When we come face to face with the raw enormity of the human spirit, it can be truly stunning. And when we encounter a person who is so magnanimous, they inspire us to ask questions like, “What could I do?” Today on Christopher Lochhead: Follow Your Different, we talk to one such person, Peter Mutabazi. Peter grew up in shocking poverty, was called garbage and physically abused by his father. He ran away from home, and by 10 years of age became a “street kid” in the capital of Uganda Kampala. Today, Peter lives in America, and he's living a legendary life as a foster dad. He is also running a foundation called I Am Known Foundation, and his mission is to help increase foster parenting to help care for the most vulnerable children in our country. By the end of this episode, you will gain a visceral understanding of how a person can literally traverse from the worst imaginable situations as a child to achieving success, happiness, and a deep sense of what he calls true worth. Peter Mutabazi on Teenage Adoption The conversation starts off on the topic of adoption, particularly on teenage adoption. While most of the conversations about adoption revolve around adoption as a child, teenage adoption is very rarely talked about. For Peter, this age period is particularly vulnerable for them, as they prepare to be part of society when they become 18. If there was no one to guide these teenagers, then they would have nowhere to go afterwards, and no way to establish themselves. “When you're 15 and you have only three years left in the foster care system, and you have nowhere to go, it's critical for anyone to step up and guide you to the world you've never lived, that you don't know. So I feel like they're the most vulnerable and need the most talk.” – Peter Mutabazi Peter also comments that teenage adoptees are easier to be with. This might be due to the fact that they can pretty much handle themselves in their day-to-day lives, provided that they have the support and resources to do so. Peter Mutabazi on his Origin Story Peter tells the story of his youth in a village called Kabaddi, which was located at the border of Uganda and Rwanda. From the get-go, life was harsh to them, as even the basic necessities are hard to come by at times. Peter shares that he wasn’t even given a name until he was 3 years old, as the survival rate of babies was so low, they did not want to give them names and form attachments before they are sure that he could survive. “I also got to learn that I didn't have a name until when I was three years old. Why? Because for every 100 children were born in my village 60 would die before the age of two. So most moms were afraid to name a child because they didn't want to get attached.” – Peter Mutabazi To add another layer of difficulty to all that, Peter’s father was what you’d call abusive, in every sense of the world. Peter quips that in a normal family, even if you suffer through hardships, there’s always some comfort of knowing that you have a home to return to. In his case, it was the most agonizing place to be in because of his father. So at the young age of 10, Peter decided that he had had enough. He ran away from home. To hear more from Peter Mutabazi and his story of growing up with an abusive father to being the father to those in dire need of it, download and listen to this episode. Bio Peter Mutabazi Peter Mutabazi is an entrepreneur, an international advocate for children, and the founder of Now I Am Known, a corporation that supplies resources to encourage and affirm children. A single father and foster dad, Mutabazi is a former street kid who has worked for World Vision, Compassion International, and the Red Cross. He has appeared on media outlets such as the BBC and The TODAY Show and continues to be a passionate speaker. He currently lives in Charlotte, North. Links Connect with Peter Mutabazi! NowIAmKnownFoundation.org | Now I Am Known | Facebook | Instagram

On this episode of Christopher Lochhead: Follow Your Different, we talk about those voices in your head with our award-winning guest, Dr. Ethan Kross. Who knows, you might learn something useful from listening to it. Dr. Ethan Kross is an award-winning psychologist and professor at the University of Michigan and the Ross School of Business. He has a new book out called Chatter: the voice in your head, why it matters and how to harness it. Bestselling author Adam Grant says, “this book is going to fundamentally change some of the most important conversations in your life, the ones you have with yourself.” So if you want to know how you can work with those voices in your head to make your life better, stay tuned to this episode. Ethan Kross on the Voices in your head The conversation starts off with the topic of Ethan Kross’ new book, Chatter. Ethan explains that we all have an inner voice, which is the ability to silently use language to reflect on our lives. “it's a tool of the mind. It's a tool that that distinguishes us from every single other animal species. You use language silently in your head to do all sorts of things like, simulate and plan for the future. You use this inner voice to do something I find to be magical, which is tell stories about our experiences in this world. Stories that help us understand who we are.” – Ethan Kross Chatter According to Ethan, there are times when this inner voice we possess doesn’t work so well. “Sometimes when you experience adversity, you reflexively tried to use this tool to think through a problem, but you don't come up with a clear solution. You end up for lack of a better term spinning, worry, ruminating catastrophizing. And that's what I call chatter.” – Ethan Kross Chatter sometimes takes the form of an inner critic. Sometimes, it’s a self-disparaging voice. Sometimes it's an inner monologue filled with anger and aggression. But the idea here is that you're just getting stuck in this negative thought loop, and you can't break free. Ethan Kross on Metacognition We bring up the topic of “thinking about thinking”, and Ethan shares his thoughts on the matter. For Ethan, most people actually do a lot of thinking about thinking, or metacognition. “Basically, Metacognition refers to exactly what you're talking about: thinking about thinking. And I think we spend a lot of time doing this in ways that create misery. And, like, when we're worried about stuff we keep on, you know, we start worrying, like, think about what worry is, there's something in the future that you're concerned about. At some point, you start worrying about the fact that you're worrying.” – Ethan Kross He then used sleep as an example. At first, it’s simple: you sleep when you are tired. But as we think about other things like “are we getting enough sleep,” and the effects of not staying up late, etc. We start to worry about too many hypothetical things in our head, and we, ironically, lose sleep over it. To hear more from Ethan Kross and how to channel your inner voice to be more productive in life, download and listen to this episode. Bio Ethan Kross, PhD, is one of the world's leading experts on controlling the conscious mind. An award-winning professor at the University of Michigan and the Ross School of Business, he is the director of the Emotion & Self Control Laboratory. He has participated in policy discussion at the White House and has been interviewed on CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, Anderson Cooper Full Circle, and NPR's Morning Edition. His pioneering research has been featured in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New England Journal of Medicine, and Science. He completed his BA at the University of Pennsylvania and his PhD at Columbia University. Links Connect with Ethan Kross! Website | LinkedIn | Twitter | More about Ethan | Chatter We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™!

This is Christopher and I just wanted to take a little moment to share a couple quick things with you. First, just big thank you. Thank you for making me and our entire team part of your 2020. The second thing, I know it's been a horrible year for many of us, for me and my family, it's been the most horrible year of all. I also want you to know that I thought about quitting a lot this year, both podcasting and writing. Knowing that you were there, if you sent email or tweets or LinkedIn messages or just knowing you were there, has made a big difference. I didn't know (when I started writing and podcasting) how much the friendships that I would develop with our listeners and readers would mean to me. Even if we've never met or exchanged a message, I just want you to know how much I appreciate you. Thank you because for the last 15 months, it's really been the worst time of my life. Having you with me has made a giant difference. I know you being there has made a giant difference to our entire team. So thank you so much. I also wanted to share a little piece that I put on social media, for those of you who might have lost someone. So I'll just read that to you quickly. If you have an empty chair, this holiday, I'm truly sorry. If you have an empty chair, this holiday, please know that your family does not cry alone. And if you do not have an empty chair this holiday, please remember to tell your friends and family how much you love them. In times like these, it really calls for inspiration and who better to turn to than Winston Churchill. So I thought I'd share this quote with you. If you will, as a toast to 2021, without courage, all other virtues lose their meaning. So I'm going to grab hold of this Macallan 12. I have a little squirt and say, thank you. Bless you. Here's to 2021.

Monday June 8th, 2020 Yesterday in Santa Cruz, I cried at the vigil for Sargent Damon Gutzwiller, of the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s department. He was shot to death on Saturday. Yesterday in Santa Cruz, I paddled out for George Floyd. With over 500 people (A paddle out is how surfers mourn). There have been paddle outs for George Floyd all over the world. Yesterday in the Ocean of Santa Cruz, people of many races screamed “Black Lives Matter”. Together. Yesterday the people of Santa Cruz showed that you can stand against evil racism, and stand for good cops. At the same time. Because both are the same thing. Both are stand against violence. Both are stand against evil. Yesterday in Santa Cruz, I cried for these two men. And so did countless others. Of virtually every race. Of all the tears that were cried yesterday in Santa Cruz, every single last one of them, was colorless. Now, I’d like to share a deeply personal story with you. A story I have never shared before. Last year, one of my best friends was brutally murdered, in Santa Cruz. It will always be unbelievable and unbearable. A walk-through fire I wish on no one. If you are ever in this situation, you’ll discover how badly you need the cops. In the moments after I learned what happened, I was over-come by a Mavericks sized wave of horrible emotions and a profound sense of helplessness. Which is not a feeling I am used to. Sometimes, life gives you no choice. You have to grapple with a soul-crushing reality. You have to accept an absoluteness you cannot change. As this washed over me, I realized something. I desperately need the cops. Because, police have the authority and ability to solve heinous crimes in a way that no one else does. In our case, the agency in charge was the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department. After 231 days, over 3,000 hours of work, by countless professionals, across multiple peacekeeping agencies, in multiple states, the Sheriff’s Department caught them. The four evil men took my brother’s life. Now, you should know, he was a “brown guy” (his words). The four men who killed him are white. Over the past months, I’ve had a front-row seat to a massive, complex murder investigation. He’s what I learned. There are legendary cops. A lot of them. The dedicated public servants at the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department, lead by Sheriff Jim Hart, worked tireless to bring this evil to justice. We saw the sleepless nights the investigators endured. They fought as hard as I have ever seen anyone fight. We are forever grateful for the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department. If I were to name all of the amazing people who worked this case, you’d stop reading this post. What I’d like you to know is, they cried with us. They comforted us. They exhibited extraordinary kindness. Above all, we got to see peacekeepers with an unending commitment to justice. I share this with you, because I have experienced the positive power of policing. I have seen women and men, of every race, get up every day, put on a bulletproof vest and a badge to risk their lives. To serve and protect us. So, the time has come for all of us to demand justice for George Floyd. To demand equality for African Americans and all people of color. And to demand real police reform. It is critical that we remember, that it is possible to demand justice for George Floyd, to demand reform and equality, and support the good cops. At the same time. There are some in our country who would divide us. Let us remember there is no us and them. There is no difference between Black, White, Brown or Blue. Because evil comes in all colors. And tears are colorless. Bless you.

Christopher Lochhead discusses, in his newly launched podcast, Lochhead on Marketing talks about some of his ideas timely for a potential recession. With this threat coming, Christopher points out the importance of developing and acting on ideas that would make your companies survive this disastrous event. He hopes that through these suggestions, your company will come out even come out stronger from a potential recession. Without further adieu, here are Christopher's 7 Recession Marketing Ideas Never Let A Good Recession Go To Waste!Assume you can’t raise any more moneyMeasure twice, cut onceBrainstorm short-term ways to increase revenueMarket & Sell Into The WhitespaceConsider a competitor trade-inDouble Down on Your Category You can check out Lochhead Marketing Podcast on Lochead.com or any podcast player that you and listen to episode 008 7 Recession Marketing Ideas. Links: Lochhead on Marketing We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

We have just launched a new marketing podcast! It talks about the mindsets and strategies for winning ⁠— with a special focus on how you design, create and dominate market categories. It’s called LOCHHEAD ON MARKETING. Radical Generosity As Christopher is not a fan of self-promotion (which may sound crazy, coming from a three-time marketing guy), we have thought about how we’re going to market and promote the podcast. On one hand, we wanted to do some marketing that would feel comfortable without the overly self-promotional crap. This brings us to Christopher’s buddy and co-conspirator on category creation and design, and legendary marketing, Eddie Yoon.  He has this powerful idea that legendary category designers practice “radical generosity.”  “If you think about the word ‘creation’, in a lot of ways, you could argue creation is about bringing something to the world and Eddie says, if you wanted to create a design category -- having a radical generosity mindset matters.” - Christopher Lochhead We’re Gonna Spend A Bunch Of Money Legendary category designers and creators come from a place of generosity. So, to promote this podcast, we are going to spend a bunch of money.  Rather than buying a ton of ads, we thought we might include you. We’re doing it in a way that is radically generous. Here's the offer: we would love if you will rate and review Lochhead on Marketing, take a screenshot of that review, email it to blackhole@lochhead.com. For the next 7 days, we are going to make a $20 donation to four of my chosen charities.  “Were gonna divide up all the inbound and then divide it into quarters. Then, we will give it to the ASPCA,  Frontrow Foundation, 1LifeFullyLived and Donorschoose.org. We will publish on our website—with full transparency —how much money we raise and how much money we gave away. This is the result of you participating in helping us market the new marketing podcast.” - Christopher Lochhead The Beneficiaries What we were asking you to do is rate and review the podcast, share it on social media and email us at blackhole@lochhead.com. Once you do that, we will drop $20 in one of the following charities: 1. As we all know, Christopher loves animals. American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) is one of his chosen beneficiaries. 2. Frontrow Foundation is a charity that works with people, often kids, who are facing life-threatening conditions to give them one legendary experience. 3. If you’re a regular listener, we’re sure you know how much Christopher loves 1LifefullyLived.org. Founded by his buddy, Tim Rhode, this nonprofit has tried to put together programs and content around life planning and design, financial planning and design, and entrepreneurship. They try to do this as close to free as possible. 4. The fourth one is a non-profit called DonorsChoose. This is an extraordinary organization that allows school teachers around the country, to tell people what they need and people can go ahead and fund those things for their students and their classrooms.   Checkout Lochhead on Marketing on Lochhead.com or any of your favorite podcast players. Thank you so much for being a listener of Follow Your Different. Thank you so much for helping us become radically generous. We hope you think its a cool idea. 

In this episode, Christopher Lochhead talks about the idea of “faking it till you make it.” He poses a real question about what to do when you finally “make it.” This episode is inspired by Silicon Valley coach Bill Campbell’s quote, “next time you’re in the endzone, act like you’ve been there before.” Bill Campbell’s Wise Words On Episode 072, Randy Komisar of Kleiner Perkins joined Lochhead to celebrate the life and lessons of legendary Silicon Valley coach, late Bill Campbell. Guest Randy Komisar, along with colleague Paul Martino of Bullpen Capital, came together to capture Bill in a podcast, called No Bull Podcast. Bill was the coach to Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, and countless Silicon Valley legends.             Randy shared a story about Bill, back when he was coaching a football team. There was a time when the team hit a touch down and went mental to celebrate the small victory. According to Randy, Bill did not approve of this and gave the team his wise words: “Hey guys, next time you’re in the endzone, act like you’ve been there before.”  Don't Do The Victory Noise Even Lochhead is guilty of celebrating small wins. He recounts a story about surfing as he gets all too excited when he encounters a good wave, often called as “claiming the wave.” His buddy corrected him and told him the message that he sends out to other surfers is that it was “just one” of his best waves. He reminded Lochhead to have the mentality that all of his waves are the best ones. “You wanna act like you’ve been here before. You wanna act like all your waves are like that” - Christopher Lochhead’s friend, when he does his victory noise Fake it till you make it Lochhead candidly shares that he had “faked it till he made it” a number of times in his life. However, Lochhead poses the question, what will you do when you finally make it? “Act like you’ve been there before, act like it’s something that happens all the time.” - Christopher Lochhead Further, Lochhead reminds that when we're pushing ourselves to the next level, we have to act in our own minds and in our behavior. We have to always think that we are the “Whoah-Man or Whoah-Woman.” It's always nice to celebrate wins, but ideally, it is best to do it privately. “You have to prepare yourselves so you’ll have the least amount of faking as possible and when in you're in the situation and something happens, just roll it.” - Christopher Lochhead To hear more about how to act next time you’re in the endzone and more relevant information from Lochhead, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Christopher Lochhead  Links: 072 Why Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos & many others turned to “The Coach” Bill Campbell  We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Young immigrant and entrepreneur dreamer Diego Corzo joins us today in an insightful conversation about entrepreneurship, investing and achieving dreams in a different country. This episode takes the theoretical discussion about the immigration debate in the US and makes it real through Diego.  Being an Undocumented Immigrant Diego Corzo entered the US with his family when he was nine. He understood the implications of being undocumented when he applied for a driver’s license. He got denied because of his status. These obstacles continued when he found out he was not eligible for any financial grants or student loans. “I saw the sacrifices that my parents had, from not speaking English to finding work. My mother, from working in a bank, she was cleaning toilets and houses, without having a day off for a long while.” - Diego Corzo He was a straight-A student at Florida State University and was working part-time and doing some internships with small business and non-profits organizations. He was handpicked by some companies for work after graduation but unfortunately, he does not have a work permit. Windows of Opportunity After these obstacles in finding work to fund his schooling, he conducted research on Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and found out he can start a company under LLC set-up. He then registered an IT consulting company with a colleague and took in as clients the small business and NGOs.  “I always had the mindset that no matter what happens, there is always a way here in the United States. As my dad always says, ‘The US is a land of opportunities and its up to us to find it’.” - Diego Corzo Back in 2017, Diego also posted a commentary to President’s Trump, as he plans to remove DACA. His post went viral and was able to reach some Dreamers like himself. Dreamers are defined as immigrants who entered the US below 16 years old, have finished high-school and have zero criminal records. Celebrating the Good Life at Age 28 Part of being viral, he was able to meet some millionaire entrepreneurs from the mastermind group, Gobundance. Although Diego started with 25k net worth, these men saw the potential in him and pledged to mentor him to become a millionaire himself. Diego, at 28 years old, now earns 10x of his initial net worth and owns 19 doors in 13 properties. “When I shared the story, I’m sort of breaking the paradigm. They think that undocumented immigrants don’t pay taxes. They just take jobs and they dont really support the community.” - Diego Corzo At present, Diego is into real estate investing and is a financial freedom advocate, especially targeting Dreamers like himself. To hear more about being an American immigrant Dreamer and more relevant information from Diego, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Diego Corzo is a 20-something, Peruvian living in Austin, Texas. He founded FreeBy26.com to help millennials realize that they don’t have to settle to what society expects. Diego graduated from Florida State University in 2012 and moved to Austin, TX to work as a software developer for an IT Company. In his spare time, he started learning as much as I could about financial literacy and the habits of wealthy people. He became interested in real estate as began to explore different ways to increase his income. He bought my first property when he was 23.  Fast forward 3 years, he now owns 8 properties which are the source of his passive monthly income.  Ultimately, his goal is to be financially free before he turns 27. He shares more about his struggles, successes, and mindset through his journey, through his website.  Links: Diego Corzo TED Talk: Diego Corzo FWD.US/DACA  We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

In this episode, Mark Gainey, a serial entrepreneur with big-time success B2B and B2C, joins us for another insight-packed conversation. He is the co-founder and chairman of Strava, the athlete’s social network. Today, he talks about entrepreneurship and success, despite major setbacks in his life. The Virtual Athlete’s Locker Room The Swedish word for strive is strava, which is defined as “to make great efforts to achieve or obtain.” This is perfect for a team of individuals who have the ambition and attitude to achieve more. Strava’s mission is to build the most engaged community of athletes in the world. Co-founders and former college colleagues Mark Gainey and Michael Horvath dreamt about this company way back in 1995. They had the concept of creating a virtual locker room and they called it “Kana Sports.” “We had this concept at the back of our minds, how Kana sports morphed into Kana communications, we had a great time building that, no regrets.” - Mark Gainey From B2B to B2C Mark was previously the CEO of Kana Communications which went public late 1999. With a market capital of 11 billion USD and an upcoming new CEO at that time, Mark found himself moving to a different chapter in his life after. “I distanced myself in a pretty meaningful way. I often joked to people, if you give your child up for adoption, don’t stay living in the house.” - Mark Gainey, after IPO of Kana Communications Mark further shares his experiences working in a B2B setting, as a CEO and now B2C setting, as a stockholder.  18 Surgeries in 51 years One of Strava’s irony is they serve the world’s cyclists, but Mark quips that he must have been one of the worst ones on the planet. For one, he had been in a major biking accident which required 11 surgeries. These surgeries are on top of other surgeries from skiing accidents and car accidents. “Nobody is dying anytime soon but it is a test. You just get back to the saddle. You learn and say okay now I can have three more runs, good to play some other day.” - Mark Gainey Mark continues narrating his accident and further says that when he is inactive, he feels like he is a different person. Mark shares that ultimately, this is their goal at Strava: to forget trying to push people to go fast and perform well, just encourage them to engage in activities and sweat at least once in a day. “I think thats the balance. As much as I know that I take the risk everytime to go out there but the idea of not doing that, that is what would kill me.” - Mark Gainey To hear more about B2B to B2C entrepreneurship and more relevant information from Mark, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Mark Gainey is a serial entrepreneur, co-founder, and Chairman of Strava - the social network for athletes. Mark co-founded Kana Communications Inc. (Kana Inc.), in January 1996 and served as its Chief Executive Officer & President from January 1996 to June 1999. He has been building successful companies for nearly 20 years. Prior to Kana, from April 1991 to September 1995, Mark Gainey served as an Associate with TA Associates Management, L.P. (TA Associates, Inc.), where he focused primarily on technology and business services investments. Mark served as President and Chairman of SWK Holdings Corporation. Further, he served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kana Communications Inc., from July 1996 to July 2000. In addition to these, he has been a Director of Clari Inc. since April 2014. Mark serves as a Director of TA Associates, Inc. He served as a Director of GlobalSight Corporation, AlterG, Inc. and BoardVantage Inc. He served as a Director of Kana Communications Inc., from January 1996 to June 1999 and SWK Holdings Corporation since January 1996. Mark Gainey holds a B.A. in General Studies from Harvard University. Links: Strava.com Strava: Mark Gainey Linkedin: mark-gainey We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him,

This is a great episode, with a great guy Eric Hunley, a fellow podcaster and host of Unstructured. He shares his learnings and insights from his guests—whose backgrounds range from FBI, military and law enforcement to entrepreneurs, authors, and thinkers.    The Unstructured Podcast Eric Hunley hosts the podcast Unstructured. Although he is well-known for his unstructured-style interview, he admits that he does a lot of research beforehand. Further, he leads the guest to a path by asking triggering questions.  “By triggering, it's not to get them upset per se. I wanna know what their passion is, what makes them tick, why they do certain things, I want them to be excited.” - Eric Hunley Crime and Investigation Podcast Guests Eric shares some very interesting (and disturbing for some) stories about his guests with a background in military and law enforcement. In particular, his upcoming guest is an ex-FBI agent. He used to handle bombs but then crossed over into the behavioral analysis unit, with a focus on sex crimes. “He’s gone into a bit about repressed memories and how things can be planted, and things of that sort and cognitive biases and persuasion and influence and things like that, that fits my interests.” - Eric Hunley on his guest at Unstructured Eric and Christopher shared their common interests with crime and investigation stories. Moreover, they agreed that people have a lurid fascination with monsters—whether fictional or real-life psychopath and serial killers. “There’s a Southern Californian Daycare, where 300 children were all molested inside tunnels under the schools. Its part of a satanic worship group.” Eric Hunley, as he recounts one of his guest’s stories in his podcast, Unstructured Dealing with Authors and Entrepreneurs Eric shares his experiences conversing with authors and entrepreneurs. He admits he has a hard time closing conversations, especially when the guest has a very interesting story.  Christopher shares in response to Eric, that there is a natural arc of conversations, even the sh*tty ones. “Sh*tty conversations are probably when one or both sides have an agenda. Were not into talking points. I am probably, ironically, a little more interviewing than you are, but still conversational.” -Eric Hunley Both also exchanged their preparation in dealing with authors and entrepreneurs, which is actually reading their books.  When you actually read the book, you can get an insight into their personality or the message, that is deeper. A lot of times they get blown away by insightful questions. If I can, I do get that stuff out early. When the guest knows you care or give a shit about then, then it becomes a conversation. -Eric Hunley To hear more about unstructured conversations and more relevant information from Eric, download and listen to the episode. BIO: “Eric Hunley is forging his path in unstructured interview-style podcasts, as the host of the Unstructured Podcast. It is no surprise that fellow podcasters follow this formula in podcasting. The unstructured podcast sources a gambit of unique podcast guests, who are based all around the globe. Eric Hunley has created well over a hundred interview styled podcasts in less than nine months. His unrelenting professionalism, detail orientated research, and smooth delivery as a host serves as an inspiration to many. New podcasters and seasoned professionals often seek out his knowledge and advice when it comes to the business of podcasting. Eric’s previous experience as an instructor at the University of Arizona has helped cement his reputation as an educator. His position opened many doors for him and has begun to lead to further speaking opportunities. He often draws on his many years of experience as an athlete, marathon runner, coach, and university lecturer. Eric Hunley is predominantly self-taught and he understands that his students have the ability to absorb any skill with the right kind of guidance.

Let's get to know Codie Sanchez in today’s fun and insightful episode as she lives on the leading edge of venture capital and entrepreneurship. She is an investor, speaker and business builder. She is a partner at Cresco Capital Partners, one of the first PE funds in the legalized cannabis space. From Great To Greater Codie is a former mutual fund manager at Goldman Sachs and a consultant to Facebook, Apple, and Amazon. She earned her MBA from Georgetown University and received her Ph.D. from FGV in Brazil. Given her credentials, she is upfront about not staying long with her previous company nor working in the marijuana industry. “After a while, everybody has to graduate from that realm and go do something in the world. I was feeling like it was time.” - Codie Sanchez She started investing in cannabis privately until she saw the actual numbers and the industry growth potential. Aside from being a Venture Capitalist, she is an active advocate in lobbying for federally funded marijuana use research. “We do a lot of stuff with Vets and see them come back from the war and have PTSD. You get them on opioids or cannabis and see the changes in their lives. Its kind of contagious at some point.” - Codie Sanchez Lobbying at Washington Codie recounts her story at Washington D.C. to Lochhead as she says that Cannabis is categorized as Schedule 1⁠—drugs that have no medicinal benefit and are highly addictive⁠.  Lochhead also shares his understanding of the issue. He says that since there is no federally funded research on the benefits, risks, problems, applications and use cases on cannabis, the country might be missing out on its potential. “So many of them don’t know about cannabis. They know what we used to think about it, like in the 70s, the 80s, but they still don’t know the fact that this is a multi-million dollar industry.” -Codie Sanchez, on meeting with legislators  40,000 Different Uses of Mary Jane Thanks to people like Codie, more established people are joining the cannabis movement. For instance, there is the UCLA Cannabis Institute, the only research organization branded by a school. They do have to get funding, though, from non-cannabis related companies. Codie further shares in this episode why she thinks the cannabis industry is a generational wealth creation event. First, its a new industry, but is an overregulated one. Second, there’s no need to create a market for it. Third, the use cases are prolific⁠—with 40,000 different ways to utilize it. Fourth, the audience's expansion of cannabis is astounding. Cannabis is definitely not a panacea or a drug that cures everything, but research can definitely back up how it can ease certain illnesses. To hear more about venture capital in the cannabis industry and more relevant information from Codie, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Codie Sanchez is a reformed journalist, turned institutional investor to now a partner at Cresco Capital Partners, one of the first PE funds in the legalized cannabis space. Throughout her career, she has worked at the intersection of marketing and money, finding contrarian ways to invest and spread the gospel. She’s always balanced her profession with non-profit service to empower women, veterans and Latinos. She joined Vanguard ETFs in 2008 ($870B) to build out their ETF business, quite the time, then moved to Goldman Sachs Alternatives group. Following, she became an SVP at SSGA ($580B) in institutional investing tasked with a $3 billion region, finally coming to First Trust ($63B) to build the LatAm investment business from the ground up. Codie has led global teams in all asset classes, negotiating JV's, product creation and market entry across the Americas. Further, she is a board member at The Arcview Group, Magma Partners Venture Fund, Texans for Veterans. She is also a member of the free markets think tank, AEI's Enterprise Club. Codie invests in women-led startups through Plum Alley,

In this episode, Christopher Lochhead shares his insights about venture capitalists, start-ups, IPOs and immigrants and how these topics have driven the economy of the United States. Lochhead poses some serious questions and asks why there is not enough discussion on these matters. Venture Capitalists and The Upcoming Elections In a study published by Brookings, they claimed that “in recent decades Venture Capital (VC) has generated more economic and employment growth in the U.S. than any other investment sector. Annually, venture investment makes up only 0.2% of GDP, but delivers an astonishing 21% of U.S. GDP in the form of VC-backed business revenues."Further, Brookings stated that 51% of VCs invested around $45.7B in California. Lochhead concludes that other states are losing the opportunity of gaining value in this incredible economy. For Lochhead, the lack of support of government officials might explain the absence of VC in other States. Successful VCs have proven to create a growth dynamic that fosters innovation and creates more start-ups. Unfortunately, seated officials fail to see this. “Maybe its time for us who care about entrepreneurship and the difference that it makes in the world, to make sure that our candidates⁠—focuses on this topic.” - Christopher Lochhead IPOs Creates New Millionaires According to Yahoo! Finance, around 5,000 new millionaires will be walking the streets of Silicon Valley after this year’s IPO. They would surpass the WSJ - The IPO Millionaires Are Coming! Forbes - The Top Tech IPOs In 2019 Have Been Started By Immigrants Axios - U.S. startups are in a surprising 13-year slump We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on

In today’s episode, Billionaire Entrepreneur Tom Siebel shares some thought-provoking insights on new, leading technologies and its impact on businesses and society. He is the founder of C3.AI, a new software platform that harnesses Big Data, IoT AND AI. Tom covers in this episode the contents of his book, Digital Transformation, as well as some intriguing ideas about huge US Tech companies. Silicon Valley Entrepreneurial Giant Listeners might recall Bruce Clevland, author of “The Traction Gap” and guest in episode 033. He used to work with Tom Siebel at Siebel Systems, which was the category king in the 1st wave of CRM. In the year 1999, Fortune magazine named Siebel Systems “the fastest growing company in the United States.” In 2006, they merged with Oracle for $5.85 billion. Digital Transformation Tom has a brand new book entitled “Digital Transformation.” The book covers giant Megatrends and impacts on business and society. CEOs and senior leaders would find this book highly beneficial to their decision-making process. “The coming two decades will bring more information technology innovation than the past half-century.” -Tom Siebel, Digital Transformation Further, he discussed that companies who fail to seize this massive technological growth will be extinct in the future. In the last 30 years, companies that didn’t make the necessary transition required in their industry, cease to exist today. Continuous Learning and Education Tom Siebel and his company have a real commitment to their employees: to focus on continuous learning and education. Employees can take online classes via Coursera—in relation to AI, Cloud Computing, Machine Learning, among others. Universities such as Stanford, MIT, and the University of Illinois offers these online courses. “Things are changing more rapidly so to be on top of these, you must be continuously learning”  - Tom Siebel The company recognizes the employees who completed the courses and awards cash bonuses — ranging from $1500 to $25,000.  At the moment, the company is rolling out new incentives — a 15% increase in compensation and an additional equity grant. “These people are better equipped to do their jobs and to serve customers. This is to advance their careers professionally. They also do feel more empowered, so everybody wins.” - Tom Siebel To hear more about digital transformation and more relevant information from Tom, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Tom Siebel is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of C3.ai. He was the Chairman and CEO of Siebel Systems, which merged with Oracle Corporation in January 2006 for $5.85 billion. Mr. Siebel is also the Chairman of the Siebel Energy Institute, a global consortium for innovative and collaborative energy research for the public domain. Mr. Siebel serves on the boards of advisors for the University of Illinois College of Engineering and the University of California at Berkeley College of Engineering. Mr. Siebel is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he received a B.A. in history, an M.B.A, and an M.S. in computer science. Links: Digital Transformation: Survive and Thrive in an Era of Mass Extinction Thomas Siebel - Linkedin Thomas Siebel - Forbes Profile We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Surf and skateboard podcast host Neil Pearlberg joins us today in this special 4th of July episode dubbed as “The Worst Episode Ever!” This is a funny and silly conversation, just like two buddies hanging out over drinks⁠. We cannot guarantee that you’d find inspiration or motivation in this episode, but we're sure, you’d be laughing your brains off listening to this witty exchange of conversation! Off The Lip Radio Show Neil Pearlberg hosts the Off The Lip Radio Show (OTL)⁠— a popular radio show and podcast dedicated to surfing, skateboarding and laid back California lifestyle in Santa Cruz. The show is co-hosted by Terry Campion (TC), a skate-shop owner. The show has a wide array of guests and live-music, peppered with the unique humor of Neil and TC.  “Everybody takes life seriously. The show has to be fun! There’s so much seriousness in today’s world.” - Neil Pearlberg After Neil’s stint as a freelance writer for the Santa Cruz Sentinel, he proposed to KSCO management a program that would cater to the younger generation, since the station’s demographic involved very old listeners. They were off into a rought start, as the KSCO management deemed him as an “non-reliable, non-responsible-kind-person” but he proved them wrong. Lochhead’s Guesting at OTL Rich Novak, the founder of innovative skateboard company NHS Fun Factory, introduced Neil to Chris and they’ve been buddies ever since. Chris actually guested in OTL Episode #321 where he complained that he was called Chris Lochhard for the whole 50 minutes of the show.  It was a hilarious exchange of conversation as Chris said this is the first time he met people who don’t give AF about who he was. He also joked about how it was fun to be “disrespected” at times and be regarded based on your hobbies.  “You pick up absolutely no new subscribers cause everybody was googling Lockhard! I was furious! But we went out for dinner and had a great time!” - Christopher Lochhead on his guesting at OTL More About The Worst Episode Ever Neil shares more about the guests, the music and topics they cover on OTL. He said the show appealed to the young and young at heart because of their unconventional format and their IDGAF attitude. “We used to be prepared. We sit down beforehand and do notes. TC and I start on a nice piece and have booklets, then it went to brown paper bags, then it went to napkins. Now we just drink.” - Neil Pearlberg on the preparing for every episode of OTL He further shared about his fashion sense⁠—the laidback California lifestyle attire⁠—but is now called hobo chic. They teased back and forth about Neil’s current relationship, as his girlfriend, Angela was also present during the interview. To hear more about Neil Pearlberg and why this episode might be the “Worst Episode” ever, download and listen to the episode. BIO: Since September 2009, Neil Pearlberg has written over 200 articles covering the sport of surfing, as well as skateboarding, and soccer, for the Bay Area News Group, & Santa Cruz Waves.  He is also the host of the “Off the Lip Radio Show”, & Hour Local Radio Show aired on Santa Cruz Radio Show KSCO AM 1080, FM 104.1, ksco.com and streamed on Santa Cruz Waves Facebook Page. Neil has also had published articles in Adventure Sports Journal, National Geographic, Stand Up Paddle Board Magazine. Links: Off The Lip Radio Instagram Twitter Linkedin - Neil Pearlberg We hope you enjoyed Neil Pearlberg on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Dr. Carolyn Colleen is a shining example of the fierce power of the human spirit in the defiance of unthinkable abuse. Join us in this riveting conversation about her incredible journey—from surviving with food stamps to gaining her Ph.D. and becoming a celebrated author. This discussion is not only about abuse—it's about triumph—and it will impact a lot of people’s lives. The Past Doesn’t Define The Future Our guest today Dr. Carolyn Colleen, has a Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. She authored the best selling book FIERCE. On the side, she is a life and business strategist. She is a woman who commands presence, but surprisingly has struggled so much since childhood, up until she was married. “As my definition of love evolved, I evolved. I learned to further deepen my definition of love ⁠— how I see love in the world. I also have a deeper sense of self-love.” - Carolyn Colleen Carolyn’s Dark Past From the time she was four, Carolyn was sexually abused by his teenage neighbor. Unfortunately, the pattern repeated throughout her childhood, even after they relocated. Carolyn’s mother struggled with mental health. She was a hoarder and have issues with being too trusting with strangers. Her mother provided free lodging and meal for both men and who ended up molesting both Carolyn and her sister. “There was a time when I defined myself as being someone who was put here to be used and abused.” - Carolyn Colleen Changing Perspective People who have experienced trauma or who suffered PTSD may have flashbacks when exposed to a certain trigger—such as a certain sound, smell or mannerism of another person. Victims of abuse are reminded every day of their unfortunate experiences because of these triggers.  As a victim of abuse herself, Carolyn says her perspective is different. Memories pop up daily, but what she does with it and how it affects her is different now. She is now at peace with herself; developed a gratitude attitude and has acknowledged that her experiences made her stronger.  “Coming from a place of trauma—physical, sexual and emotional abuse—I've done a lot of self-work and realize when things might trigger me and how it affects my life. As I continually grew, I realized what happened to me doesn’t define me .” - Carolyn Colleen To hear more about the amazing journey of Carolyn, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Carolyn Colleen holds a Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology and a Masters in Business with a focus in Servant Leadership from Viterbo University. Dr. Colleen is speaker, author, and coach. She was born and raised in the Midwestern United States. She describes herself as a FIERCE mother, daughter, sister, and friend. Out of sheer necessity, Carolyn developed the F.I.E.R.C.E. 5 method, which helped her grow from a downtrodden, scared and ragged victim, standing in a food line at the Salvation Army, to the confident and successful person she is today, living a happy life she never realized she deserved., Carolyn took up the challenge of writing a book about her experiences. Now, with her book completed, she hopes that through sharing her story she will provide others with the hope, resources, and willpower needed so that they too can live the life they deserve. Links: Carolyn Colleen - Website F.I.E.R.C.E - Book Linkedin Instagram We hope you enjoyed Carolyn Colleen on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Gibby Booth Jasper, host of podcast Dyslexia is a Superpower, joins us today for a powerful dialogue about the learning difference Dyslexia. As a coach and advocate, Gibby talks about real life experiences of Dyslexics as well as the challenges and triumphs that go along with it.  Dyslexia is a Superpower Gibby Booth Jasper believes that the real value of being dyslexic is the power of having a different mind. Dyslexics look at problems differently. It enables different solutions and in turn develops a person’s tenacity and determination.  Many people look at dyslexia as a disability. However, it can be noted that a learning difference is never a hindrance to achieve personal goals. Just look at famous dyslexic people such as John F. Kennedy, George Washington, Albert Einstein, Walt Disney,   Richard Branson and Steven Spielberg, to name a few. “They say everybody has a mountain to climb, but with dyslexia, your mountain has lava flowing, it has wild boars and all these obstacles. When you finally get to the top, you are able to accomplish so much more.” - Gibby Booth Jasper Dyslexics Daily Struggle Gibby believes dyslexics can connect the dots and solve problems differently. However, society has put on a standard on activities like writing, reading, and solving Math—which makes it hard for dyslexics to cope. Other than that, they do have spatial awareness problems, which is the difficulty of differentiating the left and the right.  Gibby and Christopher exchanged personal experiences, as both are dyslexic themselves. Gibby recounter how traumatized she is with gas stations, as she cannot figure out moving forward and backward with her car. Christopher also shared some experiences, especially in self-check out counters in grocery stores and with tipping and counting money. “Spatial problems, self-checkout counters, counting money. Those are the kind of things that can be normally linked to dyslexia, so if you do see someone struggling, that might be it. Go help that someone” - Gibby Booth Jasper Empowering Dyslexics In dealing with dyslexia, Gibby stated the importance of informing their child that they are unique and different in a good way. Parents must reassure their children that nothing is wrong with them and assist them in building self-confidence.  “I think being able to look at it as ‘letting go of things because I can’t control them.’ Just have a sense of humor, because, in the grand scheme of life, it doesn’t matter” - Gibby Booth Jasper on struggles in doing daily activities The real challenge for a dyslexic lies on their ability to play out strengths and to empower themselves while dealing with the existing society. We hope you enjoyed Gibby Booth Jasper on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes! BIO: Gibby Booth Jasper Links: Gibby Booth Jasper - Website Steven Spielberg

Randy Komisar of Kleiner Perkins joins us today to celebrate the life and lessons of legendary Silicon Valley coach, late Bill Campbell. Guest Randy Komisar, along with colleague Paul Martino of Bullpen Capital, came together to capture Bill in a podcast. Bill was the coach to Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, and countless Silicon Valley legends.  Depicting The Real Bill Bill was featured in a book called Trillion Dollar Coach, prior to the release of Randy and Paul's podcast. The content of the book were flattering, but the title was so off-putting. It sets the wrong tone for understanding what BIll is all about.  “Bill wasn’t a guy with a big theory. He’s not that guy who has rules like ‘10 rules to be successful.’ He was somebody who connected incredibly well with who you were and what you need and was able to get you there.” - Randy Komisar  Bill was associated with a trillion dollars worth of value creation. He was not a highfalutin guy who would’ve wanted to be in the cover of a book. They were able to capture the real Bill, more than what the book portrayed him to be, through this podcast. Paying it Forward Randy and Paul had the opportunity to learn and share their respect and admiration for Bill and they want to pay it forward, through the production of their podcast. They wish that the entrepreneurs for the generations to come would be able to do the same. Entrepreneurs could get a lot of inspiration from Bill. Randy even cited that if it was not for Bill, he would have quit business a long time ago.  “Bill made business interesting for me and many people because he made it about people, not money.” - Randy Komisar Learnings From The Late Bill Campbell One important point from this discussion was the difference in doing what is right versus what is smart.  Bill believes smart people are great at rationalizing. Most of these people, though, still tend to overthink a problem and justify doing the wrong things.  “The right thing and the smart thing aren't necessarily the same. The right thing is worth doing, but the smart thing needs a lot of consideration. It may be smart because it allows you to do the wrong.” - Randy Komisar  This conversation with Randy Komisar is jam-packed with Bill Campbell’s wisdom in entrepreneurship, people management, Silicon Valley legacy. To hear more about Why Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos & many others turned to “The Coach” Bill Campbell and more relevant information from Randy, download and listen to the episode. BIO: Bill Campbell Links: No Bull Podcast Randy Komisar Paul Martino Straight Talk for Startups - Book The Monk and the Riddle: The Art of Creating a Life While Making a Living - Book Executives Launch Podcast To Pass On Lessons From Bill Campbell, Coach To Silicon Valley Stars Executives Launch Podcast To Pass On Lessons From Bill Campbell, Coach To Silicon Valley Stars We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Inspired by his conversation with Bob Evans at Cloud Wars Live, Christopher Lochhead talks about radical ideas involving employee happiness, growth, and satisfaction as key determinants in designing a company that people are lining up to work for.   Americans are Unhappy at Work Christopher shares the alarming truth of today’s workforce: Americans are unhappy with their jobs. In fact, in episode 056, guest Jim Harter discussed the rapid decline in the rate of productivity at work. Thirty-four percent (34%) of the 37.2 million American respondents surveyed said that they were not engaged. “If most employees say they are not engaged, and most managers say they are not engaged, then there's something off with the typical work environment—what most people would call culture.” - Christopher Lochhead Algebra of Happiness In episode 052, Professor Scott Galloway related how happiness can be plotted as a graph. A person’s happiness level starts relatively high until it slowly declines in a phase called “shit gets real stage.” Contributors to these low levels may include raising children, financial instability and crazy work life. After the dip, it goes up over time as a person reaches age 45 to 55. Amazing Culture at CutCo Listeners might remember from episode 044, Dan Casetta and his amazing culture at Cutco. Inexperienced high school graduates and working students make up his workforce. The company runs by its mantra, “changing lives while selling knives” and it has been successful with its recruitment, training, and inculturation. The Takeaway How do these ideas intersect? The vast majority of people felt disengaged at work. However, this is not the case at Cutco. Christopher acknowledges the industries today have a cultural, engagement problem. “If part of creating jobs is creating an environment for them to become fully self-actualized, then most companies are dramatically failing.” - Christopher Lochhead  If companies would only infuse into their culture the mentality of personality development⁠—where they teach employees life skills, career skills, sales skills, and relationship skills⁠—then people would definitely be lining up to work for them.  Christopher poses two points to ponder. First, could we change the level of engagement? Second, can we actually, meaningfully increase the amount of happiness the people have during the core part of their career? To hear more about Christopher’s take on designing a company that people are lining up to work for, download and listen to the episode. Got a question for Christopher? Email him at blackhole@lochhead.com.  Link: Book-It's The Manager by Jim Harter Jim Harter - Episode 056 Professor Scott Galloway - Episode 052 Dan Casetta - Episode 044 We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Eric Satz, CEO of Alto IRA and retirement planning advocate, joins us in today’s episode. He is on a mission to enable everyone to invest their retirement money in alternative investments⁠. He actively campaigns for drastic information dissemination among retirees to save them from potential poverty in the future. Diversifying Investments Regular listeners might remember the teachings of prior guests like David Osborne or Pat Hiban or Dorie Clark. These smart people recommend a diverse investment strategy that creates multiple income streams over time. Such a strategy will help investors achieve the amazing goal of having investments pay for all expenses. Eric Satz also promulgates diversifying investments, especially for retirees. He acknowledges the importance of various platforms today, where resources can be easily uploaded and disseminated. Eric and his team from Alto IRA provide information on alternative investments such as private startups, growth companies, real estate, loans, and digital assets and currencies. “The idea is to open up areas of investment that have the potential to generate higher returns, higher yield and greater levels of current income⁠—so that we are all in a better position to retire.” - Eric Satz Alarming Truths About Retirement Eric started his mission with straightforward and entrepreneurial motivation. There is a huge market opportunity of 30 trillion US dollars, sitting in retirement savings. However, only 1% of this amount is invested in alternative assets, instead of around 10 or 20%. “Investing is proactive, saving is passive. If we don't change the way we invest, 25 million Americans—elderly Americans—basically will be living in poverty.” - Eric Satz Eric wanted to fight the conventional wisdom of financial advisors. He considers America to be under a retirement crisis up until 2050. He promotes diversification in investing in businesses commonly considered by upper-middle-class and the elites, like real estate. Save and Invest Further, into this episode, Lochhead mentions the importance of having investments while saving on the side. He further says that retirees should take the opportunity to invest aggressively because of the changing of public-market-private-market dynamics. With a projected 46% increase in capital gains annually, an avid saver can plot his or her retirement early. To hear more about alternative investing and more relevant information from Eric, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Eric Satz, Founder/CEO Alto IRA An entrepreneur and former investment banker, Eric worked for DLJ/Credit Suisse First Boston before co-founding Currenex, Plumgood Food, and Tennessee Community Ventures, a VC firm. Eric served on the Board of the TVA from 2015-January 2019, and he teaches an entrepreneurship class to high school students. A Miami native and diehard 'Canes and Dolphins fan, Eric went to Amherst College. After years in NYC and then San Francisco, he and his wife moved to Nashville, her hometown, to raise their kids. When he's not breathing life into startup companies, Eric loves to ski, play soccer, and practice yoga. Links: Altoira Eric Satz - Linkedin Alto Ira Raises Seed Round - Hypepotamus Will Wall Street be able to earn the trust of younger investors Book: Rescuing Retirement: A Plan to Guarantee Retirement Security for All Americans We hope you enjoyed Eric Satz on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

In this episode, former Marine and Entrepreneur Christian Anschuetz⁠ and Bob Evans, host of "Cloud Wars Live" podcast⁠, joins us for a conversation about the connection between trust and happiness. They explore the dichotomy of why trust has never mattered more but remains so low in major institutions. Trust is Collapsing The conversation starts about personal definitions of trust and how trust and love coincide. The guests share anecdotes on their personal lives and ultimately, how trust adds to overall happiness in any relationship. Given the background of the guests, the discussion took a quick turn in discussing the trust issues of consumers to institutions. “Whether it's on a corporate level or a personal level, who we are, on a large part, is the promise or commitment that we make and whether or not we keep those promises or commitment.” - Christian Anscheutz According to PR Firm Edleman⁠, only 48% of people trust the government and 47% trust the media. Moreover, The Atlantic says, “Trust Is Collapsing in America.” Major corporations are not exempt from this discussion. Breaking Promises At a fundamental level, businesses are expected to have a set of commitments and promises around a product and service. These things make customers come back to the product/brand. However, we live at a time where a lot of major institutions have broken a lot of major promises to consumers, resulting in a massive takedown of trust. “Trust is being eroded and trust is being created and both seem to be happening on a rocket speed today.” - Bob Evans Christian and Bob observed that as big companies rise, failure in internal leadership, model setting, and problem recognition also results. It may be an advanced world now. However,  these companies have no clue in keeping their customers’ trust. Overriding Policies Internally, policies guide management decisions, while externally, policies help the company lead in new markets. However, policies don’t square well most of the time, especially in terms of bridging the gap between the consumer and the company. No matter how much employees want to help consumers, their hands are tied because of certain company policies. “How do companies fail to see this and how do they fail to act? It’s not a matter of doing stuff a little better or being more efficient. This is survival and death.” -Bob Evans To further enhance personalization with consumers, Christian and Bob suggest that companies should explore Artificial Intelligence in customer service. AI can understand a consumer’s profile and history. It can contextualize an appropriate response without causing risks for the company. To hear more about trust from Christian and Bob, download and listen to the episode. Bios: Christian Anscheutz Chief Digital Officer, UL Christian Anschuetz is the Chief Digital Officer (CDO) for UL (formerly known as Underwriters Laboratories) where he is responsible for identifying, prioritizing and embedding technology innovation and digital trends into the vision, strategy, and operating models required to sustain and accelerate the company’s growth. Before assuming the role of CDO, he served as UL’s global Chief Information Officer (CIO). Before joining UL, Christian was the CIO for Publicis Groupe, the 3rd largest communication company in the world. In addition to holding several other executive positions, Christian also founded a technology services boutique focused on providing cybersecurity services to firms as early as 1998. Christian holds degrees from the University of Michigan and Stayer University. He is a proud veteran of the United States Marine Corps and the founder of the innovative nonprofit startup, Project RELO. Bob Evans Bob grew up outside of Pittsburg, with hard-working parents and his 6 siblings. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1978 and entered the business world, flowing his passion for information technology and writing.

WIRED calls Jerry Colonna the CEO Whisperer. He believes better human beings make better leaders. Today, he joins Lochhead in a fun and deep adult conversation about his new book, Reboot, and about growing up, what it takes to become a warrior leader and a lot more. Writing a Book He Would Read Jerry shares that Reboot is the only book he could write. Anything else would have been complete and utter bullshit. After all, he has had too many scars to bullshit his way through life. He didn’t even know what he wanted to write when he received his agent's offer. But soon he realized that they wanted him to be himself and show up. And the experience, coupled with his readers’ reactions, could easily reduce him to tears. “I wrote the book that I needed to read 20 years ago.” - Jerry Colonna Words Coming from Life Towards the beginning of his book, Jerry ran by some of the many hardships people could go through. A co-founder quitting, investors pulling funding, spouses giving up, and many more. Every one of these instances is not some theoretical experience and can happen to anyone. Such are the moments to stare deeply into our own experience and ask ourselves some important questions. What are we made out of, what have we chosen? But more broadly, in what ways have we been complicit in creating conditions we don't want? “It's much easier to look at the world and say, ‘Why are you doing this to me? Why is this happening to me?’ But that's uninteresting.” - Jerry Colonna Complicit Versus Responsible In writing his book, Jerry used the word “complicit” purposefully. He says that it differs from “responsible”, in that being complicit is like “going along with” and also unconscious. And like Joseph Campbell and Carl Jung said, until we make the unconscious conscious, it will direct our lives and we will call it fate. We can realize how we become complicit in creating such conditions by answering the question of how they have served us. After all, that which persists does so because it delivers something. “We might maintain structures not in our best interest because they serve this sort of larger wish for love, safety and belonging.” - Jerry Colonna To hear more about Reboot, warrior leaders with open hearts and more life-altering nuggets from Jerry, download and listen to the episode. Bio: The founder and CEO of Reboot.IO, Inc. Colonna is a certified professional coach. Colonna draws on his wide variety of experiences to help clients design a more conscious life and make needed changes to their career to improve their performance and satisfaction. He established his coaching practice in 2007. Prior to this work, Colonna was a venture capitalist focused on investing in early-stage technology-related startups. In 2002, Colonna became a partner with J.P. Morgan Partners (JPMP), the private-equity arm of J.P. Morgan Chase where he led the firm’s investments in companies such as ProfitLogic, Inc. Colonna served as a director at ProfitLogic until its purchase by Oracle, Inc. During his time at JPMP, his commitment to the non-profit sector increased significantly. In the fall of 2001, he worked with The Partnership for the City of New York to help launch the Financial Recovery Fund, a $10 million-plus program that made recoverable grants to small businesses impacted by the attacks on the World Trade Center. He was named co-Executive Director of NYC2012 in January 2002, the organization designed to secure the City’s designation as the representation in the competition to host the 2012 Olympic Games. In that year, he helped raise more than $6 million to further those efforts. He joined JPMP from Flatiron Partners. With his partner, Fred Wilson, Colonna launched Flatiron in August 1996. Flatiron became one of the most successful, early-stage investment programs. During his tenure with Flatiron, Colonna was responsible for the firm’s investments in companies such as Geocities Inc. and Gamesville Inc.

Rick Bennett, Silicon Valley's advertising and marketing secret weapon, joins us for the last installation of this four-part series on Marketing. He specializes in guerrilla warfare marketing and has been the secret advertising weapon to Silicon Valley entrepreneurs for over 30 years. Two of his most spectacular successes are Oracle and Salesforce.com, working with both Larry Ellison and Marc Benioff, respectively. “I like to do Marketing that causes emergency board meetings and CEO firings at my competitors.” - Christopher’s favorite expression from Rick Bennett Sharing Best Practices Having worked together in Silicon Valley, Lochhead considers Rick as one of his “Masters.” Rick is one of the advertising senseis in the field who has been humbled by the experience but is highly regarded in the industry. To Christopher’s surprise, Rick also shared how he extracts one-liners from one of his bestselling books, Niche Down: How to Be Legendary by Being Different. Rick Bennett, dubbed as The OG (Original Gangster)—a modern-day technology Adman—has successfully implemented uniquely-crafted marketing campaigns. He stressed the importance of one-of-a-kind advertising. “Ellison's law states that you are not allowed to say anything that one of your competitors would say—whether in website, email, anywhere—so I insist on enforcing that to my clients too.”  - Rick Bennett Guerilla Marketing: Making Generals Surrender Rick shared some important insights about guerilla marketing. One of the goals of guerilla warfare is to make the generals of the opposing army make mistakes. “My ads will attack your competition like a pack of speedy, crazed wolverines” - Rick Bennett He said, “Demoralize the generals of the opposing army, then they’ll make mistakes. You have your investors to say, ‘Hey we have a winner here’ and you have to make the employees feel that their boss is kicking ass.” In the end, marketers should aim for a campaign where you make opposing generals psychologically surrender, even before any battle has begun. To hear more about the interview with Guerilla Marketing Guru Rick Bennett, download and listen to the episode. BIO: Rick Bennett specializes in guerrilla warfare marketing. He’s been the secret advertising weapon to Silicon Valley entrepreneurs for over 30 years. Two of his most spectacular successes are Oracle and Salesforce.com. Links: RickBennet.com LinkedIn We hope you enjoyed Rick Bennett on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Gina Bianchini is a pioneering entrepreneur in social networking and the founder of Mighty Networks. Today, she speaks again with her bro Lochhead. They talk about building digital communities and why the future is about creating niche networks. “The more and more isolated that we all feel in our daily lives, the more valuable each and every one of these niche brands and businesses that can create compelling experiences.” - Gina Bianchini Mighty Networks from a Year Ago Mighty Networks has always been a platform for creators with a purpose. They cater to people—brands and businesses—that want to bring people together and build relationships. In turn, community members can learn and access content together while creators get paid what they are due. All of that while helping other people become the best versions of themselves. Which is pretty cool because this is the job that everybody wants today. On Building Niche Networks Gina came to realize that the notion of finding one’s niche has become fundamental in social networking. That is, people are not only hungry for discovering their niches. They seek people who can put up niche networks. “We're all desperate for smaller, more specialized ways of building relationships, having amazing experiences and gaining expertise. The people that can put that together for us will win in a way that has just not been possible before.” - Gina Bianchini Niche brands, businesses and creators with a purpose are creating their own worlds to help people. Gina says that the faster we all get to that world, the better off we all will be. The Value Created by Mighty Networks In a previous episode, Joe Pine shared with Lochhead the difference between being a company that people save time with and one that people spend time with. He says that Mighty Networks is very well on its way to becoming the latter. That is, if it isn’t already. “Who you bring together matters as much or more to their experience with your brand and the kind of time they wanna spend with your brand as any single thing that you can do as that creator, as that brand.” - Gina Bianchini To hear more about niche networks from Gina, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Gina Bianchini (Twitter: @ginab) is an entrepreneur, investor and the CEO and founder of Mighty Networks, a new type of social network platform for creating communities. An early pioneer in social networking, she was CEO of Ning, which she co-founded with entrepreneur and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen. Prior to Ning, Bianchini was co-founder and president of Harmonic Communications which was acquired by Dentsu. She has also held positions at CKS Group and Goldman Sachs & Co. She graduated from Stanford University in 1994 and has been featured on the cover of Fortune magazine, on Charlie Rose and appeared in many top business publications. Links: Wikipedia MightyNetworks.com Twitter LinkedIn Strategy + Business - The global village needs walls We hope you enjoyed Gina Bianchini on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

On this episode, one of the new modern marketing leaders Sangram Vajre joins Lochhead for a riveting conversation. Sangram shares his takes on consumer and enterprise tech, category design, being an evangelist and so much more. Boom in Enterprise About 50 enterprise tech companies have gone public with a median increase of 126% in value since 2016. These numbers eclipse consumer tech companies, which have displayed a median of 15% market value increase. Lochhead and Sangram dish out their own conjectures about this gap between consumer and enterprise tech. “A theory is that your job depends on it (enterprise tech). Pinterest going up and down doesn’t change, really, my job day-to-day… Zoom is a must thing right now for businesses.” - Sangram Vajre Lochhead adds that consumer businesses are hit businesses and more vitamin-esque than aspirin-esque. Founders also tend to build consumer businesses on a short period of time due to the pressure of their predecessors’ success stories. In effect, these add to the scrambling and failure to permeate the market better. From Poison to Accelerator Pick-and-shovel enterprise tech is a poison that companies can run without back in the day. People knew there were pain points and yet they continued to work around them. But with the dawn of products like Zoom, everything in business has monumentally changed. “It has gone on from being a poison to an accelerator for our business. I feel like there is something to that—the shovel is now in the house.” - Sangram Vajre It takes a couple of years to build something that a business can run on, even at a small scale. Rather than the hype, enterprise businesses bank on this usability. To Become an Evangelist The Chief Evangelist of Terminus says that building a community takes humility and authenticity. It also requires really caring and having an evangelistic view of the problem. “I will fight until the ends of the earth to fix this problem and even if it's not fixed, I will do my contributions to fix it. And that, to me, is the definition of evangelist in a nutshell.” - Sangram Vajre To hear more about marketing and evangelization from Sangram, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Sangram is the co-founder and Chief Evangelist of Terminus, a leader in account-based marketing that has raised over $20 million in funding. Prior to co-founding Terminus, Sangram ran marketing at Pardot through the acquisition of ExactTarget. Salesforce then acquired ExactTarget for $2.5 billion dollars. He wrote the very first book on account-based marketing (ABM), published by Wiley. Sangram is an international speaker and host of the top 50 business podcast called #FlipMyFunnel, and has been recognized as one of the top 21 B2B Influencers in the world by DMN Network and 40 under 40 by DMNews. Sangram aims to build the largest and most engaged community of B2B professionals in the world.    Links: Flip My Funnel - author page LinkedIn Twitter Terminus Amazon - Account-Based Marketing for Dummies We hope you enjoyed Sangram Vajre on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

We revisit Lochhead’s conversation with Andre Iguodala to celebrate the basketball legend's new book, The Sixth Man. What does it take to become an NBA World Champion with a thoughtful life design? The finals MVP of the Golden State Warriors joins us today to give an insider’s view. “How can this one thing turn into everything? How can you build something that hasn't been built?” - Andre Iguodala Finding His Way to the Bay Before he joined the Warriors, Andre had seen his fair share of rainy and muggy days. It was during that time that he chose to sit back and watch basketball a lot. Seeing his opponents and the certain kind of joy they had, he soon realized that he wanted to be in a place where he could enjoy basketball. “I just paid attention and it’s kind of being aware of your surroundings. That’s what kind of brought me here.” – Andre Iguodala Strengthening the Team’s Core Warriors’ head coach, Steve Kerr understood the ups and downs of playing in the NBA. The environment and mood of the team ultimately affect performance on the court. As coach, he gave the players the freedom to enjoy what they do. Everyone appreciates this mentality that the coach has. He’s all about supporting everyone and wanting them to succeed. This strong core enables them to build a culture that is key to their success as a team. Success from Building Culture A lot of people would say that in order to have success, you need to have the best talent. This is true. But Andre has seen other teams with strong individual talents that fall apart from the lack of a great match of personalities and well-founded culture. “You can have all the talent in the world but if you don’t have the right culture, their personalities don’t fit, there’s just gonna be a lot of dysfunction.” – Andre Iguodala There’s plenty of factors that come into play when aiming for success. And a team should act like a machine, with its members on the same page, on the same path, and moving at the same pace. “What the team has been able to do here is find the right personalities to fit the culture that we have built here.” – Andre Iguodala on the Warriors To hear more about the Warriors, Andre’s business sense, and his investment in Silicon Valley, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Andre Iguodala is a professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was an NBA All-Star in 2012 and named to the NBA All-Defensive Team twice. He won a championship with the Warriors in 2015. Andre was also named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player that year. He was also a member of the gold-winning national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship and 2012 Summer Olympics. (Source: Andre Iguodala- Wikipedia) Links: Instagram Twitter mindofai9.com Blog on NBC Sports’ “Andre Iguodala Doesn’t Always Do Podcasts” We hope you enjoyed Andre Iguodala on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Ken Honda has authored over 50 books and sold over 8 million of them. Today, he joins Lochhead in a riveting conversation about his latest book, Happy Money and how you can have a powerful relationship with it. “Next time you have a hard time feeling happy about writing checks, just say, ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you for giving me the opportunity to bless people with my money.’” - Ken Honda Happy Money Defined Ken exemplifies happy money through the news he watched prior to coming on the call with Lochhead. Someone delivered a speech about taking care of all the student loans of hundreds of college graduates. Without getting anything out of it, the person was lifting this particular burden, which kills lots of people, off of these graduates’ shoulders. “Happy money is money that makes you smile when you receive it. And also, it gives you joy when you spend it.” - Ken Honda This is a fascinating way of thinking about money. After all, most people and authors espouse how-tos of making, saving, budgeting and other money mechanics. Money Healer Ken Honda Often called the money healer, Ken not only teaches financial independence. His focus also lies on how to heal one’s relationship with money. People tend to worry about it too much that they cannot have a healthy life. We have become so restricted because of money issues. Ken took up the mission to help people be free of these constraints. Everyone Has Money Wounds In Happy Money, Ken writes about money wounds. This less than positive relationship with money stems from the simple truth that we all are frustrated with money in one way or another. And by all, he means not just the financially challenged people who have a hard time making ends meet. Middle class people manage to make ends meet, but barely. Meanwhile, those in upper middle class feel disadvantaged and feel the need to work hard to graduate, land a job and pay back their loans. And the wealthy people feel some kind of guilt about sitting at the top. “If you can somehow heal your money wounds and transform your relationship with money, you can then be happy forever. It takes a little practice, but not too much.” - Ken Honda To hear more about bettering your relationship with money from Ken, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Ken Honda is a bestselling author of self-development books in Japan, where he has sold more than eight million books since 2001. While his financial expertise comes from owning and managing several businesses, his writings bridge the topics of finance and self-help, focusing on creating and generating personal wealth and happiness through deeper self-honesty. He is the first person from Japan to be voted into the Transformational Leadership Council. Fluent in Japanese and English, he has lived in Boston and currently resides in Tokyo. Links: KenHonda.com Simon and Shuster - Happy Money Goodreads - Happy Money We hope you enjoyed Ken Honda on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Living legendary designer Max Temkin, co-creator of Cards Against Humanity (“a party game for horrible people”) talks about his ideas on design, company building, his work ethic—or lack thereof—and so much more. Max’s Non-Existent Work Ethic Max proclaims himself as a horrible procrastinator with no work ethic. He can never decide to do something and sit down to actually do it. Because of this, he has developed coping mechanisms to get him through last-minute clutch work. This ties up with the philosophy of necessary and sufficient conditions that he personally believes in. Working hard is necessary to keep a business running but it is never sufficient. Hard work needs to be coupled with critical thinking, team play and good energy to make legendary things possible. “No one is successful just because they killed themselves with work.“ - Max Temkin The Wild Medium: Design Max says that it is incredibly difficult to break down what it means to be a designer. After all, so many skills go into design. There is design thinking, organization and empathy for the user, and then there are the technical skills like typography and color theory. Because of the many skills that a designer can sink their teeth into, no designer is excellent at everything. It would take more than one lifetime to master them. For example, Max has never understood color theory, so he stuck to black and white, which eventually became his brand. “I’ve definitely come to suspect that for many people, what you might call their style is like the coping mechanisms they've developed to cover those holes in their skill set.” - Max Temkin Building Small Things Max says that people usually build things from the desire to make them just because it would be neat to do so. Some people would put up their creations for the people to decide their fate. Some would build a company with the mindset of growing its worth into a billion dollars. Max believes that these ideas, however, are rarely delightful and rarely work. In contrast, allowing yourself to think small and unconstrained would help your ideas grow into huge phenomena. “Very rarely does someone go, ‘I'm gonna change the world with this huge idea’ and then it works exactly as intended.” - Max Temkin To hear more about design, gaming and the Do By Friday podcast from Max, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Max Temkin is a designer.   He is best known for co-creating of the #1 selling, category creating “adult party game” Cards Against Humanity.   He also co-created, Secret Hitler, and Humans vs. Zombies.   Max is also co-host of the popular podcast, “Do By Friday”. Links: Maxistentialism.com Max’s Legendary Personal FAQ CardsAgainstHumanity.com Cards Against Humanity - Wikipedia The Sun UK -  Cards Against Humanity set to be a shocking quiz show on Comedy Central PR Week - Cards Against Humanity Gorilla Black Friday Marketing! The New York Times - Letter of Complaint: Cards Against Humanity SecretHitler.com HumansvsZombies.org Do By Friday Podcast - Overcast Do By Friday Podcast - iTunes We hope you enjoyed Max Temkin on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

In celebration of the NBA finals, we’re releasing a special re-issue of an episode with the legendary Bill Walton. Originally aired in February 2018, let us revisit this conversation full of Bill’s enthusiastic view of life through its many ups and downs. “When you wanna get someplace, you have to have the dream. And then you have to have a teacher, somebody who has been where you wanna go because the surest way to find out how get there first is to talk to somebody who’s on their way back.” - Bill Walton More Failures than Greatness A lot of life’s greatest lessons come mostly from failures, Bill says. Sure, he has lived more than 60 years and has been part of some true greatness. Even then, he still felt cursed with his lifelong speech impediment and eventual injury. “My life has been defined by meteoric rises to the top from [when I was] really young and then incredible crashes to the bottom all caused by orthopedic health crises.” - Bill Walton In the course of those 60 and some years, Bill has completely changed as a human being. Enjoying Life Including Change After reading Lochhead’s Play Bigger, he came to realize the importance of willingness to embrace change. It is, after all, one of the things that athletics prepares you for. In life, things go wrong and things collapse and we need to get ready when they do. To aid in his positivity-driven life, Bill lives by Coach John Wooden’s 2 sets of 3. Never lie, never cheat, never steal; don’t whine, don’t complain, don’t make excuses. Embracing change means embracing and working around what life serves you. “When I see these guys whining, when I see these guys complaining and making excuses, I always tell them, ‘Look, I'll listen to your problems one time. But from here on out, I wanna hear a plan on your path forward.’” - Bill Walton Secrets to Get Someplace Bill shares that he always tries to be a dreamer to get somewhere in life. He has learned to keep dreaming from the greatest influences in his life. In a world that tries to send him in other directions, he always turns to those who love to read, who dare to dream. The second key ingredient? A teacher who can show him the way. To hear more about Bill’s secrets to positivity and its fruits, download and listen to the episode. Bio: In 1997, Bill Walton was selected as one of the NBA's Fifty Greatest Players of all Time. He’s an Emmy award-winning broadcaster and Forbes calls him one of the top 10 pundits in America. In 2009, Walton was named one of the top 50 sports broadcasters of all time by the American Sportscasters Association. In June 21, 2001, Bill was named as the inaugural inductee into the Grateful Dead Hall of Honor. Bill is the bestselling author of “Back From The Dead" and a highly entertaining and engaging keynote speaker. Links: BillWalton.com Twitter Instagram NBA Profile ESPN Biography We hope you enjoyed Bill Walton on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Tim Rhode, founder of the non-profit 1 Life Fully Lived, has helped thousands of people turn their lives around. On this episode, this favorite buddy of Lochhead’s talks about life design, going from entrepreneur to non-profit founder and more. “Are you living in what we call the one life fulfillment triangle? Where do your passions meet your talents where there's opportunity in the marketplace?” - Tim Rhode Transitioning from Entrepreneurship to Non-Profit Tim did not get a ton of non-profit experience prior to founding 1 Life Fully Lived. He was like any realtor who eventually became a mini-tycoon and founded the organization in a most unconventional way. He did not merely dump his cash in a foundation but was actually very involved in it. The transition has been an amazing journey. Tim says that he owes it to the many talented people who know who they are and believe in 1 Life Fully Lived. With them, he is able to live every day in a state of flow, always seeking improvement. “The journey has been getting to know who could most use all of this and how can we best serve—and what's the real estate term—the highest and best use of 1 Life Fully Lived to help make a difference in a world that can certainly use a 1 Life movement now.” - Tim Rhode Why People Struggle Tim points out some of the reasons why people are constantly struggling on top of the economic uncertainties that bog them down. “They're struggling because they're basically being taught to struggle by people who are struggling, not having quite figured it out themselves.” - Tim Rhode This ecosystem knows nothing but struggle and people can get used to being part of it. Christopher concurs with this. When you grow up in such an environment, it is all you are going to think life is about. Designing a Best Life To overcome the ceaseless struggle, people need to be exposed to new ideas, thought processes and good role models. These models will then spark the question of what-could-be in those who are stuck and have yet to find their footing. Most schools teach us that getting a degree and doing well on SATs is the only way to become successful in life. However, 1 Life Fully Lived seeks to shake up that system and teach people valuable entrepreneurial skills. And in so doing, they hope these people would have not only financial freedom by the time they’re old and gray but also the health and vitality to still “get the goods in the woods.” To hear about people doing great things alongside with Tim and how to create a diverse, mission-driven network of people, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Tim Rhode sold over 2,500 homes when from 1986 to 2000. He bought and sold over 100 properties and coached more than 200 investing students for foreclosures.com. Today, Tim is the founder of non-profit, 1 Life Fully Lived and co-founder of men’s mastermind group GoBundance where he helps thousands live their best lives. Links: 1LifeFullyLived.org Facebook GoBundance.com LinkedIn We hope you enjoyed Tim Rhode on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Professor Christian Terwiesch gets in touch with Lochhead for a remarkable conversation about connected opportunities in the customer journey. They dig into his new book, Connected Strategy, which looks into new forms of connectivity that can build legendary interactions with customers. “What would it take that you blow this tradeoff away and you can have a higher efficiency, low fulfillment cost interaction with the customer and still delight the customer?” - Professor Christian Terwiesch First Things First: Customer’s Perspective In order for connected strategies to happen, business leaders should first think about the customer’s perspective. It is important to know the product and service that you want to provide them. And even more important is knowing the customer’s motivations for availing of your product. For example, a shoe designer can spend tons of money on R&D and marketing to build relationships with retail stores. And even then, they could fail miserably at understanding their customers’ pain points. After all, the company that focuses on just the shoe itself will not be able to deliver quality customer journey. “The customer's pain points are not about just buying the shoe and having a great shoe. There's a much bigger aspiration that this runner potentially has—feeling good, running their first marathon.” - Professor Christian Terwiesch Connected Customer Journeys A term that Professor Terwiesch is particularly fond of is “consumption shame”, called “customer journey” in his book. This reminds us that people do not wake up in the morning and say they want our product. They first have to realize the need, which may be initially latent, for a product. From there, they can make the choice and finally buy the product. This journey, a form of engagement and experience, is made of weaved and repeated interactions. “It's weaving those disjoint experiences together, so that you and I—my firm and you—will have a relationship that goes much longer than one episode.” - Professor Christian Terwiesch Recognize, Request, Respond, Repeat Lochhead also shared his own experience after a recent purchase of podcasting equipment. A representative rang him up, asked some questions about his purchase, and then offered to help him directly should he have concerns. Christopher also received an email containing links to the shop’s FAQs page, which completely blew him away. A company’s personal touch shows the embeddedness of the moment of purchase in a longer customer journey. There could also be a similar experience for other customers before they make the purchase. Four stages in the journey that could use such connected strategies are the moments when customers recognize, request, respond and repeat their interaction with the product. To hear more about connected strategies from Professor Terwiesch and how you can utilize them, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Christian Terwiesch is a professor of Operations and Information Management at Wharton and co-directs Penn’s Mack Institute for Innovation Management.   With extensive experience in MBA teaching, online courses, and executive education. Professor Terwiesch has authored several books, and published in many of today’s leading academic journals, from Management Science to The New England Journal of Medicine.    He also hosts the national Sirius XM radio show Work of Tomorrow. He holds a doctoral degree from INSEAD and a Diploma from the University of Mannheim.   Links: OID, Wharton School - University of Pennsylvania Profile Executive Education, Wharton School - University of Pennsylvania Profile Twitter Amazon Profile Amazon - Connected Strategy Speaker Booking Agency Profile Work of Tomorrow We hope you enjoyed Professor Christian Terwiesch on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

According to Gallup’s management practice Chief Scientist Jim Harter, the productivity of people at work has been increasing… but at a declining rate. More concerning is how only 34% of American workers and two-thirds of managers are engaged at work. On this episode, he touches on the topic of bosses versus coaches, workplace engagement, people efficiency, and a lot more. “I want my job to kind of reflect who I am, match my identity… I don't want my manager to just be an expert on my weakness, I want them to be an expert on my strengths.” - Jim Harter Changes in Workplace Productivity The numbers Jim and his teammates have tracked for a while hint on how workplace productivity trends upward, albeit slowly. The figures clearly tell of a room for growth for most organizations. Workplaces are changing tremendously, and this creates an even bigger burden on leaders. These changes include the massive increases in diversity, technology, remote work, among other things. Needless to say, all these factors affect productivity. Theory and Practice of Management There is also the dissonance between the science and practice of management. Leveraging the science is one area for improvement of working environments, and more so its application in practice. “We've seen that the practice of management hasn't kept up with the science of management. The science of management has advanced significantly in recent decades but the practice of management hasn't.” - Jim Harter One such example is how the new workforce has evolved and now ask for a coach, not a boss. Therefore, one of the more critical things organizations need to be thinking about is moving from a culture of boss to coach. This ultimately relates to leaders asking for a change of culture to match the changing workforce. People Efficiency is the Future Jim says leaders need to keep up with the changes to both the workforce and the science of management. That is, they need to shift the focus from process efficiency to people efficiency. “People efficiency is getting people into roles where they know what's expected of them, where they have clear expectations, where they're coached on an ongoing basis to do what they do best, to use their strengths.” - Jim Harter In flexible and remote working environments that are more common nowadays, it becomes even more important to be purposeful about three things. First, there is setting expectations, and then continually touching base with people. Lastly, a workplace needs to be of high trust and accountability. To hear more about strength-based environments, extrinsic versus intrinsic motivations and more from Jim, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Jim Harter, Ph.D., is Chief Scientist for Gallup's workplace management practice. He is the coauthor of the New York Times bestseller 12: The Elements of Great Managing, an exploration of the 12 crucial elements for creating and harnessing employee engagement. Dr. Harter's book, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller, Wellbeing: The Five Essential Elements, is based on a global study of what differentiates people who are thriving from those who are not. His research is featured in First, Break All the Rules, and he contributed the foreword to Gallup's new edition of this groundbreaking bestseller. Dr. Harter is the primary researcher and author of the first large-scale, multi-organization study to investigate the relationships between work-unit employee engagement and business results. Updated periodically, this study currently covers 82,000 business units and includes 1.8 million employees in 230 organizations, across 49 industries and in 73 countries. His work has appeared in many publications, including Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Fast Company and TIME Magazine, and in academic articles and book chapters. Dr. Harter received his doctorate in psychological and cultural studies in quantitative and qualitative methods from the...

Lochhead rants about a topic for a raging debate within part of the podcast community. He puts in his two cents on the subject of the fraudcast — podcasts that charge their guests to come on. “We have never once been paid by a guest to come on this podcast and I think when podcasters do that, they break what you might think of as the social contract with their audience.” - Christopher Lochhead The Conversation on Fraudcasts Recently, Christopher’s buddy and fellow podcaster Eric Hunley, host of Unstructured, invited him over for a discussion with another award-winning podcaster Super Joe Pardo. The topic of the conversation? There are certain podcasts like Super Joe’s that for a while now have started the practice of charging guests who come on the podcast. “I call these podcasts, fraudcasts. And to put it mildly, I think it's bullshit for a podcaster to charge the guest to come on.” - Christopher Lochhead Christopher’s Personal Guest Criteria Every single guest that comes on Christopher’s podcast is someone he is dying to have a conversation with. And all of them, he hopes, are people the listeners would love to listen to. This is the very criteria that he uses, and he does not care whether the guests are big celebrities or not. “We have many legends whose names you don't know and these are just people who I think are doing legendary shit that's different, that's courageous, and that’s fundamentally interesting, and I’m dying to have a conversation with them.” - Christopher Lochhead The criteria that he does not use is how much they paid him. Gray Areas in the Fraudcast Discourse Of course, there are some gray areas in this discussion. One is that it is fine for guests to pay you as long as you disclose it to your audience. It is no podcast Christopher would personally listen to. But there are people who would willingly sit through hours of O Shopping Network’s infomercials. To each their own, after all. To hear more about this hot topic of fraudcasts and relevant information from Christopher, download and listen to the episode. Links: Eric Hunley’s Unstructured Podcast: Should Podcast Guests Pay? Payola Radio Scandal Payola: Influencing the Charts A Brief History of American Payola We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Hailed as the best DJ in America, Claude VonStroke regularly performs for five to ten thousand people and even more. He shares his origin story, how his truly genius and original plan to learn from the best DJs made him America’s #1 DJ and how worked for 15 long years to make his dreams come true. “I'm trying to tell you that going after the golden goose isn't always the best path to success… only a few can get lucky so we don't even try to go that route. We just try to be legit. We just try to be who we are, and because we do that, it works.“ - Claude VonStroke Claude’s Early Foray into Music In an industry that celebrates mostly teenage geniuses, Claude stands out as someone who did gain music production until he was about 32. He grew up in a realm where a youngster could not just find anything on the Internet. Nobody in the neighborhood played the music he wanted to create so he had to forge an unusual path. “There's no generational group of artists, every six years flipping over, that's showing another group of younger people that, ‘Oh, you can be a huge techno DJ from Milwaukee.’” - Claude VonStroke Cleveland-born, Claude’s musical influences evolved after moving to Detroit. From listening to Uncle Vic playing Journey in Cleveland, he went on and began listening to The Electrifying Mojo’s playlist of Prince and Run-DMC. As the kind of kid who was obsessed with listening to the radio every night, these artists shaped his music taste. Fifteen Years in the Making Claude didn’t always want to make music. In the past, he also wanted to be a film director. He took a solid fifteen years to realize that he “sucked” at the project and people management aspect of filmmaking. “The path is just totally different. It's like you need to be a real manager of personalities to be a great filmmaker. But to be a musician, you just kinda have to learn to manage yourself.” - Claude VonStroke Music remained in the closet for years. Claude knew he was good at it but he didn’t want to admit it and didn’t see that DJing could be a job. He didn’t start going to underground raves until he was 23. A Genius Plan to Learn To overcome the fact that he did not know anybody in the music industry, Claude put to use his filmmaking talent. He decided to make a documentary about some techno music and every music DJ who came to San Francisco after moving from Detroit. In a fascinating turn of events, his inability to license songs forced him to make music that sounded like his interviewee’s. By the end of it, he not only got every single piece of information about these DJs. He learned to make the songs that they made, and the rest is history. “My first record was big because I've been bottled up for 20 years waiting to release a huge record.” - Claude VonStroke To hear more about Claude’s story of creativity, entrepreneurship and massive risk-taking, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Barclay Crenshaw (a.k.a. Claude VonStroke) DJ Magazine says he is the best DJ In America Billboard Magazine says his label, Dirty Bird is one of the top 5 Independence Dance Labels Mix Magazine named Dirty Bird the label of the decade He’s also got a critically acclaimed Radio Show and podcast called "The Birdhouse" In this day and age of music cross-pollination, Claude VonStroke sits at the forefront of all that is good, proper and most importantly, fun. VonStroke is just as relaxed in his home studio building beats as he is dropping massive underground records in a room filled by thousands. DJ-wise, his relentless touring of every major city, festival and basement after-party around the world has only enriched his unique perspective on music. As the owner of the record label, DIRTYBIRD, Claude also built an impeccable A&R roster signing acts like Justin Martin, Julio Bashmore, Catz n Dogz, Riva Starr, Tim Green, Breach, Eats Everything, Shadow Child and Shiba San, well before they broke out of their hometown scenes.

Dushka Zapata joins us for another fun and life-affirming conversation. Dushka and Christopher talk about the origins of her soon-to-be-released book, how recounting something differently is valid, and how stories differ from facts. Recounting Things Uniquely Dushka is very aware of her unique thought process that translates into her writing. Oftentimes, her recollection of shared experiences differs from that of other people. She finds this fascinating. Regardless of what other people say, these instances remind her that she has the license to say things in a different way in order to tell a story. She knows it is not some conscious effort but her recounting of things as exactly as she can. “I’ve known for a long time that I look at things differently than other people. I think that's what makes me worth reading—because it's less about what happened but more of my perspective about it.” - Dushka Zapata Different is Valid She will soon be releasing a book about stories from her childhood and her family. She shared some of these stories to her siblings and as expected, they were surprised with the way she saw things. And for such a book, what title can be more fitting other than, This is How I Remember It? Her book not only celebrates the uniqueness of each individual’s perspective but also nullifies the notion that one point of view is superior to another. The memory of a loved one’s passing is generally painful, but for some people like Dushka, it can also be beautiful. “I feel really strongly about the way I remember things. It matters to me about how other people claim that I'm not recounting something right… I think that's a gift. I'm so happy that the way I remember things is like that.” - Dushka Zapata A Thin Line Between Facts and Stories Dushka puts simply the difference between facts and stories through an answer to a Quora question. We often make assumptions about people’s behaviors that seem out of the ordinary. And these assumptions, those add-ons, are usually the stories that embellish facts. Failure to see the difference between the two results in struggles for most people. “It's a wonder we understand each other at all because we look at the world through our assumptions and our insecurities, but I also think that we look at the world through a lot of things that never actually take place.” - Dushka Zapata To hear more about Dushka’s powerful answers to Quora questions, her deeper take on stories and facts, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Dushka Zapata is one of the most prolific and popular writers working today. On question and answer site Quora her work has been viewed over 135 million times. She’s the author of eight best-selling books. Dushka has over 20 years of experience as a senior communications executive in Silicon Valley. When she’s not writing, she serves as a communications executive at tech juggernaut Zendesk. Links: Quora Profile Books on Amazon New Book -  You Belong Everywhere: and Other Things You'll Have to See for Yourself Twitter LinkedIn Quora Answers: Is there an age where it no longer makes any sense to take ballet lessons? My boyfriend doesn't text me first. I have to text him first, and after that, he often doesn't text me back. Why? We hope you enjoyed Dushka Zapata on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

A powerful, researched-based look at happiness with Professor Scott Galloway from NYU. Professor Galloway is one of the most respected voices on the Internet today. He shares how the happiness curve dips in our 20s and 30s, the many "algorithms to achieving a happy life" and why “follow your passion” is the worst advice ever. The Arc of Happiness According to Professor Galloway, the arc of happiness starts off at a peak from the age of 0 to 22, when there’s not a lot of responsibility to deal with. Around 25, shit finally gets real. Everything we have been told is simply not going to happen and handed to us on a silver platter. By the time we’re in our late 20s and 30s, we come to grips with the fact that as a species, we are competitive. We vie for the title of most successful, and when we fail at that, disappointments come in one after the other. At 35-45 years old, we reach the bottom of the smile, where we slowly work our way up once again to a more rewarding life. “The happiest people in the world are probably the people who shouldn't be, and that is, [the] seniors.” - Professor Scott Galloway Algorithms and Equations to Happiness Through his research, Professor Galloway found about 10 or 12 algorithms and equations directly correlated to someone’s happiness. A lot of factors contribute to happiness—financial, geographical and even demographic. For instance, the difference between being poor and being financially secure is enormous in terms of contribution to one’s happiness. After all, money can buy you happiness up to a certain point. Where you choose to settle can also affect your chances at success and opportunities for growth, especially as a young person. “You wanna get to where the snow and the waves are great such that you have the greatest opportunity to be good at what you do.” - Professor Scott Galloway Why “Follow Your Passion” is Bad Advice We have heard it time and again. Any speaker would typically sign off with doing what you love when they themselves achieved financial success through, say, iron ore smelting. And the notion that they are actually passionate about such a thing is utter bullshit. Professor Galloway says that we are most passionate about finding what we are good at and becoming great at it. Only then can we become one step closer to happiness. “The financial and psychological and emotional accouterments that come with being great at something will make you passionate around whatever it is.” - Professor Scott Galloway To hear from Professor Galloway about the state of young men in America today and why love is ultimately the key to being happy, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Scott Galloway is a Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern School of Business where he teaches Brand Strategy and Digital Marketing to second-year MBA students. He is the author of the Digital IQ Index ®, a global ranking of prestige brands' digital competence. In 2012, Professor Galloway was named "One of the World's 50 Best Business School Professors" (Poets & Quants). Professor Galloway is also the founder of several firms including: L2, a subscription business intelligence firm serving prestige brands; Red Envelope, an e-commerce firm (2007, $100mm revs.); and Prophet, a global brand strategy consultancy with 250+ professionals Professor Galloway was elected to the World Economic Forum's "Global Leaders of Tomorrow," which recognizes 100 individuals under the age of 40 "whose accomplishments have had impact on a global level." Professor Galloway has served on the board of directors of Eddie Bauer (Nasdaq: EBHI), The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), Gateway Computer, and Berkeley's Haas School of Business. He received a BA from UCLA and an MBA from UC Berkeley. Links: ProfGalloway.com NYU Faculty Bio Twitter Medium TED Speaker Bio Vox Interview Penguin Random House Author Bio We hope you enjoyed Professor Scott Galloway on this episode of Follow Your Different™!

On today’s special episode, Christopher answers a question from a young woman who wants to know whether she should start a business. He touches on two points: the effect of formal education on entrepreneurial success and the distinction between missionaries and mercenaries. Entrepreneurship is Not for Everybody Christopher received an email from a 20-year-old woman thinking about leaving school to starting a business. Perhaps inspired by his own story, she sought out his help. With very few options after getting thrown out of school at 18, Christopher started a business. Entrepreneurship was a way out of a life of struggle for him. However, even a huge proponent of entrepreneurship like Christopher thinks it is not the answer for everybody. “It's an interesting thing that for many entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship is the only root that we have.” - Christopher Lochhead Education Remains Valid for Most The first thing that you should ask yourself when you consider quitting school to start a business is whether you are really ready. True, a lot has been said about success after dropping out and how college is slowly dying. But according to the Kauffman Foundation, adults without formal education are much less likely to be entrepreneurs than their educated counterparts. Research also shows that the more educated you are, the more you are going to make. While the media portrays lots of dropout-turned-rockstar tales, the truth is that most entrepreneurs get some education. “This is coming from a guy who didn't go to school. but I think you need to think twice before dropping out because for most people, school pays off.” - Christopher Lochhead Are You on a Mission? Another question to ask: are you a missionary or a mercenary? Christopher’s buddy Eddie Yoon makes this very important distinction. If you are the latter, then you are going to tap out when it gets hard. There will be massive losery along the way and the disappointments will be huge. Things that will make you want to quit will happen on a fairly regular basis. Being mission-driven, like what most top VCs dub successful entrepreneurs, is the way to charge forward. “Your commitment to the mission is what will get you through the hard parts. And there will be hard parts and the hard parts will be way worse than anybody ever expressed to you.” - Christopher Lochhead To hear more about Christopher’s take on whether you should start a business, download and listen to the episode. Got a question for Christopher? Email him at blackhole@lochhead.com. Link: Quora - What would be your advice for a 21-year-old starting a company? We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

On this episode, a no BS leader in the sales world, legendary author and podcaster Brian Burns. Brian and Christopher had a captivating free-range conversation about sales & marketing and they unearth some powerful ideas for how the two can work together and they tackled the always important topic of - sales and marketing alignment. “Certainly in marketing, we've got a lot of shiny objects to play with and what I found working with CMOs is they pick the shiny object who enhance their portfolio versus enhance the company’s position.” - Brian Burns Sales and Marketing Alignment Have you ever run into this issue? Lochhead found some easy ways to get it right where sales and marketing were completely in sync. First is for CMOS to treat the quarterly sales number like it was your 100% responsibility. "If you're the head of sales and I'm the head of marketing and we're working together, it's not your number, it's our number. It's not your company, it's our company." - Christopher Lochhead Breaking the Gap between Sales and Marketing Being in a field is where you will really learn. "I think the misalignment of sales and marketing, generally is the fault marketing.” - Christopher Lochhead To hear more about Brian a no BS leader in the sales world, download and listen to this episode. Bio: Brian Burns is the sales guru in Silicon Valley and a host of two podcasts in the top 15 in business on iTunes, The B2B Revenue Leadership show, and The Brutal Truth about Sales and Selling. He has authored four books on B2B sales and marketing and he has over 25 years of experience. Links: B2BRevenue.com Twitter LinkedIn We hope you enjoyed Brian Burns on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

On this episode, we have a podcaster who is loved by entrepreneurs Ever Gonzalez. Ever and Christopher had a fun and informative conversation about designing business that serves your life, not the other way around, and what he's learned in talking to over 400 success entrepreneurs on his popular podcast. "I would much rather take it a little bit easier and have the things that are important to me my family, freedom, time than to hustle, hustle, hustle and have all the money in the world for what reason." - Ever Gonzalez Outlier On Air Ever had an amazing journey in his life, a great career, and he a successful run as an entrepreneur running a freight management company all starting his podcasting in December 2013. At first, it was strictly for entrepreneurs, but halfway thru it, he became curious with other authors and people that he wanted to know more. He’s enjoyed talking about business and people and now, it has over 422 episodes.   Unpacking Hustle A lot of people today wants to be famous and they are losing money trying to follow this dream because they were hustling. As we get older, we have to step back, think and slow things down in order to get good results. Ever said that he's living a life that he can control, a life that provides him freedom, still makes some money and working on projects that he's passionate about. "Hustle is a no shit, Sherlock. You can go back and look at any book, of what anybody who's ever been successful, it takes hard work." - Christopher Lochhead Finding the Right Pace Most people don't know how to value time and being in balanced is something that is hard to do especially working in entrepreneurial businesses. In reality, what we shared with younger entrepreneurs is that there will be plenty of time and they will be less effective, if they burn themselves out. Remember the point of all of this work is to deign a legendary life, not kill yourself “hustling” According to Ever, he had seen the ups and downs, but it's the mental health that scares him. In a lot of ways, success is about learning to manage you own psyche. To hear more about Ever a podcaster who is loved by entrepreneurs, download and listen to this episode. Bio: Ever Gonzalez is an entrepreneur, CEO, a top podcaster and the Founder of OutlierHQ, a media and events company that provides resources to help entrepreneurs start, grow, and scale their businesses. He is also the host of Outlier On Air, a weekly podcast that interviews Founders, Disrupters, and Mavens. Links: Outlierhq.com Twitter LinkedIn We hope you enjoyed Ever Gonzalez on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

“Every rockstar business needs a punk.” - Tania Katan On this episode, the incredible Tania Katan has a riveting conversation with Christopher about how to put the spark of joy back into work and life, how she overcame breast cancer and how it shaped her life. Tania is a powerful example of someone who “used her different” to make her place in the world. She shares the captivating story of how she went from acting, to working in enterprise technology, to becoming an advocate for women in tech, to becoming a successful author and more. Tania is famous for starting the empowerment campaign #ItWasNeverADress.  "We don't need to be in a job or a field that is uniquely creative in order to be uniquely creative within the work we do." - Tania Katan Authoring Bestseller “Creative Trespassing” Tania wrote the book as a dialogue and a monologue. This reflects the way she holds her book tours and keynote speeches. She lets her audience talk and give her feedback while she listens to them. Real conversations inspire her. When she went to record the audiobook, she brought a photograph of her friends, family and other people who inspire her to the studio. This allowed her to feel that she was sharing her stories with them. Unpacking the Dedication Tania says that she was born as an outsider. She wrote about the reality of her life and how she found a way to use “outsiderness” or “misfitness” to create a value for both companies and the people around her. Her being different is how she makes a difference. "Embracing the fact that we are misfits and we are flawed allows us to actually take risks and know that the outcome is going to be better than ‘okay’." - Tania Katan We Teach When We Most Need to Learn At the age of 21, her breast was removed to save her life. Following this event, she felt less—“other”—until she came to a realization when she became an adult. Nobody is perfect. Being an outsider can be painful for some people, and this is the epitome of irony. Every human being goes through the same dilemma and we all can feel uncomfortable and scared of becoming misfits. This is where Tania’s need and desire to speak for them came from—the need to learn herself. "To be perfect is like to be invisible." - Tania Katan By finding a way to harness her different, Tania is the epitome of “why fit in, when you can stand out”. To hear more about how Tania went from theater to tech industry and how she thinks every rockstar business needs a punk, download and listen to this episode. Bio: Tania Katan is an inspirational speaker, creative consultant and co-creator of the #ItWasNeverADress campaign. She is also the best-selling author of the book, Creative Trespassing. She has been a featured speaker at CiscoLive!, S.H.E. Summit, Business of Software, Expedia, Uber, Etsy, Humana, Google, Amazon, Comedy Central Stage, TEDx, and more.  Links: TaniaKatan.com LinkedIn Twitter TaniaKatan.com/book TaniaKatan.com/audiobook We hope you enjoyed Tania Katan on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

On this episode, Lochhead shares some of the amazing things going on in the enterprise tech industry. Enterprise Tech on the Rise Back in 2012, the legendary venture capitalist Jim Goetz of Sequoia made a declaration that tech entrepreneurs were too focused on the consumer world and have ignored the $500-billion market opportunity, which is the enterprise space. Soon after, the Cloud went bigtime—the tipping point for a lot of big innovations.  Bob Evans of the awesome podcast Cloud Wars said that for Q1 of 2019, Microsoft, Amazon and IBM will combine for $23 billion in Cloud revenue. “Twice as many enterprise startups have become billion-dollar companies compared to consumer startups.” – Jim Goetz, Senior Partner Sequoia Capital The Golden Age Over the last 10 years, there has been an acceleration of innovation. According to Lochhead, this is the greatest time in history to be in the tech industry and particularly in the tech enterprise industry. “The enterprise space is—if you’re willing to dig it out, if you’re willing to work hard on it and be smart—it’s less binary than the consumer space. With grit, some intelligence, some great technology and some category design, you can really make something of yourself.”  – Christopher Lochhead Enterprise vs Consumer Tech Companies Rolfe Winkler, the author of the article, The Tech IPO Delivering the Most for Investors, points out that enterprise companies produced a median of 126% stock growth, compared to a median of 15% increase for consumer tech companies.  Consumer tech is a hit business, but it is hard to predict in a way that enterprise tech is not. Christopher also thinks that it's getting tougher to find new niches in the consumer side and startups are afraid of the big players. "Consumer-focused businesses may have more cachet, but technology startups that cater to companies are what is really hot.” - Rolfe Winkler, The Wall Street Journal To hear more about the dynamic enterprise tech industry download and listen to this episode. Bio: Christopher Lochhead is a #1 Best Selling Amazon Author and “Top 30” rated Podcaster. He is a former 3 time public company Chief Marketing Officer in the enterprise technology business where he spent more than 2/3 of his career. He’s been called “one of the best minds in marketing” by The Marketing Journal, a “Human Exclamation Point” by Fast Company, a “quasar” by NBA legend Bill Walton and “Off-putting to some” by The Economist. He co-authored two best seller books: • Niche Down: How To Become Legendary By Being Different  • Play Bigger: How Pirates, Dreamers, and Innovators Create and Dominate Markets. Links: Lochhead.com Twitter LinkedIn Quora.com Instagram Links for Articles and Data Sources: “As Cloud Market Roars, Microsoft, Amazon and IBM Will Total $23 Billion in Q1 Cloud Revenue” WSJ Article Pitchbook Jeff Richards Episode Eric Yuan Episode Vineet Jain Episode 1 Life Fully Lived Conference We hope you enjoyed Christopher Lochhead on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

It’s time to get some deeper insights from our guest, we have Isaac Morehouse. In this episode, Isaac and Christopher had a wonderful conversation on how to start or restart your career. They also talked about how to discover the right role for yourself, how to build the right skills to fulfill those roles and how to get the job of your dreams. Crash Your Career This is the most condensed version that Isaac came up with to get across the same mindset in a way of thinking about career launch. He is very passionate about helping young people so they don't get left behind. The way he processes his ideas is by talking and writing about them that helps him to put his visions of category designs into words. "If I explain it, then maybe there's a big chance that I can build it." - Isaac Morehouse Career Launch This is the first step that we need to focus on in order to have a legendary start. According to Isaac, they are focused on 3 things - discover some roles, build a profile and tailor a pitch. If you can do all those 3 things, it will get a lot easier and you can have an amazing career launch. "Paper credentials aren’t going to launch your career, you’ve got to be your own credential” – Isaac Morehouse Unpacking the 3 Things He compares the idea of, what do you want to be when you grow up to a funnel. Every step in your life, you should be moving in that funnel and people are being trapped because of this. The perfect fit for you is probably something that doesn't exist yet, something that you have never heard of or hasn't been invented yet. The way to get to it is to start experimenting as you will learn by doing it. "The only way to know what is a really good fit is to try anything that is not really a bad fit." - Isaac Morehouse To hear more about Isaac Morehouse, founder and CEO of Crash, download and listen to this episode. Bio: Isaac Morehouse is the founder and CEO of Crash, the career launch platform, and the founder of Praxis, a startup apprenticeship program. He is the author of the wonderful new book called Crash Your Career. Isaac's business was focused primarily not exclusively on younger people in helping them get an amazing start to their career. Some of his blogs are: • The Delicate Art of Listening but not Listening • Life By Subscription • Music as Programming Links: IsaacMorehouse.com Crash.co DiscoverPraxis.com We hope you enjoyed Isaac Morehouse on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

In today’s episode, we hang out with a leading futurist Mark Pesce. He and Christopher discuss how smart the world is, why we should not be afraid of the future, how the next ten years will play out and how technology will transform our health and well-being. Path to the Future People get blindsided, uncontrollable and scared of what the future holds. We tend to give up when we feel that everything is not falling into place. Mark wants to show us that there is always a path through. We have always had this path. All it takes is looking at our past and the clues to help us understand how we are going to find our . “People come out of that with the sense of urgency that there is something that they can do, something that they can be that allows them to have not just a stake in the future, but a capacity to keep up with that future.” – Mark Pesce Fear Because of Change According to Mark, kids these days are so different because of their experiences. We ask ourselves why the world is changing and why we can’t keep up. The idea of fear in us is because of change. And it is something that can be tolerated as we have the capacity to learn from one another. "We like to master things and we don't like it when those things change from underneath us because it makes us feel like we're losing on mastery." - Mark Pesce A Smarter World The world is getting smart. There are apps, computers, electronics, high speed mobile Internet and sensors everywhere. Mark said that over the span of 40 years, all we have done is to learn how to take all the principles that are embodied with all of these. We have such connections, wiring and intelligence of the world that when we look at it one way, it seems very threatening. It can seem that the world is going to be so smart and would not need us anymore. But we should always remember that a machine can be dumped a million times faster than a human can. “The challenge and pressure for us is can we get smart at the same pace the world is getting smart?” - Mark Pesce To hear more about Mark, the leading futurist, download and listen to this episode. Bio: Mark Pesce is a leading futurist, author, entrepreneur and innovator.  He is an award-winning columnist for The Register and producer and host of This Week in Startups Australia. Mark invented VRML, the standard for 3D on the Web and a core component of MPEG-4. He also authored 6 books including: • VRML: Browsing and Building Cyberspace • The Playful World • The Last Days of Reality Links: MarkPesce.com Twitter @mpesce LinkedIn @markpesce We hope you enjoyed Mark Pesce on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

For the second installment of this 3-part series on mental health and well-being, US combat veteran turned mental health counselor, podcaster and author Duane France joins Christopher. They share a powerful conversation about living a life of service, the challenges faced by veterans who leave the military and the power of having purpose and meaning. “The military's purpose is not to kill and destroy. It's to protect and preserve.” - Duane France On Veteran Stereotypes When asked about what he would want the average American to know about the people in the military, Duane said that they are just like everybody else. Sadly, people like to stereotype the military veteran in three ways. One, some would think of the veteran as a berserker suffering from PTSD. Sometimes, other people treat them as victims that need taking care of for the rest of their lives. And then there is the stereotype as a hero. “There’s just a lot of stereotypes that go along with especially current era military… and it’s just simply not true.” - Duane France Not So Different All veterans want is for people to understand what they live through. Duane’s clients would say that they want people to know what they experience and to hear their stories. But at the same time, they don't know how to tell these, feeling like no one can really understand the struggles of a veteran. To help a military veteran reintegrate into civilian life, it is best to not treat them differently. They want to be seen not as victims or as villains, but as the average American with interesting stories. Finding Purpose After Service No matter how unique their stories go, veterans will always struggle to regain their footing on civilian soil. The transition is the hardest part, but with the help of people around them, they can achieve a new purpose. Some of them can even become amazing and legendary entrepreneurs. “When we leave the military, we wanna find a place for ourselves in the world. We wanna find purpose and meaning in our lives because what we did was really meaningful.” - Duane France To hear more about the separation of war from the warrior and why veterans make great entrepreneurs from Duane, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Duane K. L. France is a combat veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as a mental health counselor practicing in the state of Colorado. He’s the host of the HEAD SPACE AND TIMING podcast and the author of Combat Vet Don't Mean Crazy: Veteran Mental Health in Post-Military Life. Links: Veteran Mental Health Twitter Combat Vet Don't Mean Crazy We hope you enjoyed Duane France on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

On this first episode of a 3-part series on mental health and well-being, the mega-popular therapist, writer and speaker Amy Morin sits with us. She holds a powerful conversation with Christopher about how women can be super successful, why self-doubt can be a good thing and the power of true vulnerability. “It's okay to be a mentally strong woman who doesn't act like a mentally strong man.” - Amy Morin Women on Criticism and Rejection Amy studied a lot for her new book. She found out that women tend to treat rejection and criticism as if they were the same thing. Walking the path towards mental health and success is not letting others limit one’s potential. We must learn to take criticism where it comes from and separate criticism from people without stakes on our game. Studies also show that when people criticize you, they are likely telling you how they feel about themselves. When Confidence Becomes Dangerous According to Amy, people fail to recognize how dangerous confidence can be. Being completely confident that everything would work out without a hitch sometimes leads to some really poor decisions. “A lot of the mistakes we make are because we're overconfident about our abilities and we underestimate how tough the challenge is gonna be.” - Amy Morin Nobody jumps on Get Rich Quick schemes unless they are 100% sure that nothing will go wrong. It goes to show how self-doubt can be used to one's advantage. Embracing Your Self-Doubt Self-doubt can sometimes stop us on our tracks towards success. Being less confident about one’s attributes and qualities is only natural, but self-doubt doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Studies on how students predict their performance on tests show that those who are confident about acing their tests are likely to do worse than those who show some doubt. This is mainly because they turned their self-doubt into effort and studied harder. "Having a little self-doubt means, 'I have to put in more effort, I have to study for this, I have to prepare, I have to sharpen my skills.' And it keeps you on your toes." - Amy Morin Owning One's Vulnerability We sometimes liken vulnerability to weakness. But to become mentally strong, we need to embrace its true power. “To really be vulnerable, you have to let people know that you struggle with things, that you're not really okay sometimes.” - Amy Morin Having the means to open up about our own vulnerabilities to the world has made it easier to embrace. But being vulnerable is not something that we should necessarily announce on social media all the time. Sometimes embracing it means having a private conversation between you and a loved one. To learn more about the secrets to women's success and Amy's take on the #MeToo Movement, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Amy Morin is a licensed clinical social worker, psychotherapist, and a lecturer at Northeastern University. The Guardian dubs her as the “self-help guru of the moment." Forbes refers to her as a “thought leadership star.” Her knowledge of mental strength stems far beyond her professional experience. She’s experienced a series of losses in her personal life that gave her first-hand insight into the strategies that build resilience. In 2013, her article 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do was read by over 30 million people around the world. Her best-selling book, also called, 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do, is being translated into 25 languages. Her newest book, “13 Things Mentally Strong Parents Don't Do: Raising Self-Assured Children and Training Their Brains for a Life of Happiness, Meaning, and Success” is a sensation. Amy’s advice has been featured by a number of media outlets, including Parenting, Time, Fast Company, Good Housekeeping, Elle, Business Insider, Cosmopolitan, Success, Oprah.com, Health, Fox News, US News & World Report, and The Washington Post. She has also provided on-camera interviews for Fox Bu...

What drives a five-time Olympian? Today, we hear from the true legendary champion Kerri Walsh Jennings. The best beach volleyball player in the world sits with us for a conversation all about drive and inspiration. "My bronze completes me. My dark side completes me... You need to have both." - Kerri Walsh Jennings Discipline Liberates and Consistency Feels Great One of Kerri’s favorite quotes is Jocko Willink’s “Discipline equals freedom.” A lot of high-performing people get either flak for being so disciplined or pity for being “punished”. But discipline liberates and allows Kerri the space to breathe and accomplish things. Discipline is all about showing up and doing what it takes on the daily. And it is as beautiful a word as competition despite the negative connotation often attached to the two. “It makes me feel good to be consistent and to do the hard things when things are hard and to do it until they're done.” - Kerri Walsh Jennings Love for Winning Always Wins Like most athletes, Kerri loves winning. But her relationship with it is as unique as it could get. The joy of winning motivates and inspires her more than the pain of losing. People would often say that losing motivates them, but Kerri thinks that losing is like a chronic injury or a weight on one’s shoulders. It gets into your psyche in a way that drives you crazy. It is a toxic feeling despite the positives to it. “I love winning more than I hate losing, which I think is why I'm still going.” - Kerri Walsh Jennings Feeling at Home in the Olympics With her veteran status in the Olympics, one would think that she felt the pressure of having basically the entire world watching her either win or lose. But not once has this ever occurred to Kerri. The Olympics is fun, and she has always found it helpful to create a bubble around her to make her feel safe and not get caught in the noise. She has found her home in the Olympics, and not even the millions of spectators would take her off her game. To hear more about Kerri’s distinction between inspiration and motivation and a whole lot more, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Kerri Walsh Jennings has been called, “the Best Beach Volleyball Player in the World”. Kerri is a five-time Olympian, three-time Olympic gold medal winner, and a one-time bronze medalist. She is the beach volleyball career leader in career wins. And Kerri is half of what has been called "the greatest beach volleyball team of all time," with her longtime partner Misty May-Treanor. She is currently training and competing with her partner Brooke Sweat to compete in the 2020 Games in Tokyo. Walsh Jennings is also an entrepreneur. She is the founder of p1440,  a beach volleyball event series launched in September 2018 with eight events in the 2018–2019 season, showcasing the best in women’s and men’s beach volleyball from around the globe. Links: p1440.com Instagram Twitter Facebook Wikipedia Parade - Three-Time Gold Medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings Says Change Is a Process—and an Opportunity VICE Sports - What Makes Kerri Walsh the Best Beach Volleyball Player in the World?  We hope you enjoyed Kerri Walsh Jennings on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Is it possible to live multiple lives in this lifetime? Today, the three-foot giant Dr. Sean Stephenson joins us for a wonderful conversation on growth, purpose, and a lot more. Continuing to Grow Even after achieving his stature as a public speaker, Sean admits that he’s still growing. He was in business with his father for 22 years and didn’t leave home until he was 31. Perhaps owing to his severe physical disability, he was very close to his family. His home life was wonderful, but as he got older, it got more difficult. Being in the same roof with his family, he always had a group thinking and felt like he was curbing himself. So he decided to go through a very painful business breakup and step out into the world. Learning to Walk We can’t read the label inside the jar. Sean didn’t know how much he was holding back his own opinions or how much he was fully being himself. But when he moved and broke away, he started seeing how there were new levels and layers to him. The stark differences between his and other people’s experiences growing up shocked him. After all, he was used to a culture where not doing what the family wants equals being a renegade. “I have decades and decades of education where I help people through their pains and their problems. But in some ways, I'm still learning to walk myself, learning to navigate this world, and I'm loving the experience of making mistakes.” - Dr. Sean Stephenson Breaking the Mold It personally sickens him to think that some people would want to live the same life a hundred times over. To continue his self-discovery, he would reorganize his life every five years or so. He wants to look back on the past five years with a stack of embarrassing mistakes to learn from. Sean confesses that he wouldn’t hang out with his younger versions with interests that wouldn’t necessarily appeal to him now. He loves himself all the more for it. And he can only wish the version of himself five or ten years down the road would feel the same way with the present. “Maybe there's a wrongful belief out there that the version of you will always be the same as you get older but I don't agree with that. I'm constantly breaking the mold and starting over and trying new things and figuring out what do I believe in.” - Dr. Sean Stephenson To hear about why purpose is sexy and how Sean turned his "disability" into a competitive advantage, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Dr. Sean Stephenson was predicted not to survive at birth because of a rare bone disorder that stunted his growth and caused his bones to be extremely fragile (fracturing over 200 times by the age of 18). Despite his challenges, he took a stand for a quality of life that has inspired millions of people around the world. Since 1994, his powerful message has been heard at live events in nearly all 50 states and in 16 countries. Sean has presented at hospitals, universities, prisons, and to companies such as Nike, Whole Foods, Zappos, Walmart, and Sharp Healthcare. He has shared the stage with U.S. Presidents, billionaire business moguls, celebrities, and his Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Sean has appeared on everything from The Oprah Show to Jimmy Kimmel, in addition to online videos with tens of millions of views. The Biography Channel produced an hour-long feature on his life called, Three Foot Giant. Mindie Kniss & Sean Stephenson his international best-selling book, Get Off Your “But”,  has been translated into over a dozen different languages. As a board-certified therapist, and doctor of Clinical Hypnosis, Dr. Stephenson sees clients in a unique 12-hour session that gets to the root of their fears, excuses, and insecurities. Each year Sean hosts live events and group coaching programs to mentor individuals in the art and business of public speaking. When Sean isn’t working he can be found in the gym, playing NBA 2K with his friends, or watching NBA basketball with his wife and business partner, Mindie Kniss.

How can structure drive culture? On today’s episode, the amazing author of Loonshots Safi Bahcall unpacks the reasons why we should pay attention to the structure of an organization to achieve success. Learn how crazy people and ideas lead to breakthroughs, and so much more. Is It Really Culture? When Safi first became an entrepreneur, he read every article and book he could find on various subjects like how to become a good leader and build great teams. All those things sounded good, but after a while, he got hungry for something more solid. “I was trying to understand if there was some science to this. If there was something else besides just culture.” - Safi Bahcall He observed that companies with completely different cultures would succeed, while those with the same cultures failed. There are elements of culture that are very important. But is it really the culture that drives the success of an organization? Structure Eats Culture for Lunch Christopher shares that there are successful companies with the “biddings will continue until morale improves” culture. Then there are other successful organizations that adopt an “everybody loves each other” culture. From this standpoint, there seems to be no such thing as a culture that works and a culture that doesn’t. “Well, there’s a saying in business that says, ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast.’ What I would add is that ‘structure eats culture for lunch.’” - Safi Bahcall It appears that structure enables exponential differences in organizations in a way that culture doesn’t as much. Structure Drives an Organization’s Culture To exemplify, Uber had an outlier incentive system. Nobody wanted to work on other people’s project because of the 8X incentive that successful project proponents could earn. No matter how many times teamwork was encouraged, nobody would actually get into it. But when the team-based incentives began to roll out, the culture changed. People were rewarded based on team performance. This perfectly sums up how structure eats culture for lunch. “It means that underlying structure can drive the culture, rather than the way around.” - Safi Bahcall To hear about how water molecules relate to business structure and how genius and serendipity need to meet to produce breakthroughs from Safi, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Safi is a second-generation physicist (the son of two astrophysicists) and a biotech entrepreneur. He received his BA summa cum laude from Harvard and his Ph.D. in physics from Stanford, where he worked with Lenny Susskind in particle physics (the science of the small) and the Nobel laureate Bob Laughlin in condensed matter physics (the science of the many). He was a Miller Fellow in physics at UC Berkeley (the school of the many). After working for three years as a consultant for McKinsey, Safi co-founded a biotechnology company developing new drugs for cancer. He led its IPO and served as its CEO for 13 years. Safi has presented at approximately 130 banking conferences, investor events, and medical meetings around the world, as well as at leading academic institutions including physics, mathematics, or medical departments at Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Princeton, UC Berkeley, Caltech, Cornell, Bell Labs, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Rockefeller, and the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. He lives with his wife, two children, and roughly 37 Gerald + Piggie books in Cambridge, MA. Links: Bahcall.com Twitter We hope you enjoyed Safi Bahcall on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

Why does great service come from the heart? On today’s episode, Christopher sits with his hero Ken Blanchard. One of the greatest authors of all time shares why legendary customer service matters, the power that true servant leadership holds, and so much more. Exemplifying Simple Truths Christopher has personally looked up to Ken since reading the life-changing book, The One-Minute Manager. When he dropped out of school and had to seek other ways of learning, Christopher turned to the book that he has given to many others in return. Simplicity marks everything that Ken writes and teaches. The living legend has written over 60 books, with a new one inspired by the story of Johnny the Bagger, The Simple Truths of Service. “My mission statement is to be a loving teacher and example of simple truths.” - Ken Blanchard Great, Simple Service Everyone can make a difference in customer service without having to do anything complicated and by simply reaching out to customers and making them feel important. Great service that makes a difference comes from the heart. However, the human ego often sends people off track of being servant leaders. Ego gets in the way of service in two ways. One is through false pride or the “more than” philosophy, where you act like you’re better than everyone else. And then there is fear or self-doubt, where you have a “less than” philosophy. “A lot of people say, ‘That's an ego problem?’ Sure, you focus on yourself.” - Ken Blanchard on self-doubt Writing for People Growing up, Ken's parents instilled in him the value of staying grounded. When he became president back in junior high, his father reminded him that great leaders are great because people respect and trust them. His mother also taught him to neither think himself beyond others nor let others think they’re above him. He has had a lot of valuable learnings in life. And all these motivate him to continue writing books. “I just love learning for people.” - Ken Blanchard To hear more about service and being yourself from Ken himself, download and listen to the episode. Bio: A prominent, sought-after author, speaker, and business consultant,  Dr. Ken Blanchard's friends, colleagues, and clients characterize him as one of the most insightful, powerful, and compassionate individuals in business today. Ken is one of the most influential leadership experts in the world and is respected for his years of groundbreaking work in the fields of leadership and management. He is also the co-founder and Chief Spiritual Officer of The Ken Blanchard Companies, an international management training and consulting firm that he and his wife, Margie Blanchard, began in 1979 in San Diego, California. Ken received a master's degree from Colgate University and a bachelor's and Ph.D. from Cornell University. Ken spends time as a visiting lecturer at his alma mater where he is a trustee emeritus of the Board of Trustees. He also teaches students in the Master of Science in Executive Leadership Program at the University of San Diego. He has received many awards and honors for his contributions in the fields of management, leadership, and speaking. The National Speakers Association awarded him its highest honor, the "Council of Peers Award of Excellence." He was inducted into the HRD Hall of Fame by Training magazine and Lakewood Conferences, and he received the Golden Gavel Award from Toastmasters International. Ken also received The Thought Leadership Award for continued support of work-related learning and performance by ISA—The Association of Learning Providers. Ken has been inducted into Amazon's Hall of Fame as one of the top 25 best-selling authors of all time. The business school at Grand Canyon University bears his name. An avid golfer, Ken belongs to the Loch Lomond Golf Club in Scotland. Links: KenBlanchard.com Twitter We hope you enjoyed Ken Blanchard on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners.

Why does being present mean losing oneself? On today’s episode, mindfulness guru Julianna Raye shares an insightful conversation with Christopher. Learn how you can apply your attention in ways to truly make your life effective. Mindfulness and Being Present Mindfulness practice entails knowing how to apply your attention through optimal ways. Understanding where to focus one’s attention alleviates even a simple headache. Opening up to the experience as it is happening will help release the pain, even if not always. It turns out, there are two ways by which you can handle pain. One is to turn towards the pain and directly work with it or to anchor away from it. And it matters to be present in the situation in order to find a way to deal with it. “I like to define what it means to be present in a way where people can actually understand how to do it—if they wanna do something.” - Julianna Raye on being present Three Skill States There are three skill states to consider to achieve mindfulness: concentration, sensory clarity, and equanimity. Julianna says that these are naturally-occurring. And they come up in life all the time, associated with the most fulfilling moments. “The key is a lot of people don't know that those heightened states—those skills—you can develop them and then they're transferrable.” - Julianna Raye On Concentration When you achieve concentration, you get to spend more time focusing on what matters to you and less time being pulled into distractions. Nobody succeeds without figuring out how concentration works. “Concentration is the ability to focus on what you choose.” - Julianna Raye Christopher says that it's interesting how you lose yourself in concentration. This means that the more present we are for us, the less alive we are. And the less present that we are, the more alive we are. “It's this amazing dichotomy to me that when we lose ourselves the most is when we're alive the most.” - Christopher Lochhead To hear more about the other skill states that affect mindfulness from Julianna herself, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Julianna is devoted to deepening people’s understanding of research-supported mindfulness and empowering anyone to guide others in its practice. She has been training individuals and groups in the Unified Mindfulness system for nearly two decades. Julianna is also a founding member of Brightmind Meditation, LLC—the developer of the Brightmind mindfulness app. She also consults and offers private coaching, onsite and online mindfulness training. She has had more than 100 weeks of immersive silent retreat training in both the mindfulness and Zen traditions. Through these, she has completed over 12,000 hours of formal practice. Along the way, she has participated in research including a UCLA study comparing long-term meditator’s brains with those of non-meditators. She also designed and led the training for a workplace research study carried out under David Creswell, Ph.D. And that study showed positive outcomes with regards to improved employee well being and lower stress. Links: UnifiedMindfulness.com Unified Mindfulness Immersion Twitter JuliannaRaye.com We hope you enjoyed Julianna Raye on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

How do you become happier in life? On today’s episode, four-time New York Times bestselling author Gretchen Rubin joins us for a fun, insightful conversation. How do you turn feeling envy and lying into tools for our own growth? Relationships for Happiness There are two ways to achieve happiness, depending on the mental framework that you use. One of which is that to be happy, we need to have enduring, intimate bonds. “Ancient philosophers and contemporary scientists would agree that relationship is key to happiness.” - Gretchen Rubin We have to feel like we belong, be able to confide a secret, get support, and give support. Anything that broadens or deepens our relationships is something that would make us happier. When we look at people who say they’re happier, they tend to have more relationships. Self-knowledge is also Key From a different vantage point, you can also say that the key to happiness is self-knowledge. We can build a happy life on the foundation of our own nature, interests, values, and temperament. “It's really by knowing ourselves that with this knowledge we can shape our lives to better reflect what is true for us.” - Gretchen Rubin It should be fairly easy to know oneself when you hang out with yourself all day long, right? But the truth is that it’s not very easy at all. This stems from how we sometimes wish that we were different from who are or from how we are different from what other people expect or want us to be. Envy and Lies are Helpful Gretchen is keen on finding questions or indirect ways to help us understand ourselves better. For instance, whom do we envy? People don’t want to admit they feel it, but envy is actually helpful because it shows us what we wish we had. Another question we must ask ourselves is, what do we lie about? Oftentimes when we lie, what we do doesn't match up with what our value is and this is really important information to reflect on. “The fact that you're not being truthful about it means that somehow, you're not comfortable with what your real answer is and that's a sign—hey, maybe I need to get my actions and values into better harmony.” - Gretchen Rubin To hear more about how we can achieve inner calm and peace from Gretchen, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Gretchen Rubin is a writer who relentlessly explores human nature to understand how we can make our lives better. She believes there’s no one-size-fits-all solution for becoming happier, healthier, more productive, or more creative; when we know ourselves and what works for us, we can change our habits and our lives. She’s the author of the bestselling books (The Happiness Project, Happier at Home, Better Than Before, The Four Tendencies), And she hosts the award-winning podcast Happier with Gretchen Rubin, The New York Times calls her “the queen of the self-help memoir.” Links: GretchenRubin.com We hope you enjoyed Gretchen Rubin on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

In this follow-up to Episode 20 with David Cancel (DC) the founder and CEO of Drift,  Christopher talks with Dave Gerhardt (DG), the head of marketing for Drift and fellow podcaster. They are co-authors a of brand new, number one best-selling book called Conversational Marketing: How The World's Fastest Growing Companies use Chatbots to Generate Leads. In this episode, we unpack how Drift is designing a new category and we go deep into the strategies and tactics Drift is using and how they executed this most legendary lightning strike centered around the new book. If you're into marketing, there's a ton of gold in this episode.  You'll get insight into how to get a massive amount of attention for your category, brand and point of view. How to execute an approach called the Multiplier Effect so that each component of your marketing mix multiplies the value of the other components. How to make your company and your category undeniable.  And, how to do my favorite kind of marketing which causes your competition to have emergency board meetings. "Whether the (category) name is sexy, good or not, you have to name it." - Dave Gerhardt  Almost two years ago, Dave was introduced to Christopher through his book after Sequoia invested in Drift, Pat Grady sent him five copies of his book Play Bigger and said he needed to read it. Dave was blown away that how much was in the book was what they were doing without really talking about it. Play Bigger clarified what they were working on. Hurdles to Overcome The team at Drift knew they were building a category but didn't' really know about category design. During their efforts to write the book and get a publisher, Dave and David discovered that thing, that category that they were building meant nothing until they named it. "In order for us to win, we need to elevate the category of Conversational Marketing." - Dave Gerhardt They had a little traction but not enough. They needed a following, big investors, and the social proof. Fast forward to early 2018. They spent the year writing the book and published on January 30, 2019. After a month, it's a top 20 business book in the US and in the top 1.5% of all books being sold on Amazon.  Why Competition is Good In order for the book to succeed, Dave wants competitors and people in the conversational marketing space. They don't want people to just think of Drift when they think of conversational marketing.  Dave compares it to a part of Play Bigger. Apple didn't invent the tablet but they created a category that elevated it. That's Drift's goal; to elevate the category of conversational marketing. To hear more about Dave's legendary marketing strike, download and listen to the episode. Dave Gerhardt Bio: Dave Gerhardt is a B2B marketing leader, brand builder, and copywriter.  As VP of Marketing of Drift, he's helped grow Drift from $0 to over eight-figures in revenue in just two years, and his work has been featured in 100+ news sites and publications, including Forbes, Fortune, Inc., Entrepreneur, TechCrunch, and Harvard Business Review. He also co-hosts the popular Seeking Wisdom podcast with Drift CEO David Cancel, and he's the co-author of the definitive book on Conversational Marketing. Links: Linkedin Drift.com Podcast: Seeking Wisdom iTunes Seeking Wisdom We hope you enjoyed Dave Gerhardt on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

What exactly does reinventing yourself entail? Expert Dorie Clark joins us today for a conversation about designing one’s new identity, why social proof matters, and a lot more. Winning Over the Team To reinvent oneself means giving in to the want to go toward a certain direction. Once you figure this out, you also need to realize that a lot of the process is about winning over the internal team. Who you surround yourself with as you begin reinventing yourself matters a lot. “Ironically in the reinvention journey, the people closest to you are gonna be the least supportive initially.” - Dorie Clark People you’ve built relationships with are more tied to who you’ve been than you are. They come from a good place, not to mention that they have the most at stake in this reinvention. You need to develop a strategy to help them understand your intentions and see your determination. The Power of Dormant Ties Since reinvention involves established relationships with people, you must also grasp the concept of ties. These include strong, weak, and dormant ties. Dormant ties come from strong bonds shared with people who have gone off in directions completely separate to yours. Dormant ties can be particularly powerful when rekindled, especially with the positive connection and thoughts that come with them. That you have some form of contribution to each other’s success makes it a lot easier when you reunite. With ties like so, you will find people to root for you in your process of reinvention. Creation of Content The other key component is proof that you can muster to support your new identity. People are skeptical, and you have to hammer it home that you are serious about them. This is where content creation around your new subject area comes into play. “It’s a way of simultaneously demonstrating your expertise. It enables you to have a networking vehicle. It allows you to create these sustained reminders.” - Dorie Clark To hear more about Dorie’s expert advice on reinvention, download and listen to the episode. Bio: Dorie Clark is “an expert at self-reinvention and helping others make changes in their lives,” says The New York Times. She’s an adjunct professor at Duke University and a bestselling author. Her book, Stand Out, was named the #1 Leadership Book of 2015 by Inc. Magazine. She’s also a regular contributor to HBR. Links: DorieClark.com Twitter LinkedIn We hope you enjoyed Dorie Clark on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!

How do you overcome a compounded fear of failure to become legendary? On today’s episode, author, entrepreneur, and real estate investor David Osborn joins us in a conversation about making money, building capital, and so much more. “You go to work for capital so your capital can eventually go to work for you.” - David Osborn Thinking Big, Not Delusional David started out as a realtor, working under his mom’s team for three years. Over time, he realized he no longer wanted to sell so he ventured out into setting up franchises. With the right company, time and work ethic as well as a dash of mistakes and failures, he and his team have sold billions. When you focus on the delta of where you are and where you want to be, it becomes clear that making the first million is way too hard. But it’s just as important to think massively big, and not delusional, to get started. It takes so much longer and harder than people can imagine and be willing to admit, after all. “People always look at the credit and the money that an entrepreneur makes and they way underestimate the amount of risk and amount of failure.” - David Osborn An Idiot Prior to Success David first opened up a franchise in 1996, and it took ten long years before he could make money. It was a sweet two years, until the massive crash of 2008. Luckily enough, he had a great company to support him through it. But not all entrepreneurs are on equal footing. An entrepreneur that has to scramble all the way up will look like an idiot for ten years before they get rewarded. And sometimes, the rewards could be more than they probably should get. “The reason is you spent those ten years where every day there's a chance you could have nothing the next day.” - David Osborn Overcoming Fear Through Crazy It takes experiencing hurt and failure for fear to manifest. We find punishment, pain, and psychological difficulty so aversive that we steer clear of ladders going up. Even the most successful entrepreneurs get afraid. But it’s finding the crazy force to drive you through the journey that spells all the difference. To hear more about David's views on free will and capital building, download and listen to the episode. Bio: After sticking out his thumb and traveling the world, David returned home to Austin, Texas broke and unemployed, at the age of 26. Though his travels may not have yielded wealth, they instilled the key motivation that he brings to every part of his life to create it — freedom. Because to have everything you ever wanted takes the opportunity to design your life and believe it can happen. Through this intention, David began to test his entrepreneurial merits alongside his business-partner mom in the world of real estate. The results were nothing short of remarkable. In less than 10 years, David would go on to build one of the top real estate brokerages in the world, founding over 50 companies. Yet, more than anything else, the inherent freedom derived from his success awards him the time to focus on the importance on what matters most: being a proud father of two beloved daughters, a son, and husband to the wonderful and talented Traci Osborn. Today, still rooted in his boundless sense of adventure, David continues to travel the world not only to be enlightened by new experiences but to share his insight and expertise with others so they, too, can truly be free. Links: DavidOsborn.com Wealth Can’t Wait - Amazon Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow - Amazon DaveRamsey.com SuzeOrman.com Happiest Countries - Forbes We hope you enjoyed David Osborn on this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!