One New Person

Kay Reeve speaks and writes about emotional awareness. She is the author of Brain Unchained, a book created to help teenagers, young adults, and parents understand the four core emotions and build a strategy for positive emotional change. (continued below) MENTAL HEALTH DISCLAIMER: None of the participants in this video are doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, or medical practitioners of any kind. The content of this video is presented solely for the purpose of creating awareness and conversation. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your mental health professional or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding your condition.⚠️ If you are in crisis or you think you may have an emergency, call your doctor or 911 immediately. ⚠️ If you're having suicidal thoughts, call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to talk to a skilled, trained counselor at a crisis center in your area at any time (National Suicide Pre

Xabier Marshall is a personal trainer and the owner of Multiply Performance in the UK.I discovered Xabier while reading a BBC article about gyms in a COVID and post-COVID world. I’ve never been to a gym in my life, so I couldn’t tell you why I was reading that article. But Xabier was quoted about successfully Pivoting his personal training to an app-based plan.I had to know more. So I sent him a cold message on LinkedIn and 3 days later we recorded this episode.In this conversation we discussed people’s perceptions of personal trainers, Xabier’s initial emotional response to the 2020 lockdowns, how being marketing-minded allowed him to see what was next and what was needed, his new app-based training program, and his predictions about the future of the gym and fitness industry.It’s a deeply insightful conversation, and a lot of fun.Connect with Xabier:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/multiplyperformance/Website: http://www.multiplyperformance.com/ Watch instead of listen: https://beyondnetworkingpodcast.c

Ken Davenport is a two-time Tony award-winning Broadway producer. He is best known for Spring Awakening, Kinky Boots, and the revival of Godspell.Ken is renowned in the theater community as an innovative marketer. In 2008 he started a blog called The Producer’s Perspective, dedicated to making the business of Broadway accessible and understandable.He also created Be a Broadway Star, the only Broadway-themed board game.Ken and I met when we were both panelists on the same livestream. He spoke so passionately about theater’s resilience, I knew I had to invite him to our little corner of the Internet.In this conversation, Ken helps us understand where Broadway is and where it’s likely going. In particular, he answered the burning question: Did Hamilton’s streaming success open the doors to an entirely new revenue stream for theater?My wife Lindsey and I are Broadway fanatics, as you know, so this was a huge treat. Also, a last-minute update. Ken and I recorded this conversation in January of 2021, but as I’m rel

Dr. Caitlin O'Connell is a scientist, author, and storyteller. She holds a PhD in ecology, holds positions at both Harvard and Stanford, is an award-winning author of non-fiction, children’s books, and graphic novels, AND is a renowned expert on elephants.What’s that got to do with Pivoting, resilience, adaptability, human connection, or even just networking, for that matter?I had no idea. We were connected through a mutual acquaintance and, if I’m being honest, I only agreed out of politeness. I’m so glad that I did. This was the most unexpected, dare I say wild, conversation of the season, and quite possibly my favorite.Dr. O’Connell was just gearing up for a huge fundraising effort for her nonprofit organization, Utopia Scientific when the pandemic wiped out all possible fundraising events for the foreseeable future.In her words, she was forced with a decision: Implode, or explode?And boy did she explode, in the most creative way possible.In this conversation, Caitlin and I discuss everything from the bone

Allen Williams is an audio professional in the TV and film industry. He’s worked on projects like The Vampire Diaries, Spider-Man Homecoming, Creed, The Founder, Stranger Things, Cobra Kai, Avengers Infinity War… and some big name projects, too.Like everyone else in the entertainment industry, when COVID hit Allen found himself suddenly without income, prospects, or even hope that work would come back. But that was only the beginning of his 2020 nightmare.Two months before the pandemic, in January 2020, a contractor discovered an outdated part of their house that was no longer up to code. It was exorbitantly expensive to fix, but Allen and his wife decided to empty their savings rather than take out a loan, because he had plenty of work lined up.Then the TV and film industry collapsed, leaving him without an income for what would become 9 months.To make matters worse, his wife got COVID almost immediately, putting her on bedrest for nearly 2 months while fighting alternating fever and near-hypothermia episode

Elisse Glennon is the Executive Director of the New Jersey Sharing Network Foundation. The NJ Sharing Network is a non-profit organization for the recovery and placement of donated organs and tissues. The foundation, where Elisse presides, is dedicated to increasing the numbers of lives saved through research, family support, public awareness, and education.4000 New Jersey residents alone are waiting on the transplant list. So when COVID threatened the entire national healthcare system, Elisse and her team of 180 committed professionals plus volunteers had to navigate incredibly shaky seas.The big question was, would donations plummet, devastating the chances of everyone on that list, desperately in need of a transplant?Not on Elisse’s watch. Instead, the NJ Sharing Network had a record year. And in this conversation, Elisse teaches us precisely how they did it.Now, you might be tired of hearing about “mindset shifts” from the self-help community. But Elisse and her team are proof that it’s often mindset, not

Dan Cockerell started his Disney career directing cars in the parking lot. But when he left 26 years later to pursue an entrepreneurial journey of his own, he was in charge of the entire daily operations of the happiest place on earth.I invited Dan on the podcast to help us understand how the hospitality industry has responded to Covid overall. You’re going to learn about the power of staying on message, the secret to hiring and training a world class team, when attitude trumps skills, the No. 1 mistake most companies make that lead to their downfall, how to handle an increasingly competitive marketplace, and the value of trust.Plus, stick around to the very end, when I asked Dan to tell me ONE thing that even Disney superfans wouldn’t know about the Magic Kingdom. And boy did he deliver.This was a huge honor. As you know, my wife Lindsey and I are Disney superfans. Getting to spend an hour chatting with one of the most senior people at our favorite place on earth was truly surreal. Dan was super gracious and

Jesse Cole is the owner of the Savannah Bananas, a collegiate summer league baseball team based in Georgia.Here’s a few facts about the Bananas:They only sell one ticket and it’s all inclusive.Their players perform choreographed dances every game.They are the only baseball team to play in kilts.Their coaching staff includes a 9-year-old and a grandma.They have a senior citizen dance team called the Banana Nanas.Their stadium is the first ever ad-free ballpack.They have sold out every game since their first season.And Jesse is known as the “man in the yellow tux,” because, well, he wears a yellow tux. Not just sometimes, but always.I’ve been following Jesse’s journey for years. We were originally connected through Ron Holt, the founder and CEO of national franchise Two Maids & a Mop, who appeared on the podcast back in Season 2.Jesse speaks and writes about leadership and service. He hosts the Business Done Differently podcast. And he wrote the book “Find Your Yellow Tux.”In this conversation, Jesse takes

I've had the pleasure of being a guest on some wonderful podcasts lately. Here's a "best of" compilation from the first quarter of 2021. Featuring: Donato G Poet, The Art of Relationships, The Storypowers Podcast, Bulletproof Cashflow, and Marketing as a Foreign Language. Topics include: My 2020 pivot Loneliness in the pandemic Story telling tips for life and business How to connect with sales prospects The most difficult speech I ever gave Watch this episode instead of listening: https://youtu.be/ZD8qKlnbOQ8Catch the full episodes of each featured clip: https://brianmillerspeaks.com/podcast-guest/

Tyler Anderson is a chef and owner of multiple high-end restaurants. He’s also a James Beard award-nominee and appeared on both The Food Network and Top Chef on Bravo.If you’re thinking, didn’t you recently interview a restaurant owner? I did. This is a companion episode to my conversation with Pam Paydos. In fact, Pam connected me with Tyler in the first place many years ago.Pam’s restaurant Popover and Tyler’s flagship restaurant Millwrights are in the same small Connecticut town. And, like Pam, Tyler has not only stayed in business, but remained a pillar of the community through all the insanity of the last year.But that’s where the similarities stop.See, while Pam’s restaurant is a tiny breakfast and lunch bakery nestled in a quaint shopping plaza, Tyler’s Millwrights is a massive fine dining dinner establishment overlooking a waterfall.While Pam’s Pivot was to remodel, nurture the relationship with loyal customers,  and make the most of her petite square footage… Tyler built dine-in greenhouses. Honestly

Today we’ve got one of our featured experts for the season. Stefanie Faye Frank is a neuroscience researcher.She specializes in translating complex scientific concepts into real-world language to help people find new ways to use their talents, discomforts, failures, and challenges as pathways to growth and evolution.In other words, she helps people Pivot by transforming negatives into positives.I invited Stefanie to chat specifically about education’s response to COVID over the past year. How did the field of education respond, and how did individual teachers respond?This turned into an enlightening conversation on the nature of change itself, at both the individual level and the systemic level.In particular, pay close attention to what Stefanie calls “survival of the busiest,” and how we can leverage that principle to create the change we actually want.CONNECT WITH STEFANIE▸ Website: https://stefaniefaye.com/ ▸ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mindsetneuroscience ▸ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stef

Pam Paydos is a beloved Connecticut-based entrepreneur and restaurateur who long-time listeners of this podcast will remember. In fact, Pam was the very first guest ever on this show, back when it was called One New Person. When everything shut down, restaurants were the first and most visible industry to pivot, shifting to take-out only and building the foundation of curbside pickup, now a mainstay in our culture. Can you remember a time without curbside pickup?In Pam’s case, it was even trickier. Her current restaurant is a bistro and bakery, designed around a small-town ambience and community tables in a very tight space. She didn’t have the systems or staff to do take-out.But almost a year later, Popover Bistro and Bakery remains a pillar of the community. In this conversation Pam walks us through the nightmare of her Pivot. Pay attention to how her unwavering commitment to staying alive kept her going, even in the darkest of times.A word before you listen: In true COVID fashion, we had a lot of Internet

Hana Jung is the founder of Re:Boot Experiences, a set of programs designed to help people stop being machines, and start being human, again.We were connected through a mutual friend David Nebinski who runs the Career Portfolio podcast, on which we’ve both appeared.When COVID hit Hana was already in the midst of personal tragedy and family emergencies. As you’ll hear her describe, COVID was basically secondary to the devastating unfolding in her personal life.So she called upon her own inner strength, the same strength she teaches and facilitates with Re:Boot, to create her Pivot.In this conversation you’ll hear how being a first generation child of immigrant parents shaped Hana’s philosophy on life, how she previously Pivoted away from a miserable career in corporate America, and what it means to Re:Boot your life.By the end, this episode is truly more than the sum of its parts.Connect with HanaWebsite: https://rebootexperiences.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebootexperiences/Facebook: https://www.

Sandra is the Director of Drama for the College of the Albemarle in North Carolina. But that’s not what she was doing in March 2020 when the world fell apart.Back then, Sandra was the Associate Director for Music off Main, a studio that specialized in early childhood music education. But when Covid shut down the ability to safely sing in-person, the studio space they rented was no longer a financially viable option. Suddenly Sandra’s work in music education, and her personal career in opera, were ripped away.In the fall she took on a new role as Director of Drama for a community college in rural North Carolina. Within days she faced a dilemma: How do you safely put on a theatrical production in the middle of a pandemic that even shut down Broadway?Her answer?Puppets.You are in for a real treat this episode. Sandra’s story is completely bonkers, as is the way our paths intersected. Connect with SandraFacebook Account: https://www.facebook.com/sandra.aganskruegerTheatre Program at The College of The Albemarle:

Dr. Deborah Gilboa, professionally known as Dr. G, is a practicing family physician. But I wanted to speak with her because she is also an expert on resilience.She teaches families, individuals, teams, and businesses to "do stress better.”In this conversation Dr. G teaches us: 1) What resilience actually is; 2) Why some people seem to go through many difficult situations but never get any more resilient; 3) How some individuals and organizations were able to successfully pivot in response to the stress of 2020 while others were not; 4) And a specific set of strategies and techniques you can use to become more resilient, starting today.Plus, she's an absolute riot, and you'll soon find out why. Connect with Dr. GWebsite: https://askdoctorg.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/AskDoctorG/Twitter: https://twitter.com/askdocgInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/askdoctorg/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahgilboamd/

Today’s guest is Jason Tanner. Jason is the CEO and Co-Founder of Applied Frameworks, a consulting firm based in North Carolina. When the world shut down, Jason had 10 employees whose livelihoods and families’ security depended on his ability to pivot. Luckily, Jason served nine years in the Marine Corp, and knew that open, consistent, and efficient communication would be the key moving forward.As you’re about to find out, Jason has a direct, linear method of communicating. It actually caught me off-guard, as I’m used to having free-flowing conversations on this podcast, full of diversions and tangents. Instead, Jason is laser-focused.And as far as I can tell, that’s why he still has 10 employees today.Pay close attention not only to Jason’s content, but his method of delivery.Connect with Jasonhttps://appliedframeworks.com/

Today’s featured Pivoter is Stuart MacDonald. Stuart is a rare bird. He’s a magician, but he’s really a character actor who happens to be a magician. He's also won a  ton of prestigious awards in magic and fooled Penn & Teller on the CW's hit show Fool Us.You see, magicians, myself included, are typically just heightened versions of themselves. But Stuart creates characters with backstories, wants, and needs, and inhabits them fully. Why don’t more magicians do it? Because it’s really freakin’ hard.In March of 2020, Stuart was the very last person to step foot on stage at the famous Magic Castle in Hollywood, before they shut their doors and the world went into lockdown.Unlike most Pivoters this season, Stuart did not immediately turn to virtual in order to salvage his career. In fact, he hung up his magic act and started searching for a normal 9-5. But nearly a year later, Stuart is still a professional magician, delivering some of the most inventive virtual shows in the industry. How did he get here? Th

Today’s guest is Carolene Méli, who spent 10 years traveling the world with Cirque du Soleil as the Head of VIP Events and Concierge, until COVID wiped out the global live entertainment industry and Cirque declared bankruptcy, eliminating 3,500 jobs overnight. When the world went into lockdown she was stranded at an AirBnB in France with nothing but a backpack and her phone. Suddenly jobless, Carolene immediately got to work building a new career for herself.Now she's out on her own as an Experience Strategist, coach and consultant.You’re going to love Carolene’s pivot story and the unique way her background prepared her for the unthinkable. In particular, pay attention to the way she describes intentional action as the key to her success.Connect with Carolene:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolenemeli/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolenemeli/The Experience Creators podcast on YouTube

What pivot have you made in your life or career? How resilient are you? Do you have the capacity for existential flexibility? Here’s to your next Pivot. Join the Pivot Power newsletter: https://YearOfThePivot.com 

Show up with kindness and offer the gift of connection. How they choose to receive or reject that gift is not for us to predict.Read instead: https://brianmillerspeaks.com/the-baby-in-your-head/Watch instead: https://youtu.be/twFLSU-BavA