PoolePRoof Wisdom

Beyond the Headlines: Stopping AAPI Hate Now In this episode, we revisit the ongoing issue of violence against Asian and Pacific Islander people that grabs fewer headlines today, but remains a real and painful reality.  In a recent national report – issued in August and representing incidents through June -- Stop AAPI Hate, an organization formed after an alarming escalation in xenophobia and...

The Good Work of Doing Work for Good In this episode, our focus is on giving.  As someone who firmly believes personal happiness is in part made possible by doing good in support of others, this discussion is of value to anyone who is looking for purpose and meaning.  And the good news is that anyone can find these things, working from where they are, using whatever they have. Michael Ch...

In this episode, artist and marketing/branding executive Mark Witzling discusses his journey from work to his life's work, and what that journey means in terms of finding meaningfulness and purpose in life.

The Future of Personal Happiness "I just want to be happy." You've heard others say it perhaps thousands of times, or have said it yourself almost as many. But since 2020, and the pandemic that redefined how we live and what we expect, happiness has been harder to define and pursue for millions of people.  Anger, frustration, and doubt have instead come to define the time in which we live and...

In this episode, Charles speaks about regaining weight after losing a significant amount during quarantine, and what that does and doesn't mean in terms of the goals he has for his health, and his life.

Charles' not-so-random thoughts on a number of topics, delivered in his very PooleProof way.

For the Love (And Advocacy) of Animals Today, it’s all about our friends and companions, furry and otherwise. We speak in this space about all manner of human topics and issues, but for many of us our dogs, cats, reptiles, pigs, horses. . .and every other kind of animal friend under the sun are part of the family and often perceived as so much better than a LOT of humans. Katherine has more than &...

Working, Now: A Whole New World What You Need to Know about how we work, when we work, and why we work now. About Angee Linsey Angee Linsey has dedicated the last 20 years of her career to helping companies build great teams through exceptional recruitment strategies, as well as helping individuals achieve their career goals. Currently she leads Linsey Careers, a national executive search firm tha...

Diversity, equity, and inclusion seems on everyone's lips these days, particularly  business leaders who, on the heels of social justice protests, realized they could no longer ignore the obvious.  It sounds like good news, but too many were interested in monetizing the movement and not truly committing to change.    There's been an exceptional increase in how many have gotten...

Today, good people, it’s all about health, wellness, and fitness.  About how a dedication to personal fitness blossomed into a source of fitness inspiration and a growing fitness business. Join me as I have an honest and very thoughtful conversation with Kevin Morris, a Newark, New Jersey personal trainer and owner of @BlackFitness.  Kevin created BlackFitness in 2015 based on a desire t...

Artist, entrepreneur, activist, change-maker. These are but a few of the terms that describe Sabrina Thompson Mitchell. From North Carolina to the Big Apple (shout out to Brooklyn), and now residing in Houston, Texas, Sabrina's stint on CBS's Survivor may be how many came to know her, but for the rest of us we've seen her create her life on her own terms and encourage others -- as a high school te...

In this Conversations episode, I speak with Denise Pines , a longtime community health advocate and media pioneer who also has become trusted resource for women as they pursue midlife wellness. She’s the co-visionary and CEO of Tea Botanics and inspiration of Hot Flash Tea. Founder of WisePause, a pro-aging health and education platform, and The FemAging Project, which provides research and report...

In this Conversations episode, Charles speaks with Damon Jones, Procter & Gamble's Chief Communications Officer, about being a trailblazer, business and advocacy, what it takes to succeed, and the importance of faith in both personal and professional pursuits.  It's a conversation that will make you think, laugh, and ultimately realize that while the world may want to label Damon a business execut...

In this episode, Charles does a live reading from his recently re-released third book, I Am My Own Cause, The Third Act: Surviving and Thriving, as an audiobook now available on Audible and pooleproofbooks.com. The produced version is read by a voiceover artist Charles personally selected,  but in this exclusive reading, Charles tells his story in his own distinctive voice based on requests from l...

In a new episode focused on mental health during Mental Health Awareness Month, Charles discusses trauma and how understanding its origin and influence on who we are is the pathway to healing and being OK.  

In this Conversations episode of the podcast, Charles discusses Mental Health Awareness Month with guests from Saint Louis Counseling, including the importance of mental health, the challenges of maintaining it, and some of the stigmas society associates with mental health issues.

I'm excited to announce an expansion of the PooleProof Wisdom podcast with PooleProof Wisdom: Conversations!  This new format is all about conversations with people whose stories and experiences reflect the podcast's interest in discussions of spirituality, personal development, resilience, self-awareness and self-respect, and human collaboration. In this inaugural Conversations episode, whic...

In this episode, Charles discusses the importance of creating a place for yourself when other places don't welcome you.  And while you're at it, he encourages, find others in need of a place and bring them along too.

Do you have trust issues?  A lot of people do.  But not a lot of people realize that the first person they've failed to trust is themselves, which is why they are not easily convinced to trust others.  In this episode, Charles addresses his own issues with trusting himself and others, and how he eventually arrived at a place where he's able to do both.

In this episode, Charles explains why relying on instinct is important, and how doing so can give everyone what they need to live the life they hope for and dream of.  Sharing how following his own instincts has influenced his life, he provides some interesting and insightful reasons that, like always, will make you think, and perhaps act, differently.

In this episode, Charles delivers a message to his 10-year-old self that is warm, loving, and more than anything, hopeful.  

Has the pandemic left you feeling without purpose, with no sense of passion about anything?  You're not alone.  In this episode, Charles discusses how to reconnect with your purpose and discover your passion despite the way the pandemic has left so many feeling hopelessness. These approaches, he says, apply to facing any challenge life will inevitably hand us along the way.

In this episode, Charles discusses how we must look beyond what is seen as representing our lives to define that meaning for ourselves.  The way he does that, drawing upon a conversation from decades ago, will change the way you look at something you may have once understood in a very different way.

In this episode, Charles discusses how, despite all the signs and ideas to the contrary, there is reason to believe in better for the world and all of us who live in it.  But first, he addresses some thoughts on how we got here followed by several insights about how we'll get where we're ultimately destined to go.