Power & Impact

Today on Power & Impact, we're sharing an impactful story of mental illness and recovery.

You might know Chuck Thuss from his exceptional athletic career as a team owner, coach, and All-American hockey player. What you might not know is that despite his polite demeanor and athletic success, Chuck was suffering in silence from severe anxiety and depression.

After what he believed was divine intervention, Chuck was able to reach out and get help. With the support of a trusted confidant, family, friends, and especially his wife, Chuck found the tools he needed to begin healing and manage his mental health.

Chuck and I discuss his journey, from his lowest point to recovery, and how he's been able to help others who have been through similar struggles. Not only will his story bring a tear to your eye, but it will also inspire hope and give you actionable tips on how to help those in your life who are struggling.

I am incredibly impressed with Chuck and believe that his message should be shared, to help others who are living with similar conditions or understand someone who is.

For nearly 45 years, Bob Diamond has been an influential figure in the world of banking. Starting his banking career at Morgan Stanley, Bob went on to hold leadership positions as CS Boston and Barclays PLC, where he rose to the rank of CEO. Currently, Bob is a Founding Partner and CEO of Atlas Merchant Capital, a company that seeks to build long-term value for their investors through differentiated expertise in financial services and credit markets.

In this episode of the Power & Impact podcast, Bob sits down with Jim to discuss current economic challenges such as inflation and the banking crisis, the state of capital and its global implications, and the importance of family.

Today on Power & Impact, John Gargano, General Manager at Craft, joins Jim to share one of the most emotional and inspiring stories I’ve ever encountered.

Faced with what he thought to be a life-ending diagnosis, John gave up and fell into an addiction which led to a prison sentence, during which John built himself back up from scratch.  He was eventually released under President Obama’s clemency program, but John’s story doesn’t end there.

Given a second chance, John was relentless and used every opportunity he had available to succeed. “It was a rough road,” but John’s message to everyone is so powerful, “With the right choices and motivation you can change anything.”  

John and Jim met through Crafted Hospitality, which operates restaurants by the award-winning chef Tom Colicchio.  A partner of Smile Farms, Craft offers employment to adults with disabilities and provides opportunities for growth.  Through them, Jim got to know John and hear about his incredible journey of second chances and redemption.  

Join us for this can’t-miss interview that just may bring a tear to your eye.

Today on Power & Impact, we welcome leadership expert and keynote speaker Stephen Shedletzky, better known by his nickname "Shed."

Shed's prolific career leading teams and building culture stems back to his experiences growing up, and his ability to help people compartmentalize and develop their points of view made him and Jim fast friends.

Climate change has and will continue to affect many things in our daily lives, including… wine?

Greg Jones is somewhat of an expert on the matter. Greg is a prominent member of the Pacific Northwest's winemaking community, sitting on the boards of multiple industry associations. He is also the CEO of his family business, Abacela Vineyards, located in Oregon's Umpqua Valley.

Greg has spent the last 25 years as a climatologist, specializing in how climate affects viticulture. His research focuses on how climate variability and climate change can influence the quality and scale of winemaking operations.

In this fascinating conversation together, Greg shares what he's learned from his research and talks a little bit about his recent appearance on CBS's 60 Minutes. Plus, Greg even shares why he's concluded that many vineyards shouldn't be producing the ever-popular cabernet sauvignon. It's a wonderful dive into an area of climate science that isn't frequently talked about!

Ryan Panchadsaram is an engineer and investor focused on solving systemic, societal challenges. At Kleiner Perkins, Ryan serves as technical advisor to John Doerr, where he invests in founders and technologies that aim to change the world. Ryan and John coauthored the seminal book on countering climate change, Speed & Scale, and collaborated on the number one bestseller Measure What Matters. Under President Obama, Ryan was Deputy Chief Technology Officer of the United States, where he championed entrepreneurship, innovation, and open data.

In this episode, Ryan and Jim discuss the ever-evolving role of technology in shaping our future, how sustainable energy is starting to become more efficient than fossil fuels, and how to counter misinformation about climate change.

Geoff Beattie knows the importance of financial planning and growth. Starting his career as a successful lawyer in Toronto, Geoff spent many years in the profession before transitioning to a career in wealth management. Currently a well-respected business leader in Canada and abroad, Geoff is the Chairman of Relay Ventures and CEO of Generation Capital.

In this episode, Geoff shares forward his experience as a financial planner and expert on the global economy.

The old leadership model of command and control in the workplace has broken down in the past few years. Luckily, Stephen M.R. Covey has a solution.

Mr. Covey is a world-renowned keynote speaker and author, most known for The Speed of Trust and Smart Trust. When his father, Stephen R. Covey, released his seminal book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen helped develop the strategy that propelled the book into one of the most influential business tools of all time.

Stephen's newest book, Trust and Inspire, details a way of leading that starts with the belief that people are creative, collaborative, and full of potential. The concept places value on the employees, not the stakeholders, to inspire them to become the best version of themselves and to produce their best work.

It's not every day you meet a long-lost relative and find out he's also in the agriculture business!

Kevin McCann reached out to Jim over LinkedIn recently due to their shared family name and similar line of work. Kevin operates the Armagh, Northern Ireland-based family farm P. McCann & Sons, where his family has grown fresh fruit for three generations.

Along with learning about their shared family name and the innovation and sustainability P. McCann & Sons is bringing to Ireland, Kevin and Jim discuss Irish culture, politics, and the opportunities that working in agricultural fields has created in our lives.

As the daughter of Polish and Ukrainian immigrants working to create a better life, Natalia Brzezinski has been immersed in multiculturalism from day one. Natalia is an acclaimed journalist, communications expert, and global citizen who has worked everywhere from the Huffington Post to the US Embassy in Sweden, to her current role at the Stockholm-based Klarna.

In this episode, Natalia and Jim discuss the power inherent to storytelling, how Natalia's upbringing in an immigrant community shaped her worldview, and her takes on current events such as the War in Ukraine, the Revolution in Iran, and global climate change.