Beyond Networking with Brian Miller

Michael Kras is a Canadian playwright and actor. We discussed the creative difference between acting for someone else and writing for actors, how to draw on inspiration from outside your own field, the role of luck in creative endeavors and how to increase your odds of being lucky, and building empathy into your business.

It’s about selflessness and community. I’m much more concerned about the bubbling “me over everyone else” attitude than how accurate the science of mask-wearing is.

Teresa Dufour is a news anchor and media personality. She hosts CT Style on ABC 8, a daily segment featuring entertainers, authors, chefs, musicians and more from the New England region. Over the years Teresa's audience watched her grow up, meet her future husband - literally on air - and become a mother of two. In this conversation, Teresa peels back the invisible layers of a life lived on camera. We discussed the transition to parenthood and how it affects one's self-perception, the future - or not - of mainstream media, and how to connect with an audience that you can't see or hear. Plus, Teresa offers sage advice for newcomers to online media, which includes basically everyone from teachers to accountants in the wake of the 2020 pandemic. And she tells her incredible story of a chance encounter with lasting impact.

One thing we can agree on, however, is it’s easier to sell to someone who can afford your asking price. No matter how hard the Aston Martin salesperson works, how good the car is, or how convincingly she weaves a story, I’m not going to buy an Aston Martin.

Erin Jackson is an extraordinarily talented comedy writer and stand-up comic who has appeared on Conan, Seth Meyers, and Ellen. We chat about what being a stand-up comic really means, whether mainstream media still has the ability to break a comic's career, self-confidence and validation, how to connect with an audience, and of course, Erin shares her story of a chance encounter with lasting impact.

It's my two year bloggivesary! Here are 17 observations from two years of writing a weekly blog, and some thoughts about committing to a project before starting.

Norman Ng is a former nationally touring magician who gave up his lucrative career to save his family - a wife and four children. In a career move that came completely out of left field, he started saving old tractors on a farm in Maine. That business is now a global success far beyond his magic career. And his family is intact.

Slowly (and then rapidly) technology enabled us to do the miraculous: communicate from anywhere, with anyone, at any time. But that freedom came at the cost of true connection.

Morgane Michael is an elementary school educator, professional development instructor, and podcast host. We talked about what's changed in education over the last decade, emotional regulation in kids and adults, how to connect with anyone, including kids.

This week's #thursdaythoughts is about leaning into your uniqueness, understanding that what's obvious to you is rarely obvious to people you're trying to help, and being ok with knowing just enough.