Posts Tagged ‘Life Design’
125 Bas Rutten: How to over-come anything w/ UFC Hall of Famer & O2 Trainer Inventor
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:04:04 — 117.4MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
One of Christopher Lochhead’s hero, UFC Hall of Famer and MMA legend Bas Rutten joins us today for another powerful and insightful conversation. We talk about how as a Dutch Kid, Bas, over-came horrible asthma and eczema, and bullying to become, the “Baddest Man in the World.” He shares about his outlook in life, his techniques when learning a new skill and a lot more.
Fun, Playful and Affable
Bas Rutten shares how some people see his life as almost like a cartoon character. He shares how he did a commercial for Cartoon Network focusing on anti-bullying and getting fit. These campaigns were personally moving for him as he was bullied when he was young due to severe asthma and eczema.
“I know people who have asthma 365 days a year. I know people who are covered with eczema. Compared to them, this is not really that bad. That was my outlook always in life. There’s always somebody, out there who has it worse than you.” – Bas Rutten
Greatest and Most Terrifying
Bas is a Sensei, commentator, and inventor. He is also the former UFC Heavy Weight Champion of the World. He scored 13 knockdowns without getting dropped, become the most accurate striker in UFC history with 70% accuracy and ended his career on a mind-blowing 22-fight winning streak.
“I found out about that [statistics] when I was inducted in the Hall of Fame. That was so cool. That was my fighting style. I don’t want to waste things. I like to look for openings. The opponent, most of the time gives the knock out for me. He’ll make a mistake, if he punches, the body is open.” – Bas Rutten
Overcoming Everything
Non-fans will definitely love this episode and will surely learn a ton from Bas. His mindset around losing, overcoming adversity and the drive to learn new skills, Is something we can all learn from.
Bas is also an entrepreneur and inventor. His new O2 Trainer is fast becoming a must-have for professional athletes, weekend warriors and among people with asthma and breathing challenges. The O2 trainer strengthens the lungs and breathing muscles.
To hear more information about Bas Rutten and to listen to his ideas how to over-come anything, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Sebastiaan “Bas” Rutten (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈbɑs ˈrʏtə(n)];) is a Dutch retired mixed martial artist (MMA), Karate and Taekwondo blackbelt, and Muay Thai kickboxer.
He was a UFC Heavyweight Champion, a three-time King of Pancrase world champion, and finished his career on a 22 fight unbeaten streak (21 wins, 1 draw ).
Bas has been inducted to the UFC Hall of Fame in 2015.
He suffered severe asthma in his childhood years and inspired by his struggle breathing developed the O2 Trainer.
When Bas is not teaching at his gym in Westlake Village, he might be working on some acting or commentating at Karate Combat with Kenny Rice.
Links:
Also, special thanks to Luis Congdon for the kind introduction.
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes! Get amazing, different stories on business, marketing, and life. Subscribe to our newsletter The Difference.
124 John McAfee For President
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 44:02 — 60.6MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
After breaking the internet with our Mia Khalifa Episode 111, we are bringing you another episode with John McAfee, Legendary Silicon Valley entrepreneur, and 2020 U.S Presidential candidate. He joins us to share his experiences in Silicon Valley and talks about why he thinks “it doesn’t matter who the President is. This will no doubt be one of our most controversial episodes.
Then and Now
John has been called “The most interesting man in the world.” He was an outlaw, from parts unknown, He has lived part of his adult life, on the run, somewhere in Latin America. Today, John is a candidate for US President in 2020
If his name rings a bell, that is because he is the founder of McAfee The Security Company. John also got into a well-publicized Twitter war with Kim.com, the founder of now-defunct file hosting service Megaupload.
Garden of Eden of Technology
John passionately describes Silicon Valley then as the Garden of Eden of Technology. It was known as a tech hub for the world. He also shared interesting thoughts on Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, Bill Gates, and Nolan Bushnell.
“Most of the personalities in Silicon Valley were pleasant, creative, very different. Steve Jobs, as an example, never find time to take a bath. I can smell him across the room. That was just his thing, he did not have the f*cking time to take a bath. He is a serious businessman who took a bath at least once a month, I know I did. But I also work 18 hours a day, 7 days a week for 2 years. Not because I had to, but because I f*ckin’ want it. I love what I was doing.” – John McAfee
In the past, John describes Silicon Valley as heaven. He is also candid that he does not know anything about it now, as he left it 25 years ago.
“Everyone you met in your circle, did something or showed you something which opened your mind to the potential of digital technology. Trust me that’s not there anymore.” – John McAfee
The President Doesn’t Matter
John shares why he thinks it doesn’t matter who sits in the Oval Office. He claims that the CIA is running the show. He says there are instances that the CIA manipulates information, information that the President refers to when making decisions that affect not only the country but the whole world.
John shares more of his insights on CIA, one of the biggest clients of McAfee Security Company in the past.
“Selective information is the ultimate power.” – John McAfee
To hear more information about John McAfee and to listen to his ideas on his bid to U.S. Presidency for 2020, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
John David McAfee (/ˈmækəfiː/ MAK-ə-fee;[1][2] born September 18, 1945) is a British-American computer programmer and businessman. He founded the software company McAfee Associates in 1987 and ran it until 1994, when he resigned from the company. McAfee Associates achieved early success as the creators of McAfee, the first commercial antivirus software, and the business now produces a range of enterprise security software. The company was purchased by Intel in 2011 and spun back out in 2017 with TPG Capital owning a majority stake, though the software has always borne the McAfee brand name.
McAfee’s wealth peaked in 2007 at $100 million, before his investments plummeted in the financial crisis of 2007–2008.
Since leaving McAfee Associates, he has founded the companies Tribal Voice (makers of the PowWow chat program), QuorumEx and Future Tense Central, among others, and has been involved in leadership positions in the companies Everykey, MGT Capital Investments and Luxcore, among others.
His personal and business interests include smartphone apps, cryptocurrency, yoga, and all-natural antibiotics.
He resided for a number of years in Belize, but later returned to the United States in 2013.
McAfee is also a political activist, who sought the 2016 Libertarian Party nomination for President of the United States in the 2016 election, losing to former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson.
Links:
John McAfee kicks off Presidential campaign with the aim of smashing the system
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes! Get amazing, different stories on business, marketing, and life. Subscribe to our newsletter The Difference.
118 Why Are We Yelling w/ Buster Benson
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 52:31 — 72.1MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
In this episode, we continue our run of legendary authors as we feature Buster Benson and his new book, “Why are we yelling?: A fascinating look at why and who we argue.” Buster shares with us the inspiration of his book, the constant-learning that he is having and how it can be applied to work and life, in general.
Agree to Disagree
Buster candidly shared with Christopher that of all the hard topics he decided to take on, it was the topic about disagreements that he deemed to be one of the hardest. He still pursued this topic as he was challenged to tackle this topic. He also admits that the inspiration for the book was his curiosity on cognitive bias.
“That is the initial problem. in order to have a conversation about disagreement, we have to be open to the idea that we don’t have the right answer.” – Buster Benson
Birds and Biases
Buster shares that cognitive bias is an evolutionary term. It is a threat that could potentially lower our survival. It has the connotation that if we’re wrong, we would want to avoid it. In modern society, being wrong leads to being ousted from a certain group.
To illustrate this, Buster shared the habits of birds looking for a nesting ground. These birds fight off other birds and other animals to have authority over a tree. In real life, human beings as a bird, are not going to engage other “birds” in civil disagreement.
“You’re going to just try to be the bigger bird and force the other one out. When we’re no longer in a situation and there’s only one tree and we have to have a nest here, or else we’re gonna die, we ask, is this tree big enough for multiple birds?” – Buster Benson
Growth is the Consequence
The consequence of being wrong is actually growth. Further, Buster shares that if we are good at several skills, it makes us more skilled at everything else. For example: talking, being literate, being able to self reflect magnifies the value of other skills. He introduces the importance of productive disagreement as well in this episode.
“‘How do I treat somebody that is normally a threat to my survival, as an opportunity for growth’ is the core cognitive dissonance in disagreement.” – Buster Benson
To hear more about the author of “Why are we yelling?” Buster Benson, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Buster Benson wrote the book titled “Why Are We Yelling? The Art of Productive Disagreement”. He also run 750words.com with my wife.
His interests include creative businesses, collaborative disagreements, cognitive biases, enterprise software, messaging platforms, behavior change, social games, silly drawings, making life a little bit better through technology.
Read more about his through this link.
Links:
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes! Get amazing, different stories on business, marketing, and life. Subscribe to our newsletter The Difference.
116 Dreamforce Special w/ Salesforce’s Vala Afshar
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:57 — 49.7MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
This special episode is with Chief Digital Evangelist at Salesforce.com Vala Afshar. Coinciding with Dreamforce —Salesforce.com’s annual mega-conference in San Francisco, Vala shares with us what it’s like to be a leader in the digital media age.
He also shares some of the key practices that have made Salesforce #1 on Forbes most innovative companies list.
Social Business Excellence
Vala is the author of The Pursuit of Social Business Excellence. He is also the co-host of DisrupTV and one of the most visible and impactful thought leaders in enterprise tech. On the side, he is a contributing writer at HuffPost, which he claims were one of his ticket for his CMO career.
“I was a CMO for 4 years. Complete impostor syndrome from beginning to end because I never had Marketing experience, I never went to school to study the art and science of Marketing. My CEO called me on a weekend saying ‘on Monday I’m gonna announce that you’re going to be the CMO.” – Vala Afshar
He narrates to Christopher how the energy and confidence that he used to have as an athlete, did not translate to who he has become as a business person. However, he got through this challenge as he had the passion to share information.
From An Introvert to a Keynote Speaker
For an introvert, Vala narrates how he spent 10 years writing codes. He was perfectly happy locked up in a cube, just writing software. He is still amazed with how he opened himself up to people and to be able to share the stage with Christopher in various events.
“Movement is the ultimate status symbol. Movement of information. Again, in my first 40 years, if I read a book or listened to your podcast, I would just consume it and then that’s it, it stayed with me. In the last 5 or 6 years, when I learned something, I try to capture that and share.” – Vala Afshar
Salesforce Innovation
Vala quotes other professionals on why they think Salesforce is successful: it’s because of technology disruption. This disruption is in terms of ‘how do you build an ecosystem, how do you give away your time, money and profit, how do you build a company based on emerging technology and how do you create new business models.
“The 111 Philanthropic model was pretty unique and now about 10,000 companies have adopted that. The subscription model, pay as you go, that’s like the envy of most business..” – Vala Afshar
He also shares about the Salesforce module called V2mom, a mobile compatible app where employees align with the company vision, values, methods, obstacles, and measurements.
To hear more about the best practices of Salesforce.com and leadership advice from Vala Afshar, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Vala Afshar is the Chief Digital Evangelist for Salesforce.
Afshar is the author of The Pursuit of Social Business Excellence. Afshar is also the co-host of DisrupTV, a weekly show covering the latest digital business and innovation market trends.
Links:
HuffPost Contributor: Vala Afshar
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes! Get amazing, different stories on business, marketing, and life. Subscribe to our newsletter The Difference.
111 Mia Khalifa Digital Media Super Star
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:21:13 — 74.7MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
Former adult actor and now digital media star, Mia Khalifa, joins us today for another riveting conversation. She walked away at the peak of her popularity to design a new life and career. She shares with us today about her past and how low self-esteem affected her decisions and how she’s moving forward with her life.
Sports, Punk Rock, and Pets
Mia Khalifa is a sports commentator, with a special love for The Washington Capitals Hockey team. Other than hockey, she used to watch basketball a lot when she was a young immigrant from Lebanon.
“It’s kind of just been a common ground that I could have with people and a way for me to connect, a way for me to feel like I am part of something or feel like I’m a part of this group even if I don’t know anyone. Sports is the unifying factor in this world.” – Mia Khalifa
Other than being a huge sports fan, she is a self-proclaimed foodie and she loves punk rock. She also shares in this episode how she loves her pet dogs so much and how she is trying her best to be the person her dogs think she is: a better human being.
Battling Low Self-Esteem
Mia is also a digital celebrity, raking a total of 17.7 million followers on Instagram alone. In fact, she met her fiance on Instagram. Her fiance is a Swedish Chef, whom she candidly shares, as someone who doesn’t know who she is.
She has never gotten used to fame as she shares how she battled low self-esteem when she was younger. She admits that due to low self-confidence, she made decisions that she regret at the present time.
“I think it was being overweight for such a large part of my life and on top of that, I didn’t really have many friends in highschool. I never fit in in any certain group or the popular crowd or anything. I think it also had a lot to do with never feeling like I belong.” – Mia Khalifa
The Ugly Side of Adult Entertainment
Most of her followers had known her from her previous career as an adult entertainment actor. In fact, she used to be #1 in the biggest Adult sites in the world. She started her adult film career when she was just 21 years old.
What most people do not know is her career only lasted 3 months. She shot about twelve scenes, where produces paid her only $12,000. Adult actors do not receive any kind of royalty, while producers amass millions.
“I was fooled into thinking they had my best interest at heart, when in reality, they were just looking out for themselves. They looked at me and saw a huge paycheck.” – Mia Khalifa on Adult Entertainment Producers
To hear more about #1 Adult Actor to Digital Media Star Mia Khalifa, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Mia Khalifa is a social media personality, sports commentator and former adult film actor.
She’s a passionate Washington, D.C. sports fan with a love for the Washington Capitals hockey team.
Links:
Mia Khalifa is among the world’s most-watched women. Yet the porn industry is keeping the profits.
Mia Khalifa: Why I’m speaking out about the porn industry – BBC News
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes! Get amazing, different stories on business, marketing, and life. Subscribe to our newsletter The Difference.
018 Personal Branding is Bullshit
Podcast (lochheadonmarketing): Play in new window | Download (Duration: 10:03 — 9.3MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS | More
In this episode, Christopher Lochhead talks about a giant topic in business today, personal branding. He further shares the difference between a brand and a person. Moreover, he discusses why legendary executives and marketers don’t give weigh to personal branding much.
Personal Beef with Personal Branding
Personal branding has become a giant issue in business today. It seems like people cannot fire up their social media, such as Linkedin and even Amazon, without personal branding. The idea started around the late 80s or early 90s and has become effed up overtime.
Christopher lays out his argument on the difference between a brand and a person. People have a mental connection with a brand while with a person, people develop relationships.
“I have a very different relationship with my friend Sue Barsamian. She’s the most effective exec I know. Guess how much time she spent thinking about and working on her personal brand? Zero!” – Christopher Lochhead
Developing A Reputation
Sue Barsamian was the guest on Follow Your Different Episode 083. She has a solid 36-years in Silicon Valley, working with Startups and multinationals such as HP. Christopher shares that she has zero efforts in maintaining a personal brand, instead, she aims to develop a reputation.
Silicon Valley respects Sue for producing legendary results and creating massive value. Moreover, she dominated her own niche: “Legendary Enterprise Tech Executive, who scales.” In developing a reputation, Christopher poses the following questions:
“What’s your personal Niche Down? Where are you going to focus your talent? What results are you going to produce? Who are the kinds of people you want to surround yourself with?” – Christopher Lochhead
Rethink this Personal Branding Bullshit
Christopher encourages everyone to re-think this idea of personal branding because he believes that what people prefer is a reputation.
“Reputations come from producing legendary results. Personal branding, by definition, is contrived and inauthentic.” – Christopher Lochhead
People would best be deemed as a person of character, who produces results and is doing legendary work. In conclusion, Christopher advises everyone to spend zero time on personal branding and focus, instead, on the following:
1) Your personal Niche Down – what niche do you want to be known for owning
2) Producing legendary results – people who produce legendary results are highly sought after in business. They are unique by definition and they hang out with people who also do legendary things.
3) and making a difference.
“Because in my experience, people who do that, get the most valuable thing in business: a reputation.” -Christopher Lochhead
To hear more about why personal branding is bullshit and more relevant information from Christopher Lochhead, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Christopher Lochhead is a Top 25 podcaster and #1 Amazon bestselling co-author of books: Niche Down and Play Bigger.
He has been an advisor to over 50 venture-backed startups; a former three-time Silicon Valley public company CMO and an entrepreneur.
Furthermore, he has been called “one of the best minds in marketing” by The Marketing Journal, a “Human Exclamation Point” by Fast Company, a “quasar” by NBA legend Bill Walton and “off-putting to some” by The Economist.
In addition, he served as a chief marketing officer of software juggernaut Mercury Interactive. Hewlett-Packard acquired the company in 2006, for $4.5 billion.
He also co-founded the marketing consulting firm LOCHHEAD; was the founding CMO of Internet consulting firm Scient, and served as head of marketing at the CRM software firm Vantive.
Links:
Follow Your Different Episode 083: Sue Barsamian
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Lochhead on Marketing™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes! Get amazing, different stories on business, marketing, and life. Subscribe to our newsletter The Difference.
106 Silicon Valley Legend Randy Komisar
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:46:38 — 97.9MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
Silicon Valley legend, Randy Komisar joins us today in a longer than usual episode, but definitely an information-packed conversation. He shares a piece of his mind to us especially on how to have a legendary career, what it’s like to be dubbed as the Digital CEO and many more.
Rare Opportunity
Randy Komisar was a partner at VC pioneer Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. He worked closely with other legends like Steve Jobs and George Lucas. In fact, he has some very interesting stories he shared, being a former senior counsel at Apple and former CEO at LucasArts.
“I don’t like being disliked and I don’t particularly try to be liked. I try to be valued, to create something constructive or positive in a relationship. But being liked is not, it doesn’t cross my mind. I want to be respected, if I’m really lucky, I’d like to be admired.” – Randy Komisar
The Virtual CEO
Silicon Valley CEOs dubbed him as a Virtual CEO. Randy served in that role for companies like WebTV and Global Giving. He had some compelling stories and opinions to share in what Christopher dubbed as “the business equivalent of the lunar landing.”
He also served as the founding director of TiVo, which is a direct lineage of Netflix entering that category today. Tivo won one of the biggest patent damage claims of all time, way over billion dollars, and Randy recounts to Christopher what happened during that time.
“I actually think, we should have sued earlier. we have the patent rights to all of these, the real question was, could we have coop these guys as partners.” – Randy Komisar
Utopians Vs. Libertarians
Two significant and different technology demographics comprise Silicon Valley.
He describes the 70’s and 80’s guys as the technology Utopians. Infrastructures were allegedly oppressive at that time which led the Utopians to utilize tools and come to technology to end this. Ultimately, they wanted to empower individuals.
Furthermore, the Utopians had a sense of ‘a social contract.’ They felt they need to make the world better. These tools and the advantages that they had with these tools gave them the opportunity to challenge the status quo.
In the advent of Facebook and Paypal, we move from technology utopians to technology libertarians.
“The tools and platform that you build raise the creative endeavor. It’s not to take-the-money- and-run situation. That money gets invested in more ideas, more vision. Yes you need to make a profit, but that profit can fuel creativity or consumption, you get to choose.” – Randy Komisar
To hear more about the Silicon Valley Legend Randy Komisar, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Randy Komisar joined Kleiner Perkins in 2005 and focuses on early-stage investing.
He served as CFO of GO Corp. and as senior counsel for Apple Computer, following a private practice in technology law.
Randy is a founding director of TiVo and serves on the Roadtrip Nation Advisory Board and Orrick’s Women’s Leadership Board.
Additionally, he is the author of the best-selling book The Monk and the Riddle, as well as several articles on leadership and entrepreneurship.
Furthermore, he is the co-author of Straight Talk for Startups, the insider best practices for entrepreneurial success, Getting to Plan B, on managing innovation, and I F**king Love that Company, on building consumer brands.
Randy frequently speaks in the United States and abroad on such topics. Randy holds a B.A. degree in economics from Brown University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.
Links:
Book: Straight Talk for Startups
The Monk and the Riddle: The Art of Creating a Life While Making a Living
Executives Launch Podcast To Pass On Lessons From Bill Campbell, Coach To Silicon Valley Stars
Harper Collins Speakers Bureau: Randy Komisar
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
105 The Freak Factor w/ David Rendall
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:22:41 — 76.0MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
Today’s guest is David Rendall—a standup comedian, with a doctorate in organizational leadership and author of The Freak Factor—gives us a run-down on self-acceptance which benefits our personal and business life. He talks about how our weaknesses can become strengths and why finding people who are weird like you is a good thing.
The Good and the Bad
Twiggy. Stickman. Ladder. These are some of the nicknames of David Rendall during his younger years. He was unusually skinny when he was young and was working odd jobs, something that most people of his age would not even bother to try. However, David turned his life around and embraced his inner freak.
The word freak usually has dual meanings. If people dub someone as a control freak or a neat freak, it usually means they are overdoing it and they need to tone it down. On the other hand, being called a freak in a sporting context means you have outside of ordinary skills.
“Freak is often a term we use for criticism but its also a term we use positively. I want both of those associations. I want it to remind people of something negative and positive at the same time.” – David Rendall
Embracing The Freak in You
David encourages people to be different in a very specific way. People should be willing to be themselves and to disregard the idea that they need to hide their weaknesses. Most of the time, people suppress who they are because of the pressures from their parents, teachers, employers, friends, and society.
“I’m trying to get people to see themselves differently and finding their strength in spite of that weakness and be willing to amplify and embrace those parts of themselves.” – David Rendall
Oftentimes, David says that people sacrifice uniqueness for acceptance. In his book, he discusses the importance of affiliation. He defines it as finding other people who are a freak in their own ways.
“Partner with people who are strong where you are weak. Look for the people who are different from you, but the other side of that is, finding the right spot and finding the right people.” – David Rendall
Be Weird and Different.
As he encourages people to find others who are also weird, he reminds people to not expect acceptance, love, and connection from everyone. He advises people not to force themselves everywhere, instead, to find people who will accept them as they are.
“You’re not gonna win everybody over. Ultimately it’s about finding people like youfor the weird person that you are, instead of ‘they’ll like you once you’ve changed.’” – David Rendall
He also shares the reason why people get stuck hiding who they are: because they thought people around them know better than them. These people—parents, teachers, employers—are often bound by rules of success and they thought imposing these will also ensure success.
To hear more about The Freak Factor, and more information about David, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
David Rendall. Randall. Randell. Rendell. Reynolds. Whatever.
No one knows how to pronounce his last name.
David’s mission in life is to be hilarious and helpful.
He’s a standup comedian with a doctorate in management.
A class clown turned leadership professor, he went from disrupting classes to teaching classes to disrupting companies and conferences from Portland to Paris to Pakistan.
After being criticized and punished his whole life for being hyperactive, he now channels his frantic energy to compete in Ironman triathlons and ultramarathons.
He wears more pink than the average middle-aged man. Well, actually, he wears more pink than an eight-year-old princess.
As a nonprofit executive, he built businesses to employ people with disabilities.
During the last fifteen years, David Rendall has spoken to audiences on every inhabited continent.
His clients include the US Air Force, Australian Government, and Fortune 50 companies such as Microsoft, AT&T, United Health Group, Fannie Mae, and State Farm.
In addition to his doctorate in organizational leadership, David has a graduate degree in psychology.
He is the author of four books: The Four Factors of Effective Leadership, The Freak Factor, The Freak Factor for Kids and
• Pink Goldfish
Links:
Freak Factor: Discovering Uniqueness by Flaunting Weakness
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
102 How to make your place in the world w/ “The Three Foot Giant” Dr. Sean Stephenson
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:12:47 — 66.9MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Pandora | RSS | More
Today’s episode is a special re-issue with Dr. Sean Stephenson, “The Three-Foot Giant.” He’s a great example of turning obstacles into opportunities, transforming his life into a legendary one. This conversation with Christopher Lochhead is made even more powerful upon the recent passing of Dr. Sean Stephenson.
Join us as we relive the inspiring story of “The Three Foot Giant” in this episode.
A (Legendary) Life Well Lived
Dr. Sean passed away on the 28th of August 2019, following an accident. He was predicted not to survive at birth because of his rare bone disorder, Osteogenesis Imperfecta, which stunted his growth and caused his bones to be extremely fragile. When he was 18 years old, he has already fractured his bones for over 200 times.
Despite his obstacles in life, he lived an inspiring life. He served as an instructive example of how to make your place in the world when you can’t find a place in the world. He worked for President Clinton and shared the stage with his Holiness the Dalai Lama and Oprah. He’s also the author of the bestseller: Get Off Your “But”: How to End Self-Sabotage and Stand Up for Yourself.
“I have decades and decades of education where I help people through their pains and their problems. But in some ways, I’m still learning to walk myself, learning to navigate this world, and I’m loving the experience of making mistakes.” – Dr. Sean Stephenson
Staying True To Oneself
Even after achieving his stature as a public speaker, Sean admits that he’s still growing. He was in business with his father for 22 years. His experiences at home were wonderful as he lived with his family until he was 31 years old. However, all good things must come to a challenging end, when he decided to step out into the world, leaving his father behind.
“As of recent, I decided to “out” my true self, words and all. I kind of hid that over the years. If people knew that about me, they wouldn’t respect me. I’m finding out the opposite is true, the more honest I am, the closer people are becoming to me.” – Dr. Sean Stephenson
Breaking the Mold
To continue his self-discovery, he would reorganize his life every five years or so. He wants to look back on the past five years to reevaluate and learn from his mistakes.
“Maybe there’s a wrongful belief out there that the version of you will always be the same as you get older but I don’t agree with that. I’m constantly breaking the mold and starting over and trying new things and figuring out what do I believe in.” – Dr. Sean Stephenson
To hear more about how to make your place in the world and more relevant information about “The Three-Foot Giant” Dr. Sean Stephenson, download and listen to the episode.
Bio:
Dr. Sean Stephenson was predicted not to survive at birth because of a rare bone disorder that stunted his growth and caused his bones to be extremely fragile (fracturing over 200 times by the age of 18).
Despite his challenges, he took a stand for a quality of life that has inspired millions of people around the world.
Since 1994, his powerful message has been heard at live events in nearly all 50 states and in 16 countries.
Sean has presented at hospitals, universities, prisons, and to companies such as Nike, Whole Foods, Zappos, Walmart, and Sharp Healthcare. He’s shared the stage with U.S. Presidents, billionaire business moguls, celebrities, and his Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.
Sean has appeared on everything from The Oprah Show to Jimmy Kimmel, in addition to online videos with tens of millions of views.
The Biography Channel produced an hour-long feature on his life called, Three Foot Giant.
Mindie Kniss & Sean Stephenson his international best-selling book, Get Off Your “But”, has been translated into over a dozen different languages.
As a board-certified therapist, and doctor of Clinical Hypnosis, Dr. Stephenson used to see clients in a unique 12-hour session that gets to the root of their fears, excuses, and insecurities.
In the past, Sean hosts live events and group coaching programs to mentor individuals in the art and business of public speaking.
Sean also used to frequent the gym, play NBA 2K with his friends, or watch NBA basketball with his wife and business partner, Mindie Kniss.
Links:
Because of Dr. Sean’s condition, he was only able to qualify for basic health insurance and was not able to qualify for life insurance.
You can support his family with a GoFundMe donation here:
Osteogenesis Imperfecta Foundation
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Follow Your Different™! Christopher loves hearing from his listeners. Feel free to email him, connect on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and subscribe on iTunes!
