Category: Interviews

If there’s one thing I love about today’s guest, it’s that she knows who she is and makes zero apologies for filling the room with her awesomeness. Phyllis Williams-Strawder is the Ghetto Country Brandmother® and is a Certified Brand Strategist, business coach, and writer. In this conversation, she shares her love for business and helping people to become who they want to be. She talks about branding—what it is and is not, respecting your business, and not being embarrassed with who you are. Throughout the conversation, she shares stories and lessons learned along her journey from BBQ to branding.

What do you do when you are endlessly curious about how people get the most out of their lives and maximize their professional efficacy? You find a way to deliver context-dependent content—what you need when you need it. Mark Herschberg is an author and creator of the Brain Bump app and is back on Getting Work To Work to share about the changing world of content. Yes, an endless supply of information is available to us 24×7, but what is shifting is how we consume and retain information. In this conversation, Mark shares the stories behind Brain Bump, how it works, and the iterative process he went through making the app. He also mixes in various shareable moments on topics such as our careers and niches, laziness as a design principle, brand awareness, and the creative process.

What would you discover about yourself if you reexamined a significant portion of your career? Today’s guest on Getting Work To Work recently collected and edited 25 years of essays into a collection called Who Hears Here?: On Black Music, Pasts and Present. Guthrie P. Ramsey, Jr. has many talents and interests: a musiqologist, professor, writer, pianist, composer, producer, podcaster, and filmmaker. In our conversation, he shares lessons learned from examining his past and how he continually weaves between interests and ideas. Guthrie talks a lot about collaboration and being open to others, the cycle of dream-plan-execute in creating new things, and how he is in constant dialogue between what he’s collected and what he’s experiencing now.

How do you embrace change, not only for yourself but also for your team and your clients? Today’s guest not only thrives with change but believes it is essential for the long-term success of life and business. Patti Julber is the owner of Complements Home Interiors in Bend, OR, not to mention a designer, contractor, coach, and board member of BendFilm. In this conversation, we talk a lot about change, learning new things, and the role of failure in business. She also shares what she learns from others as a coach and the value of nurturing a creative community. If you are struggling with change, I think you’ll find a way forward in this conversation with Patti.

What amends do you need to make for your past creative sins? How can you forgive yourself for the past creative mistakes you’ve made? Two deep questions from my conversation with Gary Rogowski—furniture maker, podcaster, author, and teacher. In this conversation, Gary shares stories that inspire his latest podcast project, Creativity: Hustlers, Fakers, and Thieves. Additionally, we discuss the creative process from different angles: forgiveness and humility. It was an enriching conversation to have and to return to in the editing process. I hope you’ll learn much from it as you continue your creative journey.

I always love conversations where I can throw away my list of questions and listen deeply. Lydia Lee is a Work Reinvention Strategist who is curious about how work can work for you. In this conversation, she shares her journey from breakdown to breakthrough and how she created a life that she is proud of and impactful for others. She talks about the role of disruption in her schedule, why moving to another country forced her out of her comfort zone, why you need the right people in your life to tell your dreams to, and why you don’t need to make massive moves but can make change a project. Grab your notebook because Lydia brings all her wisdom to Getting Work To Work.

What do you see when you stop and examine your life and career? Do you recognize a need to shift and actually change? Or do you stay for a myriad of reasons? Jennie Blumenthal is the author, speaker, and executive coach of Corporate Rehab and helps people detox from hustle culture to find purposeful work. In this conversation, Jennie shares her story of leaving a 20-year career in corporate America during The Great Resignation. She talks about her REHAB framework, what keeps people from moving forward and changing, how to pay attention to significant wake-up calls, and leading at a higher level without losing yourself. Whether you work at a corporate job or for yourself, there is a lot to learn in this conversation about bringing purposeful work into focus.

Building upon the success of two books of interviews and a podcast, J. Blake Fichera is bringing his passion for horror film music to a new medium: a feature-length documentary called Scored To Death: The Dark Art of Scary Movie Music. In this conversation, Blake shares how the project is a natural progression of experiences and relationships. With the first five interviews recorded, he is now putting together a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for the film and a brand new cover album of horror themes. In addition to learning more about this project, Blake talks about a variety of things pertinent to all creative professionals working on projects: intentional decision-making, influences, the importance of relationships, and the value of asking.

Tom Hubler is a family business consultant who helps family businesses discover generational success by creating a shared family vision, building emotional equity, and developing a plan for the business and the family. In this conversation, Tom shares his wisdom regarding the emotional side of business. He also explains the four plans family businesses need, the last challenge of entrepreneurship, and why having a new dream is essential. Whether you have a family business or not, Tom has a lot to offer you as you contribute daily to the common good.

How would you describe your relationship with health and fitness? Perhaps you’re like me and you make extreme changes when your health gets worse than you want it to be. Or maybe you’re like today’s guest and you have a firm personal fitness identity built upon foundational lifestyle habits. Luke DePron is an online weight loss coach for busy entrepreneurs and the founder of the Live Great Lifestyle. In this conversation, he shares his passion for health first and fitness second. He tackles a wide range of topics from sleeps impact on productivity to mistakes entrepreneurs make with their health. Luke is a firm advocate for making decisions that will impact your life. I hope you’ll find something in this conversation that will improve your own relationship with your health.

Skye Rapson is an academic and ADHD coach who works with many employees and managers with ADHD. Her neurodiverse-run ADHD support service, Unconventional Organisation, combines researched articles and coaching to help people reduce overwhelm in their daily work lives. In this conversation, Skye shares how her ADHD diagnosis at the start of her doctoral program took her on a journey from academic tutor to entrepreneur. She talks about the different ways neurodiversity shows up in the workplace and how understanding ourselves and those around us is crucial. She also explains how the get-in-focus routine helps those with ADHD to get started on their work. Whether you have ADHD or not, there is a lot to learn about yourself and others in this conversation.

What problems are you interested in solving? How would you tackle them in unique ways? Claire Schmidt, CEO and Founder of AllVoices, combined a passion for finding the root causes of massive problems with her interest in using technology to develop solutions. In this conversation, Claire talks about how she took her experiences in large companies, start-ups, and non-profits to learn about the issues that affect workers and create a company that provides communication tools for employees and leadership. She shares the importance of asking questions, networking, and building healthy cultures from the bottom-up. Whether you work for yourself or at a large company, there is a lot you can learn from Claire.

Have you ever felt the desire to write a book, started writing, only to give up for some reason? Chances are, you are like most people. Fortunately, there is a way to get a book out of your head and into the world. Chandler Bolt of Self-Publishing School is today’s guest on Getting Work To Work and he is here to share a few of the methods he uses to write books and create business revenue with them. In this conversation, he introduces the MORE Writing Method, why writing is a short-term sacrifice to develop a long-term asset, and why you don’t need to worry about imposter syndrome. He also explains how he prioritizes his work to get a lot done.

As creatives, there is always something new to learn, and occasionally learning opportunities can be found in unexpected places. Michael e. Stern is a commercial photographer, educator, and fine art photographer who is here to share a recent experience engaging with an email scammer. There is so much to learn about clear communication, negotiation strategy, and paying attention to the fine details from this exchange between Michael and the scammer. We also talk about his transition from commercial photography to fine art photography, including websites, identity, and mindset.

Today’s guest on Getting Work To Work is Tim Tortora, an ex-movie-producer and outsource CFO for producers in Hollywood who has poured his wisdom of a 30-year career into a book, How To Make It In Hollywood: What Writers, Directors, Actors, Producers, and Crew Need To Do To Break In. In this conversation, Tim explains what goes into the production process and how it’s like catching lightning in a bottle. He also shares how to make a career in Hollywood, avoiding “The Hollywood Con Men,” and how technology is changing the industry. Whether you want to land your dream job in Hollywood or run a thriving creative business closer to home, you need to hear what Tim says.

Do you have a life-first business, or do you let your business rule your life? Ashley Gartland is a business coach obsessed with time freedom and space for the things that matter most—for herself and her clients. In this conversation, we explore her subtractive, life-first approach to business, how to do less but better, and the role of experimentation in making changes. We dive deep into permission, beliefs, assumptions, and the stories we tell ourselves. If you are a business owner struggling with burnout or needing to find a better way to run your business, Ashley’s wisdom can help you find a path forward toward success and enough.

What does leadership mean to you? Today’s guest on Getting Work To Work answers that question by focusing our attention on the intensely personal journey of leadership instead of gimmicks, tricks, and mimicking our heroes. Edward Tyson is the CEO of PerSynergy Consulting and author of From Expert to Executive: Mastering the SOPs of Leading. In this conversation, Ed shares the story behind the LeadershipSOPs: the “Standard Operating Procedures for Structuring, Operating, and Perfecting your Communities of Effort.” He also talks about his love of patterns and people puzzles, where insights for leadership come from, and what it means to run people-centered businesses.

Not a day goes by lately where I’m not thinking about reinventing myself and the work I do. I find myself working more with my hands, which lead me to reach out to Gary Rogowski and invite him back on the show for another conversation about craft, failure, practice, process, and constant improvement. Gary is a furniture maker, writer, and teacher. In this conversation, he shares how he reinvented his work over the past year, along with his curiosity for geometry, storytelling, and bird watching. He also has a lot to say about problem-solving, the secret to focusing, finding success with the small things, and how teaching truly impacts a craftsperson.

What comes to mind when you hear the word happiness? Would you be surprised to learn that there are 31 types of happiness? Pamela Gail Johnson is today’s guest on Getting Work To Work and shares her passion for all things happiness. From her early days of wondering where all the happy people were and forming the Society of Happy People to the four principles she writes about in Practical Happiness, Pamela’s work will hopefully broaden your understanding of what being happy means to you. She also describes what happiness zappers are, the impact of happiness in the workplace, and the three happiness holidays recognized worldwide.

Have you ever asked yourself, “How do I use my time more effectively?” What about, “How can I be more efficient?” Paul Minors is a productivity consultant who helps his customers answers these questions and better understand the tools and systems that ultimately deliver more value to customers. In this conversation, he shares his tools of choice—Asana, Pipedrive, and Zapier—and much of his philosophy around automation and productivity. He also illuminates some fundamental concepts, including the source of truth, making time to work on your business, being his own client, and time blocking.

What are the questions and stories that fuel your curiosity and life’s work? Dr. Tara T. Green is “a Black feminist community-engaged scholar, mentor, and university professor.” Her latest books—Love, Activism, and the Respectable Life of Alice Dunbar-Nelson and See Me Naked: Black Women Defining Pleasure in the Interwar Era—provide the foundation of our conversation about storytelling and the impact of stories on the past, present, and future. From silence in storytelling to the role of memory in activism, Tara shares what she has learned in her career. She also talks about the importance of preserving and archiving stories.

“What’s the point?” A great question from today’s guest on Getting Work To Work, Jinny Uppal. Jinny is the author of In/Action: Rethinking the Path to Results, a growth executive, team builder, and thought(ful) leader. In this conversation, she shares how thoughtful pauses and strategic inaction help progress. Jinny also talks about the fine line between motivation and burnout, the importance of trusting the process, how goal setting fits into the mindset of inaction, why boredom is a good thing, and how learning to be okay with silence is a must to connect with the dynamism of life. Most importantly, she lets us know what horseback riding has to do with being more present in life and work.