Full Transcript for Industry Illuminators: Unlocking the Power of Visionary Success

truth. So when I came back, 59 00:05:17.759 --> 00:05:23.680 I came back to ask for them to help pay for college, and I 60 00:05:23.759 --> 00:05:27.600 kind of came back with a chip on my shoulder. And it was right 61 00:05:27.680 --> 00:05:33.399 around the time that the organization that was called the Casey Family Program was starting 62 00:05:33.839 --> 00:05:39.680 to really recognize the diversity of foster care children, not in just in race, 63 00:05:40.160 --> 00:05:44.720 but also in how they identify. And the director at the time, 64 00:05:44.759 --> 00:05:47.480 her name was Carmen said, sat me down in her office. She said, 65 00:05:47.519 --> 00:05:53.639 whatever you think you know, you don't know, and she really encouraged 66 00:05:53.639 --> 00:05:58.120 me to talk about it. With my experience what it was like for foster 67 00:05:58.240 --> 00:06:04.600 parents when I was a child, as far as coming to terms with my 68 00:06:04.680 --> 00:06:10.480 sexuality, there are a lot of nuances involved in that. You're when you 69 00:06:10.519 --> 00:06:15.480 have your own biological child, let alone a foster child, you don't you're 70 00:06:15.560 --> 00:06:19.639 under much more of a microscope. And I took the opportunity to work with 71 00:06:19.680 --> 00:06:27.040 the agency and their perspective foster parents because I felt like it was important that 72 00:06:27.120 --> 00:06:31.480 they understand one little comment is going to affect a foster child quite differently than 73 00:06:31.480 --> 00:06:38.040 it's going to affect their biological child. And that was sort of the typical 74 00:06:40.399 --> 00:06:45.040 experience that I had growing up. Was you know, I was not the 75 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:51.759 most masculine boy, and a lot of parents struggled with that, and it 76 00:06:51.879 --> 00:07:00.600 I just felt some tremendous sense of responsibility to help give back because it was 77 00:07:00.680 --> 00:07:04.360 so I was so fortunate in so many ways that so many kids are not. 78 00:07:05.600 --> 00:07:11.040 And as much as I hate to think that it was because of my 79 00:07:11.199 --> 00:07:15.360 race, it was and it's not right. I know I had more advantages 80 00:07:16.079 --> 00:07:21.600 as a blonde hair, blue white kid than my black or Hispanic or Asian 81 00:07:21.639 --> 00:07:28.120 counterparts, and that, to me was an injustice that I felt very strongly 82 00:07:30.600 --> 00:07:35.079 that I needed to help try to correct. Wow, thank you for sharing 83 00:07:35.120 --> 00:07:43.519 that. Thank you for that authenticity and no doubt your journey through the foster 84 00:07:43.600 --> 00:07:46.720 care system and then now going back and getting back and now you're at this 85 00:07:46.839 --> 00:07:53.560 point now in your life where you're nearing the completion of your book. Did 86 00:07:53.600 --> 00:08:00.560 the foster care experience shape your desire to publish this? And I know it 87 00:08:00.600 --> 00:08:03.680 sounds like a no brainer question, but I want to ask it because I 88 00:08:03.720 --> 00:08:07.720 want to hear your thoughts on that you know, no which is probably going 89 00:08:07.800 --> 00:08:15.519 to surprise you and my readers. What shaped my decision to write and finish 90 00:08:15.600 --> 00:08:24.839 this book were two things, my children and my mom. I wanted to 91 00:08:24.959 --> 00:08:33.200 leave something behind for my kids, because kids don't really know their parents, 92 00:08:33.240 --> 00:08:37.279 and especially kids that are adopted or you become their legal guardians later in life, 93 00:08:39.240 --> 00:08:43.000 they don't know what your journey is. And I felt at the time 94 00:08:43.159 --> 00:08:50.320 that I started it that it was really important that they hear my voice, 95 00:08:50.440 --> 00:08:54.240 they hear they see they were, that they be able to see what I 96 00:08:54.279 --> 00:09:00.480 came from, which might explain some of the decisions that I made the time 97 00:09:00.600 --> 00:09:05.960 when they were growing up. And then also when my mom started to decline, 98 00:09:07.200 --> 00:09:11.759 I felt it was important to honor her, and it sort of evolved 99 00:09:11.919 --> 00:09:18.600 into what it is now, which is hopefully a voice for the kids that 100 00:09:18.639 --> 00:09:24.679 are in the system, because what I'm still seeing happening as I, you 101 00:09:24.720 --> 00:09:31.320 know, do interviews and reach out to other organizations, is that a lot 102 00:09:31.360 --> 00:09:35.399 of the system is much better about preparing foster foster parents now than it was 103 00:09:35.440 --> 00:09:41.200 when I was a kid, but there are still a lot of nuances and 104 00:09:41.279 --> 00:09:46.759 a lot of little things that are getting missed. And I just felt this 105 00:09:46.679 --> 00:09:52.879 it was time to to to be that voice for those kids and to leave 106 00:09:52.919 --> 00:09:58.000 something for my kids to go, oh, okay, that makes more sense. 107 00:10:00.679 --> 00:10:05.639 Wow. It wasn't my experience, it's necessary. It wasn't necessarily my 108 00:10:05.720 --> 00:10:09.320 experience as a child. It was more my experience as an adult and what 109 00:10:09.440 --> 00:10:13.120 got me through some of the most difficult times of my life. And looking 110 00:10:13.159 --> 00:10:18.840 back, I was only able to succeed as an adult because I was able 111 00:10:18.879 --> 00:10:24.399 to let go of what happened as a child, and that's really hard for 112 00:10:24.480 --> 00:10:26.200 a lot of people to do, and it takes a lot of work, 113 00:10:26.519 --> 00:10:33.799 a lot of work. That is so I'm gonna be honest with you. 114 00:10:33.799 --> 00:10:39.600 Your answer did shock me, but in a good way because it makes so 115 00:10:39.679 --> 00:10:43.120 much sense and it's it's for me. It's like listening to you speak, 116 00:10:43.120 --> 00:10:48.679 it's one of those aha moments, like

that's like, yeah, that, 117 00:10:48.879 --> 00:10:50.960 Yeah, that would be the reason why you would want to write a stay. 118 00:10:52.039 --> 00:10:54.240 Yeah, you want to leave something behind for those that you love, 119 00:10:54.399 --> 00:10:58.840 you know, in a way that does help them to understand who you are 120 00:10:58.879 --> 00:11:01.879 and maybe even helps them to understan who they are in their experiences with you. 121 00:11:01.960 --> 00:11:05.159 I mean, that is such a profound thought, Gino. I don't 122 00:11:05.200 --> 00:11:09.679 think I've ever heard anybody put it quite that way. And I don't want 123 00:11:09.240 --> 00:11:13.320 on a just gloss over what you stated that. Thank you for that. 124 00:11:13.200 --> 00:11:18.320 I want to move on on to our next question because in your book you 125 00:11:18.240 --> 00:11:26.039 cover a lot pretty quickly. But what key message or things do you aim 126 00:11:26.120 --> 00:11:33.240 to share with the readers. Well, I have two audiences I'm trying to 127 00:11:33.240 --> 00:11:39.440 capture at the same time I'm trying to capture well, actually three, I'm 128 00:11:39.440 --> 00:11:43.080 trying to capture the attention of the children, that are in this system right 129 00:11:43.120 --> 00:11:46.519 now say hey, listen, I've been there. See this is what I 130 00:11:46.519 --> 00:11:50.759 went through. Also trying to capture the attention of the people that are caring 131 00:11:50.759 --> 00:11:54.639 for them, and I'm also trying to capture the attention of the public at 132 00:11:54.720 --> 00:12:05.480 large. So when I tell the story, I've kind of tried to remove 133 00:12:05.159 --> 00:12:11.200 the emotion of it, and I try to tell the story matter of factly. 134 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:18.200 It's just this is the way that it was. And the overall message 135 00:12:18.240 --> 00:12:24.080 that I'm hoping to get through to all three of those audiences is perseverance and 136 00:12:24.679 --> 00:12:31.759 self believing in yourself, because that's the hardest part when you these kids. 137 00:12:31.919 --> 00:12:35.120 From the minute they're stripped away from their family, they're traumatized. Forget what 138 00:12:35.240 --> 00:12:39.559 got them stripped away from their family. That just compounds the trauma, and 139 00:12:39.600 --> 00:12:43.080 then they're put into a strange environment, so there's another trauma, and it's 140 00:12:43.080 --> 00:12:46.480 just one after another after another after another, And by the time you land 141 00:12:46.519 --> 00:12:52.080 on someone's doorstep or at an institution, you've already been through more trauma than 142 00:12:52.120 --> 00:13:01.240 most people can imagine their their entire life. And I want, especially especially 143 00:13:01.279 --> 00:13:07.480 the kids, to understand that it might seem right now like you're never gonna 144 00:13:07.480 --> 00:13:11.600 come out to anything, and you're no one really cares. But

nothing could 145 00:13:11.639 --> 00:13:16.480 be further from the truth. As an adult in my fifties, I can 146 00:13:16.519 --> 00:13:20.200 look back and I can see that even the bad foster parents, even the 147 00:13:20.200 --> 00:13:24.399 people that I ride about that were horrific, they all touched my life. 148 00:13:24.080 --> 00:13:28.440 And that's the message I want to get through to prospective foster parents. Whether 149 00:13:28.480 --> 00:13:33.039 you're an emergency foster home, whether you're you know, a counselor at an 150 00:13:33.039 --> 00:13:37.879 institution, whether you're a therapist, whether you're a social worker, every interaction 151 00:13:37.919 --> 00:13:45.039 you have with those kids, haven't you have a chance to impact their life, 152 00:13:45.039 --> 00:13:48.559 and you will impact their life. The things that I can remember are 153 00:13:48.720 --> 00:13:52.440 insane. I still remember the name of my first social worker. She's still 154 00:13:52.440 --> 00:13:56.919 alive and she lives in the same county as I do. I haven't talked 155 00:13:56.919 --> 00:14:05.279 to her. But the power that we as adults have on a child is 156 00:14:05.519 --> 00:14:09.799 a lot deeper than I think we realize, and most people realize. You 157 00:14:09.840 --> 00:14:11.000 know, we just grow up and we do. We do, we do, 158 00:14:11.080 --> 00:14:16.679 we raise our kids and we go about life. And what I've seen 159 00:14:16.759 --> 00:14:20.919 lacking so far in a lot of kids in it, whether they're foster, 160 00:14:20.080 --> 00:14:26.879 adopted or biological is I feel sometimes like this generation and I know our parents 161 00:14:26.879 --> 00:14:28.639 have the same thing about us and their parents have the same thing about them. 162 00:14:30.200 --> 00:14:37.720 But what I'm seeing is a tremendous lack of appreciation. And what I 163 00:14:37.840 --> 00:14:43.679 realized is I was the same way as a young adult. But once you're 164 00:14:43.759 --> 00:14:46.799 able to let the appreciation in for the people that helped you get to where 165 00:14:46.840 --> 00:14:52.720 you are, then you're able to really live an authentic life. Having an 166 00:14:52.720 --> 00:14:56.320 attitude like oh, I got here by myself is not going to get you 167 00:14:56.360 --> 00:15:01.159 anywhere. You have to let that in. There's just so many different pieces 168 00:15:01.360 --> 00:15:07.799 of the story that of the reality of the system, that it's hard to 169 00:15:07.840 --> 00:15:15.559 put it into one little packaged answer. I could shoot out in five hundred 170 00:15:15.559 --> 00:15:26.799 different directions. Perseverance, appreciation, gratitude, those are the strongest messages, 171 00:15:26.840 --> 00:15:33.679 I think, even for me. One of the most horrific and abusive foster 172 00:15:33.799 --> 00:15:39.120 homes that I had as a teenager, and I still struggle with the direction 173 00:15:39.200 --> 00:15:43.759 my life was headed when

I came to that family, and the direction and 174 00:15:43.840 --> 00:15:48.639 I just kept basically made a hard right turn. It was beaten into me, 175 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:52.159 and I don't condone that in any way, shape or form. But 176 00:15:52.480 --> 00:15:54.279 is a fifty three year old man. Now I look back and I think 177 00:15:54.840 --> 00:15:58.120 what if I hadn't, where would I have gone? How would what would 178 00:15:58.120 --> 00:16:02.600 I? And those are lifelong things that you just I just have to process 179 00:16:02.679 --> 00:16:06.279 through. It is what it is. I got through it, and it 180 00:16:06.320 --> 00:16:10.480 did change me and I did get some good things from it. And I'm 181 00:16:10.600 --> 00:16:15.000 choosing as an adult to pick to pick and pull from the good, not 182 00:16:15.080 --> 00:16:18.000 the bad. Of course I write about all of it, but for me, 183 00:16:18.200 --> 00:16:25.159 I carry the good and I found good in all of them. Wow. 184 00:16:26.240 --> 00:16:34.559 Wow, that is that attitude that definitely shows that you've this is a 185 00:16:34.679 --> 00:16:42.639 journey. And I think helping other young ones who share similar experiences to find 186 00:16:42.720 --> 00:16:51.840 that piece, to find the good and their experiences is is needed. And 187 00:16:52.639 --> 00:16:59.679 you're needed. Your story is needed. So thank you for being great just 188 00:16:59.799 --> 00:17:02.639 enough to share it and and and to lend your voice for our youth. 189 00:17:03.120 --> 00:17:10.759 Now, how did your your own personal experience and the foster care system shape 190 00:17:10.960 --> 00:17:15.200 the content of your book? Because obviously your book you talk about not just 191 00:17:15.319 --> 00:17:21.039 foster care, but you know just your your life and its entirety. So 192 00:17:21.640 --> 00:17:26.440 but how did your personal experiences in the foster care system shape your book content. 193 00:17:27.720 --> 00:17:32.039 Well, I mean, it's a memoir, so it's about me. 194 00:17:32.279 --> 00:17:37.799 It's about my experiences, and you know, there are there are a lot 195 00:17:37.839 --> 00:17:41.880 of people that I'm certainly not the only one. I think. What's a 196 00:17:41.880 --> 00:17:48.400 little unique about my book is that I grew up in a time in this 197 00:17:48.519 --> 00:17:56.000 country, during the AIDS pandemic and coming to you know, coming to terms 198 00:17:56.000 --> 00:18:00.119 with my sexuality while in the system, and while how foster parents that were 199 00:18:00.119 --> 00:18:10.839 openly hostile towards gay people. Those are things that foster parents don't realize have 200 00:18:10.920 --> 00:18:15.400 an impact on the children they're caring for. And so when I write the 201 00:18:15.440 --> 00:18:19.160 book. When I wrote the book, I wrote the book to tell that 202 00:18:19.240 --> 00:18:22.880 part of the story. It's sort of a it's not just a coming of 203 00:18:22.920 --> 00:18:26.640 age story. It's not just a story about abuse. But it's also a 204 00:18:26.720 --> 00:18:33.039 story about discovering who I was and finding my voice. And there are a 205 00:18:33.079 --> 00:18:38.480 lot of pieces to that. And thankfully I just had a strong constitution, 206 00:18:38.519 --> 00:18:42.839 I guess, and once I realized I was gay, that was it. 207 00:18:42.839 --> 00:18:47.160 It wasn't my problem anymore with everybody else. Actually it really wasn't. I 208 00:18:47.160 --> 00:18:51.079 got super lucky. I didn't lose any friends, or have anybody walk out 209 00:18:51.079 --> 00:18:56.880 of my life. So I guess because it's a memoir and it's about me, 210 00:18:57.720 --> 00:19:06.519 that's kind of how it shape all right. I appreciate that. Thank 211 00:19:06.559 --> 00:19:11.000 you, And so what do you hope readers, particularly foster character us, 212 00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:18.960 we'll take away from reading your book that there's always hope, that even when 213 00:19:19.000 --> 00:19:25.480 you think you're at the darkest and the lowest, there's always hope, and 214 00:19:25.599 --> 00:19:30.160 there's always a light at the end of the top unnel. You just have 215 00:19:30.200 --> 00:19:41.519 to hold hold on. Yeah, that's powerful. Thank you, and I 216 00:19:41.039 --> 00:19:49.400 do strongly desire foster care professionals and advocates to not only pick up a copy 217 00:19:49.400 --> 00:19:55.240 of your book, but too to utilize it as a resource in helping our 218 00:19:55.279 --> 00:20:03.799 young people. I'm so excited that this book is is soon to come into 219 00:20:03.839 --> 00:20:07.960 our hands. The launches is right around the corner. But I do want 220 00:20:07.960 --> 00:20:15.359 my readers and my listeners to end my audience as well as your audience to 221 00:20:15.480 --> 00:20:18.400 know where we can pick up a copy of the book when it does come 222 00:20:18.400 --> 00:20:22.039 out, or even when you hit the pre sales. How can we access 223 00:20:22.079 --> 00:20:25.359 this book? Where can we go? Well, first, I'm going to 224 00:20:25.480 --> 00:20:32.480 put the first kind of a teaser on my website at Chiomadaras dot com and 225 00:20:32.960 --> 00:20:36.880 it will be available on my website. It will also be available on Amazon, 226 00:20:37.319 --> 00:20:41.680 and I haven't really gotten further than that because pretty much nowadays everything's on 227 00:20:41.680 --> 00:20:45.559 Amazon. So I'm going to start easy, you know, I'm not going 228 00:20:45.640 --> 00:20:51.160 to try to over Hopefully local books stores will carry it and we'll just see 229 00:20:51.200 --> 00:20:57.359 where it goes from there. That's brilliant. Yeah, Amazon is the way 230 00:20:57.359 --> 00:21:00.720 to go for all publisher today, including those that have been around for over 231 00:21:00.759 --> 00:21:07.119 a hundred years. So wise choice there. So everybody, you can take 232

00:21:07.160 --> 00:21:11.200 a look at the links and the description of the show wherever you are listening 233 00:21:11.200 --> 00:21:15.359 I'm watching, and you'll be able to click right there to Geno's website to 234 00:21:15.400 --> 00:21:19.920 stay updated on on everything that Gino has going on, especially that book dropped. 235 00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:25.200 Before We Let You Go, I want to just again and express my 236 00:21:25.400 --> 00:21:30.079 deep appreciation for you taking the time to be with us today. But more 237 00:21:30.079 --> 00:21:33.319 importantly, I'm speaking to our young people and reminding them that they have a 238 00:21:33.400 --> 00:21:40.240 voice and that if they just hold on and hope and endure, things are 239 00:21:40.240 --> 00:21:44.000 going to get better. So thanks, thank you for that that message, 240 00:21:44.319 --> 00:21:45.480 Gino. Before We let you Go, is there anything else you would like 241 00:21:45.519 --> 00:21:52.440 to share? No, I'm excited to get the book released. I encourage 242 00:21:52.480 --> 00:21:56.519 people to go to my website. You can send me messages directly through my 243 00:21:56.599 --> 00:22:02.599 website or on social media. I'd love to hear from you once you've read 244 00:22:02.640 --> 00:22:10.640 it, and I encourage you to share it and yeah and do what you 245 00:22:10.640 --> 00:22:15.440 can to make a difference. Beautiful parting words of advice. Thank you so 246 00:22:15.519 --> 00:22:19.240 much for that, and Gino again, you know that you always have a 247 00:22:19.240 --> 00:22:22.720 place here on The Joseph Bonner Show, on any and all of our programs, 248 00:22:22.759 --> 00:22:26.599 we always welcome you as a guest. Please know that you can always 249 00:22:26.599 --> 00:22:32.880 come back anytime. I appreciate that. Now, before we let you guys 250 00:22:32.880 --> 00:22:34.960 go at home, I do want you to stay tuned and listen to a 251 00:22:36.039 --> 00:22:38.240 word from our partners. But before you do that, I want to remind 252 00:22:38.319 --> 00:22:45.200 everyone that today's show is brought to you by Bully Intervenor Bully Avengers International Say 253 00:22:45.200 --> 00:22:51.400 that three times fast, who continue to fight for our women and children internationally 254 00:22:52.079 --> 00:22:57.480 through human rights laws as well as pushing pushing, pushing for an end to 255 00:22:57.599 --> 00:23:00.720 poverty. I want to thank everyone for all of your support for all of 256 00:23:00.759 --> 00:23:03.599 our programs. Gino, we want to specifically thank you for your support to 257 00:23:03.640 --> 00:23:08.359 the Bully Avengers and our initiatives there. We appreciate everything that you've done for 258 00:23:08.440 --> 00:23:14.759 us as an organization and your support continue you all to continue to shine, 259 00:23:14.839 --> 00:23:21.119 continue to believe, and as Gino's parting words of advice to us are hope, 260 00:23:21.480 --> 00:23:25.200 and I think we all can take that with us home tonight and meditate 261 00:23:25.240 --> 00:23:27.799 on that and have a better, better day, and a better week and 262 00:23:27.839 --> 00:23:33.079 hopefully a better year ahead. Gino again, great interview, and thank you 263 00:23:33.759 --> 00:23:37.119 again for being on today's show. We really appreciate you. Thank you. 264 00:23:41.359 --> 00:23:47.839 We want to welcome you to this next special segment on our program now, 265 00:23:48.640 --> 00:23:56.039 doctor Ario King. She is an international business advisor, but before traversing the 266 00:23:56.559 --> 00:24:02.599 realm of business advisory, she has done some phenomenal things in the spectrum of 267 00:24:03.079 --> 00:24:07.920 human rights and advocating for our children and our youth. We are thrilled to 268 00:24:07.000 --> 00:24:11.640 have her as a guest on today's program and we like to give and extend 269 00:24:11.680 --> 00:24:17.119 a warm welcome to the show, Doctor King. Welcome. Thank you so 270 00:24:17.200 --> 00:24:19.920 much, Bis de Bonnor and the audience. It's wonderful to be here today 271 00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:27.519 to speak with you. Doctor King, you are the founder of Aerial King 272 00:24:27.640 --> 00:24:37.119 Solutions. As a business advisor, you help companies and organization. I'm really 273 00:24:37.200 --> 00:24:44.680 navigating through the aspects of international growth, and I think with a lot of 274 00:24:44.839 --> 00:24:48.400 small business this is out there, and even some of the bigger firms out 275 00:24:48.440 --> 00:24:52.359 there who are finding it difficult to expand, especially during the time of a 276 00:24:52.400 --> 00:24:59.960 global recession. I really think that learning and gaining some insight into the process, 277 00:25:00.079 --> 00:25:06.559 as in some simple forms of the people, will actually help business organizations 278 00:25:07.000 --> 00:25:08.200 take that next step, take that leap of faith, as it were, 279 00:25:08.519 --> 00:25:11.640 and go international. So, doctor King, first of all, before we 280 00:25:11.680 --> 00:25:15.039 ask you questions more pertained towards that, I would like to ask you, 281 00:25:15.359 --> 00:25:19.920 how did you get started in the field of business advisory and why international? 282 00:25:22.079 --> 00:25:26.079 Now? Thank you so much better running for that question. I've been quite 283 00:25:26.160 --> 00:25:30.160 fortunate from a very early age, I would say, from twenty years old, 284 00:25:30.200 --> 00:25:34.599 to be able to go to various countries internationally, including Asia, Africa, 285 00:25:36.000 --> 00:25:41.279 Europe and later South America. As someone who grew up in a family 286 00:25:41.480 --> 00:25:48.200 of entrepreneurs, including my mother who had her own business as a clinical psychologist 287 00:25:48.319 --> 00:25:53.799 with testing and also just with helping people in their daily lives.

And also 288 00:25:53.839 --> 00:25:57.880 with building businesses or excuse me, building buildings. I grew up in a 289 00:25:57.920 --> 00:26:03.759 family of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship in business has been a part of my life for 290 00:26:03.920 --> 00:26:08.119 all of my life. I had decided to get into international affairs and specifically 291 00:26:08.160 --> 00:26:17.279 specifically international business as I learned about the various issues between various not just countries, 292 00:26:17.319 --> 00:26:25.319 but actually various cultures. And I've learned very early that what could it 293 00:26:25.359 --> 00:26:30.559 be expected in one culture in a business cannot necessarily be translated or expected in 294 00:26:30.599 --> 00:26:34.039 another culture. I found that to be absolutely fascinating because we as human beings, 295 00:26:34.079 --> 00:26:37.759 of course, have some of the same goals and some of the same 296 00:26:37.799 --> 00:26:41.839 parts of life. We want our families to do well, we want to 297 00:26:41.880 --> 00:26:44.680 do well, we want to educate our families, and we want our business 298 00:26:44.720 --> 00:26:48.680 and to be successful. And I found it quite interesting that what would work 299 00:26:48.680 --> 00:26:52.960 in one country or one culture does not necessarily work in another country and another 300 00:26:53.000 --> 00:26:57.480 culture. And as a result of that, I've spent about thirty plus years 301 00:26:59.160 --> 00:27:03.359 not just studying, but actually helping various universities, businesses, and geos and 302 00:27:03.400 --> 00:27:11.480 also multilateral organizations actually learn how to partner with others in other countries and also 303 00:27:11.519 --> 00:27:17.200 how to traverse sometimes those difficult bridges that actually can connect businesses and people. 304 00:27:19.799 --> 00:27:26.200 Fantastic and it's so nice that you have a background with working on the international 305 00:27:26.240 --> 00:27:33.480 scene and spectrum. You mentioned working with universities and organizations. Can you tell 306 00:27:33.519 --> 00:27:37.759 us a little bit about what that work looked like. Yes, I mean, 307 00:27:38.279 --> 00:27:44.599 you know, because all the every organization, every university, even governments 308 00:27:44.640 --> 00:27:48.960 are quite different. You know. The first thing that you do is you 309 00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:52.720 sit down and you try to figure out is this something that they really want 310 00:27:52.880 --> 00:27:55.559 or is this something that they say they want because they need to take the 311 00:27:55.559 --> 00:27:56.480 box and said, you know, we asked for it, but it's not 312 00:27:56.559 --> 00:28:00.920 working. Once I realize that this is something that they really want and it 313 00:28:00.920 --> 00:28:06.359 really is a goal, then we actually do an assessment of what's there now, 314 00:28:06.920 --> 00:28:10.920 what resources are there now, and even more importantly, where did they 315 00:28:10.960 --> 00:28:12.839 think they want to go for Let me give you an example for a university. 316 00:28:12.920 --> 00:28:19.000 We had a university that was quite a large university that decided that it 317 00:28:19.079 --> 00:28:26.000 wanted to go from a local known within the country to international and what we 318 00:28:26.000 --> 00:28:30.119 were able to do is to go and have various meetings with various people who 319 00:28:30.599 --> 00:28:37.000 were not just in the local area, but that wanted to do international and 320 00:28:37.039 --> 00:28:40.880 we were able to look at their five year strategic plan, look at their 321 00:28:40.880 --> 00:28:45.079 budgeting, and then figure out how we could actually use their plan and their 322 00:28:45.079 --> 00:28:52.359 budgeting to integrate an international focus into their particular university. We were able to 323 00:28:52.359 --> 00:28:56.240 do that and as a result, they were able to get more funding, 324 00:28:56.400 --> 00:29:00.759 and even more importantly, they were able to connect internationally what they do as 325 00:29:00.799 --> 00:29:07.480 a university nationally to the international FAUA. That's just one example. Wow, 326 00:29:07.680 --> 00:29:15.319 fantastic And what were the results of that, Well, the results were quite 327 00:29:15.359 --> 00:29:18.440 immediate. Actually, the results were that they were able to connect to international 328 00:29:18.519 --> 00:29:25.680 ambassadors from other countries. They were able to have those ambassadors actually represent them 329 00:29:26.799 --> 00:29:33.960 as a university in other countries and that means within the international flora. And 330 00:29:33.000 --> 00:29:37.960 then in addition to that, they were able to allow their students to actually 331 00:29:37.000 --> 00:29:45.160 experience some experience through service doing things in other countries. So they were able 332 00:29:45.160 --> 00:29:48.640 to allow their students to do that. Overall, they were able to get 333 00:29:48.680 --> 00:29:52.599 more funding because they were able to show that they went from basically a national 334 00:29:52.759 --> 00:30:02.039 university to truly an international university. Wow. Absolutely, and I can already 335 00:30:02.079 --> 00:30:07.720 see the monetary benefits, especially for a university taking their brand international, we're 336 00:30:07.759 --> 00:30:11.920 able to obviously work with a lot more studentally. And I guess that kind 337 00:30:11.960 --> 00:30:15.160 of answers my next question, but I still want to ask it. Can 338 00:30:15.200 --> 00:30:19.000 you tell us a little bit about what the benefits are of taking your organization 339 00:30:19.160 --> 00:30:25.680 internationally well? In today's connected society, young people are already connected internationally. 340 00:30:26.039 --> 00:30:29.680 It's not just on social media. But young people

don't see the same boundaries 341 00:30:29.680 --> 00:30:33.920 and borders that many of us have seen or have grown up with. So 342 00:30:33.200 --> 00:30:41.480 as a result, going internationally or being internationally connected is an absolute. It's 343 00:30:41.519 --> 00:30:45.240 something that has to be done in order to stay in business, and especially 344 00:30:45.279 --> 00:30:48.440 since most of our young people when I say young people were talking about from 345 00:30:48.480 --> 00:30:53.240 eleven years old to twenty five, twenty eight, they're already connected internationally. 346 00:30:53.720 --> 00:30:59.000 So what businesses have to do is just follow the trend of what's happening within 347 00:30:59.079 --> 00:31:03.000 our world. Connecting internationally doesn't have to be so complicated, but it doesn't 348 00:31:03.000 --> 00:31:07.400 have to be intentional. And when you're connecting internationally and businesses connect to internationally, 349 00:31:07.440 --> 00:31:11.119 they also have to realize that one culture, as I said, does 350 00:31:11.160 --> 00:31:15.839 not translate into another culture. Even some of the same words in English do 351 00:31:15.920 --> 00:31:22.759 not translate the same way in each culture. So it's really important for businesses 352 00:31:22.799 --> 00:31:25.160 to figure out what do they think they want to do, even if they 353 00:31:25.160 --> 00:31:29.640 want to start out small. How would they like to represent themselves internationally? 354 00:31:29.839 --> 00:31:32.759 What would they like to do in terms of connection? How would they like 355 00:31:32.839 --> 00:31:37.200 to benefit those in another country, which is just as important as doing business. 356 00:31:37.279 --> 00:31:42.599 How would you like to contribute to the young people or to the people 357 00:31:44.079 --> 00:31:48.559 within that particular culture. It makes all the difference in the world. So 358 00:31:48.880 --> 00:31:56.720 for business, either get connected internationally or find that somehow your business won't necessarily 359 00:31:56.759 --> 00:32:05.640 shrink, but it definitely cannot grow. Great great response there, doctor King, 360 00:32:07.279 --> 00:32:14.599 My next question in regards to expanding a person's brand and business internationally is 361 00:32:15.000 --> 00:32:22.200 kind of important. How important would you say is social media when it comes 362 00:32:22.240 --> 00:32:27.440 to taking your brand international? I believe that social media is very important, 363 00:32:27.480 --> 00:32:30.920 but we also have to look at the fact that not all social media goes 364 00:32:30.960 --> 00:32:35.720 across all cultures. For example, many people know that TikTok is not in 365 00:32:35.799 --> 00:32:42.319 China. There are other mediums that we use for business connection. For example, 366 00:32:42.359 --> 00:32:47.799 WhatsApp is not used in many Asian countries. So social media is important, 367

00:32:47.880 --> 00:32:52.920 but it's really important also to make sure that what's being put on social 368 00:32:52.000 --> 00:32:59.160 media is considered appropriate and also what social media is being used is considered appropriate. 369 00:32:59.240 --> 00:33:04.359 So part going international is really understanding the lay of the land, depending 370 00:33:04.400 --> 00:33:07.119 on if you're going to be going international in Asia, South Asia, various 371 00:33:07.119 --> 00:33:13.200 parts of Africa, and also understanding culture, not just culture in terms of 372 00:33:14.599 --> 00:33:17.839 language and fluent, but culture in terms of using various words, using various 373 00:33:17.839 --> 00:33:23.079 colors, making sure that it's not an insult, because sometimes words that we 374 00:33:23.200 --> 00:33:27.880 use that are quite kind and we use all the time, are actually an 375 00:33:27.880 --> 00:33:35.279 absolute insult. So it's really important for us to really engage people on an 376 00:33:35.319 --> 00:33:38.920 international level in a way that is positive for them, that makes them feel 377 00:33:38.920 --> 00:33:43.079 that, wow, these are people that understand me. These are people that 378 00:33:43.160 --> 00:33:45.519 know who I am and what's important to me. And as a result of 379 00:33:45.559 --> 00:33:50.640 that, not just branding, but there's a connection from business to business, 380 00:33:50.799 --> 00:33:55.720 from person to person, from culture to culture that's absolutely phenomenal, Doctor King. 381 00:33:55.759 --> 00:34:00.960 And it's so true. Even when I was out today in India, 382 00:34:00.359 --> 00:34:05.799 I was it was pouring rain, as it sometimes does in this island, 383 00:34:06.200 --> 00:34:15.400 and so I was already not in a great mood we were going, yeah, 384 00:34:15.639 --> 00:34:21.800 and we're doing this interaction and the first thing, somebody behind me comes 385 00:34:21.880 --> 00:34:23.960 up and interrupts while I'm doing my first order. But in India, they 386 00:34:24.000 --> 00:34:27.400 at least in the island that I'm on, all they all do that. 387 00:34:27.719 --> 00:34:31.000 It's just what they do. And I think part of the issue was is 388 00:34:31.039 --> 00:34:34.840 the guy didn't also didn't have help, so you know, he has to 389 00:34:34.880 --> 00:34:37.960 make sure that he responds to each client when they come, whether they interrupt 390 00:34:37.000 --> 00:34:39.920 somebody or not, because if you don't, could potentially lose that money and 391 00:34:39.920 --> 00:34:44.079 you can't really afford to do that in India. So you know, obviously, 392 00:34:44.639 --> 00:34:49.000 being from America irritated me thoroughly because because you know, we don't do 393 00:34:49.039 --> 00:34:52.079 that in America. We don't. But then I checked myself. Yeah, 394 00:34:52.199 --> 00:34:54.079 yeah, I just checked myself. I said, you know what, this 395 00:34:54.119 --> 00:34:58.639 is a different culture, and this is this is his life, this is 396 00:34:58.679 --> 00:35:00.679 his business. He has to do this so that he doesn't miss his client. 397 00:35:00.679 --> 00:35:08.079 He has a family defeat. So there you do have to situations, 398 00:35:08.159 --> 00:35:10.679 especially if you're taking your business able to understand so that you, like you 399 00:35:10.679 --> 00:35:14.000 said, doctor King, not that you don't end up offending somebody and then 400 00:35:14.079 --> 00:35:16.320 end up losing more in the long run. I really think that's why it's 401 00:35:16.320 --> 00:35:21.960 so important for organizations to have someone like you on their team that can help 402 00:35:22.039 --> 00:35:27.159 navigate and guide them through that process so that their brand is enhanced and flourishes 403 00:35:27.280 --> 00:35:32.519 internationally and not the opposite. Absolutely very important, and it's not just by 404 00:35:32.679 --> 00:35:37.519 region but also a country by country. As a person who has traveled to 405 00:35:37.239 --> 00:35:40.920 India and have stayed for long periods of time, but not just something I've 406 00:35:40.920 --> 00:35:46.159 been to over I think now it's something like seventy eight countries, and in 407 00:35:46.199 --> 00:35:52.760 many countries, many times it's truly important to understand the culture and to understand 408 00:35:52.239 --> 00:35:58.280 what's important within the culture and some of the unspoken rules, because you know, 409 00:35:58.880 --> 00:36:00.679 no matter who we are, where we are, we all have unspoken 410 00:36:00.760 --> 00:36:05.119 rules that we just know. And when you don't know the culture, you 411 00:36:05.199 --> 00:36:07.960 don't know the language, then you don't know the unspoken rules. And the 412 00:36:08.000 --> 00:36:14.039 inn spoken rules are just as important as those that are written, seen or 413 00:36:14.239 --> 00:36:16.760 known, so makes all the difference. And you were talking about that when 414 00:36:16.800 --> 00:36:21.679 they even came to shopping. So the person who interrupted understood that does an 415 00:36:21.719 --> 00:36:23.880 unspoken rule, and that unspoken rule is well, you know, if I 416 00:36:23.960 --> 00:36:28.960 need something, and I think I can give him just as much money or 417 00:36:28.960 --> 00:36:31.599 more. He's going to take me first, right, That's not something that's 418 00:36:31.599 --> 00:36:35.920 going to be there, But it's an unspoken rule, and unspoken rules are 419 00:36:35.960 --> 00:36:39.840 just as important. And also protocol is important. So we also work with 420 00:36:40.000 --> 00:36:45.039 governments, we work with multilateral organizations including the United Nations, European Parliament, 421 00:36:45.400 --> 00:36:51.559 and protocol is basically just another fancy way of saying rules of engagement. What 422 00:36:51.679 --> 00:36:58.159 are the rules for working with each

other, speaking with each other, engaging 423 00:36:58.159 --> 00:37:00.039 with each other? What are the rules? And that's a protocol is so 424 00:37:00.440 --> 00:37:05.440 Also I'm a protocol specialist and have been for years. I love what I 425 00:37:05.519 --> 00:37:14.400 do and really find it quite quite engaging to be able to help those who 426 00:37:14.440 --> 00:37:17.639 are trying to communicate with each other from different cultures in different countries on an 427 00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:24.079 international governmental level, to do so with rules. And of course, as 428 00:37:24.159 --> 00:37:29.559 business owners, we want to know what the bottom line is, and of 429 00:37:29.559 --> 00:37:37.000 course it translates to money, you know, yes, exactly, sometimes it's 430 00:37:37.039 --> 00:37:39.360 money, but you know what's really interesting, Sometimes there are things that money 431 00:37:39.440 --> 00:37:45.639 can't buy, and that's reputation. And sometimes reputation makes all the difference in 432 00:37:45.719 --> 00:37:50.000 order to not just have money, but long term engagement within a country, 433 00:37:50.280 --> 00:37:57.800 right, not short term blast engagement of blast having money or I would say 434 00:37:57.960 --> 00:38:04.360 having a row of income, but also long term engagement, a long term 435 00:38:04.440 --> 00:38:07.960 understanding of the culture and a long term relationship within the culture. And many 436 00:38:08.000 --> 00:38:15.519 people look for them, but meant there's a long term relationship there. But 437 00:38:15.599 --> 00:38:19.400 isn't that doesn't that also translate to money, right, I mean that's profit. 438 00:38:20.199 --> 00:38:22.039 So yeah, and I think that I think that's the bottom line. 439 00:38:22.039 --> 00:38:28.840 I think people people want to to find a way to support not only their 440 00:38:28.920 --> 00:38:30.920 their families and their and their business, but also, like you said, 441 00:38:30.960 --> 00:38:37.320 their entire brand and and and their reputation internationally. And that's going to translate 442 00:38:37.440 --> 00:38:45.880 to becoming more financially stable in an economically difficult, uh you know, society 443 00:38:45.960 --> 00:38:52.199 right now. And so I think that being able to navigate through these ups 444 00:38:52.199 --> 00:38:54.920 and downs and twist and turns of the international world, it's extremely imp important 445 00:38:54.960 --> 00:38:59.760 for business owners and having an advisor, And I'm just coming right back to 446 00:38:59.800 --> 00:39:02.400 this same point, having an advisor to guide you through that process instead of 447 00:39:02.400 --> 00:39:05.800 trying to do it on your by yourself and on your own, which can 448 00:39:05.840 --> 00:39:08.559 take years. Have somebody that can guide you to the in a few weeks 449 00:39:08.639 --> 00:39:14.239 or in a few months. It just makes more sense. And that's what 450 00:39:14.280 --> 00:39:17.480 you do. You provide where you think you want to go. And well 451 00:39:17.519 --> 00:39:22.000 also it might even help to focus where you think you want to go and 452 00:39:22.000 --> 00:39:23.360 what you want to do, because sometimes we have all these ideas of what 453 00:39:23.360 --> 00:39:29.280 we think we want to do and have goals, but those goals haven't been 454 00:39:29.760 --> 00:39:35.239 necessarily i won't say tested, but known whether they match the market in which 455 00:39:35.280 --> 00:39:38.760 a person would like to work. So it's really important also just to start 456 00:39:38.760 --> 00:39:45.039 out with the basic questions, answer the basic questions, and then set goals 457 00:39:45.119 --> 00:39:49.159 and have those goals then be fulfilled internationally. So yes, it really does 458 00:39:49.280 --> 00:39:52.960 make a big difference absolutely, And what are those basic questions and what are 459 00:39:52.960 --> 00:39:58.159 those goals and how does one navigate through that? This is I think where 460 00:39:58.159 --> 00:40:00.480 you come in after King, So I I do want people to be able 461 00:40:00.480 --> 00:40:07.039 to understand that as as they navigate through this or even set the goal to 462 00:40:07.119 --> 00:40:10.320 navigate through this international world and take their business internationally, they're not alone and 463 00:40:10.360 --> 00:40:14.159 that they do have someone out there who can support and guide their business. 464 00:40:14.199 --> 00:40:19.840 And as for Aerial King Solutions, so I think it's so important right now 465 00:40:19.880 --> 00:40:22.880 that people know that there are support and help, and that there are people 466 00:40:22.920 --> 00:40:24.280 like you, Doctor Kings, who are out there in this world who have 467 00:40:24.320 --> 00:40:30.920 created organizations and businesses to provide them with that support. Yes, and it's 468 00:40:30.920 --> 00:40:35.239 a pleasure. And we really love connecting people internationally and watching them grow and 469 00:40:35.280 --> 00:40:42.440 develop. And you've done that for a lot of people individually and including organizations. 470 00:40:42.760 --> 00:40:45.199 And I'll even add my own organization in that, so you know, 471 00:40:45.199 --> 00:40:51.360 we appreciate it, even your support and helping us tackle international realms that we 472 00:40:51.440 --> 00:40:53.320 had not yet done before we had a chance to interact with you. So 473 00:40:53.360 --> 00:41:00.760 your expertise as well as your track record of success is phenomenal and I can 474 00:41:00.800 --> 00:41:05.559 speak firsthand to it. For all of those who are listening are watching this, 475 00:41:05.679 --> 00:41:07.280 I do want you to know that you also can connect with doctor Ariel 476 00:41:07.400 --> 00:41:12.760 King and even help expand your business internationally. Just follow the links and the 477 00:41:12.760 -->

00:41:15.000 description of the show wherever you are listening are watching. It will take you 478 00:41:15.039 --> 00:41:17.599 to her website as well as to her social media handles where you guys can 479 00:41:17.679 --> 00:41:22.639 reach out and work with doctor King. It will be one of the best 480 00:41:22.679 --> 00:41:27.199 decisions you make in twenty twenty three for ultimate success in twenty twenty four, 481 00:41:27.639 --> 00:41:29.760 Doctor King, Is there anything else you'd like to share with us before we 482 00:41:29.840 --> 00:41:32.360 let you go? I'd just like to say thank you so much for this 483 00:41:32.519 --> 00:41:38.400 interview, and also no need to fear connecting internationally, no need to be 484 00:41:38.480 --> 00:41:43.880 stressed. I'm here, I'm willing and able and looking forward to helping you 485 00:41:44.000 --> 00:41:47.599 connect in twenty twenty street in order to make your dreams come to internationally. 486 00:41:47.599 --> 00:41:53.559 In twenty twenty four. Absolutely phenomenal, and we thank you. Thank you 487 00:41:53.599 --> 00:41:57.400 for that, Doctor King. Now, for all of those who are listening 488 00:41:57.480 --> 00:42:00.679 or watching at home, we want to express appreciation to you for being our 489 00:42:00.679 --> 00:42:05.440 supports. But before we do let you go, we do want you to 490 00:42:05.480 --> 00:42:10.239 stay tuned and listen to a word from you all to a very very special 491 00:42:10.280 --> 00:42:15.079 segment today. I want to thank you all for joining us on our nationally 492 00:42:15.079 --> 00:42:22.159 syndicated podcasts. Founder Magazine appreciate all of you for your continued support of our 493 00:42:22.199 --> 00:42:25.079 brand. Are you maybe watching this on television as well? We want to 494 00:42:25.119 --> 00:42:31.039 thank you so much for supporting the Joseph Bonnard Television Network and we're I guess 495 00:42:31.440 --> 00:42:37.599 not surprised for many of you to see a friendly and familiar face on our 496 00:42:37.599 --> 00:42:43.760 program, and that is Fractional CEO Kevin Willer. Today we're going to be 497 00:42:43.800 --> 00:42:46.639 speaking to Kevin on a few different subjects. Actually, take a look at 498 00:42:46.679 --> 00:42:50.199 the description of the show. You kind of already got a good idea of 499 00:42:50.199 --> 00:42:52.599 where the show is headed. So we definitely appreciate you for tuning in, 500 00:42:52.639 --> 00:42:58.400 and we're super excited to have Kevin and welcoming back for another segment. Kevin, 501 00:42:58.760 --> 00:43:00.519 thank you so much for joining us. How are you? I am 502 00:43:00.599 --> 00:43:06.920 fantastic. Thank you, Joseph love love everything you're doing. You're a fantastic 503 00:43:07.000 --> 00:43:08.639 human. So I just wanted to say that, But I am doing well. 504 00:43:10.079 --> 00:43:14.199 Oh Kevin, I I appreciate that. Well. We appreciate you know, 505 00:43:14.239 --> 00:43:19.840 support like yours definitely gives me encouragement and inspiration to continue to try to 506 00:43:19.840 --> 00:43:22.480 make a difference in today's world. So I appreciate you. And now, 507 00:43:22.519 --> 00:43:29.440 where where are you at in the world right now? I am physically in 508 00:43:29.639 --> 00:43:36.440 Mount Pleasant, Texas, out in East Texas. How's the weather out there? 509 00:43:37.199 --> 00:43:40.079 Hot? Kind of like that for everyone, huh. You know, 510 00:43:40.119 --> 00:43:45.119 I'm plused to not to be engaged in any kind of poor weather like the 511 00:43:45.159 --> 00:43:50.199 wonderful people you know, in Florida and up the the East coast. But 512 00:43:50.760 --> 00:43:54.320 it's you know, hot muggy. It's all good though. I love I 513 00:43:54.400 --> 00:43:59.840 love that, you know. It's so interesting too, because when you travel 514 00:43:59.880 --> 00:44:02.559 the world and you get a chance to meet so many different people, and 515 00:44:02.599 --> 00:44:07.719 even when you're in places like you know, a little small towns and in 516 00:44:07.760 --> 00:44:10.800 America, I meet so many people, Kevin, and I'm always wondering about 517 00:44:10.880 --> 00:44:15.519 people's backstory, you know. I love to see where people are today. 518 00:44:15.559 --> 00:44:19.880 But I'm just I'm fascinated with history, to be honest. I love to 519 00:44:19.960 --> 00:44:22.639 dig and get to know. So I think that leads to my first question 520 00:44:22.679 --> 00:44:27.400 for you, Kevin. Can you tell us a little bit about your background 521 00:44:28.119 --> 00:44:32.320 and your experience as a fractional CEO. Yeah. Yeah, So, you 522 00:44:32.360 --> 00:44:36.559 know, I kind of came into this world with a lot of diversity right 523 00:44:36.639 --> 00:44:42.440 out the gate, and I have that kind of led itself to, you 524 00:44:42.440 --> 00:44:46.400 know, into my business career. Being diverse. It's just kind of run 525 00:44:46.440 --> 00:44:51.840 through my blood. So I've ald a few different careers we would call it. 526 00:44:52.480 --> 00:44:58.480 I was a special education teacher for fourteen years and did firefighting for a 527 00:44:58.559 --> 00:45:06.400 number of years, and now primarily well moved into the dental industry for eighteen 528 00:45:06.480 --> 00:45:13.840 plus years and now doing consultant work that initially started in in dentistry but has 529 00:45:13.880 --> 00:45:16.880 branched off into other clients of indeed, because that's really all I want to 530 00:45:16.920 --> 00:45:23.239 do, is help people take their dream to where they wanted to go. 531 00:45:25.280 --> 00:45:30.599 I find it fascinating too. You know, with your diverse background in education, 532 00:45:30.840 --> 00:45:36.800 fire fighting, it seems like you've always been in an industry that required 533 00:45:36.840 --> 00:45:40.079 you to give give of yourself, your time, emotions. It'd be very 534

00:45:40.119 --> 00:45:44.079 taxing when you give so much. I know because I used to be in 535 00:45:44.239 --> 00:45:50.960 education. But what you've done is you've found a way to combine your experience 536 00:45:51.880 --> 00:45:57.519 in all these industries with your unique personality as a giver to be able to 537 00:45:57.519 --> 00:46:05.679 provide businesses with solutions that they genuinely need as they face uncharted economic times and 538 00:46:06.880 --> 00:46:10.159 the horizon though may not always seem like there's a there's a son there, 539 00:46:10.840 --> 00:46:15.679 you're actually helping them to find that son just beyond the horizon, and it's 540 00:46:15.719 --> 00:46:21.400 it's pretty empowering. I believe that someone like you would step into this industry 541 00:46:21.440 --> 00:46:25.440 for that purpose. So what led you though to start Simplified CEOO. Now 542 00:46:25.440 --> 00:46:30.679 that's your company, Simplified CEO. Now, for those of you listening and 543 00:46:30.760 --> 00:46:34.360 watching, you guys can actually go to the description of this show and there 544 00:46:34.400 --> 00:46:38.119 will be a link directing you to that website. But again, what led 545 00:46:38.159 --> 00:46:44.679 you to start Simplified CEO and then again what sets it apart from other consulting 546 00:46:44.760 --> 00:46:50.400 firms. Yeah, so great questions. So yes, I am naturally a 547 00:46:50.440 --> 00:46:55.440 giver. You know. My focus in life is to help people, you 548 00:46:55.440 --> 00:47:00.599 know, reach their dreams, their goals, make their vision a reality. 549 00:47:01.360 --> 00:47:07.159 And so I worked for many years again in the dental field, in large 550 00:47:07.199 --> 00:47:12.159 dental organizations, which was amazing, and I was honored and blessed to have 551 00:47:12.239 --> 00:47:16.480 opportunities and big teams, and we were able to, humbly, you know, 552 00:47:16.519 --> 00:47:23.519 win many different awards for achieving great success within these large companies. But 553 00:47:23.599 --> 00:47:27.840 I felt like I was still kind of in a box where I went. 554 00:47:27.960 --> 00:47:30.519 I didn't have that ability to help more people. You know, I was 555 00:47:30.920 --> 00:47:37.679 doing great things helping a large organization be larger, to grow, to make 556 00:47:37.719 --> 00:47:44.360 more revenue, and to provide for more patients. But what I wanted to 557 00:47:44.360 --> 00:47:50.519 set myself up with was helping more people at the same time, and so 558 00:47:50.679 --> 00:47:55.280 when I went back and really kind of thought about it, I decided to 559 00:47:55.360 --> 00:48:01.480 start my own business as a fractional chief Opera Ration officer. So my you 560 00:48:01.519 --> 00:48:07.559 know, focus is to give high level guidance and support, but that translates 561 00:48:07.599 --> 00:48:14.599 into many different things. And so doing this, I've figured out that I 562 00:48:14.639 --> 00:48:22.039 can offer my services and offer my experience at a much more friendly price point 563 00:48:22.400 --> 00:48:29.039 to a lot of other consultants because I was going to have multiple clients at 564 00:48:29.039 --> 00:48:34.280 the same time. And it also helped me reach out from being able to 565 00:48:34.320 --> 00:48:37.639 live in one area and not travel all over the country as far as moving 566 00:48:37.639 --> 00:48:42.360 the family. I still do when I reach out to my clients, but 567 00:48:43.000 --> 00:48:45.360 it kind of gave me tentacles, i'll call it, to get out across 568 00:48:45.440 --> 00:48:54.280 the country to be available for that level of support. I absolutely love that, 569 00:48:54.360 --> 00:49:04.119 and I think that your record of success speaks to the high value that 570 00:49:04.320 --> 00:49:08.760 simplified CEO brings to so many organizations. So it does lead me to my 571 00:49:08.840 --> 00:49:15.480 next question is as how do you ensure you thoroughly understand the challenges and the 572 00:49:15.519 --> 00:49:22.000 goals of a business before you provide them with recommendations. Yeah, so a 573 00:49:22.039 --> 00:49:27.079 couple of different things one is crucial to me. That is a little bit 574 00:49:27.159 --> 00:49:30.960 different than a lot of other consultants in that I want to make a site 575 00:49:31.039 --> 00:49:36.519 visit. I want to shake the hands of the visionary, the business owner. 576 00:49:37.320 --> 00:49:43.320 I want to meet and greet the team members in person. You know. 577 00:49:43.360 --> 00:49:46.519 There's some of my colleagues, you know. I think they feel like 578 00:49:46.519 --> 00:49:52.599 if they can get the analytics, the metrics, the key performance indicators with 579 00:49:52.679 --> 00:49:57.880 their experience, they can identify where the opportunities are. And that is true, 580 00:49:58.880 --> 00:50:01.480 but it doesn't it gives you that ninety percent of a picture. And 581 00:50:01.519 --> 00:50:07.599 that other tempercy is crucial because it's communication, it's connecting with other humans. 582 00:50:08.280 --> 00:50:10.840 And so I make sure that I have a site visit. But within that, 583 00:50:10.960 --> 00:50:14.760 yeah, the same thing. You know, I need my clients to 584 00:50:14.840 --> 00:50:21.760 let me have access to financials, to any metrics they may have, you 585 00:50:21.760 --> 00:50:25.519 know. So it's kind of a numbers data yet face to face situation and 586 00:50:27.000 --> 00:50:30.800 doing all of that really encompasses where I could make the connection to be able 587 00:50:30.800 --> 00:50:37.079 to support them. That makes a lot of sense. That's a great approach, 588 00:50:37.639 --> 00:50:45.760 especially and that you are responsible for helping this organization go to that next 589 00:50:45.840 --> 00:50:51.440 level. It's so interesting because we live in a world today where everything can 590 00:50:51.440

--> 00:50:57.960 happen technically be virtual. But to see professionals that are still taking that hands 591 00:50:58.000 --> 00:51:01.760 on approach when dealing with the business, I think it definitely speaks a lot 592 00:51:01.800 --> 00:51:08.400 to your character and also to the goals that you are helping them to achieve. 593 00:51:08.800 --> 00:51:12.599 I'm with your support, So thank you for sharing that. Now, 594 00:51:12.880 --> 00:51:15.199 obviously we want to hear examples, you know, we want to I love 595 00:51:15.239 --> 00:51:20.719 stories. So Kevin, can you give us an example of a time when 596 00:51:21.119 --> 00:51:28.400 understanding a problem that the business owner wasn't aware of led to valuable insight and 597 00:51:28.480 --> 00:51:32.519 solution. Yeah. So again, that's the key part of actually doing a 598 00:51:32.599 --> 00:51:37.760 site visit, you know, as well as drilling into everything else I spoke 599 00:51:37.800 --> 00:51:42.639 of, you know there. I mean, gosh, there's been so many 600 00:51:42.679 --> 00:51:45.119 as we go through even the week to week. But I am out here 601 00:51:45.159 --> 00:51:50.639 in Texas with a client, so I'll use a recent one, and you 602 00:51:50.639 --> 00:51:55.199 know, they had identified that they had an issue with leadership. They just 603 00:51:55.280 --> 00:52:00.159 didn't feel like leadership was getting the task done that they needed to get done. 604 00:52:00.840 --> 00:52:05.760 And you know, common thing, but just to make that decision or 605 00:52:05.800 --> 00:52:09.840 to make guidance without meeting the leadership and it doesn't really work. So flew 606 00:52:09.880 --> 00:52:15.760 out here out here now met with the leadership team this week. As we 607 00:52:15.800 --> 00:52:22.000 started drilling into what does it look like to implement the best practices that the 608 00:52:22.079 --> 00:52:29.239 owners want to see, it came very clear that it was a communication issue 609 00:52:29.679 --> 00:52:34.760 between the leadership and the owners. And of course that's a tough thing to 610 00:52:34.760 --> 00:52:38.000 look at as a business owner and go wait is it me? But in 611 00:52:38.039 --> 00:52:45.119 this instance it was. And so then I needed to go back and explain 612 00:52:45.239 --> 00:52:51.079 to them how they needed to communicate differently and be more engaged, you know, 613 00:52:51.159 --> 00:52:55.239 with their leadership team. What had happened was the mission statement, the 614 00:52:55.360 --> 00:53:05.079 visionary strategic plan for the owners, was it really being reinforced with the leadership 615 00:53:05.119 --> 00:53:08.840 team, and they had lost sight of what was the big vision. And 616 00:53:08.920 --> 00:53:15.320 so I needed to encourage those business owners to have continuous connection meetings where they 617 00:53:15.360 --> 00:53:22.679 do all training and leadership discussions to the mission and vision of the company and 618

00:53:22.760 --> 00:53:30.400 not to the task that needs to take place. Excellent approach, excellent approach, 619 00:53:30.159 --> 00:53:35.239 very powerful. Well, that was a really good example and I think 620 00:53:35.360 --> 00:53:40.960 that I think as a business owner, especially when we bring on extra support, 621 00:53:42.679 --> 00:53:46.639 you know, we we do want to be around individuals who are going 622 00:53:46.679 --> 00:53:51.159 to tell us the truth? You know what I mean? So even though 623 00:53:51.199 --> 00:53:53.480 sometimes that truth is hard to hear, it's valuable and I'm sure that they 624 00:53:53.559 --> 00:53:59.599 appreciated that valuable feedback. I always tell them transparent with you, you know, 625 00:54:00.159 --> 00:54:02.000 Yeah, we got to have the real story. I need to have 626 00:54:02.039 --> 00:54:07.239 the real information they need to hear you know what the real guidance looks like. 627 00:54:08.320 --> 00:54:13.360 Absolutely, Now it makes sense that transparency is key. Well, Sha 628 00:54:13.559 --> 00:54:15.599 share with us another example. Can you give us an example of maybe how 629 00:54:15.679 --> 00:54:22.000 you've had to adapt your own approach to meet the changing needs of a business 630 00:54:22.079 --> 00:54:27.480 and its environment, Like what was the outcome of this adaptation? Yeah, 631 00:54:27.519 --> 00:54:34.079 so, you know, there was a claim I went in this is probably 632 00:54:34.079 --> 00:54:37.800 a couple of months ago, and they had an issue with and again this 633 00:54:37.880 --> 00:54:44.440 was a dental client with patients not being able or not saying yes to the 634 00:54:44.519 --> 00:54:50.039 dentistry that was diagnosed. And the thought was that there was, you know, 635 00:54:50.159 --> 00:54:55.079 an issue with the doctor not connecting with the patients or with the team. 636 00:54:55.159 --> 00:55:00.039 They have treatment coordinators that go over the pricing with them, and and 637 00:55:00.519 --> 00:55:06.320 when I sat in and viewed the flow, that wasn't that wasn't the issue 638 00:55:06.639 --> 00:55:10.679 that the doctor was wonderful with connecting the front desk, the treatment quarters were 639 00:55:10.679 --> 00:55:15.719 wonderful with connecting. They didn't talk to each other, so the information that 640 00:55:15.760 --> 00:55:22.159 they were learning, they weren't transferring through team members to be able to support 641 00:55:22.199 --> 00:55:29.400 the situation. So I'll give you an example of there was a patient that 642 00:55:30.760 --> 00:55:34.440 needed a crown right where a lot of us have been there before, we 643 00:55:34.519 --> 00:55:38.440 needed a crown. They told the front desk that they wanted to be seen 644 00:55:38.880 --> 00:55:44.880 because they were going on vacation. I think it was Fiji, and the 645 00:55:44.880 --> 00:55:50.159 front desk did not communicate that to the dentist. So when the dentist went 646 00:55:50.239 --> 00:55:55.159 in, he learned that yes, a crown was needed, but then told 647 00:55:55.199 --> 00:56:00.800 the patient, you know that we will do that, you know next month 648 00:56:01.159 --> 00:56:06.639 when you have time, And the patient didn't say anything and they left without 649 00:56:06.639 --> 00:56:08.920 doing the crown, which wasn't great for the business, it wasn't great for 650 00:56:08.960 --> 00:56:15.159 the patient. So I put together where huddles and checkpoints were going to be. 651 00:56:15.480 --> 00:56:19.719 I call him handoffs, where in the morning we're to discuss the unique 652 00:56:19.760 --> 00:56:23.320 thing with every patient and during the day, as we learn anything, we're 653 00:56:23.360 --> 00:56:28.320 going to talk to each other. So the front desk is going to hand 654 00:56:28.320 --> 00:56:32.960 off the patient to the dental system for X rays, let them know. 655 00:56:34.440 --> 00:56:37.760 In this instance, you know miss Smith is going on vacation the dental systet. 656 00:56:37.800 --> 00:56:42.639 Hopefully he's going to talk to Miss Smith about the vacation as they're taking 657 00:56:42.679 --> 00:56:45.360 the x rays because it's a good connection point. And then the critical one 658 00:56:45.480 --> 00:56:49.880 was after the patient was set, then the dental system was actually going to 659 00:56:49.960 --> 00:56:53.480 download with the dentists before they go in and let them know that I had 660 00:56:53.480 --> 00:56:58.679 the dentists known that the vacation was about to take place in about three weeks, 661 00:56:58.920 --> 00:57:01.400 which would have allowed him to be able to do the crown and get 662 00:57:01.400 --> 00:57:06.039 it back from the lab, he could have actually connected with the patient going, 663 00:57:06.079 --> 00:57:09.400 I know you're going to Fiji. It's this is why it's critical that 664 00:57:09.480 --> 00:57:14.320 we take care of this tooth today and we can get you all fixed up 665 00:57:14.320 --> 00:57:17.480 before you leave, and that way you don't have a problem with your oral 666 00:57:17.519 --> 00:57:22.440 health while you're out of the country. So that was an example of where 667 00:57:22.559 --> 00:57:28.800 really in the end we put together a strategic handoff process to move through the 668 00:57:28.960 --> 00:57:35.760 patient's journey. Fantastic, fantastic, and it makes sense that you would actually 669 00:57:36.119 --> 00:57:42.679 want to be there to be able to see interactions and communications and styles because 670 00:57:42.679 --> 00:57:45.159 obviously every situation with the business is going to be different, it's going to 671 00:57:45.199 --> 00:57:51.000 be in a different approach because there are different issues, and so your approach 672 00:57:51.519 --> 00:57:55.639 and the way you're able to help bring the team together to achieve overall success 673 00:57:55.679 --> 00:58:05.840 as which obviously for every companys

bottom line right profit. So that's that's the 674 00:58:05.840 --> 00:58:07.199 objective at the end of the day, no matter what field we're in. 675 00:58:07.440 --> 00:58:16.039 And you translate that through your interactions as a fractional CEOO and you've been doing 676 00:58:16.039 --> 00:58:22.000 it for years, would simplified CEOO your business and so a what a testament 677 00:58:22.079 --> 00:58:27.199 to not only your character as a giver but also as your success as a 678 00:58:27.239 --> 00:58:31.840 fractional CEO. Kevin, I know that there are a lot of people out 679 00:58:31.920 --> 00:58:37.239 there who are eager to see their company grow. They're a little bit shaky 680 00:58:37.440 --> 00:58:44.039 and perhaps a little apprehensive about bringing in outside help to support. What could 681 00:58:44.079 --> 00:58:47.519 you say to help ease their fears there? Yeah? I mean again, 682 00:58:49.079 --> 00:58:53.719 finding the right you know, leader to a remote leader to join the team 683 00:58:53.760 --> 00:58:57.920 as hard, it's difficult, I definitely get it, and I speak to 684 00:58:57.920 --> 00:59:00.280 a lot of business owners are going how are you going to make the impact 685 00:59:01.719 --> 00:59:08.440 and they're going off of that you're the subject matter expert, which is obviously 686 00:59:08.679 --> 00:59:15.079 true, But more importantly, it is about people. It's about connections. 687 00:59:15.880 --> 00:59:22.639 A lot of these clients have the strategies and the processes within their organization, 688 00:59:22.880 --> 00:59:25.840 they're just not actually doing them. So the group I'm out here with has 689 00:59:25.880 --> 00:59:30.559 got a document that's a strategic operating plan for everything that you would want, 690 00:59:31.239 --> 00:59:37.920 but it just lives in Google Drive and is never used. So you know, 691 00:59:37.960 --> 00:59:42.639 what I explained to my clients is that I am going to be there 692 00:59:42.679 --> 00:59:47.199 to support them in a way that I'm going to identify their needs, but 693 00:59:47.559 --> 00:59:53.840 I'm also going to teach them as leaders on how to grow themselves. You 694 00:59:53.840 --> 00:59:58.559 know, a lot of times it's not about having the answer, even for 695 00:59:58.639 --> 01:00:02.440 me, it's about ass seeing the powerful question. And so you know, 696 01:00:02.559 --> 01:00:07.920 that's something that I go over with them. You know, through the conversations 697 01:00:07.000 --> 01:00:10.440 and through the leadership guidance, I let them know that we're gonna actually have 698 01:00:10.519 --> 01:00:15.039 a relationship and that's not going to be where I'm just the answer guy that 699 01:00:15.079 --> 01:00:21.079 they're going to try to connect with. I would say that that's the important 700 01:00:21.119 --> 01:00:27.840 piece that if you're going to carry anything any advisor shares with you, you're 701 01:00:27.960 --> 01:00:31.480 going to have

to set yourself up for how you would even use the information. 702 01:00:32.519 --> 01:00:36.239 These are things that I go through, you know, with the client. 703 01:00:36.360 --> 01:00:38.039 Sometimes they're just like, well, I just want you to fix it. 704 01:00:38.639 --> 01:00:44.280 Well you've got to be part of that solution or you know. My 705 01:00:44.360 --> 01:00:49.199 goal is that you don't need an advisor to guide you all the time, 706 01:00:49.920 --> 01:00:53.960 just through the tough times, and then you're going to learn the process that 707 01:00:54.079 --> 01:00:59.239 helps you do it moving forward. So these are things that I go into 708 01:00:59.320 --> 01:01:02.400 saying, Okay, this is how we're going to set you up for success. 709 01:01:04.239 --> 01:01:07.840 This is what makes me a little bit different is I'm not looking for 710 01:01:07.880 --> 01:01:10.639 the short term. I'm not even looking for it to be me in the 711 01:01:10.679 --> 01:01:16.639 long term. I'm looking to give them what they need to be successful well 712 01:01:16.679 --> 01:01:22.119 after I'm not engaged with them anymore. Absolutely, And you know, Kevin, 713 01:01:22.199 --> 01:01:28.199 you're the only person that I know that can keep such a positive attitude 714 01:01:29.159 --> 01:01:31.039 when you work with clients to the point where they don't need you anymore. 715 01:01:32.360 --> 01:01:35.760 I mean, that is the goal, I know, I know, but 716 01:01:35.800 --> 01:01:38.119 it's like you do such a good job at it, Kevin, Like you're 717 01:01:38.119 --> 01:01:40.880 just you do so great you're like, Okay, we don't need you anymore. 718 01:01:42.039 --> 01:01:45.480 Like, okay, great, you know what I mean, But keep 719 01:01:45.559 --> 01:01:52.679 coming. But that's but that's awesome again again speaking to your character and just 720 01:01:52.760 --> 01:01:59.800 a great success of simplified co is, you are helping these businesses transition into 721 01:02:00.159 --> 01:02:05.280 having a greater impact and reaching and achieving their bottom line and doing it all 722 01:02:05.320 --> 01:02:08.719 with a smile. So thank you so much for sharing that those stories, 723 01:02:08.800 --> 01:02:14.039 those very impactful, powerful stories. Now we know that you actually have some 724 01:02:14.079 --> 01:02:20.920 pretty exciting things coming up in the month of September. Obviously for those of 725 01:02:20.920 --> 01:02:27.639 you guys who are a little bit behind on just everything that Kevin has been 726 01:02:27.639 --> 01:02:31.159 doing this past year. He has been on the cover of magazines and radio 727 01:02:31.239 --> 01:02:35.519 shows, television. He's just he's he won't say it, but I can 728 01:02:35.559 --> 01:02:37.480 say it because that's you know, I like saying it. He's got a 729 01:02:37.480 --> 01:02:42.400 lot going on. So you have a magazine cover coming up pretty soon, 730 01:02:42.519 --> 01:02:45.119 I think for people, if

you guys want to check out his latest features, 731 01:02:45.280 --> 01:02:47.280 they can go visit your official website too, can't they. Yeah, 732 01:02:47.280 --> 01:02:54.039 Oh absolutely, it's a www. Dot Kevin Wheeler dot org. Yeah, 733 01:02:54.079 --> 01:02:57.440 so there's many ways that you can connect with Kevin, if you'd like to 734 01:02:57.679 --> 01:03:00.440 work with him or even book him as a speaker, are you know consulting? 735 01:03:00.719 --> 01:03:04.840 He has his own official website, plus he has simplified CEO, so 736 01:03:04.880 --> 01:03:07.679 he's just out there doing some big things. But I definitely want you guys 737 01:03:07.679 --> 01:03:13.920 to keep Kevin in the loop, you know, let him Let's be proactive 738 01:03:13.960 --> 01:03:15.760 in and staying up to date on all the great things Kevin's doing, because 739 01:03:15.760 --> 01:03:19.079 you never know, when he's in a city near you, you'll get a 740 01:03:19.199 --> 01:03:21.360 chance to work with you. And you're a company, you guys can always 741 01:03:21.360 --> 01:03:22.639 reach out for that as well. Kevin, Before we let you go, 742 01:03:22.719 --> 01:03:28.119 do you have any parting words of advice for an aspiring entrepreneur who wants to 743 01:03:28.159 --> 01:03:32.159 have a career and impact like yours. Yes, I would say just that 744 01:03:32.280 --> 01:03:37.920 to go back to, it's not, you know, as we become you 745 01:03:37.960 --> 01:03:40.800 know, consultants, let's say, if that's or any entrepreneur, it's not 746 01:03:40.920 --> 01:03:45.039 about having the answer, It's about asking the question. I think Pete Drucker 747 01:03:45.280 --> 01:03:50.199 had said that in one of his books, and it's so true. Always 748 01:03:50.239 --> 01:04:00.840 be asking questions and the answers will flow naturally beautiful words to end by inspiring 749 01:04:00.119 --> 01:04:04.559 thank you Kevin so much for joining us today. Thank you everyone for joining 750 01:04:04.559 --> 01:04:09.119 our segment. Before you all do leave, we like to have you stay 751 01:04:09.159 --> 01:04:12.400 and stick around for just a few more seconds to hear a word from our 752 01:04:12.440 --> 01:04:15.079 partners. You guys can check out all of Kevin's info and links in the 753 01:04:15.079 --> 01:04:18.559 description of the show wherever you happen to be watching are listening to. We 754 01:04:18.639 --> 01:04:21.519 want to also give a shout out and the special thanks to the Bully Adventures 755 01:04:21.519 --> 01:04:26.920 for sponsoring and supporting this program. All up to the Bully Avengers as you 756 01:04:26.960 --> 01:04:30.440 continue your human rights investigations and work internationally. Kevin, again, you are 757 01:04:30.480 --> 01:04:33.320 a blessing to all of us. We appreciate you, and we look forward 758 01:04:33.320 --> 01:04:36.000 to having you on next time. Stay in a little please give you one 759 01:04:36.079 --> 01:04:41.880 to today's

very special segment. For those of you who have been following the 760 01:04:41.920 --> 01:04:45.079 path and career of Carol Davinny, you know that she is no stranger to 761 01:04:45.119 --> 01:04:49.400 the show and we are so honored to have her back today to talk to 762 01:04:49.440 --> 01:04:55.679 with us about not only a new initiative for men's mental health, but even 763 01:04:55.719 --> 01:05:00.480 about a very special college that I think you're going to I really want to 764 01:05:00.480 --> 01:05:03.039 hear about well before we introduce her. I do want to say that this 765 01:05:03.079 --> 01:05:08.960 show was brought to you by the Bully Avengers, fighting for international rights of 766 01:05:09.000 --> 01:05:13.440 women and children globally. Your support has been truly invaluable, Carol, for 767 01:05:13.480 --> 01:05:15.639 the Bully Avengers, and we want to on their behalf say thank you so 768 01:05:15.719 --> 01:05:20.199 much for all of your support and welcome to the show. Thank you you 769 01:05:20.239 --> 01:05:26.599 all more than welcome. Now, Carol, we know that you have a 770 01:05:26.599 --> 01:05:30.639 lot of exciting things coming up in the upcoming months, So before we get 771 01:05:30.679 --> 01:05:35.000 into those things things, I think it's really important for people just to understand 772 01:05:35.599 --> 01:05:40.280 your journey. You know, people know that I love a good story, 773 01:05:40.480 --> 01:05:47.360 and you, as the founder of Universe Poems, you breathe life into the 774 01:05:47.400 --> 01:05:50.639 work that you do, the poems that you create, and even the people 775 01:05:50.719 --> 01:05:55.920 that you work with. So can you tell us about your journey as a 776 01:05:56.000 --> 01:06:00.320 poet and how it led you to establish the Universe Poems. Well, yes, 777 01:06:00.559 --> 01:06:05.079 I also I've excuse me, always been a professional writer all of my 778 01:06:05.199 --> 01:06:12.880 life. But when I knew that I would definitely write one day was when 779 01:06:12.880 --> 01:06:16.440 I watched a movie by Stephen King, which is Misery, and there was 780 01:06:16.440 --> 01:06:20.679 a beautiful scene outside of the window of snow and sunshine, and I sat 781 01:06:20.719 --> 01:06:25.280 there and thought to myself, one day I will be a writer. I 782 01:06:25.360 --> 01:06:30.920 had written a piece of poetry quite a number of years ago, and I 783 01:06:30.960 --> 01:06:33.760 wanted to share that piece of poetry because it was very inspirational to me, 784 01:06:34.599 --> 01:06:40.159 and so I decided to join a writing community. Once I joined a writing 785 01:06:40.159 --> 01:06:45.360 community, I was exposed to many different forms of poetry. I met many 786 01:06:45.360 --> 01:06:49.079 different colleagues who I'm still there today in part of my writing community, who 787 01:06:49.159 --> 01:06:54.400 inspired me I've got to say greatly along my journey, and they still inspired 788

01:06:54.440 --> 01:07:00.840 me today and we will support each other during that period. During the initial 789 01:07:00.840 --> 01:07:04.519 period of being part of that writing community, I started to realize that I 790 01:07:04.599 --> 01:07:13.239 wanted to write poetry, but make poetry part of my professional career and give 791 01:07:13.280 --> 01:07:19.039 people access to poetry and literature, but also create other services through poetry, 792 01:07:19.280 --> 01:07:24.239 which is a healing art in itself, an ancient and that is why I 793 01:07:24.280 --> 01:07:30.320 devise Universe Poems, because I wanted to reach people globally in terms of interconnection 794 01:07:30.440 --> 01:07:35.679 that has to be at the forefront of any arts organization, and so stipulated 795 01:07:35.719 --> 01:07:40.960 I devised Universe Poems, and I know that we are reaching people globally. 796 01:07:40.960 --> 01:07:46.320 We are already doing that and have a vast amount of people from all backgrounds 797 01:07:47.119 --> 01:07:51.719 engaging with our work and services on a daily basis. We know that because 798 01:07:51.719 --> 01:07:57.639 of the feedback. We get the positive feedback as well as the comments and 799 01:07:57.719 --> 01:08:02.880 people even wanting to use the poetry beyond certain realms of where it's available, 800 01:08:03.239 --> 01:08:10.239 so we know we are making a huge impact globally. Well, then, 801 01:08:10.440 --> 01:08:14.159 thank you so much for sharing that. And I find it so fascinating. 802 01:08:14.280 --> 01:08:19.079 You know that moment where you realize you wanted to be a writer because I 803 01:08:19.119 --> 01:08:25.520 remember the movie Misery. I remember watching it as a kid, and your 804 01:08:25.600 --> 01:08:29.199 takeaway from that, it's just it's so interesting how movies can do that for 805 01:08:29.279 --> 01:08:34.359 you. Like, wow, it's as fascinating. Now as the founder of 806 01:08:34.520 --> 01:08:43.720 Universe Poems, what is your primary mission or vision for this platform? Well, 807 01:08:43.760 --> 01:08:48.199 our primary vision and mine initially which has been followed through, is that 808 01:08:48.279 --> 01:08:54.920 we will create an arts organization of stipulated that will reach people globally. We 809 01:08:54.960 --> 01:08:59.439 want people to have access. The main mission is to have access to poetry 810 01:08:59.520 --> 01:09:04.279 and literally but also other services that promote holistic health and well being. But 811 01:09:04.680 --> 01:09:11.039 that's hard delivered through poetry and as I stipulated to other interviews, I believe 812 01:09:11.119 --> 01:09:15.720 I'm one of the first professionals to have cross applied my therapeutic practices with poetry. 813 01:09:16.000 --> 01:09:20.319 But also we've devised many more programs and services which are on the Universe 814 01:09:20.359 --> 01:09:26.520 Poems website. Once again, Yeah, I think you're I think you're right. 815 01:09:26.560 --> 01:09:31.840 Like I don't think I've ever seen anyone speak about the power of poetry 816 01:09:32.039 --> 01:09:39.720 and in emotional mental healing. I do believe that you're the first person that 817 01:09:39.800 --> 01:09:44.640 I know that has crossed over and not just personally but as a company, 818 01:09:44.760 --> 01:09:49.680 has advocated the use of poetry through emotional and mental healing. It is. 819 01:09:49.760 --> 01:09:54.600 It's to me very inspiring and encouraging, and I think that's one of the 820 01:09:54.640 --> 01:09:59.920 reasons why I really want to hear about your other venture with Hoolisom College. 821 01:10:00.000 --> 01:10:04.279 Can you can you share some insights into the concept behind holes in College and 822 01:10:04.439 --> 01:10:12.039 how it's designed to enhance wellness and mental health most definitely well Holism College is 823 01:10:12.079 --> 01:10:18.439 focused on post sixteen education and personal development. We are all born as nature 824 01:10:19.079 --> 01:10:26.119 and through natural biology, and I wanted and we wanted to devise courses that 825 01:10:26.279 --> 01:10:34.960 focused on nature itself, because if you're able to person center courses directly related 826 01:10:35.000 --> 01:10:40.279 to nature, and people are nature. It's only going to enhance their holistic 827 01:10:40.399 --> 01:10:46.239 health and develop their abilities in a person centered way. People could be transitioning 828 01:10:46.560 --> 01:10:51.439 not knowing what they want to go into. You could be an adult that 829 01:10:51.560 --> 01:10:57.920 just feels you want to develop your personal development for yourself and have that connection 830 01:10:58.000 --> 01:11:01.760 with nature as you are at all ready. And so poly some college is 831 01:11:01.800 --> 01:11:06.600 there for anybody, and we have courses that's are on learned s us and 832 01:11:06.640 --> 01:11:13.520 they can be accessed directly from the Universe Poems website. But the courses will 833 01:11:13.640 --> 01:11:23.439 also stipulate it vastly benefit the individual's holistic health because it's connecting with nature already. 834 01:11:23.600 --> 01:11:26.399 And yeah, I've had a chance to take a look at those courses 835 01:11:26.439 --> 01:11:30.880 as well. I'm very very timely, I believe, especially considering the world 836 01:11:30.920 --> 01:11:34.760 that we're in. And I love the fact that you're encouraging people to get 837 01:11:34.800 --> 01:11:41.800 out there, engage with nature and take those lessons into their personal life. 838 01:11:41.840 --> 01:11:45.640 It's an inspiring college and again the first of its kind that I've ever seen. 839 01:11:46.399 --> 01:11:51.960 So it's also yes, it's also an expression outlet for people. Let's 840 01:11:51.960 --> 01:11:58.119 remember that poetry is healing in itself, and the power of poetry goes beyond 841 01:11:58.159 --> 01:12:05.239 words the fact of

the man he is. You are engaging in something that's 842 01:12:05.479 --> 01:12:10.640 going to benefit your holistic health. As I've said, I do believe also 843 01:12:10.680 --> 01:12:14.600 as well that I'm the first person to have done that. But we are 844 01:12:14.680 --> 01:12:20.039 giving people an opportunity in terms of their education to be connected with nature. 845 01:12:21.199 --> 01:12:25.319 Poetry is an outlet, and it's not just the fact that you're going to 846 01:12:25.319 --> 01:12:28.399 be studying. You're going to be benefiting your holistic health. You will have 847 01:12:28.439 --> 01:12:32.159 an expression outlet as well with the courses that we've devised. I myself as 848 01:12:32.199 --> 01:12:39.520 a professional writer and poetess and authors in my personal life, I've used poetry 849 01:12:39.560 --> 01:12:43.119 as an expression because I do believe in life, and I've said this before, 850 01:12:43.159 --> 01:12:47.039 there is not always going to be someone to express to. Also, 851 01:12:47.880 --> 01:12:53.720 it will be developing people's emotional intelligence, which is your EQ, because all 852 01:12:53.760 --> 01:12:58.840 of us will find ourselves in certain situations in life and perhaps at the ending 853 01:12:58.880 --> 01:13:01.439 of the day, if we have a reflective tool, because writing is also 854 01:13:01.479 --> 01:13:04.239 a reflective tool, what we think at the time may not be the case 855 01:13:04.279 --> 01:13:08.680 when we go back and reflect only. But it's also an outlet and giving 856 01:13:08.720 --> 01:13:12.520 somewhere for your emotions and feelings to live and with the courses with device for 857 01:13:12.560 --> 01:13:15.840 Holisom College, poetry is the forefront of that as well as nature. But 858 01:13:16.560 --> 01:13:26.359 within those courses is encompassed self expression for individuals absolutely, and I really feel 859 01:13:26.399 --> 01:13:32.000 that you're a trailblazer in this regard to bringing these type of programs to the 860 01:13:32.039 --> 01:13:38.039 community. So thank you for that. And again, as Carol mentioned, 861 01:13:38.119 --> 01:13:45.039 everyone, you can access Holisome College through links on Universe Poems and you can 862 01:13:45.079 --> 01:13:47.680 find that all in the description of the show. Wherever you are listening to 863 01:13:47.800 --> 01:13:51.359 are watching this shows, So thank you for sharing that, Carol. Now, 864 01:13:51.439 --> 01:13:57.119 Carrol, in today's fast paced world, why do you believe it's crucial 865 01:13:57.199 --> 01:14:03.560 for individuals to reconnect with nature where their mental well being well. People may 866 01:14:03.640 --> 01:14:10.079 or may not know. I'm actually a doctor of philosophy ongoing research, and 867 01:14:10.439 --> 01:14:14.760 I am very well aware and individuals may not be, but I am. 868 01:14:14.880 --> 01:14:17.439 We are born as nature, We're conceived as nature first of all, We're 869

01:14:17.439 --> 01:14:21.800 then born as nature and we live as nature. If you're able to connect 870 01:14:21.840 --> 01:14:27.479 with the very being that you are, that all human beings are made up 871 01:14:27.560 --> 01:14:30.479 of, which is nature, art and culture. If you're able to connect 872 01:14:30.960 --> 01:14:35.800 with the nature of yourself at the ending of the day and explore that it's 873 01:14:35.880 --> 01:14:41.359 only going to benefit your holistic health. So in this fast paced world, 874 01:14:41.399 --> 01:14:45.359 I would say nature is the guide, but also the therapeutic practitioner as many 875 01:14:45.359 --> 01:14:50.279 people may or may not know. I'm qualified in forest learning and we can 876 01:14:50.319 --> 01:14:55.960 replicate that in our everyday life also as well, because that is what nature 877 01:14:56.000 --> 01:14:59.920 is there for. You are part of that, and it's only going to 878 01:15:00.119 --> 01:15:06.920 enhance your holistic health abilities if you are engaging with activities that are nature focused 879 01:15:08.039 --> 01:15:13.119 or services or programs, And I will just be the reason. I believe 880 01:15:13.159 --> 01:15:15.199 it's very important. As you've just stipulated. Yes, in the fast paced 881 01:15:15.199 --> 01:15:21.720 world we're living in, many people can get wrapped up in television's, social 882 01:15:21.760 --> 01:15:28.720 media, many other things, all of these game boxes and all of these 883 01:15:28.760 --> 01:15:31.840 other things that's not really connecting with nature. Yes, we can go into 884 01:15:31.920 --> 01:15:36.439 natural nature environments, but there's ways of connecting with nature within your home, 885 01:15:36.600 --> 01:15:42.560 like programs, writing poetry, reading poetry. There's so many ways that people 886 01:15:42.560 --> 01:15:45.720 can connect with nature that's part of them already, and if it's part of 887 01:15:45.760 --> 01:15:49.399 you already, it's only going to enhance your holistic health. As I said, 888 01:15:51.000 --> 01:15:56.399 absolutely absolutely. Now I want to kind of switch gears a little bit. 889 01:15:56.399 --> 01:15:59.880 I was going to ask you a question about a personal experience, but 890 01:16:00.000 --> 01:16:05.159 I actually want to ask you something else because I think it's so important to 891 01:16:05.159 --> 01:16:11.680 touch on this topic. And that's in regards to men's mental health. It's 892 01:16:11.880 --> 01:16:17.560 one of those things where men are now it seems like they're now being more 893 01:16:17.680 --> 01:16:21.920 encouraged to speak about their mental and emotional state. However, it's still considered 894 01:16:23.000 --> 01:16:28.159 very taboo for men to actually speak on emotions. However, you are running 895 01:16:28.199 --> 01:16:33.039 a very powerful initiative through Men's Posset to bring awareness and support to men, 896 01:16:33.239 --> 01:16:39.920 encouraging them to reach

out and get the mental health support they need. So 897 01:16:40.720 --> 01:16:44.520 let's let's let's talk a little bit about this. Can you tell us more 898 01:16:44.560 --> 01:16:50.279 about Men's Post International Awareness Day and it's significance and raising awareness for men's mental 899 01:16:50.279 --> 01:16:56.279 health, Yes, definitely. The Men's Post International Awareness Day will take place 900 01:16:56.319 --> 01:17:00.119 on the twenty third of September twenty twenty three. We had one last year 901 01:17:00.159 --> 01:17:05.600 which was very successful. The way that men can become involved in this day, 902 01:17:05.600 --> 01:17:10.439 we wanted to keep it very simple. In the current climate, people 903 01:17:10.439 --> 01:17:15.159 are living busy lives, and I know for my own research that men find 904 01:17:15.199 --> 01:17:17.399 it hard to engage in things that take a lot of reading or a lot 905 01:17:17.439 --> 01:17:21.359 of effort at times, so we wanted to keep it very brief and the 906 01:17:21.399 --> 01:17:28.520 way that people can take part is simply just to do something that promotes positive 907 01:17:28.560 --> 01:17:31.399 self expression for them. That could be cooking their favorite food, going for 908 01:17:31.439 --> 01:17:35.720 a walk, having an aromatherapy massage. It could be a haircut, It 909 01:17:35.760 --> 01:17:43.319 could be listening to their favorite music, anything that makes the individual feel that 910 01:17:43.399 --> 01:17:46.159 they are expressing themselves in a positive way. On the day, we will 911 01:17:46.199 --> 01:17:53.119 be as usual sending out lots of information and resources that people can tap into. 912 01:17:53.319 --> 01:17:57.840 But yes, it's going to be hopefully another I'm sure successful second year 913 01:17:57.920 --> 01:18:05.680 for Men's Pose because no matter what we say in society that we understand and 914 01:18:05.800 --> 01:18:12.760 we're listening, there is still a huge stigmatization around mental health for everybody, 915 01:18:13.079 --> 01:18:16.199 but particularly men who are meant to be seen as strong and bread winners, 916 01:18:16.439 --> 01:18:21.760 is ingrained into society and not to cry, not to have emotions be big 917 01:18:21.800 --> 01:18:28.319 and strong. And the fact of the matter is we are wanting to continue 918 01:18:28.439 --> 01:18:31.039 to promote and we will as part of our work for the future as well, 919 01:18:31.479 --> 01:18:35.640 that men have a voice and an outlet they do not feel ashamed to 920 01:18:35.680 --> 01:18:40.600 speak up if they're needing help, but also that they can find a positive 921 01:18:40.640 --> 01:18:45.840 way for self expression and not bottle things up inside, because that's what there 922 01:18:45.960 --> 01:18:59.520 needs to traumatic experiences at the ending of the day for some people. Thank 923 01:18:59.560 --> 01:19:03.560 you so much for sharing that, Carol. That's very enlightening

on understanding the 924 01:19:03.640 --> 01:19:08.920 significance of the day and what's the objective is. I think it's going to 925 01:19:09.000 --> 01:19:15.439 be an amazing, amazing opportunity for men to reconnect with themselves emotionally. And 926 01:19:15.479 --> 01:19:23.960 I really really want this initiative to take off globally, so let's do whatever 927 01:19:24.000 --> 01:19:30.920 we can, everybody out there to spread awareness about men's Pose International Awareness Day. 928 01:19:30.960 --> 01:19:33.000 I think it's going to be amazing for men that we finally get a 929 01:19:33.079 --> 01:19:38.520 day to ourselves where we can say my mental health matters as well. I 930 01:19:38.560 --> 01:19:42.039 love this. This is gonna be epic. I can already think of how 931 01:19:42.039 --> 01:19:48.439 I'm going to celebrate wanted listen. I want to encourage other men to join 932 01:19:48.520 --> 01:19:55.119 me in the celebration. Carol. I love what you're doing and I love 933 01:19:55.159 --> 01:19:59.560 the fact that you are reaching so many new heights to help others connect with 934 01:19:59.600 --> 01:20:05.680 them selves mentally and emotionally. And I guess my last question Carol is as 935 01:20:05.680 --> 01:20:12.399 a poet and advocate for mental wellbeing, what advice do you have for aspiring 936 01:20:12.479 --> 01:20:18.359 poets and individuals interested in promoting their mental health and awareness through arts. I 937 01:20:18.359 --> 01:20:25.720 would say, go ahead and do so, and don't feel that you are 938 01:20:26.319 --> 01:20:30.439 alone in doing that. Many of us have to walk a pathway where we 939 01:20:30.439 --> 01:20:32.840 may feel that we're the only ones walking it. But at the ending of 940 01:20:32.840 --> 01:20:39.720 the day, follow what you know, you feel you can achieve, and 941 01:20:40.000 --> 01:20:45.000 what you want to bring for people so that they are better equipped to deal 942 01:20:45.000 --> 01:20:50.039 with their mental health. Because mental health affects everybody, not just you know, 943 01:20:50.279 --> 01:20:56.000 certain individuals. Mental health can be postnatal depression. Mental health can be 944 01:20:56.039 --> 01:21:00.199 connected for people who have all tis more ADHD. Mental health can because it 945 01:21:00.239 --> 01:21:03.640 can become part of somebody's life because they've lost their job. Mental health can 946 01:21:03.680 --> 01:21:08.479 be because you've had a bereavement. Mental health affects every single person. And 947 01:21:08.720 --> 01:21:11.840 quite recently, I've just done a write up which is on the Universe Post 948 01:21:11.880 --> 01:21:16.760 website for Hollywood Hemispheres, which is a report that was in the Lancet for 949 01:21:16.920 --> 01:21:26.039 psychiatry, and it clearly stipulates that by a certain time, how many millions 950 01:21:26.079 --> 01:21:30.760 of people will be suffering with their mental health. But what they found in 951 01:21:30.800 --> 01:21:32.600 the research is if it can be caught quiet early on, in the sense 952 01:21:32.640 --> 01:21:36.680 of the onset of seventeen to nineteen, I think it is. The report 953 01:21:36.800 --> 01:21:40.840 is online, you can read it, then you've got a better chance of 954 01:21:40.920 --> 01:21:44.920 preventing negative impacts and mental health as people get old. So that's not to 955 01:21:44.920 --> 01:21:48.880 say they're not going to experience it, but they found a significant impact between 956 01:21:48.920 --> 01:21:56.000 that age group of mental health conditions actually starting. So for anybody out there, 957 01:21:56.680 --> 01:22:00.439 break the stigmatization mental health affects everybody. Mental health can be that you 958 01:22:00.439 --> 01:22:03.279 feel that you don't want to get out of bed in the morning, and 959 01:22:03.319 --> 01:22:08.039 that continues at the ending of the day. It's about feeling motivated. What's 960 01:22:08.039 --> 01:22:12.079 stopping you, So never feel ashamed at the ending of the day, and 961 01:22:12.239 --> 01:22:16.159 always do what you can do. Never give yourself too much. I'm a 962 01:22:16.199 --> 01:22:20.520 great advocate for that. You can only make one phone call a day, 963 01:22:20.680 --> 01:22:25.000 you can only do one email a day. Things may not get done, 964 01:22:25.279 --> 01:22:29.319 but the fact is do what you can cope with. Because everybody's coping abilities. 965 01:22:29.319 --> 01:22:33.680 And this is one of my main I would say talking outlets when I'm 966 01:22:33.720 --> 01:22:38.359 speaking to people in time to give them information. You've got to do what 967 01:22:38.399 --> 01:22:41.520 you can cope with. We're all individuals, we're all different. Some people 968 01:22:41.520 --> 01:22:45.199 can cope with fifty emails a day, some people can cope with, you 969 01:22:45.239 --> 01:22:48.479 know, ten thousand phone calls a day. The fact of the matter is 970 01:22:48.800 --> 01:22:53.199 do what feels right for you. I'm a great believer in that at the 971 01:22:53.279 --> 01:22:58.680 end of the day. And if you're finding you rely on your friends or 972 01:22:58.720 --> 01:23:00.600 rely on your family, ask and if you need help with something and they're 973 01:23:00.640 --> 01:23:03.079 there and they're willing to help you. There are people in this world who 974 01:23:03.079 --> 01:23:08.319 don't have family a table to do that. But if you've got friends or 975 01:23:08.359 --> 01:23:11.840 family, never feel ashamed if there's some help they can give you in something 976 01:23:11.920 --> 01:23:14.600 that you're needing at the ending of the day. You know, some people 977 01:23:14.600 --> 01:23:18.279 are very independent. I'm a great role model for that of independence at the 978 01:23:18.359 --> 01:23:20.760 ending of the day. But there are times in life we all need to 979 01:23:23.439 --> 01:23:28.079 ask for help or you know, realize that we can't do everything. And 980 01:23:28.119 --> 01:23:31.319 I think that's really really important in setting a basis for your stability of your 981 01:23:32.279 --> 01:23:36.399 mental health in terms of a positive way, do what you can do. 982 01:23:41.159 --> 01:23:45.319 Great words of advice, great words of advice, and that powerful note. 983 01:23:45.319 --> 01:23:49.279 I do want to actually get a link to that article that you mentioned, 984 01:23:49.640 --> 01:23:53.520 and for all of you again watching and listening, you guys can look at 985 01:23:53.560 --> 01:23:56.800 the description of the show and you'll be able to get an access to that 986 01:23:57.000 --> 01:24:01.239 article. I think it's so important for us to be aware of of the 987 01:24:01.239 --> 01:24:04.560 the mental health has even on our young people. So I really appreciate those 988 01:24:04.600 --> 01:24:11.319 statistics and I love that advice do what you can do every day and and 989 01:24:11.079 --> 01:24:14.920 and reach out and ask her help. Excellent, excellent advice. Carol. 990 01:24:15.399 --> 01:24:17.840 Once again, thank you again for being on today's segment and inspiring us as 991 01:24:17.880 --> 01:24:23.359 you always do, and we wish you nothing but success. We know that 992 01:24:23.399 --> 01:24:28.319 you have a magazine cover feature coming out in London Sky, so congratulations on 993 01:24:28.399 --> 01:24:30.760 that. We're super excited to see what's what's in store for you for twenty 994 01:24:30.840 --> 01:24:38.159 twenty three and twenty twenty four and beyond. Thank you so much. And 995 01:24:38.199 --> 01:24:43.039 before we let you guys go, I want you guys to remember Men's Post 996 01:24:43.159 --> 01:24:47.199 International Awareness Day is coming up. Carol. What day is that? What 997 01:24:47.359 --> 01:24:53.960 is the day is the twenty third of September. Okay, so mark that 998 01:24:54.000 --> 01:25:00.279 on your calendars everyone, because you're gonna see me definitely going going wow on 999 01:25:00.279 --> 01:25:01.880 that day in a good way for my mental health, and I want to 1000 01:25:02.720 --> 01:25:06.479 encourage everyone to do the same thing. Carol, thanks again for being on 1001 01:25:06.520 --> 01:25:10.520 today's segment, and we please you know that you always have a place in 1002 01:25:10.560 --> 01:25:14.640 a home here on The Joseph Bonner Show and on all of my platforms. 1003 01:25:15.520 --> 01:25:18.520 Thank you so much. We are more than welcome. Before we let you 1004 01:25:18.600 --> 01:25:21.319 guys go again, one last word, stay till