Podcasts about informal

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

South Africa's townships are not a side economy. According to GG Alcock, author of the Kasinomics book series, they're a trillion-rand-plus market that the country's biggest listed companies are already quietly fighting over, from Shoprite's cash-and-carry pivot to Capitec's entrepreneur accounts to Pepkor's handset financing. Alcock, who grew up in a mud hut in Msinga, KwaZulu-Natal, and never went to university, sat down with Alec Hogg to explain why the xenophobic crackdown on foreign traders barely dented the spaza sector, why Pick n Pay's QualiSave format misread who actually shops in a township, how a social grant became one woman's ten-year start-up fund, and why an entire generation of township entrepreneurs is quietly building wealth in bread, eggs, hardbody chickens and handset finance while the formal economy stalls.

My husband Jim and I are very different.  He has done a lot of formal mentoring, and I tend to do more informal mentoring.  Over the years, I have taken the time to live life alongside so many different women.  Some older than me, some younger than me.  Since Jim and I are involved in marriage mentoring with Christian Entrepreneurial couples, I often spend time with the wives working life out with them.  You see, mentoring for me looks like phone calls, drop-in visits, shopping trips, and texting.  The women I pour my Jesus life into rarely have time to meet for coffee, but we can share coffee over the phone or Facetime just the same.  My mentoring often looks scattered and informal, but I am available when needed and recognize that just stepping out for a call is part of my discipleship ministry.  Who do you pour your Jesus Life into? 

How can businesses turn growing investment in AI infrastructure, cloud capacity and devices into outcomes that employees, customers and finance teams can actually measure? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I speak with Neil Sawyer, who manages HP's business across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Neil works with companies across one of HP's largest global regions as they move from AI experimentation into wider deployment, making him well placed to discuss what happens when early enthusiasm encounters cost, security, governance and the realities of the workforce. We begin with the gap between building AI capacity and applying it to a business problem. Data centers, models and powerful devices provide options, but the investment only becomes useful when a company identifies the workflow it wants to improve. Neil argues that leaders should begin with the outcome, understand where AI can remove friction and decide how they will measure productivity, employee experience and business performance before buying another layer of technology. That raises a difficult question about productivity. If AI helps someone complete a task faster, does the organization use that saved time to improve the work, develop new ideas and give employees room to think, or does it simply add another task to the queue? I share my own experience as a business of one, where every efficiency gain has a habit of becoming extra output rather than a Wednesday afternoon at the cinema. Neil compares the current moment with earlier periods of industrial change and makes the case that automation should release people from repetitive administration so they can contribute creativity, judgment and higher value work. We also discuss why AI costs are becoming a boardroom issue. Token based services and agentic systems can produce growing and unpredictable bills as adoption spreads across a company. Neil explains why every workload does not need the same model or environment. Large language queries may benefit from cloud capacity, while sensitive data, company specific information and some recurring tasks may be better suited to local or on device processing. The decision affects cost, responsiveness, privacy, security, data sovereignty and environmental impact. Neil describes HP's view of hybrid AI, including devices with neural processing units and Z by HP Boost, which can connect available workstation GPU resources. He also explains why device refresh decisions should reflect workforce personas. A data scientist, account manager and office administrator may work for the same company, yet their computing needs can be very different. Mapping technology to the employee's role can help a business spend with greater discipline while giving people the performance they need. The conversation also covers governance and measurement. Informal use of public AI services can be difficult to see, assess or manage. Neil recommends giving employees an approved AI toolkit, using enterprise services that provide telemetry and examining how technology availability and performance affect the employee experience. Adoption figures can show that a tool is being used, but they do not prove that it is improving an outcome. We finish with a practical checklist for leaders. Define the outcome, identify the workflow, determine where each workload should run, calculate the cost, agree the measures of success and put clear controls around data, privacy and cybersecurity. That approach gives cloud and device based AI distinct jobs within the same business strategy. How is your organization deciding which AI workloads belong in the cloud, which should run closer to the employee, and whether the investment is producing measurable value? Share your thoughts with me.

Sobre Economia Politica da Comunicação e da Cultura (EPCC) da Fundação Casa de Rui Barbosa.Autor do podcast: Carolina Fioravante, bolsista PIC do grupo de pesquisa EPCC da FCRB.No episódio de hoje do Economia Política da Comunicação e da Cultura (EPCC), debatemos o artigo "História digital informal? Sobre pesquisa histórica, plataformas e redes sociais", de Ian Kisil Marino, publicado na Revista Brasileira de História (v. 45, n. 99, 2025), refletindo sobre como as redes sociais vêm transformando a produção de fontes históricas no século XXI. A discussão aborda os desafios metodológicos e epistemológicos de pesquisar em plataformas digitais — como a instabilidade dos registros, a dificuldade de identificação dos criadores de conteúdo e a lógica proprietária das plataformas —, a partir da experiência do autor com arquivos digitais sobre a pandemia de COVID-19 no Instagram, e como esse percurso o leva a propor a noção de "história digital informal" como caminho para acessar arquivos informais criados nas redes sociais.Coordenação do canal: Dra. Eula D.T. Cabral.Análise e correção do roteiro e fichamento do episódio: Dra. Eula D.T. Cabral.Entre em contato conosco:Site: https://epccbrasil.wixsite.com/epcc2Canal no Youtube: EPCC Brasil - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7nilPYHyPTpr24THJX-hiw/featuredPágina no Facebook: EPCC-Economia Política da Comunicação e da CulturaInstagram: @epcc.brasilE-mail: coloquio.epcc@gmail.comSiga o podcast e acompanhe os próximos episódios!

For episode 267 of the Crypto Altruists podcast, we've got a full house. We are joined by four guests, each representing a different piece of a groundbreaking pilot project, and together they tell a story that's an incredible example of how blockchain is changing lives and building more resilient communities.Across Kenya, and much of Sub-Saharan Africa, informal market traders live with a brutal kind of vulnerability. Picture a woman running a produce stall in an open-air market in Nairobi. When the heavy rains come, and they're coming harder and more often, her stall floods, her customers vanish, and her income stops. But even though her business has ground to a halt, payments are still due on the loan she took out to stock it. A rainfall shock becomes a credit shock, pushing already-vulnerable people even further out of the financial system.Traditional insurance was supposed to help with this kind of risk, but for informal traders, it simply doesn't work. Filing claims, submitting documentation, and waiting weeks for a payout that arrives long after the crisis has passed is both inaccessible and too expensive to deliver at this scale.So a group of organizations came together to do it differently. In a pilot supported by Mercy Corps Ventures, parametric climate insurance is embedded directly into microloans. When satellite data confirms it's rained too much, a smart contract automatically reduces the borrower's loan balance, with no claim to file, no forms, and no waiting. And the results were remarkable. To unpack it all, we're joined by Kennedy Nganga of BlockBima, Benson Njuguna of Fortune Credit, Mohammed Mwijaa of Shamba Network, and Agrotosh Mookerjee of RiskShield.In today's discussion you'll learn:

Episode #600: “I won't be disappointing the people.” Before Kyaw Moe Tun took the UN General Assembly floor on February 26, 2021, that was as much as he had disclosed about the position he intended to take. Myanmar's permanent representative—its ambassador to the UN—and a diplomat since 1993, he had received the junta's instructions after the coup but secretly prepared a statement siding with the public and the ousted elected government. Almost no one knew his words in advance. Once delivered, they placed both his position and his safety at risk. The junta tried to remove him from the UN and later an assassination plot against him brought FBI intervention and a month of round-the-clock Secret Service protection. Kyaw Moe Tun nevertheless retained the seat after the UN Credentials Committee deferred competing claims in 2021. That arrangement has continued, but at a price: he has withdrawn from the General Debate speakers list each year and kept a lower profile to protect the consensus that excludes the junta's nominee. The next decision is formed through a process he cannot directly address. China, Russia, and the United States are expected to sit on the nine-country committee, while the other six members may emerge only when the new General Assembly session begins. Informal discussions can settle the language before a November meeting, and the full General Assembly may approve the report within seconds. The mission defending Myanmar's democratic claim has meanwhile shrunk from fourteen people to five, surviving on funds held before the coup. Losing the seat would remove the channel through which Kyaw Moe Tun conveys the people's aspirations and seeks international action. It would also strip him of the office from which he has resisted the junta while deepening his exile. He says the military has sentenced him for treason and that he must protect his wife and two children. The institution will decide who represents Myanmar; its current representative cannot safely return there.

Send us Fan MailDoes small talk at work feel awkward, draining, or fake? You do not need to be more entertaining, clever, or outgoing to build meaningful professional relationships. The most effective small talk starts with genuine curiosity—not a performance.In this episode of Communicate to Lead, leadership coach Kele Belton shares how to make small talk that builds real connection at work. You will learn how to start a conversation, ask open-ended questions, keep an exchange going naturally, and recover gracefully when a conversation goes quiet.For high-performing women who feel confident in meetings but uncomfortable in networking situations, receptions, hallway conversations, or the few minutes before a meeting begins, this episode offers a practical reframe: your job is not to be interesting. Your job is to be interested.You will also learn why informal workplace conversations matter for career visibility, trust, sponsorship, and executive presence—and how to practice connection in low-stakes moments so it feels more natural when the stakes are higher.In this Episode, You'll LearnWhy small talk can feel especially difficult for capable, high-achieving professionals.The mindset shift that makes small talk feel more genuine: focus on being interested rather than trying to be interesting.How informal conversations at work build trust, visibility, and stronger professional relationships.How to start a conversation and keep it going with open-ended questions and thoughtful follow-ups.What to do when a conversation feels awkward, stalls, or goes quiet.How to practice small talk and networking skills in low-stakes moments so they become more natural over time.Your Action StepThis week, choose one low-stakes moment—the coffee line, a few minutes before a meeting, the elevator, or the checkout counter—and start one brief conversation.Use this simple practice:Ask one open-ended question that invites more than a yes-or-no answer.Listen for one detail, interest, or experience you can follow up on.Ask one genuine follow-up question before sharing a related thought about yourself.“How has your week been shaping up?”“Which part of that project has been most interesting?”“That sounds like a big shift. What has been the most challenging part?”You do not need a long or memorable exchange. One question and one follow-up are enough. The goal is to practice curiosity where nothing is at stake, so it is available to you when connection matters more.Who This Episode Is forThis episode is for high-performing women in middle management and senior management who:Feel confident in formal meetings but uncomfortable with informal workplace conversation.Find networking, receptions, or pre-meeting conversation draining or awkward.Want to build authentic professional relationships without pretending to be extroverted or overly polished.Want to strengthen workplace visibility, executive presence, and career-supporting connections.Need practical small-talk strategies that feel genuine and sustainable.Frequently Asked QuestionsHow do you make small talk without it feeling fake?Stop trying to be impressive and become genuinely curious about the other person. Start with something you both share in the moment, ask an open-ended question, listen for a thread in their answer, and follow it with one thoughtful question. Share something relevant about yourself so the exchange becomes mutual. Small talk feels forced when you perform; it feels real when you are interested.Why is small talk so hard for high achievers?Many capable professionals assume they need to say something smart, memorable, or impressive. That turns a simple conversation into a performance. A more useful goal is to understand the person in front of you. Curiosity lowers the pressure and creates more natural connection.What do you do when small talk gets awkward or goes quiet?A pause is normal, not a failure. You can ask a new open-ended question, return to something in the shared environment, or end the conversation warmly. A simple close such as, “It was great talking with you—I'm going to grab coffee before we begin,” is both friendly and professional.Why does small talk matter for your career?Informal conversations help people get to know, trust, and remember you. Those relationships can affect workplace visibility, access to information, sponsorship, and whether people think of you when opportunities arise. Strong work matters, but connection often determines whether that work is seen and advocated for.What are good small-talk questions for work?Ask questions that are easy to answer and tied to the person or context: “What are you focused on this week?” “How did you get involved with that project?” “What has been keeping your team busy lately?” “What are you looking forward to this weekend?” Then listen for a detail you can follow up on.How can introverts get better at small talk and networking?Practice in low-stakes settings and give yourself a simple goal: one open question and one follow-up. You do not need to work the entire room or have a long conversation. Aim for one genuine exchange at a time, plan a few questions in advance, and allow yourself to step away when you need to recharge.Ready to Go Deeper?If the bigger challenge is walking into rooms where you know no one, speaking with senior leaders who make you nervous, or turning everyday conversations into career-building relationships, a Leadership Strategy Call can help.In this complimentary 30-minute conversation, Kele will help you identify what is holding you back from the visibility and connection you have earned—and create a practical path forward that fits your leadership style.Book your free Leadership Strategy CallAbout Kele BeltonKele Belton is a communication and leadership coach, facilitator, and consultant, as well as the host of Communicate to Lead. She helps high-performing women in middle and senior management move from being essential but invisible to being seen, sponsored, and promoted.Through The Tailored Approach, Kele helps women leaders build executive presence, communicate their value, navigate workplace dynamics, and create the visibility and influence needed for sustainable career advancement.Connect with Kele LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kele-ruth-beltonInstagram: @thetailoredapproachWebsite: thetailoredapproach.comBook a Leadership Strategy Call: Schedule here

Segob prepara nuevo informe sobre el caso Ayotzinapa Detienen en Puebla a presunto líder de “Los Rusos”China busca fortalecer cooperación con MéxicoMás información en nuestro podcast#grc

¡Atención! Habrá cierres en la México-Querétaro esta noche ¡Mira al cielo! CDMX disfrutará un eclipse lunar parcialMéxico y EE.UU. estrechan coordinación contra migración y fentaniloMás información en nuestro podcast#grc

Should FIFA mandate NWSL player releases for the youth World Cup tournaments? Why is this current system of informal negotiation over player release so detrimental for all parties involved? Is it possible to create a system that doesn't hurt players, coaches, club and national teams?In this episode, LDG tries to answer those questions that he has been pondering since the US women's national team dropped their U-20 World Cup roster, with a lot of recognizable names, but with some of the biggest names in the age group and talking points being those who were left off the roster entirely.He breaks down why the growing tug-of-war between club obligations and international development is creating a massive structural gap across women's football. LDG gets at the Youth World Cup release rules for clubs, what power the clubs hold in discussion and how these discussions are the byproduct and cost of the packed football calendar.He walks through the contrasting realities first: on the U.S. side, the 21 USWNT U-20 World Cup roster spots lack the plethora of skilled, eligible NWSL talent, with Claire Hutton, Lily Yohannes, Melanie Barcenas, Jordyn Bugg and Kimmi Ascanio all left off the squad due to their clubs not releasing them.LDG examines why several U20 players were left out of the US roster, and why the issue is bigger than one tournament. The discussion connects youth development, NWSL club leverage, FIFA release rules, and the growing tension between club and country as the game keeps expanding, and he discusses how Emma Hayes, US Soccer, and clubs all have competing incentives, why youth tournaments are different from senior international windows, and why the player is the one who often loses out when calendars collide.He contrasts that directly with the England side, where North Carolina Courage teammates Erica Meg Parkinson and Lauryn Thompson secured a partial-release compromise to stay with the Courage and miss the Lionesses' prep camp but play in the actual tournament, showing how collaboration is possible.He argues that this same league producing two completely different outcomes within weeks of each other is proof of a system currently running on informal negotiation rather than enforceable rules.From there, LDG gets into the policy routes to fix this chaos, dissecting Emma Hayes's ask for the youth World Cups to be included in the overall FIFA calendar that includes the senior competitions and implement all-encompassing mandates on player release, unilateral NWSL CBA adjustments, and the realistic necessity of a FIFA-backed insurance load-management backstop. He also doesn't shy away from the flaws in each path, showing how a domestic-only rule leaves European-based Americans untouched and fails to address the strongest club objections.He ends by proposing what he believes is the best solution to this dilemma.Thank you all for listening! Remember to follow us wherever you get your podcasts, on Instagram (@the_womens_soccer_podcast) and Bluesky (@thewomenssoccerpod.bsky.social). In addition, leave a 5-star review and tell all your friends about our show!

⚖️ Can You Write Your Own Divorce Agreement in California? | Los Angeles Divorce ⚖️ Can you write your own divorce agreement in California? Spouses can reach their own agreements, but the agreement needs to properly address the issues required for the divorce and be prepared in a form the court can use. A handwritten agreement or informal list of who gets what may not be enough to properly resolve all of the issues in a divorce. Property, debts, support, custody, and other applicable matters may need to be clearly addressed.

⚖️ How to Modify a Child Custody Agreement After Divorce | Los Angeles Divorce Life changes after divorce—and sometimes custody arrangements need to change too. Whether work schedules have shifted, a parent has moved, or the current parenting plan is no longer working, custody orders generally must be modified through the court to become legally enforceable. Informal agreements may work temporarily, but they often create problems if disagreements arise later. This video explains when custody modifications may be appropriate, what courts consider, and why formal approval matters.

Please pray for Dave and Bethlie as they continue this season of pause on the podcast. If you're a brand new listener or a orignal listener from 6 years ago, we're sure this series will be a blessing.   Recap of Steps So Far Fear God — must first know God to stand in awe of Him. Host shared a personal illustration: praying as a family for a new RV, and God's provision through friends/supporters — using it to show their kids God's goodness firsthand. Keep God First Love God (heart, soul, might/mind/strength) Step 4 (this episode): Teach God's Word Diligently Deut. 6:4–9  1. It must be personally real first (v.6 — "shall be in thine heart") You can't teach what you don't know/live yourself — parents need their own regular time in God's Word before they can pass it on. There is value in a physical Bible over a phone/app: fewer distractions (notifications), and the ability to highlight, underline, and write notes  Not legalistic about method (no requirement to read X chapters/day) — the goal is that Scripture is treasured and genuinely part of daily life, not just consumed on a screen. 2. It must be diligently taught (v.7 — "teach them diligently") Two forms: Formal family devotions — scheduling a set time (Dave and Bethlie do this in the evenings). Their practice: reading a passage, reviewing memorized passages (Ten Commandments, Beatitudes, Psalm 1, 19, 23, 100), closing in prayer. Informal/organic teaching — woven into daily life as Deut. 6:7 describes ("when thou sittest... walkest... liest down... risest up"): Using teachable moments from TV (example: an Andy Griffith episode with a drunk character as an opening to discuss what the Bible says about alcohol; also referenced a real story about alcohol contributing to an affair in a church). Correcting sibling conflict by quoting Scripture on the spot, and having kids write out Bible verses as a consequence/reinforcement. Attaching specific verses to recurring life moments — e.g., Psalm 19:1 ("The heavens declare...") for stargazing, Psalm 23 imagery for green pastures/lakes seen while driving, Ecclesiastes ("in all labor there is profit") for schoolwork motivation, Proverbs 11:16 ("a gracious woman retaineth honor") for daughters navigating "mean girl" dynamics, Job 31:1 ("I have made a covenant with mine eyes,") for teenage sons and purity of eyes. 3. It must be prominently displayed (v.9 — "write them upon the posts of thy house") Scripture decor/signs around the home Kids writing verse references or phrases on their own hands as personal reminders — modeled after a young evangelist who traveled with the family; framed as intentional and temporary, not a tattoo. 4. It must be reasonably explained (previewed, to be covered in a future episode) As kids get older, genuine "why" questions are an opportunity to explain Scripture's reasoning — distinguished from rebellious "why," which needs correction rather than explanation. As kids mature, ask them "What do you think we should do based on what the Bible says?" to build their own habit of returning to Scripture.

⚖️ Custody Agreements Can Change When Circumstances Change | Los Angeles Divorce

The topic for the ninth episode in this series is Embracing Your Informal Leadership as an Instructional Coach. This episode focuses on the essential mindset shift that educators need to make when moving into an instructional coaching role. If you enjoy this episode, you'll love the previous episodes. Go back and listen so you can refresh your coaching practice following the three phases of the Thrive Model: Clarity, Consistency and Community. This series is an opportunity for you to reflect on your current practice as well as look ahead and consider opportunities for growth. You'll notice, as you listen, that we're following the Thrive Model for Sustainable Instructional Coaching: with episodes on clarity, consistency, and community, so you can refresh your practice on all three elements. Download our free companion guide & workbook that aligns with this series at edurolearning.com/refresh *If you're interested in learning more about Eduro Learning's Thrive Coaching Certificate program, click here.  And to join the waitlist for our 2026-27 cohort, click here. Let's Connect: Our website: coachbetter.tv EduroLearning on LinkedIn EduroLearning on Instagram EduroLearning on YouTube Subscribe to our weekly newsletter Join our #coachbetter Facebook group Learn with Kim Explore our courses for coaches Watch a FREE workshop Articles from Kim 3 Innovative Instructional Coaching Models (Edutopia) How Instructional Coaches Can Balance Confidentiality and Accountability (Edutopia) When We Invest in Coaches, We Invest in Teachers (The Learning Professional, Learning Forward) Books & Chapters from Kim: Finding Your Path as a Woman in School Leadership (book) Fostering a Culture of Growth and Belonging: The Multi-Faceted Impact of Instructional Coaching in International Schools (chapter) All of Kim's articles can be found here  

Is everyone at your office formal and polite, or do they speak more informally? Pippa and Phil talk about how formal you need to be at work. Find a transcript and subtitles at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/office-english/260810Want to boost your speaking skills? Try Beating Speaking Anxiety, our series to help fight your fears of speaking English: https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/beating_speaking_anxietyGet our latest programmes. Subscribe to our free email newsletter https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/newsletters

Daniel returns from two weeks at sea to a double edition covering the biggest shake-up in workplace procedures for a generation: the draft new Acas Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures, the first full rewrite since 2009. Informal resolution, new letter requirements, a necessity test for suspension, and worker terminology throughout. Plus electronic balloting for union votes arriving on 25 August, key consultation deadlines, and an unexpected encounter with Elaine Paige.Links:Acas consultation: https://www.acas.org.uk/about-us/acas-consultations/code-of-practice-disciplinary-grievance-2026MasterClass: www.danielbarnett.com/masterclassAsk a question about the Employment Rights Act 2025 - www.danielbarnett.com/eraquestion

If you run a business that exports to the United States, how big is the tariff you have to pay? In 2025 that question was hard to answer. Between February and December, 53 separate announcements introduced, delayed, reinstated or changed US tariffs, with different countries and products pulled in or exempted each time.Kalina Manova (UCL, CEPR) and her colleagues built a database of every one of those announcements, but they also measured  the confusion that those announcements created. She tells Tim Phillips about how tariff confusion has become a second tax on trade, as confusion puts off exporters: but it's one that raises no revenue. On average, uncertainty about the actual tariff doubled the damage done to trade by the tariff hikes themselves. For some countries it tripled it. Does this result mean that, if the US cleared up the confusion by not changing its tariffs regularly, it could double tariff income for the same impact on trade?The research behind this episode:Manova, Kalina, Dennis Novy, Thomas Sampson, and Aaron Tang. 2026. "Tariff Confusion." CEPR Discussion Paper DP21688 (gated).To cite this episode:Phillips, Tim, and Kalina Manova. 2026. "Tariff Confusion." VoxTalks Economics (podcast).About the guestKalina Manova is Professor of Economics at University College London and a Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Policy Research. Her work spans global production networks and multinational activity, firm productivity and management, trade policy, and the financial frictions that shape international trade and investment. She holds an AB, AM and PhD from Harvard, and has previously held posts at Stanford, Princeton and Oxford.Research cited in this episodeUS Tariff Announcement Database (USTAD). The dataset Manova and her co-authors assembled by hand from US presidential executive orders and proclamations, recording all 53 tariff announcements of 2025 and tracing, for roughly 230 origin countries and more than 18,000 ten-digit product categories, the statutory tariff in place each month.The four confusion measures. With no direct way to measure confusion, the paper proxies it four ways: the cumulative number of relevant announcements a firm had to track; the number of possible tariff calculations those announcements could produce (labelled tariff mess, defined as two to the power of the number of announcements); the highest tariff a firm might infer if it heard only the bad news (tariff max); and how far that worst case sits above the true statutory rate (tariff miss).The firm survey. A survey of roughly 4,500 firms in the US and Canada in March and April 2025 found that around 45% believed tariffs on Chinese goods were below 20%, when the true average was about 42%; at the same time, 87% underestimated how many announcements had postponed or rolled back tariffs. Firms were wrong in both directions at once.Trade policy uncertainty. A prior literature on uncertainty about future tariffs, which tends to find that firms delay forming trade relationships when the future is unclear. The paper's contribution is to separate confusion about current tariffs from uncertainty about future ones, and to show the former bites on its own.Relationship-specific investment and trust. Trade in goods that require buyers and suppliers to customise to one another, or that sit in stickier supply relationships, proved more resilient to confusion; so did trade with countries whose populations report higher trust in foreigners. Informal trust, rather than formal contract enforcement, did the work of cushioning the shock.The IEEPA ruling. In February 2026 the US Supreme Court ruled that the tariffs imposed in 2025 under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act were unlawful. The paper's data stops before the ruling, which generated fresh policy change and, presumably, fresh confusion.More VoxTalks Economics episodesWorld War Trade. Richard Baldwin on how the April 2025 tariffs settled into a trade Cold War, and why the rest of the world kept trading without the US.Europe in the Middle. Pol Antrà s and Beata Javorcik on where redirected Chinese exports go when they can no longer sell in the US, and what that means for European firms and consumers.How exchange rates responded to tariffs. Giancarlo Corsetti on why the dollar fell after Liberation Day when tariffs should, in theory, have pushed it the other way.Related reading on VoxEU.orgTrump and Tariffs, a VoxEU debate page collecting research on how the 2025 tariffs are reshaping supply chains, trade relationships and market stability.

She built an empire supporting Uganda's youth and women entrepreneurs, and what she reveals about the system working against them will make you angry.Did you know Ugandan innovators sometimes have to fly to Zimbabwe or South Africa just to buy a certification standard... for a product THEY invented? Or that Kenya buys our raw materials, repackages them, and sells them back to us at triple the price?In this episode, Hadijah Nankanja, founder of the Community Women's Enterprise Network — pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to build a business from nothing in Uganda.From a 19-year-old girl with no national ID who now runs seven products and employs eight people, to a customer who flew in from Switzerland just to verify her tea was real, this conversation is full of moments that will stick with you.We talk about;✅ Why "informal" doesn't mean incapable, and the hidden cost of staying that way✅ The information gap that's silently killing brilliant ideas before they start✅ How government bodies working in silos are strangling entrepreneurs✅ Why Uganda's youth are more advanced than anyone gives them credit for✅ What it will really take to get products made by youth and women onto our shelvesThis is a conversation about dignity, trust, and what happens when you finally believe your work, and your country, is worth building on. If you care about Uganda's future, if you've ever doubted whether your idea was "big enough," or if you just want to understand what's really happening beneath the surface of our economy, you need to hear this.

#ElGranMusical. Betzabé Suasnavas. Incremento del comercio digital informal en Ecuador by FM Mundo 98.1

In this inauguration of Season 8 (!) I reflect upon this work aesthetic and my nominal identity as an "aesthete", diving into some classic - and not so classic - texts on the subject.

Dogen speaks clearly about the mind that seeks the way and how to maintain the intensity of practice over time. We couldn't ask for a world of more distraction than the one we currently inhabit. Read the Journal while listening

John Maytham speaks to Audrey Johnson, Executive in the Employment practice at ENS, about a landmark Labour Court judgment confirming that workplace sexual harassment protections apply equally to male employees and the obligations employers have when handling such complaints. Presenter John Maytham is an actor and author-turned-talk radio veteran and seasoned journalist. His show serves a round-up of local and international news coupled with the latest in business, sport, traffic and weather. The host’s eclectic interests mean the program often surprises the audience with intriguing book reviews and inspiring interviews profiling artists. A daily highlight is Rapid Fire, just after 5:30pm. CapeTalk fans call in, to stump the presenter with their general knowledge questions. Another firm favourite is the humorous Thursday crossing with award-winning journalist Rebecca Davis, called “Plan B”. Thank you for listening to a podcast from Afternoon Drive with John Maytham Listen live on Primedia+ weekdays from 15:00 and 18:00 (SA Time) to Afternoon Drive with John Maytham broadcast on CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show go to https://buff.ly/BSFy4Cn or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/n8nWt4x Subscribe to the CapeTalk Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/sbvVZD5 Follow us on social media: CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Text the Show or Leave a VoicemailThis is replay of Bonus Episode 37 from 2024.  Steve Kellams from Blue Canary has devoted this season of his show to leadership topics and he brought me on to talk about informal leadership, because as a chaplain I have influence but no actual authority.  We ended up talking about several wellness topics and some of my philosophy of chaplaincy as well as why I started Hey Chaplain.  I asked Steve if I could use a condensed version of the interview and he agreed, so this a slightly shorter version of our conversation.Music is by Alexander NakaradaTags:Chaplaincy, Authority, Caring, Chaplains, Church Leadership, Fire, Influence, Leadership, Pastor, Podcasting, Police, Rapport, Replay, Training, Trust, Wellness, Kansas City, KansasSupport the showThanks for Listening!  And, as always, pray for peace in our city.Subscribe/Follow here:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hey-chaplain/id1570155168Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CGK9A3BmbFEUEnx3fYZOYEmail us at: heychaplain44@gmail.comYou can help keep the show ad-free by buying me a virtual coffee!https://www.buymeacoffee.com/heychaplain

Extreme heat is becoming more frequent and intense in Nepal, reflecting a global trend driven by climate change as described by experts. The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology says temperatures have risen compared with previous years. Those hardest hit by this phenomenon are people who mostly work outdoors or in poorly ventilated workplaces. In this episode of the SBS Nepali podcast, correspondent Sewa Bhattarai explores how rising temperatures are affecting informal workers and its possible solutions. - हाल नेपालका विभिन्न क्षेत्रहरूमा अत्यधिक गर्मीको मौसम रहेको छ। विगतमा भन्दा गर्मी बढेको जल तथा मौसम विज्ञान विभागको प्रतिवेदनले देखाएको छ भने यो प्रवृत्ति नेपालमा मात्र नभएर विश्वव्यापी रूपमै रहेको विज्ञहरू बताउँछन्। अत्यधिक गर्मीले सबैभन्दा धेरै असर पर्नेमा अनौपचारिक कामदारहरू रहेका छन् जो गर्मीमा खुला ठाउँमा वा भिडभाड भवनभित्र काम गर्छन्। यसै सन्दर्भमा यो समस्या र केही सम्भावित समाधानहरूका बारेमा संवाददाता सेवा भट्टराईको रिपोेर्ट सुन्नुहोस्।Disclaimer: We would like to inform you that the views expressed in this conversation are solely those of the speaker, and SBS neither endorses nor opposes these views.Subscribe to the SBS Nepali podcast here.You can listen to SBS Nepali's live broadcast every Tuesday and Thursday at 2 pm via SBS South Asian on digital radio, on television channel 305, through the SBS Audio app, on SBS On Demand, or via our website.You can also follow SBS Nepali on social media: Facebook, Instagram and X (@SBS Nepali) - नोट: हामी तपाईँलाई जानकारी गराउन चाहन्छौँ कि यस कुराकानीमा व्यक्त गरिएका विचारहरू वक्ता स्वयम्‌का हुन् र यी विचारहरू प्रति एसबीएसको समर्थन वा विरोध छैन।हाम्रा थप अडियो प्रस्तुतिहरू पोडकास्टका रूपमा उपलब्ध छन्। यो नि:शुल्क सेवा प्रयोग गर्न तपाईंले आफ्नो नाम दर्ता गर्नु पर्दैन। पोडकास्टमा सामाग्री उपलब्ध हुनासाथ सुन्न यहाँ थिच्नुहोस्।एसबीएस नेपालीको प्रत्यक्ष प्रसारण हरेक मङ्गलवार र बिहीवार दिउँसो २ बजे SBS South Asian मा डिजिटल रेडियोमार्फत, आफ्नो टेलिभिजनको च्यानल ३०५ मा, SBS Audio एपमार्फत, SBS On Demand मा वा हाम्रो वेबसाइटबाट सुन्न सक्नुहुन्छ।साथै हामी सोसल मिडिया प्लेटफर्महरू फेसबुक, इन्स्टाग्राम र एक्स मा पनि रहेका छौं SBS Nepali का नाममा।

In this episode, we're diving into what we've been up to and what's coming next for our show. Grab your favorite cup of coffee and join us as we explore engaging topics, share stories, and discuss our plans. Whether you're a regular listener or new to our show, we promise a blend of insightful conversation and a touch of humor.Don't forget to subscribe to stay updated, like our video if you enjoy it, and share it with friends who might need a boost of solid theology and apologetics!CHAPTER MARKERS(0:10) Welcome and introduction(1:00) Informal chat: Weather, lawn maintenance, and drinks(6:37) Ryan's update: New church, apologetics classes, and research on the Islamic dilemma(8:55) In-depth discussion: Philosophical and psychological perspectives on Jesus' omniscience(22:14) Mike's update: Church baptisms and the "Summer in the Psalms" series(23:18) Discussion on Psalm 23, freedom, and anxiety(29:26) Mike's church consultation work: Options for struggling congregations(33:37) Discussion on church health, discipleship, and evangelism(40:42) State of the Church: Statistics on church closures and attendance(45:27) Announcement: The podcast's upcoming July sabbatical(47:17) Looking ahead: Future content, scholar interviews, and the upcoming series on the theology of hell(51:45) Closing thoughts: Identity in the heavenly kingdom and the mission to make disciples Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host: Cindy Allen Published: June 26, 2026 Length: ~15 minutes Presented by: Global Training Center Summary This week on Simply Trade: Cindy's Version, Cindy Allen explores a week filled with meaningful developments across customs and trade—from new CAPE enhancements and changes to informal mail entries to the latest updates on Section 301, USMCA negotiations, and global supply chain strategy. But the heart of this episode isn't about tariffs—it's about change. Using Taylor Swift's Change as inspiration, Cindy reflects on how trade professionals can adapt and remain influential during a time when government decision-making has become increasingly centralized. She shares insights from the American Association of Exporters and Importers (AAEI) Conference and explains why relationships, industry engagement, and a unified voice have never been more important. This Week in Trade Reconciliation entries become eligible for the CAPE filing process beginning June 29. CBP announced several CAPE validation improvements designed to reduce filing errors and retransmissions. CBP finalized changes to informal mail entry procedures following the end of de minimis treatment. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent indicated that pending Section 301 investigations may ultimately replace former IEEPA tariff collections. Lawmakers continue raising concerns over declining U.S. manufacturing employment. USMCA review discussions continue, with another one-year extension appearing increasingly likely. Main Topic / Discussion While several operational updates occurred this week, Cindy focuses on something much broader: how trade professionals can continue to influence policy during a period of significant governmental change. Drawing from conversations at the AAEI Conference and meetings on Capitol Hill, Cindy explains how the policymaking process has evolved. Traditionally, agencies worked closely with industry stakeholders before major trade decisions were implemented. Today, many decisions originate from a much smaller group within the administration, making it increasingly important for companies to strengthen relationships—not only with Congress, but also with agencies, trade associations, and government affairs professionals. Her message is simple: don't wait until a policy affects your business. Become involved now, build your network, and ensure your industry's voice is part of the conversation before decisions are made. Key Takeaways CAPE continues to become more efficient through ongoing CBP enhancements. Informal mail entry procedures continue evolving after the end of de minimis. Section 301 investigations remain a major focus of the administration's trade agenda. Supply chain resilience continues to shape U.S. trade policy. USMCA negotiations are expected to continue beyond the current review period. Trade professionals should actively participate in industry associations and government affairs efforts. Relationships remain one of the most valuable tools in navigating today's trade environment. Resources & Mentions Global Training Center Trade Force Multiplier Cindy Allen – LinkedIn Producer: Mara Marquez

Care is already happening in your church so how do you build on what is already there In this episode of The Care Ministry Podcast, Laura Howe is joined by Peggy Krueger, Care Coordinator, and Pastor Dennis Goff from St. Michael Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana for a real-time coaching conversation Peggy and Dennis share what it looks like to build care ministry in a growing church context where many forms of care already exist but there is a desire to bring more intention, structure, and sustainability to it all Together, they explore how to move from scattered efforts to a more connected and accessible approach while still maintaining the relational heart of care ministry This episode is especially helpful for leaders who feel like they are building the plane while flying it and are looking for clarity on what the next step could be Quotes “Care is already happening. The question is how do we become more intentional with what is already in motion” Laura Howe “Culture shifts at the speed of relationships” Laura Howe “I have not heard anybody talk about this in church before” Dennis Goff “We are building the plane while flying it” Peggy Krueger Resources Care Ministry Collective (Online Community + Office Hours) Apply for Coaching on the next podcast- https://forms.gle/hu5Dd4Tv2gq33rAY6 Connect with Hope Made Strong Website: HopeMadeStrong.orgSocials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube

Brigid Bergin, WNYC's senior political correspondent, talks about the competitive congressional races in New York's primary, and what voter turnout is signaling so far. Jon Campbell, Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, talks about the Democratic primary in NY-17, where the candidate that wins will take on Republican Rep. Mike Lawler in the general election in November. Photo: Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani votes at Frank Sinatra School of Arts in the Queens borough of New York City on November 4, 2025. New Yorkers will pick a new mayor on November 4 after an unpredictable race that has drawn attention from far beyond the largest city in the United States, with President Donald Trump branding frontrunner Zohran Mamdani "a communist." Breakout Democratic Party candidate Mamdani, a naturalized Muslim American who represents Queens in the state legislature, leads former governor and sex assault-accused Andrew Cuomo, running as an independent after losing his party's primary contest to Mamdani. (Photo by Leonardo Munoz / AFP) (Photo by LEONARDO MUNOZ/AFP via Getty Images)   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What builds trust when you don't have a title or position of authority? SUMMARY According to Lt. Col. Joe Bledsoe '11, it's honesty, integrity, humility presence and action. Tune in as he shares practical leadership lessons learned from the Academy, combat aviation and years of mentoring others.   SHARE THIS EPISODE FACEBOOK  |  LINKEDIN   COL. BLEDSOE'S TOP 10 LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS 1. Leadership starts before the title. People follow your example, ideas, and presence long before you get formal authority. 2. Informal leadership is as real as formal leadership. Class president, wingman, or peer—your influence, credibility, and support role matter even without rank. 3. Be “clay to be molded.” Show eagerness, humility, and effort; people notice fresh attitude and willingness to embrace hard things. 4. You can't lead alone—build a trusted team. Time management and heavy responsibility force you to delegate to people you trust and empower them. 5. Trust has two layers: inherent and earned. Start with inherent trust (shared values, shared background) and deliberately grow earned trust through behavior. 6. Five traits that build credibility fast: Honesty, integrity, humility, presence (actually being there, engaged), and decisive action. 7. Debrief like a fighter pilot: brutally honest, never personal. Separate the person from the performance, do root‑cause analysis, fix errors, and then move on—no re‑litigating. 8. Own your mistakes out loud. Saying “I'm sorry,” “I was wrong,” or “I don't know, but I'll find out” accelerates trust and models humility. 9. Mentors and mentees are non‑negotiable. Continuously seek guidance from those ahead of you and invest in those behind you to sharpen your own thinking. 10. Prioritize relationships and pride in the mission. Treat family and friends well, cultivate the Long Blue Line, and remember you're on the A‑team—act like it.   CHAPTERS 00:00:00 — Opening & Guest Intro Show open, Naviere introduces Lt Col Joe “Paveway” Bledsoe and his career highlights. 00:01:13 — Voluntold to Lead: Becoming Class President Basic cadet training, being “voluntold,” interview gauntlet, and getting elected class president. 00:04:09 — What a Class President Actually Does Informal vs formal leadership, picking the class exemplar (Robin Olds), dining‑ins, spirit missions, and accountability. 00:08:38 — From Future Doctor to Fighter Pilot Arriving at USAFA wanting to be a physician, loving biology and medicine, and the first seeds of doubt. 00:10:03 — Ops Air Force, Powered Flight, and the Pivot Deployed Ops Air Force in CENTCOM, exposure to flying in theater, powered flight, and choosing pilot training over med school. 00:12:22 — Mentors, Family, and Making a Hard Call Mentorship from family, upperclassmen, and permanent party; emotional weight of changing paths and family's reaction. 00:14:08 — Leading Without Rank: Credibility and Trust Informal leadership as a young wingman, lessons from time management and delegation as class president, inherent vs earned trust, and key traits (honesty, integrity, humility, presence, action). 00:22:06 — Fighter Pilot Debriefs & Radical Feedback Culture Brutally honest debriefs, owning mistakes, root‑cause analysis, safety and mission focus, and how that mindset translates beyond the cockpit. 00:27:48 — Leadership at Home: Marriage, Parenting, and ‘Knock It Off' High‑school‑sweetheart marriage, parenting, using accountability and humility with kids, and balancing “fighter pilot” mode with being a husband and dad. 00:30:30 — Future Conflict, Growth, and Pride in the Long Blue Line Risk and future fight, Institute for Future Conflict, exposure to other AFSCs and logistics, daily growth habits (mentors, mentees, reading, writing, running), advice to younger self, and closing message on being proud of USAFA and the A‑team.   ABOUT COL. BLEDSOE BIO Lt. Col. Joseph “Paveway” Bledsoe '11 is a U.S. Air Force Academy graduate and recognized leader whose career has spanned combat operations, advanced airpower development and service to the Long Blue Line. A native of rural Pennsylvania, Bledsoe graduated from the Academy in 2011 with a degree in biology before earning a Master of Public Policy from the University of Maryland.  He is Currently assigned to the Institute for Future Conflict at the U.S. Air Force Academy where he studies the future of airpower, emerging technologies and the challenges of great-power competition. Prior to joining the Institute, he helped lead training and operational planning efforts at the 366th Fighter Wing, contributing to major exercises and the wing's first deployment to the Indo-Pacific region. His work bridges the gap between today's operational realities and tomorrow's strategic challenges. A recipient of the Association & Foundation's Young Alumni Excellence Award, Bledsoe is widely respected for his emphasis on faith, family and service. Throughout his career, he has remained deeply connected to the Academy community through mentorship, alumni leadership and a commitment to developing the next generation of leaders. On this episode of Long Blue Leadership, he shares lessons learned from leading peers, building influence before authority and navigating high-stakes decisions in both the cockpit and the profession of arms.   CONNECT WITH JOE LINKEDIN   CONNECT WITH THE LONG BLUE LINE PODCAST NETWORK TEAM Ted Robertson | Producer and Editor:  Ted.Robertson@USAFA.org Send your feedback or nominate a guest: socialmedia@usafa.org Please note: we are only considering USAFA graduates as guests at this time. Ryan Hall | Director:  Ryan.Hall@USAFA.org  Bryan Grossman | Copy Editor:  Bryan.Grossman@USAFA.org Wyatt Hornsby | Executive Producer:  Wyatt.Hornsby@USAFA.org     ALL PAST LBL EPISODES  |  ALL LBLPN PRODUCTIONS AVAILABLE AT USAFA.ORG/LONGBLUELEADERSHIP AND ON ALL MAJOR PODCAST PLATFORMS     FULL TRANSCRIPT Guest, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Joe "Paveway" Bledsoe" '11  |  Host, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz '99    Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz 0:01 Sometimes leadership begins long before you've ever been put in charge. It starts when people trust you enough to follow your example, your ideas or your vision. I'm Naviere Walkewicz, Class of '99; Long Blue Leadership starts now. Well, Lt. Col. Joe “Paveway” Bledsoe the Third. Welcome to Long Blue Leadership. Lt. Col. Joe Bledsoe 0:20 Naviere, it's great to see you. Thank you for having me here today. I'm looking forward to the conversation. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:24 So, Joe, your career has been exciting so far, and you're still in it. You know, you have been operational leader, obviously an F-15E Strike Eagle pilot. You've been deployed, you have been a researcher, you're a Young Alumni Excellence Award winner for our Association & Foundation, you've been an AOG board director and a fellow for the Institute for Future Conflict. And that, that's just, you know, a short little list, because you're a student heading back into, over to, is it North Carolina, right? Seymour Johnson.   Col. Joe Bledsoe 0:53 That's correct. Seymour Johnson, yep.   Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:54 In the cockpit, yeah. Col. Joe Bledsoe 0:56 Yeah, we're super excited. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:59 Yes. Well, we're going to touch on probably many of those places, but I want to dial it back to something that only one graduate in every class experiences, and for you it happened shortly after Basic Cadet Training. Your class selected you as your class president. How did that come about? Col. Joe Bledsoe 1:14 How did that all go down? That's a great question. So there we were, right after basic training. I was in Cadet Squadron 19 for my freshman year, and I got the opportunity — this is one of those voluntold moments, right — where the upperclassmen and BCT cadre said, “Joe,” or “Cadet Bledsoe, report to H-1 during transition week.” That's when everybody's coming back, and you're like, “Sure, yep, yes, sir, yes, ma'am. Here we go.” So I show up with 40, 50 other fourth-class cadets, and we come to find out it was for us, and we were going to go through who was going to be the class officers. So first off, as I look back on that experience, a lot of respect and no humility being asked to go like represent Squadron 19, right? Like, I didn't volunteer, they just kind of pointed me in that direction, so we show up and got to interview with the upperclassmen, class officers, and there's funny interview questions, real serious interview questions. You know, I was just honest, right? Like, I'm here. This is what I think about what being a leader looks like, and how I could help serve the class, not thinking I would ever be selected, right? And as the night is going on, and ACQ is right around the corner, they kind of whittle it down to four or five of us, and we get up in front of the rest of the cadets and classmates that were there, and it was an open forum, like you know, back in Rome times, like you're standing in the gauntlet, Yeah, like it was like Roman voting, right? And asked a bunch of questions, and I remember standing up there with, you know, preppies, prior enlisted, and then me, just like straight off the street, and there's a couple other of us up there, and just answer the questions honestly, and at the end of that, there was a vote, and you know, they read the results, and I was like, "Holy smokes, I'm class president. How did this, how did this happen,” right? And I think there's a lot that — it was daunting at first, right? And then also, like, “This is awesome, I don't know what I'm getting into,” right? I just found out about it. I remember walking back on the Tizo. This was the first time I can say this now, because you know, grad, and I didn't run the strips because the upperclassmen and class officers walked me back, and I distinctly remember to — back to my squadron to — Jordan Kraft and Forrest Underwood walked back and were given some mentorship to me, like here's how to succeed, here's things we would recommend, and it was just an awesome opportunity to like kind of learn what pure leadership looks like, what it means to be in this not org chart that is unique to the Academy, and that's where the, that's where the adventure started for class president. I'm still, I haven't been fired yet, and I still proudly serve the Class of 2011 — Robin Olds' class — as their class president, and it's one of the best jobs that I have the privilege of doing. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 4:10 My goodness. I mean, just to unpack that a little bit, obviously, in basic cadet training, you did enough to impress your cadre, I'm sure that there was probably some sort of cadre selection to bring however many of them forth first. Would you say that you would you agree with that, or is that — am I way off? Col. Joe Bledsoe 4:28 Yeah, I would say —I think when I look back my time at basic training, like I wanted to come to the Academy since I was in your school, right? So, like, I thrived — I'm not saying it was easy by any means, right? We all know that, but I thrived in like this new adventure, right? And I took everything, I embraced everything. I think that may have been something they saw, right? Like I was clay to be molded, right? And I had some prior opportunities in basic to show that to my BCT cadre, and they picked up on it. It wasn't that I was trying, but I think looking back on that experience, there was moments of like my freshness, my eagerness, my like pride in that I made it to basic training, that I wanted to just try as hard as I could, and I think some of that probably shown through, and ultimately may have been why I was selected to go try that interview process, right? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 5:20 So that interview process, at the end of the day, you were elected by your peers, and you know it — to your point — you said in that unusual, the not normal org chart, right, the one that doesn't exist, but yet you have leadership of your class. What did that look like? How did that translate? Because not many of us are class president, I'm certainly not my class president, and so I'm not sure what that leadership role looks like. Can you share a little bit more about some examples? Col. Joe Bledsoe 5:46 Yeah, I think that that leadership role was very different each year, right? As a freshman and a sophomore, as a four-degree and a three-degree, before any official academy leadership position starts to present themselves, that they do for two-degrees and firsties, it was a lot of helping the class stay as a collective whole, right? So one of the first big things as freshmen was selecting our class exemplar, right? And running like — how do, who do we select? How do we come together and figure that process out? How do we then, once we have a name, once we selected Robin Olds, how do we have a formal dining in? Things that I had never even heard of, right? As well as on the other side, the shenanigans, right? So, the spirit missions, right? There was many times I've had to go to the commandant's office and say, I don't know where the class crest is, like, out of pure honesty, right? But, like, that is, that was like a way, as an underclassman, that we kind of got that informal leadership, but also you're the leader by default here, so we're gonna, we're gonna make you accountable for your class. So I got to see both sides, that transitioning a little bit more to two-degree and first a year was now taking a little bit step back in writing in the informal leadership position, so I looked as myself as like a supporting agent, supporting member to our cadet leadership, and I always presented that like, “Hey, if you need our class to do something, I will do that, but if militarily you own that, like, I'm not ever going to step on your toes or push back,” right? The other thing we got, I was able to do is also help provide, like, morale inputs, right? Like you kind of had the pulse of morale, I think, more as the class president sometimes than in the official leadership, so could help provide some inputs along those ways, and there are some, say more shenanigans or morale events that we get to help put forth and present those to the cadet leadership for official approval later on as we firsties. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 8:04 Gosh, well, that was, I mean, it's really insightful for us to understand some of the roles that a class president and class cabinet plays, and so understanding that it's — I like how you put it as a supporting agent to the formal leadership. And we're gonna touch on this a lot more, because I think there's going to be times when you'll share how you build that trust and credibility throughout, both when you're a cadet and as an officer. But before we jump there, I happen to find out, Joe, that you weren't coming to the Air Force Academy to become a fighter pilot, but to become a physician. Can we talk about that for a moment? Col. Joe Bledsoe 8:37 Absolutely, that's absolutely a — I came to the Air Force Academy, wanted to be a doctor. I knew I wanted to be a biology major. I declared, I think, the first day I could declare and went through the gauntlet of getting ready for med school applications, and I loved every second of it. It was awesome. Even my fellow classmates would say he was a huge nerd and studying all the time, because that was my goal, right? I came into the Academy, and I wanted to be a doctor, and I knew the gauntlet that is, that that is required to do such a thing. And I still love medicine, right? I still love — I think medicine is fascinating. Every time my probably get there someday, or in the conversation, but anytime my kids have to go to the ER, like I'm like, “Can I scrub in,” right? All that kind of stuff. Yeah, put me in. I love medicine, and it wasn't till the summer between my two-degree and firstie year did I have that midlife crisis at the age of 21 and then firstie year is when that crisis kind of came to a head, and new doors opened, and here we are today, right? So that, yes, you're absolutely right. Always wanted to be a doctor. I was still fascinated by medicine, but now I'm just a pilot. So, there we go. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 9:57 So, can we, can you expand a bit more on it? So, was it a decision you wanted to make or a decision you had to make? Col. Joe Bledsoe 10:03 Yeah, yeah, that's great. It was a decision I had to make, ultimately, myself. Right? No one, no one said, “Joe, you can't be a doctor.” So, the summer — there's two key things that really happened that helped influence that decision. The first one was the summer between two-degree in firstie year, I had the opportunity to deploy to the Middle East, and we've heard of Ops Air Force. You know Ops Air Force. Well, at that time we had a deployed Ops Air Force, so they sent cadets overseas to deployed locations to see what was, you know, to get the full experience in a deployed location. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 10:40 Wow. Col. Joe Bledsoe 10:40 So I had the opportunity to do that. Spent the summer in CENTCOM and kind of opened my eyes to… Col. Naviere Walkewicz 10:47 Oh, Central Command. Col. Joe Bledsoe 10:47 Yeah, sorry, Central Command, and got to experience — I got attached to a C-130 unit, right, and I got to see what flying looked like in a deployed environment, and I kind of opened my eyes, where I've been hyper focused on medicine, right? Like, you know, so focused on this is what it takes to be a doctor. I kind of like put my blinders on to what the rest of the Air Force did, right? So I was like, “This is pretty, this is, these guys and gals are doing awesome stuff, like this is this is the pointy end of what was going on.” And that planted a seed, that planted a seed. So it came back, firstie year was doing the med school applications, going through, I had some free time in my academic calendar, and I got to go down to the airfield and do the powered flight program. So, I got to see flying over the summer, and then I was blessed enough to have the opportunity to go fly an airplane, and I was like, “OK, the seed was planted, let's see if I get air sick, like, let's see if there's anything else here that might make me not want to do this.” And I loved it. Right, I fell in love with flying down at the airfield. I came back, and I was like, I'm gonna pause the med school applications and put my name in the hat for pilot training, and the rest was history, right? So, doors open, doors close, right? But that was my story, and I loved getting to talk to cadets about that, because so many can be — so many times we see some that are hyper focused, and like there's always other options out there, and it's OK to have a crisis we can talk you through. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 12:23 I think that's a fantastic lesson that you actually learned early, because you know it's interesting — had you not been sent to Ops Air Force at a deployed location, you might not have taken Alex flight, and so you know when you think about leadership opportunities and lessons, this is one of those moments where it actually steered you in a new direction. So, as we think about that, I'm curious, how your family responded to that, because, you know, you had come to the Air Force Academy to be a doctor. Were they happy for you? Were they surprised, a little nervous? Col. Joe Bledsoe 12:57 Yeah, there was a ton of mentorship there, right? Not just from my family, but from upperclassmen peers, permanent party, like, “What are you doing? Like, you came here telling us this was your goal. Where did this new goal come from?” So, there was a lot of time talking that through, and I needed that myself. It wasn't, as you know, in any decision, like, it wasn't a snap decision. So, a lot of time walking through that decision process and leaning on mentors and kind of asking the questions, like I knew what four years of med school, and then residency, but I knew what that like, what does pilot training look like? How long does that take, right? So, a lot of questions to help answer, or to find answers through, and ultimately, my family was super supportive, super supportive, and they still joke, like, “Hey, how come you're not doctor.” Well, because I fly F-15s now, right? But all supportive all throughout the process, right? And that's where you lean on others, right? Lean on others, because it very much felt like a crisis, like I still have scar tissue over it. But looking back on it, it wasn't just me making — I ultimately made the decision, but they helped me through it. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 14:08 That's fantastic. You know, I think about you as an officer, as a fighter pilot, and obviously there's a lot of steps you took to get there on the road was certainly not easy. Often, though, I think that there can be some misconceptions, or maybe this is accurate, that earlier in your pilot life or your aviator life, there's probably not a lot of leadership lessons where you're leading others. Maybe, maybe that's a misperception, and we'd love to talk about that. You know, how do you find the leadership opportunities then when you are, you know, you're party of one, right? You don't necessarily have any direct reports. What does leadership look like there? Col. Joe Bledsoe 14:43 Yeah, can we take that back to like some lessons I learned at the Academy?   Col. Naviere Walkewicz 14:46 Oh, absolutely.   Col. Joe Bledsoe 14:47 Right, I think, I think that's where I've leaned most heavily in, like, not in there's this difference between formal leadership and informal, positional versus informal, and I was blessed enough at a pretty young age to learn the plus — the how to succeed and how to fail in informal leadership. I've tried to carry that throughout my career. So when you say like the younger days of being a wingman in the F-15 community, it's a lot about credibility. It's a lot about that peer leadership. How do you build the credibility? How do you build the trust to be someone that others look up to in that informal system, right, in that informal system. When they look down their phone, like, “Who do I call? Who do I have to call? Who do I want to call?” Right? and I think that's where you have to balance some of that stuff, and I spent time thinking about that, and trying to lean on lessons that I learned from the Academy, and while formal leadership positions were never handed to me, that doesn't mean you're not a leader, right? Like, you can't beat it, doesn't mean you don't just get to sit back and not lead. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 16:02 Can you share an example of a time when you learned that about yourself, or what that looked like?   Col. Joe Bledsoe 16:09 In the flying world? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 16:11 Or as a cadet?   Col. Joe Bledsoe 16:12 Yeah, as a cadet, I think the biggest one was — I'll take it back to, like, freshman, sophomore year, where I learned one of the key pillars that I'm convinced the Air Force Academy teaches all us grads about is time management, right? And I thought I was pretty good at time management, and then when you're now the president of 1,000 other cadets, your inbox fills up very quickly, right? Or you're like, “I thought I was good at time management.” And I learned very quickly that you can't do it alone, right? You can't do it alone, and I had to learn to surround myself with people that I trusted and that I could delegate or hand tasks off to, and just say, “I need this accomplished,” and I did that to my friends that I knew would get the mission done, right? And I had to have that level of trust, and I think that is translated throughout my career, where I inherently trust people with a project, right? I think there's two versions of trust, inherent trust and earned trust. When I look at the graduate network, whether that's the Air Force Academy, Navy, West Point, and I see a class ring, I'm like, “I inherently trust you,” and I can, I believe, or I see some other veterans have on — like, “I inherently trust you,” and then in other cases where I've had to learn and work with people, it's now, “I'm earning your trust, and I hope you're earning mine as well,” and that is this unique balance of I inherently trust you, I learned that at the Academy. Now let's build on that as a foundation and get this earned trust to as high as we can. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 17:54 What does some of that earned trust or becoming more credible look like when young leaders don't have the benefit of time? Right, so I, the more time I work with you, the more I learn about you. You build that credibility, etc. How does one accomplish that, maybe either shorten the gap or do that a little quicker or impactfully earlier? Col. Joe Bledsoe 18:18 Yeah, time is always — like we always need more time, right? How often do you say, like, “I only have 24 hours, but I need more time,” right? So, if we're always fighting time, like, and everybody's fighting time, then, like, that's a constant. So, let's not worry about time. So, I look at it as, like, what traits do people bring to the table, or what traits can we can we sharpen? Honesty, right? Honesty is huge. You have to be honest, and that's a pillar of trust. Integrity, right? Integrity first and showing people that you display integrity is really important. Humility, I think, is also really important. Humility is really important. I was listening to a podcast the other day, and it really struck home to me, a sense of humility is — if a leader is able to say three things, they're gonna — I know I could, I can build that trust, no matter what that time gap is. “I'm sorry,” “I was wrong,” or one of the seven basic responses: “I don't know, but I'll find out,” right? I think that's really important with humility. The other one is presence, not with a T, like we're not giving presents, but presence. Being present is really important character trait in my mind, and the fifth one that I try to reflect on a lot is action. Right? I think defaulting to not doing something is not what we want. That doesn't help build trust. Taking action with what knowledge you have and making a decision is really important, and I think those are the traits that help build that credibility, help build that trust in that time gap, whatever that looks like. If you can hit those, the five that I try to hit home. If you can do that, hopefully you're building that relationship that is going to foster — have great fruition out of it. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 20:06 That's outstanding, and that's really helpful, I think. I love how you took out the constant of time being an excuse, right? Like, we don't always have the benefit of time, whether it's time and getting more experience or just time in general, I think those are outstanding examples of how you can build credibility. So, thank you for sharing that. You know, one of the things that I also would love to kind of dig into a little bit of your experiences, Joe — because they've been really vast, right? So, I don't believe that everyone has the same kind of path. How have you grown as a leader in these different experiences that really, again, aren't positional leadership roles? I'm just curious, how your growth has been in that space. Col. Joe Bledsoe 20:47 Think a lot of it's been through failure. I think a lot of it's been through failure. These might not be huge, like we lost a million dollars, or like, not through those kind of failures, but relationship failures, or conversation failure at the micro level, and how I've tried to handle that is surround myself with people that will tell me that the emperor — I'm gonna go back to the, I'm gonna go back to the old fairy tale, or fable, right? If you surround yourself with people that are able to come up to you, and you trust them, and you trust their feedback, that is something I've tried, that was Cadet Bledsoe, advice given to me is Cadet Bledsoe. Surround yourself with people that you will listen to and take their feedback honestly. And sometimes that means if I don't have that person in the room and I know I fumbled a conversation or I made a poor decision, it's going to that individual and saying, “I messed up, I'm sorry, I was wrong,” or “I don't know,” right. And that's how I try to use that to present humility, I think, and that's important, because we're all fallible, we all make mistakes, and if I can't admit that, then, like, we're off to the wrong foot right away. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 22:06 Do you think some of that that skill that you've developed over time has been something that you've learned in, and forgive me, I don't know if it's a fighter pilot community, specifically, or you know, I think about when you do your sorties and you have some sort of debrief, right? I feel what I've heard, I've not actually sat in one, but they're very real. Like, there's no, it's not about making you feel good about it, like it's about the safety and the mission, and so I'm curious, if that skill of humility, and you know, calling a spade a spade, and calling it I'm wrong and I'm wrong, did that come from some of that experience, and maybe you can talk through what that's like, because not everyone, I think, practices at that level of transparency. Col. Joe Bledsoe 22:46 Yeah, the fighter pilot debrief. I learned some of the importance of that through mentorship as a cadet, and then that was sharpened as a fighter pilot. And I learned the importance of that through the form, my formal job, right, the mission, the lives at stake, aircraft, that kind of stuff. And I think I've tried, I've only honed that skill through Air Force training, right? The Air Force has trained me to think like that, and I've tried to translate that into my personal life and leadership positions, because I think there's tons of value to that. There is tons of value in being willing to find a mistake, own up to that mistake with the knowledge and hope that it doesn't happen again, right? And if that is like, if you, if that's your north star, we don't do this again, like, why wouldn't you want to be on that team? Why wouldn't, why don't you want to be? That's how we get better, right? And I think that seed again was planted as a cadet. Like, let's, I tell cadets all the time, like, you're joining the A-team, so put in A effort, right? Like, if you're going to join the A-team, I don't want B-players, and this is what we got to get, like, let's go, right? It's a motivating factor in my mind. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 24:08 What are some of the ways to approach that in a leadership conversation for someone who would be interested in taking on some of those, those learned lessons? Col. Joe Bledsoe 24:18 Yeah, I think the first thing is transparency and honesty right up front. Like this, Naviere, if we were flying together, right and you were my instructor, your job is not to degrade me as a human, but to prove to me that I made a mistake with the ultimate goal of making me better, right? Your job is to always, like — and the relationship you and I have as an instructor and a student is my — I'm gonna sit here in the debrief and go, and Naviere is here to make me better, right? Like, that's your, that's your job, right? Right. So, once you start that as the foundation, like, it can only get better if I know your job is to make me better, and your job is I'm supposed to make this guy better, right. And often we can, when feedback is provided, you're like, this could be a personal attack, or, like, that's all left out, that's all left outside the debrief room, right? Like, we're here to make everybody better, and I think that's where it starts: with that transparency and honesty up front of the expectation. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 25:15 So you'll actually say that. You would actually… Col. Joe Bledsoe 25:17 No, I think that's just a common, that's a common theme, right? That's the expectation in the community. And not just in the fighter community. I think it's throughout the Air Force, right? I think that's what makes us really, really unique. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 25:32 Because feedback is something that we, we do — although maybe some can do it better than others — I think that's a really fantastic way — before you're giving someone feedback, you're really clear on this is what we're hoping to accomplish by having this time together. And so, I think what you just said can make feedback so much more impactful, because it's not about the person, it's about what are we trying to accomplish and helping you, I guess. It is about you, but ultimately helping you. Col. Joe Bledsoe 25:59 Absolutely, right? Like the where every debrief starts is we had a mission objective and we had tactical objectives. Did we do them? If we didn't, let's figure out why, right? So translating to the business world or private sector, it's a root cause analysis, right? It's a root cause analysis, and we will get down to the nitty gritty of like, what type of error — did you make a decision error? Did you perceive the environment wrong? Did your actions cause the error, right? And we get down to that level, so that when the student, student Paveway walks away, Naviere, knows, Naviere, you gave me the exact, like, you decided wrong, because X, Y and Z; don't do that again. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 26:43 Right. Col. Joe Bledsoe 26:44 Here's your fix. You know, that debrief can take hours, and that's the beauty of it, right? “We're gonna sit there, and we're not gonna let anything not be uncovered, because we're gonna go do this again tomorrow, and we can't make the same mistake tomorrow,” right? “We can't make the same mistake.” Col. Naviere Walkewicz 27:01 No, that's, that's fantastic. I mean, to have it that clear, and to know it, like, OK, we're not gonna, we don't stay in that space. We've addressed it, we know we've identified a fix, and we move forward. Is that what you said? Col. Joe Bledsoe 27:12 Absolutely. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 27:13 There's no like, continue to revisit, like… Col. Joe Bledsoe 27:15 Yep, that's the point, right? Like, “I've learned something, I know, I've acknowledged my mistake. Let's move on. This wasn't personal, this was you making me better.” Iron sharpens iron, right? So, here we go, and then move on. And now that translates, as you asked kind of a couple minutes ago, right, that can translate to so many things in your life, right? And I try to do that sometimes, like my wife will tell me, I go too fighter pilot, but there's versions of that that translate as we are not in a fight or pilot debrief. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 27:50 You literally got in my head because I was gonna say, now I want to put you on the spot, because Joe, you are married to your high school sweetheart, you make a 2% club, right? Like, you actually started the Academy with a sweetheart and ended with the same sweetheart. And now you have three amazing, beautiful children. How do you translate that to, you know, feedback to your family or your personal life? And I love how your wife said too fighter pilot, but how about to your kids? Col. Joe Bledsoe 28:15 Yeah, married my high school sweetheart, Alicia. We started dating our sophomore year, and we've been together ever since. So she is not a grad, but she has a lot of Air Force in her blood, so that's great, and the kids, I would say there's a couple things when it comes to taking some things I've learned or been trained in the Air Force, translating on the home front. The first one goes to accountability, right? I think accountability is really important because in an aircraft, you have to be accountable for your actions, and I think that translates to being a parent, as well as trying to teach the kids some humility. Right, where to be humble, when to own up to your mistakes, and sometimes that works in the fighter pilot way, sometimes it doesn't, and I think that's leadership, right? You can have leadership skills and be consistent in some, in some ways, but other times adaptability is really important, especially with the kids, and each one of my kids is very unique, and we have to cater to each one of them and their unique skills. I will say about my wife, I love her with all my heart, but she knows the words “knock it off” as well, right, because that's a sacred word, not just in the military, but on our, in our homefront, and that usually means stop being a full fighter pilot, like go back to being Dad, right? So she knows, she knows the words and how to make that all go down. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 29:47 I love that it's another language, right? You have your, your fighter pilot language, and you have a home front language. I love that. Thank you for sharing that. You know, I'd like to switch gears a little bit to your time operationally, and maybe this translates into now your work at the Institute, or your most recent work at the Institute for Future Conflict and preparing cadets for the future fight. I'm curious, how all of these skills that you've learned, and these leadership traits that you've continued to develop in yourself, have translated in moments of, you know, like, real conflict, real distress, like when the stakes are high, and how you prepare cadets to think that way, even though maybe they've not experienced that. I'm just curious, what that looks like. Col. Joe Bledsoe 30:31 Yeah, it is hard to translate — like cadets love war stories, right? Like, “So there I was…” but it's hard to translate some of, like, the putting, having the cadets put themselves in the shoes of someone that has 15 years of flying under their belt, right? Like, that's hard for them to grasp, and I understand that, and that's not what I'm asking of them to do, but there are certain skills that I think are really important, and that I've got to experience and talk to cadets and research and spend time thinking about at the Institute for Future Conflict at the IFC. One is risk, right? How do we, how do we think about risk, right? Are we risk prone? We risk adverse? How do we think about risk, not just in this moment, but how does our decision today affect five days from now, a month, right? And, as you remember, because I know it happened to you as a cadet, like you're just in the, like, “What's my next problem,” right? What's my next — OK, how does, like, fixing this problem affect next week? Right. And I think that's what I've got had the opportunity to think a lot about the IFC, as well as try one thing I've learned being back here at the Academy was my experience as a cadet is not the same experience as the cadets now. And what do I mean by that is when I graduated, GWOT, Global War on Terror was the thing we knew what we were getting into. I very much knew flying, going to the Middle East. Now the cadets looked to me and other permanent party, and like, what's our fight going to look like? And right, the question mark is, I don't know, but let me tell you, think about this, and I could be wrong, and I think that is where I've had a lot of time to think about future conflict and what's problems, maybe not nations or adversaries, but like big meta level things they'll have to think about, information access, information sharing, trust, right? How do you, how do you help develop some of these skills in the cadets? And that's where I've spent a lot of time the last two years trying to think and spend, spend some brain bytes, like what does air power look like in this unknown environment? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 32:52 And as you're about to step back into it, I'm thoughtful of that, and so now you're taking what you've helped cadets start to hone in and think about. How are you different now as a leader going back into the cockpit than you were when you came to the Academy? Col. Joe Bledsoe 33:09 Yeah, let me get back to the cockpit, and everyone can tell me what, how I'm different. We'll use that as the test. But here's one thing I think — I've reflected on this recently, going back to the Strike Eagle community. One has been my exposure here in Colorado Springs and at the Air Force Academy, meaning I've learned a lot about what others do that I wasn't — I knew other jobs existed, I knew other AFSCs did things, but not being in a flying day-to-day ops tempo, I've had the opportunity to sit down and, like, “What do you say you do?” “Oh, that has some effects here, here, and here,” and I use a specific vignette would be, I've got to spend a lot of time in the management department and helped teach in the global logistics minor, and like, I knew there was logisticians in the Air Force, and like, that's yeah, right? That's how stuff got here, but like, understanding the importance of, like, that's how my bombs got here, this is how the b…, right, like, truly understanding their frustrations, I think will make me get less frustrated in my day to day, right, and I think that has been one thing that the Academy has given back to me the second time I've been here, is a little bit more exposure to the Air Force, as well as the Space Force, being here in Colorado Springs, like seeing what each team member, like each cog in the machine brings to the fight, right? And I think that's been a blessing here. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 34:42 So those that you will begin to get back working with — your men and women in your community — they won't have had that exposure, and so I'm now going back to our where we started with the sense of informal leadership. How do you help others gain that experience and thought, and maybe thought process informally, since they haven't really been exposed to that? How would you help them navigate it? Col. Joe Bledsoe 35:09 Naviere, I think the best way to do stuff like that is, like, you raised your hand when you said logistics officers, like Naviere, we're doing a podcast with my next squadron, you're coming to talk, right? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 35:19 Right, it's like that was like a long time ago, we need someone more recent. Col. Joe Bledsoe 35:24 But, OK, Naviere, it's not you, but you know people, that's how stuff gets done, right, that's how stuff gets done. And while I by no means want to stand up in front of everybody and say I'm the expert on logistics, but I, I'm not that person, but I trust Naviere, Naviere's contact here, and that's how, like, you create this network of knowledge and this network of trust and credibility. And to my, to the fighter pilots that I'll be flying with, it's somewhat like throwing mud at the wall sometimes, like we're gonna keep throwing mud and see what sticks, but at least they know it's there, right? Like, we're gonna, your job is still to go kill things and blow things up, but at the same time, you know there's this other network out there that you can lean into. But let me be a conduit to make that happen. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 36:15 That is awesome. That's fantastic. So I want to go into this period now, where we talk about you and your continued growth as a leader. What is something, Joe, that you're doing every day to be a better leader? Col. Joe Bledsoe 36:30 I have mentors, and I've tried to find mentees. I think that is where growth can happen, leaning on others for mentorship and mentees to try to talk through some things you've thought through and give experience and exposure to others, right? And that's that network we were just talking about, right? Other things I think are really important is reading and writing. Read a lot, write a lot, nobody writes good anymore, right? Thanks, ChatGPT. But being able to communicate in the written form is really important. So, writing and reading. And the other thing, too, is as a leader, just find an outlet, find something, find a hobby, find something that's fun to do, right. So, I got into running here at the Academy, because we're at high elevation, and I'm, why not, right? But find something that, like, rounds you out, right? It's fine, find an outlet that helps give you some relief from all the stresses that can happen in leadership. That's where I would say I spend a lot of time, or what I think about trying to sharpen my skills. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 37:34 Daily. So, what are you reading right now? Col. Joe Bledsoe 37:37 Oh, that's a great question. I have a couple books that are on the table. Mask of Command is one that I'm reading as I get ready to go back and potentially be in a leadership role. There's a couple other books that come to mind. I'm reading a baseball coaching book, because I coach my baseball, it's a basketball book by Coach K from Duke, as I go back to North Carolina, but it's a book, how to coach kids, right, Leadership on the Court, and it's fun to just think about training and coaching kids and how to keep them inspired. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 38:18 Oh, that's awesome. So, speaking of kids, if you were to go back in time, and talk to younger Joe Bledsoe, the third, what advice would you give him? Col. Joe Bledsoe 38:30 Yeah, if I had to go back, I would say it's worth it. Every second, work hard at the Academy, right? The doors that it opens, that's where my mind went when you asked the question, like, younger me at the Academy. Be good to Alicia, my wife, right? Be good, because she's going to be with you for a long time. So be good to her, as well as foster your, foster your friendships. They're going to mean a lot to you in the future, right? The relationships you build on that hill are going to come back in ways you have no idea years to come. So take time and prioritize the people that you meet. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 39:10 Those are really great reflections. Joe, is there anything that we haven't covered in our conversation that you would love to share with our Long Blue Leadership listeners and viewers? Col. Joe Bledsoe 39:24 Absolutely, be proud of this institution. I'm proud of it. I know you are too, Naviere. Proud of this Academy. Be proud of the cadets, be proud of the permanent party that work here. There's an A-team out there, and this is this is where it starts, right? And it's not just if you're serving in blue or in the Space Force, right? If you're out there doing awesome things for our country on the private, in the private sector, thank you. Keep doing what you're doing. There's no shade of blue in the Long Blue Line, that's my, my phrase for that one. There's no shade of blue. Serve your country, be proud. And that's — just be proud to be an Academy grad. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 40:07 That's fantastic. So, you know, in our time together, I have loved this, this, this leadership conversation, because we really span an area that I don't think a lot of people talk about, and it's, how do you demonstrate leadership in an informal way, you know, without titles and without necessarily key positions or in the hierarchical structure, and so some of the things that really stood with me, Joe, that you've covered, have been being credible, being present, and humble. I really like that, and you didn't say this in these words, but what I took from that was, you know, being honest and truthful is almost one of the most kind ways you can be right, because you're actually helping someone be better, and that really stuck with me, you know. I don't, we have an A-team, we don't need B-players, that I think you exactly said that, so definitely stuck with me. But watching the way that you have led, not with your class, not just the cadets, and, you know, certainly not the squadron that you will have here shortly as a director of operations, but I think you've continued to just be who you've always been, which is someone who leads with integrity through those pillars and certainly by example. So this has been an incredible conversation, and for anyone that is watching us and listening to this, for others that are in their leadership journeys, this is another one you're going to want to share, because it's not just about, you know, Lt. Col. Bledsoe's journey right now, it's been all of these moments and experiences and memories and they really do connect with anyone on a leadership journey. So, be sure to join in on longblueleadership.org or wherever you get your podcasts, not just to see this one, but all of our other conversations. So, Joe, thank you so much for joining us today. Col. Joe Bledsoe 41:46 Thank you Naviere. Go Air Force! Col. Naviere Walkewicz 41:48 Go Air Force!   Col. Joe Bledsoe 41:49 There we go. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 41:50 Absolutely, until next time, we'll see you on Long Blue Leadership. KEYWORDS informal leadership, peer leadership, Air Force Academy leadership, USAFA class president, fighter pilot debrief culture, building trust and credibility, leadership humility, future conflict and airpower, Long Blue Leadership podcast, military leadership lessons.     The Long Blue Line Podcast Network is presented by the U.S. Air Force Academy Association & Foundation          

(Gaia House) Interrupting the causes of Dukkha, and the significance of feeling tone. Guided meditation - recognising that which takes us away, and the feeling tone. Intimacy with the neutral object. Informal practice: flexible awareness - finding what is appropriate: opening awareness, and contact with other sense doors, simplifying with the breathing.

(Gaia House) Interrupting the causes of Dukkha, and the significance of feeling tone. Guided meditation - recognising that which takes us away, and the feeling tone. Intimacy with the neutral object. Informal practice: flexible awareness - finding what is appropriate: opening awareness, and contact with other sense doors, simplifying with the breathing.

(Gaia House) Interrupting the causes of Dukkha, and the significance of feeling tone. Guided meditation - recognising that which takes us away, and the feeling tone. Intimacy with the neutral object. Informal practice: flexible awareness - finding what is appropriate: opening awareness, and contact with other sense doors, simplifying with the breathing.

(Gaia House) Coming to the senses - directing our attention to the experience of bare ‘contact'. Guided meditation - contacting a neutral object in formal meditation, with bare awareness. Informal practice - simplifying, coming back to the body, and contacting the other senses.

Katy Schnitzler returns to The Full Stop five years on — now fresh off submitting her PhD — to dig into one of the thorniest workplace issues for people who are childless not by choice: holidays, leave, and boundaries. The conversation moves from the personal (the strange non-celebration of finishing a PhD, the "full stop" feeling of an ending without ceremony) into the structural: school-holiday leave bias, rota and shift unfairness, "informal favours" for parents, and the particular pressures faced by teachers, midwives and nurses who are childless. Katy shares findings from her doctoral research and her Pronatalism at Work project, and the group works through practical, non-judgemental ways organisations can make leave, language and culture fairer for everyone, without taking anything away from parents. We're talking about ... Holiday and school-term leave bias against childless employees "Informal favours," rota unfairness and the assumption that childless staff have nothing to rush home for Teaching, midwifery and nursing as flashpoints for childless professionals Ambiguous and disenfranchised grief — why childlessness grief isn't always recognised, even by therapists Pronatalism in the workplace: baby showers, scan photos, "doing it for the kids" culture The intersection of childlessness with disability, chronic illness, singleness and bereavement Practical, low-cost fixes: transparent leave/booking systems, anonymous feedback, external training, first-come-first-served leave policies Takeaways Holidays are emotionally loaded for people without children — naming that openly (without banning the topic) helps everyone. "Gentle challenge" responses ("that's not always how it feels") put the work back on the person making assumptions, not the person experiencing them. Transparent, first-come-first-served leave systems can remove parental status from the equation entirely. Anonymous feedback on workload and leave can surface disparities before they become resentment. External, MIST training takes the emotional load off the person going through it — they don't have to "out" themselves to get change. This isn't bashing parents. It's about making space at the table for everyone's story. Guest Katy Schnitzler — academic and corporate trainer specialising in reproductive health and childlessness (pregnancy loss, infertility, menstrual health, menopause). Founder of MIST Workshops (est. 2020), and author of doctoral research including the Pronatalism at Work project. Listen to the Full Conversation We cover a lot of ground, from anticipatory grief and adoption to the specific dynamics of shift work, IVF and rota fairness. Learn about the Full Stop on our website and donate to our work at KOFI Childless people are invited to join the Full Stop Community for support, episode discussion and conversation. Learn more about Katy's work and book training for your organisation at MIST Workshops. The Full Stop is a podcast for people who are childless not by choice, and for everyone who loves, works alongside, or supports someone who is. New episodes drop regularly — subscribe wherever you listen.  

(Gaia House) Coming to the senses - directing our attention to the experience of bare ‘contact'. Guided meditation - contacting a neutral object in formal meditation, with bare awareness. Informal practice - simplifying, coming back to the body, and contacting the other senses.

(Gaia House) Coming to the senses - directing our attention to the experience of bare ‘contact'. Guided meditation - contacting a neutral object in formal meditation, with bare awareness. Informal practice - simplifying, coming back to the body, and contacting the other senses.

Our Special Subject for June is Wong Kar-wai's so-called "Love Trilogy": Days of Being Wild (1990), In the Mood for Love (2000), and 2046 (2004). Our discussion walks a tightrope of abstraction as we consider the philosophical implications of Wong's treatment of the theme of love: whether it can be consummated and how time, secrets, androids, and epistemology are involved. Proust, Tarkovsky, and of course FOTP Henry James get their due mentions.  Time Codes: 0h 00m 25s:     DAYS OF BEING WILD (1990) [dir. Wong Kar Wai] 0h 29m 47s:    IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (2000) [dir. Wong Kar Wai] 0h 46m 55s:    2046 (2004) [dir. Wong Kar Wai] 1h 05m 06s:      So This Is Sarris (The American Cinema by Andrew Sarris) – Garson Kanin +++ * Listen to our guest episode on The Criterion Project – a discussion of Late Spring * Marvel at our meticulously ridiculous Complete Viewing Schedule for the 2020s * Intro Song: "Sunday" by Jean Goldkette Orchestra with the Keller Sisters (courtesy of The Internet Archive) * Read Elise's piece on Gangs of New York – "Making America Strange Again" * Check out Dave's Robert Benchley blog – an attempt to annotate and reflect upon as many of the master humorist's 2000+ pieces as he can locate – Benchley Data: A Wayward Annotation Project!  Follow us on Twitter at @therebuggy Write to us at therebuggy@gmail.com We now have a Discord server - just drop us a line if you'd like to join! 

Libertópolis PM, viernes 12-06-2026

En este crossover especial, dos buenos amigos como son Luis Martínez Vallés y Antonio Runa, de los canales Luces en el Horizonte y La Órbita de Endor, se unen en animada charla para hablar de sus experiencias como escritores, del mundo editorial y de la pasión por la literatura. Sin cortapisas y sin miedo a la incorrección. Dejando las cosas claras y, sobre todo, con esa complicidad que les une. Una conversación entre dos personas que ven la vida de manera muy particular. Escucha el episodio completo en la app de iVoox, o descubre todo el catálogo de iVoox Originals

In this episode of the Crazy Wisdom Podcast, host Stewart Alsop sits down with software engineer and entrepreneur Arowolo Muritadhor for a wide-ranging conversation that moves from agriculture and manufacturing in Nigeria to the evolving role of crypto in the country's economy. They touch on how hyperinflation, particularly the naira's dramatic drop in 2023, pushed Nigerians toward stablecoins as a practical savings tool, and how informal kiosk networks have stepped in where traditional banking infrastructure falls short. The conversation also covers the tension between government regulation and the permissionless nature of blockchain technology, comparisons between the decline of the Roman Empire and current shifts in US economic dominance, the role of mobile payments in Africa, language learning, and whether AI agents have any real utility in crypto infrastructure yet. You can connect with Arowolo on LinkedIn and X at @armolas_06.Timestamps00:00 - Host welcomes Arowolo Muritadhor, introducing topics of software engineering and animal food production in Nigeria.05:00 - Discussion shifts to manufacturing, components assembly, and China's dominance in low-cost production globally.10:00 - Conversation explores crypto adoption in Nigeria as a network state phenomenon, separating informed users from mainstream population.15:00 - Mobile payments and kiosk ATM replacements emerge as critical financial infrastructure bridging unbanked Nigerians.20:00 - Roman Empire parallels drawn to modern crypto taxation, government control, and inevitable death-and-taxes reality.25:00 - Bitcoin and Ethereum permissionless nature debated against government wallet-level censorship vulnerabilities.30:00 - AI agents examined as crypto infrastructure tools, revealing mostly trading bots rather than foundational builders.35:00 - Nigeria's 2023 naira collapse compared to Argentina's hyperinflation, driving citizens toward stablecoin dollar savings.40:00 - US Treasury history unpacked through FDR gold confiscation and Nixon ending convertibility, paralleling empire decline.45:00 - Crypto reframed as anti-bank rather than purely anti-government, enabling freedom through immutable accountability.50:00 - Transparent blockchain ledgers discussed as potential government accountability tools across democracy, republic, and oligarchy structures.Key Insights1. Nigeria has a significant divide between its northern and southern regions in terms of economic activity. The north, centered around Abuja, is more agricultural with substantial cattle production, while Lagos in the south functions as a dense urban and commercial hub. This geographic and economic split shapes how different financial tools and technologies are adopted across the country.2. China's dominance in low-cost manufacturing has made it nearly impossible for countries like Nigeria, the United States, or Argentina to compete on price alone. The more realistic path for developing economies is to import components and focus on local assembly and creativity, which is where meaningful economic participation becomes possible.3. Crypto adoption in Nigeria accelerated dramatically around 2023 when the naira experienced a sharp devaluation against the US dollar. Before that point, saving in dollars was difficult for many Nigerians, especially those without formal bank accounts, making stablecoins like USDT an attractive and practical alternative for preserving wealth.4. Informal kiosk operators in Nigeria have organically become a substitute for ATMs, giving communities access to basic financial services where traditional banking infrastructure does not reach. This grassroots financial layer is now a key entry point for integrating crypto and stablecoin payments into everyday commerce.5. Governments are increasingly trying to regulate crypto at the wallet and centralized exchange level, using tax compliance as a primary mechanism. While Bitcoin and Ethereum remain largely permissionless, the practical chokepoints for most users remain centralized platforms where identity and transactions can be monitored.6. The historical parallel between the fall of the Roman Empire and current shifts in US economic and geopolitical power offers a useful frame for understanding why crypto matters. Just as Rome debased its currency and struggled to sustain imperial costs, the US faces mounting debt and a financialized economy that may accelerate dollar instability and push more people toward alternative stores of value.7. One genuinely constructive use case for blockchain beyond speculation is immutable accountability, particularly for public institutions and prediction markets. A transparent ledger that governments or officials voluntarily adopt could create verifiable records of decisions and promises, reducing corruption and increasing trust in ways that traditional governance structures have struggled to achieve.

In this episode of Talk Law Radio, host Todd Marquardt brings together trusted voices in finance, law, and public service to help listeners uncover hidden legal and financial blind spots—and start the new year with clarity and confidence.

In 2025, seven-month-old startup Axiom solved all 12 of the problems Putnam exam (scoring 8/12 in the time limit) a prestigious undergraduate math exam. The 12/12 score is better than the top undergraduates (110/120) and the closest AI system that reported a result (DeepSeek 103/120), although it is unclear what the people and other systems would have scored with more time. Nonetheless, the Putnam exam is legendary for its difficulty, with the median score typically being 0 or 1 points. Taken by itself, this seems like a minor feather in the cap of AI; one of a long series of accomplishments by AI systems in elite competitions with humans, starting with Deep Blue beating Kasparov.Fast forward to mid-2026, and Claude Code is eating the world. In 2024 Anthropic's bet on code and enterprise looked like a more pragmatic niche play vs. OpenAI's better models and massive consume scale. Today, Amodei's all in bet on acceleration via code (images and video be damned) seems prescient.Despite Anthropic's growing momentum, however, Axiom CEO Carina Hong sees coding ability as a necessary but not sufficient milestone on the path to AGI. Code arguably pushes the jagged frontier to the point of super intelligence in some domains outside of coding, but there are surprising gaps (link) that Carina believes will bottleneck AI progress. (Stats on math benchmarks).The informal bottleneck“Verified AI” sounds like eating broccoli (footnote: I actually love broccoli, but then again, I also believe strongly in Test Driven Development, so ¯(ツ)/¯ ) and paying taxes, but to Axiom it means something very different. “Verification to me is about scaling brilliance, compounding brilliance,” Carina told us.It actually took a while for me to understand what she means by this. It sounded like marketing-speak to me, until it clicked. Carina emphasizes an story about legendary mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan to illustrate the point. When G.H. Hardy finally persuaded Ramanujan to formally prove theorems instead of relying on his (formidable) intuition, it reportedly improved his own capabilities. This is presumably because formally proving things forced Ramanujan to articulate the details in a way that open up new lines of thinking, etc. This is one part of “compounding.”But formally proving things also allowed others to benefit from his intuition: the proofs are way of communicating an intuition and persuading others that the intuition is correct. This is scaling (more people use the result) and compounding (people can learn from and build on his work).This is the analogy that Carina wants us to focus on.Verified GenerationThere are two ways that Verified AI shows up: in training and in inference.But a quick detour: to a first approximation, “Formal Verification” means using type checkers (like for TypeScript, C++ or Rust, but more capable) to verify mathematical proofs that are meticulously specified using a language like Lean (footnote: Formal verification also includes model checking (TLA+, SPIN), SMT-based tools (Dafny, F*, Why3), and refinement-type systems (Liquid Haskell) — many of which don't look much like “type checking a proof” from the user's perspective even when there's a similar logical core underneath. It also gets applied to software and hardware correctness, not only pure mathematics.). It takes a lot of work to translate an “informal” proof (albeit one that most people would not remotely call “informal”) in to a Lean proof (footnote: This is an understatement. Most theorems remain informal because formalization is so hard to do. There has been a great deal of effort to formalize the most important proofs, with mixed results)You can imagine how this would be (very) useful during Reinforcement Learning: instead of relying on best guesses based on statistics (GRPO, RLHF, etc.), you can just verify the proof is correct using a Lean verifier. This is obviously a much stronger reward signal, akin to compiling code and testing it (which is what is typically done with RL on coding).The catch: LLM are not (currently) very good at proving things with Lean.Enter Axiom: While they have not officially reported benchmark numbers besides the 12/12 Putnam result, Carina reports that they have achieved a very impressive 99% (187/189) ProofGen on the Verina benchmark. This benchmark is to generate code and proof of correctness for a series of problems. For context, OpenAI o3 (the last known OpenAI run) achieved 4.9% on this benchmark.Based on the sparse benchmarking, it's hard to say what the frontier labs are currently doing, but Carina suggests that they still are not training to generate Lean proofs directly, rather relying on informal proofs.Time will tell if the frontier labs' current approaches will close this gap.Scaling and compoundingCarina's Ramanujan analogy is pretty direct. Better proofs → better Lean generation → better RL. A stronger signal means higher sample efficiency and higher maximum performance. Great!Scaling is pretty clear too: once I have proved something in Lean, the quality of the output is basically (footnote: one might argue that its a bit lower because the proof is in distribution for the LLM) as high as if it came from a human, so my high quality training set has grown in a way that an informal rollout corpus cannot. I can trust my Lean proofs.Compounding is also clear: now all of future inference and training can build upon those proofs.On the other hand, a model trained only using statistical signals like GRPO during RL lacks the sample efficiency, maximum performance and compounding corpus that a system that uses formal verification benefits from.All roads lead to verificationBroccoli and taxes notwithstanding, “verification” has shown up in a lot of conversations recently. In the in physical system control:“I think [verifiability] is probably the hardest problem right now, because the as the models get better, it can be harder and harder to find the faults on the system. And so the problem of doing proper eval to find those faults, that problem also keeps getting harder as the models get better.” -In theoretical physics:“…now that we're in this regime where you can just get ChatGPT to tackle thousands of questions at the same time, it will return proofs for a significant fraction of them. Now actually the onus is back on the humans to verify all the outputs. And so, yeah, as that becomes a bottleneck, I think formalizing math and automating verification will become more valuable.” -Verification is, in fact, the key differences between AI for science and AI for computation: in science you to have to actually test (verify) your hypothesis by performing physical experiments. Lab in the loop systems like Radical AI and Lila build around exactly this premise (we have recorded episodes with both of these teams and will release them soon!)And yes, formally verifying critical systems such as flight control, nuclear power plants and pacemakers is a growing focus as the software and hardware that run them becomes more complex.Carina believes so strongly that AGI requires verified generation that she makes the unqualified claim that “We do not believe there is any other possible future.”Expensive to produce, cheap to verifyLean proofs are hard generate, but they can be easily shown to be correct or incorrect. But how do you know that the proof you created maps correctly to the problem you care about? As Carina puts it: “Anything that can be specified can be proven. Humans are bad at specifying everything we want.”Are we now in the specification business? Check out the episode to hear Carina's take, as well as:* Why hardware verification is a killer app* Details on the AXLE open API and recently released Discovery toolkit* The Erdos debacle* The OpenAI GPT-f diaspora This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.latent.space/subscribe

The US public's tastes and habits are fragmenting, leading to new consumer behaviours. The shift from a handful of TV networks to an endless supply of streamed shows and social media clips is just one of many causes. Investment manager Dave Bujnowski discusses the characteristics that determine which growth companies should thrive in the resulting ‘high entropy' environment.Dave Bujnowski is an investment manager in our US Equity Growth Team and co-manager of the Baillie Gifford U.S. Equity Growth Fund and our American Fund. In this conversation, he tells Short Briefings… host Leo Kelion about his work with anthropologist Dr Grant McCracken, studying the causes and effects of the fragmentation of American culture. They believe that US culture is a system that has entered a ‘high entropy state' – meaning that tastes and habits no longer change in an orderly manner. The result is “tremendous instability” and a sense of “continual pandemonium”. This shift, they argue, has implications for growth companies and helps explain why some are struggling to maintain mass-market appeal. But the disorder also plays to others' advantage, and they have sought to identify which will thrive and why. Portfolio companies discussed include:·      Cloudflare – the service that protects websites from attack and optimises their performance·      DraftKings – the sports gambling platform that lets Americans bet on sporting events·      Samsara – the Internet of Things specialist helping companies track and make sense of data·      SharkNinja – the home appliance company behind the CREAMi ice-cream maker·      Shopify – the ecommerce platform serving merchants ·       Resources:Dr Grant McCrackenShort Briefings on Long Term Thinking podcast archiveThe Long View collectionThinking in SystemsWhen systems fragment: entropy, cultural change and the next great US companies  Companies mentioned include:·      Alphabet (Google)·      Amazon·      Cloudflare·      DraftKings·      Meta·      Netflix·      Samsara·      SharkNinja·      Shopify·      SpaceX Timecodes:00:00  Introduction02:05  System-level thinking03:20  How change happens06:10   Entropy and fragmentation08:15   A conversation with Cloudflare's CEO10:20   Ants and anthropology13:25   Grant McCracken on North Sea culture15:15   The causes of splintering culture17:05   New consumer behaviours19:15   Challenging times for lululemon21:00   Shopify and agility23:10   Agentic commerce25:40  SharkNinja and new niches28:30  DraftKings and cultural anchors30:40  Samsara's entropy antidote32:10   Finance and space: systems to watch33:50  Book choice  Glossary of terms (in order of mention): Entropy: In this podcast, a metaphor for systems becoming more fragmented, varied and harder to predict.Cash flows: The money moving into and out of a business.Market cap: The total stock-market value of a company: share price multiplied by number of shares.S&P 500: A major US stock-market index of large companies.Second law of thermodynamics: A physics principle often simplified as the tendency of energy in a closed system to spread out over time. Mainframe: A large, central computer used by organisations to process major computing tasks. Big iron: Informal technology term for large, powerful central computers. MMA: Mixed martial arts, a full-contact combat sport. Delulu: Internet slang for optimistic or unrealistic self-belief. Short for ‘delusional'. Traffic aggregation: Bringing together large numbers of users or customers in one place, often online. Total addressable market (TAM): The total potential market size for a product or service if it reached all possible customers. Prediction markets: Markets where people trade contracts based on the likelihood of future events. Internet of Things: Everyday equipment connected to the internet so it can collect and share data.     

This week's episode is all about debate. How will Alice and Doug's relationship hold up after some devastating arguments? And how will the devastating arguments hold up when it turns out they're pretty darn silly to argue about? Also, in a real “What are we, really?” moment, Google's AI summary explains Going Terribly to Going Terribly. It's pretty wild.For real, though. Is cereal a soup? The battle lines are drawn.Other discussion topics may include:- The longest NSYNC title- Ice cream cake is better when it has cake in it- Could God have been a shopping addict?- Absurd left turns- Would you like to sit on a comfy heated toilet forever?

When we talk about who makes up the economy, we're often talking about workers a company formally employs. But a lot of people find themselves working in the informal economy — generally defined as economic activity that falls outside of official regulation. It's not taxed, not tracked, and is mostly invisible to official statistics. Today, we'll dig into its importance and risks. But first, marijuana gets a tax break.

When we talk about who makes up the economy, we're often talking about workers a company formally employs. But a lot of people find themselves working in the informal economy — generally defined as economic activity that falls outside of official regulation. It's not taxed, not tracked, and is mostly invisible to official statistics. Today, we'll dig into its importance and risks. But first, marijuana gets a tax break.