Genesis Amaris Kemp found herself in the middle of COVID-19, while she was losing so much that was close to her. Within 9 months, her father and two grandmothers passed away, then both she and her husband were laid off from their corporate careers. Then they welcomed a beautiful new baby girl into their family. As she said, when your family goes from two incomes to zero incomes, you're "living on Hope Street." So, Genesis made a pivot and turned her life experiences, talents, and a will to persevere into her own franchise. She authored Chocolate Drop in Corporate America; started the Gems: with Genesis Amaris Kemp podcast; and began life coaching and motivational speaking. Genesis is a grounded, yet uplifting person who brought a lot of joy to this episode!

Izzy Gesell shares generously from his fascinating career in stand-up comedy, improv, and how it led him to the self-styled career of Organizational Alchemist. Izzy teaches us how to form, tell, and recall a good joke. He and I play an improv game that every single listener could use in every business or personal relationship they have. He shares a wonderful story about how humor can cut through even life's most frustrating situations. We learn that we all need to be authentic, take risks, and share our sense of humor in the world . . . truly Bright Side behaviors! Finally, he let us in on a secret - Izzy will be releasing an improv card game that's going to take your game nights up a notch! You'll be able to find all the details here: Izzy G and Company

In the latter half of the interview, Gregg Doyel said "My uniqueness is more unique than most," and went on to point out how he's interested in telling the truth even when it's unpopular. Doyel on Demand takes Rick Reilley to task for not doing the same. He teaches us about C.A.R.V.E. He emotionally shares that his column is meant to do bigger things when possible, like it did during the Flint Water Crisis. He's smitten with a wonderfully majestic greyhound named Cap. Finally, he shares his dream of winning an award that has nothing to do with writing. ***I must correct myself here*** Gregg Doyel is Gregg Doyel because he wants to serve Indiana, through his writing, in a way that makes him worthy of an honor bestowed to similarly civic-minded citizens. More unique than most, indeed! His work isn't behind a pay "wall." It's more like a threshold. Pay a buck to support great art here >> Gregg Doyel Indy Star, and you'll be glad you crossed over.

A must-listen-to interview with the remarkably talented Gregg Doyel! In his words he "airs some grievances" about how fans evaluate his writing in (click there->) the Indy Star newspaper. His passion for newspaper journalism, and his place in it, bubbles over! Gregg describes how a fan's understanding of math, might inform the quality of their arguments. He gets fired up over his desire to change the tenor of what was once considered the "IU Star newspaper." Yet, he can write one story covering both IU and Purdue and be accused by both fan bases of being biased against their school. His wonderfully genuine catharsis includes an apology he felt he had to make to one of the Greatest of All Time sports figures, and regret about a comment he made as a dig at a Hall of Fame coach that was unintentionally insensitive to another group of people. And this is just half of the interview! For $1, you can read Gregg's columns. It'll be the best dollar you ever spend if you still like honest sports journalism!

Brenden Kumarasamy, Rockstar Communicator, shared a great amount of practical knowledge with us in a short amount of time! Check out Master Talks to see more in depth strategies. Brenden uses a brilliant analogy that "Communication is like juggling 18 balls at the same time." Then he helps us figure out how to manage that conundrum. Find out what you need to be doing every day that will make a magnificent impact on your ability to communicate. Find out what's getting in your way. Find out how to think about communication in the same way you might think about physical fitness. Bask in the energy of an elite communicator on a noble mission to change the world. Then contemplate the show stopping question he puts to all of us!

Kelly Swanson has flourished in her career as a Master Storyteller and Motivator ***see all her fabulous work here***. She shared her journey with us - including a deep admiration for Carol Burnett. Through her Story Impact Academy, she inspires others to find their unique stories, and guides them on the best ways to tell them. She's a marvelous performer who once deftly landed an unscheduled 5-foot fall in the middle of her show. She humbly shared tales from her current projects including a podcast that focuses on the small town of Prides Hollow; and her One-Woman show Who Hijacked My Fairy Tale which she's performing in several theatres now. Kelly puts a lot of light into the world, and we were lucky to get to share it for an episode!

Shaun Eli Brain Champagne.com transitioned from a career on Wall Street to a career as a stand-up comedian. Check out his new comedy special on Amazon Prime Video The Ivy League of Comedy: Live from the Emelin Theatre Shaun shared with us how he deftly shut up a loud-mouthed bigot; how one date completely changed his life; and how initial trepidation from his parents about his pursuit of comedy as a career, was eventually replaced with proven benefits for them. He suggested that Detroit may not have sparkling wine on par with the French countryside, but he's willing to be proven wrong. He's emphatically not from New Jersey, and insists that an Ivy League education can still be enjoyed without undue stress. Brain Champagne has a collection of free comedy material that includes thousands of jokes and videos of his performances, so check it out!

Bob LeMent of Static Radio joins us to talk about his 24-year journey, as a podcasting pioneer, with his sometimes derelict partner Miles Tidal. We go into side projects he has like Everywhere is Haunted Despite having a lack of ghost participation so far on the show, Bob shares his harrowing real life ghost encounter. We also talk Flat Manny sightings and a heartfelt tribute to the comedic stylings of Charles Nelson Reilly.

Scott Edwards, host of Stand Up Comedy: Your Host and MC classes Bright Side up a bit! Scott tells us about the time he had to put Bill Maher in his place; the time his friend, Garry Shandling performed his set in the most ridiculous place; and the time he was celebrating a post show drink with Dana Carvey, when he heard about an important phone call. There's the story about Tom Hanks, and he gives you the most hilariously important investment don't you'll ever hear. Metz does his best to level the quality of the show out by giving Scott incorrect information.

John Gibbs joins us from the United Kingdom to share wisdom from his career as an educator, and comedic speaker. He now hosts an outstanding podcast on philosophy The Spinoza Triad: Philosophy in our World which helps people connect the weighty wisdom of philosophers with their modern lives. John thoughtfully ties the modern world of comedy to philosophy by breaking down what makes us laugh into three major themes. In his justifiable critiques of American society, John enthusiastically praises America for the optimism it has represented to the world, and what we can still accomplish when we're at our best. Cheers!