Let's Get Real

Join internationally recognized facilitator and leadership coach Nina Simonds for the second season of Let's Get Real, an exploration of what it means to be a leader and activist in a world of increasing complexity and ambiguity.   This season Nina continues to have REAL (relevant, engaging, authentic, leadership) conversations that illuminate how our experiences shape who we are and what matters to us.   She also speaks with colleagues about the practice and evolution of leadership and personal development.  

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Nina and Andy chat about surprising moments and highlights of Season One. Nina also gives a sneak preview of Season Two.  They had a surprise guest in the studio. 

Season Two launches on April 12, 2021.

Zoey's Instagram

Nina's Instagram

Andy's Instagram 

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José Trinidad Castaneda  (he/they) is a rising star in fighting for climate change and clean energy in Orange County.  He is the Orange County Policy Manager with Climate Action Campaign and currently serves on the City of Fullerton Planning Commission. He is also the  Communications Director for the Lavender Democrats of Orange County.  José opened up about early experiences that shaped his passion for climate action and social justice.  Nina and José also talked about the intersection between public policy issues such as housing and climate and the importance of approaching social change holistically.  He also shared where he feels the greatest sense of belonging and what inspires him to keep in the fight for a sustainable planet and a more equitable world.

Nina Simonds Coaching Peer Groups

Climate Action Campaign

José Trinidad Castaneda

José on Twitter

Lavender Democrats 

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Veronica King is a master facilitator, executive coach and social justice advocate based in Johannesburg. She is the founder and CEO of Emuthini Consulting which she established in 2002.   She draws on her extensive organizational experience at the senior executive level to work primarily with issues of inclusion and diversity with both private and public sector clients.  She shared what it was like to begin her career under Apartheid and how she found her authentic self by letting go of needing to make whites comfortable.  Nina and Veronica got real about how rank showed up in their conversation and where Nina's white lens limits her understanding of Veronica's experience.  It was obvious in this conversation that her work is driven by a deeply held commitment to social justice and transformation.

Resources

Emuthini Consulting

White Fragility by Robin Diangelo

How to be Anti-Racist by Ibram X Kendi

Octavia Butler

Caste by Isabel Wilkerson

Nina Simonds Coaching Peer Groups

My Grandmother's Hands by Resmaa Menakem 

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Eldra Jackson III is the co-director of Inside Circle, an organization that empowers people who have been affected by the criminal justice system to lead change from within.  They provide opportunities for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people to heal and serve both themselves and others.  Eldra shared how his choices as a teen led to the gangster life and eventually a life sentence in New Folsom state prison.  He talked about what it took to survive in these subcultures and his transformation from toxic masculinity and criminal behavior to personal responsibility and spirit.   Nina and Eldra talked about the need for both individual choice and community support to truly create lasting social change.  Eldra's passion for helping young people with both the practical and inner work of having a good life was apparent in this conversation. 

Inside Circle
https://insidecircle.org/

Eldra's Ted Talk
How I unlearned dangerous lessons about masculinity

The New Jim Crow

Nina Simonds Coaching 
https://ninasimondscoaching.com  

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Melanie Ramil is Executive Director of Emerge California,  a non-profit organization that identifies and helps women and minorities in California be elected to public office. Emerge America was praised by Hillary Clinton as a group that has impressed her since the 2016 election at helping get Democrats elected to office

Ramil is a superstar in her field and has dedicated her career to ensuring that institutions embrace and reflect the diversity of the constituencies they serve.  Melanie has led and won multiple statewide campaigns, including the one for United States Senator Kamala Harris.

In this conversation Melanie opened up about her journey to embrace her Filipina identity.  Nina and Melanie also riffed on what kind of VP Harris will be and how her leadership will transform the role.  We also made some distinctions between identity politics and discussed why it really matters to have more women in office. 

Resources

And She Could Be Next: A Documentary

Emerge California

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Melanie's Story on NPR's Race Card Project  

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Andy Simonds, the audio engineer and co-producer of Let's Get Real (Nina and Andy also happen to be married,) is the guest for this episode.  We have a quick chat and get real about the origins of the show and what it's like to work together in a more professional context.  Nina also shares a bit what's coming in the second half of Season One.  

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Neil Edwards is a soulful leader and perceptive coach who works at the intersection of leadership, relationships, wellbeing, and inclusion.  As an executive coach, he supports leaders and teams, centering values and purpose, and sees mature leadership as an outgrowth of identity work.  In this conversation Neil shared early experiences of racism from his move from the Bahamas to the U.S.  Nina and Neil also explored how belonging is connected to ownership and ways black people are excluded in the United States.  Finally we discussed our hopes for the future of coaching now that coaching schools are focused on becoming more inclusive.  

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Matt Lydon is a former Microsoft executive who led the team that successfully launched Bing search. He is the recipient of the elite Founders Award given by Bill Gates for superior leadership and innovation.  Matt joined Let's Get Real to talk about what it's like to navigate a disability that is invisible to others especially in the early stages.  Matt and Nina also talked about what it was like for him to be a leader at Microsoft during it's cultural transformation under Satya Nadella.  They also discussed the power of transparency and asking for help. 

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Monica Chi is a Managing Partner with The Trium Group, a consulting and leadership development firm committed to the practice of unlocking potential in people and organizations.   Monica joins Let's Get Real to talk about growing up second-generation Korean American in multi-cultural Los Angeles and how the model minority myth influenced her own sense of self.  Monica also shared what she learned about leading change at the FBI as a Special Assistant to Robert Mueller post 9/11.   Monica and Nina also geeked out about leadership development and the relationship between cultural and personal transformation. 

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