Podcast appearances and mentions of Kirk Adams

Being a swing state, Arizona's politics are watched with a magnifying glass across the country. It's not just who wins – though that is definitely what matters most – but it is smaller things. Among the details that seem to move to the forefront is who leads the major parties. This serves a temperature check for how the parties are running and where they're trending. 2024 was a pretty good year for Republicans in Arizona, as elsewhere. President Donald Trump won the state and Republicans won in all other races that were thought to be a toss-up. Unsurprisingly, that left Democrats looking for changes in their state party leadership, despite holding office in all of the major roles in the state. The GOP stuck with a leader they didn't initially select two years ago, though she faced a challenge to keep her post. This week on The Gaggle, a politics podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl are joined by Kirk Adams and Sam Richard of Consilium Consulting, a Phoenix-based firm that handles lobbying and consulting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Your Next Business Bestie, I had the absolute pleasure of chatting with Dr. Kirk Adams, an incredible advocate for disability inclusion and a leader with a seriously inspiring story. From losing his vision at age five to running major nonprofit organizations, Kirk's journey is a masterclass in resilience and determination. He shared how he helps businesses supercharge their bottom line by tapping into the often-overlooked talent pool of people with disabilities. Kirk took us through his life story, starting with his supportive parents who literally moved states to get him the best education. He also shared the challenges of job hunting with a visible disability and how he turned those struggles into a mission to create opportunities for others. We talked about his consulting practice, Innovative Impact, and how he connects employers with resources like the vocational rehabilitation system to make workplaces more inclusive. From working with tech companies to advanced manufacturing and even cybersecurity, Kirk is out there breaking barriers and building bridges. This conversation was packed with heartwarming anecdotes and practical advice on how businesses—and individuals—can make a difference. If you've ever wondered how to start supporting disability inclusion or just need a dose of inspiration, this episode is for you. And bonus: Kirk has a great sense of humor and so much wisdom to share. I'm so excited for you to listen in and get to know him as your next business bestie! Connect with Jenn: www.jennsway.com www.instagram.com/lifejennsway jenn@jennsway.com Connect with Dr. Adams: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirkadamsphd/ https://drkirkadams.com/

In this episode I talk to Dr. Kirk Adams about how his disability helped him to develop unique strengths and assets in his personal and professional lives. Introduction Dr. Kirk Adams is a Professional Speaker and the founder of Innovative Impact LLC., focusing on groundbreaking, high-impact projects that accelerate the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workforce and supercharges a company's bottom line. Dr.  Adams earned his PhD in leadership and change. He is known as a master connector of key decision-makers in government, corporate America, the nonprofit sector, and disability advocates guiding them to create collaborative solutions that have a real impact in increasing the employment of people with disabilities. Resources mentioned in this episode Follow Dr. Kirk Adams: LinkedIn: HERE Facebook: HERE X: @KirkAdamsPhD Website: HERE   Thank you for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing and leaving a review. Leave comment on what you enjoyed from the episode and if you have any suggestions for future episodes, I'd love to hear from you. Even better, share it with a friend or colleague and turn on the notifications so that you never miss an episode. It really helps the podcast gain more listeners so that we can grow our Lead From Within community. Thanks everyone! Keep reaching for your highest branch! Let's Connect Follow me on LinkedIn Here Visit my website Here Email: mthomson@curisconsulting.ca  Self-Care Guide on Amazon: Canada: HERE USA: HERE Leave me a voice note HERE and have it included on a future podcast! Just click on the "message" tab.  It is greatly appreciated!  

Dr. Kirk Adams Consultant, Inspiration Foundation, is interviewed by host Nikki Powis, Director, Small Business Programs, NDI. Dr. Adams has been a Blind job seeker, an employee in corporate America facing challenges around accommodation and discrimination and an employer of people who are Blind and DeafBlind. He has a PhD in Leadership and Change and wants to make it easier for the next Blind person to gain early work experience, build skills and find meaningful employment. He shares the things that helped him along the way and the work he is currently doing to help the next generation.

In this episode, we talk with philanthropist Dr. Kirk Adams. Kirk became blind around age 5 and grew up to be resilient and compassionate to those who are also affected by blindness. He went on to became the Past President of the Board and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind and has since become a consultant in his own practice called Innovative Impact. Tune in to hear how Kirk is making the world a better place and works to have it more equitable and inclusive. For show notes and details on how to reach Kirk, go to www.youareaphilanthropist.com/podcast

Former Speaker of AZ House of Representatives Kirk Adams calls in to talk about what Arizona Republicans really think about the 1864 abortion law.

Former Speaker of AZ House of Representatives Kirk Adams calls in to talk about what Arizona Republicans really think about the 1864 abortion law.

Our guest speaker, Kirk Adams, PhD is a longtime champion of people who are blind or visually impaired and is committed to creating a more inclusive, accessible world for the more than 20 million Americans with vision loss. The second half of the workshop you will be taught the few sets of Bio-Touch points that help with Blindness and other visual impairments.

In this episode of Work in Progress, I've brought together a group of experts to discuss the challenges faced by people with disabilities in finding meaningful employment, advancing in their careers, and the importance of creating inclusive workplaces. The discussion centers on how disclosing a disability and seeking a reasonable accommodation can be a difficult decision, one that has a profound impact. “Progress has been made, but certainly not enough has been done,” says Wendi Safstrom, president of the SHRM Foundation – addressing the fears and misconceptions that employers may have about hiring individuals with disabilities. She notes, “The more we can get HR professionals to learn and listen to one another in terms of some of the opportunities that they've had getting people [with disabilities] into their organizations and some of the great experiences they've had working with individuals who have disabilities, I think are a great way to really amplify that particular message. That's why we're continue to be committed to this kind of work across all of our untapped pools of talent.” In this episode, you'll hear from: Kirk Adams, Ph.D., managing director, Innovative Impact, LLC Everette Bacon, VP of blind initiatives, Aira Deb Dagit, president and consultant, Deb Dagit Diversity Sam Estoesta, project manager with a social innovation specialization, TD Bank Scott Hoesman, CEO and founder, inQUEST Consulting Becky Kekula, senior director of the Disability Equality Index, Disability:IN Wendi Safstrom, president, SHRM Foundation You can listen to the podcast here, or download and listen wherever you get your podcasts. You can also find it our Work in Progress YouTube channel. Episode 308: A Discussion Around the Decision to Disclose a Disability at WorkHost & Executive Producer: Ramona Schindelheim, Editor-in-Chief, WorkingNationProducer: Larry BuhlTheme Music: Composed by Lee Rosevere and licensed under CC by 4Transcript: Download the transcript for this episode hereWork in Progress Podcast: Catch up on previous episodes here

In this episode of Work in Progress, I've brought together a group of experts to discuss the challenges faced by people with disabilities in finding meaningful employment, advancing in their careers, and the importance of creating inclusive workplaces. The discussion centers on how disclosing a disability and seeking a reasonable accommodation can be a difficult decision, one that has a profound impact. “Progress has been made, but certainly not enough has been done,” says Wendi Safstrom, president of the SHRM Foundation – addressing the fears and misconceptions that employers may have about hiring individuals with disabilities. She notes, “The more we can get HR professionals to learn and listen to one another in terms of some of the opportunities that they've had getting people [with disabilities] into their organizations and some of the great experiences they've had working with individuals who have disabilities, I think are a great way to really amplify that particular message. That's why we're continue to be committed to this kind of work across all of our untapped pools of talent.” In this episode, you'll hear from: Kirk Adams, Ph.D., managing director, Innovative Impact, LLC Everette Bacon, VP of blind initiatives, Aira Deb Dagit, president and consultant, Deb Dagit Diversity Sam Estoesta, project manager with a social innovation specialization, TD Bank Scott Hoesman, CEO and founder, inQUEST Consulting Becky Kekula, senior director of the Disability Equality Index, Disability:IN Wendi Safstrom, president, SHRM Foundation You can listen to the podcast here, or download and listen wherever you get your podcasts. Episode 308: A Discussion Around the Decision to Disclose a Disability at WorkHost & Executive Producer: Ramona Schindelheim, Editor-in-Chief, WorkingNationProducer: Larry BuhlTheme Music: Composed by Lee Rosevere and licensed under CC by 4Transcript: Download the transcript for this episode hereWork in Progress Podcast: Catch up on previous episodes here

In this episode of That Westfield Podcast, Kirk Adams from Game Changer Fitness shares insights into their fitness approach tailored for the over 40 crowd.Kirk discusses their strength training-focused programs that emphasize personalized workouts in small groups for optimal results. He also delves into the unique offerings of Game Changer Gym, including nutrition coaching and periodic challenges. With a focus on community support and individual progress, Game Changer Fitness aims to help members achieve their fitness goals while fostering a welcoming environment. Tune in to discover more about their fitness philosophy and upcoming expansion plans! Follow on IG @GameChangerGym and visit www.gamechangerfit.com

Using Psalm 136, Kirk Adams emphasizes the corporate nature of the Psalm, urging people to give thanks to the Lord as His goodness and mercy endure forever. Even though Christians experience struggles, difficulties, and hardships, Kirk reminds us that our hope lies in Jesus, who succeeded in the wilderness on our behalf. The message concludes with an invitation to remember God's goodness and thank Him for the many blessings he has given us! 

Navigating a World Without Sight: Dr. Kirk Adams Season 2 Episode 1 In this episode of the 'Bravery Academy', host Emma Ferris invites Dr. Kirk Adams, who lost his vision at the age of five. Dr. Adams shares his personal journey of overcoming the challenges of blindness, highlighting his experiences in school, dating, family influence, and his professional life. He discusses his determination to create a more inclusive world for people with disabilities, specifically in the workplace through his work at the American Foundation for the Blind. The episode also critically considers the medical model and social model of disability and the concept of 'microaggressions'. Dr. Adams ultimately defines bravery as prioritizing the well-being of others, and stepping out of one's comfort zone to help them thrive. 01:14 Early Life and Experience with Blindness 02:27 Navigating the World as a Blind Child 07:00 The Impact of Blindness on Family 12:14 The Struggles of Employment for the Blind 14:35 The Importance of Inclusion in the Workplace 16:26 The Journey to a PhD and Advocacy Work 27:29 Understanding Microaggressions and Disability Models 32:22 Personal Life and Interracial Marriage 36:39 Final Thoughts and Contact Information pple Podcasts and patreon.com/thebraveryacademy. And if you have a question get in touch with Emma on Instagram or Facebook  @thebreatheffect @drvictoriathompson MORE CONTENT or to simply support the Podcast: patreon.com/thebraveryacademy WANT AD FREE/ EARLY ACCESS APPLE PODCASTS SUBSCRIBERS MORE CONTENT or to simply support the Podcast: patreon.com/thebraveryacademy Subscribe to "The Bravery Academy" on Apple Podcasts to access early ad-free episodes and be part of a community dedicated to building resilience. WANT AD FREE/ EARLY ACCESS APPLE PODCASTS SUBSCRIBERS Check out Emma's website to access her free resources such as her breathing quiz and find out how you work with her one on one, in a group, with her Thrive Workshops or on retreat: THE BREATH EFFECT RESOURCES The Bravery Academy is not a licensed mental health service and is not a substitute for professional mental health advice, treatment or assessment. The episodes on The Bravery Academy discuss a range of topics from mental health, trauma, abuse, stress, loss and bravery.  If you are struggling please reach out for help.  If you are in New Zealand and need to talk free, call or text 1737 any time for support from a trained counselor. The Depression helpline is on 0800 111 757 or free text 4202(to talk to a trained counselor about how you are feeling or to ask any questions).  Youthline call 080 0376 633 or free text 234.  You are not alone. PROUDLY PRESENTED BY Sarah Ferris Media on the EVERGREEN NETWORK  Check out more: CONNING THE CON KLOOGHLESS - THE LONG CON GUILTY GREENIE STOP THE KILLING    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gov. Katie Hobbs officially started the new legislative session this week with her second State of the State address. She focused on areas where she's hopeful for bipartisanship: housing, the border and the state's water supply. This year, Republican lawmakers mostly listened in silence. One senator, Anthony Kern, once again turned his back on Hobbs, literally, as he had in 2023. Despite the turbulence and at a time when the state is facing a budget shortfall, this year's speech had moments suggesting potential bipartisan cooperation. Kern's protest was the only one of its kind this year, which was also an improvement over last year. This week on The Gaggle, a politics podcast by the Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl are joined by Democratic political strategist Tony Cani and Kirk Adams, former chief of staff to previous Gov. Doug Ducey. Together they break down Hobbs' Jan. 8 State of the State address to explore whether her strategic roadmap to bipartisanship is achievable and her goals for 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Your weekly dose of information that keeps you up to date on the latest developments in the field of technology designed to assist people with disabilities and special needs. Special Guest: Dr. Kirk Adams PhD Email Dr. Adams: kirkadams000@gmail.com Search Kirk Adams PhD on LinkedIN More on the Apex Program here: https://www.theapexprogram.com —————————— If you […] The post ATU656 – Dr. Kirk Adams PhD first appeared on Assistive Technology at Easter Seals Crossroads.

Dr. Kirk Adams shares his experience building his career as a leader in the nonprofit space (American Foundation for the Blind, Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind, and Seattle Public Library) with his goal to accelerate accessibility and inclusion. He talks about his family traditions - for Thanksgiving and outdoors at the lake.

Episode 99: Dr. Kirk Adams Shares His Vision Beyond Sight Episode 99 of Strong Enough brings Dr. Kirk Adams. At the age of five, Kirk experienced the life-altering event of going completely blind. But rather than allowing this profound challenge to hold him back, Kirk made a resolute decision to push forward and not allow any challenge to hold him back from accomplishing his dreams.During this episode, Kirk talks about the confidence he gained by attending a school for the blind and the struggles he experienced when he went back to a world built for people with sight. Because of his experiences, he has dedicated his life to advocating for individuals with significant disabilities, helping them break down barriers and find meaningful employment opportunities. His work is not just about finding job opportunities, it's about empowering individuals to be active and valued members of society. If you are struggling to realize that even those with the most difficult challenges can thrive and find happiness, then you need to hear Kirk's story! #disability #advocacy #inspirationGuest Information:Dr. Kirk Adamsinnovativeimpact.consulting Show Information:@strongenoughpodstrongenoughpod.comclaudiamking.comstrongenoughpod@gmail.com

Today we find ourselves traveling to Seattle, WA to engage in a mindful and inspiration filled conversation with our guest, Dr. Kirk Adams. Blind since the age of 5, Kirk dedicates his time and energy to assisting people managing blindness to navigate the workforce space and find employment. He brigs home the point that many people that manage blindness are overlooked for positions, regardless of their presenting qualifications. Kirk's advice to the general population, " Find community both for what you need and for what makes you happy."

Show Notes: In this enlightening interview with Dr. Kirk Adams, we delve into the important topic of employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities and how parents can support their children in finding meaningful work. Dr. Adams provides valuable insights and addresses common concerns parents have regarding their disabled children's employability. He emphasizes that individuals with disabilities can indeed find employment and have successful careers. The key lies in developing disability-specific skills and creating a strong support network. Dr. Adams encourages parents to connect with organizations and associations dedicated to disability advocacy and support, which can provide guidance and resources in navigating the employment landscape. Dr. Adams highlights that while challenges may exist, there are numerous career opportunities for individuals with disabilities. Employers are increasingly recognizing the value of inclusive workplaces and the unique strengths that disabled workers bring. He stresses the importance of dispelling misconceptions around disability employment, such as the notion that having a disability automatically hinders one's ability to work effectively. Throughout the interview, Dr. Adams emphasizes the importance of self-advocacy, resilience, and skill development for individuals with disabilities, highlighting that disability employment is possible with the right support and mindset. For parents raising children with disabilities, Dr. Adams provides guidance on fostering independence, developing essential skills, and building a strong network of support. He encourages parents to connect with local chapters of disability organizations, seek mentorship opportunities, and leverage available resources to help their children navigate the path to employment. In summary, this interview with Dr. Kirk Adams sheds light on the possibilities of employment for individuals with disabilities and provides parents with valuable insights and actionable advice. It reinforces the importance of creating inclusive work environments, dispelling misconceptions, and supporting individuals with disabilities in their journey toward meaningful and fulfilling careers. Connect with Kirk: Email: kirkadams000[@]gmail.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirkadamsphd/      Connect with Us: https://linktr.ee/waterprairie Support this channel: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/waterprairie Resources mentioned during this episode: Disability:IN - https://disabilityin.org/ Family Connect- https://familyconnect.org/ National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled - https://www.loc.gov/nls/ CurbCutOS - https://www.curbcutos.com/ EyeCBetter - https://eyecbetter.com/ Music Used: “LazyDay” by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/  Artist: http://audionautix.com/

Creating a Culture of Inclusion E16 Dr. Kirk Adams and host David Steinmetz talked about changing societal perceptions of the capabilities of people who are blind, transforming corporate cultures to ones of integration rather than differentiation, and building family, school, community, and service providers. Dr. Kirk Adams stated that 7 out of 10 working age […] The post Creating a Culture of Inclusion E16 appeared first on Business RadioX ®.

Over halfway through June! HOW?  Tomorrow, Friday we wrap with this week's spotlight artists Star Collector, Kirk Adams, and Anthony Graziano Jr.!  As hour three concludes tomorrow, a listen in with NEXT week's featured artists brian bringelson, Dw. Dunphy, and one of the various artists from the compilation called “Chimes That Reel And Rock” on The Ice Cream Man Power Pop and More Bandcamp site and record label! The Music Authority Podcast... listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat… heard daily on Podchaser, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes!  Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority!  Please, are you listening? Please, are you sharing the podcast?  Please, has a podcast mention been placed into your social media?  How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...*Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority Podcast!  Special Recorded Network Shows, too!  Different than my daily show! *Radio Candy Radio Monday Wednesday, & Friday 7PM ET, 4PM PT*Rockin' The KOR Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT  www.koradio.rocks*Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  *The Sole Of Indie  https://soleofindie.rocks/  Monday Through Friday 6-7PM EST!June 15, 2023, Thursday, chapter three…The Kite Collectors - 13_Icy You [Never Look Down] (Paisley Records)1st Base Runner - 06 Some Reasons [Seven Years Of Silence]SUPER 8 Music - BeBopALuLa [Head Sounds]@The Rickenbackers – NightimeThe Byrds - The Times They Are A-Changin'  [Turn! Turn! Turn!]Anthony Graziano Jr. - Gone [Noise Floor]Identical Suns - 07-Common GroundJim Basnight - Don't Wait Up [The Jim Basnight Thing] (@Precedent Records)@The Tangerines - You Better CallStar Collector - Funeral Party [Game Day]mylittlebrother - Howl [The Best Power Pop 2020]@John McMullan - Fifteen Minutes From Tiptonville [IPO Vol 4]Adrianne Lenker - Imperfection [IPO Vol 9]Kirk Adams - 06 The Room Where May Cried [This Means Everything]@The Electricoke - Travel Time [Back In Time - Lost Hits Of The 80's Volume 2] (Futureman Records)@Elvyn – EllieShake Some Action! - 09 You Don't Know What It Means [Catch The Sun]Famous Groupies – Thank You [The Furry White Album]

With tomorrow being Friday, we'll finish the week with our featured artists John Dunbar, The Boys With The Perpetual Nervousness, and TripWire!  As hour three draws down, tomorrow, a quick howdy-do with NEXT week's spotlight artists Star Collector, Kirk Adams, and Anthony Graziano Jr.!  AND MORE 100% Random Access Play Selection!  The list BELOW is from Thursday's THIRD HOUR!  The Music Authority Podcast... listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat…heard daily on Podchaser, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes!  Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority!  Please, are you listening? Please, are you sharing the podcast?  Please, has a podcast mention been placed into your social media?  How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...*Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority Podcast!  Special Recorded Network Shows, too!  Different than my daily show! *Radio Candy Radio Monday Wednesday, & Friday 7PM ET, 4PM PT*Rockin' The KOR Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT  www.koradio.rocks*Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  *The Sole Of Indie  https://soleofindie.rocks/  Monday Through Friday 6-7PM EST!June 8, 2023, Thursday, with its very own personality, hour three…Nova Bloom - City LightsChris Church - 01 Cousteau And The Muted Skoal [The Heartbreaks You Embrace – Revisited]The Well Wishers - Father Nature [A Shattering Sky]@Electric Stars - Between The Streets & The Stars [Beautiful Music For Beautiful People]TripWire - 23 Hazel [Best Of Trip Wire] (Big Stir Records)@Post Office - Awake Again [Fables In Slang]John Hunter Phillips and The Hurricane Beach Band - If We Ever Need A Superman@Tommy Keene – PicturesJohn Dunbar - 09_That Husband Of Yours [Oh Wellness] (koolkatmusik.com)Athensville - Your Future Portrait [Undressing Minds For Show]Rich Arithmetic - 13_He's a Good Man [Shiftin Gears]  (koolkatmusik.com)Robin Lane (Official Musician Page) - 07 No Fear [Dirt Road to Heaven] (Red on Red Records)Poppermost Songs - Angel WingsThe Boys With The Perpetual Nervousness - 06_Summer [Songs From Another Life] (koolkatmusik.com)Bubble Gum Orchestra Fans Page Spain - Love 101 [A Selected Retrospective]Vince Melouney Music - 02_She's A Yum Yum [This Is The Vince Maloney Sect] (@VM Music)Keith Klingensmith and the TM Collective - 16 I Wanna Thank You [kk + tm vol 5]

This morning there were more clouds, more rain, more lightning.  Blue skies when I was out running errands, now more clouds and wind and it looks like more rain coming.  My “bunch onions”…I call them scallions,  and my mixed greens live salad bowl need it!  The Music Authority Podcast...listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat…heard daily on Podchaser, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes!  Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority!  Please, are you listening? Please, are you sharing the podcast?  Please, has a podcast mention been placed into your social media?  How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...*Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority Podcast!  Special Recorded Network Shows, too!  Different than my daily show! *Radio Candy Radio Monday Wednesday, & Friday 7PM ET, 4PM PT*Rockin' The KOR Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT  www.koradio.rocks*Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  *The Sole Of Indie  https://soleofindie.rocks/  Monday Through Friday 6-7PM EST!May 25, 2023, Thursday, first stanza…@Orbis 2.0 - TMA SHOW OPEN THEMEThe Maladaptive Solution - Abacus (Count On You) [IPO Vol 16]Papa Schmapa - Waiting For The Sun [Bela Mystic Music]Ex Norwegian - Paging Lisa [Spook Du Jour]Cheri Dahl Abeles - Writing You@The Beatifics - Something Anything [How I Learned To Stop Worrying]@Sydney Sherwood - 05 Horizons Edge [Head Space]Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros - Redemption Song [Streetcore]The Damnwells - I'll Be Around [Bastards Of The Beat]The Bookends - Only Time Will Tell [Far Away But Around] (Otto Raw Recordings)The Poppees - 01 - Jealousy [Pop Goes The Anthology {Bomp Single}]Sam Wickens - This War Of Mine [Watson - EP]Edward Rogers - Rain Becomes Her [Sunday Fables]The Weeklings - Don't Know, Don't Care [Studio 2 Recorded At Abbey Roads Studio] (Jem Records)Quincy - the band - 01-Liberty Bell [35 Years On] (koolkatmusik.com)Starbelly - 00 - Yes I Love Her Again [Four]Loose Change - 3. Sick and Tired [Fun Stuff]The Bishop's Daredevil Stunt Club - 07 - Joni It's Not Like That [Please Stand By] (koolkatmusik.com)Kirk Adams - 09 Elsewhere [Wild Hare]@The Kids - 17 - Hey Little Girl

Dr. Kirk Adams is the Managing Director of Innovative Impact, LLC, a consulting company aimed at accelerating inclusion of people with disabilities into the workforce. Dr. Adams is also the former President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) and a longtime champion of people who are blind or visually impaired. Dr. Adams frequently serves as a keynote speaker at conferences across the country, spreading his commitment to creating a more inclusive, accessible world for Americans with vision loss. He has consulted with top leadership at Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and other high profile tech-oriented companies to discuss topics ranging from product and digital accessibility to civil and disability rights. Having lost his own vision at age 5, in our latest podcast episode, Dr. Adams shares his personal story and helps to shine a light on the importance of braille. Our other podcast guest, Daniel Lubiner, is a 25-year veteran teacher of students with disabilities and a teacher of the arts for blind and low-vision students. He founded a nonprofit organization, The TouchPad Pro Foundation, with a mission to distribute The BrailleDoodle, an inexpensive braille learning device and a tactile Science, Math, and Art tool. It allows someone to write and create and feel as they go. In this episode, Daniel describes the BrailleDoodle and how he plans to get one into the hands of braille and tactile learners across the world.

Trying for the FIVE-DAY show again! Trying!  Since it is all prerecorded and not LIVE, I might be able to make it happen! The Music Authority Podcast...listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat…heard daily on Podchaser, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes!  Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority!  Please, are you listening? Please, are you sharing the podcast?  Please, has a podcast mention been placed into your social media?  How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...*Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority Podcast!  Special Recorded Network Shows, too!  Different than my daily show! *Radio Candy Radio Monday Wednesday, & Friday 7PM ET, 4PM PT*Rockin' The KOR Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT  www.koradio.rocks*Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  January 5, 2023, Thursday, set two…Kirk Adams - 11 Major Key [Wild Hare]@The Singles - 03 - Sheena's Got A New Hero [L.O.V.E.  From The Santa Cruz Archives '82 – ‘85]@The Above - 08 Do What You Wanna Do [Waterbury Street]Tinted Windows - Kind Of GirlCliff Richard - It's All In The GameBob of the Pops - 10 King Midas In Reverse [Bob of the Pops Volume 5] (Futureman Records)The Parson Red Heads - 10 Waiting For The Call [Blurred Harmony] (You Are the Cosmos)Bhopal's Flowers - A3_Byrd Of The Tree [Joy Of The 4th]Colin Kyffin Music – JoannHoodoo Gurus - Heart Of Darkness [Blow Your Cool]The Mylars - Wake Up Virginia@The Grays - He's FrankPezband - Tracer [Pezband]Amoeba Teen - Champagne Never Will [The Appleyard Sessions] (koolkatmusik.com)The Smithereens - Blue Period (Acoustic)Vegas With Randolph - 17 Show Me How [Big Stir Singles - the Eighth Wave] (Big Stir Records)Ex Norwegian – Air Lash [Spook Du Jour]Sitcom Neighbor - Let It Go [Charm]Sandy McKnight & Fernando Perdomo - 09 Melody Anne [San Fernando Blast!]Claire On A Dare - Center

Kirk Adams stops by to share his sight loss story and journey learning to advocate for himself and how his work with the Seattle Lighthouse for the Blind lead him to the CEO position at The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB). Kirk talks about the AFB's history and his time with the organization and the role AFB Consulting plays in the development of accessible technology including VoiceOver on the iPhone. Now, Kirk is self-employed, with Innovative Impact LLC. He's looking for fun high impact innovative projects that accelerate inclusion of blind people in the work force.   :: SHOW LINKS :: For show notes, guest profiles, photos, blog and more information, visit AmbiguouslyBlind.com and connect on:    Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Linkedin  Like what we're doing? Support us: Buy Me A Coffee This is a listener supported podcast.  Please consider donating to build and sustain our community :: GUEST LINKS :: Connect with Kirk Adams: https://www.ambiguouslyblind.com/guests/kirk-adams/

Peter C. DeHaass will tell you he has been a builder of bridges for people in many disenfranchised communities for most of his life. I learned about Peter from AccessiBe's nonprofit partnerships manager, Sheldon Lewis. Peter does not come directly from a family with any person with a disability. However, his family has produced many educators including Peter.   On this episode, you will learn about Peter's journey West from Pennsylvania and how he eventually landed in San Francisco where he had to utilize his entrepreneurial spirit just to survive and put food on the table. Most recently, in 2020, Peter formed the San Francisco Disability Business Alliance. This organization is focused on empowering individuals with disabilities to secure economic independence through self-employment and small business ownership.   I think you will find Peter's story inspiring and his mission important to many   About the Guest:   Peter C. DeHaas is a mission-driven professional with a lifelong track record of building pathways to academic, housing, and economic sustainability for diversely abled individuals from He is leading the charge to expand how we think about “diversity” to include individuals with diverse abilities (disabilities) and the businesses and organizations they engage with. Peter's career has spanned economic development, housing advocacy, education inclusion, and direct human services for a wide range of diverse clients, including veterans, the formerly incarcerated, youth, adults, immigrants and their families. Peter has experience building pathways to economic and academic inclusion for the deaf and hard of hearing, intellectually and developmentally disabled adults, individuals struggling with learning differences or mental illness, and physical disabilities. Currently, Peter founded and leads the San Francisco Disability Business Alliance (SFDBA), the first organization of its kind in the country focused on empowering individuals with disabilities to secure economic independence through self-employment and small business ownership. Through his work at the SFDBA, Peter has built partnerships between the growing community of disability-owned small businesses in San Francisco and major local corporations including Kaiser Permanente and Bank of the West. Peter is also fluent in American Sign Language (ASL) and, over the past 9 years has taught ASL to more than 1000 future educators, social workers, nurses, and community advocates as a lecturer at San Francisco State University. In his previous role as Director of Disability Resources and Academic Inclusion, Peter built pathways to academic success for more than 2000 diverse students at Golden Gate University – the majority of whom were women, people of color, veterans, and often all three-across the University's Law and Business programs. In Colorado, Peter spearheaded community engagement across a number of successful direct-serving programs including launching the Bridges to Boulder Community Sign Language program and cultivating the non-attorney advocacy program between Denver University and the Colorado Cross Disability Coalition. Above all, Peter is a builder of bridges and is skilled at finding ways and mustering resources to connect deeply with diverse people and communities, resulting in lasting partnerships and positive economic, social, and community impact.   Link for the San Francisco Disability Business Alliance :   http://www.sfdba.org/     About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog.   Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards.   https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/   accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/       Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below!   Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can also subscribe in your favorite podcast app.   Leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts.     Transcription Notes Michael Hingson  00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i  capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us.   Michael Hingson  01:20 Welcome once again to unstoppable mindset. today. Our guest is Peter DeHaas who to right now is operating the San Francisco Disability Business Alliance. But there's a whole lot more to Peter than that, and we're gonna get into it as we as we go forward. So Peter, welcome to unstoppable mindset.   Peter DeHaas  01:40 Thanks for having me, Michael.   Michael Hingson  01:42 Well, I really appreciate you being here. And I'm jealous because as you can tell San Francisco diversity Business Alliance, you know where Peter is. We lived in the San Francisco Bay Area in Novato, which is in what's called the North Bay for 12 years, and missing greatly. We lived in an area called Bell marine keys. And we actually had ducks that came up to our back door every day, begging for food. So yeah, it was a lot of fun. When we were when we first were moving in, we had a contractor had to modify the house for my wife who uses a wheelchair. And he made the mistake of seeing some of the ducks on the patio and opening the door. He was eating a doughnut and he gave them a part of the doughnut. And he said after that if he didn't have something for them, they'd go for the throat. So there's a lot of fun. So yeah, we were we were spoiled. Well, tell me a little bit about your background, you know yourself, where your what you what you did, how you got into school and beyond and all that sort of stuff, if you would?   Peter DeHaas  02:46 Well. I started out I was born and raised in Pennsylvania on the East Coast and lived for several years in Connecticut as well until I started making my way west. I come from a family of educators and builders. So I come by my my connection to being in education and advocacy and building bridges. Honestly, two of my sisters are special educators. And that's how I got my start learning the manual alphabet in American Sign Language. And I remained curious from from third grade is when I learned the manual alphabet all the way through middle school, I had a dear friend who was deaf. And then fast forward to 1992 I moved to Boulder, Colorado, in started working for a little organization at the time called Developmental Disability Center. Now it's called Imagine and I was working for their Supported Employment Department called labor source, serving individuals who had previously been institutionalized in the state of Colorado and deemed unemployable by by the Department of occupational rehab there. And we were kind of a renegade organization that built employment services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities proudly in the Boulder County in Broomfield county areas. And that's really where I got my start working in the field and and simultaneously started really learning American Sign Language because I recognized that many of the clients that we serve were nonverbal, several were deaf, some were hard of hearing, and many of them utilized Sign Language As a means to communicate. And I noticed that many of my co workers tried to utilize signs like more and please and thank you. But then there were just lapses and gaps in communication. And, you know, being that I was earning a whopping $5.50 an hour at the time, I saw a great opportunity to learn ASL and the organization that I was working for, paid for all of my ASL instruction up until the point that I launched into my master's in linguistics at the University of Colorado Boulder. Because I really was intrigued by the intersectionality of, of the deaf community and the the language of ASL and how the two were really inseparable with the goal of teaching at the post secondary level. And so I graduated with my master's degree, I believe it was in 2009. And then, in 2013, I made my westward journey a little further here to San Francisco to support my youngest son Thelonious who moved out here in 2010. And my oldest son, Hans, came along with me and I landed here in San Francisco working for San Francisco Recreation and Parks, inclusion program, supporting young adults with disabilities, in particular, their ASL intensive program here and the mission, as well as some of their their summer camps. And then soon after that, I was offered a position at San Francisco State University as a lecturer in American Sign Language, which I've taught over 1000 students there at San Francisco State from such a diverse background of of not only focus of study, but but most of my students are first generation college participants, and it's really intriguing work. And you may find it hard to believe, but I then got a third position. It takes a lot to live in San Francisco, I got a third position working at Golden Gate University, as their coordinator for Disability Resources and academic accommodations. And over a period of seven years, I grew that program into kind of a unified program. There were two siloed Disability Resource Centers when I got there, one for the law school, and one for the non law programs. And in my seven years there, I brought the programs together and developed my position into a director's position. And I guess it was the summer of 2019. I started planting the seeds for the SF DBA. And we launched in March of 2020. And I stepped down from my role at Golden Gate University shortly after that, and I still teach at San Francisco State and oversee the SF DBA. And that's, that's where I'm at today.   Michael Hingson  08:42 Oh, by the way to answer a question you asked in an email, we do make transcripts of the podcast and when the podcast goes up, they will go up as well. Excellent. I'm assuming you're not signing while you're talking since we can put up videos but I don't know how   Peter DeHaas  09:02 to do I do sign a little bit when I talk but it's not my preference to try to it   Michael Hingson  09:07 is it is probably a major challenge because that's speaking in two languages at once.   Peter DeHaas  09:13 It's it's doable, but in all fairness, I mean, in a perfect world, I'd have a little ASL interpreter at the bottom of my screen. Do you remember? I remember as a kid, we, on Sundays there would be certain evangelists on television and they would always have an ASL interpreter signing in the bottom left hand corner. And that was in the 1970s and I'm thinking, why can't we why can't we do that again? You know, it was doable then why can't you know and I'm sure that they paid for it. You know, it was privately paid for wasn't provided by the network or anything so we know where that goes. But   Michael Hingson  09:59 well, I turned it on. Have, mainly because we're still going to have the conversation and it will, we'll, we'll fix it. But I use a service called otter otter.ai. And what what otter does is real time recording and transcription of conversations, and when it's operating a person who is in a meeting or whatever, with me, can read real live transcriptions of what's happening. But what we do is just provide the transcription, because we'll go through and clean it up. Got it, or we put the podcast up. So it goes out as a really high end transcription. That's excellent. And it should be that way. Right? And makes perfect sense to do that. Well, for you, you, you started the SF DBA? And are dealing with a lot of obviously, different kinds of people. So kind of what what made you decide that this was something worth beginning? And how did you really get to the point of starting it?   Peter DeHaas  11:07 A great question? Well, as you know, San Francisco is a place that really prides itself on being innovative, diverse, there's lots of venture capital here. And people are well educated. And there's lots of opportunities for networking, after hours. And I found myself getting more and more involved with the Chamber of Commerce here and other nonprofits. And going to a lot of after hours events. And I would tell people what I do, you know, at the time, I was at Golden Gate and teaching ASL and people were intrigued by the work that I do, but but systematically, it seemed like, disability was excluded from just about every conversation that I was having with people relating to diversity, equity and inclusion. And that bothered me. However, I took that that I was just kind of baffled, to be honest with you. And I took that kind of baffled feeling and transformed it into something that I'm passionate about. I said, you know, this is a place of opportunity, and it welcomes innovation and creativity. I'm a very creative person. I'm also a musician, an artist. I said, if nobody else is going to represent small business as it relates to individuals with disabilities, well, I'm going to take a try. And I had a lot of support from not only local business leaders, but educators and advocates and even local politicians. So that was really the genesis of the SF DBA, in when I started planting seeds in 2019. And by the end of 2019, I had a fiscal sponsor, through social good Fund, which is a little umbrella organization out of Richmond, California, they do really great work for organizations doing community benefit work, really through the pilot phases. And we had Kaiser Permanente foundation come on board at the end of 2019. And, yeah, then we launched in March of 2020. Right before everything shut down.   Michael Hingson  13:48 Yes. Isn't that the way of it?   Peter DeHaas  13:51 It was very, very fortuitous that, you know, because people were just starting to whisper about maybe you should postpone the event, maybe you should, you know, and if we had waited, we would have lost that whole audience of over 100 people they were just starting to put hand sanitizer up in the in the room and nobody got sick at the Marriott you know, from from our launch event, fortunately. But we had over 100 people at the Marriott Marquis downtown. So I was just blessed that that that many people showed up. My event organizer who I hired, you know, was doing all of that worked behind the scenes. I had no idea who was going to going to show up. I was too focused on the programming for the day and whatnot. And when I looked out into the audience, Michael, I was just astounded at not only not only entrepreneurs with disabilities and small business owners with disabilities, but like I said, educators, advocates, business leaders, corporations. It just it really really moved me that that this was an important venture that I was I was embarking upon,   Michael Hingson  15:06 and rightly so. But you've said something that really prompts a question. You mentioned that you notice that is diverse as San Francisco is and so on, there wasn't a lot of discussion, especially in the business world and in the entrepreneurial world, about disabilities and so on. Even though San Francisco clearly is an incredibly inclusive city in a lot of ways, why do you think that is that disabilities weren't really part of the mainstream?   Peter DeHaas  15:39 You know, it's an interesting question. I don't know that I want to go too far down that rabbit hole, but But I posit that there's still a lot of fear and a lot of around disability. And, and I've come in contact with that before. You know, when I, when I first started working with individuals with developmental disabilities, and I was very young, I used to take offense to people staring at at the people that I worked with many times we'd be after we would work on one of our supported employment contracts, we would maybe go have lunch on the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, and people would stare and I took offense to that when I was young. But as I matured, I realized that not everybody had the upbringing that I did. Not only, you know, surviving some, some disabilities that I had early on, when I when I was born, that I that I outgrew fortunately. But but but having the exposure at such an early age, to innovate individuals that my sisters were working with who had disabilities. And so I had that, that luxury of being kind of matriculated into that community early on. So for me, it was no different than any other community that I've been a part of in my lifetime. And I think that there's just a lot of maybe education that still needs to occur. And, you know, sometimes, as you know, Michael, it's about money. And people don't want to, or they don't know how to develop a budget or line item in their budget, to provide the appropriate accommodations. So there's that fear of the unknown? I think I could.   Michael Hingson  17:36 I agree with you, though, I think it is largely about fear. I think we we fear what we don't know. And we fear things that are different than us. And unfortunately, especially with visible disabilities, people tend to really fear it, because they don't understand it, and they haven't been taught, which is exactly what you're pointing out. And the other part about it is that until someone really starts to drive the conversation, the fear isn't going to go away. I think people don't hate persons with disabilities. I think that we, I suppose you can look at it in several ways. And in one sense, we haven't been as visible and maybe we're not elevated to the point where people hate peers, persons with disabilities, like they seem to do race things and so on. But I think mainly, it's fear that people just don't know.   Michael Hingson  18:37 And there's fear on both sides of the equation. Yes.   Peter DeHaas  18:40 You know, let's the elephant in the room. We know that disability discrimination has occurred over over the years. And there are specific laws in place that they protect individuals with disabilities in a lot of regards. I see the disability community is kind of the last frontier in terms of coming out, as it were, in celebrating their disability. I spoke with a young entrepreneur last week, who found her way to SF DBA, just through the the internet and and we met in person, you know, post COVID It was so exciting. And she was just thrilled to share her story with me in a way that she could readily self identify and not have to worry about being excluded or shamed. And this is somebody this is somebody who went to Stanford University and faced and I'm not trying to bash Stanford because, again, there's a steep learning curve and everybody's doing their best to try to, to get educated as to how to do the right thing. But she faced certain opposition in her program at Stanford when she was trying to navigate how to get accommodation hands. And there's plenty of work to be done. So again, I'm not trying to bash anybody but that's the gift that I share to the world is to help people solve problems and come up with creative solutions. We had a student, matriculating at Golden Gate University when I was there, who was deaf. And she had gone to just about every other private university in the Bay Area. And they had told her that they were not equipped, or they did not have the funding to provide ASL interpreters for her. Her pursuit. She came to me at Golden Gate University, and I was excited as soon as she landed on my doorstep. You know, obviously, I have a very close affinity to the deaf community, but it could have been any disability type, honestly. But when when she came, and she said, Peter, would you be able to provide ASL interpreters for my HR cohort program? I said, You bet you will figure out a way. And of course there were some people scratching their head on the other side, like, how are we going to do this? We created a budget, we developed a partnership with Department of occupational rehab, she already had a case with occupational rehab. We met them halfway, we paid 50%. Oh, Dr. Paid 50%. And they were quite shocked. Dr. turned to us and said, We've never had a university pay 50%. And I said, Well, that's that we're doing it because it's the best practice and it's the right thing to do. And that's, that's really, you know, a broader part of my mission, Michael is helping institutions develop best practices. It's not the specific mission of the SFDBA per se, but it, it comes with, it's a benefit that people get in associating with the SFDBA is that, you know, I believe that, that we're on the cusp of a giant wave, and you know, that working for excessive B, I think that this is just kind of, we're just at the tipping point where people are starting to recognize Oh, yeah, we are having more conversations now about disability inclusion, and I'm like, shamila Hi, this is the time, now's the time.   Michael Hingson  22:23 Well, and to be real clear, I don't think in any way you're bashing anyone, and no one should interpret it. as such. When you talk about the fears, when you talk about what organizations haven't done, it isn't really so much a question anymore, I think of what organizations haven't done, it's more important to explore, what are you going to do? Do you recognize there is an issue? And are you willing to explore addressing it, which is what you did with the young lady who was deaf. And it's something that we should all do, what we haven't yet really gotten to the point of recognizing is providing reasonable accommodations should just be considered part of the cost of doing business. Just like providing computers, providing lights, for all of you light dependent people who don't get around in the dark, we pity you, or coffee machines, or whatever. The fact is providing and having the ability to provide reasonable accommodations ought to be part of the cost of doing business. And so that does get down to a budgetary issue and being aware and putting it in right from the outset. through that. And it is something that we haven't done nearly as much of. And so it, it really helps to have the conversations like we're having, and I hope people will listen to this and take it to heart as well. But we do face still a situation where persons with disabilities are in an environment where the unemployment rate among employable people is in the 60 to 70% range. And it's not because people can't do the work. It said others who are different than we don't think we can do the work.   Peter DeHaas  24:22 Correct. And that's what I in in some of the early research for SF DBA. Michael, I uncovered a statistic that suggests that individuals with disabilities are starting a rate starting small businesses at a rate almost double that of individuals who don't have disabilities. And I really attribute that to one. Individuals with disabilities are very creative, and they're very resilient. And there's a lot of autonomy in starting your own business and who doesn't have a side hustle in the Bay Area. There are at least one side hustle, right? Frequently starting a small business, impede can be a pathway to, you know, just the success in the small business, or it could be a leveraging point to your next gig. So there's a lot of a lot of fruitful things, I think that come out of entrepreneurship.   Michael Hingson  25:23 Why do you think that so many people, though, are starting what's caused them to take that path, as opposed to other things they could do?   Peter DeHaas  25:32 Well, again, you know, even if you have one job here in San Francisco, likely doesn't pay the rent, right. Um, so I attribute it largely to, you know, the need to survive. But, you know, several young entrepreneurs that I've spoken to also say that, that it's out of necessity, because they haven't been able to land a job. And, and some people are still hesitant to even readily self identify as a result of that.   Michael Hingson  26:05 And I think that's a an extremely valid point, I remember the first time I was confronted with some of that I had been working for a company and was let go in June of 1984, at the end of June, mainly because not doing a good job, but rather the company purchased a company was actually Xerox purchased the company I was working for, because they wanted the technology and not the people. And I happened to be the last person in the sales force for their major flagship product to be let go. So at least I was there a week or two longer than others. And they decided that they just did not want any of us because they just Xerox just one of the technology. So I was looking for a job for six months, wow, couldn't find one. I even had an interview we were living in, in Mission Viejo, California, at the time. And I continued to look, and even got a call from an executive recruiter who said, gee, we see your resume, we, we really think you're very qualified for the job that we had, which I was. And everything went well, until the night before the interview, the recruiter called and said, I was just looking at your resume again. And I see that you do a lot of work with blind people. How come is that? Is there somebody in your family who's blind? And I said, Yeah, I am. I didn't mention it before. There was no need to write. But immediately, oh, my God, I don't know whether the recruiter the company is going to want to talk to you, you're blind. I said, What does that have to do with it, you liked my resume, but you're blind, doesn't matter. You didn't know that until 10 minutes ago, I already had the airplane ticket that they sat down. Anyway, the next morning, the interview was canceled. So I never flew up to San Jose to do the interview. And that happens way too often. So eventually, I and a couple of other people started a company to sell the new concept of PC based CAD systems to architects and engineers, and so on. And of course, a blind guy selling graphic technology. I was the president of the company, but who had to work the machine, I didn't need to work it, I needed to know how to work it and needed to know all about it to talk intelligently about it. But I'd rather sit an architect down in front of the machine and talk them through making it work, rather than me having to work it because then they're involved with it. So I did that for four years. And then I went back into the regular workforce. Right? But the reality is that it happens today, almost as much, but you're right. There are a lot more entrepreneurial opportunities than there used to be. And there are tools to help. So if you're a blind person, for example, and you start your own business, there, there are tools that can help. Are you familiar with a company called IRA? Ira I'm not Hi Roz AI are a it's a what's called a visual interpreter. They Ira has people who they hire because they demonstrate an aptitude for describing and they give them more advanced training on being able to describe. The idea is that you activate Ira by opening an app and you call one of their agents. Their agents are hired, trained and put under extreme non disclosure and confidentiality restrictions. So literally what happens in Ira stays an IRA. But the point is that blind people who use the service and have things described or deal with tax forms or whatever, know that whatever they do, won't be divulged. Because it's all incompetence, which is the way it should be. Well, IRA, and some companies including Quicken, have established a program where if you have a your own business, you can get free Ira services, at least at an hour or half hour at a time. But you can get free service to use their system, when you need to interact with something that requires someone to describe it to you or interact with something that's too visual to use. And there are a lot of those kinds of tools out there that are helping make it more practical for blind people to start their own businesses. And I think that in one way or another, it goes across the board. But you're right, we do it because of necessity.   Peter DeHaas  30:38 Yep. Yep. One of the partners that, in addition to accessibe that we've developed a partnership with is a company called Eva Aava. That was launched by two graduates of UC Berkeley, and it provides captioning for zoom calls and in other applications that way. So that's a very unique partnership that we've developed.   Michael Hingson  31:08 Well, that's, you know, that's pretty cool. How's accessibe worked out for you guys? I have to ask, of course, don't I?   Peter DeHaas  31:14 Well, I still I have a few organizations that I need to follow up with. I've, I've told a lot of my partners about it. And you know, it's still, it's still, you know, I say we're on the cusp of a wave, but but people are still not, you know, biting full heartedly for me. I'm excited about it. I, you know, in the fact that Judith human gets behind it, and in and I can show people that that widget, just yesterday, I was meeting with somebody, and she was talking about, you know, the advances of technology as it relates to accessibility. And she, I just noticed that she had our website open. And I see I said, Do you see that widget there? I said, Put your finger on it. And she did. And she was like, Oh, my gosh, there's so it's it's a process. But I long and short. I haven't, you know, one of my goals is to get other companies on board with excessive B as well. You know, for for a multitude of reasons. First and foremost, because it's the right thing to do. And, and there's an opportunity for SFDA as well, if, if somebody decides to go with the product? Well, the thing   Michael Hingson  32:36 about using accessibe, just generalize it, the thing about internet and website accessibility, is that most people don't know that it even exists. But they also just haven't taken the leap to recognize that they're leaving out an incredible amount of potential business for their own sites, or an incredible amount of interaction. You know, the CDC talks about up to 25% of all people having some sort of disability. And a lot of those people are left out because we can't use websites. And when you have a, you have a product like accessibility that changes that not only the widget, but then excessively has a full service department to help remediate what the widget can. But the bottom line is that today, if you talk to people with disabilities, they're going to tell you that they are incredibly loyal to companies that have made their websites usable, because then we don't have to go through all the struggle of trying to find an accessible site.   Peter DeHaas  33:46 That's true. And I'm sure you know, the state of Colorado just is the first state to mandate that all of their state websites need to be fully accessible.   Michael Hingson  33:57 Yeah, and I know one of the people who is very much involved in having architected that and gotten the legislature to do it just like they've they've been taking sort of a lead and making sure of accessible voting as well. And it makes perfect sense to do. But it it is, well, the Nielsen Company did a survey in 2016. And there's actually a report that that will talk about how much brand loyalty counts to people with disabilities and how much more website owners get because of persons with disabilities if they make their stuff accessible. But you interview awesome. Go ahead. No, go ahead.   Peter DeHaas  34:41 I lost my train of thought. Okay.   Michael Hingson  34:43 Well, so another aspect of all that, is that with you said something earlier about and starting businesses, blind people or people with disabilities tend to be very creative and so on. The real All of us were forced into that there was a guy, Dr. Jonathan Lazar, who used to work for Towson University. And I heard him speak at a National Federation of the Blind convention. And he observed that this, of course, was about blind people and internet access. He pointed out that blind people, because we are so used to being left out and work so hard at trying to find accessible sites, we also tend to be more resilient when we can sort of make something work. And it may not be that it's totally accessible, but we figure out as many workarounds as we can, to try to be able to interact directly with it. And I think that goes back to what you said, we're forced to be more creative, and it isn't just blind people is people across the board with disabilities. Yeah, it's true. So it is, it is an issue that we need to clearly address and and work on. But I hope that there will be ever increasing conversations about it, because people need to learn that there's nothing to fear. And you're right, they worry about expense, or, gee, do we have to buy special insurance for these people or whatever. And they don't recognize the other aspect of it, which is that if you hire a person with a disability, and you're fortunate enough to be able to do that, the odds are and there are studies that are starting to show this, you will have an employee who will be much more loyal and likely to stay with you, then most other employees, because we recognize how hard it is to get that job in the first place. And I'm sure you've experienced that. Yep. Yep. So it's a it is a challenge, and it is something that we need to deal with. Well, so having started the diversity, Business Alliance, and so on, what kind of an impact are you starting to see in the Bay Area? How, how has it been?   Peter DeHaas  37:17 It's the San Francisco disability Business Alliance disability   Michael Hingson  37:21 Business Alliance. I'm sorry, I don't talk good. That's, but just wanted to clarify for our No, you're right. You're right. So how is how's the impact been in terms of overall what you've been able to accomplish? And what have you been able to measure?   Peter DeHaas  37:35 Well, as I said, we launched in March of 2020. So everything shut down literally a week or two, I think it was a week or two later. And I got a text from one of my keynote speakers. And he said, Peter, you better get ready, because small businesses are going to need you more than ever. And sure enough, we started consulting with businesses on how to access PPP, reorganizing their staffing patterns, creating resources in tandem with the SBA and getting those up online. So really changed our focus, our impact, through the pandemic was really continuing to help businesses through this unprecedented time. But then continuing conversations with future entrepreneurs who are curious about how to start a small business. So we launched our future entrepreneur training program, and we've seen a lot of interestingly enough, a lot of women of color are with disabilities participating in our programs. And I can't say why that that that demographic specifically, has been so high, but it's been quite fascinating for me. So we've we've had that educational piece, we've created several mentoring opportunities, connecting entrepreneurs with with members of the broader business community to get some mentoring. Just an example of that we had a young African American who grew up here in the Bayview district of San Francisco who is recently just got his real estate broker's license. And he wants to be investing in properties. And this is the youngest of I believe, 11 children and connected him with a successful investor here, and he's well on his way. We've also worked with a film student from SF State and connected him with one of the producers of crip camp. Which I'm sure that you've you've experienced. So really building bridges, and helping individuals get connected to not only educational opportunities, but mentoring opportunities, helping individuals get access to capital. Early on, we got contacted by the State of California regarding small business certification. So we're in, we've been in conversation with the state of California over the past couple years, as well as many entities here in the Bay Area, about how they can diversify their supply chain by hiring individuals with disabilities. So but as you know, getting a small business certified is no small feat. So we're working with UC Berkeley now, in in, they have a program there that helps get small businesses certified. And I'm very excited about that. And we have our second annual Bay Area, disability Entrepreneurship Week, coming up in October, which runs in tandem with national disability, Employment Awareness Month. And we're going to have interactive panels, which will be online, and then we will have, we're going to visit several businesses here in the city, as well as have a networking event. And we're going to have one of our future entrepreneur trainings, hopefully, in concert with one of the Bay Area leaders in in entrepreneurship, as well.   Michael Hingson  41:47 It's early, of course, to to a large degree, because you're you're only operating the disability Business Alliance for three years. But are you seeing how do I ask this more successes than failures? Do you see that it is really taking off and that if you were to compare it with people outside of what you're doing at who start businesses, then maybe you're seeing more success because you're able to provide more proactive mentoring and so on.   Peter DeHaas  42:22 It's it's been, I feel like I recognized early on, as I said, at the launch, that there's certainly up there there. And with every conversation that I have, Michael, I recognize that the importance of what we're doing, it's unprecedented. My mind, I've had one of my advisory board members meet with the Department of Rehab here in the city and I know that there's a bridge to entrepreneurship for individuals with disabilities in terms of getting support through Dr. But it's not very well defined in their their website. If you're blind, it's there's a specific program for entrepreneurship but beyond that. So I see a lot of potential I would say the success is in the contacts that I make that people are coming out of the woodwork in the community that we are building, we are at a tipping point with our capacity building, where we are currently working with an attorney to get our own 501 C three status and build real capacity. I'd like to hire somebody within the next year. Right now I'm doing everything with the exception of some some assistance from volunteer that I have who was my assistant at Golden Gate University previously I'm doing it all myself and you know that that that that's sustainable to a point and I'm very excited about embarking on the venture of getting our own 501 C three status and taking it to the next level. So as you know these things take time and that's one of my one of my greatest mentors several years ago when I started planting seeds for this said it's going to take some time you know, the but it's the potential is there and and I would say that there's there's many more doors opening than being slammed in my face if that if that makes any sense. I most people are very excited to talk to me and there's there's plenty of work to be done.   Michael Hingson  44:37 Well, you're in a great place to do it of course as we discussed earlier because it there's there's a lot more openness to the idea of people who are different and being able to support that. But getting a 501 C three status is going to help a great deal I would think.   Peter DeHaas  44:55 Yeah, like I said, I'm very grateful to be operating under social good fun. And it's been very useful through the pilot phases. But it's time for us to, you know, it limits us to go after bigger contracts with the city, the state or the federal government or even bigger foundations. So this has been perfect for us. And it's really my journey as an entrepreneur really mirrors for everybody that I've been working with, you know what it takes, it's no small feat to really, you know, start a venture as you know, on your own. And it's really about not only expanding your network, but having lifelines that you can call when you're in a potential crisis mode. So I've enjoyed every step of the journey. And really, as my 91 year old dad would say, Peter, it's about the people. It's about the people and every relationship that I build, I really tried to nurture along and in leverage on that, you know, maybe it's me introducing that person to somebody else, or vice versa. They're introducing me to somebody, but it's, it's, it's fascinating to me about how much of this work is about telling stories and sharing stories. And yeah, I, I'm very excited about the next year in particular, to see see the next chapter of the SF DBA.   Michael Hingson  46:27 I have to say, me as well, I'm really excited to hear how this is going. And you're right, it is about the people in your 91 year old dad is absolutely correct. And as people on both sides, it's not just the individuals that you serve, because they happen to have a disability and and you're trying to work with them. But it is also the more substantial or or larger population of all the people who could help in that process by providing jobs or mentoring skills, or funding or whatever, to help bring people out and give them the opportunities to grow that clearly you're looking for. And your passion does make all the difference in that though.   47:18 Well, thank you I you know, when people talk about all the dividends, and what what's my difficulty dividend going to be investing in your, your startup, you know, there's lots of conversations here in the Bay Area. And I proudly say the dividends and investing in the disability community or hiring somebody with a disability, or allowing giving somebody the opportunity to start a small business with a disability, I'll tell you what the dividends are, there's less reliance on public assistance. And there's more money flowing into our local economies, people with disabilities want to spend their hard earned money, they don't want to be limited by whatever SSDI pays these days, 900 to $1,200 a month, they don't want to be limited by that. They want to be contributing members of our society. And many people don't know that the disability communities, are the third largest market in the world. So put that into perspective. You know, if people with disabilities are thriving, everybody is going to be thriving.   Michael Hingson  48:28 Sure. And again, one of the dividends is that if you are hiring a person with a disability, you are very, very likely hiring someone who is going to be a lot more loyal to you, and wanting to help make you more successful because they know how hard it was to get a job in the first place for them. Right. And we really need to deal with that. As I said, we interviewed on this podcast, Kirk Adams, who is the about to retire director, he maybe now has retired as the director of the American Foundation for the Blind. He's the one that talked about the fact that there are now now an increasing number of studies, talking about the whole loyalty and brand issue regarding disabilities that specifically bind blind people. But it goes across the board of the fact that if you hire someone there, they're going to be very appreciative of that. And they're going to want to do a good job. And that spiral can only go up because the better job they do, the more successful you are. And the more successful you are, the better their job will be. And the happier everyone is.   Peter DeHaas  49:38 And it's about creating a culture that that understands it and embraces it. I'm currently doing some important curriculum development for a biotech company here in the Bay Area as it relates to employees with disabilities and it's it's it's so exciting for me, this is the kind of stuff that excites me to see companies coming full circle and saying, Oh, we really need to put some more thought into this and not just have a policy in the HR department as it relates to disability accommodations, that's important too. But creating a culture that that includes disability in the DEI equation.   Michael Hingson  50:21 Right? The the inclusion has to start taking hold a lot more than it does diversity, generally speaking, as I think you pointed out, has left disabilities out of it. But they, the fact is, you can't do it if you're gonna call yourself inclusive, because you are, you're not correct. And there are a number of us who are of the opinion that we're not going to let you change the definition of inclusion to say, well, we're inclusive, we just don't do anything with disabilities, then you're not inclusive, great. can't have it both ways are gray. How can people become involved in and working in helping with the disability Business Alliance?   51:07 Well, they can go to our website@www.S F D B A  dot ORG and, and get contact us there, if they'd like to make a contribution there. If they'd like to volunteer, or, you know, at some point we're going to be, like I said, building capacity. I'm excited about the potential of hiring somebody to start and you know, over time hiring several people. So get in touch with us, and we'd love to have a conversation.   Michael Hingson  51:46 I hope that people will really be excited about it and be excited to help. Obviously, anyone listening to this, especially in the San Francisco area that is now willing to explore hiring persons and so on should get in touch with you. Yes, they can do all of that through the website.   Peter DeHaas  52:08 They can get in touch with us through the website. But in terms of me, I mean, if they set up time to chat with me, I'd be happy to chat with anybody about developing strategies around hiring individuals with disabilities as well, or, or figuring out how to make their business more inclusive.   Michael Hingson  52:30 If they want to set up a time to chat with you. How do they do that?   Peter DeHaas  52:34 They can email at info at SF DBA dot o RG just make a query that way?   Michael Hingson  52:42 And odds are you're gonna see it because you're the main guy doing it all right.   Peter DeHaas  52:47 Yep. Yeah, my volunteer gets those emails in. She forwards them to me immediately.   Michael Hingson  52:56 Well, I hope that people will do that. And that we can help make the program successful and even more so. And if there's anything at anytime that I can do and anything that I can do to help bring resources to assist you, needless to say, excited to do that as well.   Peter DeHaas  53:17 Michael, it's always a pleasure chatting with you. I learned something new every time that I talk with you and I don't see our conversation stopping here.   53:28 Hope not by no means there's always more to talk about. Well, Peter, again, thank you very much for being here. And I hope people will reach out. Go to www.sfdba.org and reach out to Peter info at sfdba.org. We'd like to hear from you. I'd love to hear your thoughts about this podcast. So feel free to email me at Michaelhi at accessible A C C E S S I B E .com. And you're also welcome to go to www dot Michael hingson.com/podcast. Michael Hingson is m i c h a e  l h i n g s o n slash podcast and wherever you're listening to this, please give us a five star rating. But most of all, whether you're in the San Francisco area or not reach out to Peter, he would love to hear from you. And I'm sure there are ways that that we can help establish more relationships outside San Francisco because what Peter is doing is going to have to expand anyway right? Yes,   54:31 yes, I'd sky's the limit. I'd like to my goal is to brand SFDBA or an organization like SFDBA in Colorado. Next. I did. Some of my my work that I didn't mention in this podcast was with the Colorado cross disability coalition, one of the nation's leaders in disability accessibility kind of related topics and, and one of my greatest mentors, Julie risking is at the helm there at CCDC. And when I told her I was launching SFDBA, she said, Peter, we need something like this in Denver. So I promised her once I got my footing here that I would try to establish something in Colorado as well. But yeah, I'm excited about the possibility of one day growing beyond the Bay Area.   55:31 got to start somewhere, though. That's right. Well, Peter, again, thanks for being here. And I want to thank everyone who is listening, I want to thank you for listening to us and putting up with us for an hour. But please reach out to Peter, we really appreciate it. And we'll probably have another podcast where we get to talk more about all the progress that Peter is making. So again, Peter, thanks very much for being here. Thank you, Michael.   Michael Hingson  56:01 You have been listening to the Unstoppable Mindset podcast. Thanks for dropping by. I hope that you'll join us again next week, and in future weeks for upcoming episodes. To subscribe to our podcast and to learn about upcoming episodes, please visit www dot Michael hingson.com slash podcast. Michael Hingson is spelled m i c h a e l h i n g s o n. While you're on the site., please use the form there to recommend people who we ought to interview in upcoming editions of the show. And also, we ask you and urge you to invite your friends to join us in the future. If you know of any one or any organization needing a speaker for an event, please email me at speaker at Michael hingson.com. I appreciate it very much. To learn more about the concept of blinded by fear, please visit www dot Michael hingson.com forward slash blinded by fear and while you're there, feel free to pick up a copy of my free eBook entitled blinded by fear. The unstoppable mindset podcast is provided by access cast an initiative of accessiBe and is sponsored by accessiBe. Please visit www.accessibe.com. accessiBe is spelled a c c e s s i b e. There you can learn all about how you can make your website inclusive for all persons with disabilities and how you can help make the internet fully inclusive by 2025. Thanks again for listening. Please come back and visit us again next week.

Welcome September…first of the “Brrr” months.  So, what is upcoming?  Labor Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year…and they all will be here faster than we're ready for! The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast... listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat…heard daily on Podchaser, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes! Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority!  Please, are you listening? Please, are you sharing the show & podcast?  Has a show & podcast mention been placed into your social media?  How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...*Listen LIVE here - https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/ *Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast!  Special Recorded Network Shows, too!  Different than my daily show! *Radio Candy Radio Monday Wednesday, & Friday 7PM ET, 4PM PT*Rockin' The KOR Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT  www.koradio.rocks*Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  September 1, 2022, Thursday, verse one…Orbis 2.0 - TMA SHOW OPEN THEMEAdam Marsland - 37 Someone Something For NothingBird Streets - 01 Carry Me [Bird Streets] (Omnivore Recordings)Joe Dilillo Music - Mend Your HeartJohn Frank & Poppermost Songs - Sky PilotJoe Giddings - 03_Amity Horror [Better From Here] (koolkatmusik.com)Kirk Adams - 10 I've Had To Learn How To Say Goodbye [Wild Hare]@Dress Code – Sorry (Steve Martell) (Norm Mattice)Joe Jackson - Sunday Papers [Look Sharp]The Beatersband Vintage PunkRock'n'Roll - Pugnei Chiusi [Volume 2]Mark Helm - 06 Lemons Limes And Flying Saucers [Everything's OK]The Rumble Skulls - No Good For MeCirce Link & Christian Nesmith - We've Only Just Begun [Side Orders]Maryann & The Tri-Tones - Angel Of The Desert [Supersonic Gal]armchair oracles - She Gets High [The Best Of Power Pop 2019]John Dunbar - 05_Easy To Replace [Oh Wellness] (koolkatmusik.com)The Syracuse Penetrators - Skateboard Girl (Code213 Records)Buffalo Tom - 11 Only Living Boy In New York [Quiet And Peace]

Even though Labor Day Weekend is coming soon…this weekend with Labor Day being Monday the fifth, the “UNOFFICIAL” end of summer.  Please hold off on Pumpkin Spice EVERYTHING until the "REAL", astronomical end of summer, September 21st!  Thanks in advance from all of us lovers of summer, and haters of pumpkin spice!  Truly…never have liked pumpkin pie, either!  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast...listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat…heard daily on Podchaser, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes!  Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority!  Please, are you listening? Please, are you sharing the show & podcast?  Has a show & podcast mention been placed into your social media?  How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...*Listen LIVE here - https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/ *Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast!  Special Recorded Network Shows, too!  Different than my daily show! *Radio Candy Radio Monday Wednesday, & Friday 7PM ET, 4PM PT*Rockin' The KOR Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT  www.koradio.rocks*Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  August 31, 2022, Wednesday, opening numbers…Orbis 2.0 - TMA SHOW OPEN THEMEEdward O'Connell - Feel Some Love [Feel Some Love]The Lost And Found - Forever [Plastic World]The Jangles - 02 She's Waiting [Pioneer]More Kicks - In Love [Punch Drunk] (Dirtnap Records Official) (Stardumb Records)The Glad Machine - 3. Baby It's You [Hey!] (Big Blast Records)The Beatersband Vintage PunkRock'n'Roll - Calendar Girl [Volume 2]Lannie Flowers - 10 Day Glow All Night [Flavor Of the Month Deluxe] (Big Stir Records)Big Al Staggs Music - Ready To Go [So No]Elena Rogers Music - 06 Take Another Ride With Me [Opus One]Eliaz - Make Ups & Break Ups [The Best Of Power Pop 2019]Kirk Adams - 12 Naomi Of Pearl Island [Wild Hare]Ken Sharp - 06 Everything I Am [I'll Remember The Laughter]The Tambles - 01 Reminding Me Of You [Scraping By] (Bickerton Records)The Figgs - 12 Jump This Jive [Chemical Shake]Marco Busato - 08 Speed Of Sound [Night Of My Times (Bickerton Records)Joe Giddings - 02_Always Raining Somewhere [Better From Here] (koolkatmusik.com)Crossword Smiles - 02 This Little Town [Pressed & Ironed] (Big Stir Records)Robin Lane (Official Musician Page) - 11 Sunshine Blue Skies [Dirt Road to Heaven] (Red on Red Records)Indie Butterflies Dream - Piece Of Mind [Seven]

This is a follow-up conversation with Dr. Kirk Adams who has launched his consulting business Innovative Impact LLC. He is looking to consult for fun, innovative, impactful, and well-funded organizations who desire to be inclusive of people with disabilities and particularly people who are blind. He can be reached at kirkadams000@gmail.com, or by phone or text 206-660-1363. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/careersfortheblind/message

In this episode I invite you to meet Davida Shensky. Davida grew up in a time before the Americans with Disabilities Act and other legislation guaranteeing persons with disabilities many of the same rights enjoyed by most people in the United States. You will learn about Ms. Shensky's disability and that of her sister. Davida faced much discrimination when trying to break through the barriers imposed on persons with disabilities. You get to see how she overcame much to become successful in the workforce. Davida's perseverance is quite remarkable and should be inspirational and a lesson to us all. When it comes to overcoming obstacles, Davida will show us how it is done. I would love to hear your thoughts and, of course, I hope you will give us a 5 review after hearing Davida. Thanks for listening. Thanks for listening and I hope you will let me know your thoughts about our episode and the Unstoppable Mindset podcast by emailing me at michaelhi@accessibe.com.   About the Guest:*  She was born and educated before there were laws on the books that guaranteed people with disabilities the right to an education. She entered the workforce 12 years before ADA became law, which guaranteed people with disabilities the right to an employment. Therefore, when she entered the workforce there were a few opportunities for people with disabilities to find gainful employment. When she couldn't find gainful employment, she looked for other avenues and opportunities to earn an income. She had experience and training conducting group therapy sessions in both Transactional Analysis and Psychodrama. Without a Masters or PhD as a psychologist, her opportunities were limited. She holds degrees in Mental Health Work, Psychology, and Rehabilitation Services (employment counseling for people with disabilities). When she looked at the skills that she truly enjoyed doing she recognized that her strengths lay and standing in front of the room motivating attendees to overcome any obstacles or fears they have that were keeping them from reaching their goals. She did this by leading by example. Because it wasn't the limits she placed on herself, but the limits that society placed on her simply because of her disability and their lack of knowledge about people with disabilities. As a Motivational Speaker her business thrived. She also recognized how the workplace was transitioning across the board and every industry. For motivational speakers, that meant moving from working with corporations as in-house trainers and the speaking circuit for conventions to building and marketing your business from home. I help business owners use digital marketing to build an online presence and increase revenue with an E-Commerce store with commonly used systems to create multiple streams of income.  My goal is to establish a NPO called International Disabled Entrepreneurs, Inc to help people with disabilities who want to become entrepreneurs to learn the skills needed and develop an entrepreneur mindset, as well a be a resource for adaptive equipment needed to run a business. About the Host:  Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog.   Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards.   https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/  https://twitter.com/mhingson  https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson  https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/   accessiBe Links  https://accessibe.com/  https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe  https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/       Thanks for listening!  Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below!   Subscribe to the podcast  If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can also subscribe in your favorite podcast app.   Leave us an Apple Podcasts review  Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts.     Transcription Notes UM Intro/Outro  00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i  capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us. Michael Hingson  01:13 Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us. Welcome to another edition of unstoppable mindset. Thank you for being here. Hope that your week is going well. And we hope that you enjoy the podcast today. Our guest is Davida Shensky.  And she has an interesting story to tell. And I like talking with her because we share some interesting and similar ideas about dealing with disabilities and so on the Vita happens to be a person who we classify as someone with a disability. And I'm gonna let her tell you more about that as we go forward with Davida Welcome to unstoppable mindset. How are you? Davida Shensky  01:57 I'm doing great. And thank you for having me. Michael Hingson  02:01 Well, it's a pleasure to to have you on and we're honored that you're here and taking the time with us. So tell me a little bit about you, if you would, let's start with that. Davida Shensky  02:12 Okay, well, I grew up with a disability. And it's at first let me back up. I was born in 1951. And in 1961, there were no laws that address people with disabilities, because the slot and society looked at his disability community as being non existent. And it was prior to the laws of when the individual Disability Education Act came into existence, because that came into existence in 1977 when I was in graduate school, and I had already been in the workforce a few years before the Americans with Disabilities Act became law. And because society didn't recognize its disability community, and the fact that I came from a dysfunctional family to begin with, I was always told that I can't, and I can't, and I can't. And part of that was that my, you would think it's because my, my parents were worried about me, but it was more that they had their own issues about it. And all they saw was a way to hold their children back from living full and productive lives. Michael Hingson  03:37 So they weren't necessarily the most supportive. No, not at all. Now, you say hold their children back, you have siblings with disabilities. Davida Shensky  03:49 I have an older sister that was born deaf, and hers is a nerve deafness. And it's a specific syndrome that I cannot remember the name of it offhand. But it's, you know, it's it's not a it's a segment of people that are born deaf, and it's called a syndrome, because it's not a fully the number. No, but the total numbers are a thing for it to be called whatever it is, you know, so it's just lumped in to being deaf. Yeah. Just like I have spastic, hemiplegia. Because cerebral palsy only affects one side of the body as opposed to the whole body of certain other lands because it depends on how much is the brain is damaged, and what specific lens are affected to determine what the terminology is for it. Michael Hingson  04:57 So how was it between you and your sister growing up? Davida Shensky  05:01 Well, it was kind of mixed because she was always sent off to school or initially because my mother was in New York, and they had Lexington School for the Deaf up there, where she could go to school and stayed here during the week and then go home on weekends. And when she went home on weekends, she stayed with my grandmother, I want to add Snuggles. And she never really had a stable home that she went to. And that created some issues for her. And in my case, you know, because I was the only person with a disability in the classroom. And in the school, and people didn't know a whole lot about disabilities, I was bullied. And it's like, when you go home, and you don't have any parents, the hugging when Saudi they love, they love you, then it's like you be isolated, and trying to cope with things on your own. Yeah. Well, Michael Hingson  06:05 just to, to put it in perspective, I was born in 1950. So I was from the same era as both of you and fully understand what you have said about all of the issues regarding the laws. But for you, it was probably quite the challenge. Do you do you use or did you use a wheelchair? Davida Shensky  06:34 No, I went, because it only affects my right side. And initially, I was the Oh, the brace was only up to the knee. Because if I the way it affects it is that the tendons in the foot is very tight. And, and he and I either go flat foot or I go, I want toe heel as opposed to heel toe and drag my foot and then I would catch my total of the shoe with a toe would catch the ground. And it would cause me to fall over. So wearing and they were the the old iron braces. And then in 1980 as to how floods started to come into existence and an understanding of how exercise and strengthening and straightening and that help. Well when I turned 14, I had surgery on both my hands and my foot because my hand was very drawn up at all and then I could not really just pull it down to my side. And then it kind of moved down to an a 90 degree angle or maybe 60 degree angle. And by exercising a gave me a little bit more mobility, and it allowed me to not have to put the brace back on but when I turned 65 And I noticed that I was tripping over my own two feet and living alone. And if I fell and hurt myself, there would not be anyone there. Then I started wearing a walk on price. And I also have a brace on my hand that supports my wrist so it holds up so the risk doesn't prolong. And recently, I had a knee brace put on because years ago after the surgery, my orthopedist said I had caught football knees because there was no fluid around the knee. And then the bone was rubbing against each other. And over the years it slowly got up either. A little worse. And then the last couple of times, I noticed that when my knees started hurting me I could put pressure on my foot. And because I you know, white health insurances as you become a senior citizen, they called Nick now I see you, they called me and they think the nurse and anyway, they said go see an orthopedist. So I had to go to my doctor. And what he did was he sent me to the orthopedist, the author, Peter said, you need a sleeve. And then when I went to the prosthetics place, they said no, this is what you need. And one thing I found was by putting the knee brace on, it's repositioning my foot. I'm able to work better and continue to exercise three times a week. Michael Hingson  09:52 So how was it that we go ahead? How was it like for you in the classroom in grammar? school, in high school and so on? Davida Shensky  10:01 Well, because cerebral palsy affects how the brain processes information. What happened was it kind of short term memory. And even though I would study for hours, it didn't always show when I took the test what, what I was truly capable of. So based on my grades, it was like, Oh, she daydreams. A lot of you know, she's, you know, was it more like C or D, as opposed to what could have been an ARB? And you know, that then they kind of like labeled you according to your grades? Michael Hingson  10:42 Well, yeah. And how did your your classmates react? Or how did they deal with you? Davida Shensky  10:50 Well, it was I was teased a lot. I was the they kind of played on my name and how they said it, and it was it well, let's let's back up. I once had someone called me and asked me out for a date. And somebody told me, they were not going to show that she never know for certain so you get ready, but I never expected it. And of course, they didn't show. Yeah, they were playing. Yeah, they were they get together and they flow. Let's let's see what we can do to play a game on. Michael Hingson  11:28 There's a lot of meanness in in kids. And do you think, you know, given what you do now, and we I definitely want to get into that. But do you think that's changed a lot for kids with disabilities in school today? Davida Shensky  11:44 It's changed, so but it's still got a long way to go. And the thing is that because of our IV, A, which is individual disability, disability education, that, and it's mainstreaming kids into the classroom, when they're capable of keeping up that people with abilities are seeing more people with disabilities. So they're a lot more accepting than what they were in the past, because people with disabilities and severe disabilities were hidden away. And they just didn't know that they existed. And it was not talked about. Michael Hingson  12:27 Do you think that kids in the classroom, take that approach? Are they more still into the bullying mentality? Do you think they are starting to understand the difference and that, in reality, there's nothing wrong with someone just because they happen to be different? Davida Shensky  12:46 I believe there is. Because when when you see a whole group of people that have specific disabilities, then it's it's not. It's easier to accept, then if you just see one or two people. Yeah, it's like, Okay, I've got one person, they are their friends. I know what you know, the ignorance of what a disability was at that time, because it was not talked about today, it's talked about, and you see the pirate complex, and you see people who have lost limbs in the war or whatever. So it's a little bit more accepting, although it's still got a long way to go to become mainstream. Michael Hingson  13:37 Yeah. I know. In the case of blankets, for example, we see so little emphasis on doing some of the things that really make sense. That is, for example, teaching Braille, which is the main vehicle for reading and writing available to blind kids, not only totally blind kids, but a lot of children who are partially blind, who are low vision, but who cannot see well enough to read regular print. And by using large print or magnified print, it causes a lot of eyestrain, so they'll never be able to be able to read as quickly or as efficiently as a sighted person or a blind student that does get the opportunity to learn to read Braille, but unfortunately, I think still even today in the educational system, it is always or let me never say always, it is often basically said that a child who has some eyesight gets to read print, while a totally blind child has to learn to read braille, and you can see the distinction gets to as opposed to has to, even though the child who reads Braille may very well be a much better reader than someone Who has some vision, who doesn't get the opportunity to learn to use Braille and as a result, has to use large print that doesn't give them all the luxury and efficiency of truly having a reading and writing language that they can use? Well, Davida Shensky  15:20 you know, even when in technology, when people look to build, build websites today, they don't always think about accessibility. Michael Hingson  15:33 They don't. And, in fact, hence the company that I work for accessiBe, which is all about creating products to help websites become accessible for a variety of disabilities. And it is very much true that website access isn't just something that is relating to a person who is blind and might not be able to see graphics and so on on the internet, there are so many disabilities that need to be addressed, not being able to use a mouse for a variety of reasons or having epilepsy. And as a result, not being able to experience cursors that blink and need a different way to make that happen, or cognitive disabilities or ADHD. All of those are issues that invoke a need for access that oftentimes we don't pay attention to. Davida Shensky  16:31 Heard that, I think is that until people with disabilities, that more people with disabilities actually have their own business or, or become managers and business owners, where they're more visible, and still going to be kind of a situation where it's a secondary idea to the majority of people, it's like when it becomes I guess the the best way is to equate it with Christianity and Judaism, that we live in a country where it's more Christians than Jews, and yet, especially in the Baptist religion, it's like, they consider Catholics and Protestants that, you know, kind of like not being I don't want to say that non Christians, because of the doctrines or the ways they look Michael Hingson  17:33 at it. But I think it goes beyond us owning our own businesses. Because that may or may not make some of it more visible. We, we really need to create an environment that's more inclusive in general. The The fact is that there are some who say, and rightly so let's deal with access, that the only way to make a website accessible, or the best way, some say the only way, which is not true, but the best way to make a website accessible, is to really do it from the outset. And I can accept that concept. Except how's that working for us, we don't generally see websites as being accessible from the outset. In fact, probably no more than about 2% of all websites today, even pay much attention to accessibility. No matter what the disability, some websites may very well be usable. But they haven't really done all that or anything that they need to do to create access. So we have an environment where we don't create web accessibility from the outset. And that's something that we have to teach and that needs to go into our schools and that all of our programmers need. But even if we do it, we then need to make sure that websites continue to remain accessible. It isn't just doing it the first time. Davida Shensky  19:09 That's true. I'm also gonna go back and say that even a lot of the laws started changing, like with the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. It addresses all of the issues that come up under the Americans with Disabilities Act. But what makes the ADEA more enforceable is that clause that says that if an individual can prove that they're being discriminated against, they can go to the EEOC or they can go to the Department of Justice and file a lawsuit. Michael Hingson  19:48 The difficulty is that courts have also said however, you got to prove intent. Right. And that has been part of the difficulty it. And the other part is that some legal minds have challenged the issue of accessibility, let's say for the internet saying, well, the ADEA came along before the internet. So clearly, it doesn't apply even though the ADEA does not in any way, mentioned, places of physical accommodation. It talks about places of business, leaving, leaving aside title two, which deals with the government and federal agencies, Title Three, deals with places of business and it doesn't say physical or not, which is the way it ought to be. Because it doesn't matter where you conduct business, you need to make sure that what you do is available to all. Davida Shensky  20:45 That's true. And I, we also need to look at the mentality or behavior patterns. Because what we learn as children is what we how we are as adults. And until you really get to where children come up, truly integrated with people with disabilities in the classroom, there's still going to be prejudiced. Michael Hingson  21:15 Sure. And until we can break down that fear barrier, because that's what it really is, is that people have so much fear around something that's different than they. And they don't recognize that, in reality, disability is something that anyone can face. Suddenly, even if your life didn't start out being that way. And again, I, I don't have a better term than disability. But the reality is, disability doesn't and shouldn't mean in our case, no ability or a lack of ability. It is a way to, to categorize us like it or not as being different. But it shouldn't mean that we don't have ability, because if we're going to talk about ability, every person who has eyesight has a disability, and that is that your light dependent, you can't function well in the dark. That's why we have light bulbs. That's why we have candles, and before that we had torches and other things like that. But the reality is, those are all accommodations that have been created to allow you to be able to function in an environment without light. Davida Shensky  22:33 And then if you remember, prior to Ada, Ada was when they started changing the terminology, that it was always handicaps. And if you remember back in the very beginning of the 20th century, when people used to stand with a cap in hand, asking for money, and that's what handicap means. And that's it still had the mentality of the majority of people. Is that someone getting ahead there? Michael Hingson  23:09 Yeah. And in reality, we can change perceptions of words, words are very strong and very powerful. But I, for example, have maintained for a long time that diversity isn't what it used to be. Diversity very rarely includes disabilities today, even though what diversity means is we have a very wide range of categories of people that exist, and we're supposed to recognize all of them. But we generally don't include disabilities in that. And it's the same fear that causes that. So we haven't really seen the breakdown in terms of moving forward with that, and I'm not sure what it will take to change that. But maybe what we need to do is to get another president who has a disability, Franklin Roosevelt has been forgotten for that. Davida Shensky  24:06 What that was, that's right. Also, if you back in the 1980s, when corporations started bringing in trainers, and they would talk about diversity, they would they would not include disability, but what they would talk about is the different cultures or the different religions, but they never talked about difference and showing someone with a disability as opposed to someone with ability and showing just how, just because you're able bodied doesn't mean that you're any you're really any difference Michael Hingson  24:46 or any better. Yeah. And that is what Hopefully, people will get to understand. Well, tell me what degrees do you have so you went on to high school Cool, and you went to college and did all sorts of stuff like that. And Davida Shensky  25:03 yeah, I have an Associate's in mental health. I have credits. I have a bachelor's in psychology. And then I also have credits towards a master's and rehabilitation counseling. Not that I wanted to become a rehabilitation counselor, as I wanted to learn about the laws. And then I went on and got certification and psychodrama and certified in using transactional analysis. And both of those modalities are Natl, basically, repackaged under the laws of attraction. And I'm certified as a law of attraction coach, as well as a career coach and a life coach. Michael Hingson  25:54 And the law of attraction. In some ways, it's certainly become a very popular concept on the internet, and I think in probably the minds of a lot of people. But again, that gets misinterpreted too. Davida Shensky  26:09 I actually have someone send me an email that it's a company called bach.com is out of the UK. And they sent me an email a we have clients that need your services, really, and truly the way they have set up and what they did was they sent me a copy of a lead, but they no get people to call in and tell them what their needs are. They just asked him a few basic questions. Like, are you looking for a life? What kind of coach Are you looking for, or what kind of issues do you want to deal with, and then they give you a one to five chance to bid on a lead. And now, you can register for free, then you can upgrade for a monthly fee to become an Elite Pro, which they've all they do is put some type of badge on your profile, but you have to buy credits, to be able to approach these leads that they sent you. And when you upgrade for the first batch, what they do is they don't let you know upfront Well, if you don't make any sales, you get those credits back. But if once you start getting low, they will automatically add more credits in charge your checking account. Now, when I started looking at a majority of those needs were people that had either management or they were looking to have an insurance pay for the services. Well, if you're just a certified life coach, and you do not have licensure as a psychotherapist, insurance companies will not pay for your services. And I'm actually before I actually upgraded, I met looking for some reviews and couldn't find any. But then when I went to put a complaint in all of a sudden out of bounds, some reviews, and there was someone in there that said that every that what she found was that and I'm assuming she kept probably buying more and more credits, because she said she had to keep lowering her fees, just because no one would purchase it and still never got a sale. So what that means is that particular company is more about putting money in their pocket as opposed to really being a lead generation company. But people who need services, Michael Hingson  29:04 there are a lot of those in the world, whether it's dealing with, with what you're talking about, or in so many areas, Davida Shensky  29:13 and where mental illness and mental health issues is still a disability issue. So that's also another avenue because mental illness is something that's a hidden disability. It's not something that you can really see other than in someone's behavior, but they can be people who whose behavior is not the best, but they're not truly mentally ill they just have some issues of personal issues they got to deal with based on the environment and the family they've loved in when you went into Michael Hingson  29:55 the workforce what what did you specifically joined the workforce to do, Davida Shensky  30:02 actually, because my background was in mental health and psychology, I'm qualified I went, I applied to the merit system in Georgia. And I qualified for positions that was done, if you remember the title, where it was more of a social work position, oh, Human Services technicians thing, there was the title. And then there was also a mental health counselor. But the the because I wanted to work with disability agencies, the first company that I got hired on with, there's a company that was really a daycare center for people with developmental disabilities at the time, but once the laws began to change, and the state came in and took over those agencies, they, what happened was that the woman that was running at that became the Executive Director, she was just a, what happened was, she did not have the true qualifications to be an executive director. So any Hurst people that came in, in my position, if they weren't forced out within the first six months, and they got, you know, their permanent status, that automatically they would start pulling back on the roster to get another position somewhere else, because she couldn't, or she, she felt threatened by those in that position. And when my six month probationary period was coming up, she basically said to me, if you don't reply, you're gonna be fired. And so and then after that, I could never get back on with the state. And my only other alternative was, and I would have eventually done this anyway. But I would have waited, so I was more financially secure. And I found that I wanted to do rent groups using transactional analysis and psychodrama, but they were, whereas they were more acceptable up in the north, they weren't as accepting or, or known modalities in the south. And what because I didn't have the actual masters, or PhD as a psychotherapist. I couldn't get in with the hospitals, the mental health hospitals. And then it eventually evolved into the speaking industry, and more involved with National Speakers Association, Georgia chapter, and Toastmasters. And what because I didn't have as much mobility, and didn't have transportation to get around as easily. My business never quite got off the rail. But once the technology evolve, but being able to build a business online, it's really taken off. And now it's taken off is that I've shifted from going into companies doing the training, but creating the E learning courses, and putting them on various platforms. And what one of the companies run with is called one education or educators. And I got a nice little surprise from them. And I got a nice paycheck this month. And they also sent me an email that they partnered with a company called E learning solutions. So that may have been why my paycheck for them for my courses increased astronomically. Michael Hingson  33:56 And it's unfortunate that all too often, no matter how much in the way of qualifications you actually had, because you didn't have that PhD that that tended to limit you. Do you think that's as true today? Or do people now more recognize that there are other kinds of things including experience and so on, that should open up opportunities for you? Davida Shensky  34:26 I think the experience as much as anything opens up the opportunities. But also it you know, it's like what I've been able to do is because of my background in mental health in psychology, and my and my background in rehabilitation counseling, which is career counseling, that I've been able to do more in the line of the life coaching and the career coaching, and then getting the certifications with those particular industry. Ah, and then it's just a matter of like, how am I going to sell myself to my potential clients? Michael Hingson  35:06 Right? So when did you enter the workforce? What year? Davida Shensky  35:10 Actually 1977? Michael Hingson  35:12 Okay, so. So there you go. And when you entered it did leaving aside things like what you described about the director of that agency and so on? Did you face much real discrimination from a disability standpoint, when you started, and, again, how has that changed over the years? Davida Shensky  35:37 Very much so because even once I lost my job with the state, I could never get back on with the state. And I and even though I would be applying to switch positions within corporations are small businesses, they, and even though you had the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, there were a lot of things that, you know, they just didn't hire people with disabilities. And when the laws change, and ADA came in, what was then known as the defects, but just the will the disability, business technical assistance centers, they patch right now they call the ADA Centers, but they are really just a support system, to see to it, that what the cooperations need. And even though it took ABA, before companies were willing to start looking at people with disabilities, as even, you know, and, and doing the other patients in the workplace, so that, you know, but having to comply with ADA. So there was it was more of an opening not until the early 2000s, or the late 1990s, before corporations and companies really started looking at hiring people with disabilities. And one of the things is, if you went to the rehabilitation services, they, if you went to their employment specialist, their employment specialists really didn't know how to serve the disability community in getting jobs, other than telling them things like I have these job function positions. Now, here's the book, go in and find the company that's gonna let you come in and train other people. And it was more of going into the restaurants and teaching people with developmental disabilities to be to bus tables, you know, it was the most the low paying low skilled jobs that were really open and not the mainstream companies like IBM, that were really open to hiring people with disabilities, Michael Hingson  38:09 I should have asked, when you were presented with that offer to resign or get fired? What choice did you make? Well, I Davida Shensky  38:16 ended up deciding if I was gonna just to resign, it was better to just resign instead? Of course I am because either way, it's still meant the same thing. Michael Hingson  38:29 So the reason I asked that question was, the difference is that technically speaking, the way you described it, if you were fired, you couldn't get back in to a state position because you've been fired. And you have to accept all the consequences of that, such as they are. But if you resigned, and correct me if I'm wrong, technically speaking, you should have been able to attain or obtain other positions within the state, correct? Yes. So the, Davida Shensky  39:05 here's the thing, when they would go and get reviews, remember, like she was a she became an ex employer. So they would go to her and say, What kind of employee is she? I guess what she did give me a good review. And that also, if when you work within the state merit system, it's usually what I don't think she really wanted to hire me to begin with that because I was that that's higher on that list. She had to give me the position. So that's also how it works within the merit system. So even though I might have been interviewed in these mental health centers, where I would have gone in and done counseling, as opposed to, you know, just being a like, in a social work position where I would represent the Clients and go to meetings and make sure that they got the services they, they deserved it, I was never able to get back in to the state. Michael Hingson  40:11 Did that ever change for you? Davida Shensky  40:13 No. I mean, once I kept, let's put it this way Rehabilitation Services Employment, the employment specialist should have been able to say, Hey, I've got contacts within these companies. I am looking at your background. I can, you know, I can send you out for interviews, they should have been able to do that. He never said that to me. Michael Hingson  40:39 Yeah. Which all too often happens in the rehabilitation admin. Well, the rehabilitation environment, and it is so unfortunate. We had the opportunity to in an earlier podcast episode interview, Kirk Adams, who is the president and CEO of the Lighthouse for the Blind. And he made the comment that there was a meeting where both rehabilitation counselors and HR people were present. And the HR people constantly said, it was the rehabilitation counselors that never really did the research or understood what needed to be done to bring people with disabilities in and the rehabilitation counselors always said that the HR people were the stumbling blocks. So you know, near the twain seem to be able to meet, Davida Shensky  41:30 I think all they were doing was passing along the blame, especially because, first of all, your aid, your rehabilitation services, people and your HR people should have been working together to help each other understand they should have been educating each other. What's the job? What are the skills needed? And how can your client fit into this? It's like, many, many years ago, my sister who's deaf, went through rehabilitation services in New York, to get a job. And what did they do? They sent you on a job where she needed to answer the phone. Now, how could someone who's deaf, answered the phone, and they was back then she was actually trained to do use dos. And dos is just programming software. There's no people who were deaf were easily placed in jobs. And yet she was not getting the right kind of job for her. Michael Hingson  42:38 Yeah. And that's, of course, the disconnect. Right? Where's the logic and doing that? And there is not I mean, the so it's a rhetorical question, but there really is done. So for you, how long did you keep trying to get into state opportunities? And then what did you do if you weren't able to get in? Davida Shensky  43:02 That's when I when I what I did was I looked at that education, I looked at my experience, I looked at where my skills lied. And that's what I said, Okay, let me see if I can, I can start my own business doing as using my training and transaction analysis and psychodrama to run groups and went to the mental health hospitals in the mental health centers. And because I didn't have that PhD, I was they were not going to refer business to me. Now, I do have a friend that was living in California, that was a licensed family, and marriage therapist, and a lot of referrals came from the insurance companies. And then it notoriously, they were slow to pay. Yeah. So what did you do? Here's, that's, that's what I'm saying insurance companies, if the client even in poc.com, is sitting there saying, Well, my insurance is gonna pay, even if they end up firing you insurance. They only pay you every three months, and pay you back pay. But what are you doing that three months that they're not paying you? Michael Hingson  44:23 Right? So what did you do if you weren't getting the referrals? Davida Shensky  44:27 That's when I slept. That's when I looked at the fact that I came across a company at the time that was called Performax which was assessment profiles and to become a distributed with and training, how to use the desk and other assessment profiles like leadership profile, the listening profile, the values profile, and taking those and also, a company called Personal dynamics are switching to have the fully training packages. And though into companies as a trainer, and that's also training as a speaker and getting up in front of groups, and also want to try to work with companies like to set seminars, but because I don't make good eye contact, and because when I speak I, it's not a smooth way or whatever, I couldn't always get on with those companies. But what I did was, I went directly to the associations, and I went directly to the corporations to offer to sell, sell some of my profiles to them, and come in and do train the trainer sessions. Michael Hingson  45:52 And how did that work? It was, Davida Shensky  45:55 I made some money, but it was not as consistent and it was not as good as growing, because a lot of those companies at the time were built on what, what's known as multi level marketing. So if you like there were other people in the industry that knew that I specialized in a sport and a certain aspect of it, and instead of referring business to me, because I wasn't in their downline, and they weren't gonna make money off of it. I was never getting those types of referrals either. Michael Hingson  46:30 So obviously, it was kind of a struggle. And I guess the question would be, so then what happened? Davida Shensky  46:37 Well, it's just slowly, I just stopped them. A lot of what I did was knowing that I wanted to start a nonprofit that would serve people with disabilities, who wanted to become entrepreneurs, I went to work with a company where it was going to kind of going voted, go up, selling down our business to business with specific items to sell them as a fundraiser and, and then I worked with a company, then I went out on my own, and that brought in a lot more consistent income. And then that was also about the time that the internet started to grow. And I was able to move everything online. And that's when I started my podcast back in 2007. Michael Hingson  47:30 So you, you started, basically, somewhat of an online business, and you started working with companies going door to door? And what what did you eventually do about starting the nonprofit, Davida Shensky  47:44 I actually got the paperwork and went to Lagos zoo to get it started. But then to get the 501, C three, I had to pay a certain amount of money or a fee to get the accreditation just didn't have that money. So it kind of all got big, it all got put on hold, and never quite got off the ground either. And I knew that I needed some people in the business industry that would support what I was doing, and helped me raise the funds. I had one person that was a small business owner, but I never quite got any people in the corporate world to take an interest in the organization. So that kind of you know that a lot of those things. It's, it's like people, you'll see people who start nonprofits, and they bring that they bring their friends on to the board. Well, a few friends are great. But if they don't know how to help you raise money for your organization and get it out there and get it know that it's never going to grow. Michael Hingson  48:59 So what did you do? Davida Shensky  49:00 So it's kind of still on the back burner with that organization. It's, it's still something I want to do. But I'm thinking more in terms of eventually just setting it up as a foundation that people with disabilities can apply to, to get funding. So also, I've come across several organizations in Europe that had already gotten off the ground and had connections with financial organizations that would be willing to offer financial financing to people with disabilities who are starting up a business. So it's it's it's the potential is out there is a little bit more difficult to get up and moving in the United States. And if you look at what's happening in politics today, that's also what affecting Whether or not a nonprofit that serves the disability community other than say, if it's for the blind, or if it's for people who would almost say autistic or specific, then what happens is they got more people who have children who have those types of disabilities that are coming together and working with them. Michael Hingson  50:24 So you do a podcast, how often is the podcast on? Davida Shensky  50:29 My podcast is every Saturday on a weekly basis? And I've been doing it for close to 16 years that way? Michael Hingson  50:38 Wow. Well, we'll come back to to that in a minute. But so what is your main way of generating income? What are you doing primarily in the workforce today? Or are you or what is it you do to help people today? Davida Shensky  50:56 My, my main income today is coming through my membership sites, my elearning courses, and I'm more involved with putting together joint ventures that I have done in the past. Michael Hingson  51:18 Can you tell me something about some of those like, your courses, your elearning, site, and so on. Davida Shensky  51:25 They deal with personal development, things like team building, listening skills, communication skills, body language, listening, and also starting a business as an entrepreneur, being able to use digital marketing with being able to create a website. And just specific areas like that. Michael Hingson  51:54 How's that? Is that working out pretty well for you? Davida Shensky  51:57 It does, it does. And the way I say it also comes into play Awesome. Now, the best way to look at it is, if I'm talking about and my business, then what I need to do is look at how specifically they they work together. And what's happening is that I've also gotten involved with some companies, where it's affiliate marketing, and then through some of my courses, I've created some high end products. So I can offer them as an affiliate program, and an offering them as an affiliate program, then that's allowed me to have a Salesforce of people who actually can go out and such sell my products. And then they are information on it. But let me quickly lay it out for you. So you can understand exactly how I say it so that it'll work. And what I've also been able to do is create that I've been able to go on summits for other companies, and be a presenter. Now, here's how I would say it. If I'm talking to someone who wants to learn how to build a business online. And I would say entrepreneurs hire me to recession proof their business and increase their bottom line by assisting them to build an e commerce Store to establish multiple streams of income, because they're intimidated. When it comes to incorporating technology into their business. They fear losing sustainable income, and they don't know how to incorporate social media into the marketing plan. So bottom line, I can help someone launch grow and expand a home based business. Now if I'm talking to someone on the personal development side, I would say I'm a career and personal development strategy coach, and entrepreneurs who are in search of personal development, and learning success strategies. Hire me to overcome their limiting beliefs and develop healthy habits, a successful mindset and smart goals. So bottom line, I can help you develop a more positive attitude, set achievable goals and make better choices in life. Michael Hingson  54:43 And that is certainly a good way to put it. And it's it is about helping people to improve. And of course, that's what we all want to do. How have you helped the disability community in general, through what you've done? How do you feel you had an effect on the community. Davida Shensky  55:03 When I lived in Atlanta, I was a, I was very active with the access group. And I was also very active with the gym chats. And when the power Olympics was a rather, let's back up when the Atlanta IOC wanted to bid for the Olympics. At that time, the Olympics and the Para Olympics were actually bid for separately. And they bid for the Olympics. And they refuse to bid for the Para Olympics. So it was the disability community that got together and bid for the Paralympics, and brought it to Atlanta. And then the head of the IOC at the time, basically went in and change the bylaws so that any host country who bids for one is automatically bidding for both. So they're known since 1996. They have not been good for separately they've been bid for as one unit. And another thing that I did was whenever the opposite the access, whenever thing we put on job fairs for people with disabilities, I was a volunteer with them, and would work with someone that was blind, to take them around to the tables, so they can interview for positions. Michael Hingson  56:35 And it makes sense that the Olympics should be handled that way and that there should be emphasis put on it in the same way that the Olympics is portrayed. Do you think that there is room for people in parallel Olympics, at least to some degree, to be able to be encouraged or to be able to take more of a part in the standard Olympics rather than being if you will put in the Paralympics environment? Or do you think that they're so different, that they really have to be separate? Davida Shensky  57:16 I think really, they should very much be interconnected. And it's like, in fact, the South African runner who had competed in the Olympics, I mean, it competed in the Paralympic seat. The lat he competed in the Olympics one year, didn't do very well, but he did at least compete. And since then, he accidentally kill someone and his spending county jail. I cannot remember his name. Michael Hingson  57:49 Well, I asked the question because I have a friend who was an acclaimed international rowing competitor. And she participated in the Paralympics, they've never asked her or discussed why they didn't just be part of the actual Olympics, and rowing teams and so on. And it just seems to me that there are certainly a number of people who ought to be able to be part of the regular Olympics. Regular is the wrong term deal Olympics as opposed to the parallel Olympics. Davida Shensky  58:31 They should, but you know, it still falls back on how society works and people with disabilities. Michael Hingson  58:41 There you go. And that's the problem, isn't it? Davida Shensky  58:46 There's no reason why they cannot be what interconnected. And when the media covers on Olympic competitions, that they also compete, or they show people with disabilities competing, because think about it. In the Winter Olympics, you have what is it snowboarding, in the Paralympics, you have snowboarding the differences in in Paralympics, you might have someone doing it one with one leg. And they might they could still be compete at the same level as people in the audience. But here's the thing, how many times when people think of the Paralympics, they get it interchange with Special Olympics. Think about it because in Special Olympics, everyone gets a medal. But in the Paralympics, the metal the metal basically very similar in the way that people in the Olympics. Get metal, you know, first, second or third way X, Michael Hingson  1:00:00 and how often the parent do the Paralympics get the same amount of media, television coverage and so on. As the Olympics. Davida Shensky  1:00:11 Actually people don't even know it even exists because we just had the Winter Olympics. And everyone knew when the when the Olympics was on, but no one knew that a month later, that, you know, rather three weeks later, the Paralympics started because the Meet the media, the sports does not cover it in the same way. Michael Hingson  1:00:37 How many of the events in the parallel Olympics actually show levels of competition and numbers? At the end of events that are pretty much the same? Well, no, are the same as what you would see in save the Winter Olympics this past? February? What I'm getting at is the Paralympics, people compete, as you said, in snowboarding, the Paralympics have a number of events that are equivalent to like what we had with the Winter Olympics. Are the results pretty similar in terms of times or whatever we use to measure who wins? Davida Shensky  1:01:23 I think so. I mean, if they're competing against against the boards, and gymnastics, and stealing, and all the same types of of events. And if people would see below the level at which someone with a disability is able to compete, then maybe it might change some of their attitudes. Now, think about it. When salary started, well, let's look in the United States. You have the Warrior Project, and they have a Olympic style competitions. Now, Prince Harry started, what is it? The Invictus Games, right? And it's still the same thing. You still have you still have wheelchair basketball, you still have the exact you know, in the Summer Olympics, whereas you have basketball, the Olympics, you're that wheelchair basketball? How Michael Hingson  1:02:29 possible would it be for wheelchair basketball players to compete on the same court at the same time? With people who don't use chairs? You know, I don't know. I don't know. So Davida Shensky  1:02:42 well, versus Did you know it? I don't think they ever really tried it. I understand that seem to me that if they tried it, it might show just how athletic someone is using a wheelchair. Yeah. But here's the thing in Atlanta, we have what's known as the beat straight. And the road race, which is a six pack, yes, six cut or no. And before the rubbish stop, you've got the wheelchair racers, and they go first. And then and you know, and they will post what they're fine next, and then you and then you've got the runners and the p3 can have as many as 50,000 or more runners. Right. And that's usually it's like you have to get certain accreditations to take part in other events. And the 10k is one of the ones that someone has to take part in other events in order to qualify to participate in the 10k and the peach tree. So sometimes you will have runners who are from Kenya or from other countries who participated in the Olympics that actually come to participate in the Peachtree road race, and they're usually the elite runners, and they're usually the ones that win not just everyday runner that participates. Michael Hingson  1:04:27 Right. Well, okay, but if those are the standards they are now the question is, would a person in a chair running the race have a better or worse time on average, or can they be as competitive equivalently speaking as the elite Davida Shensky  1:04:46 competitive is you've ever seen some of those kids like they use their racing chairs and that they really could just go off to high speeds and those chairs Mine is even better than some of the elite runners. They compete in the peach tree. Michael Hingson  1:05:06 What I'm what I'm getting at basically, is does one runner have an advantage over another? Does a wheelchair runner have an advantage over the elite runners? if you will? Or can they be an Do you think they should be viewed as equivalent? Davida Shensky  1:05:27 I think they there are. They if they were as one in a race, they would win because those those Wait, those wheelchairs are racers and they can go up to high speed. Michael Hingson  1:05:41 So somebody could argue that a runner is at a disadvantage? Yeah. Interesting argument. Well, where do you see yourself in the next few years? Davida Shensky  1:05:54 Well, probably retired. Michael Hingson  1:05:57 Good for you happen sometime. Davida Shensky  1:06:00 You know, yeah, I see myself what I'm working toward was, is to have bills, and extended extra income, to supplement what I'm currently getting in. So I can live a lot more comfortably. There you are. Michael Hingson  1:06:23 Well, let me ask you this, if people want to contact you and reach out to you and take advantage of your services, or get to know you better, or take your courses, what are the ways to do that? Davida Shensky  1:06:36 Okay, they can, I've got two websites that a membership site, one is askdavidashensky.com The other one is businessblueprintnetwork.com. And also, they can contact me by sending an email to info@1personalcareercoach.com. And if they want to learn more about the types of services that I offer, as well as my courses, they can go to 1personalcareercoach.com And they listed number one that this spelled down. Michael Hingson  1:07:14 So let's go through those again. So if they want your courses, where do they go? Davida Shensky  1:07:21 They go to my one on personal development is askdavidashensky.com Michael Hingson  1:07:27 and spell Davida Shensky? If you would, please. Davida Shensky  1:07:31 D A V I D A S H E N S K Y. So, right. It's, and I have more people that will drop the A and David David spelling. Michael Hingson  1:07:54 So askdavidashensky.com. Yes, I'm in and then what's the next one again? Davida Shensky  1:08:05 Okay. That should be my main website is, is onepersonalcareercoach.com. One, Michael Hingson  1:08:13 I do that once more. Davida Shensky  1:08:15 That's my main website. And that gives them information on my services, on the types of courses I offer, on the types of coaching I offer, and what the prices are, and see that website once more. 1 is the number 1personalcareercoach.com Michael Hingson  1:08:32 1personalcareercoach.com. Okay, well, I hope people will reach out I think you bring a very interesting and positive orientation to all of this. And I believe that you offer a really good perspective that people should learn more about. And I believe as you do, there's a lot of educating to be done and I really appreciate you being out there and and helping in that process because it is what we need to do. Davida Shensky  1:09:13 Thank you for having me. Michael Hingson  1:09:15 Well, thank you for being here. And being with us and taking time out of your day and thank you who are listening to this for taking time to listen and to be a part of unstoppable mindset. Please tell your friends about us. And please don't hesitate to review us we would appreciate a five star rating wherever you're getting this podcast from. If you'd like to reach out to me I hope you will you can email me at Michaelhi M I C H A E L H  I at accessibe A C C E S S I B E .com. We'd love to get your emails and we'll respond. If you'd like to be a guest we'd like to hear hear about that too. As Davida will tell you, we do engage and we will respond to emails, right? Davida Shensky  1:10:07 Yes, you do. Michael Hingson  1:10:08 And if you'd like to learn more about the podcast, please visit www.Michaelhingson.com. That's M I C H A E L H I N G S O N.com/podcast. So again, thank you all for listening. And thank you to Vita for being here today. Davida Shensky  1:10:30 Thank you, y'all have a nice day.  Michael Hingson  1:10:32 You too, and all of you out there as well and join us again next week. For the next episode of unstoppable mindset. Michael Hingson  1:10:42 You have been listening to the Unstoppable Mindset podcast. Thanks for dropping by. I hope that you'll join us again next week, and in future weeks for upcoming episodes. To subscribe to our podcast and to learn about upcoming episodes, please visit www dot Michael hingson.com slash podcast. Michael Hingson is spelled m i c h a e l h i n g s o n. While you're on the site., please use the form there to recommend people who we ought to interview in upcoming editions of the show. And also, we ask you and urge you to invite your friends to join us in the future. If you know of any one or any organization needing a speaker for an event, please email me at speaker at Michael hingson.com. I appreciate it very much. To learn more about the concept of blinded by fear, please visit www dot Michael hingson.com forward slash blinded by fear and while you're there, feel free to pick up a copy of my free eBook entitled blinded by fear. The unstoppable mindset podcast is provided by access cast an initiative of accessiBe and is sponsored by accessiBe. Please visit www.accessibe.com. accessiBe is spelled a c c e s s i b e. There you can learn all about how you can make your website inclusive for all persons with disabilities and how you can help make the internet fully inclusive by 2025. Thanks again for listening. Please come back and visit us again next week.

Kirk Adams CEO of GreenRoc Mining #GROC explains the significance in the appointments of two highly experienced independent consulting firms to undertake an Environmental Impact Assessment and a Social Impact Assessment at its Thule Black Sands Ilmenite Project in north-west Greenland. GreenRoc Mining plc (AIM: GROC), a company focused on the development of critical mineral projects in Greenland, is pleased to announce that it has appointed two highly experienced independent consulting firms to undertake an Environmental Impact Assessment ('EIA') and a Social Impact Assessment ('SIA') at its Thule Black Sands Ilmenite Project in north-west Greenland ('TBS' or the 'Project').  BioApp Greenland, a Danish/Greenlandic-based contractor and environmental expert with extensive operational experience in Greenland, will be responsible for completing an EIA in compliance with the requirements of the Greenlandic authorities. An EIA is an environmental decision support tool to the authorities who issue licences for mining development projects. The EIA provides information on the possible impacts of mining development projects on the environment and proposes actions to mitigate impacts as far as practicable. NIRAS A/S ('NIRAS'), a Danish/Greenlandic multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy, has been appointed to undertake the SIA. With extensive expertise and operational experience in Greenland, NIRAS is familiar with the requirements of Greenlandic laws, frameworks and guidelines for the SIA. The objective of the SIA is to ensure that a mining development maximises its benefits and minimises its potential negative impacts on society and local communities.  A JORC resource capable of supporting a mining operation, along with the formal approval of an EIA and an SIA, are the necessary precursors to an application for a Mining Licence in Greenland.  TBS currently benefits from a maiden Mineral Resource of 19Mt with an in-situ ilmenite grade of 8.9% and awaits the assessment by mineral sands experts IHC Mining of the 249-hole follow-up drilling programme undertaken in the summer of 2021.  These three undertakings will be the key building blocks in fast tracking TBS in the mine development process.

Episode Summary Talk about a man on a mission and a man with a vision, meet Dr. Kirk Adams. Dr. Adams was one of the fortunate children who happen to be blind and whose parents did not stifle his growth but let him explore his world no matter where it led. As an adult, Kirk worked for a time in the financial world, but later he found that his talents went more toward him working in the not-for-profit world. Today, Dr. Adams leads one of the largest and well-known agencies in the world serving blind people. The AFB today conducts a great deal of research about blindness and explores how to help lead blind persons to be more fully integrated into society. This week you get to experience Kirk's visions and thoughts first-hand. I hope you will come away with a different and more inclusive attitude about what blindness really should mean in our world. If you are an employer, take Kirk's positivity to heart and consider hiring more blind people in your business. About the Guest Kirk Adams, Ph.D. President and CEO American Foundation for the Blind As president and chief executive officer of the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), Kirk Adams, Ph.D. is a longtime champion of people who are blind or visually impaired and is committed to creating a more inclusive, accessible world for the more than 25 million Americans with vision loss. Dr. Adams has led AFB to a renewed focus on cultivating in-depth and actionable knowledge and promoting understanding of issues affecting children, working-age adults, and older people who are blind or visually impaired. His role involves pursuing strategic relationships with peers, policymakers, employers, and other influencers to engender and accelerate systemic change. Dr. Adams frequently serves as a keynote speaker at conferences across the country, on topics including education, vocational rehabilitation and workforce participation, vision loss and aging, and technology. He has consulted with top leadership at Google, Facebook, Microsoft, as well as key leaders in the finance, public policy, nonprofit, and tech sectors to discuss topics ranging from product and digital accessibility to civil and disability rights. Before joining AFB, Dr. Adams was president and CEO of The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. He was a member of the Governor's Task Force on Disability Employment and the Seattle Public Library's Strategic Plan Advisory Committee and served on the boards of the National Industries for the Blind, and the National Association for the Employment of People Who Are Blind. Dr. Adams graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, and earned his master's in not-for-profit leadership at Seattle University in Washington. In 2019, he completed his doctorate in Leadership and Change at Antioch University in Yellow Springs, Ohio. In 2020, he was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters from SUNY Upstate Medical University. About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog. Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is an Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards. https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/ accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/ Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can also subscribe in your favourite podcast app. Leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Transcription Notes Ad  00:01 On April the 16th at 2pm North American instant time, blind musicians from across the globe are getting together for an online benefit concert for Ukraine. It's called we're with you, and all money raised goes to the World Blind unions unity fund for Ukraine. To learn more, including how to listen and how to perform it were with you visit mushroom m.com/withYou that is mushroomfm.com/withYou   Michael Hingson  00:30 access cast and accessibly initiative presents unstoppable mindset. The podcast we're inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet Hi, I'm Michael Hinkson, Chief vision officer for accessibility and the author of the number one New York Times best selling book thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion and acceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The Unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by excessive B, that's a cc E, SSI, capital B E, visit www.accessibility.com To learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us.   Michael Hingson  01:50 Hi again, and welcome to another episode of Unstoppable Mindset today. I'm really honored and proud and pleased to invite and have someone on the podcast who I've known for a while and he's he's moved up through the world of working with blind persons and disabilities over the years. When I first met Kirk Adams, he was the CEO of the Lighthouse for the Blind in Seattle. He is now the would it be CEO Kirk, President and CEO, President and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind. But more important than that, I mean, that's just a little thing more important than that. In 2019, he became a PhD he became as my mother used to say a doctor. Anyway, so Kirk Adams, welcome to unstoppable mindset.   Kirk Adams  02:39 Well, it's a pleasure. Thanks for having me.   Michael Hingson  02:42 So you, you have been involved in in the blindness world for a while, tell us sort of maybe some of the early parts about you that that, that you want to talk about growing up and how you ended up being involved in blindness and advocacy and all that stuff?   Kirk Adams  02:59 Well, it's, it's interesting, and I'll just kind of start where I am, and then I'll zip all the way back. But I'm very, very interested in social justice, and a more inclusive society. And of course, the way I come at that is through my lived experience of blindness, and working hard, day and night, to create more opportunities for inclusion for people who are blind in society. And in particular, I'm very interested in employment. As we all know, the workforce participation rate for people are blind is about 30, or 35%, which is about half of the general population. And I say whatever outcomes you're looking at, it's either half as good or twice as bad for people who are blind compared to the general population. As far as employment goes, but, you know, I'm at AFP. Now we're a very much a research focused organization. And when we do research and we look at the factors that lead to successful employment for blind adults, I through good fortune, and mostly not, not on any effort of my own, I lived a life that gave me a lot of those success factors. So it really started when I my retinas detached when I was in kindergarten. I became totally blind within a couple days had a bunch of emergency retinal surgeries that weren't successful. This was pre laser surgery. And so my parents were told Kirk cannot come back to school here at the neighborhood school, he needs to go to the state school for blankets, and we live north of Seattle. My parents visited the Washington State School in Vancouver were not very impressed with what they saw there. They were both teachers just starting out on their careers. And my retinal specialists, you University of Oregon medical school in Portland, said you should check out the Oregon State School and Salem, it's great. They visited, they liked it, they quit their jobs moved. So I could go to Oregon State School. And the success factor here is I was totally blind. There was no question. Does he need to learn braille? Does he need to use a cane? There's there's so many kids with, you know, varying levels of vision that are not, unfortunately, not always given the right instructional curriculum. So kids are using magnification and audio and not learning braille. But there was no question. And we know that strong blindness skills are a strong predictor of successful employment. So I've learned to read and write Braille as a first grader, and type on a typewriter and use a white cane. And a little aside, the one of the happiest days for me is when the Braille book review comes and one came last week, and they're in the children's book section is a book by Michael Hinkson. Running with Roselle anyway. Yeah, so there it is. I put it on my request list. I'll be reading it.   Michael Hingson  06:17 And let me know what you think.   Kirk Adams  06:20 And then, you know, my parents, although they didn't know any blind people we grew up in. I grew up in small towns, we're not connected with with blindness organizations, they instinctively did a couple things, right. One is they had very high expectations of me, they expected me to get good grades, and expected me to participate in sports. Expected expected me to do chores, and I didn't always helped me figure out how to do it. But the high expectations were there. And we see that as well as a predictor that the parents when schools have high expectations of blind kids, they, they they do do well.   Michael Hingson  07:05 Back thinking back on your parents, not telling you how to do it. What what do you think of that? And I'm sure it's different than what you thought at the time. But what do you say experiences?   Kirk Adams  07:16 Well, I'd say I learned how to it was sink or swim. So I learned how to swim. I was in public school, I was the only blind kid and all my schooling, I kind of had to wing it a lot. And I don't I don't think my psycho social deeds were attended to much, but I did, I did learn. And this was another another point, living every day as a blind person, you have opportunities to develop characteristics and some really unique ways and some strengths that the average person may not have around resilience and problem solving and grit and determination and how to work with teams. How to communicate, I got when I when I went to college, and I had some money from the Commission for the Blind to hire readers. So I was 18 years old. I was interviewing and hiring and sometimes firing employees readers and now invoicing and take taking care of the the the the accounts and and those things that my classmates were, we're not doing. The other the other thing I had early work experience. I was really into sports. My dad was a high school basketball coach, I wrestled ran cross country, and I became the sports editor for the high school paper. And the sports editor for the high school paper got to write a weekly high school sports column for the city weekly paper. So I was a I was a 16 year old sports columnist writing a weekly column for the Snohomish Tribune, showing up my timesheet and getting a check and happily spending that minimum wage. Thing was three 325 an hour, something like that. So again, I had some of these early I had some of these success factors that lead to successful employment for people who are blind. And my opportunity at AF B is to create those opportunities for lots of other blind people. So we develop programs that seek seek to level the playing field for people who are blind, we are focused on employment. And I had the experience as a young college graduate with a good track record and school Phi Beta Kappa and Akun laude and a four point in my field of econ and could not you could not get a job like many young blind people. We are the most highly educated, most underemployed disability group as far as college, college graduation, things like that. So I wanted a job in finance, I started applying for jobs, I wanted to live in Seattle, I went to college in Walla Walla needed to live where there was a bus system. I, you know, sent sent in resumes and cover letters, would get a phone interview, would be invited in for the in person interview, and then the employer would be very confused about why a blind person is coming at applying for this job. How in the world could they do it? So you know, disclose disclosing your disability is the thing, when do you do it? So I wasn't disclosing until I walked in with my cane, and my slate and stylus, and some braille paper in a folder. And then I started disclosing in my cover letter playing, I'm totally blind. This is how I do what I do. This is how I'll do the job. And then I wasn't even getting phone interviews. So yeah, I guess cast my net wider and wider and wider. And I applied for a job with a securities firm a sales job selling tax free municipal bonds. And the sales manager had also gone to Whitman College had also been an econ major, like 15 years before me. So he called some of the professors that we had, and they said, Sure, Kurt can sell tax free bonds over the phone. So I did that for 10 years, straight commission 50 cold calls a day every day builds build strong bones. And when I turned 30, had a had an opportunity to make a change. The firm I was with was purchased by another firm and just a good inflection point. And I got the What color's your parachute book, out of the Talking Book and Braille library and read it and did all the exercises and got clear that I wanted to be in the nonprofit sector. And I wanted to be in a leadership role. And I wanted to devote the rest of my working life to creating opportunities for people who are blind. So the next little blind kid could have an easier, easier time of it. And I got very interested in leadership, I went back to school and got a master's degree in not for profit leadership, got involved in nonprofit fundraising, was hired by the lighthouse, Seattle to start their fundraising program and foundation and eventually became the CEO there simultaneous to that. Again, really believing leadership is key to changing our world. I went back to school, as you mentioned, and earned a PhD in leadership and change through Antioch University.   Michael Hingson  13:09 I know the first time the first time I heard you speak was when you came to the National Federation blind convention after just becoming I think the CEO in Atlanta, in Atlanta, I had gone to work for Guide Dogs for the Blind, we were having challenges at gdb because people would not create documentation in an accessible format before meetings. And I recall you talking about the concept of no Braille, no meeting, no   Kirk Adams  13:40 Braille no meeting,   Michael Hingson  13:41 I took right back to them. And it helped a little bit. But it was amazing to see that there was such resistance at such a prestigious organization to hiring and being open to hiring blind people given what they do. And it was, it was a real challenge. Bob Phillips, who was the CEO at the time, created the job that that I had, and I'm sure there will I know there was a lot of resistance to it, but he was the CEO and made it happen. But still, the culture was not oriented toward being open for blind people to to have jobs there. And there are a few blind people working there now, but not even what there was several years ago, which is unfortunate, because there are a lot of things that that could be accomplished by blind people in various aspects of that organization. And as you point out of most organizations, you and I had a lot of very similar life experiences growing up, which is, I think, just evidence of what needs to be done for for kids who are blind and I'm defining blind, as Ken Jernigan used to which was your blind when you lose it If I sight that you have to use alternatives to be able to accomplish tasks and I gather you agree with that. When you were in college, did you have an Office for Students with Disabilities on campus? And if so, how did know?   Kirk Adams  15:14 You didn't know? Yeah. I went to Whitman College, which was small. You know, I graduated from high school in 1979. So I got a, you know, had the four track cassette player and I got is read by volunteers by Recording for the Blind. And the state provided me with a Perkins Brailler, and the cutting edge technology of an IBM Selectric typewriter with a recent. That's, that's what I had.   Michael Hingson  15:46 Well, I asked the question because when I went to, to UC Irvine, we had an office. And Jan Jenkins, early on when I started there, said to me, she lectured me, she said, I want you to understand what I do here, and this is her. She said, I'm here to assist, you need to take responsibility for doing things like going to professor's if you want books in braille, and getting the the books and, and doing the things that you do. But my job here as a principal in the university is if you can't get the cooperation you want, then you come to me, and I'll help you do it, which is such a refreshing attitude, even today. Because in the office is for students with disabilities, mostly today, you come into our office to take a test or we'll get the information for you, we'll get the things for you. And as you pointed out so eloquently, students as a result, don't learn to do it. And and like you I had to hire and fire readers. And and do all of the the same sorts of things that that you had to do. And it's the only way for us to succeed.   Kirk Adams  16:57 Absolutely. And again, if you if you look at research, and you look at what employers say they want employees for the 21st century, its employees who are resilient and flexible and have grit, and are problem solvers, and are creative and know how to analyze and manage risks and know how to work in teams of diverse people. And in my conversation as well. If you're looking to win the talent, war, blind people, by the fact of living everyday lived experience of blindness, learn, learn how to do all those things and develop those capabilities, develop those characteristics.   Michael Hingson  17:39 I think I've told the story on this podcast before but I like you debated often about whether to say that I'm blind when I'm writing a cover letter for a resume. And in 1989, I was looking for a job. And my wife and I were talking and we found this great job in a newspaper. It was perfect. And I said to her I said well, I say in the cover letter that I'm blind and my wife like wives all over can can say this. She said you're an idiot. And I said why? And she said you What is it you've always said that you learn when you took a Dale Carnegie sales course when you started out selling for Kurzweil? Well, she was ahead of me as often is the case. And finally, she said, you've said that you tell every sales person you've ever hired and every person that you've ever managed in sales, turn perceived liabilities into assets. And I think that's the key. Because blindness isn't a liability. It's a perceived liability. And what I did is I went off and I wrote a letter based on that. And I actually said that I'm blind. And the way I did it was I said in the last paragraph, so the letter, the most important thing that you need to know about me is that I'm blind because as a blind person, I've had to sell all of my life just to be able to survive and accomplish anything I've had to sell to convince people to let me buy a house, take my guide dog on an airplane, pre ACA, nada, rent an apartment and all that. So when you're hiring someone, do you want to hire somebody who just comes in for eight or 10 hours a day and then goes home after the job is done? Or do you want to hire somebody who truly understands sales for the science and art that it is and sells as a way of life? So I mean, that that I think is the whole point of perceived liabilities? Well, I did get a phone call from them. They were impressed by that. And I got the job and worked there for eight years. Fantastic. And I think we all need to learn how to win whatever job that we do to take that same sort of approach because I think most any job could adapt that same concept to say why blindness is a perceived liability on the part of the employers and why we're best for the job because of the way we live.   Kirk Adams  19:59 Perfect. Now I'm thinking about Carol Dweck work on the growth mindset versus the fixed mindset. So it all, it all holds together, you know, access strikes based asset, space, philosophy, etc?   Michael Hingson  20:17 Well, it does. And, you know, blindness is a perceived liability, and is all for us only as much of a liability as we allow it to be.   Kirk Adams  20:26 I think that's background expectations, too. As I mentioned, before my parents held high expectations of me, therefore, I hold high expectations of myself. Yeah, I know that not every blind kid is in a family situation like that. I've talked to many blind parents who are Parents of Blind Children, rather, who don't first learning their child is blind or going to be blind, just despair, and, you know, feel that their child has no future. And will, there'll be a caretaker role. And so it's really, really important that the high expectations get established early on. And like I say, not not every point blank kid is born into a family that's going to do that, automatically. So that's, that's an opportunity for all of us who are blind, to talk to parents of blind kids, and something I really enjoy doing, and letting them know that, you know, your, your kiddo can do whatever they want to do, as long as they are given the right tools and supports, and the opportunity.   Michael Hingson  21:36 Yeah, how do we get parents who feel desperation and so on? How do we get them to change their minds?   Kirk Adams  21:48 Well, I think that's exposure. And I think exposure to blind adults, successful blind adults, I am a big advocate for both consumer groups. So if someone's listening and are not connected with plain adults playing people, for the National Federation of blind American Council of the Blind, comes in different flavors, they have chapters and and different groups and affinity groups. And I would suggest checking it out. I think that's one way. I think that's an important way in the same in the workplace. And, you know, again, I'll keep harping on research. You know, it's shown that if a department or a manager hires a blind person, they're much more likely to hire another blind person, you know, then than another department hiring their first blind person. So, you know, familiarity, understanding the capabilities, and understanding that people are people with the same emotions and tribes and hopes and dreams and all the things I will before before I forget, I'm mentioned at work workplace technology study that we just did. And it was very well designed. We did We did focus groups interviewed then created a, an online survey then did in depth, in depth interviews, just to understand the dynamics of technology in the workplace, for people who are applying, what's working, what's not working, what tools do people use for which functions, and it's available on our website, so FB dot o RG? Easy, easy website to remember that we've done. We've done four or five, I think, really important studies in the last couple of years and and all that data is there.   Michael Hingson  23:36 You were talking a little bit earlier about what employers are looking for in terms of being flexible and so on? Where does loyalty fit into all that in today's world? You know, you used to hear about people staying in jobs for most of their whole time. And now it's a lot different. But where does loyalty fit?   Kirk Adams  24:01 That is a super interesting question. And I don't think there's clarity on that. And I was just reading an article this morning about the 10 greatest risks faced by corporate corporate boards, and one of them was the uncertainty of what the workplace is going to look like, in the future. Strategically, how do you build your workforce and your talent pool, not knowing exactly what the workplace is going going to look like? So a couple a couple things that come to mind. One One is that people change careers. I can't cite this. I can't cite the numbers, but something like seven, seven or eight job changes now and a lifetime of work. And the trick is to manage that person's career path. While keeping them in your organization, if you value them, and you find that they're a great contributor, and you don't want to lose them. So it's a different type of conversation, what? You, you try it HR, you don't like it that much, you'd rather be in it, how to recreate a pathway to keep a person within the organization. And then then the next thing we have, we've had the great resignation here with COVID. And so many people, it's been a wake up call for so many people to say, Hey, I'm Life is too short, I want to do something that's meaningful, I want to do I want to live well, I moved from the East Coast back to Seattle, to be closer to closer to family. So people are making those kinds of life based decisions that I think are much greater right now. I would say that the shifting landscape and employment I believe will create more opportunities for people who are blind as remote work, telework and hybrid work situations become normalized. You know, there, there is language in our statutes that says, setting up a person to work with a disability work from home is the accommodation of last resort. That was the, you know, the assumption was that everyone needed to go into the office, and everyone needed to be in a building with their co workers. And to set up a person to work for from home was the the last accommodation that should be considered. And I think that's, that's been flipped. Now. So I'm really, I'm really excited to see what it's going to look like.   Michael Hingson  26:44 I think that it is a, it is a moving target for everyone. And the key is to not allow blind people to be part of that flip. And I think that's that you're exactly right, it will be interesting to see where it goes, I asked you that question, because one of the things that I've often heard is, a blind person who is hired to work somewhere, will tend to be more loyal and want to stay there, rather, and will do a better job as a result rather   Kirk Adams  27:17 than and that's going out of that and that's verifiable. Look at Disability Research, DuPont did a really long longitudinal study 5060s 70s that people with disabilities are, they have less turnover, you have less absenteeism. Morale, in work groups goes up. customer perceptions improve. So there's there's a lot of there's good business cases for employers to include people with disabilities.   Michael Hingson  27:55 Yeah, it makes good sense. And, and, you know, we, we see in so many different ways that there are advantages to being blind, which which all of us also need to learn how to explain. And an emphasize another one that comes to mind. We've used it excessively a fair amount is the concept of brand loyalty, which is a little different. But the Nielsen Company did a study in 2016, talking about the fact that people with disabilities in general, and I'm going to narrow it to blind people tend to be a lot more brand loyalty to the companies online that give them access to their stuff, because they don't have to slave and work so hard to get access to it. And they're going to continue to work with those companies. That make sense to me. It is, it is just absolutely relevant that that we need to to get more of those messages out and make it happen. Of course, that's one of the reasons that we have unstoppable mindset is to hopefully educate people about some of these things, because it makes perfect sense to do. And there's no reason why we can't get get better access. It's just a matter of educating employers and a lot of decision makers who are not blind that we're, we're actually an asset to them.   Kirk Adams  29:16 Yeah, and I again, I'll mention an AFP. I think one of our crown jewels is our annual leadership conference. It'll be May 2 and third in Arlington, Virginia. When I first went to work for the satellite house in 2000, the person who hired me said if you want to get to know the blindness field, you need to go to the AFP conference. So I went to my first in 2001 I've never missed and it's it's fairly unique in that we bring together all the stakeholders so we bring leaders from voc rehab for the the federal agencies, nonprofit CEOs, corporate diversity, inclusion and access ability folks, academic researchers, blindness advocates advocates into the same space. And that's a really interesting thing to do. Because those groups don't often talk to one another. Although they, they would, they would all say they share a common goal in improving employment outcomes for people are blind. There's a really cool research study where they asked VR counselors and HR hiring managers, the same set of questions. And the one that stands out to me was the question was what what is the greatest barrier to successful employment of people who are blind, and the the VR counselor said, attitudes of employers, perceptions of the employer, and the employer said, lack of understanding of our business needs on the point of VR. So, you know, both groups would say they are very dedicated to improving employment outcomes, but but they come at it from from different angles. So, AFP Leadership Conference is a place where we, we bring all those stakeholders together in conversation. So it's, it's pretty cool.   Michael Hingson  31:14 And hopefully, you can get them to communicate a little bit more with each other. Yes. I don't know. It is it is interesting. Do you ever watch the ABC ABC show? What would you do? I have not. Have you ever heard of it?   Kirk Adams  31:30 I don't think   Michael Hingson  31:31 so. Duncan Jonas, has run the show in the summer, every year for a number of years. And one of the the whole premise of the show is that they bring in actors to play roles. And see how the, the people who are around them react. So for example, on one show is actually one of the first shows they brought in a an actor to play a barista at a coffee shop. And this was, I think, put on or created by the Rochester Institute for the Deaf. They brought in two women, deaf people, and there was a job posting and they went in and applied for the job. And the whole process for the decrease barista was to simply say, No, you're deaf, you can't do the job. And, and he did a really good job of that. But these, these two deaf people kept saying, well, we could do the job. This is a kitchen job. You're not asking for me to even interact with customers all the time. And he said, Well, what if there's something I need you to do? Well, you can write it down, or I can read lips, and he just continued to resist, which was great. But during the day that they did this, there were three HR people who came in. And they after listening to all this for a while, pulled the barista aside, and they said, you're handling this all wrong, these people have more rights than the rest of us. Just take the application and write on it. It's not a good fit. But don't don't keep arguing. It was it was fascinating that the HR people did that. So there is a there is a problem with HR. But again, that's what we have to help educate in, in all that we do too. So I'm glad to to see what you're doing and that you are bringing people together. I've I've been to a couple of the leadership conferences, but not not lately.   Kirk Adams  33:34 Well, we'll see. We'll see you in May. But I've got to work that out. But the workplace technology study I mentioned earlier, there's there's real data there from real people. Current so we can show HR managers that, hey, blind people report that part of your recruiting process involves some sort of online exercise or test 60% of your blind and low vision, people are having challenges accessibility challenges with that, you know, 30% of the people you're hiring, are having problems with your employee onboarding processes. So you know, there's anecdotal stories, there's complaints, but now we have real data. So it's really intended for the HR manager, the IT manager, and assistive technology developers to really show what's what's actually happening. You know, how your blind employees are needing to take work home and use their own equipment and work more hours. And, you know, they're having having to ask sighted colleagues to do essential steps in their processes. And I know people hear those stories, but now we've got we've got numbers and we got statistics. And you know, and I HR person doesn't want to say Yeah, 30% of this group of people is having problems with my onboarding process. You know that that's, that's a number that is going to get some attention, we think.   Michael Hingson  35:12 We hope so. And we hope that we can continue to find ways to, to get people to be a little bit more aware of all this, because accessibility to the tools is, is one of the biggest challenges we face. You know, that's why I joined accessibe. B last year, because I saw that there were opportunities and accessibility has even expanded a lot. And is saying that what it does to create internet access, which began with an artificial intelligence system that does a good job with some websites and a significant part of websites, but also doesn't necessarily do everything in an accessible he has now put together additional processes to create human intervention to help with the rest of it. But excessive he also wants to educate people about web access, whether they use excessive these products or not, because the feeling is we've got to do more to educate people in that exactly what makes sense to do.   Kirk Adams  36:13 Yes, and as I mentioned, before, we began our recorded part of our conversation, FB, NFB ACB, and the national rights Disability Network have drafted a joint letter to the Department of Justice, asking them to implement the web and app accessibility regulations that they are empowered to enact. And we have sign on letter. Again, you can go to afp.org, for more information, and we're looking for disability and civil rights organizations who want to join us and Ernie urging the Department of Justice to do that. Because it's so meaningful. I am a I'm not a high tech person. I like you said, I'm brand loyal to a small, small number of retail websites. But we also did a study last year, as part of what Mississippi State National Research and Training Center on blindness was doing. They contracted with AFP, we looked at 30 corporate websites, and we looked at specifically at their recruiting and hiring portals. And there's lots of accessibility issues. So they're there. So   Michael Hingson  37:42 five away compliance for the government. Yeah.   Kirk Adams  37:45 Yes. So whatever we add FB can do to change that landscape to change the way institutions, government, nonprofit corporate address, inclusion, put it under the umbrella of digital inclusion. You know, I think it's somewhat similar to we've more from diversity to inclusion. In our language, I think we've more from the digital divide to digital inclusion, which I think as a much more proactive concept.   Michael Hingson  38:21 A speech I've given for years is actually titled moving from diversity to inclusion, because diversity is doesn't even include us anymore. Which is unfortunate. And so we've got to go to to something that makes more sense. And you're either inclusive or you're not, you can't be partially inclusive, because then you're not inclusive.   Kirk Adams  38:40 There you go. Like it makes I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm stealing that one here. Welcome   Michael Hingson  38:46 to have it, it's You go right ahead. Because you either are inclusive, or you're not, it's a quantum jump in you can't be partially inclusive and say you're inclusive. You shouldn't be able to say you're partially diverse. And so you're diverse, because but but you know, that ship has kind of sailed. But I think it is something that that we need to do. And it's all about education. And it's all about finding ways to give kids at a young age the opportunity that you talked about Braille earlier. How do we get the educational world to recognize, again, the value of Braille and what's happening with that? Oh, boy. I know that was a loaded question.   Kirk Adams  39:36 That's that's that's my my personal soapbox, which I can can get oh, I don't know how to do it, other than frame it in terms of literacy. It is a literacy question. Reading is reading listening to something as listening to something writing is reading writing, you know, if if we didn't need to read and write and cited kids wouldn't be taught how to read and write. It's just a matter of efficiency and efficacy and art and being being a human human being in a literate society. So there's some there. There are some numbers embedded in some of our research, that that show the number of employed respondents who are Braille readers or use Braille displays. There are some there were some numbers generated 30 years ago that indicated that 90% of of blind people who are employed read Braille, that doesn't appear to be the case. Now, based on what we can infer from from our surveys. Does that I'm not sure what that means. So I I will say, to answer your question, I don't know. And we need to figure it out. So I will take 10 I think that's some deep research questions. But I would be energized to explore   Michael Hingson  41:15 take what you said to another level, let's let's say your right 30 years ago, 90% of employed blind people were Braille readers. And that number has dropped. Just for the sake of discussion, let's say significantly. The other thing that immediately comes to mind is how far people who are blind especially who are not Braille readers today are advancing as opposed to Braille readers. Because Braille is the, the means of reading and writing, I know so many people who are partially blind, who have grown up, not having the opportunity to learn to read Braille, who are very blunt about saying, if we had only been able to learn to read and write Braille, we would have been a lot better off because it's just so much slower and harder for us today.   Kirk Adams  42:14 Yeah, so I hear people with those same, same regrets. And, again, it's back to what I said earlier that as a, becoming totally blind at age five, there was no question I knew I was going to learn braille, and I was instructed in Braille. And, you know, it wasn't a question or debate. Who, who, you know, who knows what would have happened if I would have had enough usable vision to read with magnification? So I like I guess, along the same lines, is what you mentioned about Doctor turning his definition of blind, you know, if, if a child cannot read at the same rate as their sighted classmate using magnification, they need to learn braille, so they can read read just as fast as their kid at the next desk, you know,   Michael Hingson  43:03 otherwise, why do we teach sighted kids to read just let them watch TV which is, which is another, which is another technology and art form or whatever, that that isn't as creative in some ways as it used to be, but they're also good shows. So I guess we got to cope with that, too.   Kirk Adams  43:24 But yeah, audio description is not not our thing. Although we appreciate it immensely. And I know some other blindness organizations are really carrying the torch to increase the amount of audio description. But that just brings to mind that accessibility and innovation around accessibility for people with with particular disabilities is good for everybody. Yeah, and I know, my, my wife, she's puttering around the kitchen, and there's a movie on, she'll put the audio audio description on, you know, so she can, she can follow it. When I was at the lighthouse in Seattle, we worked with Metro Transit to put larger bus numbers with contrasting colors, because we have had a lot of employees with ARPI. A lot of Dateline, employees with ushers, and they did enlarge the bus numbers and put them in contrasting colors. And they said they had more positive comments from their general ridership about that than anything they've done. Because it made it easier for people with 2020 vision to see if that was their bus coming. Sure. So simple, simple example. But yeah, one of   Michael Hingson  44:45 the things that one of the things that really surprises me still, and I've mentioned it before, and so it's one of my soap boxes is Apple, put voiceover partly because they were compelled To do it, but put VoiceOver on iPhones, iPods, iTunes, you and all that, but on iPhones and iPods and the Mac, they put voiceover, they created it. But I'm very surprised that in the automotive world, they haven't done more to make voiceover a part of the driver experience so that people don't have to go look at screens on their iPhones or whatever. As opposed to being able to use VoiceOver, because clearly, it would be a very advantageous thing. And I also think of like the Tesla, which uses a screen including a touchscreen for everything. And my gosh, yeah, you can do a little bit more of that, because the Tesla has co pilot that allows you to interact in some other ways, although you're still supposed to keep your hands on the wheel and all that, but why aren't they using voice technology more than they are?   Kirk Adams  45:53 That's a good question that I can't answer.   Michael Hingson  45:56 I know, it's, it's, I've never heard a good explanation of it as to why they don't. And it makes perfect sense to do it. The voices are very understandable, much less dealing with Android and so on. But no one is using the voice technology and the voice output to take the place of of screens, which is crazy, much less voice input. So it is it is a mystery. And it is one of those things that it would be great if people would would consider doing more of that the automotive industries missing out and of course, we as blind people are the ones who bring that opportunity to them will take credit.   Kirk Adams  46:34 There you go. Well, you know, when when I was walking around with my four track, cassette player listening to textbooks, I was the, you know, the the oddity in school, and now everyone listens to Audible books. Right, right.   Michael Hingson  46:51 It's a common thing. And now not only that, you can use things like bone conducting headphones, so you can listen to your audio as you walk around and still hear what else is going on. So you're a little bit safer.   Kirk Adams  47:05 Yeah, I don't know how far afield you want to get in this conversation. But you know, indoor wayfinding navigation systems, many people are trying to figure that that out, you know, the GPS systems work pretty well when you're outdoors. But when when you're indoors, what are the wayfinding tools that are that are emerging? And you know, I'm thinking about haptics and, yes, different modes of receiving information than then audibly, because most of the adaptations accommodations for people who are blind tend to be audible. And if you get 234 things going at once you get you get a diminishing marginal utility there. And then at some point, you know, becomes counterproductive if too much is going on audibly. So I'm, I'm I went to Consumer Electronics Show ces for the first time, this past January. And I was very interested, I was very interested in kind of the the emerging use of different modes of conveying information, either through vibration or temperature or airflow, different types of information. So lots of smart people out there, trying to figure out ways to make make us all live better.   Michael Hingson  48:35 Yeah, I will have to hunt down Mike Mae and get him on the show, because he can certainly talk our ears off about indoor navigation integration, you should haven't done that. I've got to get hold of Mike, I think that would be cool. But it is all part of as you said, making all of our lives better. And the whole concept of virtual reality is something that all of us can take advantage of and use. And again, a lot of the things that that come about because of some of these developments actually started with with blindness. I mean, look at Ray Kurzweil with the Kurzweil Reading Machine, he developed the technology to be able to let a camera build a picture of a page of print. And his first choice was to develop a machine that would read out loud of course for blind people. Percy took it further after that, and now OCR is a way of life but it did start with Ray without machine, the Kurzweil Reading Machine for the blind.   Kirk Adams  49:37 Yep. Remember, it becomes a washing machine. Now Yeah, we can just now you can do with your iPhone.   Michael Hingson  49:43 You can and better how much our computer processes have have evolved over the years. It's really pretty incredible, isn't it? It really, really is. And you know, but technology is all around us. And it, it is a it is a good thing. But again, it's all about how we use it and how we envision it being used. So it again, it gets back to the discussion that we had about Braille. You know, people say, Well, you don't need Braille because you can use recordings and all right, well, that's just not true. Why is it that we should be treated differently? Why should our exposure to being able to read and write be different than people who have eyesight because reading and writing with Braille is really equivalent to reading and writing with, with printed page or pens and pencils, or typewriters now that I knew mentioned running with Roselle earlier, I remember, sitting on an airplane going, I think I was flying back to California from somewhere. And we were going through many revisions of running with Roselle at the time and Jeanette Hanscom, who was my colleague in writing that who writes children's books, so she was able to make the words something that we felt would be more relevant for kids, although I gotta tell you more adults by running orthros health and then children do so I've heard. But I spent the entire time flying from the East Coast to the West Coast, going through an editing, running with Roselle. And I was using a computer that talked but I also know that the skills that I learned as a braille reader gave me the ability to catch nuances and so on, that I never would have been able to learn to catch if I hadn't learned how to truly be able to read a book. And we edited the book. And you know, it is where it is today.   Kirk Adams  51:45 Well, it's on its way to me from the Talking Book and Braille library. I look forward to reading it. Congratulations on yet another publication Good on you.   Michael Hingson  51:56 Well, thank you, we're working now towards another one. Writing about fear, and especially with the pandemic all around us. And, gosh, fear has taken on many forms, some of which are understandable, and some of which are ridiculous. But we're we're looking at the fact that well, when I left the World Trade Center, I didn't exhibit fear. And that was because I learned what to do, and approach to the day when an unexpected emergency happen from a standpoint of knowledge. And I had actually, as I realized, over the last couple of years developed a mindset that if something were to occur, I mean, obviously something could happen. And we could have been smashed by something, but but without that happening, I could step back and quickly analyze whatever situation was occurring as we were going down the stairs or getting out. And I could focus on that and let the fear that I had not overwhelm me, but rather instead be a mechanism to keep me focused. So it's developing the mindset. So we're, we're working on it, and we've got proposal out to publishers, so we're hoping that that's going to go well. And, you know, we'll   Kirk Adams  53:18 see. Well, as mentioned earlier, I am president and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind. And as such, I am scheduled to be on a zoom call with our Finance and Investment Committee of our Board of Trustees.   Michael Hingson  53:33 Well, we're gonna we're gonna let you go. But I'd like you to want to tell us if people want to reach out or if he wherever you want them to go to to learn more about AARP or you and reach out to you yeah,   Kirk Adams  53:45 FB dot o RG is the website. My email address, if you want to email me is my first initial K my last name Adams, K da ms at AFB dot o RG. And AFP and myself are present on social media. And you can find us easily and we'd love to connect. Get your thoughts, share our thoughts. Check out the Leadership Conference, May 2 and third in Arlington, Virginia and go to fb.org and look at our research.   Michael Hingson  54:20 Well, perfect. Well thank you very much for being with us today on unstoppable mindset. We very much appreciate your your time and hope that we'll be able to chat some more.   Kirk Adams  54:29 All right, Michael, keep up the good work.   Michael Hingson  54:32 We'll do it. If you'd like to learn more about unstoppable mindset, please visit www dot Michael hingson.com/podcast Or go to wherever you listen to other podcasts. We have a number of episodes up we'd love to also hear from you. You can reach me directly at Michael H AI that's ni ch AE L H AI at accessibly ACs. c e ss ibe.com. So Michael hai at accessible comm we'd love to hear from you. If you've got suggestions of people you think that we ought to have on the podcast, please let me know. We're always looking for guests if you want to be a guest, let us know about that as well. And most important of all, please, after listening to this, we'd appreciate it if you would give us a five star rating in wherever you're listening to podcasts. The ratings help us and they help us show other people that we're doing something of interest. So if you feel that way, please give us a five star rating. Thanks again for visiting us today. And we'll see you next week with another episode of unstoppable mindset the podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet.   Michael Hingson  55:51 You have been listening to the unstoppable mindset podcast. Thanks for dropping by. I hope that you'll join us again next week, and in future weeks for upcoming episodes. To subscribe to our podcast and to learn about upcoming episodes, please visit www dot Michael hinkson.com/podcast. Michael Hinkson is spelled ma ch AE l h i n g s o n y you're on the site. Please use the form there to recommend people who we ought to interview in upcoming editions of the show. And also, we ask you and urge you to invite your friends to join us in the future. If you know of any one or any organization needing a speaker for an event, please email me at speaker at Michael hinkson.com. I appreciate it very much. To learn more about the concept of blinded by fear, please visit www dot Michael hinkson.com forward slash blinded by fear and while you're there, feel free to pick up a copy of my free ebook entitled blinded by fear. The Unstoppable mindset podcast is provided by access cast an initiative of accessibility and is sponsored by SSP. Please visit www.accessibly.com accessibly is spelled a cc e SSI B E. There you can learn all about how you can make your website inclusive for all persons with disabilities and how you can help make the internet fully inclusive by 2025. Thanks again for listening. Please come back and visit us again next week.

Kirk Adams CEO of GreenRoc Mining #GROC discusses the progress of their graphite projects in Greenland, including Amitsoq whose grades are among the highest in the world. About Greenroc Mining The GreenRoc mining portfolio is comprised of graphite, ilmenite and iron ore deposits and base metal prospects in Greenland. Our focus is on developing mines for the production of critical minerals, that is minerals that are considered vital for the economic well-being of the world's major and emerging economies, but whose supply may be at risk due to geological scarcity, geopolitical issues or other factors.

Kirk Adams CEO of GreenRoc Mining #GROC discusses the significant maiden ore resource at the Amitsoq Graphite Project in southern Greenland, one of the highest-grade graphite deposits in the world. Highlights ·      A maiden combined Indicated and Inferred JORC Resource has been defined at Amitsoq of 8.28 million tonnes (Mt) at an average grade of 19.75%, giving a total graphite content of 1.63 Mt. ·      This includes a particularly high-grade contribution from the Lower Graphite Layer of 3.67 Mt at a grade of 21.19%, for 0.775 Mt of contained graphite.   ·      This Maiden Resource confirms Amitsoq's position as one of the highest-grade graphite deposits globally and supports the Company's objective of fast tracking the Project into the development phase.  ·      The total graphite content of 1.63 Mt outlined by the Maiden Resource exceeds the upper end of the tonnage range in the previously declared Amitsoq Exploration Target (which implied between 0.408 to 1.620 Mt of contained graphite from the entire target area). ·      Over 25% of the contained graphite in the Maiden Resource falls within the higher category of Indicated Resources, providing additional confidence that a more significant, high-category Resource can be established following the forthcoming Phase 2 drilling campaign. ·      Planning and procurement for the Phase 2 drilling campaign at Amitsoq is well underway with appointment of contractors due to be finalised this month.  ·      The deposit is open along strike (predominantly to the north) and down dip to the west, and this will be tested in the Phase 2 drilling programme this year. ·      Metallurgical testing confirms that the Amitsoq graphite can be upgraded to a more than 99.95% pure graphite product, which is the specification requirement for EV lithium-ion batteries (the ultra-high growth sector of the graphite market). About GreenRoc GreenRoc Mining Plc is an AIM-quoted company which is developing mining projects in Greenland in critical and high-demand minerals.  Led by a group of highly experienced mining industry professionals, GreenRoc has a portfolio of 100% owned projects: Amitsoq (Graphite); Thule Black Sands (Ilmenite); Melville Bay (Iron Ore); and Inglefield (Multi-Element). 

As the president and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind, Dr. Kirk Adams is a leader in the field of blindness and is committed to pursuing strategic relationships with peers, policymakers, employers, and other influencers to create a more inclusive and accessible world for the more than 20 million Americans with vision loss.

Kirk Adams CEO of GreenRoc Mining #GROC talks through results from its Amitsoq Graphite Project that show the graphite layers to be both thicker, and more consistent, than previously thought. Key Points · High-grade graphite mineralisation confirmed and increasing true widths observed down dip on both the upper and lower graphite layers, supporting the potential for a sizeable JORC Resource · Lower Graphite Layer (LGL) returns drill intercepts grading up to 23.01% C(g) and channel samples grading up to 30.35% C(g) ·  Upper Graphite Layer (UGL) returns drill intercepts grading up to 19.83% C(g) and channel samples grading up to 27.40% C(g) · Significant true width thickness of graphite layers confirmed by drilling, including: o  LGL: 15.60 m @ 22.34% C(g) from 93.61 m  o  LGL: 14.95 m @ 22.82% C(g) from 102.19 m · Deposit open along strike (predominantly to the north) and down dip, which will be tested in Phase 2 drilling programme  · Significant down-dip extensions and increase in thickness from surface outcrop · Strike length of LGL intersected from Pads B and E totals 154 m · Low-grade uranium content poses no problems for future development under new Greenlandic legislation · Drilling campaign confirms Amitsoq to be one of the highest-grade graphite deposits globally · These results will be a key element in the mineral resource estimation assessment to be made by the Competent Person in due course. GreenRoc's Mining Assets GreenRoc Mining Plc is an AIM-quoted company which is developing mining projects in Greenland in critical, high-demand and high-value minerals. Led by a group of highly experienced mining industry professionals, GreenRoc has a portfolio of 100% owned projects: Amitsoq Graphite, Thule Black Sands Ilmenite, Melville Bay Iron and Inglefield Multi-Element.

Kirk Adams takes us to the book of Daniel to make a connection between what Daniel and his friends went through and the life of Jesus. Take some time to listen to this amazing message to learn more about how Daniel chapter 1 is not about us, not even about Daniel and his friends, but it is about Christ.

Kirk Adams, CEO of GreenRoc Mining #GROC explains the Significant Graphite Extensions Identified at Kalaaq Deposit which is part of the Amitsoq Graphite Project. Key Points · Substantial zones of mineralisation confirmed and extended at the Kalaaq Deposit, located on the Greenlandic mainland and due south of the Company's 100% owned Amitsoq Graphite Project, one of the highest-grade graphite projects globally. · New zones of mineralisation have been discovered, and greater confidence in the continuity of the previously identified zones achieved through channel sampling, grab sampling and beep mat surveys. · The projection of the Upper Graphite Zone (UGZ) that was identified in 2017 has been extended 360m to the south and is open along strike. · The Lower Graphite Bed has been extended 300m along strike to the north where values of up to 33.1 C(g)% have been recorded. · The newly discovered Niels Hede Pedersen (NHP) Zone has now extended the identified graphite mineralisation of the BLZ Zone a further 1.3km and again is open on strike. · A potential new area, termed the New Domain Zone (NDZ), with a grab sample grade of 32.1 C(g)%, has been identified 1km to the south-east of the current Exploration Target Boundary (see Figure 4) and a further 540m along strike from the graphite horizon mapped during the 2017 campaign. This sample indicates the potential for an additional mineralised graphite zone outside the primary target zones on the western side of the Kalaaq Deposit. GreenRoc's Mining Assets GreenRoc Mining Plc is an AIM-quoted company which is developing mining projects in Greenland in critical, high-demand and high-value minerals. Led by a group of highly experienced mining industry professionals, GreenRoc has a portfolio of 100% owned projects: ·      Amitsoq Graphite; ·      Thule Black Sands Ilmenite; ·      Melville Bay Iron; and ·      Inglefield Multi-Element. 

Dr. Kirk Adams lost his sight at an early age, but having great role models in his parents, had a high regard for education and seeking employment. He struggled to find work, but cast a wide net and took a position as a municipal bond salesman. He transitioned into the non-profit world through fundraising and knew leadership was ultimately where he wanted to be. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/careersfortheblind/message

Kirk Adams CEO of GreenRoc Mining #GROC talks about their assets including one of the highest-grade graphite projects globally and outline their upcoming milestones. GreenRoc Overview · GreenRoc intends to become a key supplier of critical, high-demand, high-value minerals to fast-growing end markets, benefitting from long-term structural drivers such as the transition to a zero carbon global energy sector · Portfolio of 100% owned projects in Greenland acquired from Alba Mineral Resources plc upon Admission, namely: o Amitsoq Graphite Project o Thule Black Sands Ilmenite Project o Melville Bay Iron Project o Inglefield Multi-Element Project · Graphite and titanium focus which are both designated as critical minerals by the EU and the USA o Demand for graphite is forecast to increase by 2,500% by 2040 - fuelled by the electric vehicle ("EV") sector · A proven management team with: o An established track record of delivering value for shareholders o Strong expertise in the stable and mining supportive jurisdiction of Greenland o In depth knowledge of the disciplines required to fast-track the Greenland Projects through to both development and production About GreenRoc Mining GreenRoc Mining Plc was established in March 2021 as a UK public limited company for the purpose of acquiring all of the Greenlandic mining assets of Alba and progressing the exploration and development of those assets. Alba retains a 54% interest in the issued share capital of GreenRoc. The assets in question are the Thule Black Sands Ilmenite Project ("TBS"), the Amitsoq Graphite Project ("Amitsoq"), the Melville Bay Iron Project ("Melville Bay") and the Inglefield Multi-Element Project ("Inglefield") (together the "Projects" or the "Greenland Projects"). The Directors believe that the combination of a suite of high quality, diversified Greenlandic mining assets within a single, Greenland-focused AIM-quoted vehicle creates a compelling investment opportunity. Both graphite and titanium (primary ore: ilmenite) have been designated as critical minerals by the EU and the USA. With drilling campaigns having been executed in the summer of 2021, both at TBS to increase the existing Mineral Resource and at Amitsoq to seek to define a maiden Mineral Resource, the Company is well positioned to progress one or more of its mining assets into development with the aim of securing exploitation licences within the earliest practicable timescale.

On this episode, we're recapping APH's Annual Meeting. We'll hear from APH President, Craig Meador, Ed.D., speak about the state of the company and hear from award winners.Participants (In Order of Appearance)Sara Brown, APH Public Relations ManagerCraig Meador, Ed.D., APH PresidentMarje Kaiser, Ed.D., Wings of Freedom Award recipientGilles Pepin, Horizon Award recipientStine Storm, Louis Award recipientDr. Kirk Adams, Navigator Award recipientDr. Penny Rosenblum, Navigator Award recipientAdditional LinksAPH State of the Company SpeechLearning Through Play with LEGO Braille Bricks - Online CourseWorld Sight DayLEGO Braille Bricks Youtube PageRead the first Access and Engagement ReportRead the second Access and Engagement Report

Can you relate to this story? A blind person has done well in school, applied for jobs with and without disclosing his blindness, repeatedly gotten rejected until it seemed like there was no end in sight, and finally found a job he didn't really want? We can and we're sure you can too. The system is broken, and many of us feel like very few people care and nothing can be done about it. The American Foundation for the Blind is one of the organizations working on this seemingly impossible problem, so we invited Dr. Kirk Adams, President and CEO of AFB to tell us his story and why he feels AFB is positioned to make a difference. Learn more about the American Foundation for the blind by visiting their web site at https://www.afb.org A full text transcript of this episode can be found at http://pennyforward.com/the-system-is-broken-can-we-fix-it/ The Penny Forward podcast is about blind people building bright futures one penny at a time. Subscribe by searching for “Penny Forward” using your favorite podcast app, ask your smart speaker to play the podcast, “Penny Forward”, check out the Penny Forward YouTube channel, or listen to all of our past episodes or read transcripts at http://pennyforward.com Support Penny Forward by contributing to their Tip Jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/penny-forward Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/pennyforward)

Our favorite tracks from The Muffs Blonder and Blonder album.New music from:Brothers Lealand, Hellocentral, and Kirk Adams.

"Disability History/Awareness Society Implementation: Attendees listened to a discussion about disability history/awareness with AFB's President Kirk Adams, ACB's President Dan Spoone, and ACB Students President Minh Ha, as they discussed the benefits and disadvantages of mandatory and voluntary disability awareness education in society. Co-Sponsored by: ACBS/ACBNG Recorded during the 2021 ACB National Convention on July 18"

Zak Mir talks to Kirk Adams, CEO-elect of the soon-to-be AIM-listed GreenRoc Mining Plc. GreenRoc is looking to acquire Alba Mineral Resources' Greenland mining portfolio and to carry out a simultaneous capital raise in conjunction with its Admission to AIM. ETX Capital is the broker to the IPO.

Survey results, upcoming data, and what's to come from this important research with Penny Rosenblum, Director of Research, and Kirk Adams, President, and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind. www.afb.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/visionserve-alliance/message

Radio Candy Radio Show 14 is a “Let's Mix It All Up Show”.  Why would I want to do that?  It is my show and I play what I like!  It is VARIETY, VARIETY, VARIETY!!  What's NOT to like?  Give A Listen!  Like, Download, Comment, Share, Repeat.  Lame-stream radio... Variety...I do not think they TRULY know the meaning of the word!  That's why I do what I do here...Radio Candy Radio!!  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast bringing Power Pop, Rock, Soul, Rhythm & Blues to anyone and everyone who wants to expand their rock and roll radio knowledge!  Shows NOW on Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, PlayerFM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, Pocket Cast, Apple iTunes Podcasts!!  Please! Follow me on Twitter JimPrell@TMusicAuthority  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast!    https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/    The Podcast can also be heard here - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   Radio Candy Radio Mon, Wed, Fri 7 PM ET, 4PM PT.  Rocking The KOR!  www.koradio.rocks 7PM UK, 2PM ET, 11AM PT Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday!  Also, Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday!  Research and reach out to the bands let them know you heard me playing their songs! Radio Candy Radio Show 14!!  SUPER 8 Music - Music-Authority-ThemeAthensville - The Mentalist [Undressing Minds For Show]Andy Stone - 02 Please Don't Go [blender]Kirk Adams - 03 This Means Everything [This Means Everything]Jamie Notarthomas - Under Regret [Heads Or Tales] (@Soulamander Productions)Lisa Mychols Music - 11 Tonight It's You [Never Surrender -  A Tribute To Cheap Trick] (Zero Hour Records)Pop Co-Op - Flaws of Attraction (Futureman Records)The Pretty Things (Original Lineup) - Baron Saturday [S.F. Sorrow]SoulBird - The Music Authority JingleSpirit Kid - 01 Everything Is Old [Is Happening]@Dandy & Dawn Palmyra - 02. CollapseThe Mockers - 05 - Willoughby Station (demo)Three Hour Tour- Lonely Place [B Side Oblivion]@Pauls - Your Way [Songs We Learned In Sunday School] (Ice Cream Man Power Pop and More)Checkpoint Charley - 10 Lazy [Pomp, Twaddle And Bombast]Liars Club - 02 Penny Double [Evolution 9]Freedy Johnston - I Can Hear The Laugh [The Perfect World]

Radio Candy Radio Show 14 is a “Let's Mix It All Up Show”.  Why would I want to do that?  It is my show and I play what I like!  It is VARIETY, VARIETY, VARIETY!!  What's NOT to like?  Give A Listen!  Like, Download, Comment, Share, Repeat.  Lame-stream radio... Variety...I do not think they TRULY know the meaning of the word!  That's why I do what I do here...Radio Candy Radio!!  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast bringing Power Pop, Rock, Soul, Rhythm & Blues to anyone and everyone who wants to expand their rock and roll radio knowledge!  Shows NOW on Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, PlayerFM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, Pocket Cast, Apple iTunes Podcasts!!  Please! Follow me on Twitter JimPrell@TMusicAuthority  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast!    https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/    The Podcast can also be heard here - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   Radio Candy Radio Mon, Wed, Fri 7 PM ET, 4PM PT.  Rocking The KOR!  www.koradio.rocks 7PM UK, 2PM ET, 11AM PT Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday!  Also, Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday!  Research and reach out to the bands let them know you heard me playing their songs! Radio Candy Radio Show 14!!  SUPER 8 Music - Music-Authority-ThemeAthensville - The Mentalist [Undressing Minds For Show]Andy Stone - 02 Please Don't Go [blender]Kirk Adams - 03 This Means Everything [This Means Everything]Jamie Notarthomas - Under Regret [Heads Or Tales] (@Soulamander Productions)Lisa Mychols Music - 11 Tonight It's You [Never Surrender -  A Tribute To Cheap Trick] (Zero Hour Records)Pop Co-Op - Flaws of Attraction (Futureman Records)The Pretty Things (Original Lineup) - Baron Saturday [S.F. Sorrow]SoulBird - The Music Authority JingleSpirit Kid - 01 Everything Is Old [Is Happening]@Dandy & Dawn Palmyra - 02. CollapseThe Mockers - 05 - Willoughby Station (demo)Three Hour Tour- Lonely Place [B Side Oblivion]@Pauls - Your Way [Songs We Learned In Sunday School] (Ice Cream Man Power Pop and More)Checkpoint Charley - 10 Lazy [Pomp, Twaddle And Bombast]Liars Club - 02 Penny Double [Evolution 9]Freedy Johnston - I Can Hear The Laugh [The Perfect World]

Rockin' The KOR Show 156 is a “Let's Mix It All Up Show”.  Why would I want to do that?  It is my show and I play what I like!  It is VARIETY, VARIETY, VARIETY!!  What's NOT to like?  Give A Listen!  Like, Download, Comment, Share, Repeat.  Lame-stream radio... Variety...I do not think they TRULY know the meaning of the word!  That's why I do what I do here...Rockin' the KOR!!  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast bringing Power Pop, Rock, Soul, Rhythm & Blues to anyone and everyone who wants to expand their rock and roll radio knowledge!  Shows NOW on Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, PlayerFM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, Pocket Cast, Apple iTunes Podcasts!!  Please! Follow me on Twitter JimPrell@TMusicAuthority  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast!    https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/    The Podcast can also be heard here - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   Radio Candy Radio Mon, Wed, Fri 7 PM ET, 4PM PT.  Rocking The KOR!  www.koradio.rocks 7PM UK, 2PM ET, 11AM PT Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday!  Also, Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday!  Research and reach out to the bands let them know you heard me playing their songs! Rockin'  The KOR Show 156!!  SUPER 8 Music - Music-Authority-ThemeAthensville - The Mentalist [Undressing Minds For Show]Andy Stone - 02 Please Don't Go [blender]Kirk Adams - 03 This Means Everything [This Means Everything]Jamie Notarthomas - Under Regret [Heads Or Tales] (@Soulamander Productions)Lisa Mychols Music - 11 Tonight It's You [Never Surrender -  A Tribute To Cheap Trick] (Zero Hour Records)Pop Co-Op - Flaws of Attraction (Futureman Records)The Pretty Things (Original Lineup) - Baron Saturday [S.F. Sorrow]SoulBird - The Music Authority JingleSpirit Kid - 01 Everything Is Old [Is Happening]@Dandy & Dawn Palmyra - 02. CollapseThe Mockers - 05 - Willoughby Station (demo)Three Hour Tour - Lonely Place [B Side Oblivion]@Pauls - Your Way [Songs We Learned In Sunday School] (@Ice Cream Man Power Pop And More)Checkpoint Charley - 10 Lazy [Pomp, Twaddle And Bombast]Liars Club - 02 Penny Double [Evolution 9]Freedy Johnston - I Can Hear The Laugh [The Perfect World]

Stef, Ed, and previous Song Divers guests perform covers by the late John Prine on the 1-year anniversary of his passing from Covid-19 during the height of the 2020 pandemic. We welcome back songwriters Andrew Duhon, Rebekah Pulley, Kirk Adams, Liam Bauman, Dean Johanesen, and Joshua Reilly doing some of their favorite Prine tunes. Stef and Ed also perform in this episode. They put together a cut of "Picture Show" with their band Mercy McCoy, feat. Emma Robinson, and Ed gives us a solo performance of "Far From Me." We miss you, John. Thank you for all the love and music you brought into the world. These are for you.

Share, Share, Share! FB destroyed SIX years of what the show The Music Authority had done. Blinked me out to the cornfield because someone somewhere didn't like me tagging my artists. Fascists? YUP! Back Wednesday Afternoon 1-4PM ET, 10AM -1PM PT! SURPRISE SONG Show!  Three hours of surprise gifts of audio art with the week's featured artists Ken Sharp, Tommy Ray, and Anton Barbeau! The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast...listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat daily on Listen Notes, Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes! AND NOW ON MORNINGS IN CANADA!  https://s1.citrus3.com:2000/public/HCRRadio Hamilton Co-Op Radio! Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority! Are you listening? How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...Listen LIVE here - https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/ Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast!   Radio Candy Radio Monday Wednesday, & Friday 7PM ET, 4PM PT, Rockin' The KOR Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT  www.koradio.rocks  Also, Pop Radio UK Friday, Saturday, & Sunday 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  March 9, 2021 Tuesday, set three…Brian Bringelson - 02_Talking Shadows [Burning Backwards] (koolkatmusik.com)Kirk Adams - 09 Two And A Half Minutes To Midnight [This Means Everything]Star Collector - Game Day [Game Day]Trip Wire - 08 Signs [Best Of Trip Wire] (Big Stir Records)Ken Sharp – Beating Heart [1301 Highland Avenue]The Boys With The Perpetual Nervousness - 02_Play (On My Mind) [Songs From Another Life] (koolkatmusik.com)Strawman &The Jackdaws - 3. Swallow [Fox]John Dunbar - 07_A Sentimental Heart And A Skeptical Mind [Oh Wellness] (koolkatmusik.com)Jim McHugh - 01 Dave [Pretending To Wake Up]Tommy Ray - 01 Ain't No Use [The First Hits Free]Loose Change - 1. Walking Through the Park [Fun Stuff]Sam Wickens - 07 Ravens & CrowsApache Rose - 08 Attention! [Attention!]Anton Barbeau - 04 Jingle Jangle [Kenny Vs. Thrust] (Big Stir Records)Bright Blue Gorilla - Annie [Bright Blue Gorilla - The Best Of...]Your Academy - 03_Sunrise [Your Academy]Sydney Sherwood - 05 Horizons Edge [Head Space]Gail George - Thank You [The Barrio Sessions w/Early Times]

In 1921 the American Foundation for the Blind was created to expand opportunities and access for people with vision loss. This week we're so lucky to have AFB President and CEO Dr. Kirk Adams joining us to talk about the history of the foundation, how they're celebrating their centennial and how they plan to use the next 100 years to expand opportunities for individuals who are blind and visually impaired.  For more information on the American Foundation for the Blind visit https://www.afb.org/. 

Join us for a special event with ACB President Dan Spoone, as he sits down for a fireside chat with leaders from across the blindness field, including Mark Richert, Interim Executive Director for the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER), Kirk Adams, President & CEO of American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), Craig Meador, President of the American Printing House for the Blind (APH), Don Overton, Executive Director of Blinded Veterans Association (BVA), Mark Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), and Lee Nasehi, President & CEO of VisionServe Alliance.

Tuesday AFTERNOON Show 2-5PM ET, 11AM – 2PM PT!  Surpises In Sound, Surprises In Song, Surprises In Music!  The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast...listen, like, comment, download, share, repeat daily on Google Podcast Manager, Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, and APPLE iTunes! AND NOW ON MORNINGS IN CANADA!  https://s1.citrus3.com:2000/public/HCRRadio Hamilton Co-Op Radio! Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority! Are you listening? How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...Listen LIVE here - https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/ Podcast - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/   The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast! Please check out my shows special recorded hour, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT Now Rocking The KOR! www.koradio.rocks ALSO! Hear a completely different recorded hour of Power Pop, Rock, Soul, Rhythm & Blues...NO TWO LIVE SHOWS THE SAME, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday on Pop Radio UK 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT!  February 8,2021 Monday, “Album Tracks APlenty” Show, hour three…Kirk Adams - 03 This Means Everything [This Means Everything]Star Collector - The Silent Type [Game Day]The Boys With The Perpetual Nervousness - 07_Waking Up In The Sunshine [Songs From Another Life] (koolkatmusik.com)SFB - 01 Never Again-Cyclone [Loud, Fast Rules Is Our Salvation – LIVE @ Funk N Waffles Downtown Syracuse, New York]Bright Blue Gorilla - And the Radio Played [Bright Blue Gorilla - The Best Of...]John Dunbar - 08_Maybe May Be My Favorite Word [Oh Wellness] (koolkatmusik.com)Jim McHugh - 02 Everything's CoolThe 905s - 10 - Down At The Local [Sub Zero]Apache Rose - 10 Some Kind of Love [Attention!]Your Academy - 09_Our Love Matters (TCB) [Your Academy]Loose Change - 7. Keep Your Hands to Yourself [Fun Stuff]The Fiction - 08 Mess Of Me [Ramona]Sam Wickens - Watson Part 2 [Watson - EP]Sydney Sherwood - 01 Wolves [Head Space]David Woodard - Applebee's [Grand Scheme Of Things]Michael Carpenter & The Cuban Heels - 12 Thank You [Ain't Nothing Left To Say]

In this episode, you’ll learn about what it was like growing up as a child who happened to be blind, his life’s journey and his trials and tribulations along the way. Dr. Adams shares how he adapted and overcame obstacles to achieve success and what led to his becoming one of the standout leaders in the disability community. Kirk also discusses his plan for the future of the AFB and what lies ahead for its next 100 years.

Arizona Republican leaders such as Gov. Doug Ducey and Chair Kelli Ward had opposing reactions to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.  Ducey initially condemned the riots on Twitter and then again addressed it in Monday's State of the State address. "In the United States of America, violence and vandalism have no place in the people's house. Perpetrators should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Let us condemn it and resolve that it never happens again," said Ducey.  On the day of the attack, Ward attended a Protect the Vote rally, where she continued to question the validity of the election results.  The riots at the U.S. Capitol highlight a growing fissure within the party. It's at a crossroads, caught between moderate and extremists. With Ward likely to maintain power, the tone for the party is being set by the far-right. Is it possible for moderates to regain control? In this week's episode of The Gaggle: An Arizona politics podcast, hosts Yvonne Wingett Sanchez and Ronald J. Hansen speak with Kirk Adams. Adams is a former Republican member of the Arizona House of Representatives. He also served as the chief of staff for Ducey from 2014 to 2018.  Listen now to hear as Adams breaks down how the Arizona GOP save itself from the extremist elements. 

This week on the ACB Advocacy Update, Claire Stanley and Clark Rachfal speak with Kirk Adams, the CEO and President of the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), about the “Flattening the Inaccessibility Curve” research project. The study, which can be found at https://flatteninaccessibility.com, explores the experiences of adults who are blind or have low vision during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey covered areas of healthcare, transportation, employment, education, social experiences, access to meals, food, supplies, and voting.

Sheer Heart Attack from Queen is re-visited.New Music from:The Pearl HartsTight WhipsKirk Adams

Morning sun, afternoon rain with a chance of thunderstorms. Summer in Florida! I think I'll stay awhile longer. Back is better on day one after the injections into the spine. Took till day 4 the last time in May before I felt any improvement, so this is already better, as I walked for 2 hours straight this morning. An HOUR was all I could tolerate back in May! Progress? I think so! I'll keep you informed as the days go bye. The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast...recorded and on Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, APPLE iTunes, AND Google Play Music! AND NOW ON MORNINGS IN CANADA! https://s1.citrus3.com:2000/public/HCRRadio Hamilton Co-Op Radio! Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority! Are you listening? How does and can one listen in? Let me list the ways...Listen LIVE here - https://fastcast4u.com/player/jamprell/ Podcast recorded here - https://themusicauthority.transistor.fm/ Take a moment and share this post! Share it! Share it!! Share It!!! SHARED! The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast! Please check out my shows special recorded hour, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 7PM UK time, 2PM ET, 11AM PT Now Rocking The KOR! www.koradio.rocks ALSO! Hear a completely different recorded hour of Power Pop, Rock, Soul, Rhythm & Blues...NO TWO LIVE SHOWS THE SAME, Friday, Saturday and Sunday on Pop Radio UK 6PM UK, 1PM ET, 10AM PT! July 29, 2020, Wednesday, chapter one…Orbis Max - TMA SHOW OPEN THEMEThe Cynz – He's The OneNolan Voide - Surfing To Jamaica [Gnarley Wave Volume 1] (Bongo Boy Records)Squire - It's A Mod Mod WorldRAF Mod Band - 102 - Split Town [Ice Creams & Daydreams] (Ice Cream Man Power And More)Richard Turgeon - 01 The One the Got Away [Go Deep] (koolkatmusik.com)Kirk Adams - 07 Love's Looking For You [After Hours]Sugar Snow - 74 - Chocolate Cake [Ice Creams & Daydreams](Ice Cream Man Power Pop And More)The Golden Rail - B5 The Sky Is Always Blue [Sometimes When] (You Are The Cosmos)Mark McCrite - 02 The Truth [Getting to the Point](Futureman Records)The Dead Ducks - Summer In the SuburbsThe Rallies - Up To You [Upside Down]Jay Allen and the Archcriminals - 05 Chopped Liver [Fun Is Fun, The Trilogy Is Done] (Rum Bar Records)Tom Curless & the 46% - 10 Miles to Go [Almost Ready For The Future](Futureman Records)Jaimie Vernon - 09 Time (The Paradox Loop) [Mirror Image- Someone Else's Greatest Hits] (Bullseye Records Of Canada)The Weeklings - I Got The Love [3] (Jem Records)King Salami & The Cumberland 3 - The Jellybutt of Timbuktu [Kiss My Ring](Damaged Goods Records)No Parking for Caravans - Indian Skies [Let It Be Real Disc 2]The Kite Collectors - 11_A Form Of Hello [Never Look Down]Grand Drifter - 10 Untitled Waltz [Lost Spring Songs]Mr. Magoo – In The Name Of The Father [Hidden Port](Clifford Records)

Why is it I buy strawberries and in less than 36 hours the get soft, mushy, and moldy? Is it just me? Yes,, I try to buy them at just pre-ripe...and then MUSH! Is there a strawberry secret to make them last that I am unaware of? Hour two was wicked cool...it was! The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast...recorded and on Mixcloud, Player FM, Stitcher, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, APPLE iTunes, AND Google Play Music! AND NOW ON MORNINGS IN CANADA! https://s1.citrus3.com:2000/public/HCRRadio Hamilton Co-Op Radio! Follow the show on TWITTER JimPrell@TMusicAuthority! Are you listening?   May 13, 2020, Wednesday, second set…The Boys - Punk Rock GirlMikeViola - God Give Me Strength [Beyond Belief] (SpyderPop Records)@Lolas - Something Wild [Sweet Relief 4]Kirk Adams - 03 Undertone [Undertown]Michael Simmons - 04 No More Girls [First Days Of Summer] (Big Stir Records)Punk Rock TreeHouse – Manifesto@The Turnback - 55 Unloading an Empty GunNo Parking For Caravans - Recurring Dream [Let it be real disc 2]John Howard - Take It All Away [Storeys]The Click Beetles - Glad [Wake Up To Music]Open Sound - TMA PromoOpen Sound - Free As I Can Be [Open Sound]Datura4 - 03_Mother Medusa [West Coast Highway Cosmic]Kai Danzberg with David Myhr - 32 Nothing In My Head [Screwballs and Curveballs] (Ice Cream Man Power Pop and More)Adam Norsworthy - Singer/Songwriter - I_d Rather Spend My Time With You [Rainbird]SundaySong - 02-Hope [Signals]The Successful Failures - Hit The Ground Running [Captains Of War Captains Of Industry]Tommy Ray - 03 Good Luv Gone South [The First Hits Free]

Conferences are a huge part of the blindness and visual impairment field. They're about more than just attending sessions, they’re also were we learn about new products, and where we partner with other companies to continue to push the boundaries of our field.To talk about how we can stay connected, and make the most out of virtual conferences, APH President, Craig Meador, leads a roundtable discussion with three change makers who have, or are planning to host virtual events.Guests: Dr. Kirk Adams, President and CEO of AFB, a private non profit that uses research and evidence to effect system change that creates a world of no limits for people who are blind.Dr. Amy Parker, an assistant professor and coordinator at Portland State University where she is engaged in community development and nurturing.Sergio Oliva, the Associate Vice President of national and youth programs at the Braille Institute. He oversees Cane Quest and the Braille Challenge.

We talk about blindness education, employment of people who are visually impaired, and digital resources during COIVD-19. We are joined by the American Foundation for the Blind President and CEO, Kirk Adams to hear what AFB is doing to provide support to the blindness field with their digital leadership conference. "[during trying times]... get centered on your values and set a daily intention around living your values. Our values are learning, collaboration, innovation, and excellence...and you don't do any of these things by yourself. " - Kirk Adams AFB COVID-19 Resources: bit.ly/afbcovid AFB virtual Leadership Conference: bit.ly/virtualafblc Have a topic you want to hear or discuss? Share your voice by sending us a request at info@visionservealliance.org. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/visionserve-alliance/message

We are excited to have a repeat guest: Golf Digest Top 50 Golf-Fitness Trainer Kirk Adams.This time though, Kirk and Justin talk about how to stay fit and get ready for golf season (when it comes) during the COVID pandemic. Kirk shares his training program for golfers than can be done from the comfort of your own home and ensure that you're ready to get back out on the course!If you have any questions, you can contact Kirk directly at coachkda110@gmail.comYou can follow Kirk on Instagram at @kirkadamsgolf and check out the Ben Shear Golf at bensheargolf.com Check out the exercises from Kirk on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSNSRM1uN3k&list=PLsVmjZOBYh_rCVGxS6J0ODrykoOQVJTHF

In this episode, Heather Younger speaks to Kirk Adams, President and CEO of American Foundation for the Blind about his unique journey as a blind person for most of his life, how that frames his leadership style and a time when he was not the best version of himself. In a time like today with the coronavirus taking us by storm, Kirk provides an uplifting lesson on how we can move past adversity and shine as leaders. Key takeaways: Learn from others via podcasts, books, biographies Be an inclusive leader and don’t make decisions in a vacuum. Make sure your values align

On Episode 36 of the Fitness for the Fairways podcast presented by Golficity, we sat down with Kirk Adams, the head of fitness at Ben Shear Golf. THE HEAD OF FITNESS AT BEN SHEAR GOLF. KIRK SAT DOWN WITH ME TO DISCUSS LONGEVITY, INJURY REDUCTION, AND JUNIOR GOLF.Kirk sat down with me to discuss longevity, injury reduction, and junior golf.If you're enjoying the show, please don't forget to leave us a review on iTunes. The more reviews we have, the more opportunity we'll have to expand our reach and improve the quality of Fitness for the Fairways over time! Connect with KirkTwitter: https://twitter.com/kirkadamsgolf?lang=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/kirkadamsgolf/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kirkadamsgolf/?hl=enwww.bensheargolf.comCheck out the Par Four Performance Remote Kinstretch Program to help take your golf mobility to the next level.programs.parfourperformance.com/kinstretch

If you're a golfer, we've got another one for you.The 30th episode of the Stay Healthy New Jersey Podcast features Justin's good friend Kirk Adams. Kirk was ranked in the top 50 Golf-Fitness Trainers by Golf Digest and is the head of Ben Shear Golf, as well as Athletic Edge within Ben Shear Golf. In this podcast, Kirk talks about going from training Division I golfers to his players at Ben Shear Golf, as well as the strength and mobility golfers need to be successful, the difference between professionals and amateurs, and much more.Kirk can be found on instagram at @kirkadamsgolf 

I've added Iodine, selenium and ginger juice to my daily regiment of trying to quell my pain... Since I missed the Iodine yesterday, and the pain picked back up...coincidence maybe? No coincidence that there was just another full hour of Power Pop, Rock, Soul, Rhythm & Blues! The Music Authority LIVE STREAM Show & Podcast...recorded and on Spotify, Tune In, Podcast Addict, Cast Box, Radio Public, and Pocket Cast, APPLE iTunes, AND Google Play Music! Follow the show on TWITTER @TMAuthority! Are you listening?  February 12, 2020, Wednesday, two thirds…Kris Rodgers & The Dirty Gems - Headlines [HEADLINES]@Adam Schmitt - World So Bright [World So Bright]The Damnwells - None Of those Things@The Sleeves - I Feel AliveThe Poppees - 16 - Bad To You Good To Me [Pop Goes The Anthology - Live At Cozy Corner] (@Bomp!)Kirk Adams - 08 Flying Cars [UNDERTOWN]Whitney Road - Getting Harder Every Day [The Road Always Changes]@Charles Jenkins and the Zhivagos - 17 - Horatio Hornblower [Shake Yer Popboomerang Volume 3] (Popboomerang Records)Amoeba Teen - 02 Babycakes [Medium Wave] (Big Stir Records)Fabienne Delsol - When I Awake [Four] (Damaged Goods Records)The Well Wishers - Build A Life [The Lost Soundtrack]Maxi Dunn - Full CircleFallon Cush - 02 In Rome [Tell Me Once]@FARRINGTON - Stones [Pictures Of Pretty Things]Kai Danzberg - 01. Diva Eyes (ft. Drake Bell)Grand Drifter - 12 A Lost Spring Songs [Lost Spring Songs]Mind Motel - 04 The Boy Who Played Tambourine [Visions]Jamie Hoover Music - 03 - Repo Man [For The Record - A Tribute To John Wicks] (koolkatmusik.com)

In this episode of the BenShearGolf Podcast, Ben Shear (Director of Performance at BSG and Fitness Advisor to Golf Digest) talks about college golf with former Penn State University Strength & Conditioning Coach and Golf Digest Top 50 Golf-Fitness Trainer, Kirk Adams. Together, they discuss what to expect as a collegiate golfer. 

In the latest episode of “Organize Your Butterflies,” YWCA USA CEO Alejandra Y. Castillo chats with Cecile Richards, a co-founder of Supermajority, a New York Times bestselling author for her book Make Trouble, and the former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund. Cecile began her career as a labor organizer prior to starting her own grassroots organization and later served as Deputy Chief of Staff to House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. In 2011 and 2012, she was named one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World. She is a frequent speaker and commentator on politics and progressive issues. She and her husband, Kirk Adams, have three children and live in New York City and Maine. Richards discusses how her parents inspired her to pursue a life of service to and on behalf of others and how Supermajority came to fruition to be a movement where women can mobilize on the moment and take-action on important issues. Additional topics include how there is a commonality among women across the United States, how women are supporting women, and what taking action in communities actually looks like in practice. For more information, please visit supermajority.com and follow them on Twitter @supermajority and Instagram @supermajority, and follow Cecile on Twitter @CecileRichards and on Instagram @cecilerichards. YWCA Hartford Region is spotlighted on this episode of Organize Your Butterflies. Alejandra chats with YWCA Hartford Region CEO Adrienne Cochrane on the great work that they’re doing to provide resources for their community, and all the ways that you can help support!  To stay up to date on what’s happening at YWCA Hartford Region, be sure to follow them on Instagram @ywcahartford. For more updates on all YWCA happenings, follow us on Twitter @YWCAUSA and on Instagram @ywcausa!

Kirk Adams has made a name for himself with audiences and critics across the country. A longtime staple of the Tampa Bay music scene, Kirk's songs are packed with doom & gloom, chiming guitars, and catchy hooks. His writing writing can be touching, funny, thought provoking, spooky, and sometimes all of that in the same song. Kirk has developed a writing style and commentary that present almost like stories and contemplations from a noir-style Sci-Fi private investigator novel, observing and moving among his fellow night owls, performers, and artists. Wielding his trusty strat, shades, and pork-pie hat, Kirk's writing shows us ourselves in an honest light through tunes born of his own chase for DIY therapy and self-understanding.

Kirk Adams is the President and CEO of The American Foundation for the Blind whose mission is to create a world of no limits for people who are blind or visually impaired.  AFB mobilizes leaders, advance understanding, and champion impactful policies and practices using research and data.  Kirk joins Mark to discuss the vital existence of AFB, who they serve and how it’s changing perceptions and creating career opportunities for job seekers with vision loss with companies including Google, Microsoft and more. Kirk’s journey lead him to ultimately become a pioneer in the non-profit industry where he is dedicated to creating a world unlike his own when he completed college cum laude he was unable to attain a job due to his blindness.  After a slight reinvention (and a decade of finance employment), Kirk found himself on a path he was destined for where he and blazes trails, establishes relationships and educates the private sector and more so persons with vision loss can simply have the opportunity to fairly succeed.  Learn more at www.afb.org      Have Mark speak at your company, organization, conference and retreat to increase morale, productivity, confidence and more.  Mark also has riveting talks for students k-12 and college on overcoming adversity, anti-bullying/anti-teasing, mental health, drugs/alcohol, celebrating differences, self-entitlement, senior send-off and more.  All of Mark’s talks are from his vast life experience.  Reviews, videos, booking info and more at: www.markfarrellmotivation.com Email: mark@markfarrellmotivation.com   “ “Mark’s willingness to use his disability to uplift others is both generous and remarkable.  His message resonates with all of us who have worked hard to overcome life’s adversities.  If you’re looking for a podium speaker, look elsewhere.  Mark stays on the move and keeps the audience engaged.  Thank you, Mark”   Johnny Callebs KAPP Executive Director   “Mark Farrell is a dynamic speaker who will captivate the audience by sharing his personal story of how he was able to overcome challenges in life and worked his way to success.  We scheduled Mark for 45 minutes, but our students were so engaged in his story that Mark spoke for over 1 hour.  I still have students approach me and discuss Mark's message and say, "if he could do it, so can I”   Christine Crielly School Counselor Holland Brook School NJ   “Mark invigorated our conference! His genuine enthusiasm and professionalism, combined with an amazing topic, made for a marvelous presentation”   Catharine Leahy - Speakers Chair Princeton University  

Kirk Adams, American Foundation for the Blind's President and CEO, joins the program to discuss how they are expanding possibilities for people with vision loss. He reveals the shift away from a medical model of serving people who are blind and vision impaired, and how their efforts fit into the larger conversation about inclusion in the workforce. Discover the benefits of developing a diverse talent pool. 

Tariffs on certain Chinese goods were scheduled to increase from 10% to 25% on March 1. That increase was blocked by the Trump Administration, but the current tariff rate is having an impact on Idaho's family businesses. We look at the scope of that impact with Kirk Adams, a member of the Idaho District Export Council, Jos Zamzow, co-CEO of Zamzows and Melanie Krause, a vintner with Cinder Wines.

In this episode, I sit down with Kirk Adams, Director of Fitness at Golf & Body NYC. We discuss how he got started in golf specific training, how someone can assess their abilities, and how someone can build upon fundamental moves to get stronger and improve their golf swings. Kirk takes me through various lower body, push, pull, and core moves for beginners and more advanced folks. Add them to your routines and let us know how it goes!

We welcome Kirk Adams (Golf & Body NYC, Strength Faction, RKC) to ep54! Find out how Kirk and I were cursed by Cabbage Patch Kids, the strength needs of golfers, the impact of Strength Faction, the loss of Burt Reynolds and more on the Coach Fury Podcast. Visit golfbodynyc.com, instagram.com/kirkadamsgolf and facebook.com/kda110 to learn more or to train with Kirk. Want to train or course with Fury? Head over to www.coachfury.com to get the heads up on all things Die Mighty! Do you love this show and want to express it? You can make a small financial donation by becoming a Patron at www.patreon.com/coachfurypodcast. I am grateful for your support! Please subscribe, rate and review. Live long. Be strong. Die mighty! -Fury

New microphone paired with a great guest in Kirk Adams makes this episode of the 3 Things Podcast pure fire. Kirk Adams is the Director of Fitness at Golf and Body based out of Manhattan. Kirk oversee's the performance side to what they do with their 200 members and gives some great insight in this episode to what golfers need to focus on, some up and coming technology that they are using at Golf and Body, and Kirk talks about his past experience at Penn State. This is a great episode and Kirk drops some awesome nuggets. To learn more about Kirk you can go to www.GolfBodyNYC.com or check him out on Instagram or Twitter @KirkAdamsGolf. For more 3 Things content check out www.CoachCaseyLee.com!

[smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/18strong/174__174__Kirk_Adams___Winterize_Your_Golf_Body.mp3" title="174: Winterize Your Golf Body" artist="18STRONG: Kirk Adams" background="default" social_linkedin="true" social_pinterest="true" social_email="true" ] Kirk Adams has more than 15 years of experience working with collegiate, professional, and Olympic athletes in more than 30 men's and women’s sports.  He works with a number of professional golfers on the Web.com and eGolf Tours and he joins us today to talk about how to “winterize” your body for a better golf game this year. The post 174: Kirk Adams | Winterize Your Golf Body appeared first on 18STRONG.

In this Spotlight Interview, James Oates sits down with Kirk Adams, the president and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind to discuss the mission of the AFB and the most pressing issues that blind people face in the 21st century. Helpful Resources AFB Website AFB’s Career Connect Page AFB’s Access World Publication AFB Press AFB’s Family Connect Page AFB’s Vision Aware Page AFB’s Publication, “College Bound” Learning Ally Cogswell Macy Act The American Council of the Blind The National Federation of the Blind

In this Spotlight Interview, James Oates sits down with Kirk Adams, the president and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind to discuss the mission of the AFB and the most pressing issues that blind people face in the 21st century. Helpful Resources AFB Website AFB’s Career Connect Page AFB’s Access World Publication AFB Press AFB’s Family Connect Page AFB’s Vision Aware Page AFB’s Publication, “College Bound” Learning Ally Cogswell Macy Act The American Council of the Blind The National Federation of the Blind

In this Spotlight Interview, James Oates sits down with Kirk Adams, the president and CEO of the American Foundation for the Blind to discuss the mission of the AFB and the most pressing issues that blind people face in the 21st century. Helpful Resources AFB Website AFB’s Career Connect Page AFB’s Access World Publication AFB Press AFB’s Family Connect Page AFB’s Vision Aware Page AFB’s Publication, “College Bound” Learning Ally Cogswell Macy Act The American Council of the Blind The National Federation of the Blind

Kirk Adams on AFB, Aira, Team Sea To See and Transitioning To College Kirk Adams sits down with the Blind Abilities team members Pete Lane and Jeff Thompson for this informative podcast on the American Foundation for the Blind. Kirk talks about the history and some of the latest happenings at AFB and the resources available to all students, teachers, TVI’s and parents. You can find a multiple of categories of articles ranging in topics from Transitioning to college,Life skills, Work Preparedness, Access Technology, Parents of Blind Children and much more.  You can find out about the apps available from AFB that put the information in the palm of your hand. Kirk also mentions the AFB Leadership Conference coming up on April 5-7 2018 in Oakland, California. Where AFB brings together all the entities around Blindness can be part of the conversation. Check out AFB.org on the web and download their apps so you can stay in touch with the latest happenings and information available from the American Foundation for the Blind. Check out the Apps below! Access World: This is the official app of the American Foundation for the Blind's online publication AccessWorld. AccessWorld is an online magazine dedicated to technology and people with vision loss This app has been optimized for iOS VoiceOver and Accessibility features. With this free app you can: • Browse and read articles from the latest issue of AccessWorld. • Browse and read any article in AccessWorld's entire archive of back issues. • Contact any member of the AccessWorld team.   AFB Career Connect: This is the official app of the American Foundation for the Blind's resource center AFB CareerConnect. AFB CareerConnect is a free online resource center specific to career exploration, job seeking skills, transition from school to work, e-mentoring, and navigating the employment process as a person who is blind or visually impaired. This app has been optimized for iOS VoiceOver and Accessibility features. With this free app you can: · Browse and utilize transition lesson plans from AFB CareerConnect · Browse and read “Our Stories,” firsthand accounts from AFB CareerConnect mentors · Browse and read blog posts from the CareerConnect Blog · Contact AFB and the AFB CareerConnect team  You can find out more about Aira on the Web at www.Aira.io You can follow and find out more about Team Sea To see on Facebook.   Thank you for listening. You can follow us on Twitter @BlindAbilities On the web at www.BlindAbilities.com Send us an email Get the Free Blind Abilities App on the App Store.

It's the thrilling conclusion of Episode 11: The Precarious Peril of the Public Parks! In the land rights utopia of Never-Ever-Federal Land, Chuck and Davey are quickly finding that it's more haunt than jaunt! Can they escape the dastardly roughrider Teddy Roosevelt before the National Parks system extends its icy grip around the neck of freedom? Written By and Starring: Gary Pascal, Brad Einstein, Charles Pettitt, Shannon Noll, Libby Schreiner, Tom Fell, and Sean Sullivan Music and Sound Design by: Chris Yearwood

Chuck and Davey are trapped in time-out, dreaming of the ungoverned land rights that continue to elude them. But when they heed the beckoning call of a mysterious trickster, our heroes are about to get a whole lot more than they bargained for! Written By and Starring: Gary Pascal, Brad Einstein, Charles Pettitt, Shannon Noll, Libby Schreiner, Tom Fell, and Sean Sullivan Music and Sound Design by: Chris Yearwood Want Even More Koch? We bet you do! Be sure to subscribe to and review The Koch Brothers Mystery Show on iTunes, follow us on Twitter @KochBrosMystery, and like us on Facebook at facebook.com/kochbrothersmysteryshow. You can also find episodes, extras, and news at kochbrothersmysteryshow.com. Self-promotion awayyyy!

Today's show is dedicated to Staff Sergeant Marc A. Arizmendez, 30, of Gilbert, Arizona. Killed July 6, 2010, in Qalat, Afghanistan, of wounds from an IED. SSgt Arizmendez was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment,  out of Hohenfels, Germany. Also killed in the action were: Specialist Roger Lee, 26, of Monterey, CA & PFC. Michael S. Pridham, 19, of Louisville, KY Kirk Adams is candidate for the U.S. House in Arizona's 5th Congressional District and is endorsed by Sarah Palin.  He is A business owner and a husband as well as father of 5 children. Kirk is tired of RINO's.  www.kirkadams2012.com Cameron Tilbury of  www.maplestarmusicmedia.com is a publicist and manager who despite the world of artists is a conservative. Rare, but true. Listen is as he talks about walking the fine line without forsaking his values. Call in ask Kirk or Cameron a question at 917-889-3675 or join us in the chat room. You never know what we'll talk about & it's always fun!   Obamacare, Fast & Furious, NRA, Immigration, 2012 Election, Fed Reserve, Education, War on Terror, Military & Veterans and more