Awkwardly Awesome w/ Jason Freeman

“When you have someone at the table with a disability, you quickly see how they’ve had to navigate a world that’s not designed for them.  They are problem solvers.  They’ve had to learn to organize so many aspects of their lives.  They see dimensions to our world we might be oblivious to.” ~ Lisa Drennan There was a time—not so long ago—when people with disabilities were often hidden away in insti...

“There’re 10,000 different ways of getting over the same obstacle.” ~ Marina Gavryushkina   Marina Gavryushkina is not unlike a Russian Indiana Jones, not only does she have a Masters in Archaeology and started her PHD, but she’s lived her life in constant pursuit of adventure, following her passion for parkour all the way to the national stage as a contestant on American Ninja Warrior.  Of parkou...

In this fan-favorite episode Tim Dumas and host Jason Freeman explore "magnanimity" — leading by bringing out others' greatness — and how sharing and supporting personal dreams at work strengthens teams, boosts motivation, and improves results.  This episode is chock full of practical stories, explains coaching versus rescuing, and gives tools for building peer support and accountability. Tune in...

Even though she was only in sixth grade, Rosemary Moeller remembers feeling inspired when President Kennedy fulfilled his campaign promise to promote goodwill and development abroad by creating the Peace Corps.  The creation of this new agency offered her a sense of wonder about what might lie beyond the boundaries of the only home, and country, she knew.  This wonder became such that when the Pea...

“If my grandson ever learns about me, it is my biggest hope that he’ll also learn how his existence shaped who I am—strengthening my kindness, deepening my compassion, and inspiring me to build a community rooted in connection, understanding, hope and love. Everything I created began with him." ~ Donna Skora   Donna Skora remembers the day she got the news that she and her husband, Rick, were goin...

“It’s not about power over others, it’s about having power within you to create the life you want.”  ~ Anji Kat   I first met Anji Kat a little over 15 years ago, when she was my yoga teacher.  After that time I moved to San Diego and she moved to Florida.  Recently, a friend of mine shared a poem Anji had written, which was phenomenal, and suggested I reach out and invite her to be on the podcast...

“I used to have a neighbor who’d always say, ‘When you rest, you rust’.  Well, I don’t ever want to rest and rust to the point where I can’t impact others.”  ~ Tony Russell   Tony Russell was only four years old, in preschool, when his mother passed away.  She had been having health issues but the suddenness caught everyone off guard.  He transitioned through different family members, all doing th...

My next guest and I run in some of the same circles.  There’s a particular image of him that I can’t shake.  It revolves around a group of us going out for a night of bowling.  Everyone was dressed pretty much exactly how you’d expect someone who’s going bowling to dress, except for Kiley Naro.  Nope, he showed up wearing a dress shirt, tie, and slacks, trading only his Oxfords for a pair of bowli...

I’ve always had great admiration for people who work in healthcare.  Since my Dad is a kind and gifted neurologist, you could say I was born into this love for the medical field.  This respect has only increased in recent years as I’ve studied more about the challenges that abound in healthcare.  The skill and courage with which these challenges are met by teams of healthcare professionals on a da...

“Most of us go around in life as if we’re not going to die, but we are not guaranteed 80 years.  Knowing that I wasn’t going to have forever changed things.”  ~ Leah Nixon   During what she calls her first life, Leah Nixon ran a half marathon, two full marathons, helped construct houses for Habitat For Humanity and generally built up a tolerance for doing tough things, and had just started making...

After growing up in Chicago and attending Northern Illinois University for art, the promise of surfing and warm Januarys gave Alex Rennie all the inspiration he needed to trade the frigid-howling-wind winters of the Windy City for San Diego, California palm trees and beaches.  Once there, he continued his work in graphic design and branding, mastered video production and editing, and nurtured his...

“It is a simple and profound act of faith to venture forth into the unknown; art is an act of faith.  It is the search, the process and adventure, the battle well fought on that terrible field of white canvas, the journey that is art, as much or more than the destination, which matters.  Art matters.” ~ Mark Zimmerman   Mushrooms suddenly became a big part of Mark Zimmerman’s life this past summer...

“You have to get to the child’s level by making yourself the best toy in the room.”  ~ Kristin Wittmayer   Can profound healing, skill development, and positive change happen through play? In my youth, I sometimes viewed playtime as a reward for something far less exciting,  as in  “Clean your room, then you can play with your friends,” or  “Finish your homework, then you can play outside until su...

“You’ve got to make the most of where you are, make connections and friendships wherever you are.  Even in a small town with not a lot of opportunities, you can still make your own opportunities and go on to do what you want to do.”  ~ Zach Anderson   Zach Anderson’s upbringing embodies the definition of idyllic small town life in such a way that you’d swear it couldn’t possibly exist outside of a...

“There’re so many outside factors making our kids feel like they need to be perfect.  Whether it’s continually comparing themselves to others on social media, all they absorb from their phones, struggling to be the best on the sports field, or doing great at academics.  This adds so much outside pressure to their lives. They don’t get a chance to be themselves.  It’s really hard to be a kid these...

“I’m fifty-five.  If I can’t be authentic now, when is that going to happen?  I don’t want to go to my grave being inauthentic.”  ~ Dina Lantzer   “Temporary, extreme fear while speaking the truth is easier to overcome than perpetual fear of the unspoken truth.”  ~ Matt Lantzer   Against all odds, Matt and Dina Lantzer had a marriage that worked.  They married young, when Dina was 21 and Matt was...

Do what you believe in and let meaning and service follow from that. This is the core concept I keep coming back to as I think about my next guest’s story… Scott Ehrisman is a multi-talented artist, a community activist, community builder, a friend to a great many people and an all around kind person. He’s truly committed to doing the things that interest and excite him. He’s had twenty different...

“I’m a fan of my fellow human being, I’m a fan of achievement. My mother’s hippie ways are deep within me. When I leave the world, I have the responsibility to leave it better.” ~ David Ervin   Right out of college at Penn State, David Ervin was hoping to find a job with a steady paycheck that could cover life’s essentials: car insurance and beer. Instead, what he found was a warm welcome into a c...

We all experience challenges. Some of these challenges are easy for those around us to spot, while others may be utterly invisible to others. For instance, every time I speak my speech impediment is heard loud and clear by everyone within earshot. On the other hand, my friend and colleague Ryan Groenweg experiences Usher’s Syndrome which involves hearing loss and progressive vision loss. For most...

“Our brains are our super power. To stop it from thinking is like trying to get our hearts to stop beating.” ~ Kirk Hinkleman   Have you noticed how hard it is to find calm in a world that offers so many distractions and reasons to be stressed out? Sure, paying closer attention to the present moment and breath work offer some hope of relief. Yet, practices such as mindfulness and meditation take p...

“One can become an optimist through challenge, but also there’s the element of growing as an optimist by seeing others experiencing challenge. Through it, you can learn resilience and you can find hope. Seeing hope in the world is truly what makes us compassionate beings.” ~ Lisa Groon   Simply put, more often than not, life can be painfully awkward and imperfect! Great, unexpected challenges come...

AMBER: “I have such a cool job! It’s challenging, frustrating, exciting, even thrilling at times. It’s really satisfying to me to explore the ‘why’ behind patient decisions. If I can understand their why, I can often shift my perspective, allowing me to understand their decision, even if it differs from what I value or believe.”   EMILY: “We work with complex cases that involve patients from all w...

“The 7th generation is the native youth of today. They had lots of challenges as their ancestors had lots of challenges. But the 7th generation is here to succeed and lots of great things will happen and, as I always say, I’m a firm believer that one of those 7th generation youth will be president of this United States.” ~ Jim Warne   Educator-advocate-filmmaker Jim Warne is a member of the Oglala...

MITCH: “Starting a business is exhausting, running a business is exhausting, raising a family is exhausting. Running a business while raising a family and going through pediatric cancer treatment is exhausting. Running a business while raising a family and going through pediatric cancer treatment AND repairing your flood damaged house is exhausting. It’s easy to withdraw when things are difficult....

With all of the demands of life, it’s sometimes quite easy for people to lose focus on who they truly are as they build their identities around what they do and who they feel they should be. There can be entire spans of adulthood where adults are rewarded for their hyperfocus, even if it means that their more personal, and seemingly “optional” desires get neglected. Maybe their hyperfocus is their...