Listen to this episode to hear an interview with Taryn. She discusses what things have helped her to succeed during the more difficult periods in her life, what got her interested in debate and what kinds of speaking she normally does, and what her feelings are about Gen Z and the misconceptions the older generations have about her generation.

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• What grade Taryn is in and what’s been happening with her recently
• The kinds of activities Taryn is involved in
• Whether or not school comes easily to Taryn
• What Taryn has found helped her succeed during more difficult periods
• What preparing for a debate event is like and how that works
• The different types of speaking that Taryn does
• The moves that Taryn experienced
• The misconceptions Taryn feels older people have about Gen Z
• The pressures of Gen Z
• The humor of Gen Z
• The age range of Gen Z
• Whether increased access to information makes Gen Z more interested in making change
• The prepping and planning for Ted Talks
• What Taryn would advise for people who get nervous about speaking in front of others
• The importance of finding people who share your interests
• How Taryn thinks about fear
• What academic and parental pressure feels like for Taryn’s generation
• Things Taryn’s parents have done that make her feel supported
• How Taryn deals with social pressure
• What advice Taryn would give to a younger version of herself

Resources: 

The Stereotypes of Gen Z – Taryn Murphy

Today’s guest is LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics, Inc. In the episode, you’ll hear her discuss both how she came to hold that role and how she’s both learned in it and helped to shape it. Listen to today’s interview to learn why a role in diversity and inclusion feels so personal, why it’s important to cultivate resilience and how to do so, and why keeping a sense of humor matters so much to this particular role. 

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics, Inc, and what she’s doing in her role today
• What a day in the life in this role feels like
• The position that LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics was in prior to this role, and how she evolved into this spot
• The ways that the DE&I role is personal and the events that are catalysts to change
• The importance of making the organization uncomfortable, but also supporting them through it
• Lessons that LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics, Inc, has learned along the way that could be helpful to someone else traveling that path
• How LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics, remembers her high school and college learning experiences
• The things that helped LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics cultivate resilience
• The way that a sense of humor and levity can help a person in a difficult role at work
• Soft skills that stick out as the ones people should think about if they want to be in DE&I or be leaders
• The value of recognizing the challenges of other people
• How mentors and mentoring have factored into the career role that LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics, Inc
• The difference between being tapped for something and strategically choosing that thing and setting goals to get there
• The skills someone needs to develop to follow a career in HR
• What LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics, Inc, would tell her younger self

Resources: 

LaQuenta Jacobs, Chief Diversity Officer at XPO Logistics, Inc

Listen to the episode to hear what Joe has to say about what Bulldog Insights does and how Joe created it. You’ll also learn about how he cultivated his network, how the concussions he sustained while playing sports in high school affected his college trajectory, and how to know when it’s time to leave. 

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• What Bulldog Insights is all about and how Joe came to create it
• What Joe was worried about, and what surprised him when he confronted those worries
• How Joe has cultivated his network
• How being opinionated and vocal has worked out for Joe
• What high school was like for Joe
• How the concussions Joe got in high school affected him in college
• What Joe majored in at Marquette University 
• Joe’s first role out of college
• Why Joe found MicroStrategy attractive
• Why Joe stayed with MicroStrategy so long and what prompted him to leave
• How to know when you should quit
• Soft skills that Joe thinks are the most important
• What advice Joe would give his younger self

Resources: 

Joe Bullis

Bulldog Insights Group LLC

Zach Davis is a martial artist professional and now owns a martial arts school. In today’s episode, he’ll talk about how he landed on that profession and ended up owning his own school, what it was like for him to give up drinking, and what soft skills he thinks are the most critical. 

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• What Zach is doing now and how he transitioned from manager to owner
• What age ranges Zach works with
• What Mixed Martial Arts is all about
• Whether Cobra Kai has increased enthusiasm
• Zach’s path to this point
• Where an athlete’s dedication, discipline, and motivation comes from
• What works for sustaining momentum and building new habits
• How Zach came to a way of doing what he was passionate about for a job
• Navigating trade-offs
• Zach’s positivity and where that comes from
• What it was like for Zach to stop drinking
• What Zach noticed that let him know it was time to stop drinking
• Whether it’s as hard now not to drink as it was in the past
• The soft skills that Zach thinks are critical
• How Zach would advise his younger self

Resources: 

Zach Davis

Listen to the episode to hear what Kavitha has to say about what has surprised her about her role, how she works to create change, and what causes people to make missteps when it comes to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• Kavitha’s role at Deloitte
• What Kavitha has found surprising about her role
• Kavitha’s background and nationality
• How Kavitha creates change within the company
• The degree of client time involved in Kavitha’s role
• Cultivating the skill of influence, and what makes it work or not work
• Influencing thinking instead of specific outcomes
• What causes people to make missteps
• Kavitha’s path to Deloitte
• Impactful milestones in Kavitha’s career as a woman
• Whether Kavitha has ever felt held back because of being a woman
• What helps someone to be successful at Deloitte
• What Kavitha spent the most time developing professionally

Resources: 

Kavitha Prabhakar

In today’s episode, you’ll hear from Chad Small, a Regional Manager at Enterprise Rent-A-Car. In this interview, he discusses motivation and where his comes from, the things that have helped him achieve success along the way, and where Chad got his competitive drive.

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• What Chad is doing right now
• Chad’s college degree
• Chad’s dream job when he was leaving college
• The motivation to make money or be successful
• Where Chad’s motivation level comes from
• The things that helped Chad to be successful
• What Chad is looking for in workers
• The kind of coaching that Chad likes to give
• Tried and true ways to reach business goals
• Dealing with rejection
• Things that changed the way Chad navigated his path
• Where Chad’s competitive drive comes from
• Advice Chad would give about regrets

Resources: 

Chad Small

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• REAL-ATABLE, a year in review
• Sean McGinly’s story
• Josh Skule’s interview
• Kellie and Byron’s experiences
• Aneesh Chopra’s story
• Vivian Dixon’s advice and counsel
• Listening to Monica Sagrario
• What made the Glenn Anderson episode interesting
• Captain Rob Evers’s career and training
• Susannah Anderson’s pathway to athletic success
• Karen Schaefer’s CIA history
• Eileen Smith’s episode
• Joanna Wang’s music industry experience
• Hayden Temin’s role in business
• Shanna Gray’s story
• Sam Slevin’s accomplishments
• Leslie Durham’s origin
• Kelly Derrick’s application of faith
• Paul Ramming’s insight into financial acumen
• Michelle Clement’s ability to pivot and change
• The interview with Megan and Luke
• Doug Schneider’s journey
• Aspirations for next year

Resources: 

Teresa Freeman Associates

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• Karen’s transition to her second career
• Karen’s path to the CIA
• Whether Karen knew immediately which roles she was interested in
• The fear of not being well-informed or knowing the qualifications
• How to compartmentalize when you can’t really talk about your career
• How to protect your mental health when working for the CIA
• The fulfillment in tying your work to serving your country
• Characteristics that served Karen well in her career

Resources: 

Karen Schaefer

Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:

• Leslie’s current role
• How Leslie found her way to her current role
• Leslie’s educational background
• How Leslie feels about the process of learning
• Who Leslie’s peers are in her classroom
• What it’s like to work on a dig site
• The coolest thing that Leslie has found
• What it’s like to be a military spouse
• The difficulty of putting a career on hold because of military moves
• Taking control of your life
• How culture and background have impacted Leslie’s life
• Significant moments of impact that shaped Leslie’s life
• What Leslie sees that gives her hope for the future
• What drives a gap in problem-solving and collaboration skills
• Advice that Leslie would give to her younger self

Resources: 

Leslie Durham