In a moment, John Kriesel’s entire life changed. While serving in Iraq, John’s vehicle struck an improvised explosive device. After being thrown from his vehicle, he regained consciousness to find himself with a badly broken arm, both legs twisted and severely damaged, and numerous shrapnel wounds. Three times John died on operating tables only to be resuscitated by doctors. In the months of recovery that followed, John persevered through challenges with his family. He learned to walk again. He adapted to his new lifestyle. He redefined his goals as he put his life back together. All this was made possible by John’s endless optimism and an incredible amount of physical and mental toughness.

In this interview, John shares his experience of serving in the military, his challenges in returning to civilian life after enduring 35 surgeries, what it was like to have the United States President award him the Purple Heart, and the power of optimism. John also discusses his decision to run for a seat in the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2010 and how he built the beautiful life he lives today.

John joined the military when he was just 17 years old. As a young man, he elected to serve a tour of duty in Iraq in 2006. Following his return to civilian life, John won a position as a representative in the Minnesota House of Representatives where he was one of few Republicans to oppose legislation that would have made same-sex marriage illegal. As an advocate for the veteran community, John now works as Veteran Services Director for Anoka County in the Minneapolis/Saint Paul area. John also regularly shares his story as a motivational speaker and has authored a book called Still Standing which details his time in Iraq and his amazing recovery.

You can find John Kriesel’s Book, Still Standing at https://itascabooks.com/still-standing/

To learn more about John, visit his site at https://www.johnmkriesel.com/

Follow John on social media @JohnKriesel (Twitter and Instagram)

Resources for veterans:

Resources for employment - https://www.militaryonesource.mil/education-employment/for-service-members/employment/employment-resources-and-services

Resources for lifestyle and mental health - https://www.militaryonesource.mil/military-life-cycle/veterans/help-for-veterans

Dark, dusty, and dangerous. Those are the words that could have described the Soudan Iron Mine in Northern Minnesota during its operation. Each day workers would take elevators thousands of feet below the surface of the earth to roam the 54 miles of tunnels and mine its rich veins. My grandfather was one of those workers.

When she was an adult, and after my grandfather had retired, my mom toured the mine. At one point, the tour guide extinguished his light putting Mom and the other tour members in complete darkness…

This is the story of the man who saved the world. The year was 1983. The cold war between the Soviet Union and United States was heightened. Nuclear missiles were aimed at Moscow and other high value targets, while Soviet nuclear subs prowled the American east coast around the clock.

On the morning of September 26th in a Soviet bunker, alarms were triggered, sirens howled, while electronic screens indicated the Americans had just launched five missiles toward the USSR.

Estimated time to detonation: just 25 minutes…

What are you willing to sacrifice for a cause you believe in? There are millions of people around the world who give their time and energy. Some are even willing to risk their lives. This is the story of one of those people.

A century before the Me Too Movement, there was another movement that made life for women safer and better in countless ways. At the turn of the 20th century, women were the primary employees in the garment industry. They worked long hours in unsafe conditions. They were constantly subjected to sexual harassment by male supervisors and owners. Wages were low and an employee could lose her job at any moment for any reason.

A central figure in this labor movement was Clara Lemlich. At the age of 23, Clara led multiple strikes to unionize the garment industry. This required incredible bravery. At the time, factory owners played hard ball. One ownership group identified Clara as an agitator. Three men, including a bare knuckle boxer, were deployed to send a message...

Overlord is perhaps the greatest military operation ever attempted. You know it as D-Day. Even though it happened 75 years ago, you can still imagine the gravity of a failure. The fate of the world literally depended on its success.

One group of Americans was led by General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. – the son of the 26th US President. Through his leadership that day, countless Allied lives were saved by his agility, resilience, and calm under pressure.

Next week’s 12 Geniuses leadership moment will profile Clara Lemlich. More than 100 years ago, Clara risked her life to make working conditions better for tens of thousands of women. We hope you’ll listen to that episode, subscribe to the 12 Geniuses podcast, and give us a rating if you like it.

One of the most dramatic societal changes over the last few years has been the advancement of transgender rights. While the 1.4 million Americans who identify as transgender have yet to reach equality, it is efforts from people like this episode’s guest Chris Mosier who are making these human rights advancements possible.

In this interview, pioneering transgender athlete Chris Mosier shares the importance of athletics in his life, his journey to defining his gender identity, and how our world is changing to be more inclusive and understanding through policy and social change. Chris also provides outstanding insight and advice for those (and their families, friends, and co-workers) who are questioning, curious, or looking to better understand transgender identity.

Chris has been heavily involved in athletics since he was four years old, becoming a trailblazing athlete in his 20s as an All-American Duathlete and six-time member of Team USA. In 2015 he made history as the first known transgender man to make a US Men’s National Team, challenging Olympic policy and opening doors for future transgender athletes. As an advocate for the transgender community, Chris established transathlete.com, the go-to source on transgender athletic policy. He also mentors young athletes and speaks to organizations about how to create more inclusive policies for their institutions.

The greatest change the international community faces in the 21st century is the warming planet. Whole countries are threatened, coastal cities could disappear, and every community around the world will see the impact of floods, fires, hotter weather, droughts, storms, and other weather-related events. The way we live will change and so will the way we work. This will create incredible disruption. It also presents unprecedented economic opportunity for organizations that dream up innovative solutions to the dangers of climate change.

In this interview, climate change guru Andrew Winston shares how his career path intersected with environmental issues, the state of the climate today, and how businesses are adopting sustainable practices and attracting climate-conscious consumers in the process. Andrew also discusses how small and mid-sized businesses can use sustainability to be more competitive while attracting top talent to work for them.

Andrew studied Economics at Princeton, later earning an MBA from Columbia and a MA of Environmental Management from Yale. He began his career advising companies in strategy and marketing before turning to his passion for the environment. An author of three books including Green Recovery, Green to Gold, and The Big Pivot, Andrew is an expert on how we all can do our part to save the environment and still prosper.

The world is better than ever. People are living longer, healthier lives. Diseases like cancer are no longer a death sentence. New treatments and potential cures are entering development and trials each day. To make these medical advances possible, there is an army of scientists dedicating their lives to finding cures. These scientists are supported by inspiring leaders committed to employee development and the creation of visions of the future. One of these leaders is Sara Kenkare-Mitra.

Nearly three decades ago, Sara made a life altering decision to follow her passion for medical sciences. She left India and moved to Austin, Texas to attend pharmacology school. Upon completion of her PhD, she was offered a job with Genentech where over the years she pursued roles in designing cancer treatments becoming a leader in her field. Now, Sara oversees dozens of drugs in development and helps determine the viability of new treatments.

In this interview, Sara describes the long journey required for drug approval, the importance of celebrating failure along the way, and how her leadership has developed over the course of her career.

Sara received her PhD in Biopharmaceutical Sciences from the University of California, San Francisco, where she also stayed on as a Post Doctoral Fellow in Clinical Pharmacology before joining Genentech. Sara has worked for Genentech for 21 years, creating drugs that save lives and make the world a better place.

The world is changing quickly and it isn’t just technology innovation that is changing it. Public opinion on certain taboo topics is shifting too. A perfect example of that is the acceptance of legal cannabis. Investment in cannabis companies is booming, jobs in the industry are plentiful, states and countries are loosening regulations, and companies around the world are finding creative uses for the cannabis plant.

Five years ago, Giadha A. DeCarcer, an expert in emerging markets, noticed the potential boom in the global cannabis market. At the time there were no industry reports on cannabis, so she seized the opportunity and founded New Frontier Data. Now, she and her team are providing data on the cannabis industry to investors, growers, and regulators to enable them to make informed decisions about its potential.

In this interview, Giadha draws on data to discuss the vast potential of the cannabis market. She talks about the shift in opinion on cannabis products, user profiles, and future uses of CBD for medical treatments. Giadha also defines the demand for cannabis on the global market and investment opportunities in legal cannabis.

Over the course of her career, Giadha has worked in banking, the intelligence community, and founded and run multiple businesses. She was born in Rome, speaks five languages, and offices in Washington D.C.

Joey Torkildson, host of The Grind Podcast, interviews 12 Geniuses CEO Don MacPherson about the first quarter of 2019. They discuss what 12 Geniuses followed, where Don traveled over the last three months, what was learned, who was interviewed, and what Q2 of 2019 will look like.

The two friends cover technology advancements in the areas of AI, robotics, wearables, and virtual reality. They discuss the limitations government has when it comes to climate change and the importance of innovation in solving the world’s biggest problems. Don shares his experience speaking and meeting students at Yale University and the challenges of traveling to France with two young children.

Finally, Joey and Don discuss what is ahead for the 12 Geniuses podcast. New interviews on the topics of the cannabis industry, climate change and corporate sustainability, and creativity and innovation are coming soon. They also talk about the upcoming “12 Geniuses Leadership Moments” - three minute profiles of historic leaders - that will be released as mini-podcasts over the summer.