Christopher Sansome is a sergeant on the police force, with 17 years working to protect us in our communities.

He’s been married four years to his beautiful wife and is the father of two boys. He’s a contributor to the book “Dads Behaving Dadly 2” and he blogs at TheParentalShift.com.

Although law enforcement was always on the back of Christopher’s mind as a career choice, he took architecture in school as well as doing a number of other jobs before becoming a police officer at age 23. At the time, he didn’t have kids of his own and thought differently about the risks involved in the profession.

“Being a dad now, I look at it with a totally different perspective. At 23, you’re invincible.”

“There are a lot of professions out there that are risky. If you dwell on it and focus on it, that’s going to consume you.”

There are pros and cons to being a 40 year-old dad to two young children. Christopher feels he now has more perspective on the world than he did when he was young, as well as the seniority in his job now to control his work schedule more, to adjust to the family lifestyle. However, his boys won’t be finished high school when he retires and there are financial considerations to be made regarding post-secondary education for them.

His views on parenting have changed now that he has his own children.

“I understand how complex being a parent is and how challenging it can be. I had a very naïve view of it beforehand.”

Christopher met his wife on a tour of Europe (they both lived in different parts of California). Upon returning to the United States, they had a long distance relationship for a year before moving in together.

He believes balancing a career with fatherhood and being a good husband is challenging, but he and his wife make an effort to have time for themselves. During this time, they agree not to talk about the children.

“I think we’re on the same page; we have the same priorities and that makes a huge difference.”

LIGHTNING ROUND

Superhero: Batman

Cartoon:  Looney Tunes, Super Friends, then later He-Man and GI Joe

Family Tradition: visiting a small Dutch town in California to shop for Christmas ornaments, then giving them out to family at Thanksgiving

Embarrassing Moment: many crashes on his skateboard and bike

“It was always in front of as many people as possible”

In high school, he socialized with lots of different kids, but didn’t fit in with a particular group.

“At the time, it made me feel really insecure about things. I didn’t feel like I had a place.”

In order to nurture our children and give them a sense of community service, Christopher recommends instilling in them compassion, and teaching them how to understand the challenges of others.

“When you have that compassion, the natural step is to help people out”

TIME CAPSULE (30 Yrs):

“I’d want them to know they are very very important people to me. I love them tremendously and once they came along, things did shift for me as far as priorities and focus. I’m not always home for dinner, but whenever I’m at work, I want to be home with them...”

INTERVIEW LINKS:

www.TheParentalShift.com

Dr.Colleen Carroll – Show Notes            

Dr. Colleen Carroll is a lifetime educator, former elementary school principal and former Director of Literacy in the New York state public school system.  She has a Masters degree in reading and a doctorate in educational leadership. Her work has been published in college textbooks, national journals and local family magazines. She’s a sought-after speaker for parent and education group conferences.

Dr. Carroll believes that kids are reading, but for some, it doesn’t come as easy and it takes more time and practice for them to become better readers.

The age at which a child takes to reading is different in each case, much like walking.  If by age 4 or 5 your child is doing work on literacy but not picking it up, you could have a struggling reader on your hands.

“It’s rare to have a child with a serious reading disability. Parents should stay calm and not worry so much. They may just need more help or extra time to develop and mature as a reader.”

To help children improve their reading, parents can use letters on the fridge, in the sand, and games that have to do with letter and words.  Her favourite recommendation is using illustrated books.

“One of the things we want kids to get really comfortable with is holding a book in their hands, understanding that we turn the pages from right to left, the pictures tell a story and that we can get really excited over the stories”

If a child is struggling, she says it one of two things:

Dr. Carroll works with parents to get a handle of which problem it is, then goes to work to help solve the issue.

One strategy for comprehension issues is to start with stories that have easy plot lines (humorous stories work).  The parent and child would read the story together, slowing it down every page or so to talk about what happened. The reason for this is if you wait until the end of the book, too much information has to be processed by the child.

A strategy for fluency is to use modelling.  By reading an illustrated book with words, the pictures will help tell the story and engage the child. The parent would read one page, or sentence out loud, and then have the child read it back.

Dr. Carroll recommends parents spend 10 minutes a day working with their child on reading. Consistency is key.

“Anything that you do in life, if you do it consistently, you’ll be much more effective at it.”

Spending time the next day talking about the book (in the car, at the doctor’s office, etc.), will help their comprehension as they’ll have more time to think about the book/story.

In terms of upcoming processes, Dr. Carroll will be hosting multiple webinars in the upcoming months, as well as collaborating with an interior decorator on how to make the home a more literary friendly environment.

INTERVIEW LINKS:

www.InnovativeReading.com         

The war in Yugoslavia started when she was 8. Her father was imprisoned.  She was a refugee for 5 years.  They finally escaped to Australia. And that's when the story truly began.

Sanja Tesic – Show Notes (From Child Refugee to Child Motivator)        

Sanja Tesic is a survivor of the war in Yugoslavia, immigrating to Australia. She went from child refugee to child motivator, and she now teaches people how to go from a victim to a victor mentality.

In 1991, when she was only 8 years old, the war in her home country started.

“I had a new Ken and Barbie. I just wanted to play with my toys, but the orders were we had to flee. That’s where my childhood pretty much stopped and I feel I started to be become an adult.”

Her father was captured in the civil war, and Sanja and her family didn’t know where he was, or whether was alive or not. They found out he was alive when they saw him on television. The Red Cross assisted her mother and father in exchanging letters.  Every single letter from her father said “…look after the kids.” The courts proved her father was innocent, and eventually he was released.

“It was great, it was the best news”

Sanja’s upcoming book is called “Born to Bloom”.

“We all have a birthright to bloom in life”

Being a refugee from 1991-1996 in different countries was a difficult part of her childhood, as she was constantly changing schools.

“I was always the new kid on the block; change is normal for me”

She says she her family arrived in Australia with only four bags, and knowing no English.

“…four bags of dreams. Sometimes that’s all you need. Material things don’t define you, it’s your mindset and outlook on life.”

She credits three teachers in Australia for helping her with her English, and met up with them years later while writing her book (they will be proofreading it for her).

 Sanja got her start in public speaking when she won an award in high school for best speaker, and was asked to tell her story to her classmates. The longer she spoke to them, the more confident she got. The response was so good, she was asked by the school to do more talks every six months.

She recommends people look for a little “spark”, something positive, to help get them through difficult times.

“I really believe having a victim mentality is a choice”

Sonja received counselling to help her get over her past.

“It’s very healthy. There’s nothing embarrassing about seeking help”

Sanja recommends three things to takeaway:

“It’s the people and relationships that are more important”

“Have fun, laugh, and love”

“Just go with it. Perfectionism doesn’t exist, it’s all subjective in our own mind”

INTERVIEW LINKS

www.bluegerbera.com.au (for free download of e-book on identifying your personal values)

www.facebook.com/bluegerbera

As a kid, Julian's Mom made him grow a tree to teach him patience.

She made him swim 10 laps for an ice cream cone.

Today, Julian is a world-class athlete, serial entrepreneur, and now, soon-to-be bestselling author.  

Discover how seemingly small and unimportant decisions have a huge and often unexpected impact on your life.

1. The Tree story – Learning delayed gratification .

2. The Swimming story – Ice cream as a reward

3. The Gymnastics story – Finish what you start

4. The Sandwich story – Outselling the school cafeteria

5. The SAT story – Studying the dictionary

6. The Saving story – Monopoly in real life

And more!

http://www.Bravepreneur.com/016

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Brian Town – Show Notes

Brian Town is the CEO of Michigan Creative, a company that builds marketing machines that promote your business.

He is also the host of The Business Machine Podcast, where he tells stories about the mistakes entrepreneurs made, and how they recovered.

Brian feels that entrepreneurs are all trying to get the same thing: a machine for their business that runs itself (website, videos, content, etc.).

With the podcast, he thought it would be a great way to hear stories of failure, and recovery, from other entrepreneurs, that he could possibly use as content for a future book.

Brian has four children, ages 22 to 15 months, and previously was an educator, teaching high school students the art of video and television production. Four years ago, he made the leap to entrepreneurship full-time.

 After teaching about 4,000 students during his time as a teacher, he feels that giving kids ownership and teaching them to be leaders are important ways to motivate them. He believes in the importance of getting them interested into something early so they can discover their passion.

Eventually, Brian would like to teach entrepreneurship to students.

Regarding challenges, he feels divorces can be difficult on everyone involved, including the children. He himself made this discovery:

“…if my boys have two positive male role models, and two positive female role models to spend 100% of their time with, that’s pretty good”

LIGHTNING ROUND

Superhero:  Batman

Cartoon: Popeye

Family Tradition:  deer hunting with his father

Embarrassing Moments: 7th grade picture, where he had a moustache and long greasy hair

“I just matured really quickly, I was about the same size as I am now”

Biggest Struggle:  It was hard at the high school level to stay on the right path in regards to drugs and alcohol.

What Can Parents Do?: Talk with them and be honest

Parent’s Parenting Style: His father was an army colonel. When he retired from the army, he coached Brian’s sports teams and they ran the farm together.

“I think that really made me the father I am today; A lot of my parenting, if not all of it, came from him”

In order to balance being a dad and an entrepreneur, Brian uses a calendar to record the things to do for the family. He doesn’t take his cell phone to sporting events or movies with the family.

“If you’re working, you’re not in the moment”

On his biggest breakthrough as a parent:

“The little things you do, matter”

Time Capsule: “I really hope they look back and that along the way, they did their very best to make other people better and to make their own lives as happy as they could be. I hope they learned from me how to be satisfied and happy with who they are as people.”

INTERVIEW LINKS

www.MichiganCreative.com

http://www.amazon.ca/Hooked-How-Build-Habit-Forming-Products-ebook/dp/B00HJ4A43S  (link to “Hooked” by Nir Eyal)

Storytelling is part of the DNA of how we live. We earn most of our life lessons through stories. Epic Story Lifestyle is living _______.

Everyone wants an epic story lifestyle.

But they don't realize theyre missing one critical thing.

To have an epic story lifestyle... you must first...

http://www.Bravepreneur.com/014

Michelle Spiva – Show Notes      

Michelle Spiva is the host of the Epic Story Lifestyle podcast, full-time novelist and writing coaches. She coaches clients on lifestyle architecture.

Michelle explains that epic storytelling is part of the DNA of how we live. While completing her MBA, she was trained in the power of the parable, on how to give life lessons through stories.

She grew up around her extended family, who were all excellent story tellers. In later years, people she interacted with always asked her to tell them a story.

“I learned most of my life lessons through stories”

A parable she learned from her grandmother, on how to handle a new situation, uses the example of the ocean.

“…people are like the ocean, trash rises to the surface first, treasure stays sunken in so always go treasure hunting” (Michelle says that parables like these are “timeless”)

Michelle recommends people get over their shame. In a global society, people will weigh in on everything you do.

“Epic gets you seen, and being seen gets you judged; A lot of people want to have an epic life story. They don’t realize in order to have, first you must be…wisdom, hope, faith, love, all of that is part of the being”

She says that bravery is not about doing, it’s about remembering who you are. 

To make an epic life story, decide on your “ending” first.

Michelle says this is like how a marathon runner pictures the finish line, before he/she can actually see it. The runner keeps moving in the right direction towards the finish line until it’s accomplished.

You can teach adults, and children, using concrete examples, rewards and images such as vision boards.

To help your children stand up to negative peer pressure, one example of this is you would show them a picture of them as a superhero, soaring above the situation.

“Take an aerial view; the best fruit is in the top parts of the tree. Pick from there.”

INTERVIEW LINKS:

www.EpicStoryLifestyle.com          

Growing up, Jama'l often found himself in the position of playing Mom, Dad, and Brother, to his little sister. It was tough.  Jama'l had to grow up quickly.

But as a Dad, it taught him a powerful lesson.  

Jama’l Chukueke – DiversityDad.com              

Jama’l Chukeuke grew up on the East Coast, but now resides in Seattle, WA with his wife and beautiful baby daughter.  

After experiencing the birth of his daughter,he soon realized he wanted to create an on-going conversation with fellow Dads and father figures about this very important role.

To do so, he created and currently hosts the podcast, Diversity Dad.

Jama’l says that his podcast is for all dads, each of who are unique and diverse.

As well, his show can help single mothers, or any playing a father role in a child’s life.

“It’s taking the stories of those dads; I just want to help…”

Jama'l believes fathers must hold themselves accountable to how they present themselves, no matter what situation they are in.

“If you’re a dad, represent your family right”

LIGHTNING ROUND

Superhero:  Spiderman

Cartoon:  He-Man

Video Game: Double Dragon

Family Tradition: Opening gifts with family

“It’s so awesome just to see the smile and appreciation on everyone’s face once they open that gift”

Embarrassing Moment: During reading time in 2nd grade, he vomited in front of his classmates.

“To this day, when I hear of someone being ill, it always brings me back to that time”

Struggle: He tried out for the 9th grade freshman basketball team as an 8th grader, however, was cut from the team.

“I only had a few friends. That crushed me, because I felt it was an opportunity to make friends.”

Jama’l looked after his sister often while growing up, as his mother worked a few jobs and his father lived elsewhere.

“At times, I had to play mom, dad and brother. It was tough”

For traits he would like to borrow from his mother, he sites her ability to be aware of her children’s needs (emotional, financial, etc.).

On his #1 job as a dad: Being her “overcomer”

“I’d just tell her, let’s see we can do as a family to overcome the situation”

TIME CAPSULE (30 Yrs):

“I would say that she just filled our hearts up with joy. From the moment we held her, we lived everyday through her; we just wanted her happiness to be #1, and hopefully she wants the same thing with herself, and her family. It’s so important to us that she understands the joy she brings into other people’s lives, as a small child and now a 35 year old, with her bubbly personality. Hopefully she continues to have that spirit”

INTERVIEW LINKS:

www.DiversityDad.com

www.Facebook.com/DiversityDad

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Thanks for your support!

Married at 19.

Couldn't Have Kids.

Adopted Two Kids 16 Years Later.

Then, Something Funny Happened.  You Won't Believe How This Story Ends.

Learn how to Love Through the Rough Parts,

from this preacher's kid who writes about the struggles of REAL DADS.

With Christian Lee, of PlaidDadBlog.com, ForeverFamilyComic.com,

and The Screaming Dads Podcast.

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Subscribe in iTunes, so you don't miss a beat.

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Find the full show notes, here:

http://www.Bravepreneur.com/012

Christian Lee – PlaidDadBlog.com                    

Christian shares manly musings on the struggles of real Dads. 

Christian focus on Faith, Family, Food & Fun.  

Christian Lee is the co-creator of the Plaid Dad Blog and co-host of The Screaming Dads Podcast. He is an artist, and resident comedian at ForeverFamilyComic.com. He’s a dad to four amazing kids, and he and his partner focus on faith, family, food and fun.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Superhero:  Spiderman

Video Game:  Metal Gear Solid (once he got older)

Family Tradition: Travelling to visit family in different states

Motivation as a Child:  Getting to see his dad perform weekly in his role as a preacher.

“It’s not suppose to be a performance, but there’s part of that in any public speaking”

Struggle:  Growing up in a rural community, and not being part of a clique or group

“My imagination grew that way, and I was able to present myself to multiple groups, work myself in there and not be an outsider”

Christian and his wife met in Bible College and got married at a young at (he was 19). They were told they couldn’t children, which left his wife brokenhearted as she came from a large family. After 16 years of marriage, they decided to adopt.

Christian believes he inherited a temper from his father, but always apologizes and tries to make it right with his children after the fact.

“If I’m wrong, I’m doing them a disservice by not showing that I recognize I’m wrong, because I expect them to do that”

Christian works at web design during the day, comes home and spends two hours with the children. After an hour of time with his wife, the then starts what his “second work day” from 9 PM – 1 AM, writing articles and working on his podcasts.

His 9 year old son Carl is involved in one of these podcasts, called “What Are We Watching Now?”

“It’s to develop his skills. He draws comics, and this is another creative realm for him; it’s quite a skill to do a podcast.”

On his breakthrough as a father:

“Dealing with all the stuff (about being a parent) that’s thrown at you, and coming out on top”

“Consistency is important, and that’s what we’ve tried to do”

#1 job as a dad: “Refining. With parenting, you come up with the product, you get it ok, then you just tinker. It’s worked out for us so far.”

TIME CAPSULE:

“I hope I got to see them before they became their best. I still love them for it. They weren’t the people they’re going to be, they were just clay versions. I tried to do my best in loving and moulding them. The fact that we loved each other, through the rough parts, that’s what I want them to know about me.”

INTERVIEW LINKS:

www.PlaidDadBlog.com      

www.ForeverFamilyComic.com     

Gerry Hays is the CEO and co-founder of DinnerCall, a company with an application that brings families back together at the dinner table. Through their Billion Dinners Challenge, families are encourage to reconnect and experience the magic of mealtime.

“Research shows people who take 25 minutes a day and enter into a meaningful conversation have a much more fulfilled lie, which translates to a number of benefits such as lower obesity, substance abuse and depression”

“(DinnerCall) allows you to learn something interesting about everyone that we never would have known. By bringing in these questions, it’s interesting how everyone looks forward to coming to the dinner table and engaging.”

Beta users of the program are reporting better relationships with their children in just two weeks.

“As a child, the dinner table was a place where I was safe; you’re not judged, and you can listen to your brothers speak and parent’s tell stories. That’s a tradition I kept up as an adult, with my kids.”

When in Chicago for business, Gerry visits his own grandfather often to talk and listen to his stories over dinner.

“Everytime I leave I feel so in spirit. Everyone should be doing this.”

“I’m 47 years old and I want to make a difference in this world. I’m just going to go out there, push as hard as I can, and remind people this is a time of day when you can really feel human again.”

“It’s depressing when you’re around other people, but you’re not connected to them”

LIGHTNING ROUND:

Superhero: Captain America

Cartoon:  Bugs Bunny

Video Game:  Galaga

Family Tradition:  dinner time with his family

Motivation as a Child:  Gerry got this from his older brothers

Most Embarrassing Moment:  In 5th grade, he went for a first kiss and missed

Parent’s Parenting Style:  A combination of independence and dictatorship

“When they were in parenting mode, it was a dictatorship. When they were out of parenting mode, they gave us the freedom to live our lives.”

Advice:  “Try not to spend a lot of time having thoughts about your past and future. When you’re with your kids, be with your kids 100%. If you do that, everything else will take care of itself.”

INTERVIEW LINKS:

www.BillionDinners.org (to download the app and take the challenge)           

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Bolaji O

Does your brand reflect who you really are?

“When everyone believes in and trusts their passions, while showing up authentically, they’re already setting a trend and changing the world”

-- Ellie Isacs.

Switzerland-based Ellie is a Mom and transformational branding coach.

Faced with deep lack of fulfillment in her own career path, she set out on a difficult transformational journey to go deeper into understanding who she truly was and how she wanted to shape her business.

This journey showed her how to design her brand to reflect her personality.

“To be a trendsetter is not something that comes and goes but it is something that is memorable”

She says that once early adopters are with your brand, they will not need to switch to something quickly, as so often happens. She believes that every single person is a brand of their own.

Ellie feels that style starts on the inside, and you must create your inner style before creating the outer. It’s important to understand who you are and where your comfort zone is.

“Entrepreneurs are “self brands”. This is the transition point between a personal and business brand.”

“When embarking on entrepreneurship, the first grounding principles of your business are values, your mission and your purpose”  (she gives the example of Tony Robbins as a powerful self brand).

LIGHTNING ROUND

Superhero:  Elastigirl (from The Incredibles)

Cartoon:  The Flintstones

Family Tradition:  Christmas together with family, cooking & preparing  

Embarrassing Moment:  Not being able to go to the public swimming pool

#1 Job as Mom:  Shaping a self-aware individual who values himself and others, but loves himself first. To guide him while he grows up and makes mistakes.

“I will always be there to support and pick him up, if needed”

Ellie Isacs is a transformation branding coach and talented copywriter from Switzerland. She specializes in empowering entrepreneurs to showcase their authentic and unique self in all areas of business.

INTERVIEW LINKS:

www.VIDesign.com