Gary Dixon - President, The Foundation for a Better Life

Every once in a while, we all find ourselves wanting for a little inspiration. We may feel burnt out from working long hours, or depleted by the burden of caregiving, or discouraged by a creative rut. We may feel disconnected from a greater purpose, wondering if our efforts are doing anything at all. But the good news is that the right nudge, at just the right time, can relight our fires and get us back into the game. Today’s guest makes those moments of inspiration possible–highlighting heroic stories online, on the radio, on TV–and sometimes–even as you’re driving down the highway. Together, we’ll examine the question:  

Can one person’s values really make a difference?

A conversation with Gary Dixon, President of the Foundation for a Better Life, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Gary Dixon has served as President at The Foundation for a Better Life since its founding in 1999. The Foundation for a Better Life promotes positive values through the media.  Their public service announcements, based on values such as hope, honesty, encouragement and generosity are currently being seen on television in the United States over five million times each day.  They are also airing in over 200 countries around the world.  Additionally, these inspiring messages appear on thousands of billboards across the country, including Times Square.  The Foundation makes posters and DVDs available to thousands of schools each year, at no charge.  It offers these messages in an effort to promote good values, good role models and a better life.  

Formerly, Gary served as vice president of Bonneville Communications where he directed the creative development of many successful campaigns, including Homefront, Major League Baseball, Children’s Miracle Network and the American Cancer Society.   He has also been a speaker at regional and national advertising conferences for the American Advertising Federation and a keynote speaker for various events.  Other assignments took him to Jakarta, where he served as a communications consultant on an Indonesian government project and, early in his career, to Japan where he directed a documentary on the first Trans-Pacific flight.  Gary has a master’s degree in communications from Brigham Young University and a bachelor’s in broadcasting from Texas Tech University.  He serves on the National Board of Directors for the College of Media and Communication at TTU.  He lives in Denver with his wife Susan and their family. 

Foundation for a Better Life website:

www.passiton.com

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Chris and Ian now have a book! It's called Brave Together: Lead by design, spark creativity, and shape the future with the power of co-creation. Available online at McGraw Hill and Amazon.

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Dan Ariely - Professor, Behavioral Economics

When you run a business, one of your jobs is to make wise choices about where you place your bets. This definitely applies in the marketplace with your customers and competitors, but it also applies internally–especially as it relates to how you treat your people. How do you slice the pie? Maybe you offer pet insurance. Or more vacation time. What’s going to create the conditions for your people to help the company win? Today’s guest has worked very hard to demystify that puzzle. With the mind of a researcher and the heart of a storyteller, he’ll help us consider the question:   

What do employees care about most?

It’s a conversation with Dan Ariely, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Dan Ariely, James B. Duke Professor of Psychology & Behavioral Economics at Duke University, is dedicated to answering these questions and others in order to help people live more sensible – if not rational – lives. His interests span a wide range of behaviors, and his sometimes unusual experiments are consistently interesting,

He is a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight, co-creator of the film documentary (Dis)Honesty: The Truth About Lies, and a three-time New York Times bestselling author. His books include Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, The Honest Truth About Dishonesty, Irrationally Yours, Payoff, Dollars and Sense, Amazing Decisions, and the forthcoming Misbelief: What makes rational people believe irrational things, available now for preorder.

Dan's website:

danariely.com

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Scott Belsky - Chief Strategy Officer, Adobe

Every organization has a culture–whether it be a family, a company, or even a sports team. Most of the time, there’s an unspoken assumption that people on the team will share a set of attributes and values. Over time, this can lead to a homogenizing effect–also known as groupthink. Deviations become less frequent, because they disrupt the balance. But in our ever-changing world, is that really what we want? Our guest today has spent years building cultures, teams, and platforms with a singular focus: giving new ideas the oxygen they need. He’ll help us reflect on the question:  

How can we protect creative thinking?

A conversation with Scott Belsky, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Scott Belsky is an entrepreneur, author, investor, and now serves as EVP & Chief Product Officer at Adobe. Scott founded Behance, the leading online platform for the creative industry to showcase and discover creative work, and served as CEO until Adobe acquired Behance in 2012. He is an early product advisor and investor in Pinterest, Uber, Carta, Flexport, sweetgreen, Ro, as well as several others in the early stages. Scott is also the author of two national bestselling books: Making Ideas Happen and The Messy Middle, writes a popular monthly newsletter called *Implications,* and founded 99U, a publication and annual conference devoted to productivity in the creative world.

Scott's website:

https://www.scottbelsky.com/

Scott's newsletter:

https://www.implications.com/

The Messy Middle book:

https://www.themessymiddle.com/

Making Ideas Happen book:

https://www.scottbelsky.com/bio-part-3-1

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Gale Pooley - Economist and Author

With so much at stake in the decisions we make, especially at the global, societal, and environmental levels, it can be easy to feel like our options and our resources are ever-diminishing. We are emotional creatures, and the narratives we embrace matter. Our guest today has spent years tracking some of the most important metrics on earth–things like literacy rates, access to food, and availability of medicine. Far from being an escapist framework to deny the existence of real-world problems, our conversation today left us with the feeling that we had just visited a refueling station, and we were now ready to jump back in to keep doing the hard work. So today, we’ll consider the hopeful question:  

Are we actually doing better than we think we are?

A conversation with economist and author Gale Pooley, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Gale L. Pooley is an associate professor of business management at Brigham Young University-Hawaii. He has taught economics and statistics at Alfaisal University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Brigham Young University-Idaho, Boise State University, and the College of Idaho.

Dr. Pooley earned his BBA in Economics at Boise State University. He did graduate work at Montana State University and completed his PhD at the University of Idaho. In 1986 he founded Analytix Group, a real estate valuation and consulting firm. The Analytix Group has performed over 5,000 appraisals in the U.S. and Saudi Arabia.

Dr. Pooley has held professional designations from the Appraisal Institute, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, and the CCIM Institute. He has published articles in Forbes, National Review, HumanProgress, The American Spectator, FEE, the Utah Bar Journal, the Appraisal Journal, Quillette, and RealClearMarkets.

Dr. Pooley is a Senior Fellow with the Discovery Institute and serves on the board of HumanProgress.org. He is also a member of the Mont Pelerin Society. He has presented at FreedomFest and the COSM Technology conference. His major research activity has been the Simon Abundance Index, which he co-authored with Dr. Marian Tupy.

Dr. Pooley's book, Superabundance, is available here.

Superabundance website:

https://www.superabundance.com/

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Bonnie Lin - Impact Investor and Advisor

At BraveCore, we believe in turning pain into power. This can mean different things to different people, but at its heart, the principle teaches us that instead of avoiding a challenge or remaining stuck in our pain, we choose to let it fuel our future. Today’s guest is one of the best examples we’ve seen yet. Whether winning a fight with cancer, grappling with questions about her life’s purpose, or digging deep to redefine hardships of the past, she’s seeking sustainable, meaningful ways to empower the global citizens of tomorrow. Together, she’ll help us ponder the question:  

How can we create opportunities for future generations?

A conversation with impact investor and advisor Bonnie Lin, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Bonnie Lin is the Managing Director of The Rainmakers Global and Investment Committee member of Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund (SV2). She is an impact investor, advisor, and speaker who specializes in scaling technology ventures in global markets and works with family offices, corporates, and governments to accelerate innovation ecosystems with strategic capital.

Bonnie has spent 25 years driving innovation and growth in private, public, and nonprofit sectors in North America and the Asia Pacific, and has expertise in change leadership, venture capital, and economic development. Her background spans marketing for 90s dot coms turned tech giants, lean manufacturing, global supply chain, and cross-border M&A in Taiwan and China, and R&D grants under the Obama Administration during the 2008 Recession. In addition to working with over 100 leaders from Fortune 500 companies to Shark Tank, she founded 4 companies including a tech startup and real estate investment brokerage. 

A cancer survivor whose childhood was spent in a Buddhist monastery, Bonnie is led by a purpose to collaborate for the responsible transfer of intergenerational wealth, knowledge, and power for the greater good. An advocate for education, entrepreneurship, and women in leadership, she is a Board Trustee of The Fogarty Foundation, mentors entrepreneurs, and has previously served on the boards of the US District Export Council and Pacific Northwest Defense Coalition.

Bonnie resides in San Francisco and Perth and is fluent in Mandarin Chinese. She earned her Bachelors at the University of California, Berkeley, her MBA from the University of Phoenix, and completed executive certificates in Venture Capital and Economics from Berkeley School of Law and Value Investing from Columbia Business School.

Bonnie's website:

https://www.bonnielin.com

Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund:

https://www.sv2.org

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John Ondrasik - Singer and Songwriter, Five For Fighting

In The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien captures a solid bit of advice from Bilbo, directed toward his nephew Frodo. He says, 

“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”

In the pursuit of success, it’s tempting to chase shiny objects. That’s certainly true in the music industry. But in spite of having two platinum albums, hundreds of credits on soundtracks, ads, and tv shows, AND composing a song that brought America together in the days following 9/11, today’s guest has stayed grounded, even as he continued to dream big dreams. Together, we’ll consider the question:  

How can you stay true to yourself as a leader?

A conversation with John Ondrasik, AKA Five For Fighting, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

The only way for a story to progress is to turn the page. John Ondrasik— the songwriter and performer known as the platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated, Five For Fighting—knows this well. In the two decades since his first major single, “Superman (It’s Not Easy),” hit the stratosphere, the artist has both evolved and come back ‘round full circle. Creativity, if nothing else, is paradoxical.

To date, Five For Fighting, has released six studio LPs, including the platinum certified America Town and The Battle for Everything; and the top-10 charting Two Lights, along with an EP and live albums.

Ondrasik has penned major hits, including the chart-topping “100 Years,” “The Riddle,” “Chances,” “World,” and “Easy Tonight,” which have earned tens of millions of streams and place him as a top-10 Hot Adult Contemporary artist for the 2000s. The reflective “100 Years” has joined “Superman (It’s Not Easy)” as part of the American Songbook and continues to stand the test of time at weddings, birthdays, graduations, memorials, and many a home video. Five For Fighting’s music has also been featured in more than 350 films, television shows, and commercials, including the Oscar-winning The Blind Side, Hawaii Five-O, The Sopranos and the CBS drama, Code Black.

Today, Ondrasik spends his time writing music, touring, working at the family business, and enjoying life with his wife, two children, and dog Ender.

Learn more about John's work at

www.fiveforfighting.com

www.whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com

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Clint Schaff - Former Producer and Founder, LA Times Studios

Mary Anne Radmacher wrote that “Your responsibility is to be an explorer, not a tourist in this adventure that is your life.” Our guest today took up that challenge from the time he was a kid: dreaming of robots, searching for community, and as he got older, discovering and amplifying stories that matter, at one of the biggest news agencies in the world. His professional expeditions have been so varied that his very impressive career resists categorization. So instead, we’ll lean in as he parts the curtain and we jointly consider this question:  

What makes a career meaningful?

A conversation with Clint Schaff, former producer and founder of L.A. Times Studios, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Clint Schaff is award-winning producer of audio, television, film, and live-event projects, and a communicator and connector for social good.  He works independently, with media and journalism organizations, with cultural institutions, and with brands and companies. In 2020, Adweek honored Clint as one of its Creative 100, which celebrates the 100 most inspiring minds in marketing, media and culture, and as one of ten honorees in the category of Media Innovators. 

Since moving to Bentonville, Arkansas in 2021, Clint has been busy. He has founded FIXIN, which brings to market media products that have an intention to positively change the world, and distributed its first full-length music album, “Bring On The…” from PARISHES. In 2022, Clint joined the campaign to elect Chris Jones—the physicist/minister/educator/non-profit leader, and Democratic nominee for Governor of Arkansas—as the campaign’s communications director.

Best known for his work as Vice President of Strategy and Development at the Los Angeles Times, Clint was the first employee and founding operator of L.A. Times Studios, and was responsible for the development and programming of various audio, video and experiential projects. Successful projects include the immensely popular Dirty John podcast and two seasons of Dirty John, the television series franchise (which aired on Bravo and USA networks for Seasons 1 and 2, respectively). Clint has led the development and business-side operations around many successful podcasts, including Man In the Window, Larger Than Life, Room 20, Chasing Cosby, It Was Simple: The Betty Broderick Murders, The Trials of Frank Carson, Asian Enough and The Times: Daily news from the L.A. Times.  At the Los Angeles Times, Clint has led several strategic initiatives and launched new platforms including L.A. Times Today, an Emmy-winning nightly news magazine show on Spectrum News 1 SoCal; the Newstory storytelling festival, which brought five stages of cutting-edge tech-driven medium stories to the long-standing L.A. Times Festival of Books; and the upcoming launch of L.A. Times Short Docs, which introduces established and emerging filmmakers through the company's opinion section.

Prior to Los Angeles Times, Clint was U.S. General Manager directing all domestic operations, creative and account activities for Vision7 integrated advertising teams in Los Angeles and New York.  Before that, Clint served as a Vice President for digital at two leading global agencies, Edelman and Golin. Over the course of his career, he has earned praise and awards for his work with high-profile brands and organizations including Procter & Gamble, Activision, Nintendo, Nestle, POM Wonderful, FIJI Water, Wonderful Pistachios, the Clinton-Gore White House, David Bowie, and the New York Yankees,.

Clint has a BA in Communications & Political Science from the University of Minnesota and a MA from the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism. After earning his graduate degree from USC, he returned to USC Annenberg for 10 years to teach as an adjunct instructor.

Clint lives in Bentonville, Arkansas, and enjoys hosting Hip Hop Hello—a weekly radio show on both 103.3 KOBV Bentonville Community Radio and KUAF Fayetteville NPR affiliate, rapping hip hop karaoke, attending live sporting events and concerts, and nature walks with his wife Jessica, doggy Mia, and Baby Carter.

Connect with Clint on Social:

LinkedIn • Facebook • Twitter

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Steve Young - NFL MVP quarterback and author

Let’s assume for a minute that you’ve just landed your dream job–your new employer is a household name, your title is the envy of thousands, and of course, you’re well-paid. But what would you do if you found yourself miserable with your new situation? Our guest today faced that very situation. But through some soul-searching, and a life-changing conversation on a flight, he found his path forward–and also discovered a few things about life, love, and football. He’ll help us consider the question:  

How can we become more selfless leaders?

A conversation with former NFL MVP quarterback and author Steve Young, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Steve Young is the President and Co-Founder of HGGC, and a Director of Pathfinder Acquisition Corp. Steve serves as Chairman of the Board of four HGGC portfolio companies: IDERA, Integrity, Dealer-FX and AutoAlert. Prior to their sales, he also served as a member of the Board of Directors for the firm’s exited investments in hybris Software (acquired by SAP AG (NYSE: SAP)), Serena Software (acquired by Micro Focus International plc (NYSE: MFGP)) and Sunquest Information Systems (acquired by Roper Technologies (NYSE: ROP)).

Prior to the inception of HGGC, Steve's professional football career spanned more than 15 years in the NFL, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers, where he received numerous accolades, including Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XXIX, Sports Illustrated and Sporting News' Player of the Year from 1992 - 1994 and the NFL's Most Valuable Player for 1992 and 1994. In 2005, Steve was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the first left-handed quarterback to be so honored. When he retired, Steve was the highest-rated quarterback in NFL history and has the distinction of being the only signal caller in league annals to win four consecutive NFL passing titles.

Steve founded and chairs the Forever Young Foundation which is actively involved in children's charities worldwide and is currently the broadcast host as well as the former International Spokesperson for the Children's Miracle Network, which has raised over $1 billion dollars worldwide to benefit children's hospitals.

Steve earned a J.D. from the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University and a B.S. in Finance and Political Science from Brigham Young University.

Buy The Law of Love here:

https://www.amazon.com/Law-Love-Steve-Young/dp/1639930310

Buy QB: My Life Behind the Spiral here: 

https://www.amazon.com/QB-My-Life-Behind-Spiral/dp/0544845765/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1683271315&sr=1-1

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Guy Kawasaki - Podcaster and Chief Evangelist, Canva

An impressive, and sometimes controversial group of figures populates the pantheon of people who changed the world: Walt Disney; Estee Lauder; Jane Goodall; Henry Ford; Marie Curie; Gandhi; Steve Jobs; Martin Luther King Jr. It’s tempting to assume that for this lot, greatness was somehow bestowed, like a birthright. And yet, when we dig deeper, we find that our remarkable people had to muddle through forks in the road, just like we do. Today, we’ll hear from a man who knows a thing or two about pivoting–in business, in family, and in life. He’ll help us consider a really tough question:

What’s the best career strategy?

An entertaining conversation with fellow podcaster Guy Kawasaki, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist of Canva and the creator of Guy Kawasaki’s Remarkable People podcast. He is an executive fellow of the Haas School of Business (UC Berkeley), and adjunct professor of the University of New South Wales. He was the chief evangelist of Apple and a trustee of the Wikimedia Foundation. He has written Wise Guy, The Art of the Start 2.0, The Art of Social Media, Enchantment, and eleven other books. Kawasaki has a BA from Stanford University, an MBA from UCLA, and an honorary doctorate from Babson College.

Guy's podcast:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/guy-kawasakis-remarkable-people/id1483081827

Guy's website:

https://guykawasaki.com

https://guykawasaki.com/books/

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Liz Ryan - CEO, Human Workplace

Chris, Ian, and I owe a lot to the thinkers who’ve inspired us to focus on this work. Sometimes, you just come across someone whose insights, vision, conviction, and courage are so powerful that they seem to have their own gravitational field. Isaac Newton once wrote, “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.” Well, we recently met one of our giants. Her unique blend of tough love, creativity, and business acumen have positioned her to speak truth to power, and boldly invite leaders to get back to the basics. Together we’ll consider the question: 

What if we made work more human?

A table-slapping conversation with Liz Ryan, on this episode of Lead With a Question.

Guest Bio:

Liz Ryan is the CEO and Founder of Human Workplace, a content and consulting firm whose mission is to reinvent work for people.

Liz is a former Fortune 500 SVP of HR and the world's most widely read workplace advisor. She is the author of Reinvention Roadmap: Break the Rules to Get the Job You Want and Career You Deserve; Red-Blooded HR: Essays on Human Resources as a Force for Good; and Righteous Recruiting: Essays on Reinventing Talent Acquisition for People. Liz is the host of the Work Related Podcast and a beloved advisor to three million leaders and working people who share her vision for a human-powered working world. 

www.humanworkplace.com

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