As disruption impacts many industries, mid-career professionals must navigate change and consider its future impact. Likewise, the post-career population faces transformation, and needs to prepare financially, logistically, or emotionally for the next phase of their lives. Michael urges us to view this transition through a progressive lens: don’t retire, but rather rewire or re-fire toward a happier, more productive next chapter. And end self-imposed ageism; focus instead on self-driven...

Dr. Mohammad Haqmal, is the former Chief of Public Health for Afghanistan, where he developed a series of groundbreaking programs and has received the Afghanistan National Public Hero Award – twice. He is a medical doctor by training and also holds master’s degrees in Business Administration, Public Health, and Global Health. Before all this, he and his mother had to flee Afghanistan when he was five to live in a refugee camp in Pakistan; they were the only two of his family who survived the...

“I’ve watched the rise of some of the leading companies of today–Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google–and the fall of some of the leading companies of yesterday–Yahoo!, eBay, and AOL…Figuring out which companies really are going to be dominant franchises is an extremely hard thing to do. But those who accomplished this were arguably able to generate some of the best portfolio returns in the stock market over the past generation.” In Mark Mahaney’s new book, Nothing But Net, and in this episode,...

April Rinne is equal parts global authority, advocate, ally and adventurer. She spent the first half of her career focused on global development and financial inclusion, and the latter half on the “new” digital economy and the future of work. For more than two decades, she has seen emerging trends early, understands their potential, and helps others do the same. Her new book Flux: 8 Superpowers for Thriving in Constant Change is part personal guidebook, part strategic roadmap, and part blank...

Alejandro has been included in the Top 30-Under-30 lists of Vanity Fair, GQ, and Entrepreneur Magazine. He is a Forbes contributor as well as the author of the bestselling book The Art of Startup Fundraising, published by John Wiley & Sons and includes a foreword by Barbara Corcoran. We focused much of our conversation on this new book, Selling Your Startup: Crafting the Perfect Exit, Selling Your Business, and Everything Else Entrepreneurs Need to Know, also published by Wiley. The...

How do we make sense of the ideas of the present, that might determine our lives in the future? How can we weigh the legitimacy of new technologies--and sort through what is hype, and what is not? Well, that’s what Jon Gertner, a veteran journalist, editor, historian, and author, seems to have figured out. Jon is a contributing writer at The New York Times Magazine, and is best known for his work on science, technology, innovation, business, and society.

What are the principles of financial independence that enable others to create a different way of life than most people think is possible? In this episode we explore the practical questions behind ways to spend less, earn more, invest better, and work toward financial independence. We go deep and avoid the hucksterism often rampant in this area, and we demystify and vet the actual mechanics of living off of one’s investments.

"Alonzo" Wind is a former Senior Foreign Service Officer from the USAID having worked on diplomatic assignments in Peru, Nicaragua, Angola, Nigeria, Iraq, Afghanistan and South Africa, providing oversight to U.S. government foreign aid development and humanitarian assistance. All of these experiences and adventures are examined in Andean Adventures: An Unexpected Search for Meaning, Purpose and Discovery Across Three Countries an Amazon best-seller, and we cover a number of them in our episode.

Richer, Wiser, Happier shares original and unexpected insights that help us to improve the way we think, cope with uncertainty, assess risk, guard against our cognitive biases, learn from mistakes, rebound from setbacks, adopt smart habits whose benefits compound inexorably over time, amass resilient wealth, and build fulfilling lives that are truly abundant. In this episode, we learn how to improve the way we think, reach decisions, assess risk, build resilience, and turn uncertainty to our...

Michele Wucker is the founder of the Chicago-based strategy firm Gray Rhino & Company. Risk has always been a part of life, to the point that for most of human existence life was risk. Drawing on compelling risk stories around the world and weaving in economics, anthropology, sociology, and psychology research, Michele has written a new book, You Are What You Risk: The New Art and Science of Navigating an Uncertain World which bridges the divide between professional and lay risk...

Art Bell is a writer and former media executive known for creating, building, and managing successful cable television channels like Comedy Central and CourtTV. He’s worked with top talent like Samantha Bee, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, and discovered Bill Maher and Jon Stewart. He worked with other notables such as Dennis Miller—all with various, interesting, South Park-esque experiences that we talk about in this episode. This is an engaging, educational and fun conversation that is not...

Norma Kamali is a treasure. In this episode she shares life lessons on career-building, fitness, authentic beauty, timeless style, and wellbeing through her personal stories, worldly insights, and actionable advice. She is the epitome of living a life in full, and shares how the rest of us can as well.

As longtime listeners know, all of my guests have some type of involvement in humanitarian or philanthropic endeavors, but I have to say that Dr. Glenn Geelhoed is an all-star from that very deep bench. He is a member of numerous medical, surgical, and international academic societies, and is an author with more than 800 published journal articles and book chapters, along with several books, including his most recent – Furthest Peoples First – based on his work as the founder of Mission to...

Guy Spier is a Zurich-based investor and founder of Aquamarine Capital’s privately offered investment funds, with assets under management valued at over $250M. He authored The Education of a Value Investor, perhaps the most untraditional book on investing ever written. He explained what a hedge fund does and his “Graham-Buffett-Munger-Pabrai philosophy” for investing and for living. Guy is one of the most global citizens I know. This episode was an intellectual treat for me, and for listeners...

Have you ever wondered why someone else got the position you applied for? Or why a colleague succeeded in getting a promotion rather than you? Steve Herz may know why, and what to do about it not happening again. Steve has spent his career helping broadcast journalists get positions with companies like CBS, CNN MSNBC, and Fox, as a premier talent agent, and now he helps others to advance their careers and improve their lives.

Wim Hof, aka, The Iceman has set over 20 Guinness World Records. And while he has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts, run a half-marathon in the Arctic – barefoot – what may be most compelling is that he has made the core of how he is able to do such things available to the public to learn. Admittedly, I was a bit skeptical but I have read the studies and asked Wim my own questions, and I must say, I think he may be on to something. I hope you enjoy this episode with the one and only, Iceman.

It seems to have become a new tradition every January 1st to do an update to prior Epic Living, Living a Life in Full, and The List/Life Resume plans and consider to how to approach the upcoming year. The idea is to share my N-of-1 trials, be a bit autobiographical in the use and results from this past year, and to share tools and approaches you may want to give a go yourself. Interested listeners can look at the companion LinkedIn Influencer post.I hope you enjoy it and find it of use.

Drs. Param Singh (Carnegie Mellon University) and Rohit Aggarwal (University of Utah) have built a site they call Mentor Students, at MentorStudents.org. The idea is to have a multidisciplinary site where mentors are invited to respond to interview questions to help students and new grads with their career-readiness, provide insights on various job roles (as for me in the humanitarian space) and, how to prepare. I also discuss how to get published and a few other areas.

Imagine if you could generate and leverage hype for positive purposes―like legitimate business success, helping people, or effecting positive change in your community. Michael F. Schein teaches us how.

David Meltzer, is the former CEO of the renowned Leigh Steinberg Sports & Entertainment agency, which was the basis of the Tom Cruise movie Jerry Maguire. He is now the Co-founder, with partner and NFL Hall of Famer, Warren Moon, of Sports 1 Marketing which leverages over $20 billion in relationship capital to market some of the biggest sporting events in the world . He hosts a very popular Friday Trainings for entrepreneurs, star-up founders, and business leaders.

Bridget Algee-Hewitt, PhD, does amazing things. Bridget wonderfully combines various disciplines and sciences via the connective thread of social justice and humanitarian intervention which is inspiring for us all and demonstrates how to live a life in full in the service of knowledge and helping others.

Dr. William H. Reid is board-certified in general and forensic psychiatry, a professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and the University of Texas Dell Medical School. In this episode we discussed “forensic psychiatry 101” in general, to set the context for better understanding, and in particular, we will discuss A Dark Night in Aurora. Bill shares how he got involved with the case, and we do a deep dive in to all aspects of the case, his work and what spurred him to write...

Leslie Porterfield is the fastest woman in the world, and that’s on a motorcycle! Let that sink in. She went 232.522 miles per hour on the Bonneville Salt Flats, and thus became a member of the very exclusive “Bonneville 200 MPH Club” and its first woman member. She gives some great advice about battling stereotypes and biases, setting priorities once becoming the mother of twins, resilience, and evolving one’s career as life changes.

“The pandemic has changed most everything—that’s not news. What is perhaps causing people the most unease is that it has removed the illusion of certainty” opines Chris Majer, a noted speaker, author, and designer of organizational transformation processes. He is an authority on organizational cultures, high performing teams and the practices of authentic leadership. He has generated a new body of work that builds on his past success and it is entitled, “New Practices for a New World."

Scott Carney is a bestselling author, anthropologist and investigative journalist whose works blend narrative non-fiction with ethnography. Scott has worked in some of the most dangerous and unlikely corners of the world. In The Wedge, Scott sets a framework of human evolution and migration, and introduces the concept of the power of choice as an equally significant evolutionary force vis-à-vis the limits of endurance. And off we go…