805conversations: Recent Episodes
805connect
Conversations with fascinating people you'll want to know better. Focused on leaders, entrepreneurs, educators and citizens mostly from the 805 region of California. Sponsored by California Lutheran University School of Management and Tolman & Wicker Insurance Services.
One of the things I love about talking with Kevin Bourke is how I am guaranteed to learn something I can use immediately. Kevin has been on the show before (listen here) and is a great supporter of other efforts we undertake, such as sponsoring TEDxSantaBarbara for many years.
In this conversation, Kevin talked about how he and the team at Bourke Wealth Management, look at finances from a big picture view, not just isolating their lens on stock portfolios. He calls it the Family Financial Ecosystem. He takes us on a deep dive of what this means, and once you hear it, you'll wonder why no one has explained this to you before.
Kevin also introduced me to a new word right off the bat - you may need to look it up. It's Decumulation. It's how you thoughtfully and strategically use your savings to fund your retirement, though Kevin explains it much better.
Kevin helped me to understand the differences in how you look at your family finances, especially as it relates to long term planning. He explains where Asset Management fits, how to think about Wealth Management, and how it's different than how someone like him sits as the family CFO and manages the relationships with attorneys, accountants, and anyone involved in your financial ecosystem.
We love it when Kevin spends time explaining complicated topics to us and encourage you to get a copy of his book, Make Your Money Last a Lifetime.
His site: http://bourkewealth.com His book: http://www.amazon.com/Make-Your-Money-Last-Lifetime/dp/0984789529
Dennis Baker is an accomplished marketer and entrepreneur. His latest venture is called POLIS Assist. For the last two years, he and his team have been locating every parking space in Los Angeles County and putting them into an app. Yes, it's true, need a space, use POLIS to find one.
Dennis freely gives of his time and extensive expertise to the non-profit community in Santa Barbara to help them with messaging, strategic positioning, branding, and crisis communications. He has a deep background in marketing and has focused that energy into bringing the POLIS app to the millions of drivers in Los Angeles.
While developing POLIS he and the team have collected parking information on over 500,000 blocks. Dennis talked about one day where he looked at the eight signs in front of a potential parking spot and was confused. Some of the signs said what day he could and could not park, what type of plate he had to have, and other regulations governing the single space. He was maddened by it and decided to fix the problem.
The only obstacle was, there was no central database for street parking, which meant his team had to photograph every street sign on those 500,000 blocks. The volume of street information turned into a big data challenge and opportunity. Dennis says that POLIS is the Waze for Parking.
We appreciate the mammoth effort that has gone into and will continue to go into POLIS. We also thank him for his support of the Santa Barbara Non-Profit Community and his frequent attendance at TEDxSantaBarbara events.
Claudia Weintraub is the Director of the River Oaks Academy, a Personalized Learning Public Charter School, based in Thousand Oaks, California. We sat down with her to understand changes that are occurring in various proposed laws that are going to affect students in Charter Schools throughout the State.
Claudia spent some time updating us on Charter Schools since her first podcast with us in 2015. Lots has changed, specifically in the legislature and the current political climate. Claudia helps educate us, and parents and citizens about the challenges Charter Schools are facing during these challenging times.
What was fascinating to learn was how Charter Schools are a perfect alternative for individual students. The concept of Personalized Learning is an answer for a lot of problems young people face when trying to navigate the structured public school system. Thankfully we have people like Claudia leading the charge and advocating for this innovative way to teach our children.
More information about River Oaks is here: http://www.riveroakscharter.com/
Will Bellomy is himself quite a character, ironically he designs characters for his party game business, Murder Happens. Will joined us in the studio, with guest host, Kimberly Herriman. Kimberly is studying 'Play' as a part of her doctoral research at Antioch University. By day, Will works at Photothermal Spectroscopy in Santa Barbara, designing marketing materials to illustrate the incredibly complex process of their products. It's no wonder he's fascinated with creating complex narratives that anyone can play, with eight of their friends.
This conversation was interesting on several levels. Many of us love solving puzzles, and interactive mysteries, like the ones Will designs are tremendously fun. Will says his stories come from everywhere and hints that an upcoming game stems from an idea he had while talking with an Uber driver.
Kimberly added an interesting voice, as she's doing a lot of research into the psychology of play, and what motivates people to play. You'll learn a lot from listening to her questions. I'm looking forward to playing on of Will's games soon with her, and a bunch of our friends.
Will says his business is just getting going and that he's encouraged that board games are really hot right now especially social games. I think that we're experiencing a backlash against screens.
Glen Derbyshire started taking photographs as a young boy growing up in a military family stationed in Asia. He fell in love with capturing images of events all around him and began his pursuit of lifelong learning, ending up at Brooks Institute here in Santa Barbara.
He is the founder of Studio 2050, a full-service production facility located on the top of the San Marcos Pass in the old Cielo Store. Such a beautiful location has led to a creative vision that extends to a wide variety of production services. Glen and Mark talked at length about his experience with 3D animation. The Studio provides services that include photography, art direction, video production, print production and creative content needed to support his clients' marketing objectives.
You may have seen him and his crew in downtown Santa Barbara in 2015 shooting scenes for the film Papa Hemingway in Cuba.
Longtime Santa Barbara residents will remember the Cielo Store as a stop along the way to a camping trip in the Santa Ynez Mountains, to pick up last minute supplies. Here's an article in the LA Times from 1992 that speaks of the beauty of the region. We're jealous that Glen and his clients get to spend so much time in this stunning location.
We invited Tara Jones Haaf back to the show when we heard that her very successful company, Eat This, Shoot That, has expanded into Solvang. For those of you outside the 805, Solvang is a lovely recreation of a Danish town, nestled in the Santa Ynez Valley, just 45 minutes from downtown Santa Barbara. Tara tells Mark and Patrick all about the charming city and the hidden culinary treasures that abound on the tour. Tara says that her tours are an 8-course adventure. We can't wait to go up to Solvang and discover these hidden treats.
Listen to our original episode with her from 2017 to get a full background on what Eat This, Shoot That is all about. We caught up on the business; she's now operating with seven tour guides. She is full of great quotes, including, "Take the picture that got you to go to the restaurant in the first place." Good idea.
Tara gave us some pro tips for taking pictures of food - and they are simple and easy to remember. 1. Get in nice and tight. She suggests getting into the personal space of the dish. 2. Shoot at eye level. Forget perfectly framing those over the dish shots. 3. Front light the plate (have the sun at your back) unless you're taking pictures of glasses of wine, then have the light behind the glass.
Tara also writes for Noozhawk and has an unfair competitive advantage in finding the best places to eat. You can see her many articles here. Her writing talents are also on display in her book that she spoke about in our first show: The 100 Things to do in Santa Barbara Before You Die.
We had a far-reaching conversation with Max Drucker, the CEO of {Carpe Data, a business located just upstairs from our studio here in downtown Santa Barbara. Max understands data, big data, and the future of how data impacts businesses like few we've had on the show. We learned about predictive analytics, his start at Apple working to bring Insurance Companies to the Internet, machine learning, and how to manage the data that impacts your business.
Max is easy to listen to, especially if you are unsure about your relationship to big data and how it is used to calculate risks to businesses. He makes the discussion, which can frequently be nerdy and complicated, straightforward and easy to understand.
Towards the end of the show, he takes us on a journey into the future, with a prediction about autonomous cars that you'll want to hear.
As co-founder and CEO, Max leads Carpe Data in the development and execution of the business. Before Carpe Data, Max co-founded Social Intelligence, a social media background screening company. In November 2010, Insurance & Technology Magazine named Max as one of its Top 10 Innovators of the Decade, an award that recognizes accomplishments in the insurance technology industry over the past ten years.
We met with Gregg Hart, newly minted member of the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, for a delightful conversation about civic engagement. I've known Gregg for a long time, back from my days at Wavefront. Gregg has been involved in just about every significant activity here in Santa Barbara, as a member of multiple organizations over the years. One of the things that you'll remember if you ever meet with him is his persistent smile and pleasant attitude. He genuinely is committed to this community, and it's a joy to listen to him talk about public service.
In this episode, you'll learn about his motivation to spend his life in community service. It started with him hanging out with his Dad, who was a librarian. For the past several years Gregg was the Executive Director of the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, a regional planning agency comprised of Santa Barbara County and all eight incorporated cities within the county. SBCAG distributes local, state, and federal transportation funds and acts as a forum for addressing regional and multi-jurisdictional issues.
This episode may get you motivated to pay a bit more attention to the activities that go on in your community and possibly even move you to volunteer.
Mike Williams has one of the better jobs on the planet. He's the Getting Things Done Enterprise Architect for Zappos. What the heck kind of job title is that? In this episode, Mike tells about working with Tony Hsieh, the legendary founder of Zappos and being immersed in that fantastic culture. Mike is deeply involved by way of his background working for years with David Allen, author of Getting Things Done. Together they recently co-authored a new book, Getting Things Done for Teens (Video below) and he's putting everything he's learned and taught around the world to good use at making Zappos one of the premier places to work in the US.
Mike talks about the Airstreams and Tiny Homes and the Village which has been designed so you will 'collide' with those you work with regularly. He says Tony will talk about colliding many times during the day and believes it's a key to the organization's success. Mike calls it Holocracy. Holacracy is such a big idea you'll want to follow the link and dig in; it's a revolutionary way to think about organization.
Which brings us back to Mike and the work he's on the planet to do - helping people get things done. He says figuring this out is the DNA of life, which he states so clearly as answering the simple question, "What's the Next Action?"
One thing that amazed me about the conversation was learning Mike, who lives in Camarillo, commutes to Las Vegas every week. Ok, that doesn't sound so bad, but he leaves out of John Wayne Airport in Orange County because he loves Jet Blue. What does that tell you about brand loyalty?
We met Mike a few years back as a part of TEDxCamarillo and were able to help him along his road to the red circle. You can watch his talk here.
Mike talks about the Airstreams and Tiny Homes and the Village which has been designed so you will 'collide' with those you work with regularly. He says Tony will talk about colliding many times during the day and believes it's a key to the organization's success. Mike calls it Holocracy. Holacracy is such a big idea you'll want to follow the link and dig in; it's a revolutionary way to think about organization.
Which brings us back to Mike and the work he's on the planet to do - helping people get things done. He says figuring this out is the DNA of life, which he states so clearly as answering the simple question, "What's the Next Action?"
One thing that amazed me about the conversation was learning Mike, who lives in Camarillo, commutes to Las Vegas every week. Ok, that doesn't sound so bad, but he leaves out of John Wayne Airport in Orange County because he loves Jet Blue. What does that tell you about brand loyalty?
We met Mike a few years back as a part of TEDxCamarillo and were able to help him along his road to the red circle. You can watch his talk here.
Public Radio, There's nothing else like it - Mary Olsen General Manager, KCLU by 805connect
In this episode, we talk with Dan Hamilton, Associate Professor in the School of Management at California Lutheran University, where he is the Director of Economics for the CLU Center for Economic Research and Forecasting (CERF) and the Director of CLU's Master of Science in Quantitative Economics (MSQE). In partnership with CERF Director Matthew Fienup (previously on the podcast), he is a member of the Wall Street Journal's Economic Forecasting Survey and has more than 22 years of experience in economic forecasting.
We had a lively conversation about forecasting, how you present data to decision makers and how 'data can be tricky.' Dan believes that we are in the Golden era of forecasting. Luckily for us, he has deep experience in the topic and was able to present Patrick and Mark with a Master's Class worth of information in under an hour.
Dan joined CLU in 2009 and in three months, established CERF and MSQE. CERF has computed economic forecasts for the United States, California, Oregon, Los Angeles County, the San Fernando Valley, Ventura County, and for various other counties in California. The MSQE program focuses on teaching the application of quantitative methods in applied economic and financial analysis, including economic forecasting.
Before CLU, Hamilton joined the UCSB Economic Forecast Project in 2000 where he worked with well-known regional organizations including Vandenberg Air Force Base, the County of Santa Barbara, the County of Ventura, The Towbes Group, the Sares-Regis Group, among many others.
Before UCSB, Dan worked for three years for the Wharton Econometric Forecasting Associates (WEFA Group) where he produced and interpreted forecasts for a wide variety of clients including Visa International, the Panama Canal Authority, and the United States government. He also conducted intensive forecast training programs for both internal and external clients at the WEFA Group.
This conversation with storyteller, award-winning journalist, author, and professor, Starshine Roshell takes us into the world of writing, storytelling and interviewing, and as Starshine is usually the one doing the interviewing, the show has a certain meta quality to it.
Starshine has written several books, produces a regular column for the Santa Barbara Independent, is the Associate Director of Media and Communications at Fielding Graduate University, all while being a busy Mom. Clearly, she's got more than one superpower.
She teaches people how to interview, so I was a bit on edge and made sure I brought my A-game to the table for this conversation. As you'll learn in the show, I didn't need to worry at all. We settled into a nice groove taking us from her coming from a family of storytellers, to being an instructor for Lynda.com (Now LinkedIn Learning). Along her long and winding road, she's discovered many tricks of writing she freely shared with us.
As a student of interviewing and crafting the best questions to ask, I jumped on the chance to ask the expert about how she approaches interviews. Of course, she actually has a class in Interviewing. (Note to self: Must take this class.)
I won't give away my favorite part, where she used an analogy to explain how music and messaging are more similar than you might think at first.
We had a lot of laughs as will you when you listen. Please feel free to share this with someone who wants to be a better communicator.
ps. The title of this episode, Talk more about that, is one of the tricks she explained that she uses to dig deeper into the answer she hears during an interview.
In this episode, we meet two amazing women, both winners in their respective categories of the 2018 Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards. We've been partners with SOE for some time now, and love having these conversations. Both women are remarkably accomplished as you will learn in this spirited episode.
Nirasha, the winner in the Hospitality and Tourism category, has built a thriving business based on her passion for food. She outlines how she went from attending Brooks Institute with a degree in photojournalism to starting The Food Liason with her husband and growing it to be able to feed 4,000 people a day.
Zdena, the winner in the Retail category, has grown her passion for art glass that comes her home country in Eastern Europe, into a business based in Solvang, California. She and her husband have grown the business from art glass and jewelry to include a shop featuring olive oils and a new shop called Flavors, which is an artisanal cafe and gelateria.
I loved the eclectic nature of our conversation, as will you. Next time you're in Carpinteria (during lunch) stop in at The Food Liason's counter for a treat, then when you're in Solvang, stop into Flavors, after visiting Zfolio's Gallery to see the art glass.
Jan Campbell is the Executive Director of Santa Barbara-based non-profit, Domestic Violence Solutions. Jan gave us a quick update on DVS's history, having been founded with their first shelter in 1977. She also introduced us to a new term: Intimate Partner Violence.
She says that the #MeToo movement has raised awareness of this epidemic. Her statistics show that there are more than 6,000 calls a day nationally to organizations that provide support like DVS.
DVS relies extensively on volunteers, with a 40-hour training for each of them, as there are more sensitive issues to consider than you'd first think. For instance, the actual location of the shelters is a secret known only to staff and law enforcement. Makes sense once you think about it.
Another term she taught us was Intergenerational Violence, here's a link to a white paper on this topic for those of you that want to dive deeper after you listen to this episode.
We talked at length about early warning signs, prevention and how to help. She said, "Be an upstander, not a bystander." Agreed.
There are many challenges facing our community and this is one she rightfully called a Silent Epidemic. If you're interested in helping DVS be successful in their mission, check them out here.
Listeners will remember Jan as the first guest on this podcast. Welcome back.
(J.C. Corliss / Noozhawk photo)
I step in when you want to double and triple growth.
Diana Pereira is committed to her clients in a way that's inspiring. She's one of the Founders of the Impact Hub in Santa Barbara, and the Founder of Balance Financial Management, located in the Funk Zone of Santa Barbara. We know her from the early days of the Impact Hub when it was still a dream, and she presented the vision at the Santa Barbara Library, several years ago.
Since then, the Hub has grown into a center for entrepreneurship in Santa Barbara. Her work at the Impact Hub was recognized with a highly coveted Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award in 2018 in the Green and Entrepreneurship category. Note: We're going to interviewing the 2018 winners over a period of months, to help celebrate the work that the organization is doing.
Diana sees her company's role at Balance as the backbone to startups and non-profits. She said she's been doing payroll and accounting since she was eleven years old and has been a CFO for over 15 years.
She lights up when you ask her about success stories at the Impact Hub. Her current favorite is Cognixion, founded by Andreas Forsland. They're on the cutting edge of AI, creating products that accelerate and enrich human communication and connection.
One of the things that I appreciate about Diana is that she sees herself as a part of the team. If you poke a view into her office in the Funk Zone, you'll see an excellent brick room, windows on two walls, and a shelf that wraps around the room that has computers, that everyone stands up to work on. It's cool, and if they need to sit or take a meeting, they're in the Impact Hub, with plenty of room to spread out when they need to.
Congratulations to Diana, and the rest of the 2018 SOE Winners.
We recently had the opportunity to talk with Stephanie Caldwell, a seasoned Chamber of Commerce executive about Ventura and her vision for Main Street. Stephanie understands the small town nature of Ventura and the high percentage of mom and pop businesses. She's also got a lot to say about Growth vs. No Growth conversations and how they affect Ventura.
Stephanie came to Ventura from The San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce three years ago, where she was the Chief Operating Officer.
Stephanie says there are five main areas of focus: Economic Development, Networking and Visibility, Community Building (especially for non-profits), Advocacy and Political Action, especially as it relates to her board. We mention the board, as one of our sponsors, Greg Van Ness; also a guest on the podcast is Vice-Chair of Governmental Affairs at the Chamber.
Ventura has a vibrant startup scene as well, and she quoted another 805conversations guest and Board Chair of the Chamber, John Silva, who said, "Joining the Chamber is one of the best ways to grow your business."
Our conversation also touched on the Thomas Fire and the impact it had on an already tight housing marketing. With only 2% availability (much like most of the communities in the 805) it's a challenge when, as a business, you're trying to attract talent from outside the region.
Her mantra is in three areas: attract, retain and grow. She's also not blind to the changing economy, and the impact technology has on brick and mortar businesses, especially the sharing economy. She's also recognized a generational shift in membership and is excited about the Young Professionals Group and their positive impact on the organization.
Stephanie says the most significant ongoing challenge is communications and how to bridge the growth vs. no growth politics.
This conversation with Dr. Roger Dunham, who lives here in Santa Barbara, focused on a life well led. He's had three interesting careers; doctor, author, and crewmember aboard a Navy submarine.
From medicine to underwater survival aboard a nuclear submarine, from the terrorism of piracy in the South China Sea to survival against the medical forces of nature, Roger Dunham. M.D. has crafted a series of intriguing books defining the ultimate in human challenge: Survival.
His latest book, Rogue Captain, came out last month. The book blurb says the Navy tried to block publication, and his other submarine novel, Spy Sub, chronicled the search for a missing Russian sub at the bottom of the sea. Fascinating tale when you hear it from Roger in-person, there's a lot of controversy around both books.
Roger was an Internal Medicine doctor here in Santa Barbara for 40 years until he retired. His ability to bring real-life experiences into his novels produced one medical thriller, Final Diagnosis, and after seeing so many patients facing end of life issues, he wrote Surviving Mortality.
Ashley is an avid sports enthusiast and is an athlete for life. It's no surprise she has remained in the sports industry for over 17 years. Her experience has ranged from Collegiate Volleyball Coach and Youth Development and Program Director to most recently General Manager and her current role as Director of Corporate Development at Sports Academy in Ventura County.
We had a chance to catch up with her and talk about the wide-ranging offerings at Sports Academy and how they're impacting lives from small kids and families, local school sports teams all the way to professional athletes.
Ashley explained how the founder of Sports Academy, Chad Faulkner, has an enlightened view of the definition of sports. It includes eSports - they have a cool room dedicated to it, a close-quarters defense course for first responders and even competitions for entrepreneurs.
Ashley is an inspirational leader to be sure, and we're sure she and the team at Sports Academy make a difference in the lives of the athletes that train there. She explained their ALPHA motto - A = Athletes, L = Learning, P = Positive, H = healthy and A = Attitude. Love it.
They recently hosted a Startup Weekend at their 96,000 square foot facility. Thanks to Mike Panesis, a friend of the pod, and past guest from California Lutheran University for the introduction.
In this candid interview with Dina Landi, the managing partner of Riskin Partners, we learn about the local real estate market and the attraction of people to the region. She explains how the market is complicated and how our coastal lifestyle is one of the main attractors to people in the area.
You'll learn what's it's like to be a realtor who focuses on properties of distinction. She gives tips for meeting new people and how to get beyond just thinking about square footage when representing a home.
My biggest surprise was when we talked about real estate technology and how realtors tend to be early adopters, and she said, "Yes, we have our own drone." Of course, she does.
This conversation had a bit of sadness to it as well. Riskin Partners was founded by Rebecca Riskin, who perished in the Montecito Debris Flow in January 2019. Dina told us briefly about her story that day and wanted to dedicate this episode to her memory.
Miguel DeCoste, CPP, has worked in the field of security for over 25 years. He is the founder of Coast Executive Services. His background includes domestic and international Executive Protection, Security Consulting, and Event Security assignments in the private sector – including working in coordination with the USSS and State and Local law enforcement to provide client protection and site security during the 2012/2016 Republican and Democratic National Conventions.
In addition to his 15 years of Public Events Management for the University of California, he is also the host of The Tao of the Velvet Rope, a podcast examining the myths, truths, and guiding principles of Nightclub Security.
Our conversation covered a wide range of topics to get a civilian's view of the realm of security professionals. We talked about specific events in the news and his take on them, and how situational awareness is one of the most important skills you can have.
I love his explanation of how he works a room when auditing the security at a nightclub, paying attention to things none of us ever consider. I'm glad that he has a podcast that other professionals can listen to and up their game, and keep us safe.
Dr. George Ayoub is an author, scientist, and educator, experienced in medical research and higher education. He has taught over 10,000 students at colleges and universities and is appreciated for his ability to make things clear for all audiences. He enjoys word plays, gardening, and teaching. His research has identified natural foods that protect our bodies from disease and improved the health of people.
His most recent book, All the Worlds a Stage is a concise guide to the workings of your body, with clear explanations of how to improve your odds for a healthy and productive life. It includes an overview of human biology, including cell function, organ system physiology and development. The book explains common chronic diseases and how to adjust diet and exercise to improve your odds of a healthy life.
Our conversation covered George's broad interests, from teaching, researching, and why he chose Physics as a major and in Grad School he majored in Neuroscience. He was drawn to these two subjects because they were core to his worldview that the two most core subjects were Physics and Philosophy. So he minored in Philosophy. These cover the bigger ideas of how things work (Physics) and who we are (Philosophy).
This conversation is so packed, it's hard to isolate the best bits for the show notes. This show is best experienced by listening - keep a notepad around to take notes.
Alex Cicconi-Kasper, CEO of +Charge, is the winner of the recent Startup Weekend, held in February, at UCSB. He's a second-year College of Creative Studies student and Physicist. He and his team have developed a single-use cell phone charger.
In this episode, Alex goes into detail about how they worked as a team over the 56 hours of the weekend to come up with a concept, test market the idea, get feedback and secure a team to mock up the idea, which led to them winning the weekend.
805Conversations is supportive of the efforts of the various Startup Weekends in the region and offers a podcast interview to help these young companies get some early publicity and gives the new leadership a chance to hone their presentation skills for the media.
You can read more about the product in detail at the UCSB Center for Creative Studies website: https://ccs.ucsb.edu/news/2018/reliable-charge
Siobhan Holden is a student at Santa Barbara High School and brought cookies to her class one day, and everyone fell in love with them. Sometimes that's all it takes to get that entrepreneurial energy flowing. It turns out that high school kids don't have enough money to afford organic, handmade cookies, so she turned to a broader market and debuted at last year's Summer Solstice Festival. That was a great launchpad, and since then the cookies and the cookie business has grown exponentially.
Along the journey to growing the business, she's learning about marketing, distribution, bulk baking, customer relations, and finding ways to build the business.
She says that the reason they don't use preservatives in their cookies is that you wouldn't expect your mom or grandmother to use them in theirs. We agree.
Jennifer Berger is a native Southern Californian and a third generation Realtor. Following the footsteps of her Grandfather, and Mother, Jen began real estate in 1998 while attending UC Santa Barbara. She graduated in 2000 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Spanish and soon after attained her Real Estate License.
Jen began her career in a boutique real estate firm in Santa Barbara and after five years joined an established real estate firm to accommodate her expanding clientele and connect with clients on a local and international level. Jenn joined the prestigious and elite agents at Compass at the end of 2016.
Our conversation took us into areas I'd never considered when thinking about real estate, like how to deal with death and divorce. She says that there are two reasons to be in the business, the money and the people. Knowing from working directly with her as a volunteer at TEDxSantaBarbara, for her, it's the people.
She also busted some myths I had about weekend realtors that think it's easy to get a licesne and make a million dollars and only have to sell a couple of homes a year. Not true.
If you want to be a realtor, she suggests:
- Be ready to invest all of your time
- Be a jack of all trades
- You've got to have heart
Coming from a 3rd generation realtor, that makes a lot of sense. We appreciate Jen's spirit and her sincere desire to build lifelong relationships with clients.
Edgar Terry, President, and CFO of Terry Berries comes from a long line of farmers. He has a lifelong interest in finance and teaching. In this episode, Edgar explains the Food System in a way that helps us understand the process of commercial farming in a way that helps us appreciate the complexities of the business.
Terry Berries have been a fixture in Ventura County for the past 16 years. They are centrally located at 1701 Telephone Road. They've operated a fruit stand this entire time and don't wholesale the berries. If you want some of the best tasting, picked-fresh-daily strawberries, you'll need to go during the season (February through Mid-June).
In addition to the berries, Edgar grows large crops under contract, peppers, celery and other vegetables for large food producers. As a chef, I was fascinated to learn how this all worked, and how he manages the entire process. Edgar explained that they operate on single-digit margins, meaning it only takes a minor mishap, maybe too much heat, to erase the profit.
Luckily for the family, he has a love of numbers and suggests that there's no substitute for sound finance. He loves this aspect of the business so much; he's been teaching it for 32 years in California Lutheran University's Degree for Professionals Evening Program and the Master of Business Administration Program. He also somehow finds time to sit on eight boards of directors, including being the President and CFO of Terry Farms. He's a busy guy.
We also talked about the challenges and surprises of commercial farming, and some of the innovative aspects that are being implemented to help him and other food producers meet the demands of an ever more discerning population.
Emily Barany has a great story to tell about how ThomasFireHelp.org started. It was the day after the Thomas Fire had burned through the night and was barreling towards downtown Ventura. She helped a friend evacuate and in the morning started looking for ways to help those affected by the raging fires. She contacted a friend Chris Collier, and together they came up with a plan to connect resources within a few days.
Listen as she tells the story of rallying private pilots in the area to create an ad-hoc fleet of planes to transport key personnel and those in need of medical treatment during the worst days, primarily when the 101 freeway was closed.
ThomasFireHelp was born out of the immediate and desperate needs of people in the Ventura and Santa Barbara communities facing disasters of unprecedented scale and destruction. No one knew where to go or what to do, and everyone wanted to help. That was their simple beginning - they became the 'Craigslist' of recovery, building a “scrappy” web-based platform connecting those in need with those who had resources to give.
Emily has a background of helping local organizations. Her company, Visionality, works with non-profits to align their vision with their strategy and focus on the business side of the operation.
This episode takes a deep dive into the motivation that has now resulted in the creation of a Disaster Resource and Recovery Platform. Emily admits that she knows nothing about software development, or disaster recovery, which leads to her quote above, "Everything starts with I don't know."
She's been on a steep learning curve since early December 2017 when the Thomas Fire started. She continues to develop the platform, knowing that the recovery efforts may easily take ten years until we're back to a new normal.
Emily is a graduate of California Lutheran University, one of the sponsors of our podcast and represents her alma mater very nicely.
Seth Streeter is a community organizer and CEO of Mission Wealth. Over the past two years, he has led the creation of a significant new effort in Santa Barbara called Sustainable Future. His Advisory Council of 24 civic leaders reads like a local Who's Who. Collaboratively they have found ways to amplify what's happening in the environmental movement in various silos and bring the efforts together under one umbrella.
The site that they've created has an underlying strategy of employing game mechanics to make participation in various activities engaging and fun. At the recent Earth Day, they set up a Scavenger Hunt that took players in and out of over 200 organizations at Alameda Park.
Part of the success of the project is how they are connecting non-profits to business to schools, the public and private sector and faith-based communities. It's a significant mandate. Seth's concerned about scope creep and has a clear focus on the challenges that such a sweeping initiative has.
I enjoyed hearing Seth talk about Environmental Stewardship and feels that is an important message to communicate.
We applaud everyone's commitment to this project and hope that it inspires you as well. Take a look a the site and sign up to discover new ways to be inspired.
Robin Elander is the Executive Director of the Santa Barbara Summer Solstice Celebration. Recently she sat down with Mark and Patrick to talk about the upcoming 3-day festival and the workshop that runs for two months leading up to the big weekend. This year's celebration is June 22-24 in downtown Santa Barbara, ending up at Alameda Park for a well-attended parade after-party. We talked with Robin about the challenges of running such a creative endeavor and what it was like behind the scenes.
Summer Solstice Parade began in 1974, as a birthday celebration for a popular artist and mime named Michael Gonzales. In subsequent years, their parade joined forces with a Summer Solstice Music Festival coordinated by Michael Felcher, sponsored by The Santa Barbara Museum of Art, staged at the Sunken Gardens to celebrate the longest day of the year.
The Parade and Festival is the largest arts event in Santa Barbara County, drawing crowds of over 100,000 spectators from around the world. From these humble beginnings arose a celebration of life which, is like no other.
This year's theme is Heroes and we're looking forward to seeing how the various floats and groups bring the theme to life.
Robin says that Solstice has surprised her in how transitory the overall effort is and how people who've never thought of themselves as creative, come out of the workshops feeling a bigger, bolder version of themselves.
Robin has been coordinating events since she was 16 in Jamestown, New York. She grew up in a beauty salon, much like the one we see in the movie Steel Magnolias. She says that the core of a community is their events, with the most visible of those being parades.
Robin is involved in a lot of artistic ventures in Santa Barbara and works with the Office of Arts and Culture, the Community Arts Workshop and other organizations. She wears many hats as the founder of Global Good Impact and works tirelessly on behalf of many creative projects in Santa Barbara.
She's currently working with a team to produce the Santa Barbara Timeline Mosaic. This project looks amazing.
Sabith Khan is an Assistant Professor at the School of Management at California Lutheran University. He's passionately interested in what drives us to give our hard-earned money to good causes and how this affects civil society, religion, and politics.
Charity and philanthropy are becoming increasingly crucial as fields of study, given the growing importance of non-state actors such as civil society groups and nonprofit organizations in our society. The introduction of Automation, Artificial Intelligence and new forms of production are sure to upend the existing models of production, in what scholars and thinkers are calling the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution.’ This is bound to have a profound impact on our societies, around the world. Sabith's research agenda is to examine these changes in the realm of nonprofit organizations, technologies, governance systems and help chart a path towards managing these rapid changes. He is particularly drawn towards examining the old as well as the new: religious, cultural and governmental systems as much as technological systems that seem to be emerging fast and dominating our consciousness.
Our conversation covered; • His academic background, • What drew him into studying Public Policy and Administration, • Why he loves teaching, • Statistics about charitable giving that are eye-opening, • What about conflict countries? • What are remittances and why are they such a large part of the economy?
Narelle Wickham is a forensic mental health clinician, here visiting Santa Barbara for the summer from Canberra, Australia. This conversation opened up a window into why mental illness is such a driving factor in school violence and how educators can be taught to recognize early warning signs. Narelle became aware of the impact of mental illness and the judicial system while working in the court system in Australia and saw the challenges of mental health vs. criminal justice. She said that when you focus on solving the mental illness issue, there's an extremely high success rate.
Narelle suggests that mental illness is primarily a young person disease, concentrated mainly on 12-25-year-olds. She has a method for training teachers called SOLD; S = Smile, O = Observe, L = Listen and D = Discuss.
We talked about gun violence in Australia, where there's never been a school shooting, to here in the US, when there was a shooting while we were recording this episode. Another focus for her is Internet Addiction. We spoke at length about that issue.
Narelle creates professional development workshops for teachers and school districts in Australia, and after having spent some time here, would love to start training here in the 805.
Professor Bruce Gillies, PsyD, teaches at the School of Management at California Lutheran University. He came back on the show to tell us about his new book, The 21st Century Career Search Program. He speaks about how the first 90 days on the job is crucial to make sure there's a cultural fit between the employee and the workplace.
Bruce is passionate about this field and took us on a deep dive of how to get a great job, how to do a skills inventory, what to focus on in HR, including how to manage your self-confidence in the interview.
Listeners to the show know that I love acronyms and Bruce has a great one as it relates to creating your inventory of skills. He calls it CAR - specifically, create an example of a problem you solved at a previous job, spell out the Challenge, talk about the Action you took and then highlight the Result. CAR. Note: It's been my experience that if you can insert stories into the interview, you'll perform at least 100% better than other candidates.
Laura Azzalina Rigali is a bundle of energy, and it must be fun to be one of her students. She is an adjunct professor at California Lutheran University, in the School of Management and in a professional capacity she runs a vibrant consultancy called Illuminate CFO, leading workshops and CEO Roundtables.
During our conversation she let it slip that she loves going Case Studies - think of it as forensic accounting. Digging in and understanding what the numbers mean. She loves the stories that the numbers tell her. She's particularly interested in the financial empowerment of CEO's.
She has a lot of experience working with millennials as well and says that what's unique about them is that they're very mission-oriented. She talked about the 'power of the purse - putting your money where it matters,' as something they care about.
We asked about the three surprises she consistently sees when working with CEO's. She says they are: a lack of financial knowledge (or fear of numbers), a lack of confidence (afraid to grow) or a lack of self-awareness. Now we know why she's also a life coach as well as a CEO coach.
Aaron Pick, the Chief Operating Officer of award-winning Allen Construction, in Santa Barbara, had an engaging conversation with us, covering areas from LEED construction, the rebuilding of Montecito to his winding journey to Santa Barbara.
Dennis Allen, the founder of the firm, is a pioneer in LEED methods of construction and is a thought-leader as it applies to sustainable building. Aaron focuses on growing the business and continuing to advocate for zero net energy projects.
There were many exciting side-stories during this episode that will give you deep insight into what it's like running an independent operation here on the South Coast. Allen was honored with a California Small Business award in 2015. Note: It was at that ceremony in Sacramento that 805's host, Mark Sylvester, met Dennis, as introNetworks also was there to be recognized for the 805connect project (the organization that produces this show).
John Silva is the President and Senior Creative Director of DuPuis Group, based in Ventura, California. They work on branding, innovation and have created several ventures in conjunction with their clients' brands. John is a veteran with 25 years experience of creative problem-solving.
The central theme of our conversation was around a shift in what branding is today and the brand-consumer relationship. We learned some key aspects of how he approaches problems. Specifically using brand values to connect trends and culture to business goals and strategy.
A major takeaway from this conversation was that people buy values, not value (made us think about having a Values in addition to an About page on the website). John also suggests that the best brands are willing to polarize!
There are plenty of pearls in this episode; you'll want to have a pen handy to take notes and feel free to share the show with a friend who's struggling with brand identity and purpose. We predict that this episode that will become required listening in marketing classes.
We had an excellent, wide-ranging conversation with Phillipa Bisou Della Vina, President of the Santa Barbara Transgender Advocacy Network (SBTAN). She's been deeply involved in this underserved community for the past several years and helped us better appreciate their challenges. There are a lot of new terms to consider during this episode, and we've provided a list of resources to help you better understand and find ways to be supportive.
There is a tremendous transgender outreach and support network locally, and Bisou told us a poignant story of her meeting a young girl and her family at a Pacific Pride event three years ago. Bisou explained that there are several sub-communities underneath the trans-umbrella and that helping people understand this diversity is a large part of the organization's mission. She spoke of having recently produced a Cultural Competency Class for local educators to help them with transgender students in the classroom.
We pushed this episode out quickly to support their upcoming event, Hearts on Fire on April 7th at the Lobero Theater in downtown Santa Barbara.
Here's a list of organizations that are helping and providing resources:
SBTAN and Trans youth Santa Barbara PFLAG - Center for the LGBTQ Community in Santa Barbara Hearts on Fire Event (April 7, 2018) Becoming a transgender affirming business Los Angeles economic empowerment for LGBTQ Tranz Central Coast (SLO) Diversity Collective, Ventura County Santa Maria House of Pride and Equality Tips for Allies of Transgender People Understanding Gender Diversity and Sexual Orientation Among Students
Dane Howard is a designer, a dad and a friend of the show. We asked him back to continue our conversation about the importance of design in the workplace. Dane joined us in 2016 when we were first getting started, and we spoke about Design Thinking. You might want to listen to that show right after you've finished this one.
I am fascinated with design, in all its incarnations. Dane and I talked at length about communication skills and how he pre-visualizes partnerships and how his ear for adaptive and tribal languages can influence conversations. He's keenly aware of how an organization feels, which is directly related to how people talk with one another.
As usual, Dane had drawn up his ideas on his drive down to the studio and shared the intersections of his dreams with his skills and how course corrections and forks in the road changed everything.
We also talked about Big Moments, his word, and how I refer to them as Taps (on the shoulder), with the takeaway being, you need to 'be available for the work.'
Finally, we discussed the relationship he has with his daughter, Chloe, who was on the TEDxSantaBarbara red circle and has now launched her career at the old age of 17. I know that a lot of our listeners are parents and how they shape and guide their children blurs the line between work and family. How much guidance do you provide and how much do you let them go on their own path. The two of them have found an excellent way to work together.
We may invite Dane back for a third talk at the table.
In this episode of 805conversations, we talk with Business Giving Roundtable members, Kirsten McLaughlin, Market Vice President, COX Communications and Van Haas, Founder, Accountix.
The Business Giving Roundtable (BGR) is a growing forum where local business leaders share strategic approaches to corporate social responsibility and employee volunteerism. BGR promotes business giving and elevates the generous contributions of its members including local entrepreneurs, international corporations and local chambers of commerce.
Kirsten and Van talk about how their organizations approach business giving and have embedded corporate social responsibility into the culture of their companies.
Karyl Lynn Burns and Jim O'Neil are the co-founders of the Rubicon Theater in downtown Ventura, California. They are celebrating their 20th Anniversary Season with six new shows. They call it "A Season of Enchantment."
Jim has a long career in the theater; acting, directing, writing and producing. He's the Artistic Director Emeritus at Rubicon. Karyl Lynn has focused on her career as an actress and is the Producing Artistic Director. They don't run the theater by themselves, they've got a fantastic team and pull from a volunteer team of over 300 people. 20% of the volunteers have been with them since the beginning 20 years ago.
Jim and Karyl Lynn are married and work closely together. In this episode, we explore what it's like to live as a creative couple. They have some ground rules: limit work-talk at home, remember that they're friends and co-workers and never forget their shared values.
There were plenty of threads to travel down in this far-reaching interview including, How to read the audience? What does it mean to be a non-profit and how that affects operations? How running the theater is like sailing, you plot a course and then go with the winds.
Over the years they have had 45,000 students go through their summer programs, and over 440,000 people have enjoyed their productions.
With 20 years behind them, they are planning for ongoing sustainability, focusing on the people and the building the theater is housed in. They enjoy a tremendous amount of local financial support and know that great productions help pull in an even broader audience. We wish them the best for this Anniversary Season.
Sara and Garrett are the founders of the afterschool theater program based in Santa Barbara called Collabreations. They teach an ensemble-based creation method rooted in improv techniques. The focus on grades 1-6 and appreciate how much impact they're making in these young lives.
Their business is teaching students skills that will serve them well in life, including collaboration, brainstorming, performing and developing self-confidence in front of an audience.
The focus here is on how you launch a business like this in Santa Barbara, the market validation they did and how Sara is putting ideas she's learning in SBCC's Marketing class into practice.
We are always interested in talking to couples who work together, the challenges they face and how they optimize their collective skills to serve a growing business. This is an excellent example of this collaboration can be done and how impactful arts-based education can be in our community.
Marsha Bailey, a resident of Santa Barbara since receiving her Masters in Communication from UCSB, leads an organization that's making a difference in the lives of hundreds of emerging entrepreneurs in the region. She's the founder of Women's Economic Ventures, which is the outgrowth of an early interest in the feminization of poverty, the suffragette movement and direct experience working in crisis intervention.
She was surprised at her interest in entrepreneurialism and now finds working with women, and some men has been extremely rewarding. In talking about startups and empowering women through this type of education, she mentioned the startup rates are the lowest they've been in 35 years and that 60% of millennials want to be self-employed, but only 4% are.
Her interest in empowerment led to a role for the past five years as a member of the National Women's Business Council in Washington. There, she's worked on policy, the SBA, with the White House and at the State level.
Her members are in two camps. First, they hit a glass ceiling after acquiring 25 years of experience and want to venture out on their own. Second might be as the result of a significant life transition, divorce, or after an illness. She's also seeing more younger women now, with many in engineering. This is a great leading indicator of the local economic development challenge we have here.
Something she loves teaching, "How to ask for the business." Yes, we could all stand some more training in that area.
Primo Custodio is the Executive in Residence at California Lutheran Univesity's School of Management. His career of 44 years working in human resources qualifies him to bring real-world experience into the classroom.
Primo has seen it all as it relates to Talent Management, starting with his first job at Yosemite where he eventually became the head of personnel and unionized the bus drivers. That early exposure led to a career that included six mergers and acquisitions while at NBC Universal. He's seen every type of leadership style as it relates to managing personnel.
He goes into an interesting dissection of the style of Human Resources over the past four decades: 80's - Lot's of M&A activity driven by Wall Street created massive culture clashes on the resultant pairings 90's - Re-engineering, including downsizing and consolidating 00's - The rise of HR related technologies 10's - A new term: Human Captial Management Current - Where Talent Management is aligned with Business Strategy
We finished with a lengthy discussion about a new word (for us) called Encore Career. Listen and learn what this might mean for you.
Dan Weeks has precisely the type of personality you want in a mentor. Upbeat, optimistic, boundless business savvy and is a committed citizen. Dan spent most of his career at HP, which was famous for their corporate culture, The HP Way. Dan started off our interview by reciting their core idea: Catch people doing something right.
He's a part of SLO Partners, who, in conjunction with the SLO County of Education, the Economic Vitality Corporation and the leadership of San Luis Obispo are working to solve an impending economic reality that is coming in seven years. The challenge is to solve the problem of the closing of the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant which is estimated to have a $1B economic impact on the community and be closed by 2025.
Communities all over the country have had to deal with the issue of industries leaving the area. Examples are numerous, steel plants closing, furniture manufacturing moving to China, endless businesses disrupted by technologies that make them obsolete.
The SLO Partners builds on a combination of education and business, as exemplified at the SLO Hothouse, where Dan is an entrepreneur in residence. He and the other co-founder, Michael Specchierla of the County Office of Education, have implemented a program to train tech employees and build a new workforce.
As the tech sector is growing by leaps and bounds in SLO, there's increasing demand for a trained workforce. Dan says after talking with business leaders and owners, they heard, "We want competent people everyone wants to work with." They were looking for people who'd make great team members, not just skilled workers.
They've created a curriculum in conjunction with CompTIA's IT-Ready Career program, which assesses, trains, certifies and places unemployed and under-employed adults in their first jobs in the tech field, which has a shortage of qualified workers. The program has had two cohorts and promises to be a success. The program solves one piece of the puzzle if SLO is going to find a way to replace that $1B that will eventually go away. You get a sense of confidence and optimism in listening to Dan that they're going to be successful.
Joanne Kuchera-Morin is on the faculty at UCSB and is the Professor of Media Arts and Technology and the Director of the Allosphere. Her facility is in the same building as the California Nanosystems Institute. She's been on the cutting edge of digital media for many years. She gave a TED talk in Long Beach on the Allosphere in 2009.
She started learning Music and Theory when she was 19 in Palm Beach, FL and since 1984 has been involved in media composition. Her dream, to create an interactive laboratory that can be used to travel through massive datasets has taken ten years to develop the software.
JoAnn is a force of nature and has found a way, as a creative person, to work within the data-driven world of theoretical physics, nanosystems research and a myriad of interesting projects dreamed up by her colleagues at UCSB.
Sean Bhardwaj is the Founder and CEO of Aspire3, based at the Ventura Ventures Technology Center. He sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about his view of what entrepreneurs need to be successful and the program he's created to deliver the missing pieces.
Sean looks at the intersection of education and entrepreneurship and how the missing piece in a lot of co-working spaces is mentorships. He also understands the importance of programmatic elements, such as marketing, sales, management and leadership training. He and his team have developed their curricula and have had students as young as ten go through the program.
They have taught over 2,000 students and incubated 36 startups with over 50 entrepreneurs. He has a good model for how to prepare students how to understand a problem; it's solution and the market fit.
They have a 16 weeks program with two classes a week, of 2 hours each. It's an accelerator program that only takes 30 people at term. They did the first of this new series in January and are currently in the second session of this year.
When looking at potential members, they look at their passion, their desire to learn and their ability to take the initiative. He says that in the educational environment, there's no real-life business pressure, so he looks for self-starters with strong follow through.
We know that Sean's working hard at making a difference in Ventura County and wish him and the program a lot of success.
Yelena Lipovetskaya wants to make an impact in the world. And her company Cospheric is doing just that, one microsphere at a time.
Yelena is from Ukraine and works at the micro-level of manufacturing. We've had other companies that build things on the how, but not someone who makes a product that is 1/1000 of the width of a human hair. Not quite nano-small, but still very small.
Her company makes these microspheres, essentially tiny balls, in all colors, materials, and properties. Sometimes one of her 6,000 clients will only need one. Yes. One small microsphere.
She started work as a materials scientist at Xerox in the toner division. You know the black powder that spills out of the copier when you change the cartridge. Well, it turns out there's a lot of science involved in making that product, which she parlayed into an entire business.
These microspheres, made of glass and other materials are enabling breakthroughs in a variety of sciences and medicine. The challenges researchers are trying to solve at the micro-level require high precision, microscopic spheres that can run through various mechanisms, including the human body, to trace any number of potential outcomes. She gives a few examples of what researchers are doing with the spheres that will amaze you when you hear them.
It turns out there's a massive gap in the market Cospheric fills very nicely from their offices here in the 805. In over nine years of operations, they still don't have a direct competitor. I asked to get a tour of the facility, but it turns out the process is highly confidential, and they're very protective. We understand.
We covered a lot of ground, as we have a natural curiosity about all things small, and with the California Nanosystems Institute here at UCSB, have a fascination with conversations related to this new world.
Dusty Stutsman is the co-founder of Nightout.com and SBMenus. One could say they backed into the business when they saw a gap in the market. He and partner Bryan Brand, noticed that one page on SBMenus.com was getting a lot of traction. People were spending more time on the Bar Specials and Entertainment page which got them to thinking, "What if we created an entire site for entertainment?". Nightout.com was born soon after and what a great URL that is too.
Thinking bigger than just delivering information, or food, they approached the project as an opportunity to create a platform, not just a website. The resulting software project now is a complete ticketing and event site that producers can use to manage events. They're full service now, doing the marketing, selling, even scanning and validating tickets at the event.
Dusty's parents are both entrepreneurs, so his exposure to thinking about ideas and turning them into businesses is a part of his DNA.
He explained how he and Bryan developed a 3-sided marketplace for SBMenus that is composed of Consumers, Restaurants, and the Drivers. As a pure E-commerce play, they optimised each aspect of the business to be as efficient as possible. Dusty admits to being fixated on the Delivery Tracker, so he knows where all the drivers are - making sure clients get their meals hot and quick.
Nightout.com sees 30,000 visitors a day, as people look for events nationwide. The platform's services are easily integrated into any website, and the entire ticketing experience can be added to an existing business. He sees a tremendous upside here, even in a crowded market.
Theo Stephan, the founder and life force behind Global Gardens tells us a great story of how she's brought her Greek culture and passion for food to Los Olivos. Theo is interested in permaculture, resilience, and food. She trained as a graphic designer and escaped LA a couple of decades ago. She's been an entrepreneur since she was eight (selling seeds she saw in an ad in the back of a comic book), then started a recycling business at twelve.
When she moved to the Santa Ynez Valley, she imported 500 trees form Crete and started an Olive orchard. That grew to 2000 trees before she eventually sold that farm. She now maintains 60 trees that she uses to harvest table olives.
Her main public presence now is a farm stand in Los Olivos where she sells amazing olive oils, olives, nuts and spectacularly tasty vinegar. We did a tasting on the air, hard to convey the deliciousness over a podcast, but we tried.
Theo can talk all day about the deeper senses that food can touch, and you can tell in a minute how much she cares about the impact her foods can have.
She also has a unique claim to fame; she was the first in the US to have a monthly subscription based Food Club. She's still running that club and curating selections for her members.
Listeners know that I am a Chef and it was one of the rare interviews where I could go deep on food and entrepreneurs. You'll love the insight Theo offers on this episode.
Grandmaster Dave Wheaton, a past guest on the show, joined us to talk about aging and his hero Jack LaLanne. Dave is the founder of Hapkido International and is in the Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He sat down to talk with Mark and Patrick about his wellness regimen and a recent trip to Japan where he embarked on the Samurai Trail (Nakasendo Way).
Dave was influenced early in life by Jack Lalanne who said, "Exercise is King, nutrition is queen." Dave embodies this philosophy in his martial arts teaching and through the KUT (Kickboxers Ultimate Training) program pioneered at his dojo, Martial Arts Family Fitness, based in Santa Barbara, California.
Dave says that his Italian upbringing and a diet heavy in carbs lead to him being 'husky.' He now lives by the diet advocated by his wife and wellness expert, Melodee Meyer, author of the book: Clean Food Diet.
Much of the conversation focused on the magic that Dave encountered on the Samurai Trail. We talked at length about Mushasi, author of the Book of Five Rings and the impact he had on martial arts. He was the most notorious samurai of his time and never lost a battle.
Doug Margerum was honored as the 2017 Vintner of the Year by the Arthritis Foundation and recently took time to chat with Mark and Patrick about Santa Barbara County winemaking. Doug's been involved in hospitality since his early days at UCSB, the Lobster House, in Santa Barbara and Borsodis (great coffee house in the 70's in Isla Vista). He's been an entrepreneur since his early teens, climbing up trees to harvest mistletoe during the holidays, and setting up a restaurant in the front yard of his home.
Doug has always had a position of responsibility, from the early days with his mentor, a neighbor judge with homing pigeons, to now, as one of the most respected voices in the wine industry in Santa Ynez.
Locals will know his Margerum Tasting Room in the El Paseo and remember his earlier venture as one of the founders of the Wine Cask. He made the transition from restaurateur to vintner after a trip to New Orleans where he met Emeril's sommelier and decided to make the leap. He started with 400 cases and this year, 2017, Margerum Wines will produce 16,000 cases from their home base in Santa Ynez.
His story of the past decade takes him from renting space from friends and winemakers to getting his own place in Buellton on Industrial Way.
We want to thank Doug for taking us to school on the geology of our region, the history of winemaking here in Santa Barbara County and a deep dive into why this region is responsible for some of the top wines in the world.
Kerri Murray, the President of ShelterBox USA, was late to our recording session because she was on the phone all morning with FEMA. Her organization was one of the many NGO's responding to Hurricane Harvey that was poised to hit the south Texas coast in hours. We gave her a pass and hope that people are as safe as they can be in this natural disaster.
Kerry has been at the helm of ShelterBox for just a few short years. She came to Santa Barbara to work at Direct Relief as part of a six-month deployment with her employer, Glaxo SmithKline. Their Pulse program matches employee skills with non-profit needs. In this case, her background in Marketing and Communications proved to be extremely useful. She fell in love with Santa Barbara, and when the opportunity came up with ShelterBox, she took it.
Kerri says that their relationship with the people they serve is typically on the worst day of their life when they've lost everything.
Kerri explained that there are over 85 million displaced people in the world at any given moment and of those, 60 million is as a result of a conflict. She explained in harrowing detail the challenges they have of providing shelter in war-torn Aleppo in Syria.
ShelterBox provided 1/3 of the housing during the 2010 Haitian earthquake and is directly involved with over 20 areas that need help around the world on any given day.
Kerri explained how the network of volunteers, trained extensively, provide first responder services to provide shelter, to augment the food and water provided by other organizations.
The tactical logistics of responding to natural disasters and conflicts are intense, and you can tell that they've amassed a tremendous amount of expertise so that they can be one of the first on site immediately after a disaster. That's what the FEMA call was about so that their pre positioned ShelterBoxes and other services could be deployed as soon as today (the day after Harvey touched the mainland.)
Kerri said that a big part of the success of the organization is due to the relationship they have with Rotary International. The team works in close collaboration with hundreds of partners, such as Virgin Airlines to get products into place so that they're available at a moments notice.
Kerri has a compelling personal story that started when she was 6, working at her father's fabric show in Connecticut. He worked seven days a week and would take her with him on Sunday mornings at 4 am to the Flea Market, where she learned how to talk with people and sell $1 toys. She saw first hand from her father how philanthropy was a very local-focused, community activity and has continued that throughout her life.
She had advice for non-profits that are looking to improve their marketing: focus on what makes you unique, and use stories that illustrate the impact you're making in the community.
Tyler Lucas and Nathaniel Thompson are making a difference in the lives of 4th - 8th graders. They are helping run Start-Up Kids a project founded by Gerhard Apfelthaler of California Lutheran University's School of Management, Maria Ballesteros-Sola and Vlad Vaiman of CLU. Note: Gerhard and Vlad have been on the show before.
This project, now in its second year, is expanding as they move to the third year. Over an eight week period, these two, and others on the team, spend 30 minutes a week helping students realize their entrepreneurial ambitions.
This project is so successful, one of the teams was asked to present their project at the opening of the 2017 New Venture competition at HUB101. Who doesn't love hearing energetic, passionate young 12-14-year-olds who want to change the world?
The students learn marketing, design, product development, costing and take the classes very seriously. You'll love hearing examples of how enthusiastic the students are in their desire to improve situations they think will make a huge difference in the world. Like making a kid-friendly version of Instagram, because their parents won't let them log in to it.
This coming school year sees the program expand to 5 schools. Over the eight weeks they are taught three models; Explore, Create and Build. One of the tenets they teach is not everyone has to be an entrepreneur. They explain there's plenty of room on the teams for workers and individual contributors.
The biggest surprise for the guys? It was how much the students retained over the period of eight weeks.
If you have a 12-year-old in your life, you might consider moving to Ventura County, so they have a shot at getting into one of these classes. If you are interested in putting one of these programs together in your school district, drop the guys a note.
Adam Hall has a background in real estate development and investment banking. His focus now is un-doing. Unthinking, undeveloping, it's turned into his life's mission. It's quite a turnaround in his thinking and has changed his life.
He recently sat down with Mark and Patrick to talk his background, the formation of the EarthKeeper Alliance and what he's currently working (or unworking) on.
Including:
• His thoughts on land conservation, both on and offshore • How he defines 'undevelopment.' • What it means to be an Impact Investor • Ironically he talks about how to make sure that land conservation projects are not undone. • Adam explains how Land Trusts work and how they are proliferating across the US. • Our audience knows we love to talk about Dragons. The one that Adam deals with is regarding Property Right and Usage • He's encouraged by efforts in Santa Barbara like the SustainSB effort currently underway • Mark and Patrick love talking about the impact of our guest's ideas on Millenials and Adam helped us understand where they fit in this 'undoing' world. • He left us with this quote from Claude Debussy, "The music is the silence between the notes."
The Janik Brothers, both students at CLU, won the 2017 New Venture Competition held at HUB101. Five teams competed in a Pitch Competition. The NVC is a different type of entrepreneurial event. In this one, you're judged on your ability to pitch an idea.
These brothers brought an unusual secret weapon to the event. They're magicians. They used magic in very clever ways to illustrate key points about their proposed business. It captured the imagination of the judges, and they walked away with first prize.
Mark and Patrick (also a magician) had a great conversation with these two. They are a bit cagey about the actual business as it's still in the formative stage. We cover these topics:
• What strategy they crafted for their presentation • What's WEAVE (that's the name of the business idea) • How their idea is unique • How you plan for a ten-minute pitch and a 10-minute QA • Another skill in their arsenal, having been on Speech and Debate teams in high school • How they're planning on using the $3K prize money
Robin Newman is the founder of Global Egg Donors, an egg donation program, based in Santa Barbara, specializing in the coordination of affordable egg donation procedures. She assists in finding and reserving a donor, clinic, doctor, flights, and accommodation in many countries. She's worked with parents in 20+ countries, traveling to 8 countries to take advantage of an exceptional donor, excellent medical facilities and the high-quality service of the clinics that she works with.
Robin is a 2nd generation Santa Barbaran, who is proud that her grandfather led the Fiesta parade, back in the day. She's been running this program locally for 16 years. The program offers hope and solutions to so many people. It's now her life' mission to be of service.
She, Patrick and Mark covered a lot of ground in the conversation including:
• How egg donations began just 30 years ago • South Africa's role in her mission • The exact process by which this happens, with a compelling story of a recent donor • We learned that on average a female is born with 40,000 cells that will mature into an egg • The primary challenge to her Mission is resolved with education and awareness • She's currently working with eight clinics worldwide • There are 50 egg donor programs in the world (estimated) • The biggest surprise for her: that she's lasted as long as she has in this role and how the industry has grown • There's a sisterhood of donors - great stories here about what that feels like • She says that the challenges facing the Mission are that the laws are always changing and evolving, country by country • She's proud that she's been a part of bringing 800+ babies into the world
In the image above, Robin is flanked by two donors
Tim Goldstein is a neurodiversity communication specialist. His Aspergers diagnosis answered a lot of questions and changed his life's work. Now, he spends his time advising Human Resource departments, talent professionals and managers who are trying to incorporate 'Aspies' (as they self-identify) into the workforce.
Tim says that he's 'on the spectrum' which refers to being on the Autism Spectrum. He's a highly accomplished entrepreneur and engineer. He, Mark and Patrick had a lively discussion and opened up the conversation to better understand the proliferation of Aspies in industry
Topics included: • What is neurodiversity vs. neurotypical • Working in the bicycle business for 20 years and developing a solid business background • He was only recently diagnosed, four years ago. • How people communicate and how the provides a challenge for Aspies. This speaks to the words used, the tonality of the speaker and the body language. Aspy's can frequently misinterpret these signs. • Learn the Greek word: Alixrethmia, which means "no words for emotion." • What poor executive control and poor impulse control can do when working with Aspy's. • Tim wrote a book to capture all of this insight called, Geeks Guide to Interviews: 15 Critical Items for the Technical Type • His Temple Grandin story. She's one of the heroes that's brought Aspergers out into the mainstream conversation with her TED talk. • His discussion about the percentage of technical workers that have Asperger's, according to industry reports. It's much higher than you'd imagined • A few famous people who have/had Aspergers include; Robin Williams, Jerry Seinfeld, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs.
Dani Natcher has a fun job. She helps businesses throw parties to build awareness and introduce the team to the public. She does this as a community ambassador for Yelp, the publishers of crowd-sourced reviews on millions of businesses. When we learned that Dani has such a unique job, we had to have her on the show.
Dani works diligently with businesses and her 'Elite Squad,' which is comprised of active Yelper's who write consistently on the site. They're invited to events, product demonstrations and given the opportunity to meet founders and owners of local businesses.
This conversation with Mark and Patrick led to some interesting insights into Dani's personality, her work with Yelp and what it's like being a recent graduate of Antioch University. Dani describes herself this way, "I am a very self-driven individual with an entrepreneurial spirit and a passion for building, promoting, and creating small businesses."
• Just received her Batcher's Degree in Marketing from Antioch, where she graduated with honors • She's a local from the 805 (Newberry Park) • Why does she wear a pendant of the state of California • What the Elite Squad is and how it works • Why Yelp has local ambassadors in communities • Her tips on local businesses that she sees doing a great job with their customers and the community: Good Cup on the Mesa, Educated Car Wash, and Pacific Press • How an event she produced at Brass Bear Brewing in Santa Barbara helped launch that brand locally. • She talks about her other projects, including XMO, Extreme Mobility Camps for the Blind • What does she look for when she walks into a business for the first time? The answer may surprise you.
Dani is also volunteering for TEDxSantaBarbara 2017's event on November 11 at the New Vic Theater. She's the Food and Beverage Captain, helping to connect the local craft food scene to the event. We're looking forward to some innovation and fun as a result.
Jamie DeVries is a teacher, mentor and the founder of Kids Helping Kids. He also started the San Marcos Entrepreneurship Academy (SMEA), where they are empowering tomorrow's business leaders. In 2010 he received the Distinguished Educator Award in Santa Barbara.
Jamie has 130 kids in SMEA and on a recent weekday evening at the Impact Hub in the Funk Zone of Santa Barbara, 20+ teams presented business ideas in the form of a tradeshow. It was an exciting night, and the student entrepreneurs got the real life experience of presenting, pitching and justifying their ideas to the general public.
The conversation ran the gamut and covered the many years that Jamie has been at San Marcos, including; • The story of the founding of SMEA • How he had the baton passed to him from starting as an economics teacher - and how economics was a perfect prerequisite for teaching entrepreneurialism • How they worked with Tom Reed (Also on this show) to create a Penny Drive which leads to the founding of Kids Helping Kids in 2003 • How they went from raising $100K to over $2.5M a year • How the kids compete for positions in SMEA • "Kids do it all" was the answer to how does it all work? • There were some interesting side stories about how Kids Helping Kids has moved beyond the walls of the high school to Nicaragua and Bombay (Mumbai) • The difference between SMEA and the virtual enterprise programs in other schools. • He talked about the role of TED talks in the classroom (which I loved to hear)
This was an inspirational episode for me (Mark), as I'd spent the previous evening at the tradeshow for SMEA and was excited from those interactions and had plenty of questions for Jamie.
Greg Van Ness is the CEO of Tolman & Wiker Insurance Services and one of the show sponsors. We enjoy Greg's visits to the studio, as he always leads us in a masterclass on some subject related to business. This episode is about how the conversation about culture colors most areas of business. He uses examples from his work at Tolman & Wiker to illustrate key points.
The culture at the firm is largely responsible for the winning the #1 Best Place to Work in Santa Barbara, Ventura and San Luis Obispo Counties by the Pacific Coast Business Times. This award was based on direct feedback from their team members.
Greg says that culture is the foundation of delivery for clients as they are focused on the customer experience first. Their culture embodies a high regard for people and a strong concern for results.
We talked about how culture affects recruiting. Listen to this show with Vlad Vaiman about Recruiting and Attracting employees; he insists it is 100% about your culture.
Here's some of the items and Mark, Patrick and Greg talked about:
• Why you have insurance in the first place • Why recruiting is as much about selling the firm as it is about qualifying the candidate • Their 3 point checklist for cultural fit, of potential candidates • His impression of the quality of people coming into the field. The answer? He's impressed. • How they handle training and development of team members • Have you ever heard of Malware Insurance • We talked about Risk Management in an earlier episode and revisited it to discuss - How you identify the risk - What insurance to buy - How to prevent (accidents) - How to assume it (risk) - How to transfer it (risk) • What's the hidden risk in most busineeses? • What's the role of TEDTalks in the workplace?
Robert, John and the third partner Alexis, won CLU's Startup Weekend for their RepWatch idea. This included a $10,000 prize, and they're on the way to getting their product into the market. This interview goes through the process of how you navigate the Startup frenzied opening hours through the various phases that lead up to the final judging on Sunday.
The big surprise for them was how much self-growth they've experienced. They learned that not only was it easy, but they enjoyed interacting with prospects.
The challenge (Dragon) for them is finding time for the business. For this past year, they've still been going to school. Robert is also the President of the California Luthern Entrepreneurship Club.
Note: Alexis was not in this conversation.
The conversation with Mark and Patrick covered a lot of ground, including:
• What is Startup Weekend? • How the weekend blends technical and non-technical people • How you include the business model, business plan, pitch deck, market validation, prepare to present to judges and building a team into the 54 hour process. • How they got out of the facility on Saturday to do market validation with real potential clients • The idea of RepWatch is to create a wearable sensor that can track physical activity and report back to physical therapists to monitor compliance. • They learned that 70% physical therapy clients don't comply with their prescribed treatments. • Listen as they explain how, by Sunday morning, they needed to pivot after a conversation with one of the mentors. • How they'll spend the $10,000 and what other things they won • It took a weekend to generate the idea, and at least a year to expand on the idea and build the business. • Oh, yes, remember up until just a few weeks ago, they were also full-time students. • Then we learn that they've won $45K from other competitions.
John Goerke loves coffee. He loves it so much he's dedicated his life to making sure you get the most enjoyment out of every cup. His focus is on how to make the coffee experience 100% perfect every time. This means, quality product, zero waste, and an environmentally friendly process.
John is a conscious capitalist and the founder of both Caribbean Coffee Company and bona Field Brewing Co. As chief brewologist and Founder; John is transforming the beverage industry and making the world a more wonderful place, one cup of cold coffee at a time.
John has a great story of how his business has morphed from coffee service to local businesses to one of the premier suppliers of cold draft brew coffee in the United States. All from here in the 805. He's got a secret method that allows him to say with certainty, that the cup you enjoy 90 days after brewing will taste exactly as excellent as one experienced in the first 5 minutes of brewing.
John also runs Caribbean Coffee and recently celebrated their 30th anniversary. He and Spencer Weiner have been sponsoring TEDxSantaBarbara for the past several years. We love having their coffee at our events.
Mark, Patrick, and John covered a lot of territory in this conversation including:
• Starting the business in 1986 • What his favorite part of the job (was and is) • The story of ROCO - Santa Babara Roasting Company • How he went from specialty coffee to food service • "I'm all about authenticity." • When he asked himself how he could make cold coffee better • The technology behind Bona Fide (well, what he can talk about) • Did you know that coffee and wine have something in common? • How he took his method for brewing and storing the coffee in kegs and found a way to deliver it hot or cold, instantly. • His work with Amazon and getting coffee kegs online (see here) • Why he thinks that stadiums could be a real market • Why you don't want to be afraid to pivot • Guess how big the coffee market is. 46B$
Yonette Thomas, PhD. is an entrepreneur who is moving from a lifetime as an academic research professor to a coach for academics. Her new venture, Strategic Transitions, helps academic professionals navigate the various transitions they’ll face during their career.
She has an impressive background, just read this brief bio from the IAPHS website:
Yonette Thomas, Ph.D., is science advisor for urban health to the New York Academy of Medicine, a member of the International Society for Urban Health Board, and a senior research advisor to the Association of American Geographers. She is a faculty affiliate of the Maryland Population Research Center at the University of Maryland College Park and a voluntary associate professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine where she teaches social epidemiology. Yonette was formerly the associate vice president for research compliance at Howard University. Previously she served as the chief of the Epidemiology Research Branch and program director for the sociology epidemiology program at the National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health. She has held faculty appointments in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the School of Pharmacy at Howard University. She is a member of the Consortium of Social Science Associations Advisory Committee and the Steering Committee of the National Hispanic Science Network. Her primary research and publications have focused on the social epidemiology of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS and the link with geography, including edited volumes: Geography and Drug Addiction, Crime, HIV, and Health: Intersections of Criminal Justice and Public Health Concerns. She has a Ph.D. in medical sociology and demography, with postgraduate training in epidemiology.
Wow. A real slacker, huh?
She and Mark met at Bo Eason’s’ Mastermind Group: The Best (based in Thousand Oaks). They’ve worked closely together to help her get her new business, Strategic Transitions off the ground.
Our conversation was fascinating and included:
• How people have always been attracted to her, especially around her personal story, and they ask her, “What do I do?” This constant questioning was what caused her to make the transition herself from academia into the world of consulting. • She loves guiding, coaching and mentoring • We talked about the Millennial Leadership Institute (MLI) • What she means when she talks about Finding Your Avatar • What it takes to become a professor, moving on to a tenured position, an endowed chair and how to access a professional network • What it means to be a thought-leader • Owning your achievement • “It’s lonely in the world of higher education.” • Why she loves the metaphor of gardening to describe what she does and how seasonality, planting, pruning, weeding, fertilizing and related tasks are deeply relevant to her new endeavor • What’s been the biggest surprise so far? How much you have to pay attention to the ‘business’ side of the firm. As an academic her entire career, this requires focus and attention. • Why you need a 20-year plan. She made a good case by studying the truly successful, who all had such a plan
Jeremy Goldberg, a UCSB grad, stopped by to talk about his life's mission, to make kindness cool. His interest in science vectored him towards human behavior and now he wants to change the world.
We talked about his life, his travels and where he's spending his time:
• He started writing in the 4th grade. Note: Jeremy's writing is fantastic. Here are links to articles he's written. • How he started blogging as a way to keep family apprised of his travels • How he went from uCSB to Brisbane, Australia on a study-abroad program • His Ph.D. is in Social Science • His "Theory of Planned Behavior." • What it means to 'master influence.' • The biggest surprise on the road to getting his doctorate? How hard it was. • Tip from Jeremy: How to get a free year of college tuition (Answer: Just ask.) • How his life's mission of sending Long Distance Love Bombs got started • His fascination with Spoken Word performances (Think Sarah Kay's TED talk • There was a good discussion about memorization after talking about spoken word performances. Mark mentioned Jim Kwik's LOCI technique, here's where you can learn more about it (free).
Matthew Fienup is a Lecturer and the Executive Director of Center for Economic Research and Forecasting at California Lutheran University. His work as an economist is regularly delivered to a variety of groups throughout the region.
Matthew is a man of many interests. He’s studied professional photography, see photos here, (Summa Cum Laude at Brooks Institute) as well as architecture and started a rock-climbing business that still creates unique adventures for people. He is also completing his Ph.D. at the Bren School at UCSB.
Matthew holds a Masters degree in Economics from UCSB. His specialty is econometric analysis and the economics of private land use. Matthew is also active in the issues surrounding urban growth restriction and groundwater management policy in Ventura County.
In this episode we talk about; • How you go from rock climbing, photography, and art to economics • A good description of what the Center for Economic Research & Forecasting is all about. • His interest: public policy and why it’s important • How the last two years have produced significant policy changes • How the water shortage prompted policy changes and how working with growers, the community and the public sector made policy’s that will make a difference. • Did you know that Ventura County has some of the most valuable agricultural land in the world (we didn’t) • How Cap and Trade policies could impact water in Ventura County • How his work at the Bren Center informs his day job at the University • He gave us some insight into his Rock Climbing business too • How specific market niches in Ventura affect the economy, including biotech, the Naval Base, and Agriculture • How the growth in low-wage jobs in healthcare and leisure and hospitality are affecting the local economy • His interest in California’s Natural History – and what we don’t know – you’ll have to listen to find out • We loved his explanation of the Bread Box Theory.
Brett Howlett is the Founder of an innovative new lifestyle company; You Are What You Sleep. His background is in the world of advertising.
Brett is based in NYC and comes to Santa Barbara by way of another guest of the show, Pia Dorer. They collaborate on projects, which brings him to town on occasion. He sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about his venture, which seeks to help people develop a 'sleep practice.'
They talked a little bit about advertising and how it's warrior culture means that you don't get a lot of sleep, especially if you're a senior creative, like Brett.
They covered several areas including:
• How his new venture is all about sleep health and what brought him to the point where he quit the ad game and entered the startup world. • Why Huffington Post focuses on sleep issues • What happens to us during deep sleep • What you should eat just before bed. (Huh? I thought you were not supposed to eat... au contraire says Brett) • The origin story behind the brand started 15 years ago • Why aromatherapy is useful just before going to sleep • Great discussion about sleep cycles and why they're 90 minutes long • What related health conditions are exacerbated by lack of sleep, including diabetes, obesity, heart issues and more • His 'ah-ha' moment, when he learned about the properties of wool and how they'd impact sleep • Why you should be concerned about the temperature of your bed and the bedroom • Did you know you lose a pint of water at night while sleeping? • His outreach to youth to make sleep a part of the conversation and help them establish good sleep practices early.
Bradley Weber is the founder and CEO of RallyCare, a new app for the healthcare industry. He talked about how his personal journey through diagnosis to recovery from Cancer at 25 prepared him for this entrepreneurial challenge.
Bradley had his AHA moment when he had a quadruple bypass surgery and had to find ways to manage his own care and manage the generosity of his friends. The story is interesting and the problem-space that he's addressing potentially quite large.
We talked about:
• The development process and how he got the idea
• What really happens when you call 1-800-CANCER - or 1-800-MYDISEASE
• How being a caregiver for his mother while she had Alzheimer's also made the point clearly about the lack of support services for caregivers
• Why is the app Free? What's the business model then?
• The ecosystem of caregiving apps and where he fits in
• He and Mark got into a nice discussion about 'conversational development'
• What it's like to work with offshore developers
Sheila Cushman is the Executive Director Emeritus at MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration and Innovation. She talked with Mark and Patrick about the 27-year journey it took to build the museum.
In this conversation with broad background on the story behind the founding of the Museum, Sheila covers;
How land use politics affects even the most beloved of projects Starting in 1990 with a group of committed citizens to build a Children's Museum Paul Selwyn, president of the original Board of Directors and had experience wiht the Childnres' Museum of LA - with Eli Luria and the Orfela Foundation formed the initial leadership team How the original design was a 3,000 square foot facility on the grounds of the Naturla Histroy Museum In 2006, Shelia beacme the Executive Director of the Museum How in 2007, the City of Santa Barbara gave them the land (in prmie real esated) for $1 a year for 50 years, with the help of local hero, John Davies. Who’s the dragon in this story: Gov of California Jerry Brown Spending years developing the concepts that turned into the amazing exhibits What it takes to launch a nationwide search for a museum planned The difference between STEM and STEAM (The A adds the Arts) Her biggest surprise? “I had no idea I had the skills and tenacity to do this.” Now what? She’s working with UCSB and the Allosphere project
We know that whatever Sheila puts her mind to, she’s going to make it better, and our City better as a result.
Dr. Sumantra Sengupta, from California Lutheran University (CLU), has an interesting story about his journey to the classroom. He shared this with Mark and Patrick and talked about how his life's work informs his discussions with his students. He's written a lot of books on the subjects of Globalizations, Optimizing Supply Chains, Streamlining Corporations and other topics of deep interest.
They covered a broad range of topics including:
• How he took his professional interests in agricultural trading and turned them into a business. How to look at your business from a global perspective to scale it
• How to look at your business from a global perspective to scale it appropriately
• Working with global partners and how regional differences affect decisions
• Working with Japan
• Advice about 'leaving something on the table' during negotiations. i.e. you don't have to win every battle or every point, every time.
• He's got some thoughts about people who don't listen
• He says we should consider being aware enough to know when to exit a situation. How to read the signs, especially when they are all pointing in the wrong direction
• His specialty: Turnarounds. He loves them
• Loved the part of the conversation about how to fire a client
• A recounting of the story about how he was recruited and hired by Gerhard at CLU
• What's his rule of thumb about being available and his thoughts on responsiveness
This episode was another in our continuing CLU series that continues to inspire and encourage us to dig deeper with the amazing educators that are all around us. You don't have to be in school to learn from these Jedis.
Dr. Tiffany Morse is the Executive Director of Career Education at Ventura County Office of Education. She helps explain the power of this work and it's importance to our Community.
There are a lot of misconceptions about what the role of Career and Technical education is all about in the year 2017. Learning about work is not what it was like when I went to school. Shop class is so 1970's
Here's a bit of what's in store in this episode • She tells a great story of the partnership with her department and Ventura-based Harbor Freight and how that led to a $100K Grant • What's the difference between Vocational Education and what she's doing now • How the mission now is about preparing students for career (hence the name) • How the diverse nature of the Community's population is reflected in the diversity of interests of potential jobs by the students • What's her thoughts about Girls in Tech - and how behavior modeled by the family or people like guest speakers in school can affect decisions made at an early age • How she thinks about setting an entrepreneurial mindset throughout the department • How Career Ed works with students who are being home-schooled • "What is the role of education in a Community? • How Community Colleges have changed from vocational schools to schools that prepare students for transfer to four-year colleges and Universities • How to think about College AND Career • Where's Career Education going? It's Integrating Academics and Vocational Ed • VC Innovates - 12 employees • The title of this episode is a program that Dr. Morse invented that brings the business community together with students in a dinner and networking setting. They've had over 2,000 people go through this program. Note: Mark signed up!
http://VCInnovates.org for more information
Tiffany helped us create an incredibly insightful episode. We challenge you to reach out to your local school district and find a way to give some of your time to a program like this. Both the students you meet, and you will benefit.
Thanks to Greg VanNess at Tolman & Wiker Insurance Services for introducing us to Tiffany.
Jeff Carmody is the founder of Agility Capital in Santa Barbara. They focus on making loans to growth companies.
Jeff and Mark have been friends for more than 20 years, and this conversation will help you better understand how this type of financing works for your business.
We covered a lot during this interesting discussion: • What are debt financials? • How he got his start in the business • What's an engineer from the Air Pollution control District doing in finance? • Studying Geography at uCSB • Working at Sandhill Capital (recognize that name?) • Setting up a sister fund for Sandhill in Santa Barbara • Loved this quote, "I was living in a fur-lined rut." • He explains what he means by Connections in the Community and how that's guided him (and should guide you as well.) • What're his criteria for working with a company and giving them funding? - Is there a business? - Who's running the business - What's the ecosystem look like for the business - How is Agility going to get paid back • Great discussion about Guy Kawasaki's 10, 20, 30 rule for pitches • Pecha Kucha (Mark chimed in on this one) • Good questions you should ask yourself, How big is your market? And do you really need outside money? • He's got some great tips on how you select a service provider (Lawyer, CPA, etc.) • finally, Venture Debt is a thing - this could give you another option you'd not considered
Designing for the Environment
"They have to build what's on the paper, except when they don't." Dennis on working with builders.
Dennis Thompson, Principal at Thompson-Naylor Architects in Santa Barbara, sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about his love of design and the environment. These two passions have driven him to become one of the most influential architects in the region. Dennis loves teaching and has been sharing his talents and mentoring for his entire career, most recently at the UCSB Bren Schoof of Environmental Science and Management.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Why he's so fond of working with residential projects The Role of Visualization in his field Why constraints are so important Mark talked about his favorite book, The Universal Traveler, as it was written by two Cal Poly Architecture professors in the 70's His most fun house? One he designed after the devasting Tea Fire in Santa Barbara Why planning for the environment is powerful and how he's been recognized for this focus by his peers with a Fellowship in the AIA for Green Building Using natural light - taking advantage of south-facing windows and summer shade His thread of work extends to religious and non-profit buildings and residential projects Why a personal connection is so important when he embarks on a project He's got an interesting take on the two types of clients he has. Listen to learn more His favorite films that feature architects, including; It's Complicated with Satna Barbara's Steve Martin and his favorite youtube from Seinfeld's George Costanza, "I want to be an Architect." He explains what a charette is and why it's vital to the process What's LEED? His future vision suggests that Homes will produce more energy than they use - Net Zero Energy as part of the California Progressive movement. I confess to loving conversations with Architects. We had several in the early days of Wavefront, all from the Cornell School of Architecture. Fascinating people. If you'd like to hear another local architect's story, listen to Brian Cearnal's episode.
"The only constant is change."
Ray Estrada has been doing news in Santa Barbara for years. He sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about his new home base, the Impact Hub on State Street. His experience is now being focused on working with young startups and helping them navigate the world of getting attention from the local press.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-His role at the Impact Hub working with their events - see updated list here -His story about working for the BBC in Central America -Working for the Santa Barbara News-Press 30 years ago -What drives business in Santa Barbara? Tourism. Tech. And Real Estate -Oh, yeah, he also recently had open heart surgery. And is looking great. -Writing about the regional differences between North County and South County -What's it like working at a Startup Weekend -His advice for young entrepreneurs that are pitching a story: Why is this compelling? Is it a local thing? What's your business and what's its purpose? -Why you don't want to say in the email subject line that it's a PRESS RELEASE -His take on email subject lines.
Ray is a wealth of information. If you find yourself in downtown Santa Barbara, near the Impact Hub, drop him and let him make you a cup of coffee and pitch him your idea. Tell him you heard about him on 805conversations.
Vlad Vaiman, Ph.D. and professor at California Lutheran University talked with Mark and Patrick about his life starting in Russia, with many stops along the way to the 805. He's a noted authority on Talent Management, which is where we spent most of the conversation
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-Leaving Russia at age 21 and moving to Wyoming to go to school -Then Canada, Switzerland, Austria and Iceland -His early education was as a Mechanical Engineer (Oil and Gas) -How did he get attracted to the Business School -What is the current state of HR (Human Relations) -it's the intersection of Organizational Dynamics and Organizational Behavior -The biggest takeaway from this episode was a broad discussion about -Talent Management and an acronym that we should all memorize: -ADRM; --- A = Attract --- D = Develop --- R = Retain --- M = Motivate
Listen to the full episode and take notes if you manage any group of people. This episode was a Master Class in 20 minutes.
"Great Leaders Make Great Coaches"
-How to recognize and leverage High-Potential employees in the workforce -He talked about his outside interests, Start-up Kids and it's impact -He is also the Assistant Dean, working with Gerhard, who's been on the show before, and explained the MBA-EP program that attracts EP - Experienced Professionals to the University
As Mark mentioned on the show, he's keenly interested in Talent Management and wants to thank Vlad for helped unpack ADRM for him.
"Your website needs to be about me (the visitor), not you."
"Is authenticity marketing an oxymoron?"
Christopher Michael, the founder of PXLPod Web Strategy, has been on the show a couple of times. He updated Mark and Patrick on his current thinking about the web, and it's misperceptions. Christopher and Mark met in 2010 while working on TEDxAmericanRiviera. He's now the CTO for TEDxSantaBarbara and works in close collaboration with Mark on various projects, making sure Mark stays out of his own way when it comes to the web.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
What's the real job of your website? -- To welcome the visitor and appeal to them -- To provide the visitor with something with which they can RELATE -- The site needs to communicate that you can heal the visitor's pain or problem -- The visitor needs to feel inspired that they've found a real solution -- The visitor needs to feel confident that you are the person who can successfully apply that solution -- The site needs to build trust and relatedness How important your website has become and how much has changed on the web Why you should look at your site with new eyes The Salesperson and the Conversation ... we talked a lot about the 'conversation' you start on the web with a prospect What's the job of your business card? Your Facebook page? Your Twitter account? We continued to talk about the Tone of Voice of the site - it's all about the visitor - not about YOU Christopher's Common Mistakes people make when putting their web presence together -- Not understanding the process of a sales pipeline -- Failing to realize that people need to be assured. We all need to fee food about solving the problems that get in our way. -- Expecting your site to sell for you. -- Hiding behind WE - Gotta be REAL with people. It's endearing, and people nowadays can smell subterfuge a mile away. -- Trust Trust Trust Trust. There's the filter with which everything needs to be processed. "Would I trust ME, given how I've presented myself on my site?" Why Christophers' motto is, "Give a shit. No really." Is authenticity marketing an oxymoron? Parting advice: "The more myself I can be - the more like-minded customers I can attract." We didn't have time to talk a lot about one of the people he looks to for inspiration. Take a look at Paul Jarvis for that.
We also will ask Christopher to come back and talk about his passion for photography. If you'd like to see Santa Barbara, and other locations from a different point of view, check out his site, Misha Media and his most current work on Facebook.
Eat like a local, shoot like a pro
I hate being a tourist. That's why this is not about the tour."
Tara Jones, the founder of Santa Barbara's Eat This, Shoot That, is a ball of energy and provided a stimulating and mouth watering conversation with Mark and Patrick. Her business and the journey to her dream venture is inspiring. She also writes for Noozhawk.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-How she got started doing photo workshops -How the recession in 2008 forced her to rethink everything and the journey she took to explore options -Best quote about being a wedding photographer: "If you've been to 5 weddings, you've been to them all." -She grew up in an entrepreneurial family - grandparents, and parents. Her Dad had seven businesses -How going to Brooks Institute of Photography (RIP Brooks - such a loss) -How a friend in Boston got her to think that Food Tours were in her future -How following her passion turned into the right path to follow -"What do I love to do? And how can I get paid to do it?" -The story of her first tour -Why the Funk Zone is perfect for her tours -Loved this comment: "Goal for the tours? Stay off State Street." Why? -How the SB restaurant scene is changing so fast, it's hard to keep up with -Taking the Strength Finders Test (Marcus Buckingham rocks) to help figure out what she wanted to do - even though her parents paid for a very nice photography degree at Brooks -Her Dragon? Staying on top of the pack and not paying attention to upstarts in her market -How you sell people on coming back - We sell them a feeling. (Love that) -She wrote a book too: 100 Things to do in Santa Barbara before you die. -These books are a franchise - if you want to write one in your town, click here. Cool idea
Thanks for joining us on the show Tara. We wish you the best and love that you're doing a great job showing the cruisers what SB is all about.
I'm a generalist to the extreme
"We accept the top 100% of applicants"
Geoff Green is the CEO of the SBCC Foundation. He talked with Mark and Patrick about his road to SBCC and how Social Justice has become a central theme in his life.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-A bit of background on Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) -How California has structured, it's higher ed program with the UC system, the CSU campuses, and the 113 Community Colleges -There are 2.6M students in California's community colleges -How working at Yosemite was a dream job, but not a long term viable place to work -He comes from a family of teachers - mom, dad, aunts and his brother -What about being a CEO intrigues him? Figuring out the Big Picture -His passion, Education, and Access to it - which it turns out is a social justice issue -His biggest surprise since coming to the Foundation? They have the same problems as smaller organizations -What the SBCC Promise Program is all about and a brief history of the --Promise program in the United States -Promise Programs promise free education - a big part of Bernie Sanders platform in his 2016 bid for President -What are the keys to student success? --- Being a full-time student vs. part time --- Early enrollments (right out of high school) --- Access to counselors and mentors
Geoff is one of the most networked people in Santa Barbara, and his work at the Fund for Santa Barbara was a perfect place for him to hone those skills that serve him well.
Photo credit: J.C. Corliss / Noozhawk
"Everyone wants green grass, not tall grass"
Bill Camarillo is the CEO of Agromin; a pioneer in the sustainable management of biodegradable resources. He talked with Mark and Patrick and presented a master class in soil and science.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Learn what a waste stream is and how much we cavalierly waste resources How he managed to get 4 degrees while being a Marine, including an MBA from University of Redlands What are 'fugitive emissions' - hint: methane Why 200 types of soil mixes are not enough What is the perfect soil? It depends The green grass/tall grass quote stems from a conversation related to a new produce, Turf Rescue. Amazing story behind its development. Pay attention if you have a lawn How extremes create opportunities for innovation "We chase carbon." How his business is all about science Book recommendation: The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and what To Do About It. There's an excellent management lesson here for entrepreneurs which speaks to your role as Visionary, Technician or Organizer and why a balanced view of yourself is critical How it works at Agromin - how they do their jobs and the challenges the business presents on a daily basis How their business is Demand Pull vs. Supply Push One thing he thinks about a lot is how to make the business go faster. Great explanation of how long it takes nature to break down organic waste vs. how technology can speed it up Bill's a client of Tolman & Wiker Insurance, one of our sponsors, and he spoke at length about the challenges his business faces from a risk management point of view. The biggest problem is describing the business. Are they Mining, Waste, a Nursery? Or Agriculture? The answer is yes. "We marry art and science together" how Bill describes what they do at Agromin Love this quote at the end of the show
"We sell responsibility"
Patrick and I marveled at how fascinating Bill portrayed his business. He clearly loves what he does, and his passion is infectious.
THE ROLE OF THE PHILOSOPHER IN TECHNOLOGY
"Teaching is like planting a seed rather than moving a tree.”
Ryan Jenkins, Asst. Professor of Ethics at Cal Poly, helped Mark and Patrick explore the paths you can quickly travel down with talking about ethics and just about any business topic. Professor Jenkins and Mark met when he was on the TEDxCalPoly stage in 2016. That talk led to this fascinating conversation and got Mark to mention that “we ought to have more philosophers on the show” to Patrick.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-Here’s a link to his TEDxTalk – “It depends on who you ask.” -Ryan has written extensively, and one of the paths we traveled was about the moral implications of design decisions. We’ve had a lot of designers on the show, so you know we’re interested in the topic. -Here’s a question for developers, is the product or service inadvertently emotionally damaging to someone else? -One of his classes is The Philosophy of Technology – read what his students think of him here -We talked about how he only gets 40 hours of time with the students and has a lot of content to fit into that small amount of time. -We spent time dissecting his interest in Military Ethics. He’s written several papers on this topic. -If you have not seen the movie Zero Days, about Stuxnet, stop reading now and bookmark it for later. -IS the use of drones for killing right or wrong? -The problem of Attribution – concealing the origin of the attack, a quick history lesson -The forensics of cyber war -Talking about Snowden, Chelsea Manning and the ethics of whistleblowing -What’s the difference between Normative Ethics and Situational Ethics -Technological determinism – detailed explanation here for those that want a deep-dive into this topic -Book recommendation, from Mark: The Inevitable – Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future, by Kevin Kelly -How you would he suggest a child is before we have that first philosophical conversation? The answer? As soon as they can talk. This was an excellent ending for a thought-provoking show.
Show page http://805connect.com/the-nature-of-value-ryan-jenkins-professor/
It all starts with an idea
"Let's talk about uncertainty reduction."
Ken Sterling is the EVP at Big Speak and a lecturer at UCSB. He met with Mark and Patrick to talk about his passion for business, writing, teaching and helping others with it.
It all starts with an idea gets to the heart of what he is scouting talent for Big Speak, and planning his next article for INC Magazine.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
• The business of speaking and how to launch a career as a public speaker • How to get listed at Big Speak (one of the nation's largest speakers bureau) - Have a book - Have footage of you speaking - If you can, get on the TED stage (the ultimate credibility creator) • Why writing a book is so important for a speaking career • Building your professional speaking career - you'll need a website and a team • Experience with the Fortune 1000 will help a lot •What he loves about lecturing at UCSB's Technology Management Program (TMP) • What it's like writing for INC Magazine and how it was much harder to land this non-paying job than he'd expected
My passion is culture
"Focus on the team, not the individual."
Helen Russell is the Chief People Officer at Atlassian. She had a great conversation with Mark and Patrick about talent, leadership, teams, and learning.
Atlassian is a company that creates software that allows teams to work together better. She was formerly of Santa Barbara-based SONOS until recently. Her background includes working at a WPP company, Kantar, which was intriguing as Mark works with WPP company, J Walter Thompson.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
• What's the role of HR in the new, dynamic, fast-growth economy where companies grow at 35% and more • How you have to rethink how you work with high-potential employees - they have to outpace the business's rapid growth, as their jobs will inevitably morph every six months. Looking for exponentially bright people and move them up and through the organization • GRIT - it's not just intelligence - it's drive and determination that is the hallmark of top performers • Why companies need to rethink Performance Ratings - and focus instead on team performance • What we care about is Collective Success • Her sports background • The discussion and definition of Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace was enlightening • The most diverse perspectives help high impact teams deliver results • "What are the skills required for our future company?" Incredible insight into the role of HR in the C-suite • How to craft a talent strategy for your company • How HR is now more like the CMO • The question each of us (entrepreneurs) should ask ourselves, "Are we the right person to hire people in our company?" Should we pass that to a professional? • A book recommendation: WHO by Geoff Smart and Randy Street • Her go-to icebreaker to start off an interview. "Last night, you were with a friend, and telling them about today's meeting. How did you characterize it to them?" • We talked about the recent acquisition of TRELLO by Atlassian. We love TRELLO. This led to a discussion about mergers and corporate culture.
Tying Research to Community
"We're not old enough to have a history - we're all about the future."
Chris Kimball is the President of California Lutheran University (CLU). He chatted with Mark and Patrick about his passion for History, Baseball and the role of the University in the community.
CLU is the charter sponsor of the 805conversations podcast, and it was excellent having this time with Chris to talk about the role of the University, his background and questions you don't always get to ask a University President - as most of us don't get the chance at this type of conversation. Chris is a real sport and took all of our questions easily.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
• How do you attract talent to the University? • A brief history of the University • How CLU were early adopters in online education • A great discussion about his love of Baseball history and his current class where he teaches to undergrads, and how it aligns nicely issues facing the country • His favorite baseball movies and why - The Natural - Field of Dreams - Eight Men Out - League of their own • The corollary between Baseball stadiums and College campuses and community centered involvement • History - when and how he got interested in it • Mark almost got Chris to agree with his premise of stalling teaching history until people are 40 years old, instead of at 16 • 2017 is the 500th Anniversary of the Lutheran Movement and CLU's plans to celebrate that • How do you run a faith-based institution in a secular society - challenges and opportunities. The Lutheran Experience
How do you want the public to see this art?
"I love the process of Discovery."
Glenn Wharton, Clinical Associate Professor of Museum Studies at New York University sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about art, new media, community, and conservation.
"How do you want the public to see this art?" Is one of the primary questions Glenn would ask artists during an interview process when he's documenting the art, how it's to be displayed or portrayed. This discussion and the resulting threads that cover Glenn's career in art conservation are fascinating for sure.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
• The definition of a 'clinical associate professor.' • Glenn's a UCBS Gaucho! • How and when he fell in love with the conservation of art (Mt Calvary monk in Santa Barbara) • Volunteering at the Getty • Replication vs. Restoration • A sidebar conversation about his work on the King Kamehameha statue in Hawaii and how that work spurred a complete change in how he approached art and his career • Art values vs. Community values - intersection • What is Community-based Art and why is it so fascinating • What is Participatory Art • Note: Patrick, remember, is an Art Professor and this was a conversation that could have gone on for several hours. He threatened to mute my mike so they could chat ;-) • His work at MOMA and the field of time-based media • Mark brought up the discussion of the preservation of Digital Art (think Wavefront and animation). Glenn was the first Time-Based Conservator in the United States. This was before it was even a field of study. He currently is one of the top experts in the world. • An in-depth talk about the interaction between the museum and the artist with several amusing anecdotes (wait until you hear the one about Tino Sehgal) • The Variable Media Initiative
While we enjoy every conversation, there are times when a true pioneer joins us in the studio. Glenn is one, and we sincerely appreciate the time he spent with us.
We had a bit of a post-interview conversation about the role of 805conversations, we speak mostly about business, and in this instance felt that are focused entirely on cultural issues was importnat. We hope you agree.
How to communicate your big idea in 90 seconds
Sarah Keas and Haley Pavone, winners of the CIE Elevator Pitch Competition sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about the road leading to the competition.
About the Elevator Pitch Competition:
Hosted each fall, the Cal Poly Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship's Elevator Pitch Competition allows undergraduate and graduate students to share product ideas, innovative services or a startup plan at any stage of development.
This year the 7th Annual Elevator Pitch Competition took place on Nov. 9 at the Performing Arts Center Pavilion. New this year was the addition of Cuesta College, which submitted their top four student companies. Students across all majors were encouraged to apply. Entries from 50 Cal Poly students were whittled down to the top six, who presented their ideas in a high-pressure, fast-paced, 90-second pitch to the judges, all startup founders.
Cal Poly student, Haley Pavone, the founder, and CEO of PashionFootwear, is developing a convertible high-heel shoe now undergoing research and development in the CIE's Hatchery program. She was the top pick of a panel of four judges for the $1,000 prize. In addition, she received the $500 Audience Choice award.
Cuesta College student, Sarah Keas, received the $1,000 top prize. Her Breathe Bans proposal offers a new take on a device that provides emergency shots for allergic reactions that are more convenient to carry and use because of its small size and versatile design.
QUALITY OF CHARACTER IS YOUR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
"Hiring is the key.”
John Greathouse, Professor of Practice at UCSB, co-founder of Rincon Ventures and renowned Santa Barbara entrepreneur sat for an extended conversation with Mark and Patrick about teaching, writing, and coaching. John’s a local treasure.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
What’s’ a Professor of Practice – and who else at UCSB is one? Hint, previous podcast guest Trip Hawkins A brief dip into John’s history which reads like a history of Tech in Santa Barbara How he manages to fill a room at UCSB with 350 students reliability every quarter. His three things – you know we love lists of three – Investing – Teaching – Writing How his 4th-grade teacher told him he was a writer – at that young age. You can now find John’s writing at Forbes, and the Wall Street Journal Why he loves writing so much (it’s about endorphins firing) We talked at length about Corporate Ethics (you’ll remember a similar conversation with Sarah about Ethical Marketing) John tells a great story (that he tells his students) about Contextual Ethics What’s your company’s Moral Code – with a shout out to another podcast guest, Shaun Tomson – Commit to the Next Wave Love the story about the Bell Ringer Award that he used to have. You will too. More about Rincon Ventures and the ethos that they’ve created there John is such a humble guy, he’d never tell you all of these things. So we’re glad to have gotten him to open up on the show
Bonus: If you can find a clip from the show that he can Mark were on (The Food Network) we’ll send you a postcard of thanks.
SPEAKING FORWARD
"Remember your keys vs. Don't forget your keys."
Burke Franklin, local entrepreneur, writer, and martial artist, sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about his back story and philosophy about business. Very interesting character who also loves to sail. You can learn even more about him here.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Selling word processors in the late 80's How he got the business bug from his grandfather who was an entrepreneur just after WWII Working at the Sharper Image Catalog writing ad copy Why he (still) answers the phone at 2 am Why going to tradeshows is a brilliant strategy for honing your pitch His book, Business Black Belt and the podcast that went with it How he got involved in Martial Arts Interesting sidebar about audio triggers, like sense memory that reminds you of times in the past What his business, Business Power Tools, is all about You'll also enjoy our conversation about 'double-negatives' in our speech and how to avoid them. This is where the title of this episode comes from.
The amazing story behind packedkits.com
"We started that night"
Angel Speier (pronounced Spire) is the co-founder, with her husband of PackedKits. She met with Mark and Patrick for a candid and funny conversation about how they decided to build a company the night that he had his first Chemo session.
Packed Kits are designed for people enduring chemotherapy, and the caregivers who accompany them. The idea came from practical experience when Angel and Kevin started going to UCLA Medical Center for treatments.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-Background on Angel and Kevin, where they're from and their families -More backstory about how they met, got married and started their family -The day they got the diagnosis -How Kevins background as Pre-Med and Angel's experience in Fashion and Product development uniquely qualified them to launch the company -The story behind Packed Kits and why it's such a great idea -Mark and Patrick let Angel take them through each of the kits, Medical, Plush, Fun and Dopp -Angel's focus on the experience of someone opening the package for the first time and a story about one of their customers who was sent a kit and her experience of opening it and breaking down. -They donate 10% of each sale to charity and frequently give kits to non-profits to use for fundraisers
Patrick and I both wish Angel and Kevin the best. They're fighters. We love that.
If you want to purchase a kit, go to http://PackedKits.com.
Angel loves writing, she's blogging at http://PackedKits.com.
"They delivered the Talk of their Lives"
Mark Sylvester, host of this show and Executive Producer of TEDxSantaBarbara did a quick recap with Patrick about the recent TEDx event in Santa Barbara.
Note: This is the second show that Mark and Patrick have talked about TEDxSantaBarbara. The first one was several weeks before the event.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-It's a 6-month effort that took a core team and 60 day-of volunteers to produce. -The importance of the User Experience on the overall planning of the event -An anecdote about the Speaker Mixer held the night before the event - you can only imagine the speaker's nerves, 12 hours before the event started -Why a Speaker Coach is so critical to the success of the event. Our coach is also the Co-Producer and wife of Mark. Kymberlee Weil from Strategic Samurai has coached over 120 talks to date. -When talking about how challenging it is to find a unique point of view on a familiar topic, Patrick gave a perfect analogy of how artists have approached singing the National Anthem. -A couple of Kymberlee's tricks for speakers are revealed. -All of the Talks are now available - Watch them here -What is the narrative arc of the event and how is that crafted by the producers -The Magic of TEDx and how it gets you thinking about topics you have not paid attention to -Why the breaks between sessions are so important -Tastes of TEDx - how artisanal snacks made the breaks even more aligned with the overall user experience -The role of Music at TEDxSantaBarbara - putting more E into our TEDx -The show ends with a discussion of how improv played an important part to a few key elements in the day. Note: Mark thanks sponsors at the beginning and end of the podcast. These are the podcast sponsors, not sponsors of TEDxSantaBarbara. You can see all of the event partners here.
The invisible hand of the editor." - Patrick remarks on the importance of editing and coaching
Links to the Talks, photos of Rehearsal, The Event, The 805CameraBus at the After Party and fun shots from one of our Volunteers are also on TEDxSantaBarbara's site.
I think about listening carefully
"6 out of 10 adults fear running out of money."
Kevin Bourke, CFP, the founder of Bourke Wealth Management and noted Author, sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about his practice and his novel approach to managing finances. We thought this would be a great interview to have after we had talked with Professor Harry Starn about training Certified Financial Planners. We were right.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Kevin's been doing financial planning for 30 years and tells us a bit about his backstory Hear about his fascination with finance, part of Marks' neverending quest to find out what caused the guest to choose their career path His attitude about cold-calling - doesn't bother him, hear why. How he got his first business license and it wasn't for being a planner His philosophy about the role of the Financial Planner in your life - think Quarterback, if you like sports analogies When do you hire a Financial Planner? When there's a life event, that causes an accumulation of wealth or a distribution of wealth Why'd he write his book? Looking at his LinkedIn page, you'll see he's written a lot over the years. How's he been able to keep 100% of his clients? Secret: Effective onboarding strategy of 4-6 meetings per prospect One of his red flags with a new client? They treat his staff poorly. Interesting comment What's the question that prospects don't know to ask? What happens to the money if he leaves? Answer: He has a succession plan with other planners Teaching at UCSB Extention - he loves to teach The power of Storytelling - we finished the interview the same way we did with the Professor - talking about storytelling and professional services Who's his favorite group to talk to: Service Organizations
My mentor, Tom Wolf, taught me how to see.
"I like to absorb when I walk around"
David Kafer, the force behind the Portrait Project 100K, met with Mark and Patrick to talk about the project and his passion for the people he photographs.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
How the Portrait Project began His philosophy about photography, especially as it relates to people The story of his first photo - not that long ago His first photography trip, to Italy and how his mentor taught him to see Working at SBCC as a photography tech, helping teach Advice for photographers: Don't photograph for Likes His passion for fitness photography The various locations that he's set up his camera dnd the challenges Tips for Photographers - Shoot what's important to you - Photograph a lot - your first 10,000 photos are practice - Think about the importance of pre-production, before you shoot What he's learning from people and their stories since the project started Dream for him: A Portrait Truck so he can easily go on the road Why it's important to him to have found a way to get people to open up (to the camera)
IN THE HEART OF THE PROGRESSIVE COMMUNITY
Elena Richardson, Director of Grantmaking, at the Fund for Santa Barbara, sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about the progressive movement in the region and the Fund’s role. We learned about the organization, her passion for philanthropy and activist causes.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
What she loves the most – working with the grantees How they work hard at giving away 500K a year to most deserving organizations that are aligned with their Mission The Fund was founded in 1980 and a bit of the history What she does – it’s about grantmaking and providing technical assistance Learn about the “Poetic Justice Project” as an example of the types of projects they support Patrick educated Mark about Art and Activism – good to know! What was an unlikely proposal that landed on her desk? Hint: it’s about bioaccumulation Funding student-led work, like the Isla Vista Governance Project The Youth Making Change project – sounds excellent 3 Tips for successful grants – Use fewer words – Have clear budgets (utilization of funds) – Get feedback in advance – bonus tip: go to an application workshop – Resources for Grantees We got to talking about David and Goliath battles, and there’s plenty of them in the Progressive community Cool class: How to Lobby How do you pay for these services you ask? Great answer – sliding scale. So if you have an idea you might just get a seed grant if you want to pursue a dream of social activism Change. Not charity.
Clients don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.
Professor Harry Starn Jr, MS, CFA, CFP helped educate Mark and Patrick on how teaching Financial Planners has changed. He is the Director of Financial Planning Program at California Lutheran University. His audience is those seeking an MBA in Financial Planning.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
How to prepare Financial Planning professionals What he means by Holistic Planning (It's an art and a science) How important a planner is, especially after a transition event: marriage, birth of a child, death in the family The role of a Financial Planner, including the metaphor of the CFP as the Quarterback in your financial life One of the challenges for the planner is that they sell intangibles. The importance of compliance Why someone picks a career in Financial Planning. Hint: They like finance and they fell like they could help people The importance of Story Telling and Financial Planning Note from Mark. My biggest takeaway from the conversation was about privacy and security and how the Financial Planner is so much like your Doctor. One deals with fiscal health, the other, with physical health. There are more similarities between these two professions, once you start thinking about it - which I've done a lot of since this conversation.
"Treat me like your Doctor."
- Ray suggests you be honest. The more you can talk about the inner workings of your business, the more he can help.
Ray Clem, one of the members of Tolman & Wiker Insurance Services, sat with Mark and Patrick to put a human face and plain talk to the sometimes complex topic of business insurance.
What was refreshing is that Ray helped us both understand the nuances of the need for protection with an eye and ear towards keeping things uncomplicated. We got the sense that he's not bad at explaining.
Unfortunately, we end working with people on their worst day ever."
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-A bit about how Ray got into his current role as a Business Insurance expert What's the secret to projecting and predicting when and where you need coverage?
-Risk Management -What's the best part of his job: Relationships. Note: We hear this a lot. Maybe we should do a special playlist about Relationships. -You'll want to listen to the Lawnmower Story. -We talked at length about Prevention, Financing, and Education -Why Ray is so focused on helping businesses, protect their most valuable assets. -There was a good discussion about Cyber-liability and Data-liability -Ray did a great job representing our partner, Tolman & Wiker and made us rethink how we'll approach our next conversation.
Disclosure: introNetworks, the parent Company that produces 805conversations is a client of Tolman & Wiker, and they provide coverage for our various projects, TEDxSantaBarbara, and Kymberlee's company, Strategic Samurai - both mentioned on the show.
Theater lingo that the Show Director says before each cue. Example, "get ready for the red spotlight." "Ready?" "Take that go!"
Jill Seltzer, the new Managing Director of the Ensemble Theater at the New Vic met with Mark and Patrick to talk about the company and the venue. With Patricks' interest in the Arts and Mark's recent TEDx experience at the New Vic, this was a stimulating conversation for all of us.
My career makes sense looking back, but I didnt see it coming."
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
How Jill's career got her to Santa Barbara Working at WBEZ - home of This American Life and Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. The SAG/AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild) Foundation and how that helped her form some opinions What's an Equity Actor A nice, long discussion about the New Vic and its technical production capabilities An excellent overview of the current productions for the 2016-2017 slate Talking about millennials involved in Theater - including pre-millennials (what do we call them?) How the 300 seat venue is ideal to create a sense of intimacy How can local corporations take advantage of the site and the programming? A bit about her background in theater in Chicago She's a world-class fundraiser and gave us some tips she learned when she worked at the Prince Charitable Trusts - Understand about the donor and their legacy and how important that is to them - Remember that you are doing them a favor, turning their money into something that matters to them. - It's all about what THEY care about, not what YOU need Mark asked some questions about the Board's of Directors - good content here if you're in charge of one, want to be on one, or are on one now The best part of her job: living her passion - being around people who love the theater.
"How to make your brand accessible and relevant."
Pia Dorer, Co-Founder, and Managing Partner at Orange Identity sat with Mark and Patrick to talk about brand strategy and design, her professional passions. Our conversation took an interesting turn as we talked about her concept of 'dating' being the first step in working with a brand. You create the story and core message; then these things together make the path much clearer as far as target markets, strategy and what types of communication methods and brand expression need to be integrated into a successful campaign.
Creating a compelling story that makes people want to keep turning the page and drawing them deeper in emotionally is what smart branding is all about.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Working with the Impact Hub in Santa Barbara Pia and her team worked closely with Mark on TEDxSantaBarbara to bring the theme of "What If" to life Creating an agency that has 90% of its clients in the Santa Barbara area, while living north of Sydney, Australia Working with a distributed team - challenges and opportunities How she came to in Santa Barbara, then back to Sydney Why she's so passionate about marketing and design How she approaches new clients and the onboarding process. What she's looking for in new clients - How well do they know their brand - Her 20 question Questionnaire - The Brand Disclosure survey (I want to take this after hearing about it How the Brand Disclosure Survey is like speed dating, as influenced by eHarmony's in-depth profiling to best understand what and who you are Why she loves the research side of Marketing How to say no to a potential client where it's obvious you're not a good fit The challenging conversation you must have about Budgets - and getting good at being able to accomplish it Personas (We've talked a lot about them on the show) - Pia thinks of brands as unique personalities Why she loves the collaborative approach to working with clients If you do Public Relations, you'll want to hear her tips for getting your PR out more effectively We're going to invite Pia back to talk about Speed Dating for Brands - as that is something she's thinking about a lot these days.
Creating a compelling story that makes people want to keep turning the page and drawing them deeper in emotionally is what smart branding is all about."
"I like the stories; I love the characters."
Adam benShea, is a lecturer at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and a master at Brazilian Jiujitsu. He talked with Mark and Patrick about his fascination with stories. If the name sounds familiar to you, it is because we have had Adam's father, Noah, and sister, Jordan, on this show. This completes our benShea trifecta.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Adam explains the difference between a professor and a lecturer. Thanks. The title of this episode comes from his work in jujitsu - he explains what that means and why it's important to a life off the mat His life works in Religious Studies - Specifically Religion and Violence. This class is very popular and interesting to students His fascination with patterns and repetition. What's a Textualist? He understands story architectures and talks at length about The Stage, The Actor, the Day and the Hero's Journey He helps us understand American Christain Violence (while we are all focused on Islamic terrorism lately) How current time relates to Ancient Time How Hamas uses its bombing strategy to deliver 'messages.' How he found his passion for learning - hint, it was a great teacher/mentor, Richard Hecht One of his mantras that get explained and referred to a lot: "Everybody fights. Nobody quits." Attributed to his high school wrestling coach Mike Hart When asked about watching sports he mentioned, "I'm not a great spectator." Being aware of your cultural baggage A story about stories with Noah as the example of how he appears in the Bible and the Kuran "I don't teach theology" An interesting sidebar on atheism Didn't know about JewBu's - Jewish Buddhists until this show His book that let him exercise his writing and entrepreneurial spirit: Jailhouse Strong "Senseless is not senseless at all"
"How do we create meaning and value?"
Ravi Sawhney, the founder, and CEO of RKS Design has been contemplating the role of design in our lives for years. This episode with Mark and Patrick gets to some of the high points of his thinking in this area.
Note, this is the second pure Design episode we tackled. Check out Dane Howard if you're interested in more on this topic.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-How he got started with Industrial Design - Note: it was a circuitous path, involving his mentor, the Dean at Cal State Northridge -His experience with Shop Classes in High School - Note: we don't have shop classes anymore in our educational system -His book, Predictable Magic, and its impact on advanced design thinking. -Working at the Xerox think-tank early in his career -When he first started thinking about interaction design -Psycho-Aesthetics - time for buzzword bingo time on this one, look it up
"Design is a tool to take you on a journey
-We loved his explanation of Happy Storytellers -Nice long sidebar about Ravi and Guitars and how his firm reinvented the Electric Guitar - Harvard Business Review did a Case Study of how they did the project -When we asked what Ravi's next dragon is, he told us about how he challenges the Company to go out and find a big, hairy problem that's facing the nation and submit it for one of the pro-bono efforts the Company takes on. Hear how they intend to solve the Student Loan problem. It's a compelling idea.
"It's not how you feel about the design, it's how it makes you feel about yourself."
"Writing your Life Code, starting with I Will..."
Shaun Tomson, Surfing legend, Entrepreneur and Speaker has a sit-down with Mark and Patrick to talk about his mission and story.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Shaun started surfing at nine years old in South Africa By 20 he was a competitive surfer and starting winner early in life He's shared the stage with Malcolm Gladwell, Richard Branson, and others His public speaking career started very young - so he's gotten a lot of reps He speaks a lot about giving his perspective, not a prescription the story of the Surfers Code - 12 Lessons and how that project got started at the Rincon The Surfrider Foundation How the code establishes the building blocks of character How the Code has morphed into his public life and speaking - and how it has impacted rooms of leaders How he does his workshops - Spend 30 minutes writing your 12 lines, starting with I will... - Pick one line that best represents your purpose in life - Stand up and represent - read your line to your peers He gives some examples of how this transformative work has led to real change He's passionate about his home country and is activating social change across South Africa We talked about how Sports impacts Life and Leadership Interesting side note was the reality of surfing - you work so hard for so long to get 15 seconds of ride time. How passion underlies everything he does and stands for His studying of Nelson Mandela to get ideas on how to influence on a grand scale Passion + Purpose = The Core of Leadership Maybe this should be on a tee shirt: Surfing Teaches You Humility "Sport was an end game. I didnt surf to be the victor."
"Awareness is the beginning of change."
Lois Phillips, Ph.D. has accomplished a lot since she moved here in 1972. Mark and Patrick had an insightful conversation with this Communications guru.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Great companion reading for this episode is her blog post, Are You Ready? How do people reveal themselves? How you build trust as an interviewer (or anyone asking questions) What's the secret to good interviewing? - Listening - You make the guest think - You are genuinely interested (in the subject) "When I don't breathe, I get dumb." What's your Sparkle Factor? Great way to describe charisma She's focused a career and lifetime on gender issues and communications Studying cultures that empower women that are coming up through the ranks "What happens in the moment of interruption?" Her thoughts on millennials and their communication skills What's most fun about her work? Writing Networking tips for Mixers (here's Sparkle again) - Start with a question - "What are you excited about?" - "What brought you here?" - Be curious How you find the thread in a conversation, then pull it Her favorite Maya Angelou quotes: “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” The importance of Likeability Note: Lois has added a tremendous amount of value to the community, and we didn't talk about these accomplishments, you may want to look them up:
-Recieved her Ph.D. from UCSB -Started Antioch University -Founder of AWCSB
"From Cloud to Table."
This slogan came up at the end of the show when Mark remarked that what Rodney is doing is bringing the moisture out of the air (cloud) and bringing it into the home (table).
Aquaviable Founder and CEO, Rodney Loehr talks with Mark and Patrick about his Water-based startup and his passion for all things wet.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
Working out of the ImpactHUB in Santa Barbara How he got so passionate about water, water politics, and conservation Story about when he was 14 years old and the well went dry at the family ranch in Arizona How he got involved in the Verde River Citizens Action Group Working at the Arizona House of Representatives How his process works - think condensate collecting on a cold glass How much water evaporates from the ocean every day. Guess? 90,000 cubic miles. (yes, that's a lot) His interesting idea, a Fog Mower What's a Water Resources Portfolio? How Aquaviable's technology works and how it might scale Mark and Rodney get into a discussion about the overhead that Reverse Osmosis takes to produce a single gallon of water His business model (lease the gear, pay for the water you use) What it's like being a Reluctant Entrepreneur Ask yourself, "does your water taste good?" Is there such a thing as 'mouth feel' for water? Yes.
"I signed my first group when I was 17."
IndieU founder and entrepreneur Natalie Edell joined Mark and Patrick for a rousing discussion about her startup and the Indie music movement.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-What's the story behind IndieU and why now? -How she is building a network of campus reps -What it's like to wear all the hats - including product development and QA and work till 3 am, and be a guest early in the morning -Working with 40 talent scouts in Colleges and Universities across the country -Why they only take unsigned musicians -What 'being indie' means in terms of legitimacy with her target market -How IndieU is different and financially viable with so many choices for players out there. -How partnering with brands is helping to build out their platform -Why she's going into ticketing and Events - and why that's an excellent idea. -Booking - Tours - Ticketing -Listening to your market (for product ideas) Listeners: have we heard this a few hundred times now? -Basement Parties (Is this a thing? Yes.) -Her story about getting her first taste of dealing with the music industry - this is a story about persistence. Something that is a hallmark of a true entrepreneur -How the licensing model (in music today) works -Her favorite thing about the business? Listening to the artists -A bit about her Dad (works at the company, formerly one of the early guys at MySpace.) -This was one of those interviews that we didn't want to end. Natalie has a ton of energy and passion to spare when it comes to talking about her vision.
"Sometimes getting it 80% done gives you 1000% satisfaction"
Jim has a philosophy about work and 'just do it', is a big part of it.
Entrepreneur Jim Semick, co-founder of ProductPlan talked with Mark about how they're rethinking how you communicate a product vision. He's been involved in a ton of companies in the region, originally coming down from Seattle and the tech scene up there. His background in Product Management gave him and his partners the idea to create this new company.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
-At 12 he knew he'd be running a business - but wasn't clear how that would turn out. -Going from one big company (AETNA) to another bigger one (Microsoft) and eventually leaving for smaller pastures -His background? A Technical Writer -What Product Plan does and why it's important for key clients like NIKE, Alaska Air and IBM's Watson team -The role of Market Validation, with a shout out to local pioneer in this area, Frank Robinson (Note: Frank coined the term MVP) -What's a Product Roadmap? How does it integrate into the overall corporate strategy -The KANO model for product design: focusing on, Customer delight, Performance related and "excitement" excitement features (There's more to this, listen to learn.) -How vital it is that a product, service or new idea has a Vision - that can be easily communicated to stakeholders
"All you need is your voice to tell a story."
This entrepreneur carries his tool with him wherever he goes.
Voice actor James Arnold Taylor joined with 50 other characters to talk with Mark and Patrick about his dream job. This is one of those episodes that you'll want to pause, rewind and listen to again. Especially once James gets going, which is pretty much right off the bat.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including:
How he found his calling at 4 years old How voice acting is different that what you might think A bit of the behind the scenes of this industry How he's been the voice of hundreds of characters in hundreds of video games Ever heard of Final Fantasy? That's James. Can you trademark a voice? What is ADR and how has he turned that into a big part of his repertoire Voice-doubling - incredible opportunities that have come his way because he is such a phenomenal mimic of voices His stage show: Talking to Myself What's the hardest voice for him to do? Hint: it's very close The Fred Flintstone story (yes, he's the voice of Fred) He's also the voice of Obi-wan Kenobi of the Star Wars franchise (the game) Voice doubling for Christian Bale in Batman When he gets together with his peers, they play Twisted Tunes How he struggled to get the voice of Ron Howard down He battle and how he overcame Black Mold, which almost ended his career Can you get insurance for your Voice? How to get more texture in your voice He does some amazing voices, including several Johnny Depps, Christopher Walken and others Finally, the business of voice acting and how he's been able to raise a family and build a great career right here in Santa Barbara
"Rehearse the future of your business."
Perfect insight into how Dane Howard thinks about working with his teams.
Dane Howard, designer, futurist, entrepreneur and Father, sat with Mark to talk about Design Thinking and the past twenty years. Dane and Mark met at Wavefront while Dane was going to Art Center College of Design. In this reunion conversation they talk about the intervening years, his family and daughter Chloe, who was recently on the TEDxSantaBarbara stage.
This wide-ranging conversation covered a lot of ground including: • Going to school at Westmont, then off to Art Center • His philosophy about the role of Design - hint: it's about service • How does Empathy affect the Design Thinker • How you "Storyboard your Business." • What he learned from Pre-Visualization at Disney and Pixar that he applied to his design work • How you tell a story about a better tomorrow - pitching ideas to management • How Design Thinking flows across the entire business • Being a CEO Whisperer • Love this quote, "Teasing out friction." • Collaboration Design • BEST QUOTE EVER, how you phrase a question to your team, ... how might we... • How might we fix, build, change, help, etc. it's a perfect open-ended question • The role of Improv in the Design Thinking Process - Yes and vs. Yes but. • A fun thing that he does with his son before bed, every night, called 3 Minute Drawings. What a bright idea. • Creating courses for Lynda.com - Lifestyles for Creatives • What's next? Reinventing how people purchase and think about insurance through startup Trov.
"The ones that will succeed are good listeners." Doug's initial criteria for judging the potential of a CEO that he coaches.
Doug Crawford is a seasoned entrepreneur, CEO coach, and mentor. He and Mark had a long-distance conversation from Texas to talk about business, entrepreneurs and our shared love for helping others.
Doug and Mark worked together back in the day, the early days of Wavefront Technologies in Santa Barbara. There was a bit of reminiscing in the episode.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
His first business job Being in the Army Honor Guard at Arlington National Cemetery His experience with Sales Training for small businesses How to think about clients and how you enable their careers Trust in business relationships (A frequent theme on the show) How entrepreneurs have Vision, No Fear and a Strong Belief (in their product/service) Is entrepreneurialism in your DNA? Or is it nurture Millennials and business. They're not buying the hype. How to show gratitude as a CEO B Corporations and Triple Bottom Line The question that you might ask about your business, "Are we doing well for the environment?" the Art of Community Conscious Capitalism What he means by cost-transparency in health care - one of his clients is in that space. How to partner and build relationships that span ideologies and oceans His methodology for onboarding new clients - What's your biggest challenge? - Sales and Marketing? - Financial? Pricing? Financial modeling? - Team building? One capability that most people are least-skilled at His work with Maui Mastermind - no, it's not in Maui, it's a state of mind. Good group of individuals. Diego is off to Santa Cruz to help his brother open a restaurant. We hope that he comes back to the 805 so that we can enjoy his cooking.
"What can I tell a story with". This is what Diego Felix thinks about when he's looking at the food in a Farmers' Market.
Diego Felix is the co-founder of Colectivo Felix, an exciting business (Currently in Ojai) that plays to his passions for food and performance. He sat with Mark recently to talk about food, traveling, blending flavors and telling stories.
Mark was a chef in a former life and met Diego at a dinner party in Ojai and invited him on the show. You'll find him entertaining and will enjoy this episode.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
How the Colectivo got started His year-long tour of major cities in the US - doing pop-up dining for two weeks at a time. What is means when one of his clients sends up the Bat Signal Growing up in a vegetarian family and how that influenced his cuisine His unique South American point of view about ingredients His favorite things: Corn, Indigenous herbs and, well you need to listen What the heck is Wild Sage Ash? How Cooking is like Improv and Jazz When his cooking goes wrong, it doesn't. Diego is off to Santa Cruz to help his brother open a restaurant. We hope that he comes back to the 805 so that we can enjoy his cooking.
Creating collaborative connections
Dan Ferrick, Co-Founder of the Impact Hub in Santa Barbara sat with host Mark Sylvester to talk about the recent opening of their facility and how they're serving the local startup community.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
Moving back to Santa Barbara after going to school at UCSB What's the ImpactHub and why he's so excited about it How the variety of age ranges of members at the Hub contributes to its' success Being a partner with the recent TEDxSantaBarbara Being a part of the downtown Santa Barbara scene His backstory and being a wanderer and risk taker Book that made a huge impact: The Peaceful Warrior Memorable quote: "This too shall pass..." The importance of travel is helping you become a mature adult His three tips for achieving your goals -Have courage -Trust Yourself -Have a diversity of experiences
The Impact Hub is part of a global network of Hubs. You can learn more about them here.
Making connections by being genuine
James Joyce III, the District Director, 19th State Senate District, and Mark had an engaging conversation about an innovative new social impact movement to help bridge the interpersonal and racial divide.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
-How Coffee with a Black Guy got started -What brought James to the Central Coast -How's a journalist get involved in public policy and why? -What are the three skills needed to become a Journalist? -Give before you get -Follow your natural curiosity -Be genuine -What it's like being the only black face in the room -His racism story -The Sky High Club (for tall people) -His inspiration: Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee -Coffee with a Black Guy on Facebook
"You and me, helping you get better"
Yes faithful listener, this is our 100th show. Thanks for your support. You're in for a great show today!
Jim Cathcart, author, speaker, coach, and mentor sat with Mark to talk about his most recent book, The Self Motivation Handbook. Jim's a world traveler and has a thousand stories, we only had time for a few, and they were great.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
• How he's managed to write 18 books (see entire list here) • His 4th-grade teacher, Ms. Waters • Being an advisor at California Lutheran's School of Management (805conversations' sponsor) • Buzzword Bingo: Applied Behavioural Science • His mentor: Earl Nightingale, from Arkansas • His tips for preparing to give a presentation • Review what you already know • Emails, brochures, all your interactions • Go over your presentation • Have a meal alone and consider your talk in your head • Engage their mind • Trick for engaging the audience: look at their eyes and look at the tops of their heads, that means that they've tilted down to write a note about something you just said • Zig Ziglar • Why should the audience care about you? • Thomas Merton - another guiding light for Jim • Audience engagement trick #2: Who has the 2nd question - no one wants to ask the first question • His fascinating story about the founding of the National Speakers Association (NSA) • 1989 - becoming president of the NSA • His personal memory tricks for people giving presentations • Link to his new book, The Self-Motivation Handbook • 68 Ways to Motivate Yourself • 268 One-minute Lessons in Self-Motivation
Serving and saving people on their worst day
Shelli Varela, firefighter, author, podcaster, speaker and mentor spent time with Mark talking about what motivates her and how she motivates those around her.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
• Her story about becoming the first female firefighter in Mississauga, Canada • "I made a difference and make an impact" You'll hear this a lot in the show • Cool tech: TIC, Thermal Energy Cameras • Being an Artist and writing her first sonnet at 8 years old • Her fascination with special effect make-up • A quick bit about the Childrens' Book she wrote • Who's her biggest hero • What it was like working with the Junior Female Firefighter Bootcamp, where she received national recognition • Her goal to be on the New York Times Bestseller list • "Always and only - look at the end goal." • Her three tips for achieving your goals • Until you start, you won't realize all the serendipitous things that can happen along the path • Identify your goal worth chasing • What's the goal beneath the goal, what are the benefits of reaching it? • Breaking down the steps into small, doable tasks to reduce the feeling of overwhelm • The YES Effect podcast and how that got started • Shelli's podcast, The YES Effect, is great and you'll love the variety of guests she gets on the show
Sending the human spirit to the bottom of the ocean
Melissa Baffa, VP of Programs and Volunteer Service for the Central Coast Girl Scouts spoke with Mark about her upcoming journey to the bottom of the Ocean. Her love of the ocean and how that passion impacts her work with girls is very evident in this conversation.
Melissa is a part of the Ocean Exploration Trust's mission to explore the world's oceans and bring the wonder of discovery to the world in real time through the Nautilus Live website. The organization's founder is Dr. Robert Ballard, most famous for having discovered the final resting place of the HMS Titanic.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
• What her job is at the Girl Scouts • What the Ocean Exploration Trust is all about • How the Girl Scouts can operate with 5,500 local volunteers • A great discussion about Dr. Robert Ballard and his dream of a Wet NASA • How Dr. Ballard coined the term, telepresence • A lovely discussion about one of my heroes, Sylvia Earle • What is Chemo Synthesis • Ah, the Dumbo Octopus • Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math)
This is a great episode that shows how passion and enthusiasm for a topic, like the Ocean, can be so fulfilling.
What are you seeing that's not yet visible?
Russell Bishop, author, speaker, consultant and world-traveler sat with host Mark Sylvester to talk about his insights gathered over a lifetime of working with people and their potential. Russell's latest work, Workarounds that Work, is a fascinating read, especially for those trying to get things done in complicated and convoluted environments.
One of the early pioneers in the field of large group personal development, he created Insight Seminars in 1978, followed by Insight Consulting Group. In the mid-1980's he co-founded Productivity Development Group along with David Allen. To date, well over one million people in 43 countries have participated in seminars designed by Russell.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
• A brief history of his work in the human potential movement, starting with Insight Seminars in the 60's • A recent conversation he had with Frances Hesselbein, famous for her work with the Girl Scouts. • How the GSA changed from an Ozzie and Harriet brand to one that focuses on inner city diversity, and why that made a difference • "How do you pay attention?" • Loved this quote: Never curse the rung of the ladder that got you where you are." • He explains the difference between Symbols and Experience with examples of how to make them work for you • We looked at the concept of Awakening - which is behind the title of this post, Becoming more of who you already are. • How to Ask Questions • Be genuinely curious • Have a desire to learn and explore • Care about the other person and their answer • An anecdote about Esalen • "A question is simply a demand with a hook on the end of it." • Loved this distinction on how to reframe a question - "Mark, what do you think?" - "Mark, tell me what you think." • The Art of Inquiry - I want to see this as a book • Favorite buzzword: Neurocardiology • "Most things in the universe are simple." • "There are 3 2's in the English language. To. Too. Two. • The story about Icebergs v. Snowflakes • And finally this one,"Human being v Human doing
We've invited Russell back, as it's clear this is a conversation that needs a part 2.
Russell is hosting a conference called Conscious Conversations in September - information here.
I lost one pound 225 times
Tinier Tim Bauer talks about being an entrepreneur and how being morbidly obese affected his entire life. Mark and he discuss his radical transformation and the impact he's now able to make with others.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
• Becoming a 'tinier Tim' - how he got his nickname • How his weight affected being a business man • His background in direct sales - an interesting story that we've never discussed before the year after losing all the weight • How his sales improved 100% • The value of small efforts repeated daily • His adherence to David Allens Getting Things Done methodology • How the Karate Kid is a metaphor for a way of teaching • How he tried every diet, from South Beach to the North Pole • The 5 Tennis Ball Story • "Being inspired without being inspiring" • #DontSettle • Gamification of the weight loss process • FITOCRACY • Wellness - Fitness - Nutrition • How teachers challenge us • A discussion about Stephen Covey's 4 Quadrants: Urgent, but not important, Important, but not urgent, Urgent and Important, Not important and not urgent • "A business falls apart slowly like a body falls apart." • "Don't neglect tomorrow, at the cost of today." • Caring for the physical wellness of his staff • 3 Things to help you in Sales • Everything but the Fire (you need to hear his opening story for this to make sense) • Finding opportunity where no one else see's them • Realize that from every opportunity, you can learn (from your mistakes)
Space is the most powerful way of conveying meaning on the screen
Roger Durling, the Executive Director of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival loves film. This conversation with Mark Sylvester delved into how this passion started as he gives us a Master Class in Film Appreciation.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
Why he has watched Lost in Translation more than 20 times His strong attraction to teaching and why (He's been teaching Film Studies at Santa Barbara City College for 13 years) Don't ask him to choose between the Film Festival and Teaching How he is the product of teaching opportunities How a teacher from 1978 deeply affected his life until just a couple of years ago Why he's so passionate about young people gaining a deep appreciation for Broadway and how he funds an initiative that does just that at his former prep school. His college days at Syracuse and his drama teacher - and the impact of him on his path in life A deep dive into the Film Studies and other educational programs at SBIFF Mark gives Roger a superpower: The ability to see things that directors do that no one else ever consciously notices. According to Roger, great directors do this: Understand the power of color Proximic patterns (this is very cool, listen to hear his explanation) Sound Movement - who knew about left > right and right > left
Claim responsibility for your health
Terence Carfrae, founder of Temple, a center for wellness, meditation and fitness sat with host Mark Sylvester to talk about his dedication to helping others. This fascinating conversation ended up in some surprising places. There's a great bit about suffering and why you should embrace it.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:what's the target demographic for the HUB?
How he was motivated to focus on wellness The founding of Temple in Santa Barbara Why Santa Barbara? How he works with new clients and the questions he asks them all "Meet them where they are at." Why suffering serves a purpose How failure factors into his world view How to Avoid Pain "It's not about the teaching, it's about the questions" (so true) A discussion with Mark about Beginner's Mind What he means when he confesses to being a 'novelty nerd' How business is like Chess - what's his favorite piece? His thoughts about respiration The Seven Pillars of Wellness - write this down Mind / Emotion Breathing Water Food Movement Sleep Connection / Love
Remain hopeful. Get involved. Envision the future. Participate.
State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson sat with host Mark Sylvester to talk about public service, collaboration and a series of issues that face the Central Coast.
Here's just a bit of what you'll learn from this engaging conversation:
The JEDI Initiative Three benefits to consider from a life of public service Improving the world Challenging work that helps make life better A chance to exercise your creativity It's not all roses; it's frustrating, and we don't honor public servants or service Tips to being an effective public servant Listen - "What's keeping us apart?" Respect - "Don't disrespect, honor disagreement." The Role of Government: Protection and Safety of the People People pay attention when they have skin in the game The rise of Social Entrepreneurs "Your vote is your voice - your voice is your vote." Final thought after a long conversation about gun control (Note: This episode was recorded five days after the Orlando mass shooting.)
Dan Ball, Program Manager at the new HUB 101 at the Center for Entrepreneurship in Westlake talked with host Mark about running an incubator and co-working space. HUB 101 is a part of California Lutheran University.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
what's the target demographic for the HUB? The "School for Startups" - 10-week program Stress-test your idea with real customers STARTUPNEXT Recycling success back into the community Think of us as a gym membership for entrepreneurs Classes and Programming Startup Boot Camp - PACE program in the evening High School student consultant story - a great one Market Validation Success Stories - 80 members now since the first of the year Metrics for success Event attendance - it's growing Funded projects - attracting investors Getting a nice mix of people to the space Quantified success of the members Coaching and Mentoring
Ken Saxon, the President of Leading from Within, an organization dedicated to leadership development talked with Mark about the courage to lead.
There was a lot of ground covered in this conversation, including:
The Center for Courage and Renewal What's Leadership: Reflection: Listening to yourself Relationships Taking care of yourself It starts by stopping The difference between for-profit and non-profits How you get the most out of people - secret shared is fantastic Social entrepreneurialism How you build a Board of Directors culture Mark's note: the Four W's - Wealth, Wit, Work and Wisdom What are the tests to be on a board? The definition of a Generative Community How to 'hold a space' for ideas, creativity and energy to blossom "How do you know if you area leader?" Class at Stanford - Interpersonal Dynamics How very loud silences changed his life
Cox Communications Market Vice-President and host Mark Sylvester talk about the role of Cox in the community.
Here's just a bit of what you'll learn from this engaging conversation:
Public affairs as the face of the company Cox is a 5th generation family owned company The Cox Scholars Program - 5 students from local high schools receive awards What is Cord-Cutting? How Cox manages disruptive technologies while staying relevant Santa Barbara: The most called city in the U.S, back in the day "Contour" New product from Cox Cox's role: Bringing connections to people What if you're considering a role in public affairs - It's not for everybody It's a relationship world You need the ability to pivot quickly You must love getting involved in a 00 things It's all about politics, public affairs, and communications A peek into the future? What is synthetic DNA and how is it going to be used to store data?
TEDxSantaBarbara Executive Producer, Mark Sylvester, talks with 805conversations co-host Patrick Melroy about the upcoming event. This is the sixth TEDx event in town, the first three being TEDxAmericanRiviera and in the past two years, TEDxLive.
Here's just a bit of what you'll learn from this engaging conversation:
• What's TEDx and how's it different from TED • The story of how TEDx got started • Quick history of Chris Anderson's involvement with TED •What do the letters TED stand for? •Why we curate the TEDxSantaBarbara audience •The TED Commandments, from the original owner of TED •How our local TEDx talks contribute to the global TEDx movement •How we coach the speakers to give the talk of their lives •How to find a TEDx near you •How TED and TEDx helps you make lifelong friends
If you're interested in TEDxSantaBarbara, go to http://TEDXSantaBarbara.com and register for weekly updates.
Sarah Fischbach is a professor of marketing at California Lutheran University. She and Mark talked about concerns relating to ethics and marketing. Sarah has done a lot of work in this area and loves working with students and presenting them with interesting tests that highlight the challenges of understanding your ethical boundaries as a marketer.
Topics included;
-Working at the University of Hawaii at Manoa -Americorps -How she went from Corporate Sales and Marketing to a Professor -Her MBA in Marketing -How she became fascinated with Ethics and ethical concerns -Inducing reciprocity and where you cross the line when inducing it -Native Advertising -Ads that work --They establish trust --They're authentic --They're relevant -Experients she's run to test our theories (Love that she has a laboratory of students to work with) -How to define your Target Market --Brand Personas --Psychographics --Demographics -Great resources to help you understand your market --Neilson - Prizm --Claritas --Social Mention -Why emotions are such an important part of marketing -Brand Personology - new, interesting term gets discussed a lot -How do you get people to say, " I can't live without your product?"
Marian Baker, one of the Top 50 Executive Coaches in America covered a lot of ground quickly in her conversation with Mark. Marian is a Chief Inspiration Officer and has a lot of ideas for what you could call her; our favorite was that she's a self-proclaimed Jedi Knight Trainer. She's established herself on the global stage, helping companies find Inspired Leadership through her Institute. You'll want to grab a copy of her book, Wake Up Inspired after listening to this episode.
"Old ways don't take us into the new future."
Topics included;
-What's the best title for her? Catalyst? Mission midwife? Jedi Knight trainer? -What her Ideal Client looks like -What it takes to get to a better life -"I'm a bridge and a translator." -The Inspiration Economy -The description of the Wrecktangle (great visual) -Why you want to follow successful people -Her Daily Practice - Baby Steps -What she means by her shorthand: IC (Inner Child, Inner Closet, Inner Champion) -What the three most important parts of how we could be looking at ourselves --Your inner child --Your conscious adult --Your absolute self -What does fierce love want from me today? -Drawing an Infinity sign - labeling the left side: Surrender and on the right, Co-Creativity, and how inspiration flows from one side to the other. -Being called the Queen of Questions
Operational Excellence
Michael Teasdale, a member of the Advisory Council at California Lutheran University, covered a lot of ground in this informative talk with Mark. Michael spent most of his career in Healthcare and had a background in Theater, Communications and spends a lot of his time now with public service projects in Ventura County.
Always ask, Did I learn something?"
Topics included;
• Working at Baxter, in Paris and Wisconsin and at General Electric • How you look at an organization's Operational Excellence; • Who is their customer - what to they need or want • What is the beginning and the end of the process • Identify the Key Steps in the process • Getting people to understand their role in the process and why this is critically important • Are you asking the right questions? • His life in the Theater - as a director, and how it influenced his business career • The BING Theory - love this. • Interesting difference between theater and other performance types • The importance of communications in business • His five years as a speaker coach • His tips for speakers • Know what you want to accomplish - what do you want the audience to say, do or think • Understand your audience and ask, Why are they there? • Why should they care?
Brian Chossek, the founder of Impact 7 Generations is an author, speaker, and actualizer who shared a lively conversation with Mark talking about Purpose. Listen as Brian talks about why the discussion of Purpose, or your Why is so vital to your personal and professional life.
"20% of executives don't have a strong grasp on their personal why."
Topics included;
• Your Purpose vs. Your Why - how are they different • How to find your Why • Discovering your aha moment - "When the Why appears." • His Three Questions to help identify your WHY -What are you good at? -What is your passion? -What can I get paid to do? • The difference between your Personal Why and your Organizational Why • How to integrate Values and Purpose into your Company or Organization • Flipping the Filter • How to develop a purpose-driven organization • Finding your Center of Gravity • Identifying and articulating your Purpose, Vision and Values • Activating Purpose, Vision, and Value to achieve immediately measurable outcomes • Utilizing a Purpose-driven approach to solving specific problems, rapidly innovate, problem solve and earn buy-in for change
You can find Brian's work at Impact 7 Generations. He writes, runs workshops and does executive coaching.
Steve Ainsley, now retired, was the Publisher of the Santa Barbara News-Press and the co-founder of the Economic Community Project twenty years ago. He now serves as the Chair of Cottage Health's Board. He and Mark covered a wide range of topics including his thoughts about publishing, the Spotlight backstory, investigative journalism and others.
"Root out what's not right."
Topics included;
-His history working for the New York Times. Santa Barbara, Tampa and as Publisher of the Boston Globe (7 papers in total) -The backstory of Spotlight, Steve came to the paper 2 years after the story broke. -His thoughts on the role of Publisher v the Editor -The watershed moment for Media -How the business model changed, which changed the industry -A deep dive into investigative journalism -What's the highest award a paper can get? Is it worth it? -The Misson of your local, community paper -Where do millennials fit into this new publishing world? -People do read the local paper (still) -What if you want a career in journalism, what traits should you have? --Innate curiosity --A real desire to share what you've observed --Get a charge by how much impact you make in the community -The Economic Community Project - started in 1993 -Background and history of the project -Slow-no growth citizenry and politics -How you achieve success in community efforts - invite the contrarians -His tenure at Cottage Health -His take on Healthcare and the Mission of Cottage -How you build partneships to manifest these large community agendas
Judy Hawkins, principal at Ruby Road Leadership and the facilitator of the Business Giving Roundtable had a lively talk with Mark Sylvester about giving back, the social sector and social enterprises.
Caught between Connection and Curiosity
Topics included;
-The Business Giving Roundtable, background and where it fits in the local non-profit scene -How the BGR supports entrepreneurs -How you build giving into the business model -Trend: Women business owners think about giving back during the formation of their business. -Giving back is how we are a part of the Community -How the business world and the social sector are becoming more hybridized -What the Partners for Excellence Conference is and how it's unique to the region • What are the things that set this area apart? - We have a connection to the natural world - Our spirit oGenerosityty - We're caught between connection and curiosity -Why it's important to have a signature style • What it means to have an entrepreneurial culture - and how you recognize it if you saw it: - An interest in creativity - A willingness to lead with intuition - Thinking about being a part of the Community - a client community, your town • Ways to Serve: - Volunteer - serve on a local board - Show up and pitch in at an event - In-kind services from your business - of course, cash.
Tom Reed, the Executive Director of the nearly 100-year-old Unity Shoppe, sat with Mark to talk about building relationships and how they've affected his life. Tom has a fascinating background and shared many of his life's' lessons during this conversation. The model for the Unity Shoppe is unique in the United States and one that's worth replicating in other communities.
Life is a paradox"
Topics included;
-Being a pilot in Vietnam -Starting his career in Grass Valley - turns out Mark did a stint in Auburn CA as well -How his military service prepared him for life - discipline and respect for authority -How he spent the early part of his life pursuing success - money, material things - and how that turned out -The Fire. Losing everything in a moment. -Teaching himself how to build a house - and what happened next -Three things that changed when he had his transformation -- What's really important in life - what's the meaning for him -- Not religion, but finding the spiritual aspect of life -- How powerful 'no agenda' can be in building relationships -What going to the National Prayer Breakfast did for him -Being a Folk Singer, and the path that took him down -Being vulnerable -His CEO mentoring project -Then comes the Unity Shoppe, he's been the Executive Director for 14 years -What this organization means to the community. -Many examples of how the Freedom to Choose model is so successful with the people Unity serves
Marc Borowitz, the founder of the Rincon Beach Club and Rincon Events talked with Mark about their 30-year history of Mark eating Marc's food. Marc started Rincon 32 years ago and has grown his business into a regional powerhouse having fed thousands and attended to the weddings of hundreds of brides. It's a great conversation about how hospitality can be brought into any business.
"No is not a part of our vernacular"
Topics included;
-The Wedding business in Santa Barbara, as a destination for brides from around the world. -Corporate catering and how local businesses take advantage of Marc's great service -Three things that Marc would teach someone about Hospitality;
- Desire. Have a desire to make people happy.
- Practice. Get in the reps, rehearsals. Ask, "How could we make it better?"
- Imagination. Think about pushing the envelope, turning client ideas into reality.
-His philosophy about employee education - hint: It never stops -His favorite thing to cook himself and a fun thing he does with friends and family -What Marc thinks about when you say Workforce Wellness.
Marc has been catering for projects with Mark since his early days at Wavefront, then onto introNetworks and is the caterer for TEDxSantaBarbara.
Gregg Hart, Santa Barbara City Councilmember has been involved in public service his entire career. His conversation about his life choice, with host Mark Sylvester, helped illuminate the positive aspects of public service and giving back to the community.
"How do you make better changes for the Community?"
Topics included;
-Climate change and his focus on working at the local level to make a difference -BEACON - Beach Erosion working group A bit of background on Earth Day and the birthplace of environmental activism -His participation in Prop 15, the anti-nuke initiative at Diablo Canyon -Discipline vs. Passion -His top three lessons - Showup, Listen, Network -Background on the ongoing debate in Santa Barbara between growth and no-growth advocates -The Density (Downtown) discussion - insight -A great story of how you work with community groups to solve a problem. The example is the work the City has done to create a bicycle corridor to connect the downtown area to the Westside. We learned how hard it was to build consensus.
This was a great conversation, and Patrick and Mark both thanked Gregg for his tireless efforts at representing all of our best interests.
Matt Turner and his brother Sat Kiret, founders of Santa Barbara's Hustler's for Humanity are doing something amazing and want to take their idea national. They sat with host Mark Sylvester for a wide-ranging conversation that went back to how they have become so motivated to serve and help the community. Their business is matching volunteers to opportunities to serve in the community. This can be assisting at events where the non-profit needs extra hands to unload chairs or provide assistance in parking at a fundraiser. They've done it all.
Our Mission: Impact the community. Teaming up to serve.
If you want to join the Hustlers and volunteer your time at a local event, you can signup here.
Topics included;
Learn how they focus on being dedicated to positivity Building a team of superheroes The backstory: their father built a non-profit for 1000's of kids in Boston - their hometown What their first event was like - at Fork and Cork Their progress so far - 75 events, 600 people, 250 regular volunteers and 40 non-profits served. Their Dragon: resources and living in the car when they first moved here. Their emphasis on trust is compelling The value of sports and how it's impacted them "Our sport is Community Service Discussion of branding and the word Hustlers. Their Community-Service model for Colleges and high school students The future: monthly publications and technology to facilitate the matching of volunteers to opportunities to serve Matt and Sat are on the Executive Team of TEDxSantaBarbara and are providing amazing ideas and collaborative input to the event.
David Hefferman, Marketing Specialist at KEYT 3 and FOX 11, sat with host Mark Sylvester to talk about how small businesses get the most out of local advertising. We've not addressed this topic in depth before. David takes us through the ins and outs of integrated marketing in an episode with a lot of valuable information. Over the years, he's learned that a lot of the time, small businesses don't understand how to craft a message with a purpose.
There's an on/off button. Use it."
Topics included;
-The Santa Barbara Kite Festival, which David's run for almost 20 years. -His background in On Air Weather. Mark, David and Patrick talk a bit in the beginning about the weather. -How David approaches his work by working closely with his clients to understand what they're trying to accomplish, then helping them reach those goals. -Why people have such an aversion to sales. It's not a dirty word -Why you should advertise more when you are busy -Consistency wins. -Listeners know that we love alliteration. Here's a good one from David: Kernels of Consistency -How you should think about FREE MEDIA -David has a great mini lesson in Programmatic Targeting -Do you know what RECENCY is? Neither did Mark until David explained it -What makes an ad compelling? Uniqueness and Sincerity and it has a Heart -Did you know that our local TV station reaches 500,000 people? -David explains how rates are computed, and ads placed - interesting if you're looking to maximise your ad spend
"Target. Price. Position. Product. The 4P's of Marketing"
Corey Reed, adaptive athlete, and the founder of Westlake Village-based Ride with Core had one of the most inspiring conversations with Mark. The last ten years of his life are punctuated by a tragic traffic accident where he lost his sight and his right leg, below the calf.
What you learn about how he spent those ten years will astound you. How he intends the next ten will give you great cause for hope.
"Being resilient is a choice. - Corey Reed"
I've had to learn how to make good decisions under pressure"
Topics included;
-What Ride with Core is all about - and how having an Entertainment company fits into his future -Being a father, husband and mentor -Going from a super athlete to an adaptive athlete -What it means to be competitive -Ever heard of Para-Snowboarding? Neither had we. What are the traits that he wants others to cultivate: -Constantly bettering yourself. Be vulnerable - step outside your comfort zone and Trust. -Going from para-snowboarding to Competitive CrossFit - and setting a world-record as the first adaptive athlete as a part of a foursome at the Kenny King Crossfit Competition -Starting off with T-Ball as a kid -Being sponsored by the largest prosthetics company and then competing in the world-renowned Navy Seal Hell Week Seal Fit program (yes, as a blind guy) -The 3 Stages of Hypothermia -Fight or Flight -Going from being an AV guy who designed in-home solutions to a thought-leader, and what that feels like -The Ride with Core film Resilience - see here -What the next five years look like for Corey
"Every accomplishment I've made, I couldn't have done it without the support of a team - family friends and coaches."
Every so often you meet an amazing person that challenges everything you thought about barriers. Corey is one of those. Take a minute to visit his site and if you can attend a screening - make it a must.
We're hoping to get Corey back to hear some more stories about the kids he's helping along the way.
"Taking charge of what we want to do with our lives."
Julia and Gerbert are two of the leaders of the Dons Net Cafe, a business incubator embedded in Santa Barbara High School. They talked with Mark about the history of the program that is now over 20 years old. They are one of seven high schools in the nation that have a program where students can build and launch real businesses. There's a national program called the Virtual Enterprise Classroom which they also participate in. They have won numerous awards from this organization and are on their way there now to compete with one of the newest companies, Volt Gaming, a membership organization that provides Game Tournaments and lunchtime play using the Computers in the Cafe. Mark is a mentor for the leadership of this program.
Take a step into my future" - Gerbert
Topics included;
-Julia, the COO of the DNC expalins how the operation works Finding Common Ground - one of the companies - full list here -The VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) program - and being recognized by the Director of the IRS in Washington - Noozhawk article here. It is funded by the United Way, to provide free tax returns to people that can't afford it. They have been awarded the #1 VITA site in the nation by the LA Times. -14 Businesses that are currently operating out of the DNC -How taking part in real businesses has created great experiences for them both -How they have learned to provide general services, such as HR, IT, Accounting, Marketing to the various businesses in the DNC -How these high-achieving students manage to balance their other school with the passion they have for business and social responsibility -They participate in the New Venture Competiton at Santa Barbara City College with other local high school. -What they'd tell other students about getting involved in such a program
Mark mentioned that these students are learning valuable lessons that they'll be able to use immediately as they decide what they want to do with their lives.
We'd encourage you to get involved with your local High School's Virtual Enterprise or Regional Occupational Program (ROP) and give back some of your time.
Meichelle Arntz is the founder of Recipes Organics Bakery and Angels Foster Care in Santa Barbara. She and Mark sat for a conversation to learn how she's integrated a small business with a big heart and become an owner who's giving back every day. She says that everybody can do something, so, do one thing to help. Today.
"Supporting non-profits is a part of running your business."
Topics included;
-Santa Barbara's only Australian Coffee House and Bakery -How she learned to be a barista so she could make coffee correctly -Her background as a nurse and how that influenced her work with Angels Foster Care -What it's like being a small business owner and working 60-80 hours weeks -How to remain calm during stressful situations, and how -trauma nursing prepared her for running a bakery and a non-profit -One of her mottos: "Be happy with where you are right now" -The Business Giving Roundtable and what she learned about how to structure a giving-back program that is integrated into her business -Working with interns and having her employees step up to participate in the giving back aspect of the business -Her Call To Action: Pick your passion - the area you want to focus on - then pick one non-profit recipient for your giving - and have it be aligned with your business's mission
Meichelle is an inspiration to other small-business owners who are looking for a lifestyle business - not wanting to create a chain of locations. Just focusing on working hard, giving back, being happy and working with lots of friends around her. The work she is doing with Angels Foster Care is truly amazing.
Garrett TeSlaa, Podcaster at the Squadroom and a Sergeant with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff, sat with host Mark to talk about his life in public service. Garrett is on a path of discovering health, wellness and personal development and is taking himself and his listeners on the journey with him.
"We did something good today.”
Topics included;
-The Squadroom Podcast - why, what, who -What the effects of sleep deprivation, stress and lack of exercise have on the police force -How to overcome them -How his personal journey has put him in touch with amazing experts in his field -Surprise: He wasn't always a cop - he started in the Music business -His story about finding a passion for law enforcement -"As a leader - looking for what violence you could stop. -Loved this: Psychological Salary -The definition of a Community Oriented Policing Policy - hint; there are 56 definitions -How Neighborhood Watch programs are working - answer: pretty well -Living in the moment - your first 15 seconds - nay, your first 3 seconds on the scene -How you Create Time in a tense situation -Biggest misconceptions of police officers and law enforcement: - Vast majority of law enforcement are smart people, many with MBA's and Master degrees - We don't like to be mean - We care deeply for our fellow citizens -Test for new hires and leaders - their enthusiasm for people -His day is not about writing tickets -When they are doing their job, you don't see them on TV that night
He quoted Clint Bruce's saying, which he used when we finished - "You were worth it." after being thanked for just doing his job.
Thanks, Garrett you gave us a new lens to look through the next time we get pulled over.
David Fortson, the co-founder and CEO of Santa Barbara based LoaTree, sat with Mark Sylvester to talk about his journey towards being a citizen activist and changemaker. He's a lot more than that of course, and his story gives us a great glimpse into this Santa Barbara social entrepreneur, marketer and Dad.
Citizen Activist. Changemaker. A Man for Others.
"To get told NO is a piece of data you should pay attention to.”
Topics included;
-Growing up in San Jose and finding the ideal school that ended up changing his life -"The Theology of Nature" -Knowing at age 17 that he wanted to be an Environmental Studies major -Going from Activist to Organizer -How you get attention for your ideas - learned at the young age of 19 -His intense experience at the WTO in Seattle - suffice it to say, he's not a fan of tear gas -Making a better planet -Earth Day activity in Santa Barbara -How he ran a campaign for the Isla Vista Parks Board at 22 years old -Advice for students who want to make a difference: Get out of class, Open up and pay attention to what's all around you and -Be Persistent -What's LoaTree and LoaCom -How talking to thousands of people helps fine tune your pitch skills -Starting with a big smile -His product startup story - Brush Buddy and being on QVC - what a rush -The ego is a powerful, multi-edged sword -"Do what you love." -Are you working at your highest vibrational level?
You can learn more about the Community, Events and Passion Projects of LoaTree at http://loatree.com
Jason and Jodi Womack, the powerhouse couple behind The Womack Company, based in Ojai, sat for an energy-filled conversation about their new book, Get Momentum. Jason and Jodi are ideal foils for one another and Mark took lots of time discovering their secret to working and playing together.
"Jason wrote the book, and I deleted it. - Jodi”
Topics included;
-Meeting 23 years ago in History class -What it means to be the kid who sits in the front of the class -Talking about Couples in Business -Jason's thoughts on Co... co-working, co-laborating and co-creating - very interesting distinctions -How does a couple with each having a Masters in Psychology not end up analysing each other ad nauseum? -Jason's 30/30 and 90/90 way of looking at your calendar and getting things done -What does it mean when you have Decision Fatigue - yes, it's a thing, look it up -What it was like writing their first book together - though this is their 4th book -How Jason got started - by looking in the house at the top 100 brands he supported by his purchases and then how he met them and started working with them -Here's the email he wrote: "Who I am, what I've done, What's your training and development need, What would you call the class and how much would you pay. -"What they buy vs. what they experience" -Another lovely law of three - Remember something you accomplished. Remember who helped you get it done. Be grateful -Nice point of view about the intersection of Information and Intention -"What do you want to be known for?"
Oh yes, Jason is a fellow podcaster and does a show, Your Best Just Got Better - find it here on iTunes - he did 200 shows in a row. Yep, that's Momentum!
Jason and Jodi travel quite a bit and when they do they will often hang out in a coffee shop and invite locals to come by and say hi and sit a while. You can find where they're going to be by hitting this Where's Womack site - clever idea Jason!
Julie Samson, is the Executive Director of the Scheinfeld Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Santa Barbara City College, met with host Mark Sylvester to talk about the excitement of working with energetic young entrepreneurs. Julie also is the regional representative of the Small Business Development Corporation and the Deputy Sector Navigator of the CITD, focusing on Global Trade and Logistics.
I'm in love with the spark of the students.”
Topics included;
Building a tight loop between the school and the business community The New Venture Challenge and how it's inclusion of local High Schools is making a difference in the startup community Cultivating hands-on experiences for the students The Enterprise Launch Class - 16 weeks to launch a new business idea How she sorts down to the best 10-12 ideas, then forms teams to validate the concepts The best part of the class for her? When she experiences the students excitement after they've met with real customers Great success story, Lifecycle Gardens, and how Justin's idea morphed over time - as all businesses do The 5 Metrics used by the SBDC to gauge business potential (Ray Bowman, Director of the SBDC in Ventura was on 805conversations talking more about the program - listen) How to determine if the founder has the fire needed to make the company successful What motivates new customers today is a sense of belonging to the brand How to find the consciousness and soul of the business Julie is genuinely excited about working with startups and entrepreneurs. This conversation would have played well on video so you could have seen her face as she talked about the work she's doing.
John is the CEO, and Chairman of Davies sat down with host Mark Sylvester to talk about how he's arrived at an innovative method for active listening. This process helps him and his team find the idea that's buried in a bunch of words. You'll hear him break down how to take hours and hours of conversation, distill them into a single word, or two.
John has been a part of the Santa Barbara leadership landscape for over 30 years. He's nationally renowned and recognized for the work he and his team do. Though he won't admit it, he's one of the top public relations, crisis communications and marketing strategists in the country. This session plays more like a Master Class than an interview.
I love it when we find their True North.”
Topics included;
How you find the message, that needle in a haystack How he collaborates with a small group of people most effectively How to dig deep and listen - then what you do once you've listened DOS - Danger - Opportunity - Strengths and why that's a better acronym than SWOT Why he prefers phone interviews over in-person sessions How to listen to the words and the music - the music is the excitement and tone of voice when you can't see the person's face How they present their findings in a way that makes them actionable How his recommendations after the interviews contain three dangers, three opportunities and three strengths His one-word for the one-word response (You'll have to listen to learn it) The Donut Story - with a nod to previous 805conversation guest, Robert TenEyk What it means to motivate, educate and cultivate your staunchest fans Why he never presents Pros and Cons (simple answer) A great discussion on Fear and how it affects your communications This conversation was a rare treat to get John for an uninterrupted 45 minutes. You'll want to bookmark this episode to listen to a second time, and take notes.
Andrew is the founder and principal at StonePark Capital in Santa Barbara. He met with host Mark Sylvester to talk about his current entrepreneurial journey into the hospitality industry. Andrew comes from a long line of entrepreneurs and has deep roots in the area. His story starts with a newsletter he created when he was seven years old, that first brush with the media has served him well his entire career.
Our local Universities are breeding thought-leaders .”
Topics included;
Getting started and his early mentors His new hotel in San Luis Obispo, La Quinta Inn Working with the various entities in SLO His relationship with his grandfather, Leonard Firestone and how those conversations shaped him How it's hard to be an entrepreneur when you look at all the regulations that stand in the way What keeps him up at night His thoughts on participation communities and non-profits Growing up in the Santa Ynez Valley on a vineyard His brothers' successful operation at Firestone Walker Brewery, home of 805 Beer A brief discussion of what it was like 13 years ago to be the on the third season of The Bachelor on TV when reality television was just getting started Andrew was quite humorous during the conversation and said his greatest attribute, according to his three kids is, he's hilarious. We'd agree.
Jordan is the founder of Skyview Projects. She's a strategic consultant helping businesses and non-profits define, sculpt and share their story. She sat down with host Mark Sylvester to discuss her fascination with stories told well and the power of a well-crafted message.
Jordan is very well connected in the local community, sitting on several non-profit boards and has an enthusiasm for each that is infectious.
I love stories. I love strategy.”
Topics included;
- Starting with your Why and a shout out to Simon Sineck
- How to look at a story and see all the potential connections to be made
- How the Hero’s Journey can help you craft your story
- What’s the difference between your Why and your Mission and Vision statements?
- The importance of a Style Guide and why it also includes your ‘voice’
- Book recommendation: Seth Godin’s Purple Cow – read about it here
- Current favorite book: Blue Ocean Strategy
- How she went from a pre-law career to one in Communications
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Who’s her Ideal Client? Note: Who’s yours?
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Listeners of the podcast may recognize Jordan’s last name. Yes, her father is Noah BenShea, a friend of 805conversations. You may want to listen to his episode next. Keep a pencil handy as there are more quotes per minute in that show than any we’ve ever done.
Stephen is the Founder of Bija Advisors. For nearly thirty years, he has applied cognitive science to institutional investment management. He sat down with host Mark Sylvester to talk about the common thread that runs through all of his pursuits. He has been fascinated with Decision Analysis and in this conversation will convince you that you’re probably not thinking hard enough about most challenges in your life.
Stephen is also a professor at UCSB in the College of Engineering, an internationally recognized speaker, drummer and the creative genius behind the Yarnbomber.com project.
In this quick moving talk he and Mark cover a lot of ground including: • The difference between cognitive strain and cognitive ease and why you want t opal attention to this part of the conversation very closely • “We don't like to think too hard…” • Why you shouldn't trust your intuition • Why you should think deeply, especially when you don't have to • What is cognitive bias and why does it lead to systematic errors in judgment • Question everything • The belief based life vs. the fact based one • A simple four-point way to look at life o What’s the problem? o What can you control? o What can’t you control? o What options does that leave you? • Cultivating an insatiable curiosity • His five-year quest to find a cause worth dedicating his energy towards solving • The League of Professional Educators (LINK TheLPE.com) and why we should have teachers that make $1M a year
He suggests that you should look at the world as it really exists.
Rick Stollmeyer, the CEO and co-founder of MINDBODY and host Mark Sylvester had a fascinating discussion about wellness, building a business, why the Central Coast is so easy to attract people to and some background skills you might not imagine would be helpful to a major public SaaS company's leadership.
Topics covered include:
- How Mindbody became so focused on going onsite to understand their customers, early on.
- Functional fitness and fitness trends
- How health and wellness is a megatrend
- What it's like to work at MINDBODY - practicing what they preach. ps. they're hiring
- Recruiting locally
- You've heard this one before, getting started in the garage
- The MINDBODY origin story - from outer space to inner space
- Learn about Rick's empathy for small businesses
- The experience you get from working in high-impact software environments
- How boutique fitness is transforming lives, and Mindbody's role in that ecosystem
- How they came to their mission of Building the world's leading platform for wellness
- How they help thousands of businesses manage their client - relationships
- Regarding software development: "The product will never be done..."
- Branching out from fitness and how their model expands How Design Thinking is woven into how they work
- How to maintain empathy with your clients as you scale
- Rick's background: Graduate degree in Nuclear Engineering from the US Naval Academy and worked at Vandenberg Air Force Base on satellites and studied Russian. Yes. Great story about why.
- Learn the difference between nice to have and mission critical as it affects how you positioning the company
- Regarding the Central Coast and the 805 region - why Mindbody sees their role in the ecosystem as important
- Glassdoor and what that platform means to the Company and investors. Note: They are one of the top places to work in the country!
- How the way you treat your team is your ultimate competitive advantage
- What's the Holy Grail for Mindbody? Helping small businesses succeed in running their company and attracting more customers. Note: 50% have excess inventory, and 50% lose 50% of their clients a year
The conversation was rich in detail and an excellent background for anyone that has dreams of growing a business from their garage to a publically traded international operation with more than 50,000 clients and millions of their customers using the Mindbody app every day.
MINDBODY is a sponsor of the 805connect project and we want to thank Rick for their continued support.
Bart Thielen, the CFO/COO of Blue Microphones, a Westlake, CA company sat with host Mark Sylvester to talk about their phenomenal products and the role of the CFO in business. This enlightening discussion gave a new point of view of how important the CFO is and at what point in the lifecycle of the business you bring one on.
"It's all about getting closer to the customer"
Topics covered include:
- Blue Microphones and how it is that they are located in Westlake, CA
- 805conversations use the Yeti Pro microphone once we learned that they are a local company.
- Mentoring at California Lutheran University
- How the CFO helps the CEO strategize across all aspects of the business - not just counting the numbers
- The importance of the CFO doing the forecasting and not the sales team - interesting
- The technology behind these amazing microphones
- Why Gamers love them as well as Podcasters
- How the CFO plays along with the branding discussions
- Why the Retro style of the design works so well
- What's the Holy Grail in advanced audio recording?
Buzzword Bingo - Reshoring
Cathy Feldman, the founder of the Spirit of Entrepreneurs (SOE) Foundation chatted with host Mark Sylvester about the upcoming SOE Awards. The conversation covered a lot of ground, especially the role of women in the workplace, in the startup ecosystem and how Cathy has been documenting Women in Business nearly her entire career.
"Women in the Winners Circle"
Topics covered include:
- The upcoming Spirit of Entrepreneur Awards and call for Nominations - click here to nominate - Deadline is March 7, 2016. Nominees must be located in Santa Barbara County.
- The 11 categories for winners and the background of the Organization
- How the SOE helps fund entrepreneurial enterprises at the High Scool and Community College level
- The judging process and how it works having people outside of the area weigh in on the applications
- Discussion about the seriousness that Kymberlee Weil took when submitting her application - she went on to win in 2014.
- The ongoing discrepancies for women in business - locals, investments and more
- Where women and girls fit into the STEM stream - going into these types of careers
- The idea of a speaking tour for the winners of the SOE the past several years
- Cathy's 25-year background as a writer and publisher at Blue Point Books, including her many books that feature women's successes
Guy Smith, part of the core faculty at Antioch University in Santa Barbara met with host Mark Sylvester to talk about his career as an educator, networker, SCAMP’r and lifelong student of Communications. Guy was one of the original members of the 805connect project and worked with Mark on several projects over the 20+ years that they’ve known one another.
Guy focuses on communication in all forms. He started as an English teacher and now helps students understand the impact of Advertising on our culture. He recently invited Mark into his class, Advertising and Culture to talk about Mark’s experience working with McCann Worldgroup and J Walter Thompson company.
We covered a lot of ground in this conversation, including:
Information on demand How education needs to be more applied and less theoretical The role of advertising in our culture One of his projects for students, to interview someone in the ad business and another which is to develop an ad campaign – here’s the twist – you have to do it for two different counties (this gets to the culture piece he’s so focused on) Who’s Hofstedes and what is his Cultural Dimensions theory? Individualism v Collectivism What it means to repeat an ad, over and over and over and over and over … How to apply big thinking to small business Social media works for small businesses on tight budgets How millennials don’t realise that they’re being sold to (all the time) Why Malcolm Gladwell’s TED talk on Spaghetti Sauce is important to consider in the context of advertising Buzzword bingo: DeMassification – look it up here, in a blog post by Harrison Stelle
Fish will be the last to discover water.
Carla Blanco, VP of Business Development at T/O Printing in Westlake and Mark Sylvester sat down to talk about the expanded role of the commercial printing firm in today's business. There's a lot more to the value proposition than just printing brochures. Carla talked about how they really dig into a company's business to best help them reach their goals and objectives.
T/O focuses on helping local, regional and entertainment businesses leverage the same technology and solution that T/O has been putting forth on behalf of their larger regional and Fortune 500 clientele for the past decade.
Topics included:
How to model your audience. Web to Print How to maximize List Buying to be most effective Oh, you need promotional materials too? How to use print to help build your brand How to improve your customer acquisition and retention using print Unique public service project she started recently: The Umbrella Drive
Don Levy, Organizer of TEDxConejo and Mark Sylvester, Organizer of TEDxSantaBarbara, both veteran TEDsters, sit down to talk about their TED experiences on the eve of TED2016. They shared their own TED story, how they got to the conference in the beginning and how it has affected their personal and professional lives.
"It's a vacation for my brain" - Mark Sylvester
This engaging and fast-paced conversation delved into all things TED including:
The origin of the title of this show, "It's time for TED." The analogy of TED to a 'Tasting menu' rather than an IDEA Buffet The backstory on TED and other aspects of the conference you've not heard about TED University How TEDx got started There will be 3,000 TEDx events around the world in 2016 Behind the Scenes at TEDxAmericanRiviera What it's like to produce a TEDx event and how it has a galvanizing effect on the community Generally interesting anecdotes from over 20 years of attending TED TED's main site - The site that has all of the information about TED, the Conferences and the Community
TEDx main site - Looking for a TEDx near you? This is the place to find one. Set a goal for yourself to attend at least one TEDx this year.
TEDx Videos on Youtube - These are the talks that don't make it onto TED.com - they are amazing
Yolanda Salgado-Tovar and Diane Ouellette are Employment Services Specialists with the Workforce Resource Center at the County of Santa Barbara. They had a lively exchange with host Mark Sylvester about unique programs that are freely available to business owners and job seekers. Mark was the recipient of such a program in the early '70's and starts the show with an anecdote about his experience - spoiler, it was all good.
The ladies represent services available in Santa Barbara, yet there are similar services available in the area you live in.
The discussion went into detail on these various programs and services available free of charge:
Facility Use – They can provide you with a location to interview potential employees. Recruitment Assistance – They can help you advertise your job openings, determine the skills you need in a new employee, conduct virtual recruitments, or provide labor market information. Work Experience – Santa Barbara County’s Paid Work Experience Program offers local businesses an opportunity to have extra help in the work place while offering real work experience to people on the road to self-sufficiency. By providing supervision, employers can benefit from having interns help up to 30 hours per week with the day to day functions of a business at no charge. In fact, Worker’s Compensation insurance is provided. Reimbursements – The Workforce Investment Act’s On-the-Job Training Program is an opportunity to train your new hires, or employees you wish to promote, with the skills they need while receiving reimbursements for your training costs. Layoff Assistance – Their professional staff can develop a customized plan to ease the stress of lay-off while developing reemployment opportunities. Our services include on-site or Workforce Resource Center presentations regarding unemployment insurance, labor market information and employment assistance such as job search and resume development. If you work in Santa Barbara and would like assistance, you can contact Yolanda and she'll make sure you get some 805 special attention. Tell her you heard about their services from the podcast.
Workforce Resource Center
130 E. Ortega Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
(805) 884-6823 office w (805) 319-0037 work cell
Y.Salgado-Tovar@sbcsocialserv.org
www.workforceresource.com
Dr. Joan Rosenberg is the creator of Emotional Mastery™ and is a highly regarded expert psychologist. She sat with host Mark Sylvester to continue a discussion he's been having about leadership and how to increase our effectiveness. Joan's 30+ years as a clinician, trainer, professor and consultant and her deep background give great insight into the human mind. This episode covered a lot of areas and at the end, Mark invited Joan back as it felt like they were just getting into the good stuff when time ran out.
If you're getting criticism, then you've arrived.”
Topics included;
The definition of Emotional Mastery How you know when you've got it The difference between being responsive and being reactive Life as a collaborative journey vs a competition A great story about Two Leaders (about 20 minutes in) Jus how powerful a skill resilience is 10,000 hours of training and teaching to uncover the 8 unpleasant feelings we all share 4 main ways to help ourselves - great tip for leaders What we think How we think it How we feel about it, experience it and express it How we behave as a result Being vulnerable - MUST LISTEN TO PART OF THE SHOW How to be a good listener Feelings First - this was another great part of the show! How to focus on feelings first, solving the problem second. Great Tip! Face to Face and Heart to Heart"
Andy Pattison, Ph.D., professor at California Lutheran University's School of Management sat with 805 host Mark Sylvester to talk about teaching public policy and sustainability through his writings, research and teaching. He knew he wanted to be a biologist when he was 8 years old. He parlayed that desire into a biology degree then migrated to public policy where he now teaches with a focus on planning, long term solutions all the while, finding time to fly fish off the Ventura Coast.
"My passion is my greatest asset.”
Topics included;
• What's a Masters Public Policy Administration (MPPA) and why is it such a popular field to study • The biggest misconception about public service and the #1 allure • What's the definition of 'socially equitable' • Why Climate Change is the biggest problem we currently face • How to mitigate the loud-squeaky-wheel in public debate • What's the Logic of Collective Action, as defined by Mancur Olson • His trick (tactic) for engaging students, using video to annotate his talks • Fly-fishing off the coast and how to think like a fish • Seriously - how leadership is like fly-fishing • Why he has such an obsession for serving the community • What is Identity-Based Messaging • Book suggestion: The Big Sort
Buzzword Bingo: Confirmation Bias (look it up)
"Government is just a word for what we choose to do together"
Michael Hanrahan, the founder and Executive Producer at Earth Media Labs in Santa Barbara sat down with 805 host Mark Sylvester to talk about how his Blue Horizons course on science-based documentary filmmaking is making a difference globally. His passion for the documentary format and the youthful zeal of young filmmakers combines for a potent collaborative environment at Earth Media Labs.
Michael has been working underwater and around water focusing on telling stories that involve the environment and helping people understand complex issues visually. Michael and Mark met over 20 years ago when he was running Ocean.com and Mark was head of the local non-profit, SCAMP - the South Coast Alliance of Media Professionals.
"Blue Horizons shows students a path they didn't know was possible.”
Topics included;
• What Earth Media Lab is all about and why it's exciting • The Blue Horizons program at UCSB - using media to communicate vital stories of the ocean • Science-based filmmaking • Digital Video Production • Stories of local interest, including Fishing in Santa Barbara, El Nino, and the NOAA Sanctuary • Helping scientists become better storytellers • His book, The Last Extinction
Scott Mann, president of MannUP Leadership Training recently had an important and timely conversation with 805 host Mark Sylvester. He talked about his background as a Green Beret and his current mission to mobilise all Americans to get 'all in' to defeat ISIS. He is credited with establishing the Village Stability Operation (VSO) program in Afghanistan and tells the story of how that initiative came to be. Scott is a recognized authority on ISIS and can be found on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and quoted in major media outlets whenever there's an attack. Seems like he's on the news every other day.
"Social connections are how we survive.”
Topics included;
• The tips to building relationships in less than five minutes • His backstory and how he got to where he is today. • How he knew he want to be a Green Beret from the time he was 14 • How the Green Berets are different from other special operation forces • Strategy from the last 15 years has failed and putting us more at risk • His non-profit, Mission America. Their mission is to ensure that the core values of the military remain a bedrock of the institutional fabric of the United States through direct support of our military warriors, direct support of their families, and in reintegrating veterans and their families to our communities. Their strategic mandate is expressed across three primary areas of focus: Helping to better prepare our warriors still in the fight for continued success in combatting America’s enemies.Helping warriors “return home” through the transition process. Educating communities on the values, principles, and potential contributions of our military to our civil society. • His upcoming Victory Garden tour of America - spoke about his first stop on the tour to Albuquerque. • His encouragement to us all to digitally sign his Contract to Protect America and help get 1 million signatures • His book Gamechangers - all profits go to the Mission America non-profit.
Salud Carbajal, SB County Supervisor sat down with 805conversations' host Mark Sylvester to talk about his life in public service and his current campaign for Congress.
Salud emigrated from Mexico in 1970 at 5 years old and has been giving back his entire career.
"Politics is the art of compromise."
Topics included;
• His educational background from UCSB to Harvard to Fielding • Why he chose a career in public service • What are the fruits of his labor and how that keeps him going • Examples of regional efforts to collaborate within the 805 • Why he's so passionate about History • How and why the business community should partner with local government • Forming the EVT in Santa Barbara County to help with economic development • Issues he's passionate about: Middle-class opportunity, the opportunity to get ahead, college access, financial aid for education, veteran's, the environment and climate change.
"Finding solutions, building relationships."
Alon Goren, founder, entrepreneur, advisor, and optimist sat down with 805conversations' host Mark Sylvester to talk about his views of building businesses here in the region and what it takes to be successful.
"Hey, look around, there are plenty of people already here."
Topics included;
• Failing fast • Finding your passion • The difference between selling and closing, and why it's good to be good at both • The founding of 805startups • The story of launching 10 sites to test one concept, which turned into a new unexpected business, Invested.in one of the first crowdfunding technology players • How the region is now on the radar of the VC and Angel community • His various ventures
Alon is a passionate guy who's gotten himself very well connected in the 805 region and loves helping the startup ecosystem. His enthusiasm is infectious and you'll want to check out any of us upcoming events. Sign up at 805startups.
Master Melodee Meyer sat down with 805conversations' host Mark Sylvester to talk about launching her new site, MasterMel.com and her over 20 years in fitness, wellness and nutrition coaching - and how it relates to leadership and business. She tells us,
"Learn how to create the life you want, in a body you love, doing work that matters!"
Topics included;
• Feeding ourselves (metaphorically) pies • PIES stands for the Physical, Intellectual, Emotion and Spiritual aspects of our lives • Shifting your belief system • How to convince anyone of anything • There are only 6 stories in our lives, and only 2 that are common to all of us • How to enjoy the current moment and not focus on a future reality
Master Mel also is the co-founder of Martial Arts Family Fitness and runs a national program called KUT (Kickboxers Ultimate Training). Their dojo has been ranked the #1 facility in the United States and has won the Independent Best Of for 13 years in a row.
Lesley Santos Dierks, CEO of Spokes in San Luis Obispo recently sat down with 805conversations' host Mark Sylvester to talk about her passion for helping those in the non-profit sector. She focuses on helping both internal staff and the ecosystem that surrounds the non-profit, including the members of the Board.
"Your perspective is the thing that can't be taken from you."
Topics included;
• How to use Corporate Philanthropy as a recruiting tool • What is CSR - Corporate Social Responsibility • How to avoid the Peanut Butter approach - spreading yourself too thin • What defines as non-profit - hint: it's about your Mission • Why there are over 1,500 non-profits in San Luis Obispo • The classes that are available to learn all aspects of running and working with a non-profit • How to think about succession planning - a great way to build leadership • How to get clarity on the expectations and responsibilities of being a board member of a non-profit • Why you should consider being a board member next time you are asked. • This was an enlightening conversation and unique in that Spokes provides such an important service to the community.
Getting a deeper understanding of the role of non-profits in the region also helps us as members of the 805 region's business community get a better feel on how we can help, collectively and individually.
"For every dragon there's a white knight."
Bill Gartner is the Professor of Entrepreneurship at California Lutheran University's School of Business. He sat down with 805conversations' host Mark Sylvester to talk about his passion and fascination with business. This talk covered a lot of ground as Bill is an extremely prolific writer, having penned 60+ articles, 5 books and 35 chapters in books related to his passion for entrepreneurship.
"Entrepreneurs are working at the margin of our future."
Topics included;
• Is entrepreneurship in our DNA or can it be learned (a frequent topic on the show) • The happiest and most interesting people - entrepreneurs • The 'Need for Achievement' - from a Harvard study • What does success look like • Entrepreneurs never work alone (another frequent topic) • Dynamic Tension as written by Machiavelli - new order vs old order • "Traditions are solutions to yesterday's problems" • Only 15% of the INC 500 Fastest Growing Companies are Tech • Two kinds of jobs: Rule Taker's (being told what to do) and Rule Makers • The Five Strangers Exercise - meet 5 new people a week and find a wy to be valuable to them • Tips for employees: Find a way to provide value to one person, your boss.
Buzzword bingo: TAT Thematic apperception
Bruce is the Director of Organizational Leadership Development at California Lutheran University's School of Business. He sat down with Mark to talk about his background and his fascination with leadership. The conversation ran from his owning a motorcycle shop in Bakersfield and lessons learned to his 2-+ years in the Navy with a great example of what leadership looks like in the engine room of a large ship.
Leadership is a social phenomenon - it takes two to lead.
"Getting the right person, in the right place and the right time."
Topics included;
• What it means to be self-aware as a leader • What makes a good vs a bad leader, specific examples • Transformational Leadership • The difference between cohesion and adhesion • His one tip for success - "fire the guy" • Two tips to the first day on the job as a new leader • Sports psychology and his role in helping athletes with their peak performance • What he means when he says, "Go backwards." • How to ask yourself the question, "Where was my focus?" • Buzzword bingo: Upward Leadership, Leading Upward.
We'll be having Bruce back soon to talk about his new book, Career Search in the 21st Century (working title).
Dan Engel is a serial entrepreneur. He's currently the CEO of his 6th startup, Mobile1st, not counting the local companies where he was one of the first employees. His talk with host Mark Sylvester takes us all the way back to interning in high school on Wall Street and now, having returned to Santa Barbara after a hiatus, what he's up to now.
Treating people like gold is a way of life for Dan. He gives many examples of how relationships and exhibiting genuine interest in people has been a critical success factor in his professional life.
Great quote: "What makes a business successful: People."
Topics included;
• How he got started as an intern in high school and the secret to making an internship make a difference in your life • The story of how he beat out 5,000 other applicants to land a coveted internship at Fidelity • Why you might want to spend time reading biographies of famous people • Putting yourself in a position to be lucky • How Fastspring enjoyed an amazing 1.3% churn - that's a 98.7% renewal rate • Why Mobile1st is poised to take over a segment of the industry • His thoughts on attracting great talent to your venture • The role of the Board of Directors • What Engel Ventures is all about
He said that the Board is friendly with you until you need them not to be.
Frequent listeners will notice that a theme of 'Luck' has been appearing a lot in recent episodes. Dan speaks specifically to this, hence the title of the show.
Alex Minicucci is the CEO at SpendSmart and founder of SMS Masterminds. His business in SLO takes him to NYC where he talked with host Mark Sylvester about growing up in San Luis and a memorable story about how he started his first business.
The subtitle for this episode is: "No idea what the future holds" which speaks to how Alex looks at life and how each day presents a new opportunity, his favorite word.
He says his superpower is that he was on the Cal Poly Debate Team in college
Great quote: "Before you fire me, I have this business idea I want to run by you..."
Topics included;
• Attracting more venture funding to the region • Why San Luis Obispo is an entrepreneurial mecca • His thoughts on the ecosystem that's being created in SLO the importance of mobile to commerce • How he's grown his business to 5 million customers and 4,000 merchants • How he got started in business from living in his car for a few months right out of school
Buzzword Bingo: Propensity Modeling
Traver Boehm has done just about everything you can physically and is ready for an ultimate challenge. He's off for a year-long adventure - as if he only has one year left to live. He speaks with host Mark Sylvester about the path that's led him to make the decision to go on a unique trek and discover his true purpose.
"Your brain is like a chainsaw, all it wants to do is cut down trees"
Topics included;
• Getting started working with Gavin deBecker • Getting his Masters in Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture • How entrepreneurs treat fitness • What it means to have a Masters in Meditation • The Year To Live - project background - based on book by Stephen Levine • Looking forward to his dark retreat
Traver will be blogging about his trip starting in 2016, you can follow him at http://TraverBoehm.com.
Jerry Knotts is the person you want on your side when you are pitching your big idea to the world. He spoke with host Mark Sylvester about his early background and wanting to fly since he was a young man and how engineering fit into his life plan. The stories are captivating.
"My luck and passion matched."
He and Mark cover a lot of ground and gets into some areas that were unexpected;
• His early career in the Air Force • Penn State and it's ROTC program • Working on secret projects in Germany in 1964 • What it's like being a navigator on a live fire mission and the story behind the quote above. • Working with sub-contractors and inventing the future • Retiring in 1984, but certainly not retired • His work with California Lutheran University over the years • The founding and growth of the California Coast Venture Forum • CBIS - Clean Business Investment Summit • How to pitch! • Taking the local success in the venture/startup community global
Jerry is the President/CEO of the California Coast Venture Forum and President of J.E. Knotts & Associates. He has more than 30 years successful experience in small, medium and large sized defense and aerospace low and hi-technology companies. He served as Vice-President/General Manager, Defense Electronics Div, California Microwave and Vice-President, American Nucleonics Corporation. He serves as a member of the Board of Counselors, California Lutheran University School of Business; a member of the SoCalBio Investor Conference Company/Company Screening Board; and a mentor for the LARTA Institute.
Trip Hawkins is a serial entrepreneur and the founder of Electronic Arts, 3DO, Digital Chocolate. He was employee #68 at Apple and speaks with host Mark Sylvester about how he followed his passion for games and technology into an extremely interesting career.
If you are interested in geek history, you will want to make time to listen to this episode.
I have to help the nerds take over the world
Topics included;
• The value of a quality education - he studied originally at Harvard • How luck was a contributing factor to his success in life • Listen to 8 stories that show how he connected the dots from one life event to the next • Stories you've not heard about the early days at Apple Computer • How the route to discovery is rarely a straight line • The DNA of an entrepreneur: Ideas, Drive, Passion, and Effort • The story of his first game made in high school to his founding of Electronic Arts • The idea that formed his world view that Engineers are Artists • The secret of the EA business model • His view of the incoming generation of Digital Natives and how he thinks they're a big part of the solution • How we need to think of new business creation as one that serves compassion instead of materialism • His new game called IF - which focuses on Emotional Intelligence • Why he believes that nerds have finally become the cool kids
Trip is based in Santa Barbara and is looking forward to being more integrated into the local tech ecosystem. There's a great story on him in Noozhawk earlier this year.
Melissa Moreno is a force of nature. She’s the founder of The Scheinfeld Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation at Santa Barbara City College and is currently the Dean of Educational Programs – Business. That’s just a bit of what she does. She speaks with host Mark Sylvester about how she’s deeply involved in helping students find their way in business, starting with getting an idea out of their heads and into the market.
She says her superpowers are luck and passion.
"You can’t be an entrepreneur for yourself. It’s got to be for the customers."
Topics included;
• Development of the Entrepreneur programs at SBCC • What’s an Enterprise Launch? And her book on the subject which is now a textbook. • Success stories and why it’s ok to say NO. • The embedded traits of a successful entrepreneur; • Persistence, refusing to accept No, not fitting in, can’t keep a job (yes…) • The teachable skills that all entrepreneurs need; • Role of financial analysis in success • Value of teamwork • Why you want to research before starting • Her concern about the local venture community. Do we have the right kind of investors locally? • The Garage Community • The cult of personality – introverts and extroverts – reminds Mark of Susan Cains’ TED Talk
Melissa is also the current head of the MIT Enterprise Forum Central Coast. SBCC and MIT Enterprise Forum Central Coast are partners with 805connect.
Katie Belanger is the founder of Cinnies and co-founder of HoneyButter Food Co. She speaks with host Mark Sylvester about how she followed her passion all the way from the chilly midwest to Ventura and eventually Santa Barbara. Katie studied food and beverage management and found herself working at Whole Foods in Ventura when she discovered a clever business idea.
"Waffles are the new crepe."
Topics included;
• WEV - The Women's Economic Venture program and how it shaped Katie's business skills • Winning the top prize on reality cooking show, On the Menu - her winning entry is now on the Planet Hollywood menu • Watch Katie learn that she won the competition • Giving back with purpose and intention - how she gives proceeds from her efforts to increasing awareness in substance abuse and mental illness • How she deals with rejection • What we don't know about waffles and why that's a great business idea for her to pursue • The role of persistence in the makeup of the entrepreneur • Her idea for what her next venture might look like
You can find these delicious morsels at several locations in Santa Barbara. Goto http://VeganCinnies.com
Taste adventurously and indulge with purpose.
Claudia Weintraub is the Director of the River Oaks Academy Charter School in Westlake, CA. She speaks with host Mark Sylvester about personalized learning in the context of homeschooling and independent learning. This topic is deep and nuanced and the conversation helps understand the vital role this type of education plays in preparing young minds for the future. These students are going to form a strong part of the local work-force and will be of the temperament to be incredible employees.
The smartest kids in the world and how they got that way.
Topics included;
• Definition of Independent Learning • The role of the family in supporting the student • How she came about focusing her efforts in this area • Building Parent competency • How to determine if your family is ready for home-schooling • Project-based learning • The role of common core standards in homeschooling • Here her argument that home-schooled students are more articulate, more polite, more well-rounded and more likely to give back in their community and why that’s true. • Career Pathway programs • College and Career readiness • What the next five years look like for River Oaks
Links during the show
Connected Educators - http://connectededucators.org
NASA Educators Online Network - http://NEON.intronetworks.com
Jackie Burge, founder & CEO of Desk Yogi calls herself the Bossy. She is a wellness advocate and entrepreneur. She spoke with host Mark Sylvester about her startup, based in Ojai, California. She learned while working at Lynda.com that there was a need to provide online wellness in the form of 10-minute streaming Yoga classes that people could watch and not leave their desk.
"Sitting is the new smoking"
Her mission is to help people learn that health is a choice, one that’s easy to make including;
• You have to actually feel good at a basic level to be successful • The story of how the company started, by filling a basic unmet need • What it means to do whatever it takes with a startup • Clever use of the Health Savings Accounts as an employee motivator • How to make a 10-minute exercise break on your computer the best part of your work week
David Nour, of The Nour Group, is an advisor, speaker and author of the best-selling book, Relationship Economics. He talked with host Mark Sylvester about the strategic implications that drive how we should think about relationships.
"Are you willing to do the incredibly hard work to be world-class?"
David starts with a story and tells about how he used this technique with hundreds of post-it notes when he was assigned a new account and didn’t know anyone. His primary focus is professional relationships including these big ideas;
• Learning about the Favor Economy from the Bazaars of Iran where he grew up • How the concepts of Reputational Capital, Professional • Network and Relationship Currency evolved into Relationship Economics. • How few professionals understand the significance of relationships • The Three Types of Relationships • Functional • Strategic • Lifetime • David’s 3 Touch Rule when approaching a new relationship • Gratitude • Reciprocity • Pay it forward •How David views the world of potential relationships; • Givers • Takers • People looking for a job • Why you should join a professional organization • What can you learn? Who can you meet?
"Don't confuse vibration with forward motion."
Judy Mahan, the program director for the San Luis Obispo based HotHouse and the Small Business Development Corporation’s local office met with host Mark Sylvester to discuss the state of startups, working with Cal Poly’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the recent Tech Pitch competition. Areas covered included:
▪ How SLO Hothouse incorporates acceleration, incubation and co-working spaces into one environment ▪ The role of the business community, the University and the town in the success of the Hothouse ▪ What’s a Day In The Life of one of their companies like ▪ Best practices at running a facility like this ▪ Recap of the recent Tech Pitch competition and what it takes to be successful when you are pitching your company and idea ▪ How important is the company that places 2nd in these competitions
Links to sites from the show:
Cal Poly CIE: http://cie.calpoly.edu/ SLO Hothouse: http://www.slohothouse.com/ Small Business Development Corp, housed at Cal Poly: http://sbdc.calpoly.edu/
Mike Panesis, the Executive Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship at California Lutheran University met with host Mark Sylvester to discuss the role of the Center in the Startup Ecosystem. Mike has been working with entrepreneurs for years now, having most recently been the Entrepreneurial Programs Manager at UCSB, working directly with the Technology Management Program (TMP). In this episode we covered enough topics to warrant a couple of shows, here’s what you can expect:
• Started the show with a discussion about Greek food and festivals • How entrepreneurs learn from customers along the way and how ideas for companies most usually change • The role of resilience in the founders emotional make up • What you can learn from mentors, including Steve Blank and the Lean Launchpad approach • How to think about social responsibility and your startup • The difference between an Accelerator and an Incubator • How to work with Mentors - how to select Mentors • How the various startup efforts in the 805 work together
quotes
“You need to know what you don’t know" - Mike Panesis
“Not all that wander are lost - JR Tolkien
Links to sites and programs mentioned during the show:
Cal Lutheran Center for Entrepreneurship web: http://www.callutheran.edu/entrepreneurship twitter: @CalLutheranCE instagram: @CalLutheranCE facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CalLutheranCE
St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church: http://www.saintdem.org Ventura County Greek Festival: http://www.vcgreekfestival.org SB Greek Festival: http://www.santabarbaragreekfestival.org
UCSB TMP: http://www.tmp.ucsb.edu SLO HotHouse: http://www.slohothouse.com
Steve Blank: http://www.steveblank.com Frank Robinson: http://www.syncdev.com
805 Startups: http://www.805startups.com
Salty Girl Seafood: http://www.saltygirlseafood.com/ twitter: @Salty_Girls
Capyx: http://www.capyx.com (founder taught himself to code) twitter: @Capyx
JJ Resnick, the COO and co-founder of Moscow Copper Co and the Founder of Service Dog Registration, met with host Mark Sylvester to talk about the founding of Moscow Copper and how his grandmother, the inventor of the Moscow Mule, was the inspiration for this company. He also talks about his passion project for Service Dogs and Emotional Support Dogs. His story of meeting veteran Brad Fight and coming up with this idea that Post Traumatic Stress is NOT a disorder is very interesting. That’s where Drop the D (as a campaign rally cry) came from.
• Hear the origin story of the Moscow Mule and how it tied over to Mad Men • Learn how a chance buying trip to China influenced his business plan for the Copper Company. • The difference between a service animal and an emotional support animal • Interesting skills that can be taught to dogs include ‘balance support’ • Did you know that dogs can be trained to support diabetics too? • Some great quotes during the show
"Something older than me and I like that" - in reference to why the Moscow Mule is so popular as a cocktail
"Nothing like NO to get you to go" - where we find our motivation
More information about Moscow Copper Co. at http://MoscowCopper.com More information about the Service Dog Registration at https://www.servicedogregistration.org/ More information about the Emotional Support Animal project at http://www.esaregistration.org/
Teri Thompson, marketing and social media strategist, author and adjunct professor, talked with host Mark Sylvester to discuss the state of social media, real-time marketing and what it's like being a professional in the role as a professor in the classroom.
A lot of ground was covered during this informative episode;
• Being an Adjunct Professor at California Lutheran University • How social media is different with international audiences • The role of social and Crisis Management • Free tools to help manage your social strategy • Why you want to have a We're Listening policy • Managing Conversations • Why there's been such a strong shift to social • Being truthful with your audience
Teri is a frequent speaker and can be easily found on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/terithompson1
Jacob Tell, the CEO and co-founder of Santa Barbara-based Marketing firm, Oniracom met with host Mark Sylvester to discuss the state of digital presence, a frequent topic of 805conversations.
A wide range of interesting concepts included;
• How Oniracom's name was designed • Why email is the #1 way to connect to your audience• • What's a Digital Therapist? • Working with Socially Responsible Businesses • How each engagement always starts with a conversation • Brand Authenticity • Their first client - Jack Johnson started as a filmmaker • TigerHeros.com • The 1% for the Planet project • The role of millennials in the Business Giving Roundtable
Oniracom invites you to join them at one of their Solutions for Dreamers mixers held in the Lagoon District of Santa Barbara. You can sign up for an invitation on their newly designed website.
Sam Bachstein, Partner at HCVT - Holthouse, Carlin & Van Trigt, LLP, sponsors of 805connect, sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for an informative discussion about the role of an auditor in business. This episode provided insight about accounting services and was an interesting glimpse into an important aspect of running a business.
• Topics covered a wide range and included; • The concept of Assurance • Forensic accounting • Looking at finances with a critical eye • The importance of Policies and their benefit to the organization • The unasked questions when a business interviews an accounting firm • Preparing for your business exit - things to consider • How the firm interviews new clients - what to watch for
HVCT just launched a new website that has a tremendous amount of resources for business owners. You can find them at http://hcvt.com
Todd Pringle, the General Manager and VP of Product at Stitcher (Deezer) sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for an enlightening talk that covered the role of Stitcher in the podcasting ecosystem.
Stitcher is second only to iTunes and is at the forefront of working to improve the user experience of enjoying podcasts. Several interesting points during the episode included;
• Technology of podcasting, how it's improving the user experience • How Stitcher was the first to stream podcasts • Helping people find and discover content • How editorial and algorithmic approaches improve discovery • The barriers to growth of the podcast industry • What's the Holy Grail for the industry? • Is Satellite Radio dead? • Are we really at the ground floor of the Golden Age of Podcasting?
Bryce Eddy and Ryan Turnbull of Tolman & Wiker Insurance Services sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for an engaging talk that covered the importance of having a wellness program in your business.
Bryce and Ryan represent the Wellness practice at this extremely progressive agency. They talked about several themes, including;
• The Awareness Moment, when you decide to embark on a path to wellness • Biometric screening • Lifehacking • How do you engage the naysayers in the workplace - hint - it's easy • Wellness Ambassadors - great program that boosts engagement exponentially • Are you a Wellness Geek? • What do you do when you have a lifestyle-based chronic condition?
Tolman & Wiker is a partner with the 805connect project and a sponsor of the 805conversation project.
Candace Winkler, the CEO of the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara visited with host Mark Sylvester for an enlightening talk that covered the role of the Foundation in the Community and the importance of providing support in a wide range of areas for families and students. She and Mark talked about several big ideas, including;
• Financial Aid Planning for families getting ready to send their first student off to college • The reach of the Foundation – $8.7M given in grants to 3,000 students a year • The ACHIEVE program – helping students acclimate to the college experience • The College Scholars program • How the Foundation provides additional social support and service to families in the area
Craig Harris, the founder and CEO of HGDATA (http://hgdata.com)sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for a wide-ranging talk that covered his early work as a Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay and how lessons he learned there have guided him throughout his business career. He and Mark talked about several themes, including;
• What's the meaning of HG and the Holy Grail • What's a Minimally Viable Expert? • How do you create a workplace that's compelling - attracting the best talent to your business • Big Data and understanding a customers specific requirements • Measuring results - another Holy Grail • Building a business in Santa Barbara and the funding environment, how it's changing so quickly
Craig is also a sponsor of the 805connect project and we appreciate his guidance and support from the very earliest days of the effort. We profiled them in a special post which you can read at http://805connect.com/hgdata.
Buzzword Bingo: Unstructured data
Dr Keith Witt, clinical psychologist, lecturer and author sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for a inspiring talk that covered a wide range of topics that affect leadership in many ways. Keith spoke about finding your superpowers and Mark kept coming back to this theme as there's more than you'd expect and they're not exactly what he expected either.
• Finding True North • Being able to receive wise influence - compassionate self-observation • Management development / Personal development • Psychological sturdiness • Having a broad view and depth of consciousness
Buzzword bingo - Empathetic Resonance
This is one of those episodes that you may want to listen to twice.
Christopher Foley, the founder of foleypod sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for a informative talk that covered the importance of having a strategy in place before you start designing your web presence. This is the second time that Mark talked with Christopher, this time the emphasis was on digging deep into the various aspects of web strategy that are often overlooked. including;
• Where's your blindspot • Are you and expert in your field and how to become a thought leader • How to overcome the sense of being overwhelmed
If you missed the first conversation, Small Fixes Make Big Changes, you can find it here: http://805connect.com/web-strategy/
Kymberlee Weil, Strategic Samurai and Alan Irwin, Director at Santa Barbara Improv sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for a lively talk that covered the importance of story when you are in front of an audience. Any audience. This is the second time that Mark talked with these two, this time the emphasis was on finding the story that makes you vulnerable and someone that the audience wants to listen to. A few key takeaways from this hilarious conversation were;
• The power of the pause • When you force funny, it's not funny • The audience wants you to succeed
If you missed the first conversation, you can find it here: http://805connect.com/perfecting-your-performance/
Christopher is the CEO of foleypod, a web development and strategy company based in Santa Barbara. This is from a webinar that he did with 805conversations host Mark Sylvester. They talked about the small fixes you can make to your web site to make it more productive. Foleypod is a partner in the 805connect project and has done the work on 805connect.com, intronetworks.com, strategicsamurai.com and tedxSantaBarbara.com
Brad Golden, founder of CentralCoastLive sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester to explain how his passion drove the formation of Central Coast LIVE! a new media broadcasting and publishing company located in Paso Robles, California.
His mission is to connect local musicians from the California Central Coast with new fans near and far.
CentralCoastLIVE.com serves as a music-ezine providing behind the scenes human interest stories of folks in the local music scene, interviews with bands, a comprehensive calendar of events.
One of their primary offerings is live streamed video of concerts that can be viewed from anywhere in the world with an adequate Internet connection.
One of their primary offerings is live streamed video of concerts that can be viewed from anywhere in the world with an adequate Internet connection.
They are launching upcoming a new radio station, Central Coast LIVE! Internet Radio highlighting musicians from the California Central Coast. They are putting a call out to musicians and bands to submit their works for consideration in their line-up. If you are a musician, they really want to feature your work, please use our submission form here!
Marshal Conley, project director for the Connected Educators project sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for a wide ranging talk that covers the role of technology in education and a myriad of other issues related to professional development for teachers.
Noah benShea, one of North America’s most respected and popular poet-philosophers, sat down for a conversation with host Mark Sylvester for a wide ranging talk that will definitely get you to thinking.
Noah is also a scholar, theologian, long range thinker, executive advisor, speaker, and International Best-Selling author who was, by the age of 23, an Assistant Dean of Students at UCLA and, by 30, a consulting fellow to a number of esteemed think tanks including The Center for the Humanities at USC and The Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions in Santa Barbara. An inspirational public speaker for 35 years, he has lectured at literally hundreds of universities, including MIT, Harvard, and Duke/Fuqua School of Business, as well as given countless Keynote Addresses including to the Library of Congress. His work has been incorporated in publications of The Congressional Record, Oxford University and the World Bible Society in Jerusalem.
Ed Maliski, the President of CURE Pharmaceutical Corporation talked with host Mark Sylvester about the promise and potential of a new method for distributing medicine.
Oral Thin Films, also known as strips may be familiar to you if you’ve ever seen a Listerine Breath Strip. Same idea, except can now be embedded with medicines to solve a number of problems. 40% of people can’t take pills, strips are a more effective way of controlling dosages while also combating drug counterfeiting. Strips can be given to someone who is in and out of consciousness, such as a child suffering from Malaria.
Through their Oak Therapeutics partnership, Ed is committed to helping provide a low cost, easily managed Malaria cure to developing nations. This is clearly Ed’s passion as you will hear in this stimulating conversation. There’s more science in play here than you’d imagine and they are being manufactured right here in Ventura County in a high-tech facility certified by the FDA.
Gerhard Apfelthaler, Dean, Educator, Entrepreneur and Author talks with host Mark Sylvester about education, the startup economy in Ventura County and his interesting path to being the Dean of the School of Management at California Lutheran University.
Gerhard has been leading the efforts to propel Cal Lutheran into an internationally acclaimed business school. He tells the story of starting a College in Austria, moving to the US and eventually designing courses that have brought the Cal Lutheran curricula back to Austria. He's spent time as a Trade Minister and believes strongly that being an entrepreneur is a mindset and a workflow: Taking Ideas To Marketability.
He doesn't believe that entrepreneurs are limited to tech-savvy-high-growth phenoms and instead have expanded into more general business environments. The talk travels many topics, much like Gerhard has travelled the world. This is one guy you'll want to know much better.
Brian Cearnal talks with host Mark Sylvester about architecture, it's role in building a community, visualizing an engaging future and how we interact with physical spaces.
This lively conversation ran the gamut from his early background, the influence of his dad, his learning to love architecture while a student at Cal Poly and finding his way to his own destiny. Brian shared tips for interviewing clients and what his ideal client looks like. This part of the discussion was good for any business owner, as knowing who your perfect client is - so you'll recognize them quickly. We talked about the new Honor Bar in Montecito as an example of building that contributes to the community.
Best quote: Right here, right now.
SBDC of Ventura and Santa Barbara's Director, Ray Bowman talks with host Mark Sylvester about the mission, vision, history and current projects he's working on. The SBDC serves 600 businesses in the region with free services (after an intake process). They have 30 consultants and offer a staggering amount of expertise across a wide range of topics of interest to businesses. Ray took the conversation across several domains, including international trade, manufacturing, why networking is such a key skill to develop.
Buzzword Bingo: Six Sigma. Foreign Direct Investment
Website: http://edcsbdc.org/
Tyler Isaac and Megan Miranda talk with host Mark Sylvester about their startup, Slightly Nutty. This conversation will change how you think about insects. They present some compelling stats about how sustainable insect protein is - and make a case that even vegans can't ignore. These entrepreneurs talk about the Bren Center at UCSB and how they met and got excited about solving the problems of raising crickets in scalable, sustainable manner. Extremely interesting.
Buzzword Bingo: Waste stream, Broodstock, Pre-consumer, Pos-Consumer
Great quote: "Salmon don't eat soy"
Website: http://slightlynutty.com
Derek Carlson, Operations Manager at Marborg Industries talks with host Mark Sylvester about the history of Marborg and their heritage with recycling resources. The conversation helps us understand how regulatory issues (laws) have shaped how we deal with trash at home and in our businesses. He explained that they want us to NOT think about trash - that's their job. Marborg is a sponsor of 805connect and has a long history of being very involved in the Community, supporting non-profits and other projects throughout the region. This conversation will open your eyes to a lot of issues that have to be dealt with to meet goals set for recycling and how that affects our community.
Buzzword bingo: Source Separated
Website: http://www.marborg.com/sustainability.html
This interview with Elizabeth Stewart on the KSBY program Arts and Antiques looks into Mark's professional career as a Chef, Software Entrepreneur, Ambassador of 805connect and enthusiastic citizen of Santa Barbara
Grandmaster Dave Wheaton talks about mastery, martial arts, his first act of self-defense, working with kids and adults, spending 50 years teaching and other interesting topics on and off the mat.
Eric Malzone, Co-Founder of Crossfit Pacific Coast discusses how he and his partner Traver started the business in 2008. He talks about the Trinity of Health, their Community, the new Entrepreneur group he's started and how the business has grown. Buzzword Bingo: Lactic Power
Pavel Golenchenko, Vice President of Operations, Adizes Institute had a great conversation that covered how the Institute helps businesses around the world. Pavel strongly suggested we all ready Managing Corporate Lifecycle by their founder, Dr Adizes. There was a good discussion about PAEI which is a management style indicator that you can get from their website http://adizes.com.
Buzzword Bingo: Demoscraship - a mashup of Democracy and Dictatorship
Peter Shuleer, President and Andy Beall, CEO/CTO of WorldViz discuss practical applications of Virtual Reality. They touch on games (the easy one), product design, revisualization, ethics, and the adoption of VR in the consumer and business spaces. Buzzword bingo: Visual Psycho Physics and Ecological Validity.
Ken Oplinger and Zoe Taylor, Santa Barbara Chamber of Commerce
This is part of the 805conversations Series, produced by 805connect.
This conversation focuses on the role of the Chamber in stimulating economic development in the region and the new organization, the EVT. The Economic Vitality Team, headed by Zoe, brings together the county's Chambers and works together with local governments on the behalf of businesses in the region. This is a real behind the scenes conversation that will change how you think about the Chamber.
805conversations are produced weekly. More information can be found at 805connect.com
John Glanville, CEO, Maps.com
This is part of the 805conversations Series, produced by 805connect.
This conversation was with Mark Sylvester, Ambassador for 805connect and John Glanville, CEO of Maps.com
This conversation focuses on the role of maps in business and education. Maps.com is a local company that has a global footprint. The talk centers on the founding of maps.com, it's growth and challenges in the world of digital maps.
Mike Manchak, CEO, San Luis Obispo EVC
This conversation was with Mark Sylvester, Ambassador for 805connect and Mike Manchak, the CEO of the San Luis Obispo Economic Vitality Corporation, EVC
This conversation focuses on how the EVC and 805connect became partners and the role of the EVC in stimulating the economy in the northern part of the 805 region. Mike talks about his history in economic development efforts and how this project is helping pull together several key strategies for the region.
805conversations are produced weekly. More information can be found at 805connect.com
Jan Campbell and Sharon Main of the Santa Barbara Foundation
This conversation focuses on the role of the Santa Barbara Foundation in the founding of 805connect. The discussion covers the mission of the project and how it's aligned with the goals of the foundation and the LEAF Project which is a far reaching initiative that is pulling together a diverse group of citizens to focus on key issues in the region.
805conversations are produced weekly. More information can be found at 805connect.com
Seth Streeter, CEO, Mission Wealth Management
This conversation focuses on a wide range of topics that include growing your business, strategies for investing, finding your true path, building a collaborative corporate culture, community involvement, purpose led companies, Sustainable investments and Inspired Wealth Management
805conversations are produced weekly. More information can be found at 805connect.com
Trish Miller, Staffing Expert, Spherion - Goleta, Santa Barbara, Oxnard and Ventura
This conversation focuses on the job market in the 805 region, how to position your company to attract employees, challenges facing employers in the region and many aspects of staffing and hiring you'd not thought about before.
805conversations are produced weekly. More information can be found at 805connect.com
NOTE: We are sorry to report that on February 13th, 2017, our friend Ellen Reid passed away from a brief battle with Cancer. We loved having her on the show.
Ellen Reid - The Book Shepherd talks with Mark and Patrick about independent book publishing and the steps it takes to be successful
This is part of the 805conversations Series, produced by 805connect.
This conversation was with Mark Sylvester, Ambassador for 805connect and Ellen Reid, The Book Sheperd
This conversation focuses on independent book publishing and what it takes to get an idea from your head into the hands of readers. Ellen is a leading authority on the subject and explains exactly what it takes to get all the parts to work together and get your book distributed.
805conversations are produced weekly. More information can be found at 805connect.com
Greg Van Ness, CEO, Tolman & Wiker Insurance Services talked with host Mark Sylvester, Ambassador about business, understanding risk in business, leadership, helping customers with strategy. Tolman & Wiker has been in the region since 1923.
Greg explains the role of his firm as a partner in their clients businesses. Helping to understand the various issues that arise at all stages of business formation and growth. Interesting things come up that you might not have first thought when you think of insurance.
This month we are talking with Live Performance Specialist Alan Irwin and Speaking Strategist Kymberlee Weil.
They share some behind the curtain techniques that everyone can use to improve their performance in front of groups of any size.
We all have to get up in front of an audience at some point in our professional career. How prepared are you for that moment?
Alan and Kymberlee will be giving tips to help you engage with your audience, own the stage and learn how to deal with disasters.
We are excited to have these two industry experts together for this 805conversation
Patrick Melroy, 805conversations Podcast Partner
Podcasting has become the preferred method for people to learn, be entertained and listen to audio on demand. Patrick and his partners have started a new podcasting studio in Santa Barbara and currently produce a couple of podcast series. We’ll talk with him about podcasting in general and what our plans for 805connect’s new podcasting series is all about.
If you listen to podcasts and would love to know more about the local podcasting scene, you’ll not want to miss this stimulating conversation.