“Alignment is a real place,” shares my guest Tamiko White who joins me on this episode of Camera Ready & Abel to discuss the journey to alignment.

Tamiko White is the founder of White Noise Consulting and creator of #NOWTrending, a branding course and community for entrepreneurs. She is a fashion and media entrepreneur, creative brand consultant and writer who has worked with an impressive list of clients over the past 30 years- in front of the camera and behind the seams- to help everyone she works with build an inedible and profitable brand.

Tamiko has built a thriving and impactful business by aligning her values, skills, and interests.

Sometimes we are gently veering off the road and have to constantly tweak the wheel to stay on track. Tamiko is here to be your life mechanic and help keep you on the road to alignment one daily habit at a time.

Fun fact, Tamiko has been a hand model for 25 years and has played the hands of Viola Davis’! 

Learn more about Tamiko and her course #NOWTRENDING:

Website: www.tamikowhite.com

IG: https://www.instagram.com/tamikowhite/

#NOWTRENDING: https://tamikowhite.kartra.com/page/NOWTrending23

If you're thinking I'm not in sales or I'm not a creative, I'm never going to pitch anything, think again!

As my guest for this episode, Dave Noll, says, life's a pitch, life's a series of pitches...whether it's love or work or anything important. Selling anything, creating anything, anything important in life comes with a pitch.

Dave knows what he's talking about. He and his partner, Cleve Keller, are the mega-successful creators and producers of Chopped (the most successful show in the history of the Food Network) and America Says (the most successful show in the history of the Game Show Network) plus 60 other shows that went from idea to successful pitch.

Dave lives by these Four P's: Positive, polite, persistent, professional.

More Dave nuggets:

• Research, research, research! It's the end all and be all of a great pitch

Dave's book, The Visionary in Charge, comes out fall 2023.

Enjoy Dave explaining the power and impact of positivity in this episode of Camera Ready & Abel.

Connect and follow Dave at www.linkedin.com/davenolltv

Dave recommends two of his favorite books: Jerry Weintraub's When I Stop Talking, You'll Know I'm Dead and The Last Great Ride by Brandon Tartikoff, former NBC programming chief.

Dreams only become reality when we actually are curious enough to start implementing and making them happen. - Alice Ford

I say all the time that I'd be sitting in my villa in Tangier right now if I had a dollar or ten for every single person I've encountered who said I want to host a travel show. My guest for this episode, award winning host, adventure filmmaker and stunt woman, Alice Ford, created a travel show and turned it into a viable business.

Alice says curiosity is the key to all of it.

Curiosity not only didn't kill the cat, it made the cat smarter and more confident, according to Alice.

Key takeaways

• You can turn your curiosity into a career

Alice's impressive resume is built on her exercising her curiosity. She is a self-described adrenaline junkie who has hiked some of the world’s tallest mountains, gone swimming with sharks, jumped out of airplanes, repelled down cliff sides and traveled solo all over the world documenting every moment for her award-winning series Alice’s Adventures on Earth, AND Alice has worked as a stuntwoman on some of Hollywood's biggest blockbusters over the last decade including Spiderman - No Way Home, Transformers 4 & 5, Star Trek Into Darkness, Red Notice and Tenet.

Get more curious about Alice: alicesadventuresonearth.com (website), AliceFordAdventures (youtube), AlicesAdventuresonEarth (instagram)

I am a card-carrying etiquette nerd along with my guest, for this episode, Kristi Spencer, who spent over two decades working in the rough and tumble world of local news before becoming a certified business etiquette expert and launching her business The Polite Company.

Why does it matter?

Good manners are good for business. Good manners minimize or prevent problems with reputation and employee/client retention (which impact the bottom line), make you more memorable and good manners are key to building relationships, the foundation of all business.

9 Key takeaways:

• Assume good intentions

Kristi is a passionate advocate for workplace civility and professionalism and is regularly called on to provide etiquette expertise for media outlets. Learn more about Kristi's services at www.thepolitecompany.com.

The title of this episode of Camera Ready & Abel - Dealing with Bozos and Bullies - tells you a lot about my guest for this episode. Iggy Perillo, founder of WSL Leadership, helps leaders and educators do right by their people with warmth, humor and compassion, training them to do the hardest part of great work more easily, through group and one-on-one coaching masterminds and experiential workshops designed to make it simple for them to connect with their people, create meaningful change and amplify positive culture.

Because research shows positive work cultures lead to more innovation, growth and profit (and less stress).

You've probably encountered at least a few bozos and bullies in your life. I know I have. Iggy makes it clear your perception is a matter or perspective. More key takeaways:

• Power dynamics are real

Learn more about Iggy's transformational work at https://www.wslleadership.com/

Here are the books we discuss inspired by Iggy's Books Applied Podcast 

Quit - Annie Duke

Mindset - Carol Dweck

Peak - Anders Ericsson

Atomic Habits - James Clear

Dare to Lead - Brene Brown

The Dawn of Everything - David Graeber and David Wengrow

The Creative Act - Rick Rubin

The Forty Rules of Love - Elif Shafak

Pachinko - Min Jin Lee 

Talent is Overrated - Geoffrey Colvin 

Latebloomers - Rick Karlgaard

The War of Art - Steven Pressfield

The Artists Journey - Steven Pressfield

Do the Work - Steven Pressfield

Turning Pro - Steven Pressfield

Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t - Steven Pressfield

Dani Klein Modisett is a comedian, actor, author and accidental entrepreneur who (accidentally) founded, Laughter On Call - a company that runs innovative, interactive workshops for individuals and organizations rooted in mental wellness, designed to foster connection through shared laughter, by combining compassion with comedy to boost morale - when she saw the positive impact comedy had on her mother when she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. 

Since the company's founding in 2018, more than 20,000 people have been through the Laughter on Call program and it's now the subject of a Harvard Case Study.

I learned so much from this conversation. Key takeaways:

• Comedy is a craft that you can study and develop

Visit Laughter On Call to learn more about their individual and group services or how your company can make Laughter On Call part of your benefits package.

On this episode of Camera Ready & Abel my conversion with Aliza Licht continues but this time I am in the guest seat as I re-air my interview on her podcast, Leave Your Mark. This episode is brought to you by the phrase, it's always an audition, because no matter the career field you are in, a job interview is an audition. 

What makes a great audition? First off, to recognize that it starts the minute you walk into the building, so be memorable and be delightful. Leave the room better than you found it. Even if you don't land the gig, you'll make an impression that may pay dividends in the future.

Nuggets of wisdom shared in this episode became the seeds for what has grown to be Chapter 7 of Aliza’s new book ON BRAND: shape your narrative, share your vision, shift their perception, in which I was honored to be a contributor.

Aliza Licht is an award-winning marketer, bestselling author, podcaster, personal branding expert, and the founder of LEAVE YOUR MARK, a multimedia brand and consultancy. Learn more about Aliza and her check out her new book at www.alizalicht.com.

Problem: What's my personal brand?

Solution: Aliza Licht, my guest for this episode of Camera Ready & Abel discussing her new book, ON BRAND: shape your narrative, share your vision, shift their perception.

Aliza explains being on brand means you have a clear understanding of what you align with, what it is you want to be known for and how to make sure other people see you that way.

That last bit is key because your brand is your story and in the absence of your story, people will create one for you. 

The book notes for ON BRAND say it best: How you present in person, over email, and on social media communicates your personal brand. That brand deserves thoughtful cultivation and crafting as you shape your narrative, build your network, grow your confidence, and plot your future.

In a world where we communicate nonstop in both obvious and subtle ways, getting your message right and learning how to market yourself is paramount to success.

Full disclosure: I am honored to be included in chapter 7 of ON BRAND: Become a captivating speaker and own the room

Aliza is an award-winning marketer, bestselling author, podcaster, personal branding expert, and the founder of LEAVE YOUR MARK, a multimedia brand and consultancy.

Aliza’s first book, LEAVE YOUR MARK: Land Your Dream Job. Kill It in Your Career. Rock Social Media, provides personal and professional guidance for people just starting their careers and for people who are well on their way.

Learn more about Aliza at www.alizalicht.com and listen to her weekly podcast, Leave Your Mark.

Listen to Aliza discussing mentorship on Camera Ready & Abel here

ON BRAND: shape your narrative, share your vision, shift their perception is available wherever books are sold.

Time flies when you're learning and growing! I cannot believe this episode celebrates my two-year podaversary. It's been - and continues to be - a creative joy and an education which is why this episode of Camera Ready & Abel is brought to you by the word, GRATITUDE. From the Latin word gratis meaning thankful or pleasing.

I struggled for a bit before hitting the record button, wondering what I had to add to the Gratitude conversation, and then the Universe provided me with two quotes that helped reframe my internal dialogue on the subject:

The difference between thankfulness and gratitude is that thankfulness is an emotion, but gratitude is an attitude of appreciation under any circumstance which means gratitude is a state of being.

The second quote I heard in an online course I'm taking from the brilliant Gina Mollicone-Long who said, there's a difference between thinking about being grateful and actually physically being grateful. It's not enough to think you're grateful. You have to BE grateful.

The good news, which I explain in this episode, is that it's easy for all of us to get into a state of gratitude. As per usual, it begins with consciousness and intention.

I have endless gratitude to all of my guests for sharing their wit and wisdom and to you, for listening. Thank you.

If you need help getting to where you want to be from where you are today, please shoot me a note via my website abelintermedia.com and when you're there download my free ebook, 12 Tips for Success on Camera.

Sometimes the universe brings you the person you absolutely need to speak with in that moment, and that’s what happened when I connected with my guest for this episode, Matt LeBris, host of the top 1% globally ranked podcast Decoding Success which is hyper-focused on delivering value through decoding others’ success.

Matt insists he’s not great at math but he shares two powerful equations:

Events + Perspective = Outcome

Knowing How to do something + the Courage to do it = What you really need

Key takeaways:

• We can't control everything in life but we can control our perspective

Matt LeBris is a born and raised NY’er with the hustler's spirit. A Forbes 30 Under 30 nominee, Matt previously worked with Daymond John of Shark Tank and lives the mission to positively impact one life every day. 

Learn more about Matt and the Decoding Success podcast at hoo.be/decodingsuccess.