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Fixing our Broken System with Carol Roth [Podcast]

December 21, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I’ve been engaging in more discussions about the issues our country faces and the gridlock in our political system lately. Today a friend and past guest of the Podcast Carol Roth was tweeting something that Gerri Willis from Fox Business Network had asked on Twitter.

“Who’s to blame for Washington gridlock? Rebublicans, Democrats or Both?” -Gerri Willis

This was a hot button issue for me so I quickly responded to Carol to invite her to discuss it on my podcast today.

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Podcast - Our Broken System

Summary

My answer to this question was that we are all to blame. We’re not coming together to work on what we agree on and we’re being manipulated based on interests. Carol had quite a bit of perspective to share on the issue, listen in to learn about how we can simplify this process.

Quotable

“People are blaming the symptoms instead of looking at the disease” – Carol Roth

This episode was live on Blog Talk Radio on 12/21/2011.

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You can also signup to be notified when I have new Podcasts scheduled by clicking the “follow” button for my show on Blog Talk Radio.

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Problem Solver Series Episode #2 Youth and Education [Podcast]

October 20, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Problem Solver Series LogoA passionate panel of individuals who work with youth related causes:

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Summary

The three passionate panelists discuss the realities of the problems with keeping youth on track and solutions to achieving that end.

The Problems

  • Lack of Adult involvement
  • Digital Distraction
  • “Shutdown”
  • Drugs, Alcohol and Sex (Adult problems)
  • The critical hours 3-6PM

The Solutions

  • After school programs
  • Awareness
  • Animal therapy
  • Constructive safe environments
  • Communication

Quotable

“What animals do for a child is display non-judgmental unconditional love. A child is able to read and talk to an animal and get no negative feedback.” – Patrick Major

This episode was live on Blog Talk Radio on 10/19/2011.

Browser or RSS Reader doesn’t support flash? Download/Listen to this episode 

You can also signup to be notified when I have new Podcasts scheduled by clicking the “follow” button for my show on Blog Talk Radio.

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Problem Solver Series Episode #1 Economy and Jobs [Podcast]

October 13, 2011 By 4 Comments

Problem Solver Series LogoA frank discussion on the economy and jobs with:

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Summary

From what the problems are to how to solve them and what to do now or if they aren’t solved.

The Problems

  • Uncertainty/Confidence
  • Global Competition
  • Housing Crisis
  • Access to Capital/Credit

The Solutions

  • Non-Partisan “Get on the same page” Leadership
  • Get 50% of the small businesses to hire one new employee
  • Revise/simplify tax code
  • Eliminate Red Tape
  • Broaden 1099 Classification

Contigency Planning

Both panelists were asked for advice on how business and individuals (employed or otherwise) could approach the market. Listen in to hear some great advice including a very well orchestrated suggestion on how to help others through challenging times by Don LeDoux.

Quotable

“The governments role here has gotten it a little bit out of control it’s like the Winchester Mystery house (they) just keep building and it’s going no-where.” – Carol Roth

This episode was live on Blog Talk Radio on 10/12/2011.

Browser or RSS Reader doesn’t support flash? Download/Listen to this episode 

You can also signup to be notified when I have new Podcasts scheduled by clicking the “follow” button for my show on Blog Talk Radio.

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Efficiency is the essential 21st Century Skill

October 12, 2011 By 3 Comments

You’ve probably heard the term sustainability thrown around a lot recently. It’s for good reason, we see evidence everywhere that businesses, governments, educational systems, laws, and everything else under the sun has to be able to survive the tests of time. There is no such thing as “too big to fail” just look back in history and we’ve seen Empires collapse under their own weight. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how great you think you are, if you aren’t prepared to sustain whatever you are doing it won’t last forever. Knowing that we need to be sustainable and actually functioning in a sustainable fashion are totally different things.

Be careful what you ask for

It’s time for every individual, business, political party, interest group, etc. to think long and hard about what they are asking for. If you are thinking today that someone else is going to rescue you, think again. At best they will delay the inevitable.

A society of individuals that aren’t taught to sustain themselves will fail.

Who doesn’t love the idea of a social service? I believe it is part of human nature to want to care for each other. I would even go so far as to argue that life without caring and serving others is probably not life worth living. Sometimes really caring though is asking for the right things, sustainable things, like teaching people that they matter and can stand on their own. Mentoring kids, especially those in difficult situations is one way you can really do this.

Never pass up a chance to tell a young person that they can do anything they set their mind to do.

Why Efficiency is the essential 21st Century Skill

We don’t have the luxury of excessive budgets to pay for inefficiencies and blow money on things that don’t work, the party is over and we just got the bill. Today we all have to emphasize the reality that we have to do more with less. With our debt piling up and our social systems strained to a breaking point there is only one real answer to the crisis – doing more with less while also being mindful of what we ask for.

3 Years ago my company leased an entire rack at a co-location facility to the tune of $900 per month. Today I rely on companies that leverage resources in a much more sustainable and efficient way to provide those services. The co-location facility has to do without my business, and so does the staff that is no longer needed to operate it, but in hindsight it would be pointless to place my business in the precarious and un-competitive position to support that co-location facility and the staff to operate it. This could easily be looked at by many as “killing jobs” but if my company goes under I’ll be out there competing for a new one.

The old way was not sustainable, the new way is and in the future it is my responsibility to ensure that it stays that way.

Opportunity is everywhere

Human beings have adapted to survive some incredibly challenging environments. We’ve launched successful business ventures during economic crisis’s including the Great Depression. We’ve huddled together to survive unimaginable natural disasters and hardships including horrific wars and genocides. Today you don’t have to look too far to see an incredible amount of energy being exerted, people are angry, they are fed up, many appear desperate and I think many of us are yearning for something I know that I am. What am I yearning for?

I yearn most for people to seize the opportunity to work together to solve the problems we face, instead of blaming others for them.

What do you yearn most for?

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This is personal – Pancreatic Cancer Sucks

June 1, 2011 By 22 Comments
Mom Christmas Eve 1999

Mom Christmas Eve 1999

Around the holidays in 1999 my mom was experiencing serious abdominal pain. Within 1 month she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She passed away early Easter Sunday morning just months later. Mom was in her sixties and at the time had a half a dozen kids and 7 grandkids, I rarely talk about it and it is the hardest experience of my life. The rare occasions that I do are usually just because a casual conversation leads to me speaking of mom in the past tense and people inquire about her. I then just usually say:

My mom is deceased, she passed away from pancreatic cancer.

Thankfully for our family we were close and the experience of losing a parent brought us even closer together. I also learned about the resilience of young people, specifically my nieces and nephews on that day. Easter celebrations went forward and the kids laughing and experiencing Easter was very therapeutic for all the adults watching. Mom passing at that point was in many ways a relief, there was nothing peaceful about her suffering and watching it changed me forever.

Pancreatic Cancer is a Lethal Disease

I recently learned from survivor Diane Borrison that 43,000 Americans will be diagnosed with the disease this year and 39,000 of them will die from the disease. Diane’s story as a survivor is somewhat rare, and I am grateful that I will be able to speak with her on June 8th along with two other guests that lost parents on my Blog Talk Radio program.

There are two reasons you are reading about this on my blog. The first is that I read several serious posts on blogs that I am a frequent reader of but in particular Danny Brown’s post “You Don’t Have to Die to Live” where he recounts a very dark moment in his life. (Thanks for paving the way, mate). The second reason is one of my panelists, Judy Loyd, was a past guest on my program. We happened to be exchanging E-Mails recently and she asked me if I would do a show about Pancreatic Cancer awareness. Neither one of us realized at the time that we’d both lost parents to the disease; Judy definitely came to the right person and for me at the right time. I honestly don’t think I could have come within 1,000 miles of an episode on Pancreatic cancer up until about maybe 2 years ago. I applaud Judy, Diane and my third panelist Michelle Monhart for their courage to champion the cause of Pancreatic Cancer Awareness as part of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.

Mom’s Inspiring Legacy

While losing Mom was a horrible experience, I consider myself to be extremely fortunate. I was extremely lucky to have grown up with her as my mom. She left quite a legacy behind and it has driven me to be a better person and example to my own son. I have been told from time to time that I wear a friendly inviting smile, I still remember mom’s smile beaming back at me teaching me at a young age that it was important (coincidently whenever I picture her she is always smiling, that is how I will remember her). I share similar smiles with my son every day. Service to others is part of my life through Rotary and volunteerism. Mom was a tireless volunteer her entire life and introduced her kids to it by bringing us with her some times. My mom had a reputation for loving babies; she had a total of seven. It is often said that mom was happiest when she was pregnant or caring for her many babies. Even though you may have not met my mom, rest assured there is a good chance that if you know me you know her too. I am grateful for her powerful and inspiring legacy.

A simple request…

I hope you will join me in raising awareness about Pancreatic Cancer. Please visit the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. Like their Facebook Page, Follow their Twitter Account, Donate or share with your network of friends. If you’d like to join the discussion on June 8th, listen to the show on Blog Talk Radio. If you are in Northern California or wish to make a trip to the Napa Valley in June, you can also join in the 9th Annual Walk Through the Vineyards.

Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, Get Involved

Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, Get Involved

Filed Under: Community, Inspiration, Interviews, Parenting, Podcasts, Serious Topics Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Stop Alcohol Deaths (Podcast)

February 16, 2011 By 2 Comments

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Stop Alcohol Deaths LogoSummary

Shevonne Polastre founded Non-Profit S.A.D., which stands for Stop Alcohol Deaths, Inc., on March 2010 after losing her sister, Kristine Polastre, to alcohol poisoning on January 26, 2010. Shevonne realized that many people didn’t fully understand the dangers of drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. She has decided to make it her quest in life to educate people on alcohol poisoning. Her plans are to use social media, public relations, and fundraising events to raise awareness for the non-profit organization. She wants to create a course, and start speaking to the youth and adolescents around the United States to get them to understand that drinking lots of alcohol does not equate to having a good time. January 26, 2011 marks the one-year anniversary of the passing of Kristine. During her life, Kristine dedicated it to help others. In the Air Force, she was part of the Honor Guard, mentoring troubled teenage girls, and raising funds for several nonprofit organizations. In April 2009, she went to war, heading to Afghanistan. Throughout all this, Kristine was very dedicated to her family. She was the light in all of our lives. Kristine was definitely a special and loving woman. She would not have died in vain because her death will bring awareness to help save other lives.
Download this episode

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Rich Price appears on Press:Here and will join me live Wednesday night

February 7, 2011 By 1 Comment

You might have read my post a few weeks ago about the “Chain of Life 2.0“. Since then this story has received (rightfully so, and certainly with little to do with my post!) a lot of coverage. Yesterday Rich and the app were featured on Press:Here on NBC. He was joined by Ben Parr of Mashable and Kym McNicholas contributor to Forbes. This Wednesday night he will join me, Adriel Hampton and Louis Gray on my Blog Talk Radio program to talk more about the app, and the implication of this app in tech, open source and gov 2.0. We will be live at 7PM PST and I would be happy to relay questions you might have for Rich, Adriel or Louis about this incredibly exciting new application.

Check out this video to learn more, and please join us Wednesday as we discuss the Worlds First Location Based Life Saving Mobile App.

(Disclosure: The San Ramon Valley Fire Protection district is a client, but I am not being paid to promote the app I am doing that because I personally support what they are doing.)

Filed Under: Community, Leadership, News, Podcasts, Serious Topics, Technology, Video Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Chain of Life 2.0 and what it means to the San Ramon Valley Community

January 25, 2011 By 8 Comments

I had the great opportunity to get a sneak peek of Chain of Life 2.0 a few weeks ago and several weeks to ponder the impact of it in the San Ramon Valley Community (and beyond for that matter). I was attending some of the afternoon sessions of the Leadership San Ramon Valley “Media Day”. I was present to observe Adriel Hampton‘s talk on Social Media in a political context. I had recommended him and they ended up booking him to be one of the featured speakers.

A Meeting with the Fire Chief

While Adriel was giving his presentation Richard Price, the San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District Chief and current president of Leadership San Ramon Valley (Disclosure – the San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District is a client) asked me if I could arrange a meeting for us to meet with Adriel to discuss something. That meeting ended up happening later that afternoon. During the meeting I learned what the Chain of Life 2.0 was and got to see the video that is at the end of this blog post. The video is amazing and the implications for open source, gov 2.0 and overall use of location based services of this new application are substantial. Or as Adriel shared in his post:

I felt the world change. – Adriel Hampton

What is Chain of Life 2.0?

The chain of life is the process used to describe the reaction and treatment of victims of a heart attack. The first 10 minutes after a heart attack are crucial. One of the key elements of heart attack survival in the chain of life, is how quickly CPR is initiated. It has a drastic impact on the survivability of a heart attack. That is where this exciting web 2.0 application comes into play. This iPhone (available on Android and other platforms eventually) app is location aware and allows people with CPR expertise to sign up as knowing CPR. The system then notifies anyone close to any heart attack incidents and also advises them where the closest Automated External Defibrillator or AED device is located. Here is a visual of the app in action:

Chain of Life 2.0 iPhone App

There is a hero in all of us…

The users of this application will be able to get to heart attack victims even ahead of the traditional first responders (The SRVFPD goal is 7 minutes). This will equate to lives being saved that would otherwise be lost. It is hard to quantify the impact that the loss of a loved one has, but it is great to know that this new breed of application will empower individuals to become heroes for heart attack victims in their community.

What does it mean to the San Ramon Valley Community?

We can be very proud that perhaps the most significant location aware application was born here. We will be empowered to help our neighbors in ways we never thought possible as the first market in the world to have it. Imagine the feeling that a heart attack victim’s family will have knowing that an initiative born in the San Ramon Valley saved their loved ones life.  It is worth mentioning that a Foundation is being formed to bring this open source effort to Fire Districts throughout the US. The end result will mean more people will survive heart attacks which is something we can all be thankful for.

You might also want to check out the landing page for the latest on the announcement.

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So much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving Day

November 25, 2010 By Leave a Comment

I think I found the perfect time to write this post about what I am thankful for. I just returned from producing the first “Rotary in the Valley” podcast with the host Bill Randall and first guest David Behring. Upon my return I’ve been at my computer going through Emails cleaning up my inbox. I came across a newsletter from a prior guest of my podcast Trust in Education.

This image reminded me how fortunate I am:

Kabul Street Boy

Yes, that young man lives on the streets and fends for himself in Kabul, Afghanistan. No doubt he lives a life that we cannot possibly fathom from where I am writing this and you are reading it right now. My house is warm and comfortable, I am sitting at a desk with a glass of clean water that came from one of many faucets, sitting in a chair that probably costs what it would take to pay for this young man to be fed and educated for at least a couple of years. I do not feel guilty for what I have but I do feel incredibly lucky to have what I have and also fortunate that I’ve had the opportunity to do a little part to help people like this young man struggling to carry clothing and a bucket of rice that will help him survive.

What am I most thankful for on this day?

Of course I am most thankful for my son, wife and family. Beyond that I am most thankful to recognize how important it is to act and do things to help others. I’ve also been fortunate to have met a number of dedicated people striving to make a difference. Here are some of them, thank you all for everything you do:

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Baragwanath Blessings Inc. Founder Colette Ankenman (Podcast)

October 6, 2010 By 1 Comment

I had the honor to interview a very dedicated young lady on my September 22, 2010 Blogtalk Radio podcast. This young woman – Colette Ankenman as a senior in high school done more to serve others than most people could hope to do in their lifetimes.

“It’s very important to me to feel that every baby and child feels like they are important and loved.” -Colette Ankenman

Baragwanath Blessings, Inc. LogoColette’s journey started during an 8th grade community service project at the Athenian Middle School. She knew she wanted to do a project to help babies and children around the world. After learning about the situations mothers and babies were experiencing at Baragwanath Hospital in South Africa, Colette was convinced that something needed to be done. At Baragwanath Hospital mothers are released six hours after giving birth and their babies are often sent home not wrapped in blankets but either newspaper or plastic. Colette ended up sending her first international aid in the form of knitted hats and blankets to a family friend in South Africa. Those hats and blankets ended up being given to new born babies at Baragwanath Hospital. In 2009 Colette founded Baragwanath Blessings, Inc. and is seeking a life of service. This interview provides some insights into the steps involved in founding a non profit and serving others. Listen to her story and be inspired, I was truly inspired by her passion, organization and achievements.

Listen to the full interview

Visit Baragwanath Blessings Website


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