and creativity. It was just like nourishing. I know that was the point where we connected. It's been something that's really grounded me.Well, that's great. I know sketchnote community is in a similar place. We all care for each other and lots of sharing and support and encouragement. The same thing happened for me kinda leaning into that community when the pandemic happened, knowing that there were other people like me that needed a connection, and so, well, let's make stuff, let's provide that.It sounds like you're on a similar path. That's really cool. You talked a little bit briefly about living in Japan with your parents and getting a brush made from your hair. I'm gonna now switch into your origin story. Now, you don't have to go and tell us every detail, we talked a little bit as we prepared for this. What were the key moments in your life that led you to where you're at and maybe some that specifically, I guess, integrated visual thinking into those decisions?I'm sure that living in Japan had a huge impact on the way you thought about visual thinking and observation and the way different cultures are and probably led to your interest in travel. There's probably a bunch of things that it probably influenced. Maybe start from when you were a little girl and became aware of the world and you're traveling with your dad and take us from there.MC-M: That's a great question. A few key moments come to mind. One was, so I've been to Japan four times and the first trip I was in grade school, I think. I don't know if it was summer after third grade or first grade, I can't quite remember.But the sketchbook for me then was just such a direct communication tool because I'd be sitting around with kids and I was out there with my family, but we spent a lot of time with other families and kids of that my parents were meeting and working with. I just remember describing things like, how we got to school. And they'd draw a picture of how they got to school, and I draw a picture of how I got to school or like what we ate.It was such this means of connecting and just like you said, that visual language. That stayed with me because it's brought joy and connection, and just like having conversations through a sketchbook. In high school, I loved art and I did a lot of outdoor education, but I really vividly remember, and I wish I'd grabbed this out of my files to show you, integrating art into my other classes as much as I could.For example, I had a mythology class where we'd have to write or review stories and instead of just, typing up or writing up a report, I put together a little book out of greeting cards, which I like sewed together and drew tiny little cartoon pictures with the whole stories for the whole assignment. Then I stuck in an envelope and gave it to the teacher who really enjoyed it.For me, it was a way of storytelling through art in my own way, and it helped me learn also. Which I think really relates to like the sketch noting of just visual processing and attention. Then another really formative moment was I spent two summers with the Juneau Icefield Research Program in Southeast Alaska.Each was a full summer one as a student in high school and one later coming back to help be a staff and artisan residence. That first summer, especially the ice field was this really stunning environment of rock and ice. Living in this environment, in these little cabins and traveling with a really neat group of people, science-oriented, also learning about field safety, so doing a lot of practice around crevice rescue and skiing and being safe in this place.And I just remember really coming away with, meanwhile, I'm always sketching, that idea of just coming at a subject from different perspectives. As an artist appreciating light and shadow, shapes, this sort of visual vocabulary. Then as a scientist, thinking about the why and asking questions.For example, crevices and why they're forming where they are, these practical elements. Then from this wilderness experience of how to safely navigate it, and travel it. Then also there's this emotional experience of this space that could change dramatically from this really wide-open landscape where you're skiing 10 miles and you can see your destination, but it feels like you're moving at the snail's pace or having the fog come in and all of a sudden, you're on the inside of a ping pong ball.Emotionally can be this entirely different feeling may be from going from this vast spaciousness to just this insular world. That made me just think a lot about how much I enjoy learning all these different aspects, and that's really was brought me to this expeditionary art of art, science, and education.MR: The sense that I'm getting from you to this point is you have a real fascination with layering. It's not enough that you learn, it's not enough that you're observing scientific phenomena, it's not enough that you're experiencing something emotionally, then you're layering on this art layer to try and capture it or express it or explain it. There's all this layering going on from what I hear.MC-M: Yeah. It's really neat when you get to be around people who are experts in those other layers because people of all sorts can just be the most delightful nerds, myself included. They're so passionate about little things that they know so much about, and just find it a delight to connect with those people and try and hear what they know and understand and use art as a jumping-off point to try and share that.MR: It's gotta be interesting to be able to express their nerdery about their specific thing in art, and then they see it and like, "Yeah, you get it." That's right. Maybe you even observe something because you're doing that art that they maybe didn't make those connections or maybe it sort of became clear for them. I imagine that's probably happened.MC-M: Yeah. Yeah.MR: That's really cool. Cool. Well, let's jump into what's the project that you're working on now that you're excited about to bring us right up to the present and share some detail.MC-M: Well, all sorts of projects going on. On the art level that's been something for my personal art practice that comes in and fits and starts now. I had a really lovely residency over the summer in Norway, which was an opportunity just to sink back into some of my painting practice. And so I'm excited to take some of that Norwegian work and develop it into larger paintings.I often like to work in the field, you work really quickly or might be filling up little sketchbooks. Here's an example from little small, just playful sketchbooks. I'm holding up one from some sketches in Alaska I did with a scientist that are—MR: Oh yeah, look at that.MC-M: Very much kind of little storytelling elements of about the project. Then in my studio I like to work on a much bigger scale often to try and catch some of the emotional sense of what I feel. Then on Art Toolkit side, there's all sorts of nonstop projects there, but I really enjoy developing new products and collaborations. I'll have to just share that there's some new paint-filled pallets that we're working on. We've got some variations on—oh, I don't even know if I should say yet, but if you stay tuned to Art Toolkit.MR: You'll find out. Yeah, get on the mailing list.MC-M: This spring, there's some a few things coming out that I'm really excited about.MR: Sweet. That's really great. That's great to hear. You're like me, you got lots of irons in the fire keeping things moving, so that's pretty cool.MC-M: Yeah. Yeah. I will say will be announcing our early spring workshop soon, and that's something I'm excited about too, is getting to connect with other artists who may wanna come and help inspire our Art Toolkit audience.MR: Excellent, excellent.MC-M: We'll have those coming up soon too.MR: Great. Let's switch to tools a little bit. You probably got lots of tools you could show. I guess we do have to remember this is typically about an hour show, so I'll have to cap you a little bit. But maybe you put in the context of someone's listening and they're like, expeditionary art or visualizing nature.Maybe they're in an urban environment and they don't think about nature, but the reality is nature is all around you, birds and trees, and it would be interesting maybe the start observing like, well, what nature is in my urban environment that I could capture? Or maybe I get out of the city and I take a sketchbook or something along.Maybe talk—when we talked before you were able to provide me with a little starter kit to try. Which is really great. Maybe talk about if someone's interested in getting into it, what would be the right tools that they might consider? Maybe that's the way to go about it.MC-M: Well, I think like the sketchbook it's similar to what people say about a camera, that the best camera you have is the one you have with you. The best sketchbook is the one you're gonna be able to have with you. For me, that's where having this little all-in-one zipper pouch of the Art Toolkit, which we offer in two sizes really came in because I just wanted this like no excuses kit.My no-excuses kit is usually the small one. I carry a bigger one when I wanna head out with more goodies and more things to share. But just to be really no excuses. In this kit, one of my favorite things is a water brush. I typically use Pentel water brushes. They're really durable. I find that you don't often clog. Last a long time. If you haven't used a water brush, you untwist the caps, you can fill them with water. Really cold places, you can mix it in with some vodka or gin to help lower the freezing temperature.MR: Your paint freeze.MC-M: Paint freeze. Another perk of the pentel that I like is they're oval, so they're not gonna start rolling downhill as quickly.MR: Fall into a crevasse or something.MC-M: I always find a water brush is handy. The most fundamental, all you need is a pencil or pen and a sketchbook. But I'll show you a little just what is in my kit, I suppose. I like waterproof pen. I often sketch straight with pen because there's just the immediacy of putting your marks on paper, and I really try and embrace practice, not perfection, of not worrying about lines being in the wrong place.If I did something and I stop and measure, I just draw the line where I want it and only color and the lines I want to. It's part of the process. Practice, not perfection is a really big mantra for me. I love a waterproof pen, and depending on where I'm traveling, I might carry one that's—I don't like disposable things in general, but a little Sharpie pen. Sometimes traveling refillable pens can be a little explosive with going over mountain passes or altitude. Another waterproof pen I really enjoy is this Pentel brush pen.MR: I love those.MC-M: A little more like dynamic mark, and they're also waterproof. Then I have a little collection of fountain pens. I'll sometimes carry—this is a little Pelikano fountain pen by Pilot. That's pretty cute and not too expensive too, so if you are not gonna worry about losing it too much. Copic multiliners are another waterproof pen I like. These are kind of a in between, see if I can pop this out. Something that is disposable and reusable. It's got a very large ink cart that you can replace and you can replace the nibs.That's a little variety of pens. I've got pen, water, brush. If I do carry a pencil, I sometimes carry an automatic pencil. This is a little heavy, but—oh, I love these pencils. Mike, they're Helvetica pencils. We have the automatic ones and then we also have just wooden pencils. They're just these gorgeous pencils made in Japan. I have just a gorgeous feel and I'm a real sucker for good aesthetics and I really like their aesthetics.MR: I'm a mechanical pencil fan as well. I keep usually soft lead and like thick. I think I got Faber-Castell, it's like 1.4 millimeter, so it's really super thick. I can show you what that looks like. It's super thick lead and it's soft. If I'm gonna do pencil, I want it to be soft and feel really loosey-goosey. I dunno if that's a technical term, but I tends to like, I can flow around and I don't worry so much. It's not about perfection, so.MC-M: Yeah. Yeah. Oh, this is one I bought years ago with a big lid lead too, that I don't sketch with very much, but I picked it up 'cause it was just so beautiful with a very big lead.MR: I think that's technically called a lead holder. I think it moves beyond a mechanical pencil to lead holder.MC-M: I think that serves it right.MR: The grasping things on it, right?MC-M: A couple other things In my carry-everywhere kit, if I've got enough time, I do really enjoy travel watercolor brushes. A brand that I'm a big fan of and we carry, Art Toolkit is Rosemary and Co. These are made in England by a small family company, not terribly small, they've grown many over the years, but Rosemary still runs the company. They have a whole variety of shapes and sizes, but the big key is that when you're done painting with 'em, you can take it apart and put a cap over the point so that they won't be damaged in transit.To paint with 'em, I carry a little tiny collapsible cup that we offer on Art Toolkit website. I can pour a little water and sit down a minute. Sometimes for my water brush, I carry a little tiny no-needle syringe to squeeze out the water and pop it in my brush. I always carry little extra binder clips, sometimes rubber bands too for wind. They're really useful because you can also clip your palette to your sketchbook. So, if you're out, you can have it on one side and sketch on the other.MR: Got it.MC-M: I do that a lot, sketching standing up, or making sure something won't blow away. Finally, a paper towel to wipe my brush on. The paper towels I use, I've been using these for years and years and years. They're shop towels, blue shop towels that you can pick up at a hardware store. They're just so soft and durable that you tease them out and reuse them. I really like the feel and trying to reuse them.MR: Cool.MC-M: That's what's in my daily carry. For folks getting started, your daily carry can just be as simple as like I said, you know, a pen and a pencil. I think water-soluble pens can be fun with a little water brush just for black-and-white paintings. Just keeping things simple with what feels like you've got space for in your daily bag.MR: Well, I've got my little toolkit right here for those on video so you can see. There it's. I got a little ruler in there, my syringe, and stuff. It's been a great little kit.MC-M: Oh, I'm so glad. I love having a ruler too. Mine has slipped out at the moment, I'll need to replace it.MR: Exactly. Great. I think I've actually done some work. I can show you what I've done. You mentioned the Pentel brush pen. I was playing with this. This is in a train ride in Minneapolis along the river with my kids. Then I think I was standing at the back in the caboose and just captured the tracks rolling away from us. I gotta say, it was really fun. I was really enjoying it. I need to do more of it this summer, so thank you again.MC-M: Oh, that's wonderful. You're welcome. That brush pen is so big and bold that you can capture the shapes quickly and then the watercolor can bring it to life. I think that's something a artist friend of mine told me once was that big tools make for big ideas. That sometimes bumping up the size of your tool, you can fill something up quickly and just—MR: Loosens you up a little bit too. I think. Talking about the size, if you know what the size of a pocket Moleskine is, which I don't know what the exact size is. The kit is not much bigger. Well, maybe I'll take a picture for the show notes. It's big enough to hold it and then the tools. It's actually pretty small, all things considered. Pretty compact, and you could throw that in a bag really easily. I appreciate little things from when I was a kid as well, so I super appreciated how you packed so much in this little tiny package. It fit me. It suited me.MC-M: Oh, I'm so glad. Mine tends to get a little bloated, but the zipper holds, so I'm like, "Oh, I can just stuff one more thing in here."MR: One more thing, just one more thing. That's excellent. Now, typically with Sketch noters, they often will use iPads and pencils and stuff. Are you using any kind of digital tools for the work you do? And what are they if you do?MC-M: I'd say the biggest tool I use is my phone in just taking reference photos. I might be out somewhere and I find like being onsite and doing some sketching sort of activates my attention. It gets me into just active observation, paying attention. It doesn't matter if that's just color studies or notes, but just something to pay attention and get outta my head.But then having some sort of media, additional media, let's say I'm going and need to add more color later or wanna work on some larger paintings, having a camera with me is really helpful. I think a phone is—I just have a little iPhone mini that—I'm not always looking for the best photo, but just for the reference and the memory.Sometimes I'll even do little videos, especially if it's of birds or things that move so that I can get a sense of that motion. I can pause and maybe catch a different position. I will say, I'm curious about playing more with Procreate tools and other things. I had on my residency this summer, another artist was doing a lot of really cool development of his photos into digital images and it was good to see the potential there. But I'm a fairly analog person by nature.MR: I can imagine. The problem that I've had in the field is just when you need a thing, the battery's dead. And if you're cold weather, it's dropping faster and if it's bright and sunny, it's hard to see. There's all these considerations that paper doesn't have those issues a lot of times. I could certainly see why that might be the case.But well, that's a really great little toolkit and we'll, we'll have you send a link to all those things. We can put that in the show notes, so we've got links to all the stuff that you showed, or maybe the package of things that have them all in there. Maybe there's just one link and everything is already in there for someone so they can just buy it and they're ready to go. So cool.Well, now let's shift again. We're shifting away from tools, and this is the tips portion of the interview where I frame it that there's someone listening, a visual thinker, whatever that means to them. Maybe they feel like they've been in a bit of a rut or they're on a plateau and they just need a little encouragement or some inspiration. What would be three things that you would tell them they can be inspirational, can be practical, three things that they might do to help them just kind of shake it up a little bit?MC-M: I love that question because I'm a real process person and I already told you one of my mantras, which is practice not perfection. Another one of my mantras is trust in process. No matter how much painting I've done, I still sometimes look at a sketchbook or start a painting and I'm like, where do I begin? And I need to remember kind of, warm up again.I love having my little process to get started. One thing I love in just all parts of my life, I love timers. I am so hooked on, like, does this feel hard to do? Set a timer. In workshops with people of all ages, I love going through gesture sketches, which are really fast, energetic little sketches to get the big idea of something.Using a timer, we'll so often, start with a ten-second sketch, go to a 30-second sketch, a minute, and even up to two minutes. It's fascinating to see what can be done in just a couple of minutes. let's see if I have a little example here of some gestures. Here's some little, just tiny walrus gestures done with one project.MR: Oh yeah.MC-M: I'd recommend as one tip is, if you're feeling like you need a little prompt to get started is set yourself a timer. I'm gonna do this for three minutes, just to get yourself to sit down and get started. Another way to think about it that a scientist shared with me is the activation energy to get a chemical reaction started is bigger often than like continuing a process.I think that timer can help us have that boost to get going. then once we are in the groove, it can be easier to stay in the flow. My first tip, Mike, is use a timer and set yourself a very small amount of time to do something. Now there's the question of what to do. And that will be my next tip.Another tip I would suggest is if you're sitting somewhere and feeling like, "I need a little boost for getting going here." Would be just to play with painting the colors you see and not worry about composition. You might do this as little circles. An artist friend of ours with Art Toolkit lately has just been doing some really delightful little circle studies, in this vein of creating a little bit of a little wet circle on your paper, dropping a little bit of one color in, and adding a little bit of another color.This could be more formal or you can see this little slouch of color on the other side of just seeing how colors might mix together what you see in front of you. But take away the pressure of I have to like, paint something or, or do something more, I'm gonna put this in quotes, "Official" or "Real feeling." Just give yourself the opportunity to play with color, what you see, and don't worry about composition.Actually, there's a fun thing which I think we put on our website. I can send you a link to this, Mike. If you do this of just mixing the colors you see, sometimes you can go on top and just do a light pen drawing on top of that as well. I can send you a link to a little prompt of that.MR: Okay.MC-M: My last tip would be going the other direction from just looking at color to just starting with words. I think a lot about sense of place and palette of place is something, as an artist I pay attention to. you're building a vocabulary when you're outside of the colors you see of the environment of the stories you learn. if it feels too much to start with the drawing side of things, let yourself do some writing.I often think about, you know, the W's of who, what, where, when, why when I write. I think it can be really fun to play, this is something you do so well. you might play with your writing. This is a little exercise I did on one program where we were imagining the ocean. So let your words be fun where you might play with how you're writing.Then around those writings you might then add in little tiny thumbnail sketches or little icons and then be able to add some color to the page. with all of these tips, out of those three, it's about just simplifying your approach. setting a timer, putting a little limit on kind of your time and expectations, taking away composition, just focusing on color, and then just paying attention to the world and just letting yourself start with notes just to start that attention.MR: Those are great. Those are three great tips. I almost wanna say practice not perfection and trust in the process are almost like free extra tips. I dunno. 0.1 and 0.2, I dunno, whatever. They are also good things to remember. That's really great. Well, here we are at the end of the interview. Crazy enough, it just flows by, it seems like every time I do these.Tell us what's the best way to reach you to get to Art Toolkit to follow you. Are there social media channels where you're more active? What are the best ways to connect and explore what you're doing and what you're offering?MC-M: Art Toolkit, we're at art toolkit.com and Mike, I'll put together a little discount code that you can share with your listeners at the end. We'll put in the show notes. We have an active Art Toolkit, Instagram. Fun community there. And I've got a small team Art Toolkit who helped me with that, which is great 'cause we really enjoy featuring other artists featuring techniques.We have an Art Toolkit recommend series where we just really try and share inspiration and cool stuff to try and help inspire each other. My personal art is over@expeditionaryart.com. I'm a little quieter on the social media front these days personally, but really with the Art Toolkit newsletter is the best place to hear about what is coming up. We announce to our newsletter our new releases or special offers first. We really enjoy that community and so invite you to sign up for that on our website.MR: Great. Those are all great entry points. Everybody listening, definitely check out the code that'll be in the show notes, and then go visit and spend some money over here. We wanna encourage and support Maria and her team for the hard work they're doing and the sharing that you're doing, and you end up with good tools. Everybody wins in that case.Thanks so much, Maria, for being on the show and sharing your experience and it's so good to have you on the show. Thanks so much.MC-M: Oh, such a pleasure. Mike, thanks for everything you do and your work has long been inspiring for me too. Just really glad to share this community, so thank you.MR: You're so welcome. Thanks so much. For those who are listening, this is another episode of the "Sketchnote Army Podcast." Until the next episode, we'll talk to you soon.

Today we're talking about a couple of very important things you need to know if you have Copic markers, or are thinking about starting your collection … maintenance and handling.   I want to start by laying out my credentials … I am a certified Copic instructor, and an Authorised Copic Stockist in Australia. I have been using Copic markers for over 13 years, and I created the Copic Subscription Box as a way to help crafters build their Copic colouring skills, as well as their marker collection. And, while I do know a lot about Copic markers, I don't receive updated information from the TOO Corporation, so I have to work a lot of things out on my own and keep an eye on various online forums and articles.   As part of my business I offer a Copic reinking service, and last year I noticed a marked increase in the number of extremely dry markers that were coming in for reinking. In every single case, extremely dry Sketch markers had a crack inside one lid, always the lid on the Super Brush nib end. In most cases the marker could not be reinked, and I was left with the awful task of letting each customer know that they needed a new marker. So, I started reading up on it, and I learned a few things … which is how this episode was born. I want to share that information with you so that you can make your Copic markers last for many years. Copic reinking service - https://dawnlewis.com.au/copic-reinking-service/ Article about replacing brush nibs - https://markernovice.com/copic/copic-replace-nib Previous Copic episodes - www.dawnlewis.com.au/podcast14 and www.dawnlewis.com.au/podcast15 Pre-order form - https://form.jotform.co/63050755145856

In this episode, Katrin shares how working on personal branding and marketing as a university project launched her sketchnoting career and increased her visibility on LinkedIn.Sponsored By ConceptsThis episode of the Sketchnote Army Podcast is brought to you by Concepts, a perfect tool for sketchnoting, available on iOS, Windows, and Android.Concepts' infinite canvas lets you to sketchnote in a defined area while still enjoying infinite space around it — to write a quick note, scribble an idea or to keep pre-drawn visual elements handy for when you need them most.The infinite canvas lets you stretch out and work without worrying if you'll run out of space. When combined with powerful vector drawing that offers high-resolution output and complete brush and stroke control — you have a tool that's perfect for sketchnoting.SEARCH “Concepts” in your favorite app store to give it a try.Running OrderIntroWelcomeWho is Katrin?Origin StoryKatrin's current workSponsor: ConceptsTipsToolsWhere to find KatrinOutroLinksAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.Katrin on LinkedInKatrin's websiteKatrin on InstagramEva-Lotta LammThe Sketchnote Handbook: The Illustrated Guide to Visual Note Taking by Mike RohdeEat to Beat Depression and Anxiety: Nourish Your Way to Better Mental Health in Six WeeksDr. Drew Ramsey podcastGoogle career event for women.Richard van der BloomAndrew D. HubermanHell Yeah or no by Derek SiversSketchnoting: Communicate with Visual Notes with Eva-Lotta LammToolsPen.Notebook.Steadtler pigment linersStabilo pensCopic markersTombow brush pensiPadProcreateDrawing glovesPaperlikeTipsPick a project you are really exited about.Don't compare yourself to othersDon't overcomplicate things. Don't overcomplicate sketchnoting.Don't over value talent.CreditsProducer: Alec PulianasTheme music: Jon SchiedermayerShownotes and transcripts: Esther OdoroSubscribe to the Sketchnote Army PodcastYou can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube or your favorite podcast listening source.Support the PodcastTo support the creation, production and hosting of the Sketchnote Army Podcast, buy one of Mike Rohde's bestselling books. Use code ROHDE40 at Peachpit.com for 40% off!Episode TranscriptMike Rohde: Hey everyone, it's Mike and I'm here with Katrin Wietek. How are you doing, Katrin? ** Katrin Wietek:** I'm really good and I'm really honored to be on your podcast today, Mike. MR: And it's so great to have you. I'm excited to hear your story and all the things you have to share with us. But first, I understand that you have a nickname, Kat, and I would love to hear what's the origin story of the nickname. KW: Actually, in 2014 and 2015, I went for a work and travel year in New Zealand. I'm originally from Germany. And I decided I wanted to go to the place that's the furthest away from Germany, and that was New Zealand, and it was also beautiful on top of that. I worked at a little cafe restaurant thingy and there was another employee from Germany and her name was Karina, so Karina in English and our boss, he switched up our names all the time. And then one day he said, "You know, from this day on, I'll call you Karina and your Kat." From that day on, with all my English-speaking friends, I stuck with Kat, basically. So yeah, that's how Kat came to be. MR: Oh, that's great. You probably know how to make a really good flat white then, I suspect if you worked in a cafe in New Zealand, eh? KW: My barista skills came a little bit later. They didn't trust me with the coffee machine. I was basically waiting tables and getting orders in and working on the till and everything. But a little bit later I was finally taught how to do coffee MR: Oh, good, good. I'm glad to hear that. That's very important. If you go to New Zealand, you have to have a flat white, I think, or Australia. KW: Or Mocha. MR: Mocha, yeah. KW: Don't forget the Mocha. MR: That's my wife's favorite drink, so she would be happy to hear that. KW: Nice. MR: So, hey, let's get started. I am really curious to hear your story. You've hinted as we've gotten ready to begin that you have an interesting one. Tell us the story of how you ended up—well, actually, let me back up. I think I'm jumping my own schedule. Let's first understand who you are. Tell us who you are and what you do, and then you can jump right into your origin story after that. KW: Okay. As a profession, I would say I am a content marketer by day. I work in B2B content marketing, part-time. And then I'm also self-employed. I do freelancing work. And that's not only sketchnoting and illustrating, but a whole range of copywriting and social media work. I have a really diverse career, I would say. MR: Oh, that's great. Obviously, the place that I've found you and I've seen you do most of your work is LinkedIn, which is fascinating because as social media goes, I've actually been more attracted to LinkedIn in a lot of ways because the quality just seems like it's a little bit better and there's, I guess a little bit fewer ads. I don't know, they all seem overloaded with ads to me, but I know that Instagram has a strong community around sketchnoting, but I'm starting to see, and the thing I don't know, is on LinkedIn, is it because I'm following so many visual thinkers that my feed just seems loaded with visual thinking? Or is it actually a trend in LinkedIn? It's probably more likely the former, in that I've sort of made a little bubble for myself. But I would love to hear, a little bit of your thought on LinkedIn and the work you do there specifically. KW: I think LinkedIn is a platform where visuals work really, really well. I think part of that is that the platform is not like as visual as Instagram or Pinterest, for example. Because on Instagram you had this buildup, every visual had to be better than the other one. And people are just used to beautiful pictures and really good infographics and everything. And a lot of the content on LinkedIn is still text-based. So, I think once you add a really cool picture that's not a selfie, that actually drives value, I think that's why they work really well. And also, because LinkedIn is a bit more similar to Facebook and the way that if somebody comments, this comment pops up in your timeline if you follow the person. It's a lot easier to be discovered by other people on LinkedIn. Especially, when I was posting on LinkedIn, I did a lot of career content, and that's perfect for the platform. You know, it's a whole like strategic networking and the career world, if you do content in that area. I think that's just pre predestined for LinkedIn. And I would say yes, you live in kind of a bubble, but I think the amount of visuals and infographics and sketchnotes is definitely increased over time. I think when I started doing it, I didn't see a lot of work like that, but who was already on the platform at that time was Tanmay Vora. I think you know him. MR: Oh yeah, yeah. KW: I saw his schedules a lot. And now it's gotten a lot more, which is cool. Oh, and you also see a lot of the explained ideas visually on LinkedIn, really small graphics where it's just a simple idea. There are a few people who do that and they are all over LinkedIn. MR: Got it. My screen up has one of your more recent sketchnotes, my takeaways from the LinkedIn algorithm report. So maybe I need to look at that sketch note and sort of understand what's going on and then I adjust accordingly, right? Yeah. KW: Yeah. It will be a lot quicker than reading the whole 50 or 60-page report. MR: Which is the beauty of Sketchnoting, right? KW: It is. MR: That's really great to hear. All right. So, we know what you do. Go into your origin story. It sounded like you had a really interesting history before, to kind of bring you to where you are. I'd love to hear that story. KW: The story's actually a little bit longer, so sit back. MR: Go for it. We have time. We have plenty of time. KW: I started thinking about what you said, like, was there a moment in my childhood or in my school life? And I wouldn't say not really, but I always had really neat school notes. Because when I had a messy note from school, I wouldn't learn from it. I always needed to make sure like my handwriting was nice and it didn't look messy. And I also remember color coding different topics. For example, we did the democratic system in Germany or whatever, and then it had like yellows, oranges, and reds throughout the whole topic. And then for another topic I chose, I don't know, blues, purples and dunno. So that helped me. At that time, I had no understanding of graphic design or how color theory works, but I did that just intuitively. I would say I was never really good at drawing in school. Arts and drawing always can really hard. And it wasn't until I discovered the internet and that I could like retrace work of other people, that helped me understand and get better at my art skills I also remember one funny story. It was actually during my A Levels. In the German language class, we were very required to read all those classic, like all these classic books from good and so on. From the 1700 and 1800s. And I hadn't read a single one of them for my A Levels. During the years, like the grade 11 and 12, it was I think, I never read anything and then I kind of panicked. What I did was I looked up the Wikipedia summaries, and I couldn't memorize any of it, so I drew little comics. So, I had like gorgeous work and like a little scrappy comic. And then all these other people's works, I basically just looked at the comics the whole time when I was on the bus and when I was at home. I never had read these books because I had so much other stuff to learn. I think that's maybe when it started and when I found the power of visuals and with my really neat school notes that I had drawn. I think that's how I came to be. I'm not sure if it was you who I found first, but I think actually it was Eva-Lotta Lamm— MR: Makes sense. Yeah. KW: Who I found first because it was in 2015, I would say when I finished school, she did like a travel diary consisting out of sketch modes from her around the world trip. And I thought that was so cool, so incredibly cool. I was really inspired because I'd also like traveled and I thought, "I wish I had known it before then." And I think that's when I googled the term sketchnotes and then your book popped up. "The Sketchnote Handbook." I think at that time it wasn't available in German or maybe it was, but I ordered the English version on Amazon. Then I read through it and I did some of the exercises and then I forgot all about it. I got busy because I started a degree. After school I started my degree in digital media and I was actually working in software development at the same time and I was doing user research user experience design, I think what you are doing right now as well, Mike. I forgot about the sketchnotes, but what I always had to do at work was like facilitate workshops. I worked a lot on flip charts everything and I always was really invested in making those flip charts look really, really nice and really cool and really clean. During the whole degree I forgot about the whole sketchnote thing. When I finished my degree, I was little bit lost a because I knew what I was doing before. I wasn't sure if I wanted to pursue that as a career and I wanted to know maybe there's other stuff out there as well. I decided I wanna take a break between my bachelor's and my master's and I got a part-time job and I decided in 2019 I was gonna do 12 creative projects. Each month was one creative project. That's when I remembered that I had your book at home and I was like, well, in January, let's start with the sketchnotes because I really wanna get better at them. And I've never got into them and never had finished any work. January was sketchnotes. I basically listened to podcasts about topics I was really interested in at that time. So that was personal finance. I was teaching myself a lot about finance and what to do and taxes and what not to do and also health topics. From a research perspective, how do I live a healthy life? Like what do I need to do? What should I eat? How much should I sleep? How do I reduce stress and everything? Mental health was really big at that time. I listened to all those podcasts and I basically turned them into sketchnotes to just memorize all the information that I heard on all the podcasts. I started posting them on Instagram. Basically, you set up a whole new account, said, "Hey, here's my 12th creative project." If you scroll down, you can still see the announcement. Then basically just posted all of the sketchnotes. It was really funny because one of the—oh, and what I wanted to say, one of my core values in life is lifelong learning. And I think the sketchnotes tie in really well with that because they help you so much with learning because you're visualizing the information and it helps you memorize it, it helps you retrieve it. That's why I picked it as a first project. Actually, I did one sketchnote about mental health and nutrition, what are important nutrients for the brain. It was a podcast with a nutritional psychiatrist called Drew Ramsey. He was from New York. I did a sketchnote. I tagged him, didn't expect anything of it, but he saw a sketchnote and he loved it. He was like, "Oh, this is so cool." At that time, I had maybe done, I would say 10 sketchnotes in total. MR: Oh wow. That's pretty good.KW: Yeah, I know. He was like, "I have this research about— In his research he identified 23 nutrients that are important for the brain. And he was like, "Do you wanna do a sketchnote on each of them?" I was like, "Okay. I'm not a freelancer, you know, I've just only started this, this is a hobby actually I have a February project coming up." I was a bit confused, but I said yes because I like to do things that terrify me. At that time, my process was still really, really basic. I was basically what you describe in your book, I don't know the two-way technique. I basically had a piece of paper, I drew everything on pencil, erased a whole lot and then rearranged it and I had the whole pencil thingy, then I retraced it with a pen, then I erased my pencil lines, then I scanned it, then I put it in Photoshop and made it look really neat. That's what I uploaded. That's also what I did for Drew Ramsey, so it was really tedious. It took a lot of time to do the 23 nutrients. MR: I bet. KW: Yeah. And I can tell you I never got around to doing the another 11 project of that year because Drew was really happy and then he came to me and he said, "You know what? I'm writing a new book. Do you wanna illustrate it?" I was like, "Oh my God." MR: That's great. Scary but great, right? KW: It was really scary. I think there was a lot of serendipity involved in that whole story because I basically had just started, it was just to figure out what I wanted to do with my creative life and with my career. And it was just one project of many projects. I had so much cool stuff coming up. I wanted to do product design and videos and editing, but I got stuck with the sketchnotes. And the book was really cool. The topic was "Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety." So basically, the nutrients that are important for the brain and if you suffer from certain mental health conditions. Drew was super cool. He was writing the script at the same time and he always sent me the script and he basically said, "You have full creative freedom. You can decide what to make a sketchnote out of. Here's the script. You can decide how many sketchnotes you wanna make." I can remember I got—because he published a book with Harper Collins and they sent me this whole illustrative agreement. I was like, "Oh my God, I have no idea what I'm signing here and what they want from me and file types." I had no idea what they wanted. MR: Production stuff. KW: Yeah. I was so terrified. But I did it. For that project actually I knew that my whole pen and paper and pencil and scanning and Photoshopping wouldn't work, so I got the iPad for that. Basically, took all the money that I made from the 23 nutrient sketchnotes and put it in an iPad so I could do the book project. That was super fulfilling. And they never had any revision wishes or something like that. They basically like, "Oh, you want to do a sketchnote on the benefits of dark chocolate, do it. Just do it. And it was so cool. I would say, that took around half a year. Basically, my break had come to an end and I was really doing a lot of sketchnoting. Well, in retrospective, it wasn't so much sketchnoting work, but I also had a part-time job. For me, it filled a lot of my time and I didn't have time or the creative energy to do anything else at the time by the way. Fun fact, these old sketchnotes that I created with the pen and paper and Photoshopping and scanning and everything, they also landed in the book. Nobody told me. They totally didn't fulfill the technical requirements and stuff, but Drew was just like, "I want this in the book." MR: He's passionate about it. KW: Yeah. He was passionate and he didn't care that they had a totally different style and like the quality was really different to the iPad because of how the way I worked back then. It was so funny that he like just put them in the book as well. That was really funny. After the book project I started my master's degree, I was figuring out I wanted to go into marketing, and my degree was in corporate communications. It was really funny, we had a social media module. Basically, do a social media strategy. My professor, he had these companies that we could collaborate with or we could also bring our own project. For example, like one of my classmates, he brought I think his dad's tax office firm or something like that. Then during my degree, I got really interested in LinkedIn because first time in my life I actually knew or got to know what B2B and B2B marketing was. Then I found out, okay, there's this platform LinkedIn and everybody's on LinkedIn and I should maybe make an account too. At that time, I think personal branding, the whole term and the concept of it was really popular on LinkedIn. Right now, it's everywhere, but at that time it grew in popularity, I would say. Then I thought, maybe I can do my own personal branding strategy. Then I asked my professor and he was like, "Yeah, sure, do whatever you want. And I was like, cool— MR: That's so smart. KW: Cool, let's do it. And then, I think I got a book about digital personal branding. It was a German book. The author, she basically said, "Because you have to figure out your content strategy and what you're gonna write about and what mediums you're gonna use and what the purpose is and who your audience is." And she basically started like, "Lay out your superpower portfolio." So basically, write down all your skills, your knowledge, your unique experiences. Then I did the whole exercise and I put sketchnoting in there for my skills. Then she said, "Well, which ones do resonate the most? Circle them and then make your content strategy out of it." Then I knew, okay, sketchnotes were gonna play a big role in my personal branding thingy, kind of. And at that time, because I was in LinkedIn, I was really interested in how could I advance my career. I had basically just done a pivot from lUX design to marketing. Then there were so many content creators talking about how to negotiate your salary, what to put on your cv, how to strategically network on LinkedIn. I thought it was so cool. I never heard any of that before. Everything I learned from LinkedIn Lives and podcasts and other people's posts, I just put into sketchnotes because I wanted to memorize it. And that was really cool 'cause like I said, the whole career content really resonates with the whole LinkedIn audience because everybody's trying to advance in their careers and in their jobs. So yeah, that was really cool. I think basically, I had a few favorite creators and they had a huge following. So what I did, I watched a talk and then I created a sketchnote then I tagged them. Like I said earlier, LinkedIn works a bit like Facebook. So then they saw it, they commented and then their whole network came to my sketchnotes. That's how I created this, in my eyes, huge following. 10,000 followers is not huge, but for me it's like, oh my God i'ts crazy.MR: That's pretty good. It's pretty huge. KW: Yeah. I think so. That's how I grew on the sketchnotes. They really blew up. I would say like after the social media module we had to do a presentation with our analytics and I think I had half a million views on my content. Which to me was just mind blowing, you know. I had no idea how to explain. It was just like, you know, I did this. I posted this, this was my strategy and it just worked so well. It was incredible. Like I said, visuals work really well on LinkedIn. That definitely contributed to it even though I had a super small reach. But since all the big creators saw it and brought their audience, that didn't matter so much. Funny story, then it was summer and I was a bit exhausted from the module and I thought, woo, that was intense because all these people text you and write you, and like how do you do it and you wanna hop on a call? And I was really overwhelmed with all the attention that I then I went abroad. Funny story. And then I went abroad to study in Scotland for a semester and I had another digital marketing module and our professor was basically, "You just have to create a website and market it and you can create a website about whatever you want." And I'm like, "Well, I'm gonna pick my own website and market it." That's how my website came to be out of that university project. And with the marketing, I basically continue what I was doing anyway on LinkedIn. Then I posted a bit more on Instagram and I tried out on Pinterest as well, but I basically just continued for the module, what I was doing in the old module as well. I'm really grateful that my university professors both in Germany and in Scotland, they just let me do my own thing and work on my personal brand because it paid off crazy. I still can't believe the few sketchnotes that I posted, I got so much attention and my audience grew. I'm really thankful they just let me do my own thing and get university credits for it. That's cool. MR: You really got good value from your education in that sense because it was so directed and practical. KW: Yeah. MR: As I listen to your story, the two things I reflect on is you actually started this all with, you mentioned reading about Goethe and all these masters, and you made these little comic books that you then studied. You realized really early that there was something about the visualization, at least for your brain. At that point you probably didn't think about anybody else, right. You just wanted to pass your A levels, right? So, you were using this technique to visualize this information and you found that it worked for you and that you came back to it. And that turned out to be of the seed for everything that you're doing, which is cool. And then the second part is what you just said that your professors were open to you directing your own path of the things that you wanted to market. I would imagine from a professor's perspective, and when I was in school, I relate to this that there was a crew of a couple of people who were really interested in doing more than the more than the curriculum said. There were a lot of people that just did exactly what the curriculum said and they met it to the T. They did exactly what the teacher wanted, but it was kind of boring, right? Like it was the same as the sample. Like it didn't really extend further. So, I can imagine these professors more have the problem of students, like if they gave them any choice that they would not choose anything. They would just go to the ones that everybody else does. And so, they might have actually been excited to see that you took it in a direction that most students don't, which is, well I know me the best, let's market myself and take that as the case study. So that's cool that the opportunity was there and that you kept on leaning on it. And then I guess the third thing would be your sense with these sketchnotes that you did initially that turned into 23 sketchnotes and then a book that it reveals to me that if you're in the right place at the right time doing this work and you hit the right person, those opportunities can open up. Obviously, they did and then you were aware enough that you stepped into those even though they were probably pretty scary, right? Doing 23 sketchnotes manually and doing all this work. And then jumping right into doing a book illustration project was, I'm sure a real challenge and maybe freaked you out a little bit at the time, but now you're glad that you did it right. Think of how much that's impacted your career and your person as well. That's just a great story. It's really fun to listen to you to share it with us. KW: I would definitely say because what you—and there's a whole lot of serendipity involved. Like you said, I was at the right time in the right place. What I also didn't expect, you know, basically my goal with the whole like personal branding thing on LinkedIn, which people know me for now, they don't know me for the book illustration project or what I did back then, the little bit of work.But it's impacted my career in so many ways that don't directly translate to sketchnotes even. For example, I had recruiters reach out to me. I was a marketer on LinkedIn, but I must have thought that my sketchnoting skills translate to, "Well, she must be a good marketer. She gets all this engagement, she has to know what she's doing on social media." That was really astounding that basically they just saw the sketchnoting skill, but they assumed I was a good marketer because of what I was doing. Then also I remember I attended an online Google career event for women and I basically, they had lots of inspiring speakers and I basically just put my favorite quotes on a really nice-looking sketchnote. Then you could apply for this Google career upskilling program as a university person. I networked with all the people that I put on the sketchnote, like the quotes. I put the quotes in the sketchnote and then I also submitted this with my application and I got into the program. I think it was a really smart way of saying, "Hey, "I'm going the extra mile and I really want this." But that was really cool. And then also, one of my former employers, they had seen me on LinkedIn and I was doing paid media work for them, but they were like, "Do you wanna kickstart our LinkedIn strategy? "Do you wanna come up with that? I was still a student at that time, so that was kind of big, you know, like coming up with the strategy and presenting it to the founders and to CEO of the company. That was really cool. I think also, in the hiring processes as a marketer, it always gave me a big bonus because I'm a content marketer, and I wanna make sure I have a really diverse skillset set. Be it writing or basic video editing skills or basic graphic design skills. And then I also have sketchnoting skills in case they needed it at some point. And then I have, of course, the freelance work as a sketchnoter, but also like freelance work as a copywriter for LinkedIn. Because they see, hey, I know how the platform works and then people approach me if I can help them with the LinkedIn profiles and with their content. Because I'm a polymath, I'm a multi-passionate person. I have many interests in life. I really appreciate it. That not only sketchnoting work came from this, but so many other opportunities. That's so cool. For me, that's the best part about the whole story. MR: That's really great. And I think, you know, not to be missed if you're listening is Katrin was very aware of these opportunities. I remember there was a study years ago, they talked about happy people or something, or lucky people, I don't know if you've heard this story that they had a newspaper and the lucky people would notice that there was an ad in the second page that said, "If you see this ad, stop reading and go collect your money you've won or something.” But people that were unlucky who thought themselves unlucky would miss that and they were looking through this newspaper. So, apparently, that was the whole test. The study more deeply talked about, being lucky is much more of a mindset because these things happen to many people, but many people are not prepared or not aware or not willing to do what you did. You were aware, you were prepared, you know, to do something, but then you also took a risk, right? Doing those 23 things was probably scary. Some people might have turned that down and that whole line of books and everything that happened would go open a puff of smoke, right? KW: Yeah. MR: This idea that you're open to trying new things and you know, the possibility of failure is there, right? That could have gone badly, but you wouldn't know that until you went down that path. I think, if you're listening to this and thinking, "Oh she's so lucky." It's like, well she kind of made her own luck. She saw these opportunities and she took a risk that could have gone the other way and it just worked out that she did the hard work to deliver. I think that this is such a great origin story that's so inspiring. Maybe we don't need tips. Maybe you just need to listen to the origin story again instead of the tips. I don't know. KW: I have one fun mantra that ties in really well with this. I always say to myself, "I can be terrified and brave at the same time." Same with the podcast. I was super scared to come on and talk about this and it's my first podcast. But this doesn't keep me from doing stuff. Same with the book project. I don't understand the illustrative agreement and everything, but I'm gonna figure it out. You know, I'm terrified, but that doesn't mean it keeps me from doing the thing. And yeah, that's one of my life things that's really important to me. MR: I love that. That's a great one. Okay. We've got your origin story. Tell us about what's a project that you're working on now that you're really excited about? Either something that maybe just came out or maybe something that's in the works that will come out when this episode releases in March, sometime. KW: What I was really excited about was part two of the LinkedIn algorithm report thing by Richard van de Blom. It's actually quite funny. I've landed so many dream projects in my life basically by giving away a little bit of my work for free. Then the person seeing it and then them hiring me to do more of that. And that same thing happened with Richard. So basically, did the LinkedIn algorithm report in 2021 just for free. I found it and I thought, I thought, "Oh, this is a great piece of content, maybe a bit too long for LinkedIn, let's put it in a sketchnote. I think this could be really beneficial." And Richard basically said, how it blew up. And he was like, "Wow, that's crazy. Can you do more of that for me?" And I love working with him. Because I always say it's more important who you work with than what you than what you work on 'cause he basically gives me full creative freedom. He's not somebody to do many revisions. He's basically, "Just do whatever you want. I trust you, you're the expert." Apart from that, actually, that answer might surprise you, but I've taken a step back from freelancing in particular 'cause I was doing so much freelance work and not much work just close to my heart, you know, just for myself as a hobby. Freelancing burned me out a little bit, particularly being stuck in revision hell, revisions going back and forth and back and forth and back and forth.I'm taking a step back and really asking myself the question, is this something I wanna make a lot of money with or is it more a hobby? And if a dream project comes along my way, then I'm gonna do it, but otherwise, I'm gonna say no. I don't have an answer to that question yet. I think like some days I lean more towards that and other days I lean more towards the hobby side of it. I always listen to the other guests on your podcast 'cause they have made a career out of it and they are illustrators and everything. But me, as a multi-passionate person, I don't want to be like a full-time illustrator or a full-time sketchnote artist. What I do as a content marketer, I can do so many different disciplines, and sketchnoting is one of them.So yeah, freelancing has taken the joy away from it a little bit. So, I'm taking a break right now to find my passion again and the things I'm really passionate about and then maybe get into freelancing again. If one of my favorite podcasts said, "Hey, can you be like our sketchnoter for every episode? Like Andrew Huberman, I love his podcast, neuroscience. He talks about neuroscience. Then I will be, "Of course, I would draw each of your episodes." But with other projects, I have to be really excited either about the person that I work with or about the work they do. Otherwise, it's a clear no. It needs to be a hell yes for the work that I do.MR: Which is Derek Sivers, of course. "Hell Yeah or No," Is his famous book. It seems like what you're talking about is opportunity cost, right? If I'm doing freelance work, what if this amazing podcast comes in and I'm loaded? I can't do it. The opportunity might be lost there. So you have to be careful. I think in some ways, probably the advantage you have in working part-time is that you have to make a choice. If you're doing something like this full-time, then you would have more margin to do more and maybe you wouldn't feel it. But being part-time helps you get clarity around what you want to do.Then probably the other thing I would say is you probably would identify that as a multi-talented content marketer that sometimes sketchnotes aren't the right medium for something. Sometimes video is a better medium or writing is a better medium, right? It's like an expert mechanic. They don't use the wrench for everything because it's not designed for that. You use the tool that's designed for that task. In the same way, Sketchnoting can be overused, I think, and if you see too much of it, then it becomes like back background noise or something. So, deploying it in the right opportunities probably is important there. So—KW: I actually.MR: Go ahead.KW: I actually wanted to ask you, Mike, how you decide which freelance projects to take on and how you prevent creative burnout. 'Cause I definitely struggled with it, so I wanted to hear your opinion on this.MR: Well, I've struggled with it as well. I do a full-time job as a user experience designer. I love doing it. I work in software. For some people they would look at what I do and think, "That's like the most boring thing ever." But I love it. Like helping work on corporate software and solving—making somebody's life. I don't know who these somebodies are. Somebody's life is going to get better because I've spent the time to think about what's the right way to work through this workflow so that it's smoother, that it's cleaner, that if I do it in one area, it applies to another area. All these things that I think about. That's my full-time work.What that means is that all the sketchnoting stuff that I do, if I travel and I teach at a school, or if I go to the international sketchnote camp or whatever I do, like I've got a limited time to choose from. So, I have to be very choosy and picky. I think I followed a similar pattern to you. It's either really yes or no. I tend to be someone who loves to help people. So, I'll tend to say yes, a little bit too much. I've been getting better at saying no. One of my solutions has been to build a network of people who do work that I admire so that when I get the project that comes in, it's like, "Eh, I could do that, but I'm not in love with it." I could think, "John is really good at that. I'm gonna make a connection to John or Mary." Just as an example.For me, I need this outlet of somebody else who I can trust that will handle it, that is a good fit. Like they would fit together and then I just redirect that inquiry to that person. Then try to focus on the things I'm excited about it or I think it will have an impact. That's hard. I don't think I've solved the problem completely because I certainly, occasionally will get projects that aren't exactly what I want to do. But for the most part, I think your comment about finding the right customers is really important. The people you work with are much more important than the projects in a lot of ways. Because if you're given creative freedom like you've said—I think the other thing, the other thing I would say is finding clients that are collaborative.It sounds like many of the clients you've mentioned were very collaborative and working, working with you. They were open to your expertise and would listen to you. Being able to modify what they were thinking if they come to you with an idea and then you come back with them with an alternate idea. You just twisted a little bit and say, "Did you ever think about maybe doing this or that?" And then they're open to it. That's a really important aspect for a customer that I look for.You can tell pretty quickly when you start working on something with someone, whether that's there or that's not there. And then you would have a tendency—I have a few people that I work with. If they call and say they need something, I'm an immediate yes. I don't even have to think about it because I like that person so much. It sounds like you have similar people. Those are the few things that I do.The last thing I'll say is having kids for me is helpful because I can't work all the time. I need to spend time with my kids. I like cooking with my kids. I like spending time with my wife. I have a whole other life beyond all this stuff that keeps me grounded. And just reminding myself that I can't do it all and it's okay. There's many other people and it's a huge opportunity. Everybody's got plenty of work to do and if I give it away to somebody else, it's not like the work will stop coming. It just keeps coming. I don't know if that's helpful.KW: Absolutely. I'm totally on your side and I share your view here. I was wondering, Mike, was there ever a time when you considered sketchnoting your full-time career? Because you're kind of like the inventor of sketchnote. I'm surprised actually to hear that you have this whole full-time job apart from that.MR: I've considered it in the past. It just felt like with a family and all the responsibilities that the variability would be a challenge. I think maybe sometime in the future that would make sense. But I think honestly, having it as a side gig has been good. I've hinted to in the feedback I've given, which is because it can only be a side gig because I'm such a helper and wanting to help people, it forces me to choose. Like if I had it full-time, I might like really overload myself. Having this finite constraint is actually a good thing for me. I found that with sketchnotes too.I stumbled on the sketch notes 'cause I constrained myself to a little book and a pen. That helped me to move into the space where visualization made sense 'cause I couldn't write everything down, I couldn't draw everything. I had to do it in the moment. That whole history was tied to constraints. I found any time where I put some limitations on myself is when I'm most creative. I think that's maybe true for other creative people too. Having that limitation on what's available forces me to make a decision. Like, am I really gonna spend the next three months working on this thing or is it better spent on something else?Sometimes I choose and it's like, "Oh, I wish I hadn't done this." Or it's taking longer than I wanted. I'm still happy with the output. Again, the opportunity cost means, 'cause I'm working on that, I can't take something else that comes in so I have to be more careful. I think, in some ways it's better to have it as a side thing because I can really be selective.KW: I absolutely love it as a side thing. Like I said, especially as being a multi-passionate person, it helps me so much. And then also realizing my time is really valuable. 'Cause otherwise I would've maybe the whole week and I would have a few hours every week. Then communicating this to clients and also saying, "Hey, don't expect revisions in the next five days 'cause I'm really busy with other things. It helps me prioritize and also keeps my life super interesting 'cause I have this other thing next to my regular job, like my employment. I love it. I wouldn't have it any other way. So, I can totally get what you're saying.MR: Like I said, maybe in the future the opportunity comes where it becomes a full-time thing. The other thing that I didn't mention is when I started all this stuff, there really wasn't a sketchnoting anything. There are people doing it. Eva-Lotta was doing it around the same time. We started to build this community. A Lot of the work has been building a community of people that do it so that I have students to teach now. Now I'm doing more teaching and that's working well because there's actually people that are interested enough that they would spend money to get real deep teaching.Then also companies being aware. I think you're starting to see this. Companies are becoming aware that visuals in the right context can be incredibly powerful. There's actually enough of a supportive market that you could be full-time. Actually, many of the people on the podcast like Ben Felis and a bunch of other people are full-time because of both of those things. There's a community that's willing to hire them to learn and then there's professionals that are willing to pay for them to do the work. I think a little bit of it is timing and waiting for the market to be there. That sounds like something maybe in the future would make sense to move in that direction. But I haven't decided that yet.KW: It's so fun what you said about teaching 'cause I'm not at all into teaching sketchnoting to other people. So many people have asked me like, "Wow do you do it and what you use and how did you get started?" I always just point them to your book. I'm like, "Sketchnote Handbook" by Mike is the only thing you ever need to read and practice to learn sketchnoting." Then I'm always so happy when I see you have another live workshop coming up and I'm like, "Yeah, go to Mike. He'll teach you. 'Cause I learned from him and he does such a great job. Every time I hear somebody who wants to learn sketchnoting, I point them in your direction.MR: Well, now if you're a German speaker and you're listening, there's another opportunity with Eva-Lotta's got a course that she's offering on Udemy, which think it's around 20 euros, something like that. $20. Anything that Eva-Lotta does is excellent. I'm one of her biggest fans. She's really great and she's very skilled. That's in German language. If there's Germans listening could be a really good fit if that's more natural for you to check that out. Look that up. She also does more intensive teaching on sketching. She's a great teacher as well.KW: I can only second that. I love her work.MR: She's really great. We've talked about your whole origin story, what you're working on. Now let's shift into tools. I'm really curious, you sort of hinted at this. You originally were doing this pencil sketches and inking and erasing and Photoshop, and that's the way I did it too 'cause that's all there was. You had to do that. Now we have really great mobile phone cameras. There's even tools on mobile phones to do modifications. We have platforms like LinkedIn and Instagram where we can share these things. Tell us about what are your tools that you use now? Let's start if you still use any analog tools. What are those tools and then digital after that?KW: With the analog tools, I thought about it a long time. Actually, over the years I became a minimalist and decluttered my whole home and everything. I have to say sketchnoting and illustration doesn't go well with that because you have to buy a pen in every new color that's out there. It just never stops with stationary and pens and notebooks and everything. They didn't make the cut after I switched to the iPad, but if I do some work, I always use the Staedtler Pigment Liners. I think they're a favorite in the community.MR: Excellent. Yeah.KW: And then basically, what I had at home, I used the Stabilo pens back then. I had Copic markers, but you need a certain kind of paper for them 'cause they're alcohol based, otherwise, they bleed through everything. Copic Markers. I had a few Tombow brush pens that I used, but it was really basic. I basically had like maybe 20 pens and pencils that I used the whole time. And then I made the switch to completely digital work 'cause I was always like, "Where do I store all of my work? It's not only stationary and pens and pens, where do I keep it?"Then there's the elements, there's heat and light and everything that works against your work. You know you have of preserve it. And I was getting really stressed out about that. Now, I'm more chill that I know it's all in a digital space. Now my digital space is really cluttered, but I'm working on that as well. But yeah, since then I've basically switched to the iPad and Procreate, the standard stuff and it's really cool. What I want to get, I haven't tried it 'cause I don't actually know anybody who's doing like iPad kind of work. But I never got one of the Paperlike skills 'cause I never wanted to put them on my iPad permanently. But now I know there's a company they do a magnetic thingMR: I've seen this, yeah as well on Instagram. I think I've seen this.KW: You can basically just put it on and then—'cause I watch a lot of TV series and stuff on my iPad then I don't want the paper-like thing on it. Then I can just put it off and then when I draw, I can put it back on. And what was really game-changing for me 'cause I hated doing sketch notes in the summer 'cause my hand always stuck to the iPad. Then I discovered the drawing gloves, they just go around your fingers down here. They've been a game changer. They are so cool. It's an analog tool that I use for digital work.MR: Interesting. Interesting. We have a few friends, Rob Dimeo, who was a huge fan. Michael Clayton, another friend used those gloves. I think I have one in my bag somewhere. I haven't used it for years. I think those were, at least for the iPad, more because I think the old iPad software was not great about determining if your finger was touching or if it was a pencil early on so you would end up getting stray marks in some apps. And so, this is a way to stop that. But it's got the second benefit is keeping your hand from sticking to the screen. Have you been using this magnetic screen cover and how does it work for you?KW: No, I don't have it yet. It's on my list. I thought it was really cool 'cause like I said, I never wanted to put a permanent screen protector on it. I'm getting it this month, hopefully.MR: Okay. I would say Paperlike was a past sponsor of the show, but regardless of that, I like them because I think the way they structure it is the little bumps that they're creating to create that paper-like surface, they're scientifically placing them. I've been actually pretty surprised when I use my iPad that it doesn't seem to impact when the screen is playing, like for tv. You might be surprised how clear it actually is. It'd be really interesting for you to try both then magnetic and the Paperlike and compare them and see. My concern about the magnetic one would be if it's kind of floppy and there's air between there, how does that react? Maybe that's not an issue, but that would be what I would wonder about. Maybe you could share that in a sketch note for us or a video or something.KW: Yeah. I'll do that once I've tried it out, but it's also really cool. I've never had the chance to talk about Paperlike to anyone. It's really cool that you didn't have the impression it ruined the other things you do in the iPad. I was always afraid of that and that's why I didn't wanna buy it. But I might give it a go.MR: All right. Maybe I'll reach out to my friends at Paperlike, and say, "Here's a person who needs a sample."KW: Oh yeah, I would appreciate that.MR: They like doing that stuff. They're really great people at Paperlike. It's a German-based company as well, so.KW: Ah, I didn't know thatMR: They're in Hamburg, so, you know, they could just run a little truck down and drop it off at your place.KW: Really cool. Cool. I'll write the review then.MR: Okay. There you go. Well, we'll work on that offline. Okay. Well, simple tools. I like simple tools. I like buying my tool at the corner drug store. Keeps things real. Analog. So, it makes it easy to replace things when you're in another country as well. You can probably find a gel pen someplace. So, let's shift now. This part is where we talk about tips. And we'd like to frame it as someone's listening, as a visual thinker, whatever that means to them. Maybe they feel like they've sort of reached a plateau where they're a little bit burned out or they need a little inspiration from you. What would be three things you would tell that person to kind of inspire them and get them moving forward again?KW: I would say the first thing is pick a project you're really excited about. I always also say for me, I do a lot of visualization of podcasts, live talks, reports, anything like that, and I need to be excited about the source material 'cause I find especially with freelancing where you don't always can influence what the topic is about or whatever, that really helps. I don't do any work anymore where I'm like, "Oh, this is really uninteresting and I don't wanna be drawing this." And then also, if you're not working of source material, maybe like do the travel sketchnotes. Like Eva-Lotta Lamm did. Pick something, pick a personal project.I would say this was a huge learning curve for me, that I only enjoy sketchnoting when the topic is right. And what I draw about really aligns with my interests and with my passions. And then the next one, it sounds so cliche, Mike, but I think it's so important don't compare yourself to others. Full stop. I know there's like a comparison is to thief of joy or something. But I think it's really true. I have a really basic and minimalist style and when I look at your work or at Nadine Rossa's work, I think she was on your podcast. I always get, I'm like, oh my God, I have such a long way to go and it's my work even good enough.But the validation I got from the outside well tells me it is good enough. There are people who appreciate your minimalist style that's not super visually complex and doesn't have all the really sophisticated doodles and everything. I've come to accept that, I think. And also, I try to stay in my line. I don't look at the work of others so much. if I do that, I set a certain timeframe where I look at your work and then I get some inspiration, but then I leave it at that. I know it's harsh, but maybe that even means unfollowing a few people on social media and only looking at the profiles like, I don't know, once a month or something.I think all you learn basically to not compare yourself to others, but I think it takes some time to learn that. And then also, also sounds a bit cliche, but don't overcomplicate things. Don't overcomplicate sketchnoting. I think that's also in your book. A sketch note doesn't have to be visually complex. And for me, for example, that means if I don't wanna drop people, I don't draw people 'cause I don't. Maybe I don't like the style of it or maybe I haven't put enough practice into it. Well, then I don't draw people.I don't have to do everything that the sketchnote community says that I need to do and how a sketchnote is supposed to look like, you know? "Cause I have quite a minimalist style and I like it that way and maybe at some point it gets more sophisticated or maybe it doesn't, I don't know. I would say those are my three things. Oh, and can I do a fourth one?MR: Yes, you can.KW: Don't overvalue talent. People on LinkedIn, they always tell me you're so talented. And it gets me really angry 'cause sketchnoting is basically you put in the work and the practice and then you get better. It's like running or playing an instrument. It has nothing to do with talent. If you look at my early drawings and when I started practicing with your book, it didn't look great. Don't overvalue talent. There's no talent. Everybody can learn sketchnoting. I would print this on a t-shirt. There you go.MR: I love it. Four is great. And we love it when people give us extra ones, so that's pretty cool.KW: Four is my lucky number.MR: There we go. I think in Asia, isn't four a lucky number? I'm not sure.KW: I don't know. I was born on the fourth, so yeah, that's why—MR: I think actually in Japan, four is unlucky if I remember right. I know this because I was an old PalmPilot guy back in the day. Palm did not release a Palm IV because it was popular in Japan and four, I think it's related to death or something like that. So that's why they jumped from the III to the V.KW: Oh, no. No, with us It's a lucky number.MR: It's a lucky number. I think so. We make our own luck, right?KW: Yeah.MR: So Katrin, what is the best way for us to reach out to you? Obviously, LinkedIn would be good.KW: LinkedIn is great. It's basically Katrin Wietek on LinkedIn. I have this website that I created in university, but I don't maintain it so much. But that's Katrin-kristin.com, I think. Also, that's the same Instagram handle, @katrin.kristin, I think. I don't post so often, but maybe that might change in the future. That's basically the three channels where you can find me online.MR: Primarily, it sounds like LinkedIn is the best place. Obviously, you're pretty active there. So that's, if you wanna see your work and connect there, that would be the place to go. So that's really great.KW: Exactly.MR: Well, this has been really wonderful. Time has flown by. It's been such a fun discussion with you and thank you so much for the work you do and your attitude and how you share your work, and really an ambassador for Sketchnoting in the LinkedIn world probably more than anyone that I can think of. I really appreciate that. And it's so good to see someone representing and having such a positive attitude for the community. I think you're just a great ambassador for us.KW: Well, thank you for inventing sketchnotes, Mike, and thank you for writing that book, because otherwise I wouldn't be here and I definitely wouldn't be at that point in my career. I'm pretty sure about that. And it was an honor to be on your podcast. Thank you so much for the invitation. I'm super proud of where I got along the way. And I'm gonna share the podcast with all the people I know and also posted on LinkedIn, so maybe a few people can see it.MR: Well, for your first podcast in English, you did an excellent job. You're a really great conversationalist.KW: Thank you.MR: Be very proud of that. You did a great job. And maybe I'll send this to people as a guide, if they're on the show, to listen to you.KW: This means a lot. Thank you so much.MR: Well, for everyone who's listening or watching, this is another episode of the "Sketchnote Army Podcast." Until next episode, we will talk to you soon.

In this final episode of The Sketchnote Army Podcast season 12, we've gathered all the tips from 9 fantastic visual thinkers to inspire you!Presented by The Sketchnote Handbook's 10th BirthdaySave 50% when you buy any two of the The Sketchnote Handbook, The Sketchnote Workbook, or The Sketchnote Handbook Video together with discount code HAPPY10.For details on the offer, visit:rohdesign.com/happy10Offer ends December 31, 2022.Sponsored by ConceptsThis episode of the Sketchnote Army Podcast is brought to you by:Concepts: an infinite, flexible creative tool for all your good ideas. Available on iOS, Windows and Android.The new Concepts 6 for iOS has exciting new features, including a modernized canvas interface, a freshly structured, easier to use gallery that integrates with the iOS Files app, and RGB and HSL color options added to its already extensive Copic color palettes.Concept's infinite canvas lets you spread out and sketch in any direction. Draw and take notes with liquid pens, markers and brushes in your favorite colors.Everything you draw in Concepts is a flexible vector, so you can move your notes around the canvas, or change their color, tool or size — with simple gestures. Drag+drop images onto the canvas, and use layers and grids to organize your creative space. When you're ready to share, export straight to your friends or team.SEARCH ”Concepts” in your favorite app store for infinite, flexible sketching.Learn more: Concepts AppRunning OrderIntroHermen Lutje BerenbroekTanvi AgarwalJude PullenNatalia TalkowskaDavid NealKate RutterTim MayRaven HendersonSathyaOutroLinksAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.Hermen's ArtifizerTavi's Silly StrokesJude's SiteNatalka DesignDavid Neal's WebsiteKate Rutter's siteTim on InstagramRaven's WebsiteSathya on Twitter1. Hermen's TipsTrust the power of the human brain.Embrace your mistakes!Draw your conversations for better understanding2. Tanvi's TipsFocus on the thinking and execution of your visualizationsConsume a lot of good content, observe and learn because your mind-shift from good content impacts your styleInvest in yourself!3. Jude's TipsMake your brain engage in the environment and challenge yourself to sketch on objectsDraw for someone not in your world: your momLearn to sketch upside-down to stay in flow as you sketch for someone else4. Natalia's TipsTalk to other people, especially outside of your areaDo something else to break out of your old ways: course, approach, etc.Believe who you and and this is what you do5. David's TipsFind some way to make visualization a regular thing - practiceKeep at your practice, don't give up!Forgive yourself when your work is not as great as you want it to beChallenge yourself to develop your own way to create things6. Kate's TipsDraw until the pen runs dry3 Times a CharmTalk with someone about their work and share yours, asking “why”7. Tim's TipsBelieve in the value of sketchy work for collaborationDon't put pressure on yourself to make drawings beautifulTake a class in something new that you don't know about8. Raven's TipsDo a challenge like Inktober with promptsGo smaller, like with sticky notes!Listen to others for good ideas9. Sathya's TipsHave a craftsman's mindsetBe a great fan of things you love and want to recreateCopy then master it and make it your ownBuild in publicCreditsProducer: Alec PulianasTheme music: Jon SchiedermayerSubscribe to the Sketchnote Army PodcastYou can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube or your favorite podcast listening source.Support the PodcastTo support the creation, production and hosting of the Sketchnote Army Podcast, buy one of Mike Rohde's bestselling books. Use code ROHDE40 at Peachpit.com for 40% off!

Information designer Sathya shares how he began creating visual remixes during the pandemic which has been a big part of his work along with teaching others create visual remixes themselves.Presented by The Sketchnote Handbook's 10th BirthdaySave 50% when you buy any two of the The Sketchnote Handbook, The Sketchnote Workbook, or The Sketchnote Handbook Video together with discount code HAPPY10.For details on the offer, visit:rohdesign.com/happy10Offer ends December 31, 2022.Sponsored by ConceptsThis episode of the Sketchnote Army Podcast is brought to you by:Concepts: an infinite, flexible creative tool for all your good ideas. Available on iOS, Windows and Android.The new Concepts 6 for iOS has exciting new features, including a modernized canvas interface, a freshly structured, easier to use gallery that integrates with the iOS Files app, and RGB and HSL color options added to its already extensive Copic color palettes.Concept's infinite canvas lets you spread out and sketch in any direction. Draw and take notes with liquid pens, markers and brushes in your favorite colors.Everything you draw in Concepts is a flexible vector, so you can move your notes around the canvas, or change their color, tool or size — with simple gestures. Drag+drop images onto the canvas, and use layers and grids to organize your creative space. When you're ready to share, export straight to your friends or team.SEARCH ”Concepts” in your favorite app store for infinite, flexible sketching.Learn more: Concepts AppRunning OrderIntroWelcomeWho is Sathya?Origin StorySathya's current workSponsor: Concepts appTipsToolsWhere to find SathyaOutroLinksAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.Sathya on TwitterSathya on LinkedInTeach for IndiaVisualize ValueBook: Deep Work by Cal NewportBook: Decoding Greatness by Ron FriedmanBook: Scott McCloud's Understanding ComicsBook: Scott McCloud's Making ComicsJack ButcherCarl RichardsBiryaniToolsAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.Ruled NotebookBlue PenCanvaEvernoteNotionFigmaMuralMiroXMindTipsHave a craftsman's mindsetBe a great fan of things you love and want to recreateCopy then master it and make it your ownBuild in publicCreditsProducer: Alec PulianasTheme music: Jon SchiedermayerSubscribe to the Sketchnote Army PodcastYou can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube or your favorite podcast listening source.Support the PodcastTo support the creation, production and hosting of the Sketchnote Army Podcast, buy one of Mike Rohde's bestselling books. Use code ROHDE40 at Peachpit.com for 40% off!

In this episode, Raven Henderson shares how her experiences as an Army Brat prepared her to be adaptable in all sorts of situations, including visual challenges.Presented by The Sketchnote Handbook's 10th Birthday GiveawayPeachpit and Mike Rohde are giving away 10 prizes in The Sketchnote Handbook 10th Birthday Giveaway!Here are the prizes you could win:1 coaching session with me for 30-minutes3 signed 10th Birthday Edition Sketchnote Handbooks3 Sketchnote Ideabooks and Airship Autoquill Fineliner 6-Pack Pens3 Sketchnote Typeface full desktop licensesTo see all the details visit: rohdesign.com/giveawaySponsored by ConceptsThis episode of the Sketchnote Army Podcast is brought to you by:Concepts: an infinite, flexible creative tool for all your good ideas. Available on iOS, Windows and Android.The new Concepts 6 for iOS has exciting new features, including a modernized canvas interface, a freshly structured, easier to use gallery that integrates with the iOS Files app, and RGB and HSL color options added to its already extensive Copic color palettes.Concept's infinite canvas lets you spread out and sketch in any direction. Draw and take notes with liquid pens, markers and brushes in your favorite colors.Everything you draw in Concepts is a flexible vector, so you can move your notes around the canvas, or change their color, tool or size — with simple gestures. Drag+drop images onto the canvas, and use layers and grids to organize your creative space. When you're ready to share, export straight to your friends or team.SEARCH ”Concepts” in your favorite app store for infinite, flexible sketching.Learn more: Concepts AppRunning OrderIntroWelcomeWho is Raven?Origin StoryRaven's current workSponsor: Concepts appTipsToolsWhere to find RavenOutroLinksAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.Raven's WebsiteRaven's Coaching SessionsRaven on InstagramSermon Sketchnote Facebook CommunityDoug Neill's Verbal to VisualThe Sketch EffectAlejo Porras InterviewWilliam Warren InterviewDoug Neill InterviewSearchieDesign RevivalBored PandaChristoph NiemannToolsAmazon affiliate links support the Sketchnote Army Podcast.Telescoping Pencil CaseTombow PensFrixxion PensRocketbookiPad ProApple PencilProcreateTipsDo a challenge like Inktober with promptsGo smaller, like with sticky notes!Listen to others for good ideasCreditsProducer: Alec PulianasTheme music: Jon SchiedermayerSubscribe to the Sketchnote Army PodcastYou can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube or your favorite podcast listening source.Support the PodcastTo support the creation, production and hosting of the Sketchnote Army Podcast, buy one of Mike Rohde's bestselling books. Use code ROHDE40 at Peachpit.com for 40% off!

This episode is part of a special series that focuses on organizations that received grant funding from the COPIC Medical Foundation for initiatives that address the issue of reducing fragmentation across care settings. Dr. Zacharias welcomes Arturo Brito, MD, MPH, the President and CEO of Children's Health Fund. Dr. Brito highlights how the grant was used to support the review, update, and dissemination of the successful Referral Management Initiative to incorporate new technologies that enhance care coordination procedures for pediatric populations living in under-resourced communities. They talk about health equity, innovation with mobile clinic programs, concern over COVID-19's long-term impact on pediatric patients, addressing the challenges of navigating a complex health care system, and how “continuous improvement” serves as a guide for the organization's efforts. Children's Health Fund website: childrenshealthfund.orgChildren's Health Fund on: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter

Show Notes:0:43 - Australia 0:46 and 1:07 - Verona 0:47 - Northern Italy1:14 - Italy 1:36 - Quilt Improv Studio 1:48 - Paula Macketa1:50 - Jovana Nikolai 1:53 - Carla Barretta1:56 - Paula Macketa1:56 - Priest 1:58 - Carla Barretta1:59 - Rome 2:00 - Jovana Nikolai 2:01 - Venice2:06 - Improv quilt challenges organised by Quilt Improv Studio 2:30 - Paula Macketa2:34 - MQG (Modern Quilt Guild)2:40 - Beyond Borders Guild2:51 - Doctors beyond borders2:57 - Sweden 2:58 - Italy 2:59 and 3:12 - United States3:13 - Modern quilting 3:36 - Quilt Buzz 3:39 - Amanda of Broadcloth Studio 3:40 - Anna of Wax and Wane Studio 3:41 - Wendy of The Weekend Quilter 3:59 - Beyond Borders Guild4:12 - MQG (Modern Quilt Guild)4:51 - Indonesia 6:44 - Kona Cotton in Acid Lime7:05 - Abstract artwork 7:06 - Abstract expressionists 7:09 - Robert Motherwell 7:12 - Lucia Clark8:50 - Kona Cotton in Acid Lime9:48, 10:56 and 11:50 - Ally's design course for quilters12:22 - Adobe Illustrator 12:23 - Adobe Photoshop 13:09 - Ally's design course for quilters13:22 - Adobe 13:23 - Adobe Illustrator 13:24 - InDesign 13:38 - Adobe 13:46 - Adobe Illustrator 13:49 - Canva13:52 and 14:04 - Microsoft PowerPoint14:08 - Canva14:12 - Quilt Buzz Bingo 14:14 - Canva14:21 - Microsoft PowerPoint14:27, 14:28 and 14:37 - InDesign 14:40 - Adobe15:01 - InDesign 15:02 - Adobe Illustrator 15:03 - Adobe Photoshop 18:16 - Ally's design course for quilters18:50 - Ally's design a quilt in 5 steps guide19:23 - Ally's quilt tracker 22:06 - Numbering in printmaking 22:20 - Ally's downloadable quilt tracker23:40 - Quilt shop outside of Boston 25:05 - Transposing columns on Microsoft Excel 25:22 - Concatenation formula on Microsoft Excel 25:33 - HST (Half-square triangle)25:34 - Log Cabin traditional quilt block 25:41 - Kona Cotton in Acid Lime25:49 - Kona Cotton 26:44 - Quilt Improv Studio 26:49 - Tree Estem? 26:52 and 26:58 - Patchwork Victim27:08 - Ally's design a quilt in 5 steps guide27:27 - Copic markers 27:28 - Micron pens27:48 - Bernina 350 Patchwork Edition sewing machine28:18 - Gutterman thread28:20 - Madeira thread28:22 - Bernina28:27 and 28:29 - Aurifil thread28:27 - Italy 28: 55 - Eva Stiner of Schnigsnag quilts 30:07 - Allah of Diddy and Meg Makes 30:15 - Season Evans of S D Evans 30:25 - Shadow study series by Ally 30:36 - Dumb servant rack31:25 - Matise of Mathisteis31:43 - Present and Correct32:06 - Kanggan Aurora32:08 - Ikea32:31 - Ally's design course for quilters32:44 - Special page for Quilt Buzz listeners from Ally Follow Ally:Instagram - @allyrydehttps://allyryde.com/Follow us:Amanda: @broadclothstudio https://broadclothstudio.com/Wendy: @the.weekendquilter https://the-weekendquilter.com/Anna: @waxandwanestudiohttps://www.waxandwanestudio.com/Quilt Buzz: @quilt.buzzhttps://quiltbuzzpodcast.com/Intro/Outro Music:Golden Hour by Vlad Gluschenko

Maybe you look forward to the solitude that comes after a long day of work or spending the weekends in nature with your dog. Maybe you find energy and comfort in game nights with friends or love the opportunity to meet new people. Or, perhaps you find yourself best suited somewhere in the middle—reading books in the company of a loved one. But how do those varying preferences, those gages for recharging and feeling restored and rejuvenated, affect our mental health? Are they connected? Do they share the same space? We're curious to find out, so on this episode, we're talking about introversion and extroversion, and how they tie into the mental well-being of a person. To help us, we're joined by Jess McAuley (introvert) and Bianca Mujica (extrovert).    Jess McAuley an INFP, Virgo, and a new mom. She is a Niagara, Ontario-based arts worker and performer, as well as co-host of "The Introvert's Guide To.." podcast. While on maternity leave (and when she has free time), Jess is developing her craft of writing and indulging in her infatuation with Tombow and Copic markers. Between all of this, it is uncertain if she will ever sleep again.   Bianca Mujica is TWLOHA's Community Care Coordinator, which means her work focuses on finding inclusive and creative ways to connect with supporters online. She is a Mexican-American queer woman from Texas with a background in journalism and a love for language. Outside of work, she can be found eating lots of pasta, cuddling with her dog, and creating colorful pieces of art.    Show Notes (Links of ours and guests):   Download a transcript of this episode at twloha.com/podcast.   Follow TWLOHA on social media at: twitter.com/TWLOHA instagram.com/twloha/ facebook.com/towriteloveonherarms/   Visit our FIND HELP page of mental health resources at twloha.com/find-help/.   Get connected for free, 24/7 to a trained crisis counselor via Crisis Text Line by texting TWLOHA to 741741.   Connect with our team by emailing podcast@twloha.com.   Learn more about the podcast and previous episodes at twloha.com/podcast. Download TWLOHA's daily-use self-care app, The Hopeful, at twloha.com/thehopeful/.  Check out The Introverts Guide to Podcast by going to ​​https://introvertsguideto.com/.    Purchase “Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking” by Susan Cain at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/quiet-susan-cain/1101870221.    Credits:   This episode of the TWLOHA podcast was hosted by Chad Moses and produced by Rebecca Ebert. Music assistance was provided by James Likeness and Ben Tichenor.