Blue Sky

Stephen Minix calls himself "Optimus Prime," but he's quick to say optimism doesn't mean life will always get better. It means believing that showing up today still matters. He learned that from his father, an Air Force master sergeant who died when Stephen was a boy and who taught him to give whatever he has to others. Stephen shares what teaching and coaching at Locke High School in Watts taught him about doing more with less, why he watches his daughters' soccer games in silence, and how losing $8 million in grant funding led him to UpMetrics, where he helps funders and nonprofits define and measure real impact.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Blue Sky and Stephen Minix 01:22 Military childhood and father's legacy 04:10 Teaching at Locke High School 08:00 Understanding Green Dot Public Schools 11:20 Optimism as a practice, not a feeling 15:00 Pause, reflection, and the point guard mindset 20:05 Transition to parenting discussion 21:00 Raising three daughters with strong role models 28:15 Closing reflections on fatherhood and transition 29:05 Career shift from schools to UpMetrics 33:00 Bridging nonprofits and funders through data 36:00 Impact investing, risk, and trust 41:30 Serving both nonprofits and funders 47:00 Measuring education and the value of programs 51:20 Closing thoughts and podcast wrap-up

Dr. Deepika Chopra, known as the Optimism Doctor, makes a surprising admission: she isn't a natural optimist. In this conversation, she explains why optimism is a learned skill and not a fixed trait, how it differs from happiness, and why real optimists see setbacks clearly rather than wishing them away. She also shares how she put her own tools to the test while writing The Power of Real Optimism during her young son's serious illness. Plus, a worst-case-scenario exercise for anxious minds, and why you should end each day, not with a to-do list, but with a "ta-da list."

In This Episode:

00:00 Introduction to Real Optimism 05:00 Building the Optimism Muscle 09:40 Writing Through Personal Adversity 21:15 Happiness Versus Optimism 29:55 Cognitive Flexibility and Scenarios 41:35 The "Ta-Da List" and Conclusion

Order Dr. Chopra's book The Power of Real Optimism

Margaret Hathaway and Karl Schatz traded New York City for a goat farm in Maine. Then a pandemic-era cookbook project led them to create Community Plate, a series of story-sharing potluck suppers that bring strangers together over food. They've now hosted 51 suppers across Maine. In this conversation, they share what makes the gatherings work, from rectangular tables and real china to phone-free dinners and food-focused story prompts, and how anyone can start one in their own community. This optimistic couple is making a dent in the loneliness epidemic and would love to see more efforts like theirs take off in other parts of the country.

In this episode:

00:00 Introduction and Transition to Goat Farming 04:34 From Cookbook to Community Building 11:24 Anatomy of a Community Plate Supper 21:04 Fostering Connection Without Pressure 30:21 Expanding the Vision and Final Thoughts

Learn more about Community Plate: https://www.communityplate.me/

News can feel relentlessly negative, but as this week's guest points out, that's a choice about what gets covered, not a reflection of what's actually happening in our communities. Mebane Rash is the founder and CEO of EdNC, a nonprofit, paywall-free online newsroom that covers every public school and all 58 community colleges in North Carolina. She joins Bill to talk about building a newsroom on the principle of "do no harm," why her team aims to be the best in the world at listening, and how being in schools day in and day out makes it hard not to be optimistic.

Mebane started EdNC in 2015 with three people and a mandate to "fail forward, fail fast." Today her 15-person team spends four days a week on the road in all 100 counties, and half of EdNC's readers now live outside North Carolina. When Hurricane Helene devastated the western part of the state, EdNC didn't just report on the damage; they used that same reporting to write grants and bring funding into the hardest-hit counties, earning the North Carolina Press Association's Public Service Award. She also shares what she saw in Singapore's classrooms, why she's never seen cell phones be a real problem in thousands of school visits, and how she thinks about AI as just the latest change teachers will figure out, as they always have.

Chapters:

00:00 A Journey into Public Policy Journalism 03:58 Building a Modern Education Platform 10:54 Listening as a Core Value 20:09 Journalism During Times of Crisis 30:04 Technology and Future Educational Models 40:46 The Path Forward for EdNC

Joe Fiveash, a longtime digital media executive with stops at the Weather Channel, IBM Watson, and Raycom Media, joins Bill Burke to talk about Introships, the nonprofit he now leads that helps college students figure out what career path is right for them before they chase a traditional internship. What started over a decade ago as a handful of Atlanta parents pooling their kids together for office rotations has grown into a structured program now serving students nationwide.

Joe walks through how Introships works — combining personality and career aptitude testing, live presentations from professionals across dozens of industries, weekly group coaching, and one-on-one guidance — all designed to help students identify the intersection of what they're good at, what genuinely interests them, and what can support a living. He also discusses how the program intentionally opens doors for first-generation college students who don't have built-in industry connections, why human-to-human relationships still matter in an AI-driven hiring landscape, and why spending time with young people leaves him more optimistic about the future, not less.

Chapters:

[00:00] Intro to Joe Fiveash and his background in digital media

[02:30] How Introships started — a group of Atlanta parents pooling their kids for office rotations

[06:00] Why "intro-ships" come before internships — helping students explore before they commit

[09:30] Joe's philosophy on work and career as a foundation for a fulfilling life

[13:00] How the program works for students, and the three groups who participate

[18:00] Addressing the internship access gap — leveling the playing field for first-generation students

[21:30] How the program has grown — and why Joe is intentional about not scaling too fast

[24:00] The four parts of the program: aptitude testing, live presentations, group coaching, and one-on-one debriefs

[29:00] Why storytelling from real professionals matters more than databases and career quizzes

[33:00] Reflections on working with young people — optimism, energy, and "not knowing what they don't know"

[35:30] How AI is reshaping career interest — and why students are wary but employers see opportunity

[39:00] The importance of mentorship and horizontal relationships in career growth

[42:00] Building a growing alumni network — from 120 presenters to a broader career-support ecosystem

[46:00] How to get involved — as a student, presenter, or donor

Educators John Holdridge and Lowell Libby join Bill Burke to talk about the Can We? Project, a Maine-based initiative launched in 2018 that teaches high school students the mindset and skills needed for constructive dialogue across political, social, and cultural divides. Through full-day retreats held in schools across Maine (and now New Hampshire), students learn to move past their first instinct to react and their second instinct to rationalize, and instead reach what one student memorably called her "third thought" — genuine understanding.

John and Lowell share the origin story of the project, how it's expanded into events like Can We Connect? (which brings 250+ students together at the Augusta Civic Center), and how students themselves are taking the work into their own hands—organizing intergenerational dialogues, community conversations, and even a nationwide online class built around the question, "Is American democracy on fire?" It's a hopeful, practical look at how young people are relearning face-to-face conversation in a digital, polarized world.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro to John Holdridge and Lowell Libby and the Can We? Project

02:00 The origin story: a student's concept of the "third thought"

06:00 How the Can We? Project works — full-day retreats, student-chosen topics, and ground rules for dialogue

10:00 Why college students said high school conversations didn't carry over — the gap that sparked the project

14:00 The "big sort," bowling alone, and how Americans have self-segregated into like-minded communities

18:00 Students leading their own intergenerational dialogues — including a town hall on U.S. foreign policy

23:00 Can We Connect? — bringing 250+ students from across Maine together for a day of youth-led dialogue

27:00 Breaking down assumptions: the "ladder of inference" and the gun control conversation between rural and urban teens

32:00 The mindset of curiosity, care, and courage — and "swimming toward the shark"

36:00 School smartphone policies and how phone-free retreats change how students connect

40:00 A nationwide online class asking, "Is American democracy on fire?" — and what happened on election night

45:00 Closing thoughts on optimism, democracy, and the next generation

Sam Demma had his sights set on a professional soccer career from age five — training in Italy at 13, playing for one of Canada's top club teams by 17 — until three major knee injuries and a torn labrum ended that dream in his final year of high school. What came next is the subject of this conversation: how Demma rebuilt his sense of purpose, first through small volunteer garbage cleanups with a friend, then through public speaking, and eventually through writing.

Just shy of his 27th birthday and about to publish his third book, Return on Goodwill, Sam has delivered close to 800 talks across four continents. In this episode, he shares the stories behind his books — Empty Your Backpack, born from a conversation with a bullied student, and Be Someone's Taco, inspired by a pandemic-era gesture that brought a friend to tears — and unpacks the idea at the heart of his new work: that doing good with no expectation of return has a way of coming back around.

The conversation also covers:

• The mentor (a high school teacher) and the "small consistent actions" lesson that changed Demma's trajectory

• Why closing the loop — telling people the impact they had on you — matters more than we think

• The practice of "assuming positive intent" and how it protects your energy day to day

• How Stephen Covey's circles of concern, influence, and control connect to Demma's philosophy

• Building a speaking career from scratch: years of cold outreach, a mentor who changed his approach to business, and the slow climb to hundreds of events a year

Chapters:

00:00 Sam Demma's Journey: From Soccer to Success 05:07 Finding Purpose After Athletic Setbacks 11:11 The Power of Intentional Appreciation 16:05 Empty Your Backpack: Letting Go 20:49 Be Someone's Taco: Acts of Kindness 27:04 Return on Goodwill: A Life Philosophy 32:09 Practical Tips for an Optimistic Life

Comedian, speaker, and humor coach Mike Goodwin joins Bill Burke for this special summer encore presentation of a classic Blue Sky episode. Mike shares how a difficult, sometimes volatile childhood in Camden, South Carolina sparked his lifelong instinct to use humor to ease tension - a skill that carried him through four years in the U.S. Army, a career in higher education and college counseling, and eventually onto stages with America's Got Talent, Dry Bar Comedy, Lifetime, BET, and Amazon Prime.

Known for his clean, expectation-defying comedy (not a single curse word, but plenty of big laughs), Mike opens up about why he chose to keep his act family-friendly, how he tackles sensitive topics like race with honesty instead of division, and how he built a second career as a keynote speaker blending humor with leadership insight. He closes with his signature "comedian's mindset" — the ABC method (Awareness, Breathe, Curiosity) — a practical tool for navigating stressful moments both on stage and in everyday life.

Bill and Mike discuss:

• Childhood in Camden, SC - Growing up in a financially stressed, sometimes volatile household and discovering early that making his mother laugh could ease tension at home
• Military service - Joining the Army at 18, an unexpected ROTC rank bump, and how cracking jokes during lights-out got him in trouble with his drill sergeant
• Career in education - From student affairs at the University of South Carolina to college counseling at a private school, and how standup started alongside that career
• Getting his start in comedy - Breaking into standup through his church, thanks to a veteran comedian who gave him a choice: hand over the material, or get on stage and keep the money himself
• Why he keeps his act clean - His faith, family, and personal values behind choosing "clean" comedy over vulgar material, and why he sees clean comedy as harder, not easier
• Tackling race and identity through humor - How he approaches sensitive topics like race on stage with honesty and generosity rather than division (including his "police repellent" bit)
• Defying expectations on stage - Being a "walking contradiction" — a big, athletic, bespectacled guy who looks more like a professor than a comedian
• The pivot to keynote speaking - How a chance conversation with a conference organizer led him to develop his "Leadership and Laughter" keynote, and the trial-and-error of blending humor with substantive content
• Humor as a leadership tool - Why comedy is "neutral," and how leaders can use appropriate humor to build connection instead of division in the workplace
• The comedian's mindset (ABC method) - Awareness, Breathe, Curiosity - a practical framework for handling stressful or unexpected moments, on stage and in everyday life
• Reflections on America and optimism - Closing thoughts on the ongoing pursuit of happiness and striving toward a better version of the country

Chapters:

00:00 Intro to Mike Goodwin — comedian, speaker, and humor coach

02:30 Growing up in Camden, SC — using humor to cope with a volatile household

07:00 Joining the Army at 18 and how comedy caused (and solved) trouble in basic training

11:30 From student affairs to college counseling, the unexpected path to comedy

14:00 How Mike got his start doing standup — at church

17:00 Why Mike chose clean comedy over "blue" material

20:00 Tackling race and identity on stage: The "police repellent" bit

26:00 Being a "walking contradiction" — the big, athletic guy who looks like a professor

29:00 From standup to keynote speaking: The "Leadership and Laughter" talk

34:00 Why humor is neutral and how leaders can use it to unify, not divide

40:00 The comedian's mindset: Awareness, Breathe, Curiosity (the ABC method)

45:00 Where to find Mike Goodwin and catch a live show

In this Blue Sky conversation, host Bill Burke sits down with Melissa Connelly, CEO of OneGoal, a national organization working to ensure every young person can pursue education beyond high school. Melissa's path to this work started long before her career in education. Raised by a single mother on the south and southwest sides of Chicago, she missed more than 60 days of school in eighth grade and landed in her high school's truancy program, a labeling experience that nearly derailed her future.

That changed when a school social worker, Ms. Jeter, taught her how to advocate for herself and get back on track. Melissa shares the highs and lows that followed, including a heartbreaking moment arriving in New York for her freshman year at NYU without enough cash for a cab, and the winding five year, five school path she eventually took to earn her degree.

Today, Melissa channels that experience into OneGoal, which partners with more than 300 schools to support around 14,000 students a year, and now trains school districts directly to build advising into their core curriculum rather than treating it as an afterthought. She and Bill discuss:

• Why the average student receives just 38 minutes of college advising in high school

• OneGoal's "momentum theory" and why getting a student enrolled isn't enough, they need support through their first year of college too

• The idea of "occupational identity" and helping students connect who they are to what they want to contribute to the world

• Parenting her own two teenagers through the college process, and what her son's experience taught her about how rarely students are truly seen in school

• Why she believes nonprofits should be working to put themselves out of business

• The concept of "triggers and glimmers," and why she chooses to look for the bright spots even on hard days

Melissa's story is a powerful reminder that one caring adult can change the entire trajectory of a young person's life, and that optimism, even when it's called "hokey," is a discipline worth practicing.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Blue Sky 02:22 Melissa's Early Life and Adversity 08:31 Navigating Higher Education Barriers 13:21 The Mission of OneGoal 21:02 Scaling and Systemic Change 26:01 Ensuring Momentum After High School 33:17 Humanizing the Educational Experience 36:47 Parenting and Educational Policy 46:25 Finding Glimmers and Looking Forward

Ted Johnson's life reads like several careers stitched into one: raised in a mostly white Raleigh suburb while attending a Black church several times a week, a Hampton University graduate, a 20-year Navy officer who became a White House Fellow under President Obama and later a speechwriter for two chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Somewhere along the way, he became a writer — now a Washington Post columnist and author of two books, most recently If We Are Brave: Essays from Black Americana.

In this conversation, Ted joins host Bill Burke to talk about:

• Growing up between two worlds — a white suburb and a Black church — and how that shaped his early sense of identity

• Why he chose an HBCU (Hampton University), and how a chance encounter led him into the Navy

• His path from ship duty in the Arabian Gulf to the NSA, the Naval War College, a White House Fellowship, and ultimately speechwriting for the Joint Chiefs

• How the killing of Trayvon Martin redirected his career from cybersecurity toward writing about race and democracy

• Why he sees racism as fundamentally a failure of the state, not a failure between individuals — and what that reframe means for how we talk about accountability

• His candid take on the shifting language around DEI, affirmative action, and "the soft bigotry of low expectations"

• What the military taught him about integration - and its surprisingly short "half-life" once people leave that environment

• The story behind his name — Theodore Roosevelt Johnson III — and what it reveals about three generations of hope in his family

• His new book, If We Are Brave, and his work leading New America's US@250 initiative ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary in 2026

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction to Ted Johnson 03:06 Upbringing and Path to Service 08:02 A Twenty-Year Naval Career 12:13 Writing About Racism and Optimism 17:34 The Idea of America 22:07 DEI and Structural Reform 28:07 Generational Wealth and Founders 34:21 If We Are Brave 42:10 New America and 250th Anniversary