Coffee & Change

Edward Cleaves is the author of Kind Soul, Closet Maniac: A Memoir – a tale of a kid trying to escape a horrible past and navigate an uncertain future. All the while never giving up, and eventually coming to terms with life. Ever vigilant and ever hopeful. This is a powerful story rooted plainly with purpose and perseverance in prose. Learn more about Ed at: https://www.edwardcleaves.com/

On Episode 107, we meet Bryan Komornik. Bryan is a Partner at West Monroe where he leads and focuses on Healthcare Management and Health Strategy Solutions. Bryan is also an Executive Board Member at Trilogy Behavioral Healthcare, a non profit that provides integrated care that enables people in mental health recovery to build meaningful and independent lives. Bryan is a frequent author of articles and publication on topics of navigating the future of healthcare and the transformative power of connected care. Bryan also wrote a very powerful article on Progressology.com in 2019 on his personal journey while becoming a father to twin boys and redefining his understanding of work-life balance, and how it is an erroneous myth. Read Bryan's article here: https://progressology.com/articles/2019/02/26/throw-out-the-work-life-scale-a-father-of-twins-journey-to-imbalance/ Learn about Trilogy Behavioral Healthcare here: https://www.trilogyinc.org/

Welcome back and thanks for listening. As we approach the Thanksgiving Day Holiday here in the United States, I want to extend my gratitude and thanks to all the listeners that keep this show vibrant, relevant and growing. One of the many gifts I get to experience from this platform built on a passion for both storytelling and story listening are the connections, recommendations and suggestions that former guests share with me for future shows. Today’s guest came to me that way as well, and from one Steven to another. My guest on Episode 106 is Steven Jaggers, founder of Somatic Breathwork. Steven’s purpose in life is to liberate people from the stress & overwhelm that lies unprocessed in our bodies so that we become free in our mind. As we discuss in this episode together, Steven believes there is an exact correlation between our physical vitality and mental health. If we want to improve the quality of our lives we MUST address both…and that begins with breath. Living and practicing out of Sedona, Arizo

To listen is to practice... To listen is to prompt... To listen is to love. Thank you for joining me in and adventure in attunement and an alongside listen. New Seasonal Theme music composed by Jason Latham. Poetry and words written by Bill Kirst and Jason Latham.

Landon Kissinger is a Manager at West Monroe and a member of the firm’s Customer Experience practice, where he focuses on High Performance Contact Centers, Salesforce CRM and Customer Experience Strategy. With a technical background and an unmatched passion for people Landon continues to work on his pedigree with his uncommon blend of technology and business acumen. He earned his Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Computer Science from Gonzaga University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science, focusing in database management and data-structures. (GO ZAGS) Landon also has a background in Ethical Philosophy and Psychology, Integration Technologies, and social media and marketing strategy. Oh, and I am not done yet folks…Landon has 6 certifications that he has earned with passion and perseverance in a digital first world: - He is a Certified Product Manager, earned from the Product School - A Certified Scrum Master, earned from Scrum Alliance - A Salesforce Administrator – that is not easy to earn and hig

Jon Becker has spent his life’s work making sure that those in uniform – all uniforms – are all secure. Spanning nearly four decades of service to law enforcement and military special operations units around the world, Jon’s commitment and expertise has influenced the innovation and application of tactical equipment for operators from around the world serving in top law enforcement and military units. After founding Aardvark Tactical when just 17 years old, Jon has gone on to grow his company into one of the largest providers of tactical equipment in the world, while also becoming an attorney with a focus on civil rights and police litigation. Jon attributes his success and remarkable journey to those who came before him, to those who invested in him, and to those who taught him the importance of compassion, care and commitment in developing his craft. His craft is saving lives. Each and every day. And that craft continues in the lost art of oral tradition, with his podcast called The Debrief. On his show

On Episode 102, I am joined by Rudy Hunter who shares an incredible story in grief, loss, love and healing. Rudy is a unique healer, teacher and author who has worked with people and animals for 30 years to help them heal. Rudy's customers and clients have shared such sentiment as "If teddy bears could speak, they would sound like Rudy Hunter." Rudy's unique gift is meeting people where they are at in their pain and trauma journey and guiding them to a place of wholehearted joy and comfort. This was a fascinating conversation and one I hope you enjoy!

My guest on this episode is Andrew Bartlow, who brings 25 years of Human Resources and Talent Management experience to share in stories, wisdom and insights earned while supporting organizations of all sizes, stages and complexity. He is the co-author of “Scaling for Success: People Priorities for High Growth Organizations. He also leads Series B Consulting which helps businesses articulate their people strategy and accelerate their growth while navigating change. Andrew founded the People Leader Accelerator, a preeminent development program for startup HR Leaders. I hope you enjoy this discussion with Andrew who invites you to to reach out to him via LinkedIn to connect and learn more. And if you do, feel free to mention you heard his story on Coffee and Change, and he will send you a full length workbook of one of his People Leader Accelerator guides for free. Enjoy the discussion and happy listening.

On episode 100, I took time to sit with the resounding questions and reflect on the answers that formulated from a place of deep listening, raw vulnerability and heartfelt appreciation after having hosted 99 conversations with changemakers and guests. During the Summer of 2022, I went back to relisten and reacquaint myself with all the stories in change this platform has echoed out to over 295,000 unique listeners across six continents. Enjoy the listen. Here's to the next 100.

On Episode 99, I welcome back a former guest who holds the accolade of being the most listened to and most shared episode of this podcast. You may remember Julio from Episode 74 where he shared with us the importance of working on a kinder, healthier world. A year has passed since we had Julio on the podcast, and it is an understatement to say a lot has changed this past year in the world. Julio shares his growth and we even chat about the latest renaissance of music from Beyonce and the role it plays in our narrative in change emerging around us. Happy listening! *Reminder, I will be taking a summer break to reflect on all 99 episodes of this podcast and write the 100th episode. Look forward to reconnecting with you in the Fall of 2022.

On Episode 98, I seized the opportunity to meet with a friend for the first time near one of my favorite places on the planet. If you have visited the Presidio, Fort Mason and Chrissy Field in San Francisco, California, then you know the magnetism and majesty of that part of the world. Amidst the radiant reflection of the Golden Gate Bridge, once described as “possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world,” my friend and guest, David Watson helped me snap a few selfies and then found a spot to sit and record a conversation that was a few years in the making. I first heard David’s origin story in September of 2020 and afterward reached out to him to thank him for sharing it. I have had the pleasure of benefiting from David’s incredible work, his passion and his calling…giving voice to the unvoiced. And at a time when the rights and voices of so many are being silenced it is more important than ever that we voice the unvoiced and echo it to the boundless potential for hea

Fabiana Claure is my guest on this episode. Fabiana lies at the intersection of some of my favorite topics…music, business and technology. As the founder of the Musicians Profit Umbrella, Fabiana works with musicians to develop strategies to build financial and artistic freedom with prosperity. As you will hear in her story, she is passionate about empowering fellow musicians to build the life they dream of…on their own terms. Conversations like this, capturing wisdom to share, is important in the times we are in. Artists, now more than ever seek to stand on their own authority and in their own power of creativity. I hope this conversations inspires you to take that next steps toward creating and owning your craft. Enjoy the listen. You can find more about Fabiana at her website: https://fabianaclaure.com/

On this episode I interview Lindsey Caplan of The Gathering Effect. Gatherings are like gateways...they take us to another plan as humans. We express, inquire, engaged, grieve and celebrate best when gathered. Without our togetherness we may have never known the fullness of friendship or the fathoms of love fulfilled. By its very definition gathering is another kind of awakening, because suddenly one's scene changes, as as the Spanish poet, Antonio Machado says, "you are now in a different world." And as the Irish mystic John O'Donohue reminds us, "that sense of difference and otherness is always what makes us wonder." My guest on this episode helps organizations and leaders wonder about the gathering effect. Her expertise is in scripting experiences in gathering to help boost morale, engagement, and retention for the long term. From her beginnings as a comedy writer in Hollywood on shows like "Curb Your Enthusiasm" to her days an Organizational Psychologist and Head of Talent for successful Silicon Valley

Liz Kislik is a management consultant and executive coach, and a frequent contributor to Harvard Business Review and Forbes. Her TEDx “Why There’s So Much Conflict at Work and What You Can Do to Fix It” has received more than a quarter of a million views. She specializes in developing high performing leaders and workforces, and for 30 years has helped family-run businesses, national nonprofits, and Fortune 500 companies like American Express, Girl Scouts, Staples, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and Highlights for Children solve their thorniest problems. You can learn more about Liz at: https://lizkislik.com/ Liz's free ebook: How to Resolve Interpersonal Conflicts in the Workplace: https://lizkislik.com/resolve-conflict/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizkislik/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/LizKislik

On today’s episode, I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with Dr. Barry Borgerson. Barry is a pioneer in developing a comprehensive theory to understand and manage our many hidden mental mechanisms including those that create involuntary habits (auto-behaviors) and automatic thought patterns (auto-contexts) that control "soft" success factors in business. On this episode we touch on the outlines of 2Selfs Theory, which Barry developed when his old interest became an object of intense study. His intense study became a passion and eventually he became convinced he had to share his insights into how to maximize the effectiveness of our automatic activities, and decided to retire early from a lucrative executive career to pursue creating 2Selfs Theory. Enjoy the discussion. Learn more at: https://www.2selfs.com/

Contend. This is a word that keeps coming up in my psyche as of late. C-O-N-T-E-N-D. Contend. And for those of you having flashbacks to the spelling bees of our youth, I know you want me to use it in a sentence. So, here it goes. I contend to learn in every conversation I have and host on this podcast. Yeah, see what I did there? Perhaps it is because I am enjoying the great work of a fellow podcaster, Erick Godsey, who in his latest episode encourages listeners to go back to understand the definition of the word, the origin of the word CONTEND. And so I did. In its Latin root, it means “with stretch, or with strive” and to stretch with or strive with is one of the things I love most about meeting new people and hearing new stories. My guest's story on this episode came to me, and us, because we were both in a time of great stretch and strive personally and professionally. For me, I was attending my first work dinner in almost two years, and frankly I was nervous to be in a restaurant to meet new colleagues

As I am editing a few upcoming episodes, I thought I would take a moment to provide an interlude and tip my podcast hat to a great source of inspiration, who is going through a lot of change at this moment. As some of you may know, when asked who might be a dream guest to have on this podcast, I often cite the journalist, author and host, Krista Tippett. Krista is the host of my favorite podcast, On Being, which she created in 2014 after a long run of her show “Speaking of Faith” broadcast on American Public Media beginning in the early and mid 2000s. Now, after nearly 20 years of broadcasting and executive producing, change is ahead for Krista, her team and her loyal listeners. Let's unpack it together on this interlude episode.

Imagine you had a great friend who you met in your twenties when you lived in the big city. For six years you and this friend and her friends were pretty much inseparable. You made memories together, experienced heartbreak together and at some point life happened and you went your separate ways, keeping memories, but no longer together. Well, now imagine after nearly 20 years, you get a text from that friend to let you know he or she was in town for a few nights and wanted to see you. What would you do? Would you thumb through the rolodex of old times and try and book that favorite spot you used to go for dinner? Perhaps you would try that coffee spot you loved, if it was still open. Do you dare pull out that old dress to see if it still fits? See, Nostalgia sometimes get the best of you, and just like that, we are reminded that people change…and that is okay. Or is it? My guest on this episode returns to Coffee and Change to join us as the co- host of Coaching Carrie, a podcast that explore the rewatching

On Episode 90 I welcome Steven Fielding, who I call the Talisman for Change. I first heard Steven's incredible story and journey in change on Erick Godsey's Podcast - The Myths That Make Us. I felt a resonance right away and knew I wanted to reach out to not only meet him, but also have him on as a guest on my podcast. Together we talk about archetypes of manhood, men's work, healing and hope for the world in times such as these. This conversation was recorded in a space that Steven is creating and curating to host retreats and workshops to re-connect and re-member who we are as men, as myth makers and marauders of the soul. I guess grief is like fissures. They are like cuts in the earth to allow the pressure to release on this journey everward. Learn more about Steven on IG at @steven.fielding or @stonewitchtalisman_

On today’s episode, I am honored to welcome David Nour. David has an incredible story rooted in resilience, co-creation and lasting change. David is not only the CEO of The Nour Group, a business he built after 20 years of professional practice, but also a great citizen, father, husband, son and storyteller. We delve into some of his story in this episode, and uncover the many tales we share in common as well as explore the new reality of the world around us both. David has written 11 books and is working on his 12th while rewriting some of his early work to reflect today’s challenges in building relationships and the importance of understanding the indelible imprint moments that make us who we are. I want to extend David a big thank you, or SEPAS, MERCI as they say is Persian, for his generosity and time in joining on the podcast. You can find out more about David at http://www.nourgroup.com