Ever Better Today

Marc Winn is a catalyst for change who lives on the island of Guernsey, a country unto itself in the English Channel. Marc's goal is to make Guernsey the best place to live on Earth by 2020. This might sound like an audacious goal, and many probably told him he was crazy when he first said these words out loud, but their newly elected president of ran on the platform of making Guernsey the best place to live on Earth by 2026! Thus demonstrating the impact of his work as a change agent.

Marc works outside of organized government but has an on-going dialogue with elected officials about improving government and society. And he hopes that his experiments will have an impact in other countries.

Here are some of Marc's quotes from the podcast:

• "The future of democracy doesn't look anything like it is right now."
• "We're not creating a following, we're creating a collective leadership."
• "There is a consciousness revolution happening in the world right now."
• "Alternative education needs to become mainstream education."
• "Never let how get in the way of starting a dream."
• "Speak out loud what you want to do in the world. Someone out there will have a piece of the puzzle."

Under the umbrella of The Dandelion Project, Marc and other volunteers (Marc is not compensated for his work) create and produce events and learning opportunities. In the podcast we spend more time discussing how change is happening in Guernsey and throughout the world than we do on specific projects please visit MarcWinn.com to learn more.

Listen to the podcast to learn about:

• Making revolutionary change happen within a single layer of government vs. the local, state and federal systems in the U.S.
• Flow-based learning methods such as Montessori. Consider that the Google founders grew up in an environment that values play.
• Evolving the school system to eliminate the link to the harvest and the industrial revolution.
• Having children work on challenging world issues so that they can solve problems with fearlessness and curiosity.
• Allowing children a safe space to fail.
• The link between mental health issues and the decrease in free play.
• Teaching children neuroscience to understand the role that marketing plays in business. Decision making in the brain.
• Advances in telepathy; it will change the world!
• Moving beyond scarcity thinking.
• The Biocybernaut Institute and how you can change your brain waves.
• Consciousness tech.
• The impact of Singularity University.

Check out Marc's podcast, Coffee from the Edge. We discuss his episode with Erin Matlock, founder of Brain Summit.

Other social movements:

• Jason Roberts, Build a Better Block
• The Incredible Edible Movement
• Making Fargo, N.D. the best city to live in the U.S.

Connect with Marc:

MarcWinn.com

The Dandelion Project

Facebook: #BelieveInGuernsey

Get in touch with Lisa through sending an email to [email protected].

When I looked back at the podcasts I published over the past few weeks I realized that my guests were all focused on books – writing them, creating them, and sharing them with the public.

• In Episode 20, my guest was Grace Freedson. She helps bring books to life about resilience, careers, business, and other non-fiction topics.
• In Episode 21, I interviewed Kimberly Palmer, a journalist and author whose third book, Smart Mom, Rich Mom, has just been published.
• In Episode 22, my guest was Valerie Gross, President and CEO of the Howard County Library System. Valerie has created a model for libraries where they are recognized as a key part of our public educational system.

It's not a big surprise that I found these three women because I love to read. I always have.

While growing up I used to read at night after I was supposed to be in bed. I had a night light next to my bed that I would use to read surreptitiously. I would build a stand using hardcover books and set my book on it just under the light, and of course, I would pretend to be asleep if I heard my mom or dad in the hallway.

You might have guessed that I love going to libraries. When my son was younger I took him to the library frequently. If I visited the library when he wasn't with me, I would check out a stack of books for him to browse through at home – and hopefully read. I wanted him to have constant exposure to children's books that covered a variety of topics so I chose biographies, science topics, and adventure stories. And, I still visit the library a couple of times a week to check out printed books, audio books, or DVDs for myself.

All that reading and all those library visits have led me to these three incredible guests.

Kimberly Palmer

Kimberly Palmer created her newest book Smart Mom, Rich Mom, How to Build Wealth While Raising a Family through applying the techniques she has honed as a journalist for more than 15 years. She felt it was important to share lessons about financial management from mothers of all ages so she found and interviewed 50 moms. Other books focus on clipping coupons and giving up your daily latte, but she wanted to dig into stories of managing money from real people, which she explains in this journal episode.

I often wonder how an author comes up with their book ideas. Kimberly explained that her parents would often talk about their finances and her mother wrote a letter to her and her sisters sharing her hard-won financial lessons. And this was some of the inspiration for her book.

Grace Freedson

The process of writing a book takes devotion and personal motivation. Each author approaches their work in a different way. As a book agent, Grace Freedson, my guest on episode 20, has seen many different work styles and discusses the discipline needed to write a book and how some authors approach their work.

An author has sell their idea to Grace or any other agent by researching the market for the book and creating a detailed proposal. They should also build a following through social media, a blog, or some other means. Grace discusses the proposal elements in this episode.

Valerie Gross

Valerie Gross, President and CEO of the Howard County Library System, is pursuing a mission to offer education to all through wide-ranging programs that are created based on needs of the community. In this journal episode, Valerie describes the importance of the library system and the impact of library programs.

Contact me: I love to hear from listeners! You can reach me directly at [email protected].

Valerie Gross, MM, MLS, JD, is President and CEO of an educational organization with a multi-million dollar budget, hundreds of employees, and seven locations - the Howard County, MD Library System. Her mission-driven approach is a model for similar organizations throughout the U.S. and internationally. She is an attorney who is a member of the California Bar, and she's an accomplished vocalist. And, she and her husband are the proud parents of a professional tennis player.

At a time, when it's not uncommon to hear that libraries have become irrelevant, Valerie and her team are serving the community in unexpected ways. And the results are clear. Visits to Howard County libraries are up from one to three million in the past decade, items borrowed have doubled to 7.3 million, and research assistants, and attendance at events has almost quadrupled to 306,000. Her staff are adaptable and pride themselves on offering excellent customer service and they study best practices from successful corporations.

Valerie is at the forefront of a movement to bring public libraries back into view as educational institutions alongside the community college and K-12 public schools. She and her team have created programs such as A+ Partners in Education, Choose Civility, Summer Reading, The Enchanted Garden, Teen Centers, live homework assistance, and even a STEM center where students do hands-on projects like building and launching a weather balloon. One library branch will even be loaning tools like ladders and hammers, and offering instruction on basic home improvement projects.

Listen to this podcast to hear Valerie discuss the evolution of her career, her favorite book series, personal practices, and how her library system gets ever better. We also discuss:

• Three pillars of Libraries = Education
• • Self-directed education
  • Research assistance & instruction
  • Instructive & enlightening experiences
• Three branches of public education: library, community college, and K-12 public schools
• The history of libraries; they were established in the U.S. before the public school system
• Transitioning from working for a law firm to managing a public library system
• Similarities between Berkley, CA and Howard County, MD
• Cultural diversity in Howard County and especially Columbia, MD
• HI! The Howard County Library logo
• Balancing her love of music and art with her work
• Programs such as:
• • Choose Civility, an on-going movement led by the library involving numerous community partners with activities, forums, books, and car magnets encouraging considerate conduct based on the book by P.M. Forni.
  • Choose Civility Hackathon
  • Battle of the Books involving 5th graders from every Howard County elementary school
  • Summer reading program
  • What's in my artbox?
  • The Enchanted Garden
• Branch features like: Teen centers, STEM areas, a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) center
• How musical training and performing prepares one for giving presentations

Contact Lisa at [email protected].

Kimberly Palmer writes, speaks and teaches about making smart money and life choices.

She's married and has two children, teaches a class on social media, has a full-time job as a writer/editor with AARP and has an Etsy shop. Her third book, "Smart Mom, Rich Mom: How to Build Wealth While Raising a Family" has just been released!

Kimberly takes a multi-generational approach to her work, honoring the wisdom of mothers of all ages. In this discussion she shares how a letter about money that her mother wrote to her when she was 21 inspired and informed her work. She also discusses:

• Juggling family, a job, a writing career, an Etsy shop, and teaching social media classes,
• Wisdom from her new book with advice for women at all stages of mothering,
• Pitching and winning her first book deal,
• Setting and tracking weekly, monthly, and yearly goals,
• The many possibilities for new empty-nesters,
• Giving an allowance,
• Teaching children about money,
• Reading The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf as a young teen, and
• The value of visiting the library.

Feel free to send me a note! I love to connect with listeners! [email protected]

Grace Freedson is a leader in the book publishing world who represents authors as a literary agent and works with publishers to shape their offerings. She was Managing Editor and Director of Acquisitions for Barron's. (The company that publishes SAT and AP prep books.) But she recognized that her future career prospects there were limited and crafted a plan to start her own company by the year 2000. And sure enough, her Y2K plan was fulfilled when she formed Grace Freedson's Publishing Network.

In our discussion Grace shares her journey through the publishing and entrepreneurial world, and helps to demystify the publishing process. She explains the steps an aspiring author would follow to secure a book contract including writing a proposal and developing a following to market the book. Learn more about the authors that Grace represents through listening to Podcast 011 with Doug Hensch.

Listen to the podcast to hear Grace discuss:

• Finding a job that suits your personal needs. Grace began her publishing career at a job close to home that allowed her to be home with her daughter in the afternoons.
• The elements of a book proposal,
• The importance of building a following before submitting a book proposal,
• Practices for meeting deadlines,
• Why she works with non-fiction books,
• Bookstores, libraries, and the new places where books are being sold,
• Maintaining a balanced life, and
• Her involvement with the Women's Media Group.

Contact: [email protected]

Kristen Iuppenlatz Grech just celebrated the 10th anniversary of her pilates studio, Pilates Collective, in Sebastopol, CA. And, she recently launched PilatesHomePractice.com to share the power of Pilates and her motivating videos with people all over the world. Even if you don't know what Pilates is, you'll be inspired by Kristen's story of launching a fitness-based business venture after many years of working a tech job while also doing acting and voice over gigs.

In this discussion, Kristen shares how manically driving between jobs and auditions resulted in two car accidents. This led her to physical therapy and eventually to pilates. And over a period of time, she dedicated her life to helping others through Pilates.

Listen to the podcast to hear Kristen describe:

• Transitioning from Pilates student to studio owner
• How a blind date changed the course of her life
• Simple exercises you can do while listening to the podcast
• What Pilates is (Hint: it's more than just exercise!)
• Getting creative juices flowing by jumping on a rebounder, mini-trampoline while listening to Polish Polka. See video below!
• Playful pilates. See video below!
• The importance of stretching throughout the day as animals and children do
• Starting your day in a way that works for you

If you've experienced a life transition that you'd like to share, contact me at [email protected]

Learn more at http://www.EverBetterU.com

In this third journal episode, my four most recent guests discussed major goals that they achieved that in hindsight were stepping stones to something greater.

In Journal Episode 1, I shared ten practices from my first ten guests and you can read the transcript from that episode on my blog at EverBetterU.com/blog.

In Journal Episode 2, I discussed how every single guest has shaped their life by following their interests, and then taking that a step further by teaching what they've learned along the way. This continues to be true with my most recent guests Jason Wrobel, Anita Kulkarni, Sarah Mastriani-Levi, and Joleene Moody.

This episode highlights how my four most recent guests followed their interests and pursued very specific opportunities to explore and develop their skills. And each one of them discussed how those opportunities helped them get to where they are today. What caused them to pursue these stepping stone experiences? They each talked about an inner drive to explore these pursuits.

• Jason Wrobel had a very, very specific goal of doing a vegan chef prime time cooking series. He created a vision board that he looked at every day. Because he was thinking about and working towards his larger goal, whenever a steppingstone opportunity came his way, he took it. And you guessed it, one day he got the opportunity to develop the show he had already created in his mind. This show introduced him to a wider audience, many of whom became his followers on YouTube. Today, he shares messages of nutrition, fitness, and other elements of healthy lifestyle with over 35,000 subscribers to his YouTube video blog. Ultimately, his large goal of having a prime time cooking show became a stepping stone to creating his book Eaternity, a cooking and lifestyle book. In this clip, Jason describes how he uses a vision board to move closer to his goals every single day.

• Anita Kulkarni was in medical school and sought out a program where she learned to do microsurgery. This led to her desire to be a plastic surgeon and while doing a fellowship, she had an experience with a very grateful patient that put her on the path to where she is today. Helping breast cancer patients, including me.

• Joleene Moody was working for a television station covering high-octane news stories. She enjoyed her work at first but was left with little time or energy to write. And she was felt driven to share the positive messages that were almost bursting out of her. After being hit in the head while covering a story at the courthouse, she decided to quit her job to make her way as a speaker and a writer. Today, she's a full-time entrepreneur, speaker, coach, and playwright. Here's Joleene describing her leap!

• Sarah Mastriani-Levi is not an M.D. but she wanted to understand Chinese medicine and acupuncture. So she applied to, and was accepted at a program where she immersed herself in these practices. And, then she took her training a step further. She ventured up to the Mongolian border to work closely and learn from people who were doing more traditional healing. This knowledge allowed her to step up her practice as a holistic healer in Israel where she practiced for 12 years before returning to the U.S. Today, she's a holistic health coach, chef, co-author of four best-selling books, and host of the Simple Change Podcast.

Listen to the full podcasts with these guests or learn more at EverBetterU.com.

Sarah Mastriani-Levi is a holistic health coach, leader of leaders, a chef specializing in plant-based cuisine, and founder of Mannafest Living. When someone is seeking a change in their life, they may not know what steps to take first, and Sarah helps guide them through these periods. Her work is rooted in appreciation of cultures developed while living in various parts of the U.S. as well as Israel and China.

Sarah is the proud mother of four talented children! She has also found time to co-author three international best-selling books and is contributing to a fourth. And, she is the host and producer of the Simple Change Podcast.

Sarah joined me on Ever Better for a discussion that included:

• Raising children who can hang with jazz greats, and the inherent challenges
• Moving to China to learn acupuncture and Chinese medicine
• Practicing holistic medicine in Israel and the U.S.
• Guiding clients through life transitions and tips for making changes
• Practicing leadership
• Learning to cook Moroccan food and plant-based cuisine
• Weaning off addictions like cigarettes and switching from glucose to fructose
• Producing her podcast, Simple Change, in which I was an honored guest. Listen here.

Request a free, downloadable copy of the Ever Better eBook: EverBetterU.com/book.

Dr. Anita Kulkarni is a plastic & reconstructive surgeon with a special interest in breast reconstruction following a mastectomy. Dr. Kulkarni holds a special place in my life because after I was diagnosed with breast cancer, she partnered with my breast surgeon, Dr. Pamela Wright, to perform my mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.

She joined me on Ever Better for a discussion that included:

• Tips for someone who is newly diagnosed with breast cancer. Above all...don't panic!
• Practices for quicker recovery and a healthier lifestyle
• Why she chose to be a plastic surgeon and her first breast cancer patients at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer center.
• The rarity of female plastic surgeons.
• Growing up as the child of immigrants who emphasized education and learning a profession.
• Dr. Kulkarni's other specialty, "the mommy makeover."
• Fitting workouts with her husband into her busy schedule.
• Studying the Bhagavad Gita and mindfulness practices from the Hindu religion.

About Dr. Anita Kulkarni

Dr. Kulkarni grew up in New Jersey and graduated from Northwestern University in Chicago. She attended medical school at the University of Chicago, Pritzker School of Medicine. Her residency was at the University of Michigan, one of the oldest and most respected plastic surgery training programs in the country. There she received comprehensive training in both cosmetic and reconstructive surgery.

Dr. Kulkarni completed an additional year of advanced training at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York where she developed expertise in breast cancer related techniques.

She is now with the Plastic Surgery Institute of Washington, in Bethesda, MD.

Connect with Anita

Plastic Surgery Institute of Washington

Twitter

Joleene Moody is a conduit for change! From the moment you hear her voice you'll understand her power to help those who want to uncover and discover who and what they are truly meant to be and do. Joleene believes that talents aren't meant to sit idle. They are the key to your absolute abundance. Always.

Joleene is a former television reporter and anchor turned keynote speaker, author and blogger. After getting punched in the head while covering a story, Joleene finally left a job she found dissatisfying to fulfill her dreams and earn the income she desired. In this podcast we discuss:

• Joleene's journey from anchor to speaker, author and blogger,
• Realizing a job is not right (or healthy) after getting punched in the head while covering a story at the courthouse,
• What it means to be an entrepreneur and blogger,
• Having impact - learning that someone decided not to commit suicide after hearing her talk,
• Coming back from burnout,
• Practicing gratitude,
• Cultivating multiple income streams,
• Being grounded in grace,
• Living in the now,
• Never giving up, and
• Writing and producing a play.

Learn more practices for continuous improvement!

EverBetterU.com/Book

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