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The Veteran Saves Team brings you a special Veteran-focused mini-series to celebrate Veteran Saves Week, a four-day event encouraging veterans, transitioning service members, and their families or caregivers to do a financial check-in and gain a clear view of their finances. In this episode, Amelia and Krystel focus on the challenge of managing competing financial priorities. From creating an emergency fund to paying off debt and saving for retirement, this episode provides veterans and their families with step-by-step strategies to take control of their finances and build financial security. During the episode, we'll dive into... Introduction to Veteran Saves Week: Veteran Saves Week provides veterans with the tools and support they need to manage their finances with confidence. Each day highlights a different theme, offering guidance on topics like housing, debt, banking, and transitioning from military to civilian life. Today's Theme – Balancing Competing Financial Priorities: This episode is all about helping veterans balance various financial priorities, including saving for emergencies, paying down debt, and preparing for retirement, all while managing everyday expenses. Our goal is to make financial planning more manageable and less stressful for veterans, transitioning service members, and their families. Veteran Saves Program Overview: Veteran Saves supports veterans in achieving financial goals through resources, articles, videos, and reminders. Veterans can also take the Veteran Saves Pledge at VeteransSaves.org, which provides encouragement and guidance for reaching their savings goals. Save or Skip Segment: Scenario: What would you do if you received a $1,000 bonus? Would you put it toward retirement or use it to pay down debt? Takeaway: There's no right or wrong answer—it all depends on personal goals and financial priorities. Steps for Balancing Financial Priorities: Break Down Your Financial Goals: Think of your goals in three categories—short-term, mid-term, and long-term—to help clarify what's most important right now and in the future. Start with $500: Building a $500 emergency fund is a great starting point for financial security. Strategies include automating savings, setting aside portions of VA benefits, and using military discounts to save. Manage Debt Effectively: Consider the snowball or avalanche method to tackle debt in a way that fits your goals and keeps you motivated. Saving Flexibly: Remember, saving is a cyclical process, and it's okay to use your emergency fund when needed. Automatic transfers can help you build back your savings over time. Maximizing VA Benefits: VA benefits can be essential financial tools, offering resources for healthcare, education, and job training. Utilizing benefits like the GI Bill, vocational programs, and financial counseling services can help veterans advance their careers and financial stability without stretching their budgets. Aligning Financial Plans with Personal Values: Reflecting on your core values—such as community support, financial independence, or enjoying meaningful experiences—can help make your financial journey more rewarding and aligned with what truly matters to you. Links Mentioned in This Episode: Veteran Saves Pledge: VeteranSaves.Org/Pledge  Create a Spending and Savings Plan: https://veteransaves.org/resource-center/insights/6-steps-to-establishing-a-spending-and-savings-plan-for-veterans-and-transitioning-military-personnel/  Savings Plan On-Demand Workshop: https://youtu.be/m5ur5tt8JhA  Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Think Like a Saver! We hope you've gained valuable insights into balancing financial priorities and building financial security. Remember, with a solid plan and clear goals, it's possible to manage multiple financial priorities with confidence.

Parenting is different in all stages, but as our kids become teens, they are closer to being an adult. I am not an expert, but doing our best to let go, while also being there for them and guiding them makes all the difference in our relationship with them. We have to pay attention as to where we should be releasing our grip and just guiding, trusting, and supporting. Let us be the ones that always believe in our kids, let them spread their wings, and keep speaking life into them. Takeaway: There are times in life where we have to learn to let go, while still holding on. Challenge: See what you are trying to control right now, and how you can start letting go and trusting God.

Veteran Powered Films was the brainchild of accomplished actress and Navy Reservist Julia Ling. Julia has starred in over twenty independent films and is best known for her roles in the NBC series “Chuck”, “E.R.”, “Grey's Anatomy” and “House”. The mission of Veteran Powered Films is to empower Veterans and service members to create and tell their stories through film. 2016 was a rough year for Julia. She lost a couple of shipmates and knew several other Veterans who were struggling just like she was. Julia came to the conclusion that doing pushups to raise awareness of Veteran suicides was not sufficiently impactful. She and her partner Micah came up with the idea of helping Veterans get more involved in the film industry. Their first project was “Tango Down” and used Veterans both in front of and behind the camera. Hiram Murray is a Marine Corps Veteran who has also pursued a career in acting. He recently played a role in the film adaptation of Jack Carr's “The Terminal List”.  Hiram began his career in the television drama “Now and Again”. While attending film school, he worked with NYPD. When the 9/11 attacks occurred “in his back yard” he decided to enlist in the Marine Corps.   He was recruited by Julia to play a role in “Tango Down”.  He describes the support of other Veterans in the film industry as “One Team, One Fight”.  Julia adds that having some many Veterans working on a film project is advantageous because the crew automatically gels because of their shared military experience. Julia emphasizes the organization required for making a film is very similar to military structures.  “We all take pride in accomplishing the mission.” She adds that one of the most rewarding parts of this journey has been hearing from Veterans from all around the world telling her that Veteran Powered Films inspired them to make changes in their lives. Veteran Powered Films latest projects is a film called “Homestead”. TAKEAWAY:  “There is nothing special about me. If I can do it, you can do it too.”

With Sandra Ali, award-winning journalist and news anchor   One of the biggest challenges working women face is finding that delicate balance between a fulfilling home and family life and our demanding work schedule. Juggling the responsibilities of work and child care can feel overwhelming but it's equally important that we make time for ourselves to recharge our batteries with an active, enjoyable social life and supportive friends.   Sometimes, just to fit it all in, we have to make a few sacrifices. For example, it may mean attending an event but leaving early in order to fulfill another pre-existing obligation, or learning to creatively multi-task and find additional time in unexpected ways. One person who has mastered the art of the multi-task, is award-winning journalist and news anchor, Sandra Ali. Fitting in Zoom meetings or podcast interviews while waiting for her children in the school pick-up lane in her car is just one of the many ways Sandra makes the most out of her packed schedule. But even the most disciplined and organized among us may encounter the occasional speed bump. When that happens, it might be time to take a step back to re-assess the situation and consider alternative scenarios. Recognizing that a change is called for is only part of the solution. Knowing how and when to make that change can be just as challenging. Recently, Sandra found herself in that very situation. She realized that a change might be in order and she sat down with Florine to tell her how she decided it was the right time to make a change.   Be sure to tune in next week and listen to Florine's brand-new interview with Sandra Ali and hear all about her exciting lifestyle change and what life looks like today. In the meantime, please listen to Florine's initial interview with Sandra from February of 2022 as she talks about the challenges facing working mothers.   What You'll Hear in This Episode: Sandra talks about moving to Egypt as a child before returning to New York to go to school. What does Sandra remember about living in Egypt? Sandra talks about attending both NYU for musical theatre and Syracuse University for journalism. What made Sandra decide to get into journalism? What are some crazy or strange things that have happened to Sandra while on air? How does Sandra keep detached from a story that is highly emotional? How was it for Sandra to be in the public eye when she was pregnant? Sandra prioritizes spending quality time with her four children, even if it means sacrificing other activities like making beds or doing laundry. What does Sandra mean by learning to put herself first? Sandra leads by example by showing her kids what it looks like to eat healthy foods and take care of your body. How can we treat pregnant women better in our society?   Today's Takeaway: There are so many things we can learn from Sandra. She's a wonderful role model for women showing that even in the fast-paced, competitive world of broadcast TV news, it's possible to find a healthy, work-life balance. Sandra is candid about her own journey and shares how she learned to practice good self-care. As working mothers, it's so important to prioritize our own needs and learn to set healthy boundaries for ourselves. But what does that look like? Maybe it involves learning to say, “No” to the demands of others or setting aside that valuable “Me Time” to go for a run or yoga. Whatever it is that makes you feel better and gets your endorphins flowing enough to recharge your battery those precious few minutes can make all the difference. Instead of feeling exhausted or mentally drained, just giving ourselves that little break can help us regain the physical and emotional energy we need to be present at home or on the job. Remember that every single day is a gift and when we make ourselves a priority, we get stronger and everyone else around us benefits from that healthy example that we set. I'm Florine Mark, and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Quotes: “It's a cultural thing, that you have family members step in and help when you don't have anyone else.” — Sandra [5:41] “I fell in love with the theater. To me, it was magical, and it was like an escape, and I fell in love with everything about the theater.” — Sandra [8:04] “I fell in love with books and the written word, and I've always been that way.” — Sandra [9:08] “Ultimately, what wins is usually a surprise.” — Sandra [13:26] “I have a lot of mom friends who will watch something and call me immediately afterward and say, how did you sit through that?” — Sandra [14:09] “I know the most important thing that I had decided was that I have to let [my children] know how much I love them all of the time, no matter what.” — Florine [19:33] “It wasn't until I really started to prioritize the things that I needed that were non-negotiable that changed everything for me.” — Sandra [22:18]   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode: Sandra Ali Sandra Ali on Instagram  

What's up everyone, today we have the distinct honor of being joined by the Martech Landscape creator, the Author of Hacking Marketing, The Godfather of Martech himself, mister Scott Brinker.Summary: Scott sees AI as a power boost, not a replacement in marketing. He imagines marketers wielding AI to parse data and enhance specialist roles. AI's potential when combined with composability democratizes technical tool access, letting every marketer glean key insights from huge data. Yet, the human touch in martech is vital; marketing leaders need training and internalcommunication chops. Scott's future martech leaders are tech-savvy, eloquent communicators, guiding their teams through the constant evolution of the marketing landscape.About Scott Throughout his career, Scott's navigated seamlessly between the realms of marketing and technology He put his first entrepreneurial mark in the martech world when he Co-founded ion interactive, a martech SaaS providing interactive content tools for marketers In 2008, he began sharing industry insights on the Chief Marketing Technologist blog with the hope of serving as a resource to help spread the “marketing technology” meme A few years later, he released the first ever version of the Martech Landscape maps, back when there was only about 150 martech vendors  He launched the esteemed MarTech conference in 2014 and remains its program chair to this day Today he's VP of Platform Ecosystem at HubSpot where he enhances their synergy with the broader marketing tech landscape, a landscape that maps over 11,000 vendors today  He continues to be the acclaimed force behind chiefmartec.com, hailed universally as the martech world's ultimate wellspring of knowledge and insight How Marketing Jobs Will Be Reshaped by AIScott firmly places himself in the camp that views AI not as a threat to marketing jobs but as a crucial tool for the modern marketer. He holds a strong belief that good marketing requires human input, and this won't be changing anytime soon. Scott reframes the common adage, often heard in marketing circles, that a marketer's job won't be replaced by AI but by another marketer who is adept at using AI.As tongue-in-cheek as this phrase might be, Scott sees a lot of truth in it. He views AI as a broad set of capabilities that can be harnessed in various ways to enhance marketing. While the initial applications, such as content generation, are undoubtedly intriguing, the real potential of AI in marketing goes beyond these use cases.Scott argues that the power of AI lies in how it allows marketers to better harness data, and enables more sophisticated automation across the entire marketing spectrum. Particularly on the Martech side of things, Scott anticipates marketing operations leaders and Martech professionals leveraging generative AI to up-level their stack and operational capabilities.Rather than viewing AI as a potential replacement for their roles, Scott suggests that marketers should see AI as a key part of their job description. It won't take over all aspects of their work, but it will become a significant component of what they do.Takeaway: The future of AI in marketing is not about replacement but about enhancement. AI is set to become a vital tool that will empower marketers to up-level their operational capabilities and harness data more effectively. As Scott astutely points out, the job of a marketer won't be replaced by AI; instead, it will be reshaped by those marketers who can successfully integrate AI into their strategies.Early-Stage Marketers Should Choose a Focus Area Then Utilize AIAccording to Scott, marketing has always offered a myriad of different specialties and that, arguably, has been amplified over the past 10 to 15 years. Yes, there's a role for the 'jack-of-all-trades' or marketing generalist. Still, as Scott astutely notes, there are also several specialized roles that marketers can pursue, each requiring a unique set of skills. Whether it's hosting a podcast or being a master in content creation, each specialization requires dedication and unique abilities.In terms of marketing operations, Scott suggests that this is another area of marketing requiring a specialized skill set. For those new to marketing, the challenge then becomes deciding whether to become a generalist marketing manager or specialize in a specific area. Scott believes that the generalist path, while rewarding, can be quite challenging because of its broad scope. On the other hand, specializing in a particular area, like content creation or marketing operations, can provide a focus. This concentration, according to Scott, not only enables you to become proficient in a specific aspect but also allows you to learn generalist capabilities, given that marketing is inherently a team sport.Scott's advice for those looking to utilize AI tools in their early marketing career is to choose a focus area, then learn and grow from there. While the field of marketing may appear vast, narrowing your scope and honing in on a specific skill can provide a strong foundation from which to expand your knowledge and skills.Takeaway: For early-stage marketers, leveraging AI doesn't mean trying to master everything at once. Instead, it's about selecting a specialization within marketing, and honing your skills in that area. This approach, combined with a keenness to adopt AI tools, will equip them with a 'superpower' that keeps them ahead of the curve in an ever-evolving marketing landscape.Unleashing AI in Marketing with the Power of Composability Scott is particularly excited about the rapidly evolving concept of composability in the realm of marketing. This concept, at its core, revolves around the assembly of different elements—software, data, workflows, and steps—to achieve specific outcomes, much like putting together building blocks. Up until recently, composability was largely contained within the 'no-code' space, with a suite of tools allowing marketers to construct, analyze, and manipulate workflows across various apps and data sets.But the democratization of composability was somewhat limited. Scott noted that these no-code tools often necessitated a level of technological prowess akin to the 'power user,' those individuals comfortable with the complexities of Excel formulas and intricate app functions. This requirement often resulted in a smaller subset of marketers taking full advantage of these tools, leaving a significant amount of potential untapped.Enter the advent of AI interfaces and generative AI. Scott strongly believes that these technological advances are about to open up the world of composability to all marketers, effectively democratizing these previously restrictive functions. Scott particularly emphasizes the potential of AI in data analysis, marking it as a highly accessible and immediately beneficial application for marketers. In the current data-driven marketing landscape, organizations often grapple with vast amounts of data, making it challenging to find the right information and draw actionable insights promptly.The generative AI's capacity to serve as a tireless, personal data analyst is an exciting prospect. Unlike a human analyst who might get overwhelmed with constant inquiries, AI does not tire and can handle a myriad of questions without losing efficiency. This capability empowers marketers to interact with AI as if it were their personal analyst or data scientist.Marketers can ask the AI system a series of questions in a conversational manner, enabling them to quickly cut through the noise and extract the insights they need. This way, the AI system can assist in navigating the vast sea of data within the organization, simplifying data analysis processes, and, as a result, significantly enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of data-driven decision-making. This transition, according to Scott, will not only revolutionize how we interact with data but also how we automate workflows and inter-system tasks. While there's still progress to be made, promising examples are already emerging, like the execution engine in HubSpot's Chatbot and innovative use cases from Zapier. These developments foreshadow a future where AI will function as a powerful IT assistant, readily carrying out complex tasks across different systems on command.Takeaway: The advent of AI and the concept of composability herald an exciting new era for the marketing industry. It promises to dramatically democratize access to advanced tools and capabilities, enabling marketers at all levels of technical proficiency to extract unprecedented value from their work. A significant application of this lies in data analysis, where AI can act as an indefatigable personal analyst. Marketers can interrogate these systems in a conversational manner to efficiently cut through vast amounts of data and extract essential insights for strategic decision-making. This capability holds immense potential to boost efficiency, spur innovation, and fuel growth in the marketing landscape, completely redefining the way we approach and understand marketing.AI Shifts Marketing Towards Orchestration, Not SubstitutionScott brings a fascinating perspective when it comes to understanding the role of AI in marketing teams, and in particular, he suggests that it's not as clear-cut as many might expect. This isn't a story about machines replacing humans. Instead, it's a story about transformation and adaptation, about finding ways to harness the power of AI to tackle routine tasks, leaving marketers with more time to address the more complex aspects of their roles.This perspective sits between two contrasting viewpoints about AI's impact. One camp warns about the job losses AI could cause by taking over tasks traditionally performed by humans. The other camp counters that notion with the lump of labor fallacy argument, suggesting that work isn't a fixed pie. As AI automates certain tasks, new, more complex tasks arise that we previously didn't have the time or resources to tackle.Scott leans towards the latter perspective but with a twist. His concern lies not in the potential job loss but rather in the speed at which AI could cause shifts in the roles and responsibilities within marketing teams. He believes that the swift advancement of AI presents an uncharted territory that could change the dynamic of what humans do at a rate faster than we've ever experienced before.However, he doesn't see AI replacing marketing altogether. Scott is a firm believer in the human ability to understand context and continuity, qualities that he sees as central to marketing and that AI, at least for now, is not equipped to fully grasp. While AI can perform tasks within a certain context window, human marketers are still far better at seeing the broader narrative, stitching together various pieces of a complex marketing landscape.In Scott's view, as AI accelerates and handles a growing number of tasks, the demand for orchestrating these capabilities and providing context will increase. This shift might create a unique role for marketers as orchestrators of this AI-powered symphony, managing and directing AI capabilities within a broader, contextual marketing strategy.Takeaway: Far from replacing marketers, AI might empower them to take on new, more complex roles. As AI handles more tasks, the role of marketers could transform from task-doers to orchestrators, responsible for contextualizing and directing AI's efforts within a broader strategy. This shift might demand a new skill set from marketers, opening up unexplored possibilities in the marketing field.Navigating the Intersection of Warehouse Native Martech and Operational DatabasesScott's reflections on the growing interest in "warehouse native martech" laid bare the benefits and challenges of this emerging trend. The idea of pooling all company data into a single warehouse is undoubtedly appealing. It offers the potential to access this aggregated data across diverse applications, making analysis and decision-making more comprehensive.Yet, Scott drew attention to the complications of this approach. While data warehouses house a wealth of information, the sheer volume and variety of data they hold can lead to daunting challenges. One of these is the lack of inherent data rationalization. Data coming in from different sources don't always align, leading to discrepancies and confusion. This requires additional layers to rationalize and give context to the data - a function that individual martech products are often designed to provide.Performance issues further complicate the shift towards warehouse native systems. Scott acknowledged that although the speed of read-write data in warehouses has improved, there's still a long way to go. User experiences and web interactions often hinge on millisecond performance differences. This requirement renders operational databases, which can be fine-tuned for specific engagements, invaluable. Scott's views suggest that although the martech industry is moving towards a universal data layer, this won't necessarily lead to the eradication of localized, context-specific databases. These continue to have a critical role in catering to real-time, performance-driven requirements.Scott also touched on another aspect – the potential problems in coordination across different systems of truth. He referred to a situation where a CMO argued against integrations between marketing automation and CRM. This situation illustrates that while seamless data flow across an organization might sound ideal in theory, it can lead to unintended consequences in practice.Takeaway: While the rise of data warehouses is undeniable, it doesn't spell the end for localized databases. As the industry continues to evolve, there will be ongoing exploration and experimentation to determine the best strategies for data management. Ultimately, the most successful solutions will likely involve a blend of warehouse native tools and dedicated operational databases.The Overlooked Innovations of the Mid-Sized BusinessWhen Scott was asked about the future of Martech applications in small and medium businesses (SMBs), he provided an illuminating perspective that diverges from the common narrative. The discussion often polarizes into two distinct ends of the business spectrum - very small companies with fewer than 20 people and colossal enterprises with thousands of employees. However, the reality of the global business landscape lies somewhere in between these two extremes.Scott emphasized the critical and often overlooked role of medium-sized businesses, the "M" in SMB. These are companies with dozens or hundreds of employees, bridging the gap between the small enterprises and the multinational corporations. Contrary to common perception, the use cases within these organizations are substantially more complex than smaller companies. Moreover, they possess more resources, allowing them to apply both human resource and capital to foster innovation.Interestingly, these mid-sized businesses strive to balance the stability and strength of larger enterprises while retaining the agility and innovation that typically characterizes smaller companies. The willingness to embrace emerging technologies, new capabilities, and to instigate change is more pronounced here, perhaps due to the lesser extent of legacy technologies, processes, and politics that can hamper such endeavors in larger companies.The alignment between the buyers in these mid-sized businesses and the continually innovating range of Martech vendors, is in fact, a sweet spot. They are nimble enough to adapt to new technologies and have the resources to implement them, offering a fertile ground for innovation. Scott's perspective paints a compelling image - we can expect to see a significant wave of innovative developments happening in this often overlooked 'M' segment, perhaps even faster than elsewhere.Takeaway: Medium-sized businesses, often overlooked in Martech discussions, are potentially a hotbed for innovation. Their unique position enables them to leverage the agility of smaller companies and the resources of larger ones, setting the stage for rapid adoption and development of new Martech solutions.Martech Careers in SMBs vs Large CorporationsWhen Scott was asked about early-career marketers and their approach to adopting technology, he painted a vivid picture of the landscape. He advocated for both paths: starting at a small to medium-sized business (SMB) to gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge technologies or delving into the complex structure of a large corporation to develop organizational skills.Scott highlighted the dichotomy that exists in the marketing world. On one side, there's the thrill of a smaller setting, an SMB, where marketers can swiftly run experiments with emerging technologies. The nimbleness of an SMB environment allows one to innovate and play with the newest tools without being encumbered by the usual organizational and political hurdles.On the flip side, Scott emphasized the value in honing skills in a larger corporate setting, albeit laden with more technical debt and legacy tools. The true talent lies in navigating the breadth of a company's tech strategy, building strategic alliances, and effectively collaborating with vast IT teams. As Scott pointed out, those who excel at this often find themselves highly valued.However, Scott stressed that each path had its unique set of challenges and benefits. An SMB may offer the opportunity to quickly adopt and experiment with new technologies, but it might not provide the same level of organizational skill development that a larger company would.Takeaway: There's no 'one-size-fits-all' route in marketing technology adoption. While SMBs offer a playground for rapid technological experimentation, larger corporations cultivate indispensable organizational skills. The choice lies in what skills one wishes to prioritize early in their career.Remembering the Humans in MartechWhen Scott was asked about the implications of an over-reliance on technology in marketing, he illuminated an enduring conundrum. Scott expressed that the most enduring problem in martech is indeed our chronic over-reliance on technology at the expense of the human element. He cited an often-heard grievance in the industry: underutilization of martech resources.He argued that this supposed underutilization isn't a question of the technology itself, but rather the lack of investment in educating people on how to use these tools effectively. Training, according to Scott, is not just about tool mastery but about empowering and encouraging marketers to apply these tools in innovative ways.He touched on the barriers to change, explaining how new initiatives often clash with existing processes, rules, and established norms. This mismatch, he reasoned, discourages full utilization of martech capabilities and leads to underinvestment in the human side of things.Scott, being part of a martech company himself, took a fair and balanced view of martech vendors' role in this problem. He pointed out that vendors' sales pitch often oversimplifies the process, focusing too much on the magic of the tool and underselling the required human and organizational investment for its effective use.Over time, however, he believes the industry is slowly recognizing this gap and improving. He highlighted the need for a shift towards better balancing technology and human investment to truly harness the power of modern martech.Takeaway: Scott calls for a renewed focus on the human element in martech, arguing that the supposed underutilization of martech tools is less about the technology itself and more about the industry's lack of investment in training and enabling people to effectively use and apply these tools.Navigating Marketing Ops and Tech TeamsWhen asked about the evolving roles within the marketing space, and how organizations might better utilize their investments in technology and people, Scott shared valuable insights. He affirmed that investing in marketing operations and marketing tech teams is indeed a crucial aspect, yet he pointed out that there's more to the equation. He noted that the real barriers are often found beyond the "bubble" of marketing operations. These barriers may take the form of ingrained processes within legal, finance, or other teams outside of the marketing sphere. These processes, which were established and became calcified at some stage of the company's history, may not be in sync with the evolving capabilities of marketing technology.Marketing operations, Scott argued, while potentially having some influence within the marketing team, often struggle to exercise leverage outside of it. Hence, the key challenges are often constraints stemming from areas outside of their immediate sphere. This makes it difficult for changes to be initiated from within marketing operations.This led Scott to highlight the crucial role that savvy CMOs or marketing executives play. It's these individuals who can successfully navigate these challenges, understanding the constraints, and engaging their executive peers in other functions to bring about the necessary changes. By doing so, they can adapt and evolve these processes to align with the advanced capabilities of current marketing technology.Takeaway: The role of marketing executives extends beyond simply supporting marketing ops and tech teams. They play a crucial role in navigating and overcoming external organizational barriers, ensuring that processes across different departments align with the evolving capabilities of marketing technology.Martech Curiosity, Focus, and Communication When asked about the essential skills required to navigate the intricate landscape of marketing technology, Scott emphasized a triad of characteristics - curiosity, focus, and communication.Scott agreed that curiosity indeed plays a pivotal role in the Martech world. The desire to explore, to question, and to understand is integral to innovation and growth. However, he cautioned that unbridled curiosity, without focus, can potentially dilute productivity and outcome delivery. Balancing an inquisitive mind with a disciplined approach to prioritization, he suggested, forms the backbone of successful leadership.But the game-changer, the third magic component, as Scott described it, is the skill of effective communication and engagement. A common misunderstanding is that the rest of the organization does not comprehend the technicalities of marketing or the value of marketing operations. Yet, Scott sees this not as a failure of other departments, but rather as a challenge for marketing leadership to communicate their mission and their value more effectively. It might seem ironic that an industry devoted to communication can struggle to communicate internally. However, effective internal communication is a skill that often goes underappreciated and requires focused development. Leaders who can marry their curiosity with the ability to maintain a structured focus and who can communicate effectively are the ones set to redefine the future of Martech.Takeaway: The leaders shaping the next generation of Martech need more than technical skills. They must cultivate a balance of curiosity to explore new possibilities, the focus to drive specific outcomes, and the communication skills to articulate their vision and value to the wider organization. They are the ones who will not only understand the potential of Martech but can also guide their teams and stakeholders on the journey.Marketing Ops Evolving to Become the Operating System Underpinning MarketingWhen asked about the evolution of marketing operations, Scott described it as an ever-changing environment that has significantly matured over the last decade. While marketing operations was previously perceived as a support mechanism for marketing, it has transformed into a comprehensive operating system underpinning not only marketing but also branching into other departments. Scott painted a vivid picture of the future of marketing operations and emphasized the increased need for individuals adept at both the technical aspects and, crucially, internal communication.Scott acknowledged the shifting terrain of marketing operations. What was once about simply supporting marketing through reporting, tool management, and data hygiene is now a lot more expansive. In the coming years, marketing operations is set to morph into an operating system that doesn't merely support marketing but reaches out to other departments, knitting together disparate teams through technology.Scott identified the key ingredients for success in this evolved landscape. Mastery in the technical aspects of marketing ops and marketing tech is of course vital. But it's the other part of the equation, the ability to communicate effectively with internal teams, that elevates the role from tactical to strategic. The individuals who can not only handle the technical details but also engage effectively with other teams are the ones who will pioneer the future of marketing ops.He projected an optimistic vision of the future, suggesting a kind of seller's market in marketing operations. Those with experience in marketing operations and marketing technology already have a wealth of career options. But, as Scott pointed out, it's those who are able to anticipate and lead the evolution of the sector who will create the most significant opportunities for themselves.Scott ended on a hopeful note, reflecting that now is an incredible time to be in marketing. With so many technological advancements, particularly at the data layer and with artificial intelligence, there's an unprecedented opportunity to write the future playbook for marketing. It's an exciting journey that he considers a real gift. Takeaway: The future of marketing operations requires not only technical expertise but also exceptional communication skills to facilitate broader internal engagement. Those who can strike this balance will be the leaders shaping the next generation of marketing ops.Embracing Passion and the Power of Saying NoWhen asked about the secret to managing his diverse roles and interests, Scott confessed that his life might seem one-dimensional to some. With his work and his passions converging around martech, he truly embodies the idea of doing what you love and loving what you do.Scott's approach to balance, however, is not about juggling every opportunity that comes his way. Instead, he emphasizes the importance of being selective and knowing when to say 'no'.Despite being immersed in a fascinating field that continues to evolve and offers endless possibilities, he recognizes that the hours in a day remain finite. As such, Scott makes deliberate choices about how to spend his time, focusing on those areas he's most passionate about and letting go of the rest. It's a powerful message about achieving balance in a fast-paced and demanding career: true balance isn't about doing everything but choosing what matters most and dedicating yourself wholeheartedly to it.Takeaway: Despite the myriad of roles and responsibilities in his life, Scott finds balance by aligning his work with his passion and exercising selective focus. The secret to his success lies not in pursuing every opportunity, but in dedicating himself to what truly matters to him.Episode RecapIn a world increasingly augmented by Artificial Intelligence (AI), Scott puts forward a compelling view: AI isn't here to replace marketers but to enhance them. It's this nuance that informs his views on the future of marketing and the pivotal role of AI. The image he paints is of a landscape where marketers can navigate vast realms of data more effectively, and up-level their strategies, thanks to the precision and insights AI affords. With this view, he also advises budding marketers to focus their efforts on a single specialization. The added power of AI allows these marketers to master a distinct area, turning them into formidable specialists ready to conquer the ever-evolving marketing landscape.Scott's vision extends to how AI and composability can democratize access to advanced tools. It's an exciting future where every marketer can command their personal AI analyst, efficiently mining vast amounts of data for crucial insights. This new capability is set to spark innovation, boost efficiency, and drive growth, redefining our understanding of marketing.It's not just about the technology, though. Scott argues for a renewed focus on the human element in martech. This means investing in training and enabling people to harness the power of these tools effectively. He also stresses the importance of communication skills, especially for marketing executives who play crucial roles in aligning various departments with the evolving capabilities of marketing technology.Looking to the horizon, Scott outlines the future of marketing ops. It's one where the leaders are not just technical experts, but also exceptional communicators who can articulate their vision and the value they bring to the broader organization. Balancing these skills is key to shaping the future of marketing ops, guiding their teams, and stakeholders on this transformational journey.It's a riveting episode, one that promises a future where AI isn't the end of the marketer's journey but a new beginning, offering untapped potential and possibilities in the vibrant field of marketing. 

With Paige Payne, Master Gardner and Landscape Design Instructor   Did you know that one of the best ways to support our physical and mental health is to spend more time outdoors? It's true! The benefits of being outdoors and breathing in the fresh air could strengthen our immune system, help us sleep better at night, and reduce stress. After all, what could be more relaxing than sitting in the sunshine, surrounded by beautiful foliage?   As we spend more time relaxing in our yards, one of the biggest design trends over the past few years has been the expansion of our outside home living areas. According to a recently published study, creating an outdoor oasis for entertaining or relaxing has become one of the most desirable priorities among more than 62% of homeowners. Building outdoor kitchens along with living and dining areas allows us to bring traditionally indoor activities into our yard and expand our living space significantly. Instead of relying solely on a single barbecue grill, these days many outdoor gourmet kitchens include pizza ovens, pellet smoke grills, as well as small refrigerators and counters with built-in sinks for washing and prepping food.   Dining areas can include plenty of outdoor seating as well as firepit tables and bars. Outdoor living rooms designed with comfortable conversation pit sofas, outdoor TVs, and gas fireplaces offer a heavenly refuge for relaxing, studying, or even working outdoors. Best of all, these outdoor spaces can be used year-round when enclosed in a pavilion or other structure that includes heating lamps and retractable Screens. In addition to expanding your outdoor living area, imagine yourself surrounded by a beautifully landscaped garden. Picture someplace that's restful, peaceful, and tranquil where you can go to meditate or simply enjoy nature. In July of 2021, Florine interviewed Master Gardner and Landscape Design Instructor, Paige Payne. If you want to learn more about the benefits of having a tranquility or meditation garden, please listen to Florine's interview with Paige.   What You'll Hear in This Episode: How did Paige get involved in horticulture? What did Paige study in school for a career in horticulture? Paige's mother was a huge gardener, and her dad also grew a big vegetable garden. What is anthropology, and why was Paige initially interested in it? What are the three types of anthropology, and what is permaculture design? How can you get started in your own backyard using the resources you already have? How does permaculture affect our health positively and help us feel more tranquil and connected? Paige shares some tips for a beginning gardener on how to get started. What is a tranquility or meditation garden, and how can you create one? Tips for adding some great vegetables to grow, flowers to bloom, and meditation elements to create a space that's right for you. How to create a space that is intentionally designed for your environment.   Today's Takeaway: There is a reason why meditation and tranquility gardens have recently become so popular. Finding that personal “me time” away from the demands of the day really helps to improve our mood and our mental well-being.   Sometimes it's exhausting and mentally taxing to be “on call” throughout the day in response to the needs of others. But just taking five or 10 minutes to breathe, relax, and re-center ourselves mentally and emotionally can make all the difference. If you already practice meditation, you already know just how beneficial that time can be. But do you sometimes find it challenging to quiet your mind and begin your meditation practice? How much easier would it be to immediately achieve that meditative state if you had that perfect tranquil spot to get away from it all? Surrounding ourselves with beautiful greenery might not only help us to forget our problems, but it can also help us “reboot” after a stressful moment and transform the rest of our day.   Connecting with nature is one of the healthiest ways I know to sustain ourselves mentally and lift our spirits. So, remember to give yourself the gift of time and serenity by creating an outdoor space that's all your own. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Quotes: “I knew I wanted to be outside, as nature has always been my happy place.” — Paige [4:22] “I really got the opportunity to learn from the ground up by observing and interacting with landscapes.” — Paige [6:04] “I did see how much joy gardening brought to [my parents]. So yes, it's in my blood.” — Paige [7:36] “I do think that there is a definite impact on people based on their natural environment and their connection to it.” — Paige [8:49] “In permaculture, we'd like to mimic nature in that way by creating a system where each component is connected to and supports the next component in the design.” — Paige [9:48] “We look to go a step further by making the homestead zero waste using the available resources, turning waste into energy, and working with the environment that's already there, rather than trying to recreate a system that is maybe not suited for that environment.” — Paige [11:21] “Each and every little eco ecosystem encourages us to connect with our natural environment, which creates a feeling of peace, calm, connection, and realizing that you're part of a larger whole.” — Paige [12:13] “The ultimate goal of permaculture is that it all becomes less work, more beauty.” — Paige [13:22] “It's tuning in to what brings you joy.” — Paige [16:12]   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode: Paige Payne Online Landscape Designs

With Sinziana Luchian, Director of Healthcare Initiatives at the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce    One of the biggest challenges employers have faced since the early days of the pandemic is reassuring employees that their workplace is not only safe but that changes have been implemented to ensure a healthy work environment. But what is meant by the term “healthy work environment?” These days in addition to making sure that employees feel secure and valued in their jobs, many employers are also taking steps to encourage the ongoing health and well-being of their workforce. A wide range of supportive services are available to companies that want to create an inclusive and cohesive work environment. For example, activities and information that promote a healthy lifestyle and forming good habits may help reduce employee stress and burnout. When employers demonstrate that they take their employee's health and well-being seriously, it might result in a more productive effort and an increase in employee engagement. If you want to learn more about how companies and employees can work together to create a healthier work environment, you'll want to listen to my Sinziana Luchian, the Director of Healthcare Initiatives at the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce.    What You'll Hear on This Episode: What is a healthy work environment?  What is the role of the Detroit Regional Chamber in promoting a healthy workplace?  From a productivity standpoint, how are healthy work environments more successful?   Where could a company start to start implementing taking health and well-being more seriously?  Does it have to cost a lot to start these initiatives, or are there low-cost options?  What are some of the benefits that membership in the Chamber offers small businesses? What can employers do to model wellness and encourage health in their employees?  Is there a correlation between companies with a solid wellness strategy and fewer employee sick days? Why does the Chamber recommend that companies include a social element as part of their health and wellness culture? How companies can support the physical, mental, and emotional health of their employees.    Today's Takeaway: There is a saying that “good health is good for business.” When employers cultivate a positive healthy workplace, they make it easier for employees to adopt and maintain healthy habits. In addition to increased reports of physical illness, job-related stress can also lead to increased rates of depression and anxiety. Employees who “love their jobs” are more likely to be found working at companies that score highest in promoting a work environment where there is less stress and where they feel valued. But having a healthy work environment goes beyond supporting the physical and mental health of their employees. It's also about creating and ensuring an environment that is emotionally safe, and free of gossip, intolerance, or harassment. One way to promote a sense of inclusivity is by scheduling offsite team events where management can participate alongside their employees and everyone can “compete” on an equal basis. The advantages for companies that prioritize wellness is that in addition to a healthier, happier workforce, may have increased productivity and engagement, less stress and even the potential for a reduction in group plan insurance costs, all of which might lead to an improved bottom line. Remember that every day is a gift and the gift we get from feeling our best physically and mentally could help us perform better at work and still have plenty of energy left over to enjoy our time with family and friends. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”     Quotes: “A healthy workplace is flexible. It's inclusive and supportive of each employee's health and wellness journey. And really, the way to do this is to communicate with your employees and find out what's important to them regarding their well-being.” - Sinziana  2:09   “Happy and healthy employees are more present and engaged day to day, as well as more productive in their jobs.” - Sinziana 4:36  “Really try to engage your workforce in health and wellness activities, and see what's important to them, what's working, what's not working, and go from there.” - Sinziana 11:34  “I think that's the important part, is creating the culture. It has to trickle from the top down.” - Sinziana 11:40 “Health-focused environments need to trickle from the top down for them to be successful.” - Sinziana 11:55  “Companies who invest in their employees through a wellness strategy see fewer sick days, medical leave and see a more productive and engaged workforce.” - Sinziana 17:29  Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode: The Detroit Regional Chamber sluchian@detroitchamber.com    

With Dr. James Bragman, Sports Medicine & Geriatric Specialist   What do you think of when you hear the word retirement? Do you think of all the things you have wanted to do but didn't have time for? Or, does the idea of retirement scare you because you can't imagine not having a meaningful job to do each day? It's not uncommon that as we age, we may experience memory loss. But did you know that one of the most important ways you can protect your brain and mental health is through daily exercise? Not only does regular exercise help us maintain our muscle tone, physical strength, and balance, but it also helps to strengthen our immune system and stay mentally fit as well. Numerous studies have shown that as we age, staying physically active and fit in our senior years is one of the best ways to protect our brain health and improve our memory. Numerous studies have shown the rate of mental slowdown is almost twice the rate for inactive adults compared to those who are active.   If you want to learn more about the many benefits and ways we can stay physically active throughout our life, then you'll want to listen to my interview with Dr. James Bragman from West Bloomfield Internal Medicine. Dr. Bragman specializes in both sports and internal geriatric medicine. He is a Full Clinical Professor at Wayne State University School of Medicine as well as an Assistant Clinical Professor at Michigan State University. In addition, he has more than 20 years of experience, including working as a national medical expert for CNN radio.   What You'll Hear in This Episode: What does a sports medicine physician do? Why is stretching of paramount importance, and how can we build stretching into our everyday routine? What is cognitive decline and what are some ways to prevent it? How we can eat to support our mental and physical health? How to maintain a sharp status even as we age. What can cause cognitive impairment in people? What are some great coping mechanisms for stress reduction? Is it ever too late to start moving and getting exercise? What is the recommended number of days per week we should be exercising? What types of mental exercises are the most effective for maintaining a healthy brain?   Today's Takeaway: There are numerous advantages to staying physically active. In addition to maintaining our fitness level, balance, and physical strength, staying active can help reduce blood pressure, lower your risk of heart disease and stroke, and may even help with blood sugar for diabetics. In addition, there's evidence to suggest that it may also reduce the risk of certain cancers. But as we've heard today, now there are more reasons than ever before to incorporate regular exercise sessions into our weekly routine because it also helps to keep our brains healthy. There is nothing that ages us faster than cognitive decline. Having a healthy and fully functioning brain helps us feel younger, more vital, and more connected to our lives and our loved ones. Staying active doesn't have to be a chore. You can take up yoga, pilates, or any other activity that gets you moving. Have fun while increasing your physical and mental fitness. Remember that every day is a gift and the gift of staying physically active may just be the key to prolonging your life expectancy and improving the quality of your life as you age. It's all up to you. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Quotes:   “You have a lot of options. Not everyone is able to do a standing toe touch like your mother.” — Dr. James Bragman   “It's a learned skill, the more you do it, the easier it becomes.” — Dr. James Bragman   “It's the old proverbial if you don't use it, you lose it.” — Dr. James Bragman   “The more physically active you are, it's part of the underpinnings of what I call Aging Gracefully in 2023.” — Dr. James Bragman   “It's committing to something that you are happy doing and can do for the rest of your life.” — Dr. James Bragman    “People need coping mechanisms, and exercise is a fantastic way of doing it.” — Dr. James Bragman   Brought to You By: Florine Mark   Mentioned in This Episode: West Bloomfield Internal Medicine 248-855-7453

With Taylor Hale, Miss Michigan USA 2021   Little did we know when Florine interviewed former Miss Michigan USA pageant winner, Taylor Hale, earlier this year that she was about to embark on a completely different type of reality TV competition that would crown her the winner and almost $1,000,000 (one million dollars) richer. As the season 24 winner of CBS TV's “Big Brother,” Taylor won the $750,000 grand prize and became the first Black female to win the coveted title. Taylor also achieved another “first” by becoming the only series winner to ever be voted “America's Favorite Houseguest” by the viewers, which brought her another $50,000. The same charming personality traits and people skills that earned Taylor the title of “Miss Congeniality” during her pageant days also impressed her fellow housemates who voted 8-1 for her as the “Big Brother” winner. But although she eventually won the respect and admiration of her fellow housemates and the TV audience, the road to the winners' circle wasn't an easy one. Early on, Taylor experienced instances of bullying and racism from her fellow housemates. But in choosing to respond with grace and dignity by forgiving those who attacked her, Taylor slowly made inroads and ultimately earned the respect of her fellow competitors. Instead of letting someone else's bad behavior block her from achieving her goal, she kept her eye on the prize and focused on her dream of becoming the first black woman to win the competition. So how has Taylor's life changed since winning the title? Well… it turns out the monetary prize wasn't the only souvenir she took from her time in the Big Brother house. She formed a very strong friendship with her former housemate and fellow competitor, Joseph Abdin, who was one of her strongest allies in the house and a welcome source of support. But once the series ended, their relationship began to heat up and romance blossomed. If you want to find out what's next for the pair and more about this beautiful, talented and delightful young woman, you'll want to check out Florine's interview with Taylor from earlier this year.   What You'll Hear on This Episode:   What was Taylor's childhood like?   Who inspired Taylor to start competing in pageants throughout her life? What was it like for Taylor to attend George Washington in DC? How did Taylor get started in blogging and fashion? Did Taylor get started in politics while in college? Was Taylor popular or bullied in school? How did Taylor's parents help build her confidence? Did Taylor ever suffer from body image issues? How did the pageant world help Taylor develop healthy habits? What inspired Taylor to enter her first beauty pageant? How does Taylor train for a pageant? How many other women competed in Miss Michigan, and what are they like?  Is it expensive to be in pageants and are there sponsorships? Is there diversity and representation in the pageant world? What are the other contestants like? How does being in pageants affect Taylor's dating life? How has Taylor used her title to inspire others? What did Taylor enjoy most about pageants? What does Taylor do today professionally? Taylor shares some success stories from her work as a personal stylist.   Today's Takeaway: There is no single standard that defines what is beautiful. Various cultures around the world define the concept of physical perfection differently. But the truth is that real beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. It's important to recognize that genuine beauty is not merely skin deep; rather how we behave and treat others is the real testament to our attractiveness.   Remember that every day is a gift and the gift that we get from learning to appreciate and honor our own beauty, both inside and out, will allow us not only to value ourselves, but we can share the spotlight and appreciate the beauty of others. Think of it this way, the most beautiful gardens are made up of a wide variety of flowering plants, each one with its own unique appearance. On their own, each of these flowers is lovely, but when combined together, they make for an absolutely dazzling array of colorful blooms. Our individual differences are what make us shine when we unite together. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway” and if you enjoy this podcast, don't forget to subscribe so you don't miss a single episode.   Quotes: “If not me, then who?” — Taylor “These are just stories that moved me. I got to see who these women were from a holistic standpoint and I was completely sold on competing.” — Taylor “That's how I learned that you can still value beauty; you can value style and fashion without sacrificing your intelligence.” — Taylor “I don't want to be President, but I wouldn't mind being Chief of Staff.” — Taylor  “What's important to me is being visible.” — Taylor  “I want to make sure that I'm actually representing where I actually came from.” — Taylor  “Everybody there wants to be the best. It ups the ante for competition but you're never alone.” — Taylor  “It's beyond friendship. It's a sisterhood bond.” — Taylor  “I can't fix everything happening in the world, I can't change everybody's opinion of me. All I can do is be the best version of myself.” — Taylor “Not everyone's going to like me and if everybody does like me, that means I'm losing a little bit of myself and I always want to be true to who I am.” — Taylor “The body that I had at Miss USA is not the body that I have now but the eating routines, the healthy habits that I made, those are what's important to me and those are the things that will stick with me for the rest of my life.” — Taylor “Don't do it for the body. Do it for the health.” — Taylor “I want to be a human being first that just so happens to have a crown and a sash on her as well.” — Taylor “I think what we all do every day is pageantry!” — Taylor   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode: Taylor Hale on Instagram @thetaylormack   Miss Michigan USA 2021 on Instagram

With Amy Peterson, Rebel Nell Co-Founder   Over the past few years, the plight of women being homeless has increased. According to a 2021 survey, more than half a million people in the U.S. are homeless, and approximately 39% of those are women and girls. For individuals working in retail or the hospitality industry, the resulting loss of so many jobs during the pandemic put them in difficult financial situations and they could no longer afford to pay rent. Moving in with family or sleeping on a friend's couch isn't a long-term solution, especially when children are involved. While homeless shelters may present an alternative to living on the streets, they aren't the safest environment for single women and young children. It's not uncommon for a woman to suddenly find herself homeless and in over her head without a safety net. We wonder what we could possibly do to help. But sometimes the best way we can help someone is to do so in a way that provides them with the means to help themselves. For example, what if we could provide that person with the education, training, and support to truly change their life for the better?   What if there was a self-sustaining way to create educational opportunities for women and help them find full-time employment and independence, even if they're living on the streets or in a homeless shelter? Since 2014, Detroit-based organization, Rebel Nell, has been providing this solution. Rebel Nell offers training, employment, housing assistance, and other types of support to women who are homeless or living in shelters. If you want to find out how to help women by giving them the tools to achieve financial freedom and live independently, you'll want to listen to my interview with Rebel Nell co-founder, Amy Peterson.   What You'll Hear in This Episode: Rebel Nell exists to provide equitable employment opportunities and wraparound support for women with barriers. Rebel Nell is located in Detroit and hires from six local shelters. Who can benefit from Rebel Nell's services and training? What type of jewelry and gifts does Rebel Nell make, and how does that help the women? Amy talks about her dream of wanting to be the first female general manager of a Major League Baseball Team, and how she found her way to Rebel Nell. How did Eleanor Roosevelt play a role in the inspiration for Rebel Nell? Amy talks about the important relationships her company has built, including one with the Detroit Lions. What type of training does Rebel Nell offer the women in terms of finances and business? Amy discusses how Rebel Nell's jewelry and gifts are made from repurposed material and even graffiti collected from the walls in Detroit. What does it mean to make ethical and sustainable jewelry? When you are wearing a Rebel Nell piece, you are wearing the hard work and power of a strong woman. How can you purchase a piece of Rebel Nell jewelry if you are interested? How does Rebel Nell make money as a non-profit?   Today's Takeaway: There are many causes dear to my heart, but few things give me greater satisfaction than seeing women helping other women. Whether it's reaching a personal wellness goal or success in business, education, or community involvement, I'm thrilled to cheer on their accomplishments and celebrate their achievement. When we work together to support the success of others, amazing things can happen. Amy's organization, Rebel Nell, is a perfect example of just how much can be accomplished when we come together to support each other. When Amy and her partner Diana came up with the idea of training women to create beautiful pieces of jewelry from discarded bits of graffiti, they had no idea of the impact their fledgling program would have. In addition to their goal of helping women find their way out of poverty, they also found that by teaching them a marketable skill and paying them a good wage, they were able to raise their self-esteem and confidence. By teaching other life skills such as financial management or providing housing assistance and ongoing educational opportunities, these women began to blossom with the increased support and attention. Sometimes all it takes to make a positive impact on someone's life is to show you care and that you're there to support their efforts. Remember that every day is a gift and the gift that we get from joining together to help another person can be a gift that keeps on giving. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Quotes:   “From a very young age, I wanted to be the first female general manager of a major league baseball team.” — Amy   “My business partner and I realized that we have a shared love for Eleanor Roosevelt. She was incredible. A Civil rights advocate, women's rights advocate, a true pioneer.”   “Women are like teabags; put them in hot water, and they get strong.” — Eleanor Roosevelt   “You see the impact and the power of each piece of jewelry and how that resonates not only with the women that we employ, but with those customers and their stories.”   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode: Rebel Nell

In this episode, I take you through a book by Smith Freeman Publishing 100 Bible Promises For Women. Join me for this 8 weeks as we continue to walk through the promises that are provided in Scripture. The Promise: Promise 37 God's Timing Is Perfect Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet[a] no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. The Book: 100 Bible Promises For Women - Smith Freeman Publishing Additional Scripture Provided: 1 Peter 5:6, Proverbs 3:5-6, Ecclesiastes 3:1, Isaiah 30:18, Psalm 125:1 Takeaway: There may be a lesson in the waiting. There may be greater abundance in the passage of time. Whatever His reasons, know that His timing is perfect. He is the author of your story, and when you submit it back to Him, everything will work in accordance with His perfect storyline.    Other Resourses: Join the Abundantly Rooted Life Community email to recieve encouragement and updates Grab your Artza Subscription Box and bring home a bit of Israel.  use promo code: ARTZAKRISTINARISINGER for 25% off Check out our Linktree

Fisher House Chairman & CEO Ken Fisher is carrying on the wonderful program first created by his great uncle Zachary Fisher.  To date, the Fisher House has provided support to over 430,000 military and Veteran families in the form of free lodging and travel. Neither Ken nor Zachary served in the military. But when Zach heard the USS Intrepid was going to be scrapped he led an initiative to have the ship preserved and converted to a museum that hosts over 1 million guests a year. Shortly thereafter he received a phone call from Pauline Trost, wife of the then Chief of Naval Operations. She witnessed a family arriving at Bethesda Naval Medical Center and, knowing the average cost of hotel rooms in the area, wondered where this family was going to stay while visiting their injured loved one. As a very successful builder, Zach had the solution. He and his wife dedicated more than $20 million to the construction of the first Fisher House. The foundation is now “on the road” to building their 100th home. The homes provide no cost lodging to families of ill or injured Veterans and are built with easy access to Veterans Administration hospitals. Homes can be as large as 21 suites and provide both privacy and communal spaces. A very powerful element of these homes is that every family understands what the other is going through and provides a natural support system. Other Fisher House programs include “Hero Miles” which provide free airfare using donated frequent flyer miles and “Hotels for Heroes” which provides free hotel rooms in areas where no Fisher House has been built. Listeners are encouraged to donate their frequent traveler bonuses in support of these families. TAKEAWAY: “There are sacrifices being made on our behalf and behind every person in uniform there is a family. The American people should never think that just saying thank you is enough.”

Augmented reveals the stories behind the new era of industrial operations, where technology will restore the agility of frontline workers. In this episode of the podcast, the topic is "How Academia Shapes Manufacturing". Our guest is John Hart (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajhart/), Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director at the Center for Advanced Production Technologies at MIT. In this conversation, we talk about John's research on micro and nanotechnology and material science, which universities and colleges that teach manufacturing, the role of MIT in this ecosystem, and why now is a key moment in manufacturing history. If you like this show, subscribe at augmentedpodcast.co (https://www.augmentedpodcast.co/). If you like this episode, you might also like Episode 92 on Emerging Interfaces for Human Augmentation (https://www.augmentedpodcast.co/92). Augmented is a podcast for industry leaders, process engineers, and shop floor operators, hosted by futurist Trond Arne Undheim (https://trondundheim.com/) and presented by Tulip (https://tulip.co/). Follow the podcast on Twitter (https://twitter.com/AugmentedPod) or LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/75424477/). Trond's Takeaway: There has never been a more interesting time to be in manufacturing or to watch manufacturing. The tremendous breakthroughs that we are about to witness have been made possible by a confluence of emerging technologies and startup innovations, as well as a growing awareness of the importance of building human-centric technologies. We are indeed at a crossroads with profound challenges in the growing talent shortage, the need for workforce training, an aging industrial base, and the demands for manufacturing competency from the wider innovation ecosystem. We have to make progress fast, and innovations are just maturing to be able to do so at the scale and pace required. It will, again, be amazing to watch the manufacturing industry. Parts of it will perhaps, again, become the industry of industries. Transcript: TROND: Welcome to another episode of the Augmented Podcast. Augmented reveals the stories behind the new era of industrial operations where technology will restore the agility of frontline workers. Technology is changing rapidly. What's next in the digital factory, and who is leading the change? And what are the skills to learn and how to stay up to date on manufacturing and industry 4.0. In this episode of the podcast, the topic is How Academia Shapes Manufacturing. Our guest is John Hart, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director at the Center for Advanced Production Technologies at MIT. In this conversation, we talk about John's research on micro and nanotechnology and material science, which universities and colleges that teach manufacturing, the role of MIT in this ecosystem, and why now is a key moment in manufacturing history. Augmented is a podcast for industrial leaders, for process engineers, and for shop floor operators hosted by futurist Trond Arne Undheim and presented by Tulip. John, how are you? Welcome. JOHN: I'm well, Trond. Great to see you. Thank you for having me. TROND: Well, I'm excited to have you talking about...well, hopefully, a lot of different things, but how academia gets to shape manufacturing, this fascinating venture that is manufacturing. But you yourself, John, you grew up in Michigan, is that right? You were close to this from an early age. JOHN: I was close to it. Yeah, I grew up in Royal Oak, Michigan, a suburb north of Detroit. If you know the Detroit Metro area, there are the mile roads, and the Detroit River is sort of Zero Mile. And I grew up between 14 and 15 Mile Roads, so in the hotbed of the good, old U.S. auto industry. TROND: Well, exactly. Because looking a little bit at your background here, you spent quite a few years as a summer intern at General Motors before you got yourself to...or actually perhaps in the beginning, in your undergrad years from UMichigan, is that right? JOHN: I did. After my first year at UofM, I worked as a summer intern at GM and went back a few years in a row in different roles in different areas. And honestly, when I decided to pursue a graduate degree and ended up at MIT, I thought I might just get my master's and go back and work in the auto industry, but things changed, and here we are today. TROND: Well, here we are today. You got yourself an undergrad from UMichigan. And you worked there for a little while, I believe, but then came to MIT with a master's, Ph.D. This is way back. But you won the prize for the best doctoral thesis in micro and nanotechnology. So that set you off on the path to rediscover nanomaterials, I guess. JOHN: Yeah, well, it's a really maybe exotic combination of topics. My master's thesis was on precision machine design, the design of these large mechanical couplings for industrial robots. And then, for my Ph.D., with the same advisor, I worked on carbon nanotube synthesis. But there you have the dipoles of manufacturing research, materials, processing, and mechanical design that have shaped how I've taken things forward since then. TROND: Well, but it is in these unique combinations that innovation starts to occur, right? JOHN: Yeah, exactly, combining different topics. And that's one reason I love manufacturing is that it is the union of materials processing, and automation, and software, and now also getting more interested in the organizational workforce aspects. It's a very rich, multidisciplinary layered topic. TROND: Yeah. And we'll explore this both from the organizational angle, and, indeed, I'm super interested in this material angle on things because it seems to me like you're exploring the very, very small nanostructures, but then you're then printing them on the very large canvas. So you're exploring materials from one extreme to the other. JOHN: Yeah. Well, it depends on your objective and what topic you're working on. There are cases in our research where we need to understand the formation of materials, not quite from the atom up but from the nanoscale or microscale up. And there are cases where we more or less abstract or coarse grain those link scales and focus on macroscale properties. TROND: Well, and then you also focus quite a bit on teaching. I noticed that you actually launched the first massive online course on manufacturing processes, and hopefully, we'll get to this a little bit as well. JOHN: Sure. TROND: But teaching and basically working on the next generation of manufacturers, whether they be the engineers or really anybody else, has certainly been one of the big challenges in manufacturing really forever. What is it that fascinates you so much about teaching this to a grander audience than the usual university audience? JOHN: Well, first, I'll say I believe that the top priority of universities, including in the area of manufacturing, is to educate future leaders and engineers. That said, the number of people we educate on our campus is a small fraction of those who could really benefit from what we teach and the way we teach. And that's not just geographically, but it's also in terms of their role in the workforce. So I believe manufacturing education should address all levels of the workforce. And to get at your question more directly, when I came to MIT, I was asked to take over our core undergraduate manufacturing class in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. And as I learned to teach the class for myself, I was intrigued by this emerging trend of digital learning, and this was 2015, 2016. And I was able to get some funding from MIT internally to create an online version of the course that would be offered free to the world, and probably 100,000 People have taken it so far. And it's been a great experience and evidence of how there is very broad interest in manufacturing really across the world. TROND: 100,000 people have taken this course. JOHN: Yeah. Well, I'll say 100,000 people have signed up for the course. This is the classic trade-off with online courses. It doesn't mean 100,000 people complete the course. It means that number signs up and hopefully took something away from it. It also speaks to the flexibility. You can sign up for a course and maybe just listen to one lecture, but if you take something valuable away from it, that's great. TROND: So I wanted to talk a little bit about how academia shapes manufacturing. And I know that there are, you know, you and I work at MIT, and you've had experiences obviously at University of Michigan. But there are other manufacturing centers and institutes all around the world. Could you lay out this landscape a little bit for us so that we get a sense of where the excellent centers of manufacturing are located? I mean, one structure, just to pick that, is manufacturing institutes, and I know that's sort of dear to your heart for a couple of different reasons that we'll get into. But what are some of the centers beyond MIT where there is activity that is organized in a way that really is something to focus on? JOHN: First, I think of in the U.S., Carnegie Mellon, Georgia Tech, Purdue, Michigan, Stanford, places that have defined manufacturing centers or have a body of work that relates to manufacturing that I would say there's a critical mass of faculty, and students, and affiliation with industry. Also, Penn State in the area of additive manufacturing and product design. It's hard to be comprehensive. I don't want to forget anyone big, but that's a sample of some of the notable ones. Internationally, a lot of activity in Europe; I admire the University of Cambridge, the Institute for Manufacturing there, where manufacturing is more or less a department, or it's within the Department of Engineering, which is analogous to what we would say is a school or college of engineering here in the U.S. And they have a broad set of activities that have been there for decades focused on manufacturing at the IFM. TROND: And if you think about the best schools to get educated in this topic, is it necessarily only the top brands? I mean, certainly, they have different roles. So when it comes to undergrads or even shorter, or I guess even community colleges have a really fundamental role in the formation of this sector, can you talk a little bit about that? JOHN: Oh, for sure. When you think of manufacturing education, we must think of the full stack of institutions that educate the workforce, from vocational institutions to community colleges where the student's goal may just be to complete a vocational program or complete a two-year degree and then exit the workforce, all the way to the four-year degrees, advanced degrees, and executive education. And given how manufacturing is paramount in the workforce and the economy, we need to educate folks at all those levels. But by far, the largest number of people are at those vocational community college levels and then to the bachelor's level. So I have a Ph.D. I love to mentor Ph.D. students. But that's a small fraction of the manufacturing workforce. TROND: What about in the U.S. setting? There's something called the Manufacturing USA, and there are these institutes that have sponsorship from various government agencies, most of them through the Department of Defense. But there's also a bunch at the Department of Energy and one, I guess, from the Department of Commerce. What is the role of basically government-sponsored sort of research and innovation activities in this field? It would strike me, I guess, that historically, it's quite important. JOHN: Certainly. You're alluding to the manufacturing innovation institutes, the MIIs that were started during President Obama's administration. Actually, MIT's work, the Production in the Innovation Economy study, and the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership, which emerged from that, was key in scoping the MIIs, and now there are 16 or so around the country. It's one example of public-private partnership. Public-private partnership is key to cultivating interest in manufacturing and also providing resources for technology translation and commercialization. I think the MIIs have had a great impact on awareness of manufacturing, on R&D, and really applied research in some critical technology areas. But it's only a small part of what we need to do to regrow and expand our industrial base in the U.S. TROND: So I want to move us shortly to MIT to discuss both your own research activity and how extensively you are now aiming to take a more organizing role to kind of get more out of all of the exciting work that's happening at MIT. But before that, I just spotted perhaps an older project of yours that I thought was extremely cool. You were once called a nanoartist, and you had this NanoArt Nanobliss gallery with visualizations. You previously mentioned Obama. I believe you made a NanoArt structure called Nanobama or something of that sort. How did this come about? And, again, I mean, I'm guessing this just sort of testifies to your interest in science communication as much as in the depths of science, which we'll get into in a moment. JOHN: You got it. The inspiration was how do we communicate what we're doing in the lab to broader audiences just to make them aware of what's happening in new technology, new materials? In that case, it was nanotechnology. If you don't mind, I'll tell you a bit more of the story. When I was an assistant professor at Michigan, we were doing a lot of work on carbon nanotube manufacturing, which was a follow-on from my graduate work at MIT. And I admired President Obama, or he was a presidential candidate at that time. And without implying a political inclination, I somehow put together the words nano and Obama in my mind. TROND: [laughs] JOHN: And I said, wow, it would be cool to have a Nanobama. So one thing led to another, and I actually worked with some students in my group to fabricate these little portraits out of carbon nanotubes representing Shepard Fairey's portrait of Obama that was used widely during that first presidential campaign. And I just posted it online, I think one day after the election, and it took off. It went viral, so to say, and was featured as Nature's Image of the Year. It was printed on the newspapers you used to get as you walk onto the subway in the morning around the world. There was a company that would syndicate this stuff, and they just sent it around. So it got a lot of attention. And it showed me the power of an image in communicating something. And, of course, President Obama, that was a historic election. The play on words was exciting, and also the fact that it was a little bit intriguing science and technology that was nano was interesting. And one more thing, a colleague of mine at Michigan then was working in the White House, and he said, "Hey, can you send us a Nanobama?" So I made this frame with a little piece of the real material, and a picture of it from the microscope sent it to Washington. I didn't hear anything about it until I got a call from the White House asking me to declare the value for the President's tax return because he decided to keep it; I kid you not. And then, after Obama left office, I was with my family at a bookstore in Wellesley, and I saw the book, the retrospective book of Pete Souza, the White House photographer. And I opened up the book, and I see a picture of Obama and John Boehner in the Oval Office in the middle of this book. And right on the doorframe is the Nanobama. So it actually made it to the White House, which was a pretty awesome feeling. TROND: It must be an awesome feeling, and, again, I think that, especially in this field of manufacturing which is so challenged at times, right? And people are talking about how these factories are greedy, or is this a great job, or whatnot. And there have been all of these historical moments. But then there is also this fascination around the topic of certainly of technologies and the excitement around it. Why don't we continue a little bit on this strand before we get into sort of the overall role of MIT? I'm really curious about how your research has evolved. So generally, I get that you're combining these nanostructures with manufacturing and materials research, and certainly, you have applied it to additive manufacturing. How would you say that your research has evolved over these years? What are the things that you have been doing? I've picked up on a few things that I definitely wanted to cover. I mean, certainly, you've been working on this industrialization of 3D printing, both as a research area and as a commercial area. Carbon nanotubes must have been kind of where you started. I'm curious where that work is going. And then I saw that very recently, with a student, you've been doing some work that I'm personally very enthused about, which is a plant-derived composite that might replace, hopefully, plastics with sort of a hardness and stiffness that is somewhere at the boundary between conventional plastics and metals. I mean, for me, I don't quite see how all of these things are intimately connected. Where do you go for, you know, where's my next proposal here, and where's my next patent? JOHN: They aren't necessarily closely connected. But I like to say that the themes are typically one or more of materials, manufacturing, and mechanical systems or automation. And what I love about manufacturing, especially in the materials domain, is to control a process, to understand a process, and then to do something new, you need to investigate its fundamentals. And sometimes, you need to design a new instrument or machine to get the job done. So our work is often problem-inspired or opportunity-inspired. Like, the cellulose work that you mentioned recently was actually sponsored by a large consumer products company interested in a more sustainable composite material that could be used in packaging. And we looked at potential routes to formulating different materials, and we landed on cellulose. And then, we developed a formulation, a mixture of cellulose nanocrystals and polymers that ended up having exciting mechanical properties, particularly very high hardness, and toughness, more so than existing polymers. And another unifying theme is scalability. It's important not to worry too much about scalability in the early stage of research, and there's lots of amazing research that's just for science. But we like to do things that we hope will be scalable one day, so choosing ingredients that would be cost-effective or using techniques that could be industrialized, even if the techniques look very different in the lab. And maybe I've lacked to give a precise definition or focus, but I think it's also indicative of the broad span of manufacturing. And manufacturing has many, many dimensions beyond the ones that we work on in my lab at MIT. TROND: Well, you kind of answered a question that I was going to ask, too, which is it doesn't seem like you start in a linear fashion, you know, in other words, you start with some sort of basic problem that everybody in their literature has established and then you move to this, that, or the other. Sometimes it comes from a company. The challenge comes from a company, but you formulate the solution completely. It seems to me that students also have lots of ideas and kind of formulate projects. Talk to me a little bit about this process of where the problem comes from versus where the solution and impact comes from because you seem to...sometimes the output truly is just, you know, like, in this case, art or a physical prototype, and you're sort of happy with that outcome. Other times, you're actually delivering something into, presumably, eventually, an assembly line. JOHN: Yeah. And we work as hard as we can on technology translation, both in terms of the knowledge that we publish but also in terms of the steps that we take to spin technology out. You're right; the early stage is very important. And I like to often see the early stage as a collaboration between myself and the researchers. And in many cases, the core idea we end up pursuing comes largely from the research or the research team. In many cases, it might be seeded by the interest of a sponsor or an idea I have, and then we work together on actually figuring out what's the approach, what are the outcomes, and what's the path to success. MID-ROLL AD: In the new book from Wiley, Augmented Lean: A Human-Centric Framework for Managing Frontline Operations, serial startup founder Dr. Natan Linder and futurist podcaster Dr. Trond Arne Undheim deliver an urgent and incisive exploration of when, how, and why to augment your workforce with technology, and how to do it in a way that scales, maintains innovation, and allows the organization to thrive. The key thing is to prioritize humans over machines. Here's what Klaus Schwab, Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, says about the book: "Augmented Lean is an important puzzle piece in the fourth industrial revolution." Find out more on www.augmentedlean.com, and pick up the book in a bookstore near you. TROND: You have commercialized at least two ventures together with others at MIT and external people as well that I know about for sure. I wanted to just briefly mention both Desktop Metal and VulcanForms. Let's perhaps cover Desktop Metal first, so that's a 3D printing company. Tell me how that got started and what your role was there. JOHN: So I was very fortunate to be a member of the founding team of Desktop Metal. So there were seven co-founders, and we launched the company in early fall of 2015. And Ric Fulop, who's the lead founder and CEO, approached me at that time, and he heard that I was interested in working on 3D printing and, of course, knew a bit about my background in manufacturing and machine design and asked me to jump on board. And funny story, how just connections persist over the years; I actually knew Ric when I was a grad student because I was doing my carbon nanotube work using the space of now my colleague, Yet-Ming Chiang. And at that time, Yet and Ric were launching A123 Systems, a successful battery company. So that was a reason why I think Ric knew to get in touch with me when he heard about me. And serendipity was a great experience. TROND: Serendipity when you are in the right places, right? If you're hanging around Yet-Ming Chang, yeah, that's right, very special serendipity. Tell me a little bit about VulcanForms. Until very recently, you couldn't talk so much about it. Nowadays, you did go out in New York Times. I've read that piece. So there is a little bit more detail around it. Let me ask a very basic and perhaps dumb question, large-scale metal 3D printing, what's the big deal there? I thought didn't Desktop Metal do 3D printing? So it's kind of a dumb question. Why is there a second company? Is there really such a variety? I think that the regular person just thinks 3D printing is 3D printing. JOHN: 3D printing is a broad and deep subject. Like, first of all, 3D printing processes exist for polymers, for metals, for many other materials. And there are even several 3D printing technologies for metals. I'll tell the origin story for VulcanForms quickly if that's okay, and then get back to the question. So when I came to MIT as faculty in 2013, I had been a professor at Michigan for a few years. And I landed, and one of the topics I thought of looking into was 3D printing. I was actually asked by a colleague to teach a class not on 3D printing, but I was able to propose the topic. And in that class, there were many incredible students. One of them, named Martin, stuck around at MIT after finishing his master's in manufacturing, and we ended up comparing notes and launching VulcanForms in 2015, a little bit before Desktop Metal came to be, but not that long before. And we stayed quiet for seven years. We raised our seed round a couple of years ago. And the focus of the company is number one, laser-based metal additive manufacturing. And second, while we've built our own additive technology, we're a manufacturing company. So we produce parts at scale, and that is a real need and has been a barrier to growth of the additive industry. There's so much interest and uptake in additive. But the ability to achieve high-quality production using additive as the formative step in the process at scale has largely been untouched. So from the early days, we thought that we could approach the market with that plan to become a manufacturing company. TROND: Staying quiet for seven years that can't have been [laughs] particularly easy. JOHN: Yeah, it's not easy, but it's very, very worth it because we got to focus. And also, there are different boundary conditions that allow you to keep your head down and get work done, and one of them is having great and patient investors who believe in your approach and who see the progress behind the curtain. And as a result, we felt we would hold off launch. And we were fortunate to get picked up by the New York Times earlier this summer. And now we're excited to talk about what we do. TROND: Yeah, that article did hint a little bit at what your printers can print that others cannot and kind of at what scale. Can you give some examples of the kinds of things that you are now contracted to print or are perhaps already printing? JOHN: So the company is focused on a variety of industries, generally industries where high-value metal parts are difficult to manufacture and where there is a real pent-up need for more agile, high-value manufacturing medical devices such as medical implants, semiconductor components, not microchips but cooling devices for various computer systems. We have a lot of business in the aerospace and defense area, working with several of the defense primes, both on additive parts and on machining, honestly. The company, as described in the New York Times article, we acquired a machine shop in Newburyport, Massachusetts, earlier this year. And that was twofold, one because in order to deliver finished parts, you need to often integrate additive with machining. So it's not just 3D printing; it's building a stack of software and physical processes to create a finished part. Second, advanced machining is also a digital manufacturing technology, and as a company, we're very interested in applying our capabilities as a digital manufacturing organization to the area of CNC machining as well. TROND: So, taking that experience then from these two companies and your vast interest and research area plus your interest in communication, what is it that you're now focused on at MIT more largely? That's another kind of secret that's slowly being let out. But you have had this notion and have shared this with me and others, obviously. There was a seminar open to whoever was invited, I think, but not a full public launch. Manufacturing at MIT has historically been quite important, but you think that there's even more, to be done. You lined up a couple of the projects, but there are many more things that MIT has done. Could you maybe just briefly address the role of MIT historically in influencing manufacturing? And what else is it that you now want to accomplish? JOHN: Yeah, for sure. And since I came to MIT nine years ago, I've learned of the incredibly rich history that the institute has in manufacturing, both on the technology side, you know, in the mid-1950s, building among the first CNC machines, ultimately transformed commercial aviation in 1980 building one of the first 3D printers in the world, and so on. But not only that, but also, historic accomplishments in the social sciences, understanding the globalization of manufacturing, you know, what delineated the U.S. versus the Japanese auto industry in the 1980s. What is the intrinsic role of manufacturing in innovation, the production, and innovation economy led by my colleague Suzanne Berger in around 2010. And then broader than manufacturing, though, the work of the future study just a couple of years ago looking at the connection between technology and work. So looking at all those accomplishments and understanding the present moment that we're in, which I can also reflect on later, I've been exploring how to create a new presence for manufacturing at MIT. And the term manufacturing at MIT is more or less a placeholder representing the community of faculty and students across disciplines, both technology and social sciences, that touch on all the dimensions of manufacturing. So as we've returned from Zoom life to more in-person life, I've been making my way around campus and building a team of folks, faculty advisors, external advisors, industry partners, and so on to hopefully put forward a new center at MIT that has a focus on manufacturing across the disciplines. And this is not to replace existing activities but just to augment those activities and bring industry together with us to support research, to lean deeply into workforce training programs, to collaborate with public organizations at the state and federal level and internationally, and also hope to cultivate more entrepreneurship. Because my experience, fortunate experience as an entrepreneur over the past several years tells me that there's opportunity for more new companies that contribute to the future of manufacturing, whether they're manufacturing companies actually making stuff, whether they be software and services companies. Or perhaps the biggest need is hardware companies for whom manufacturing is a route to success. So you may not be manufacturing something yourself, or you may not be manufacturing goods for others, but understanding manufacturing and scaling a process is really key. And that intellectual DNA of manufacturing is more cross-disciplinary than ever. And I've observed over my nine years at MIT how there's just more engagement in manufacturing as a discipline, as this cross-disciplinary theme. And that's an area where I feel such a center can really play a role by adding something to the intellectual community across the institute. TROND: There are so many things that come to mind when you produce this narrative because, I guess, on the one hand, manufacturing is a little bit of everything. On the other hand, it is clearly very delineated because it's all about making things and making them at scale. And there's a whole industry, but, of course, every industry almost has a manufacturing arm. How do you delineate the subject of manufacturing? And I'm sort of curious, you know, at MIT, if you use a broad church definition, almost everybody there contributes to manufacturing. So that would be both a challenge and an opportunity, I guess. JOHN: Yeah, you're exactly right. So, first, within MIT, we have many collaborations with different departments and other research centers. And the nature of the collaboration depends on what the focus is. Second, when it comes to interfacing with industry, I've come to look at industry as kind of a grid where you could say the columns are the end users, say, aviation and space or consumer or construction. And then, the horizontal lines in the grid are technologies, robotics and automation, 3D printing, software and IT, et cetera. And getting a little bit in the weeds of the organization here, so first, we're working on launching a flagship industry consortium, or we're recruiting flagship industry partners for a new center. And those will be companies, world-leading manufacturing companies across the grid. Second, we will operate consortia in different technology in industry areas that may be located within our center that may be in collaboration with others around MIT to really drive focus. And when industry comes and interacts with us, I want them to understand how their business fits into the broader spectrum. And we find particularly in the work related to 3D printing that companies appreciate being connected with peers across the value chain. They say 3D printing is materials at the frontend and finished parts at the backend, and there are some machines and software, and so on. When you bring companies together across their value chain, across their supply chain, under the umbrella of an academic organization with this sort of problem-solving mindset, we find that that can be valuable to the companies that we partner with. TROND: And, John, there's obviously a scale at MIT that's hard to replicate for any university or school just because there are so many people involved in technical innovation. But on the other hand, I would say there has been a sense that other sectors if you could call them that, have always been moving much faster than manufacturing. And, you know, okay, fine, there are industrial revolutions, but the ones we talk about now as industrial revolutions are more, you know, they are maybe on the software side and stuff, but that the core of manufacturing it may be because of its inherent nature. It's complex; it's about physical infrastructure, at least a lot of it still. So it's hard to innovate in that sector. Would you say that one of the ambitions you have with this manufacturing at MIT initiative is to speed up that innovation? And if so, what are the mechanisms that would bring manufacturing as a whole, I guess, on an even faster sort of clip? JOHN: First, if I look within MIT, we see the opportunity to combine the physical side, the mechanical engineering, the material science, with the digital side, with software, and controls, and computation. And that's an area where it's clear that new technologies can be de-risked, can be scaled more quickly. And it really requires this symbiosis of the physical processes and the digital intelligence. Second, I think we can do better research. I can do better research by understanding where the big problems and opportunities are. And by connecting closely with industry, forming networks with various stakeholders, we can define better problems that we can ask our students to solve. And third, I've noticed, especially over the past year with all the geopolitical discussions and the imperative for sustainability, that we're at a time where there's this alignment between industry and government and the investment community and manufacturing, physical manufacturing, physical industry is vital. We can't do enough there to catch up, to grow. And I think that's a real opportune moment to recognize that while I think the pendulum has swung to the digital world and software over the past 10, 20 years, life has changed for the better in so many ways. We have to focus on the physical world now, especially to address the climate crisis, and also think of how we can improve economic equality across our communities, how we can provide better job opportunities, how we can deliver education to individuals who don't have the opportunity to go to university or don't have the resources to travel, all those things. So that's another reason why, one, I see manufacturing as this rich, cross-disciplinary topic that I can file a patent and write some exciting papers and graduate with a Ph.D., but it means so much more to feel technology at scale. And second, you need the intersection of these disciplines to understand not just technology but organizations and human dynamics to create change and create positive impact. TROND: So I realized that we're going to have to cover... there are so many other questions I have for you is what I'm trying to say here. But my last question in this round, I think, is going to be one on...we briefly mentioned, or you briefly talked about augmentation. And you know that I have a special interest; obviously, the topic of the podcast and the title is augmentation. So there is something here about the tension, perhaps between augmentation and automation. How do you see that tension or the relationship between working from the human-centric perspective that technologies are in service to perhaps augment people and processes versus this automation perspective which maybe takes, and I'm paraphrasing here, a little bit more of an efficiency approach and tries to go for machine scale first and then just adjust everything later? How do you see those two things now, as perhaps, you know, manufacturing is coming into another kind of growth moment? JOHN: If I understood you correctly, I don't think they're mutually exclusive, right? Certainly -- TROND: No. Not necessarily. Not necessarily. JOHN: Certainly, manufacturing will become more automated in places where automation makes sense. Certainly, automation is challenging to implement to scale, to get right. But in some cases, the driver to more efficient technology-first manufacturing is automation. In other cases, and hand in hand with that, human workers and businesses, organizations can only become more effective and efficient, working in synergy with data and automation. I'll use the example of someone overseeing a 3D printer, a state-of-the-art 3D printer, and watching the screens to make sure everything is going well and doing a better job by being presented with information that shows, hey, this might be a problem, or there are no problems here, but being empowered to make that data-driven decision. And also, from my work outside of MIT, we find that folks who do best operating that advanced equipment with digital data might have a machining background. They might also have a passion for gaming on the side. So they might be used to sensing and responding to dynamic digital events. And that's another comment on skills evolving in the workforce too. TROND: Well, I mean, one thing that is for certain is that if MIT gets its act together on manufacturing, things will happen. I trust that we're going to have to come back and talk about a lot of emerging projects here in the coming years if you get people lined up. So very exciting. Thank you for speaking to me. Is there sort of a challenge that you want out there to the community when it comes to how, you know, not just academics can contribute to shaping manufacturing but how we all should think of these manufacturing challenges? Is it something that we should leave to experts right now because it's so complicated? Or are there ways that the broader interested public can get engaged in this problem? Is it possible to engage, and where should one engage? JOHN: That's a great question. First, to the general public, I'd say stop and think about what manufacturing means to you, or find one of your favorite things and look up how it's manufactured. Imagine the life, the journey of the product as it comes to your door. And second, I'd say the area where most of us can make an impact is in education and learning and contributing to our communities. Perhaps if you're an engineer working somewhere, you might want to teach at a community college one night a week if you have time in a future semester or explore ways that you can bring new knowledge, new technology to your organization if it makes sense. TROND: Exciting challenges. Thank you so much for sharing a little bit of what you're up to with us, John. JOHN: Thank you, Trond. TROND: You have just listened to another episode of the Augmented Podcast with host Trond Arne Undheim. The topic was How Academia Shapes Manufacturing. Our guest was John Hart, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director at the Center for Advanced Production Technologies at MIT. In this conversation, we talk about John's research on micro and nanotechnology and material science, which universities and colleges that teach manufacturing, the role of MIT in this ecosystem, and why now is a key moment in manufacturing history. My takeaway is that there has never been a more interesting time to be in manufacturing or to watch manufacturing. The tremendous breakthroughs that we are about to witness have been made possible by a confluence of emerging technologies and startup innovations, as well as a growing awareness of the importance of building human-centric technologies. We are indeed at a crossroads with profound challenges in the growing talent shortage, the need for workforce training, an aging industrial base, and the demands for manufacturing competency from the wider innovation ecosystem. We have to make progress fast, and innovations are just maturing to be able to do so at the scale and pace required. It will, again, be amazing to watch the manufacturing industry. Parts of it will perhaps, again, become the industry of industries. Thanks for listening. If you liked the show, subscribe at augmentedpodcast.co or in your preferred podcast player, and rate us with five stars. If you liked this episode, you might also like Episode 92 on Emerging Interfaces for Human Augmentation. Hopefully, you'll find something awesome in these or in other episodes, and if so, do let us know by messaging us. We would love to share your thoughts with other listeners. The Augmented Podcast is created in association with Tulip, the frontline operation platform that connects the people, machines, devices, and systems used in a production or a logistics process in a physical location. Tulip is democratizing technology and empowering those closest to operations to solve problems. Tulip is also hiring, and you can find Tulip at tulip.co. To find us on social media is easy; we are Augmented Pod on LinkedIn and Twitter and Augmented Podcast on Facebook and YouTube. Augmented — industrial conversations that matter. See you next time. Special Guest: John Hart.

THE POWER OF GOD'S WHISPER TITLE: WHAT IS GOD WAITING FOR? VERSE: Is anything too hard for the LORD? GENESIS 18:14 ✔️ - “Lord, I don't know how to deal with this. ✔️ - We didn't just suddenly become brilliant. He inspired us. ✔️ - Think about the implications. ✔️ - Perhaps He is simply waiting for His people to ask Him for guidance and direction. TAKEAWAY: There is no reason not to ask. God's people should be the most creative, ingenious people on the planet —simply because we know the God of all solutions. When we stop struggling and start asking, God will very often give us answers. PRAYER: Lord, I need Your creativity, Your answers, Your ingenuity. Inspire me with Your brilliance, and like Joseph and Daniel, I will gladly tell people of the God who reveals mysteries. ▌ABOUT US ▌

With Pam Mathis, Founder & Creator of Hula Fit Nation   Did you know that the Hula Hoop we played with as a child is now one of the best new fitness devices? Although Hula Hoops have been around for more than 60 years, they only recently became popular as a fitness tool. Research shows using a Hula Hoop as an aerobic activity produces similar results to salsa or belly dancing. In fact, a recent Mayo Clinic study showed that a woman working out with a Hula Hoop can burn about 200 plus calories in 30 minutes. According to the study, when compared with other aerobic activities such as walking or ballroom dancing, the Hula Hoop participants showed a significant increase in abdominal muscle mass, compared to the walking group. In addition to burning calories, the Hula Hoop may also trim inches from your waistline and hips and strengthen your core. Best of all, working out with a Hula Hoop and trying to keep it spinning is just plain fun!   Today, we're speaking with Pam Mathis. She is the Founder and creator of Hula Fit Nation, a Hula Hoop fitness instructional program that can be done outside or virtually. Pam is here to tell us how using a Hula Hoop can be a fun, energetic way to slim down and strengthen your core.   What You'll Hear on This Episode: Is it hard to learn to do the Hula Hoop? What is Pam's background? What led Pam to start Hula Fit Nation? What does it cost to buy a Hula Hoop? What are the physical benefits of Hula Hooping? What are the mental and emotional benefits of using a Hula Hoop? What's the difference between a regular and a weighted Hula Hoop? How can someone take a Hula Fit Nation class? What should you wear when Hula Hooping? What are the different weights of Hula Hoops to use? How does Pam keep the workouts interesting? How can someone take Pam's classes virtually?   Today's Takeaway: There's no better way to improve your physical, mental, and emotional health than through exercise and daily movement. The many health benefits associated with physical activity are well known. Regular exercise improves circulation and may even lower blood pressure and help regulate blood sugar. Studies also suggest that the release of endorphins can help relieve pain and boost pleasure. Strengthening our core is not only about trimming inches and looking better, building your abdominal muscles can improve posture and balance and minimize the risk of lower back injuries. A strong core can also aid breathing and digestion. Staying healthy and getting fit doesn't have to require an annual gym membership or costly exercise equipment. Using canned goods from your pantry can substitute for free weights and as we've heard today, an inexpensive Hula Hoop can be your secret weapon for getting fit. And while the weather's nice, it's also a great opportunity to get outdoors and join in the fun of a group class with others at Hula Fit Nation. Remember that every day is a gift and the gift we get from keeping physically active and exercising is a gift that will help us breathe better, improve our sleep, and lift our spirits. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Quotes: “It's the best $45-50 you will ever spend.” — Pam “Using a weighted hoop several times a week can help you burn calories, lose fat, and strengthen your core as well as improve your balance and flexibility.” — Pam “Using a weighted hoop is a healthy release of tension and feelings of anxiety by incorporating movement, breathing, and repetition” — Pam “Using a weighted Hula Hoop is a great stress reliever and it's fun fitness.” — Pam “The best way to Hula Hoop is with music.” — Pam “Research shows that by using a weighted Hula Hoop 30 minutes several times a week you can burn up to 210 calories or more.” — Pam “The lighter the hoop, the more energy it takes to keep that hoop up. The heavier the hoop, the easier it is to keep it up.” — Pam   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode:  Hula Fit Nation Website Hula Fit Nation on Instagram Hula Fit Nation on Facebook

With Pam Mathis, Founder & Creator of Hula Fit Nation   Did you know that the Hula Hoop we played with as a child is now one of the best new fitness devices? Although Hula Hoops have been around for more than 60 years, they only recently became popular as a fitness tool. Research shows using a Hula Hoop as an aerobic activity produces similar results to salsa or belly dancing. In fact, a recent Mayo Clinic study showed that a woman working out with a Hula Hoop can burn about 200 plus calories in 30 minutes. According to the study, when compared with other aerobic activities such as walking or ballroom dancing, the Hula Hoop participants showed a significant increase in abdominal muscle mass, compared to the walking group. In addition to burning calories, the Hula Hoop may also trim inches from your waistline and hips and strengthen your core. Best of all, working out with a Hula Hoop and trying to keep it spinning is just plain fun!   Today, we're speaking with Pam Mathis. She is the Founder and creator of Hula Fit Nation, a Hula Hoop fitness instructional program that can be done outside or virtually. Pam is here to tell us how using a Hula Hoop can be a fun, energetic way to slim down and strengthen your core.   What You'll Hear on This Episode: Is it hard to learn to do the Hula Hoop? What is Pam's background? What led Pam to start Hula Fit Nation? What does it cost to buy a Hula Hoop? What are the physical benefits of Hula Hooping? What are the mental and emotional benefits of using a Hula Hoop? What's the difference between a regular and a weighted Hula Hoop? How can someone take a Hula Fit Nation class? What should you wear when Hula Hooping? What are the different weights of Hula Hoops to use? How does Pam keep the workouts interesting? How can someone take Pam's classes virtually?   Today's Takeaway: There's no better way to improve your physical, mental, and emotional health than through exercise and daily movement. The many health benefits associated with physical activity are well known. Regular exercise improves circulation and may even lower blood pressure and help regulate blood sugar. Studies also suggest that the release of endorphins can help relieve pain and boost pleasure. Strengthening our core is not only about trimming inches and looking better, building your abdominal muscles can improve posture and balance and minimize the risk of lower back injuries. A strong core can also aid breathing and digestion. Staying healthy and getting fit doesn't have to require an annual gym membership or costly exercise equipment. Using canned goods from your pantry can substitute for free weights and as we've heard today, an inexpensive Hula Hoop can be your secret weapon for getting fit. And while the weather's nice, it's also a great opportunity to get outdoors and join in the fun of a group class with others at Hula Fit Nation. Remember that every day is a gift and the gift we get from keeping physically active and exercising is a gift that will help us breathe better, improve our sleep, and lift our spirits. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Quotes: “It's the best $45-50 you will ever spend.” — Pam “Using a weighted hoop several times a week can help you burn calories, lose fat, and strengthen your core as well as improve your balance and flexibility.” — Pam “Using a weighted hoop is a healthy release of tension and feelings of anxiety by incorporating movement, breathing, and repetition” — Pam “Using a weighted Hula Hoop is a great stress reliever and it's fun fitness.” — Pam “The best way to Hula Hoop is with music.” — Pam “Research shows that by using a weighted Hula Hoop 30 minutes several times a week you can burn up to 210 calories or more.” — Pam “The lighter the hoop, the more energy it takes to keep that hoop up. The heavier the hoop, the easier it is to keep it up.” — Pam   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode:  Hula Fit Nation Website Hula Fit Nation on Instagram Hula Fit Nation on Facebook  

THE POWER OF GOD'S WHISPER TITLE: GOD'S SECRETS EPISODE: 22-263 VERSE: The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law. DEUTERONOMY 29:29, NIV ✔️ - God has His secrets. ✔️ - He satisfies us with more and more truth. ✔️ - Yet secrets remain. God is infinite, after all, and no human being knows Him fully. ✔️ - That means God hadn't finished unveiling His secrets. He was still in the process. TAKEAWAY: There will always and forever be more. And He will always be inviting us into it. PRAYER: Lord, let the “always more” shape my heart and drive me toward You daily. Show me something new every day. Take me from glory to glory in the pursuit of hearing and knowing You. ▌ABOUT US ▌

THE POWER OF GOD'S WHISPER TITLE: FRIEND OF GOD EPISODE: 22-262 VERSE: It happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. JAMES 2:23 ✔️ - The Old Testament twice refers to Abraham as God's friend —2 Chronicles 20:7 and Isaiah 41:8 —and it's an unusual designation. ✔️ - We can enter into that friendship by doing what Abraham did. ✔️ - What did Abraham do? ✔️ - Believers who believe so thoroughly that they do something about what they believe. That's what cultivates friendship with God. TAKEAWAY: There will be times when you know what He is saying without knowing how you know. Friends not only share thoughts, they influence each other's hearts. PRAYER: Lord, I want to be Your friend. I want to know Your heart so well that Your words are often unnecessary. Let my faith and my actions draw me closer to You. ▌ABOUT US ▌

THE POWER OF GOD'S WHISPER TITLE: CLOSED DOORS EPISODE: 22-229 VERSE: The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you. Do not be like a senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control.” PSALM 32:8-9 ✔️ - You've prayed for guidance and pursued the direction you thought you heard from God. ✔️ - So you start back at square one and hope that God eventually leads you to the right path. ✔️ - It happens all the time, doesn't it? And it can be terribly frustrating. ✔️ - We crave a tangible conversation up front in which He tells us what to do, not an after-the-fact wondering where we went wrong. TAKEAWAY: There's no shame in the latter —the Bible is filled with examples of people who started out in one direction and had to be redirected —and the key is to be responsive as we go. But God promises to lead us sometimes before we even start. He will guide, advise, and watch over every step. PRAYER: Lord, neither You nor I want me to be like a senseless animal. I'm tired of bouncing from door to door. Please speak clearly and tell me which way to go. My heart's desire is to hear what You say and respond to it. ▌ABOUT US ▌

MYR2B MINISTRIES THE POWER OF GOD'S WHISPER TITLE: THE VOICE THAT ENABLES EPISODE: 22-173 VERSE: The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 2 CORINTHIANS 3:6, NIV ✔️ - God gave Israel a lot of instructions. ✔️ - God Himself spoke them for the benefit of His people. ✔️ - So what do we do with Paul's statement that the letter of the law kills? ✔️ - That's a recipe for guilt, shame, and ultimately, death. TAKEAWAY: There is no death in that. We live from hearts that have come alive and can do all that is planted within. PRAYER: Honestly, Lord, my efforts to do what Your Word says have been frustrating. I can never quite seem to “get there.” Please transform me from within by Your Word. Help me be everything Your Word calls me to be. ▌ABOUT US ▌

With Taylor Hale, Miss Michigan USA 2021   What do you think of when you hear the words “beauty pageant contestant?” Are you envisioning a gorgeous woman with great posture, professionally-applied makeup, and beautifully styled hair? While beauty pageant contestants can also be intelligent, articulate, and talented, as a society, we tend to focus more on a person's physical attributes. But if beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder, how do we define feminine beauty today? Are pageants an outdated concept? Are we sending the wrong message to young women by creating an artificial reality with Instagram-perfect images and carefully retouched photos? At a time when celebrities and social media influencers are dictating what is considered beautiful and desirable, are beauty pageants even relevant?   Today, the role of a pageant winner is far more important than just a pretty stand-in for a photo opp; she's an ambassador and advocate for a variety of social causes who makes personal appearances on behalf of her chosen platform. Her participation not only draws more attention to a specific cause, it often increases public support for the cause as well.   My guest today is Miss Michigan USA 2021, Taylor Hale. We're going behind the scenes of beauty pageants with Taylor to learn how pageant contestants differ today from previous years and discover just what it takes to become a pageant winner and how titleholders can make a positive impact on our society.   What You'll Hear on This Episode:   What was Taylor's childhood like?   Did Taylor get started in politics while in college? Was Taylor popular or bullied in school? How did Taylor's parents help build her confidence? Did Taylor ever suffer from body image issues? How did the pageant world help Taylor develop healthy habits? What inspired Taylor to enter her first beauty pageant? How does Taylor train for a pageant? Is it expensive to be in pageants and are there sponsorships? Is there diversity and representation in the pageant world? What are the other contestants like? How does being in pageants affect Taylor's dating life? How has Taylor used her title to inspire others? What did Taylor enjoy most about pageants? What does Taylor do today professionally? Taylor shares some success stories from her work as a personal stylist.   Today's Takeaway: There is no one single standard that defines what is beautiful. Various cultures around the world define the concept of physical perfection differently. But the truth is that real beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. It's important to recognize that genuine beauty is not merely skin deep; rather how we behave and treat others is the real testament to our attractiveness. Remember that every day is a gift and the gift that we get from learning to appreciate and honor our own beauty, both inside and out, will allow us not only to value ourselves, but we can share the spotlight and appreciate the beauty of others. Think of it this way, the most beautiful gardens are made up of a wide variety of flowering plants, each one with its own unique appearance. On their own, each of these flowers is lovely, but when combined, they make for an absolutely dazzling array of colorful blooms. Our individual differences are what make us shine when we unite together. I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Quotes: “These are just stories that moved me. I got to see who these women were from a holistic standpoint and I was completely sold on competing.” — Taylor “That's how I learned that you can still value beauty; you can value style and fashion without sacrificing your intelligence.” — Taylor “I can't fix everything happening in the world, I can't change everybody's opinion of me. All I can do is be the best version of myself.” — Taylor “Not everyone's going to like me and if everybody does like me, that means I'm losing a little bit of myself and I always want to be true to who I am.” —Taylor “The body that I had at Miss USA is not the body that I have now but the eating routines, the healthy habits that I made, those are what's important to me and those are the things that will stick with me for the rest of my life.” — Taylor “Don't do it for the body. Do it for the health.” — Taylor “I want to be a human being first that just so happens to have a crown and a sash on her as well.” — Taylor “I think what we all do every day is pageantry!” — Taylor   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode: Taylor Hale on Instagram @thetaylormack   Miss Michigan USA 2021 on Instagram  

VERSE: I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” ISAIAH 6:8 ✔️ In Acts, we see the leaders in Antioch “ministering to the Lord” ✔️ There seems to be a correlation between our worship and our ability to hear. ✔️ Worship often leads us to an encounter with God and virtually always follows one. ✔️ When our lives reflect God's glory through our affection for Him, we begin to hear Him better. TAKEAWAY: There are few things more difficult than worshiping when life seems to be going against you, but there's hardly anything ultimately more rewarding. PRAYER: Holy God, You are glorious, majestic, and beautiful. I adore Your heart —and Your willingness to share it with me. Let me live with a strong sense of Your presence, an atmosphere in which Your words are abundant and clear. Open my heart and my ears to hear You. ▌ABOUT US ▌

With Sandra Ali, News Anchor for WDIV Detroit and Mom of Four   Being a working mom is never easy. Sometimes there is the unavoidable sense of mom guilt, whether you're needed at the office or home. I know from my own experience raising my seven children while working full-time how challenging it can be to achieve a healthy work-life balance. During the pandemic, ever-changing work situations and last-minute school closings only made the role of a working mom even more challenging. In addition to adjusting to staff shortages and longer hours at work, we're also battling the stress of ongoing exposure to COVID-19 and other related health and safety issues. If the family relies on your income you really don't have a choice; you show up and do your job. In these ever-changing times, we rely more than ever on the news to keep us informed on what to expect and how to control and do what we can.   My guest today is award-winning journalist and news anchor, Sandra Ali. She's best known for anchoring the weekend edition of the WDIV Channel 4 News at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. Sandra is also a frequent guest on CNN, Fox News, and other networks. She was born in New York City and spent part of her early childhood growing up in Egypt. Pursuing a double major at Syracuse in Musical Theater and Journalism, she ultimately decided on a career in broadcast journalism. After earning her master's degree at Northwestern University, Sandra began to make her mark in the competitive and fast-paced world of TV news while raising her four children.   What You'll Hear on This Episode: What was Sandra's childhood like in Egypt and then New York? What led Sandra to pursue Musical Theater and Journalism? How did Sandra end up in Altoona, Pennsylvania?! What's the craziest thing that's happened to Sandra on-air? How can Sandra tell that a story is going to be something special? How does Sandra detach herself from an emotional or tragic story? How was it being in the public eye when pregnant? What ages are Sandra's children? What is Sandra's work schedule like now? How does Sandra balance work and home life? How does Sandra practice self-care? What does Sandra do for nutrition for her kids? Why Sandra wants to change the conversation around women's appearance.   Quotes: “There are some days where I will leave the house at 7:45 in the morning with all four kids and my last time I pull into the garage is 9 o'clock after practices.” — Sandra  “It's a very full-time job.” — Sandra “There is a lot of stuff that's not perfect in our house.” — Sandra    Today's Takeaway: There are so many things that we can learn from Sandra. She's a wonderful role model for women; showing that even in the fast-paced and competitive world of broadcast it's possible to find a healthy work-life balance. Sandra is candid about her own journey and she shares how she learned to practice good self-care. As working mothers, it's so important to prioritize our own needs and to learn to set healthy boundaries for ourselves. But what does that look like? Maybe it involves learning to say “NO” to the demands of others or setting aside that valuable “me time.” Maybe it's going for a run or to a yoga class. Whatever it is that makes you feel better and gets your endorphins flowing enough to recharge your battery, do it! Those precious few moments can make all the difference. Instead of feeling exhausted or mentally drained, just giving ourselves that little break can help us regain the physical or emotional energy that we all need to feel present at home or work. Remember, every single day is a gift and when we make ourselves a priority we get stronger and everyone else around us benefits. Be sure to take care of you, love as much as you can, give back to the community, and watch Sandra Ali! I'm Florine Mark and that's “Today's Takeaway.”   Brought to You By: Gardner White Furniture   Mentioned in This Episode: Sandra Ali Sandra Ali on Instagram

Summary:Growing in God is an experience of a relationship with the Holy Spirit,the Father; with an expectant heart. Are you ready?Show Notes:• A major key in a walk with God is learning to open your spirit,don't read the word, eat the word. The flow of impartation iswhere you are going to grow.• Your drive is to meet with the Father first thing, that is your zerotime. That is how you start your day.• Open your heart, God teach me to be expectant. There is anexpectancy that comes by the impartation of the Holy Spirit.References:Psalm 130:6“My soul waits in hope for the Lord More than the watchmen for themorning; Yes, more than the watchmen for the morning.”Lamentations 3:24-2624 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, Therefore I wait for Him.25 The Lord is good to those who await Him, To the person who seeksHim.26 It is good that he waits silently For the salvation of the Lord.”Quotes:• Step one, be in the word, be waiting on the Lord, be in prayer, andread the word prayerfully,• You don't read the word when you are under pressure. You don'tread it when you are stressed out, be relaxed and be in anatmosphere where the Lord can meet you.Takeaway:There are people listening to this podcast who might ask: what's hetalking about? It's the conveyance of His nature to your nature. Hewants us to want Him. That's our worship. Lord, I want you to live inme, take up your abode in me.

Summary:Have you found your way into the living scriptures in your bible? You need someone to teach you to receive what the word is about.Show Notes:• Reading the bible is dry and does not make sense until a teacher comes that is anointed by God.• We are trying to break out, to make the word real for today.• He is a God of today. What did He do today? How can you share what God is doing today?References:II Corinthians 3:6“who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”II Kings 7:3-4“Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate; and they said to one another, “Why are we sitting here until we die? If we say, ‘We will enter the city,' then the famine is in the city and we will die there; but if we sit here, we will also die.”Hebrews 3:15a“While it is said, “Today if you hear His voice.”Quotes:• Make the word real for today so it actually means something in your everyday life.• Make it alive today because the scriptures reveal who Christ is, not necessarily who He was.Takeaway:There's an impartation that makes people in the scriptures come alive and makes the scriptures come alive to you.

We're taking questions! From YOU! In our first installment of  You Ask We Answer," we cover the following questions: Race shirts 101: Do you wear it before you finish the race? Do you wear a race shirt for a race you didn't do? To virtual race or not to virtual race - I'm not loving virtual races but feeling bad about that! How do I fit in fitness when I'm managing my family? Do you have tips for letting go of the day's stress? I'd love some ideas for healthy, easy to make food for busy women. Takeaway: There are no bad questions, only the regret of not asking! Please email us at info@skirtsports.com, hit us on social media with q's or post them on podcast episode pages! 

Today I’m talking with Paul Moffett about what a family office is, and what selling a business to a family office is like. We’re talking about the difference between a family office, an independent office, and a private equity firm. Which is right for you? Who is a good candidate for your business? What you will learn: Paul’s background What will it be like selling to a family office What is a family office vs a private equity The difference between those and independent offices How Encore One is different from other family offices Who is a good candidate for a family office? The incentive to sell to a family office How the management structure works What are the questions you should ask of family offices? What the economy looks like for a family office? Takeaway: There are a ton of different options out there. Is a family office a good exit strategy for you? How can it help perpetuate your legacy? How can a family office ensure your happiness? How do you know if a family office is right for you? Links and Resources: Paul Moffatt, email: Paul.Moffatt@encoreone.com Paul Moffatt, phone: 952-656-4539 Paul Moffatt, LinkedIn ARKONA Boot Camp Reach out to me if you have questions about the boot camp! About Paul: As Director of Business Development for Encore One, Paul is responsible for sourcing and evaluating potential investments, structuring, and negotiating transactions, and working with portfolio companies. Prior to joining in 2017, Paul enjoyed a successful 16-year career in commercial banking, most recently as a Vice President in the Twin Cities Commercial Banking Group at U.S. Bank serving the banking and broad credit needs of the middle market. Paul lives in St Paul, MN with his wife, two boys and a golden-doodle. Paul enjoys working out at his neighborhood gym and family time; as well as non-fiction, volunteering and golf when he can get those in.

Today the guys are discussing the recent bill signed by Gavin Newsom that allows college athletes to start making money from sponsorship opportunities. They break down the pro’s and con’s of this move and discuss the insane amount of revenue that Universities make from NCAA sports and how well paid their coaches are. Also, Matt and Tony dive into some of the history of college athletes getting treated poorly and how video game giant EA Sports was using student athletes in it's games without compensation.   Highlights: “You cant trust a man with a ton of hair gel” Student athletes making money through endorsements Student athletes getting injured in the 1950’s Ed O’ Bannon vs. EA Sports Nick Saban’s 11 million dollar salary Judge Wilkin rules in favor of college athletes   The Takeaway – There will be many people for and against college athletes getting paid. Expect to see a lot of push back from the universities, unless they get their cut of the money.   Twitter: @mattritter1 @toekneesam   Hollywood Improv Show https://improv.com/hollywood/event/legally+insane+w%2f+matt+ritter%2c+tony+sam+and+more+tba%21/9879395/      

Today I’m talking with Paul Moffett about what a family office is, and what selling a business to a family office is like. We’re talking about the difference between a family office, an independent office, and a private equity firm. Which is right for you? Who is a good candidate for your business? What you will learn: Paul’s background What will it be like selling to a family office What is a family office vs a private equity The difference between those and independent offices How Encore One is different from other family offices Who is a good candidate for a family office? The incentive to sell to a family office How the management structure works What are the questions you should ask of family offices? What the economy looks like for a family office? Takeaway: There are a ton of different options out there. Is a family office a good exit strategy for you? How can it help perpetuate your legacy? How can a family office ensure your happiness? How do you know if a family office is right for you? Links and Resources: Paul Moffatt, email: Paul.Moffatt@encoreone.com Paul Moffatt, phone: 952-656-4539 Paul Moffatt, LinkedIn ARKONA Boot Camp Reach out to me if you have questions about the boot camp! About Paul: As Director of Business Development for Encore One, Paul is responsible for sourcing and evaluating potential investments, structuring, and negotiating transactions, and working with portfolio companies. Prior to joining in 2017, Paul enjoyed a successful 16-year career in commercial banking, most recently as a Vice President in the Twin Cities Commercial Banking Group at U.S. Bank serving the banking and broad credit needs of the middle market. Paul lives in St Paul, MN with his wife, two boys and a golden-doodle. Paul enjoys working out at his neighborhood gym and family time; as well as non-fiction, volunteering and golf when he can get those in.

Sure Scorsese and Seinfeld tell a decent story, but have you people seen Takeaway?? There's so many reasons this episode is a masterpiece - we hope we can remember to mention them all! (And Mary does remember to mention Aussie film of the nearly-same-name Take Away - has anyone ever seen this?? Should we bother?!)  Plus we debate the merits of spring rolls, wonder what "Chutney Chimp" might be referring to, and question whether we can be "yes parents" without civilisation crumbling around us.  Anyway, praise be that UberEats hasn't muscled out this our little takeaway joint just yet - or this epic tale might never have been told.    Finally, big welcome to new listeners who have found us via this week's Green Guide story - big thanks to fellow Bluey fan (and Gotta Be Done listener!) Peter Wells for the chat! ++ Gotta Be Done is ex-journos and Melbourne mums Kate McMahon and Mary Bolling, as we deep-dive on every Bluey episode, with plenty of detours into mama life, childhood memories, and everything else we're bingeing, too! Follow us on Insta at @blueypod @marytbolling @katejmcmahon or on Twitter at @blueypodcast - and use #blueypod to join in.

Dr. Kevin Christie is the host of Modern Chiropractic Marketing Podcast. His show talks about the hottest and up-to-date marketing business development strategies for modern chiropractic. In this episode, Dr. Kevin Christie and Dr. Josh Satterlee shares useful and resourceful strategies and techniques to help business people boost their market. “Chiropractors need to be consistent.” –Kevin Christie Christie talks about the value of consistency in marketing.Christie and Satterlee share wonderful techniques and strategies to boost the market of a business.He highlights the importance of putting up a website for a particular business.They will also share some of the useful tools to personalize and organize your very own marketing strategy. Takeaway: There can be many ways to utilize and maximize the land you own and the land you rent. In marketing, there can be strategies and techniques that may either be expensive or inexpensive. It is within your control on how you can make these as worthy profits.Consider building your marketing in your very own property. A website is an example of real marketing property that is yours. Use website as the epicenter of marketing. Websites should be designed as a central resource in your practice. It should also be optimized, timely, and compelling. Have this as a central hub that will provide great content and reasons for people to come back.With an established website, businesses can be ensured of great engagement and activity from the target niche. These positive reactions will be your lead. Get to know more about him at: Facebook Group – Modern Chiropractic Marketing Group Contact him via email: kevin@moderndeskjockey.com

Peter Rex is the Founder of InvestRes and Founder & CEO of Trustwork. InvestRes has purchased 17,000 units throughout Florida, Texas, Arizona, and Colorado, maintains $1.5B+ in assets under management, and has consistently beaten the Preqin Top Quartile in returns. InvestRes is a vertically integrated company, handling acquisitions, property management, construction management and portfolio management in-house. Trustwork is a technology business driven to empower the global workforce and recreate the world’s economy. Trustwork’s initial focus is on recreating the “old economy” industries of real estate and construction, but will eventually empower every person in the global workforce.   Podcast Highlights Who is Peter Rex? In developing the plan for Trustwork, Peter had visited over 85 countries and gained a Law degree from Harvard. Before even that, Peter is naturally rebellious, service driven, and self motivated. Being rebellious didn’t work out very well when Peter was younger, but it served him well as an entrepreneur later in life. Surprisingly, starting a business was a last resort for Peter. It wasn’t part of the plan when Peter was in school but it turned out well. Peter’s rebellious nature lead him to look at things differently, especially when people around him see things another way. Peter spent a few weeks at a Christian monastery when he was younger and during that time he felt like he was being called to business, it was more of a pull than a push. Technology and Trustwork Peter used to do a lot of construction work when he was younger, and that gave him a great understanding of the construction industry and how things worked. He leveraged his leadership skills and love of reading and learning to start and grow his business. After a few years in the real estate space, Peter felt like there was a bigger idea on the horizon, which was some sort of entrepreneurship platform. The obstacles in your life are challenges, you can falter or you can overcome them. Peter’s experience travelling the world taught him a lot about how people operate in different countries. You have to play the game with your talents, when you do that you can’t be beaten. Trustwork is an international entrepreneurship platform build on the experiences and notes that Peter took while travelling the world. When it comes to owning property, one of the hardest things you can do is find trustworthy contractors that you can rely. Owning property is one thing, turning it into a profitable asset is something completely different. The real estate industry is very feast or famine, when you need to get something done, that’s usually the time that everyone else needs to get something done too. Trustwork solves this issue by creating a platform for entrepreneurs and property owners to connect with people to get their jobs done. It creates transparency for everybody involved. Trustwork is the future of work. Peter’s Takeaway There are going to be negative people around you no matter, tell the pessimistic people to check themselves and draw a line. Those types of people are only going to distance themselves from you. Other people may be telling you that they believe in you but not in your idea, listen to their concerns and figure out ways to overcome those obstacles. You should assess yourself realistically and use your friend’s perspectives for this. Don’t run away from who you are by trying to become better in an area that you’re weak at just hire people who make up for your weaknesses. Find out where your strengths are and structure the game to play to those strengths. Play in an area that love to do.   Links: trustwork.com @peterrex Thank you for listening

On the heels of last weeks episode highlighting Kamala’s Harris’s presidential bid announcement, the guys decide to focus on another strong female candidate whose running in 2020, Kirsten Gillibrand. Kristen started her career in big law as a defense attorney for the cigarette giant Philip Morris. After her career in law she was eventually appointed as a Senator of New York. In this episode Matt and Tony break down her career moves, her ever changing political ideology and how she’s a strong candidate for 2020. Highlights: [12:05] – An appointed Senator [16:20] – Representing Philip Morris for more then a decade [22:05] – Fabricating junior attorney stories [25:30] – Flip flopping on immigration policies [31:20] – Pushing out Al Franken [34:10] – A leader of the “Me Too” movement The Takeaway – There’s going to be a strong list of female candidates for the 2020 election. Hollywood Improv Ticket Link: https://improv.com/hollywood/event/legally+insane+with+matt+ritter+and+tony+sam%21/9003415/ Twitter: @mattritter1 @toekneesam Website: www.cascademedia.com  

Legally Insane Military Tribunals – A Few Good Men - Episode 44 Ever wonder how enemy combatants who commit war crimes are prosecuted? They’re tried in Military Courts and these trials are known as Military Tribunals. Military Tribunals operate outside the scope of criminal and civil jurisdictions. The jury and judges are military officers. In today’s episode you’ll learn how and why these tribunals were started and how Presidents began trying some civilians under Military law. You’ll also get Matt and Tony’s take on Guantanamo and why it might be ok to make enemies drink pee. Highlights: [04:22] – Military Tribunals operate completely outside of our legal system. [06:46] – The alleged reason they don’t operate within our legal system is because these crimes typically take place during war on a site where there is no functioning legal system. [09:12] – George Washington, Andrew Jackson, and The Union (during the Civil War) all used Military Tribunals. [10:49] – Lincoln suspended Habeas Corpus, which is the right to a free trial. [15:09] – The US invents “The Water Cure”. [17:14] – Operation Pastorius; The failed German plan for sabotage inside the USA during World War 2. [27:02] – Boumediene vs. Bush 2008. [29:00] – Guantanamo Bay moral dilemma’s. [34:04] – Trump wants to try more people under military tribunals. The Takeaway – There’s a lot of executive overreach. During wartime or emergency situations be weary of presidential power. Hollywood Improv Ticket Link: https://www.ticketweb.com/event/legally-insane-with-matt-ritter-hollywood-improv-the-lab-tickets/8497065?pl=hollyimprov&REFID=hollywoodimprov&_ga=2.103165440.1280431253.1533667202-1318376055.1531430133 Twitter: @mattritter1 @toekneesam Website: www.cascademedia.com  

Which came first the partnership or the friendship? What are the personal and professional impacts..either way? Our guest, Jessica Rhodes & Margy Feldhuhn, share how they co-create together in business and life. In this episode: Advantages of having a business partner vs being a solo entrepreneur. What happens to your perspective when you shift from being someone’s employee to being someone’s business partner? Learn 3 reasons why having a business partner can make you a better business owner. Your best friends and business partners. What happens when the sh*t hits the fan at work? How can business partners utilize each others strengths to fill gaps in the weak areas? Why are venture capitalists afraid of partnerships and spouses that work together? Why you should sign a business pre-nup before official business partners? Takeaway: There is no better way to problem solve than to bounce ideas off someone else and get their perspective. If you don't have a business partner then seek out an accountability partner or find other business entrepreneurs in your same industry or of a similar age and exchanges ideas for creative business solutions. How you feel is not a result of what other people are doing it's all about how you are processing what other people are doing and then internalizing it. Pay attention to you are saying in your head about yourself and about other people. Feelings are not always factual.

John H. Stevens, MD, was too excited to sleep when he first heard what HeartFlow's technology could potentially do. Eight years later, he's sleeping a lot better, having secured $240 million to fund the company's commercial rollout of the HeartFlow Analysis system. Overview: HeartFlow has built a strong financial argument for its imaging system. Surprises: This stuff belongs on Star Trek. Very cool. Takeaway: "There are no shortcuts."

Quincy explores Felix Feng's journey from bootcamp grad to professional developer, and how he went from getting $60,000 job offers to $125,000 job offers through sheer practice and persistence. Article by Felix Feng: https://twitter.com/felix2feng Read by Quincy Larson: https://twitter.com/ossia Article link: https://fcc.im/2iX0LtS Learn to code for free at: https://www.freecodecamp.org Intro music by Vangough: https://fcc.im/2APOG02 Resources mentioned: https://www.interviewcake.com https://www.hiredintech.com/classrooms/system-design/lesson/60 https://www.educative.io/collection/5642554087309312/5679846214598656 https://www.reddit.com/r/cscareerquestions/comments/1jov24/heres_how_to_prepare_for_tech_interviews/ https://github.com/h5bp/Front-end-Developer-Interview-Questions https://leetcode.com The email tool Felix uses: https://rapportive.com/   Transcript:  A less-talked about part of the bootcamper’s journey is what happens after you graduate — when you’re searching for that six-figure developer position. < 3% of applications became offers I completed Hack Reactor in July 2016 and took almost 3 months before accepting an offer with Radius Intelligence. I applied to 291 companies, did 32 phone screens, 16 technical screens, 13 coding challenges, 11 on-sites, and received 8 offers. The offers ranged from $60-125k in salary from companies all over the US, and for both front end and full stack roles. In total, 2.8% of applications became offers. Here are 5 things I wish I’d known before I began my job search. Insight #1: Get through to real people At first, I applied for companies using the shotgun approach. I applied through Indeed.com, AngelList, LinkedIn, StackOverflow, Hacker News, company websites, and even Craigslist. I’d submit a resume for any role that wanted React, Node, or JavaScript experience. In the first week, I applied to 15–20 companies a day. Pro-Tip: Find companies using this easy-application repo. My yield was low. Less than five percent of companies responded to me. I was throwing applications into a black hole. Everything changed when one of my cohort-mates, a former recruiter, shared a guide to the job search. He told us to send emails directly to real people with each application. It could be anybody. As long as someone read it. From then on, whenever I submitted an application, I searched for the company on LinkedIn and emailed someone on their engineering or hiring team. For most small companies or C-level executives, the email format is usually firstName@dreamCompany.com. For larger companies, it may be firstName.lastName@dreamCompany.com. To verify emails, I used Rapportive to cross-check emails with social media accounts. The results were amazing. With 150+ emails sent, my response rate was a whopping 22%. It also felt great to hear from real people. Surprisingly, CEOs and CTOs responded to me. Sometimes they even interviewed me themselves. Takeaway: If you’re applying through the front door, make sure you’re getting to human beings. Insight #2: Start small and work your way up You will face Level 1 interviews (a non-tech company that needs any dev), where interviewers ask you nothing more than JavaScript trivia. You will face Level 9 interviews (Google/Facebook level), where interviewers ask difficult data structure and algorithm questions. I strategically set up my process so that I had lower-level interviews earlier, and higher-level interviews later on. Early on, I gained experience, built confidence, and secured offers from companies that had less intensive interviews. As I got more experience, I effectively “leveled up.” I became capable of completing interviews at companies with higher hiring bars. This is illustrated below as a linear correlation between the number of weeks I was into the process and the base salary I was offered. There’s a direct correlation between time spent interviewing and offer salary. I unlocked tougher questions. I unlocked higher salaries. And eventually, I unlocked the job I took. Takeaway: Plan to tackle easier interviews early on and more difficult ones later on. Insight #3: Study like your future job depends on it (because it does) I hate to break it to you, but the most important thing you could be doing at any point is studying and preparing. Why? Because you won’t get the offer if you don’t have good answers to the questions they ask you. People won’t refer you if they don’t think you’re prepared for their interviews. Coming out of Hack Reactor, my weaknesses were data structures and algorithms. A study by Triplebyte has found that bootcamp grads are weaker in these areas than computer science grads. So I learned and practiced. Every day. I devoted entire days to learning sorting algorithms. Other days, I focused on understanding how the internet worked. If I didn’t fully understand a concept, I’d spend the day watching YouTube videos or searching StackOverflow until I did. I found the following study materials useful: InterviewCake: My favorite resource for data structures and algorithms. It breaks down solutions into step-by-step chunks — a great alternative to Cracking the Code Interview (CTCI). My only gripe is that they don’t have more problems! HiredInTech’s System Design Section: A great guide for system design interview questions. Coderust: If you’re avoiding CTCI like the plague, Coderust 2.0 may be perfect for you. For $49, you get solutions in almost any programming language, with interactive diagrams. Reddit’s How to Prepare for Tech Interviews: I constantly used this as a benchmark for how prepared I was. Front End Interview Questions: An exhaustive list of front-end questions. Leetcode: The go-to resource for algorithm and data structure questions. You can filter by company, so for example, you could get all the questions that Uber or Google typically ask. Takeaway: There’s no such thing as too much preparation. Insight #4: Put your best foot forward Breaking into the industry is hard. You have to perform well, even when you’re not fully prepared. In order to succeed, you have to be your own advocate. Sell Yourself At Hack Reactor, we’re trained to mask our inexperience. In our personal narratives, we purposely omit our bootcamp education. Why? Otherwise, companies automatically categorize us into junior developer roles or tag us as “not enough experience.” In one interview with a startup, the interview immediately went south once they realized I’d done a bootcamp. One company used it against me and made me a $60k offer, benchmarking against junior developers. Ultimately, you need to convince companies that you can do the job. At the same time, you need to convince yourself that you can do the job. You can. Focus on your love for programming. Focus on what you’ve built with React and Node. Focus on demonstrating your deep knowledge in JavaScript and any other languages you’ve learned. Only then can they justify giving you the job. It’s a Two-way Conversation Interviewing is a mutual exploration of fit between an employee and an employer. While it’s your job to convince employers to hire you, it’s also their job to win you over. Don’t be ashamed of using the interview as an opportunity to evaluate the job opportunity. I talked to any company, even if I had only the slightest interest. I did on-sites all over the country with any company that invited me out. I asked questions, and sucked up knowledge on engineering team organization, technologies and tools used, company challenges, and system architecture. Pro-Tip: During interviews, ask the following questions: What are some technical challenges you’ve recently faced? What do you enjoy about working at X company? How are teams structured and how are tasks usually divided? I treated every interaction as a learning opportunity. Each interaction helped me improve my presentation, interview, and technical skills. Each failure helped me find my blind spots. Takeaway: Don’t sell yourself short! And remember, it’s a mutual exploration. Insight #5: It’s a marathon, not a sprint The journey is by no means easy. For 3 months, I grinded 6 days a week. But I tried to take care of myself. What a typical day could look like in JavaScript Some days, I’d study with friends. Other days, I’d go find a cafe and study alone, or hang out at Hack Reactor’s alumni lounge. And every week I’d check in with our career counselor to talk about my progress. It’s easy to burn out during the process. Eat well, sleep, and exercise. It can get lonely. Spend time with friends who are going through the same experience. Takeaway: Prepare for the long game and make sure you take care of yourself. In summary, the key takeaways are: Get through to real people Start small and work your way up Study like your future job depends on it Put your best foot forward It’s a marathon, not a sprint The process may seem endless, but you’re going to make it. Keep putting in the hours. Keep sending in the applications. Keep taking caring of yourself. All of it pays off in the end.

Podcast Shownotes Evan started out at a big defense firm which represented large insurance companies. He left the firm to become a solo practitioner, and a few years later, joined together with another solo practitioner who was a former colleague, to form a firm with a primary focus on insurance recovery for policyholders. Identifying an underserved area of law Evan identified a law practice niche that was underserved, then went deeper into a sub niche – long term disability claims and litigation, and established a national practice. The firm was formed at a time that particular industry had undergone a significant change and shrunk due to an abundance of claims being filed by professionals like chiropractors and orthopedic surgeons and dentists. In 1996 when the firm opened their doors insurance companies were denying a lot of those claims. His marketing efforts started with a little yellow pages ad for insurance recovery and calls from professionals came pouring in. The sub-niche took off from there. Other types of insurance recovery claims came in through traditional advertising and it became the branding of the firm. The marketing may have changed over the last 20 years but the niche practice remains the same. The niche practice has served him well for 20 years. How do you get known for your niche or even sub-niche? Internet searches have resulted in the acquisition of many clients. In many situations, prospects don’t want to ask their circle for lawyer recommendations and expose their issues. Instead, they turn to the internet to find a lawyer for a private, privileged consultation. Digital marketing such as Pay Per Click works but you need to use all the tools such as social media to increase your profile and recognizability among the people you want to reach. Managing marketing the firm and practicing law Start with legal marketing 101: It’s not optional for you to not spend a significant amount of time on a regular, repeated basis towards growing your book of business and growing your practice. If you’re not doing that, you won’t grow. It needs to be as big a commitment as representing your clients on cases or to handling whatever other facets of your business. Evan has positioned himself to where he can spend up to 65 percent of his working day on things related to marketing origination, and growth and management of the practice. It makes him more valuable to the firm than he was when mired in the day to day activities related to cases. Don’t fear picking a niche It’s very difficult to be profitable and successful as a generalist. There are many rich veins of law that having an area of expertise or specialization – when you focus in on a niche, a core area of practice, or even two core areas of practice, you’re able to hone and focus on what you’re doing, in terms of marketing, as well as the efficiencies of managing the business. For people who are not as socially comfortable with networking in the traditional relationship-building efforts, becoming the expert in a certain field helps by speaking and writing about it. It’s also easier for someone to find you if you practice in a specific area. Clients are looking for people who handle issues similar to theirs on a regular basis. How to get started in your niche? Besides making the time and effort commitment, identify successful rainmakers, talk to them, learn from them. Then decide which of those techniques work for you. Identify your strengths and weaknesses. Other lawyers like to tell you what they know. Be a willing listener. Takeaway There is still no substitute for networking and relationship building. Maintaining good relationships with people who can connect you to clients is important. Also, figure out a strategy to ensure your clients are happy because some of the great promoters you’ll have are former clients. Conversely, some of the biggest damage can be made by having clients out there who aren’t happy with your services.