What happens when someone tells you that you’re not cut out for the thing you feel called to do? And what might change if you stop trying to become the shape the world expects and start seeing yourself, your work, and your future differently?

In this episode of the Better Mindset Podcast, I sit down with my friend Ken Black, a creative leader whose work has helped shape some of the most recognizable brands and cultural moments in sports.

Ken spent years at Nike, where he served as a VP, worked alongside Tinker Hatfield on the Air Jordan 11, helped build Nike’s Advanced Concepts Team, and served as a global creative director across three Olympic Games. He co-founded Spark Training, helped rebuild the Denver Broncos’ identity, and served as Chief Creative and Innovation Officer at Omnicom’s Experiential Group. Today, he’s helping shape the comeback of the Pac-12 Conference, advising brands like Gatorade, and hosting The Designasty, a podcast about the origin story of Nike Team Sports.

But this conversation isn’t really about a résumé.

It’s about what happens when we learn to see differently.

Ken shares the story of the professor who told him he wasn’t cut out for a career in art or design, the mentors who saw something different in him, and the curiosity and challenge that kept him moving forward.

We explore the blinders we inherit from schools, companies, families, and culture—and why defining “better” for ourselves matters if we don’t want to spend our lives chasing someone else’s version of success.

In this episode, we explore:

• How seeing differently changes everything.

• Why connection matters more than perfection.

• How vision gives me direction without locking me into a destination.

What if the way we think about love has been shaped by stories that are no longer serving us?

In this episode of the Better Mindset Podcast, I sit down with my longtime friend Damona Hoffman—relationship futurist, bestselling author of F the Fairy Tale, and relationship expert on The Drew Barrymore Show—to explore what happens when we stop waiting for love to magically happen and start becoming more intentional about how we create connection.

Damona’s career has taken her from casting rooms to dating apps, television, coaching, podcasting, keynote stages, and boardrooms. Along the way, she discovered something fascinating: many of the principles that help us communicate who we are professionally also show up in dating and relationships. But finding connection requires more than presenting ourselves well. It requires clarity about our values, awareness of the stories we’re carrying, and responsibility for the energy we bring into a room.

We talk about why instant chemistry isn’t necessarily connection, why “slow love” can give relationships space to develop, and why shared values and goals matter more than an impossible checklist.

Our conversation also moves beyond dating. Damona and I explore visualization, improv, leadership, digital communication, generational differences, burnout, the cost of success, and what it means to remain a whole person while building a life with other people.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why instant chemistry isn’t the same as genuine connection—and why trust, compatibility, and “slow love” need time to develop.

• The stories and expectations we inherit about love, from the idea of “the one” to impossible dating checklists, and how changing our mindset can change the way we show up in relationships.

• What makes relationships last, including shared values, listening, appreciation, personal responsibility, and learning to remain a whole person while building a life with someone else.

What happens when the philosophy you’ve been teaching suddenly becomes the philosophy you have to live? Five years ago, I started this podcast with a simple question: What does it actually mean to get better? 

I didn’t know then how deeply life would ask me to answer it. Since season one, I’ve navigated the end of my marriage, becoming a single dad, health challenges, sleepless nights, financial uncertainty, grief, and the loss of my father and uncle. Through it all, I kept returning to one idea: better isn’t a destination. Better is a direction.

Come join me as we walk through where I’ve been, what the last few years taught me, and why now is the right time to return to these conversations. This season, I’ll sit down with world-class performers, creatives, athletes, executives, and wise humans to explore how they meet difficult moments, the practices that sustain them, and what it looks like to become more fully themselves.

In this episode, we explore:

• Why pursuing “better” is different from chasing “best”

• How difficult seasons can force us to build a new map while we’re walking it

• Why a well-lived life requires us to stop waiting and start living now

Joe chats with actress, artist and author Rachel True about her time working alongside some of Hollywood’s biggest actors, directors and writers and her path to being a published author.

They explore what growing up in New York’s East Village taught her about self-belief, the invitation to entertain ourselves while in isolation and the value in developing and honoring our intuition.

Together they talk about her journey from standing in on the number one show on television to starring as iconic characters on screens big and small as well as going through the rigorous process of testing to be the lead in your own sitcom.

Ultimately, they get real about the importance of seeing color, how the words we hear as children shape our sense of self and the wisdom of Gene Roddenberry & his vision for our future.

Who is Rachel?

Rachel True is an American actress and model who has appeared in numerous hit and cult films including: The Craft, Half Baked, CB4 and Greg Araki's Nowhere which premiered at Sundance Film Festival.

On Television, she has appeared on: The Cosby Show, Getting By, Family Matters, 90210, Boston Common, Providence and Dawsons Creek.

She’s recurred on some of the top shows of the last few decades:  Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Dream On, the Drew Carey Show, Once and Again, and Better Things.

Rachel was also the lead on the TV show Half & Half, for which she was nominated for an NAACP award.

As an author, she has written True Heart Tarot.

She has co-hosted over 100 episodes of the podcast Quoting Gene Roddenberry.

Most recently she can be seen in Shudder's HORROR NOIRE Anthology with Malcolm Barrett.

And the upcoming horror drama Agnes.

RACHEL TRUE: IMDB

RACHEL TRUE’s BOOK: True Heart Tarot

INSTAGRAM

TWITTER

Show Notes:

Horror Noire Ep.4 Fugue State

Agnes-Film

RACHELS BOOK + TAROT DECK (True Heart Intuitive Guidebook)

ABOUT PAMELA COLEMAN-SMITH

PAMELA COLEMAN-SMITH BIOGRAPHY

TAROT/SPIRITUAL

Joe chats with Hall of Fame NBA Photographer, legendary sports podcaster, author, media producer and teacher Andrew Bernstein.

They explore some of the most storied locker rooms (eleven times with Phil Jackson) team huddles (Pat Riley’s Showtime Lakers) and championship moments (MJ, Kobe, Dodgers and Kings) and how learning from greatness has impacted his own journey from lows to highs.

Together they talk about protecting the light within, being mindful of who you put in charge of your own self-image and how our relationships may open doors to our future.

Ultimately they speak about the essence of the Mamba Mentality, the secret ingredient to cultivating an edge and why life sometimes asks us to pivot to something greater than we’d imagined.

Who is Andrew?

Like many of the professional athletes he photographs, Andrew D. Bernstein is recognized as an all-star in sports photography. The unique personal rapport Bernstein has developed with athletes, coaches and teams over the years allows him exclusive access to special behind-the-scenes moments. A co-founder of NBA Photos, Bernstein is the key photographic contributor to NBA Entertainment’s global media platforms, which include NBA.com, all league publications and NBA licensed products. He has been the team photographer for twelve professional home teams which won championships in basketball (Lakers in 1985, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2010, 2020), baseball (Dodgers in 1988) and hockey (Kings in 2012 and 2014).​ Bernstein has covered 40 NBA Finals and 38 All-Star Games as the senior NBA photographer.

In 2018, Bernstein collaborated with five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant on the worldwide bestselling book “The Mamba Mentality: How I Play,” a unique look at Bryant’s 20 year career through Bernstein’s lens. Previous books include “NBA Hoop Shots: Classic Moments From a Super Era” published in 1996 and “Journey To The Ring” co-authored with Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson in 2010.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame named Bernstein a 2018 Curt Gowdy award recipient, acknowledging his contributions to basketball media. This prestigious award is presented annually to members of the electronic and print media whose longtime efforts have made a significant contribution to the game of basketball. Bernstein is the second photographer to receive this honor.

Bernstein is a co-founder of a new sports content platform called “Legends Of Sport”. His weekly podcast is distributed to all major platforms, with over 150 episodes released to date. Legends Of Sport can be followed on: Twitter @legends_ofsport, Instagram @legendsofsport, website www.legendsofsport.net, YouTube and TikTok at Legends Of Sport. Bernstein’s photography can be found at www.adbapi.com and Instagram @adbphotoinc.

Show Notes:

Iconic Photographs from Andrew

Bruce Springsteen-No Surrender

Mamba Mentality

Eleven Rings

Tim Grover

Art Center

Joe chats with Emmy-nominated actor, seasoned director, Grammy Award winning spoken word artist and producer of TV and film, Malcolm-Jamal Warner.

They explore what consistency can do for our happiness as well as taking the long view on our artistic journey towards cultivating and sustaining longevity in our career.

Together they talk about the evolution of artistry, how it expresses through us and the influences we meet along the way both outside us and within us.

Ultimately they speak about what it takes to have healthy self identity, the meditative power of hobbies and the power embedded within our names.

Who is Malcolm-Jamal?

Malcolm-Jamal Warner has become known in the entertainment business for his seasoned acting talents and his accomplishments in music, directing, and producing. As an Emmy-nominated actor and Grammy award winning poet, Warner has positioned himself as one of the most accomplished talents in the industry today. As a staple in television and film for nearly 30 years, Warner first rose to national prominence by starring on the celebrated and long-running classic television series “The Cosby Show.” His work on the show garnered him a Primetime Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and set the stage for him to have a long career in the public eye.

Warner was most recently seen on ABC’s “Ten Days in the Valley” opposite Kyra Sedgwick, and in the critically acclaimed, award-winning FX series “American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson.” In 2011 Warner produced, directed, and starred in the BET original series “Reed Between the Lines” opposite Golden Globe Award winner Tracee Ellis Ross.

In 2017, Warner released a powerful, spoken word short film entitled “You Can’t Hear Me”, which highlights some of America’s civil and social ills including systematic oppression, deportation and mass incarceration.

Since 2018 Warner has starred in FOX’s hit medical drama “The Resident.”

On stage Warner has starred in the off-Broadway plays “Three Ways Home,” “Cryin’ Shame,” (NAACP Theater Award for Best Supporting Actor), “Freefall” at the Victory Garden Theatre, and “A Midsummer Nights’ Dream,” at the La Jolla Playhouse.

As a seasoned director Warner has worked on a host of television series, including being a regular director [and producer] on the comedy series “Malcolm & Eddie,” and directed several episodes of “The Cosby Show,” “All That,” “Keenan & Kel,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Sesame Street,” and the AIDS awareness video “Timeout: The Truth about HIV, AIDS, and YOU,” which earned Warner the NAACP Key of Life Image Award.

When not acting and directing, Warner is a poet and a bass player. In 2015 Warner nabbed his first Grammy Award for “Best Traditional R&B Performance as a Featured Performer” on Robert Glasper's version of the Stevie Wonder classic "Jesus Children of America." Warner’s jazz-funk band Miles Long has performed in several major jazz festivals, including the Playboy Jazz Festival, and has opened for high profile artists including Earl Klugh and the late Luther Vandross. In 2015 Warner released his latest album, “Selfless,” which melds spoken word and soul music into once cohesive album. All of Warner’s independently distributed CD’s, “The Miles Long Mix Tape,” “Love and Other Social Issues,” and “Selfless” have become popular on the underground music scene, can now be purchased on iTunes and http://www.MalcolmJamalWarner.com.

Instagram: @malcolmjamalwar

Twitter: @malcolmjamalwar

UPCOMING PROJECTS

The Resident season 5 continues...

Joe chats with Arnie Cardillo about his journey from youth baseball to sound engineer to becoming a three-time Grammy winning producer. Arnie shares insight into what he scans for when listening to his performers, what baseball taught him about failure and why going the extra mile is part of his greater vision. Arnie and Joe talk about the great philosophers, how important it was for them to struggle with life’s great questions and how they can be helpful for us in processing grief or combatting depression. Ultimately, they discuss how true collaboration helps build empathy for others, how children best learn and how creating one’s vision is the ultimate thing to remain true to.

With over 40 years experience in the audiobook industry, Arnie Cardillo began his career as a sound editor and engineer and later worked for Listening Library, where he was involved in all facets of the audio business.  In 1997, he purchased Live Oak Media, a children’s media publishing company, which he continues to manage today with his wife Debra Skiver Cardillo.  As producer, he has received three ALA Odyssey Awards, three Grammy Awards, the Audie Award for Distinguished Achievement in Production, as well as numerous Audie Awards and ALA Notable Children’s Recordings.

FB: Live Oak Media

IG: @liveoakmedia

Twitter: @medialiveoak

SHOW NOTES:

LIVE OAK MEDIA

www.liveoakmedia.com

OHANA MEANS FAMILY

WE ARE GRATEFUL ("otsaliheliga," a Cherokee word meaning "We are grateful.)

CHEF ROY CHOI

IMPROVING MEMORY

TREATING DEPRESSION

THE PHILOSOPHY OF SOREN KIERKEGAARD

MICKEY MANTLE

THE GODFATHER PT II

Joe chats with Liza Katzer about her path to becoming an Emmy-winning producer of Ted Lasso: from the hustle of working at Management 360 and UTA, to making movies at Disney to making the leap into comedy and becoming VP of Development at Doozer (working with Bill Lawrence and Jeff Ingold) Liza shares insight into how Ted Lasso came into being, what it has taught her and why it is having the impact that it is having. Joe and Liza also talk about the intersection of sport and art: how athletes can learn vulnerability from artists, and a team mentality can help artists to realize they are not alone, they are a part of a greater whole. Ultimately, they explore how she deals with the disappointments that are inevitable within our industry, how embracing pivots has supported long-term success as well as how finding her voice and listening to her gut led her to this moment.

Who is Liza?

Liza Katzer is an Emmy-winning producer for her work on Ted Lasso, which won the award for best comedy series in 2021.  She was also recently named one of the Hollywood Reporter's 35 Under 35 Up and Coming Entertainment Executives to Watch.

She is a Southern California native from Palos Verdes Peninsula, who started her career with a series of summer production jobs for the E! Channel while studying at Northwestern University.  After graduating, she moved to LA and worked at United Talent Agency, before moving to The Walt Disney Company to work for both the Feature Studio and then International Local Language Production.  She joined Bill Lawrence at Doozer productions as an assistant when he signed his first overall deal with Warner Bros and worked her way up to Vice President.  Her first producer credit came when her project LIFE SENTENCE was ordered to series at the CW.  Since then, she has continued on to produce WHISKEY CAVALIER for ABC, and HEAD OF THE CLASS for HBOmax.  She is set to co-executive produce the two upcoming apple series BAD MONKEY and SHRINKING, and will continue to Co-EP TED LASSO.  She has a slate of projects featuring female and diverse voices in development, and has produced a number of pilots and presentations for various networks and streamers.

TWITTER: @LizaKatzer

INSTAGRAM: @lizab15

LINKS TO UPCOMING PROJECTS:

Jason Segel to Star in ’Shrinking’, Apple TV+ Comedy Series from 'Ted Lasso’s Bill Lawrence & Brett Goldstein

Vince Vaughn to Headline ‘Bad Monkey’ Apple TV+ Drama Series from Bill Lawrence

Head of the Class’ Reboot Gets HBO Max Premiere Date, First Look Image & Clip Featuring Robin Givens

Clone High- Two Seasons of the Animated Comedy at HBO Max

Current Favorite Quote:

"Let go and let god”

Joe chats with Anthony Sparks about coming up in the theatre: at Williamstown, at the Public Theatre and for five years in the Off-Broadway smash hit Stomp! The lessons he learned, both on stage and auditioning out in the world, inspired him to take a more active role in the projects he would choose to be a part of and later create into existence. Anthony shares insight into the purpose of his art: whether it’s a solo show, show running and collaborating alongside Ava Duvernay for Oprah Winfrey, or creating his own shows for Blumhouse TV. Ultimately, we hear his Why, and his deepest vision for how he is trying to shape the images we collectively see on our screens as a means of transforming the world.

Who is Anthony?

Anthony Sparks hails from Chicago’s South Side and has worked in television over the last 19 seasons. A strong advocate for diversity and inclusion in television, theatre and film, Anthony is the longtime Showrunner, Head Writer, and Executive Producer of the critically acclaimed OWN/Warner Bros. Television drama, “Queen Sugar”. Queen Sugar, created by filmmaker Ava DuVernay and executive produced by Oprah Winfrey, is currently airing its 6th season. Anthony has been a key writer and producer with the show since its inception.

In addition to Queen Sugar, Anthony is also currently an Executive Producer on the highly anticipated HULU limited series, Iron Mike, about the controversial life and times of Mike Tyson. Sparks is also developing several new series with Blumhouse Television, where he recently signed an overall First Look Deal, and also with Endeavor Content.

It was also recently announced that Sparks will create, showrun, and executive produce a scripted drama inspired by the Detroit Youth Choir, which rose to prominence on America's Got Talent in 2019. Anthony is writing and developing this show for the Disney+ streaming network.

Anthony holds a BFA degree in theatre, and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in American Studies & Ethnicity, all from USC, the University of Southern California. Anthony received the Jack Nicholson Award, LeVar Burton Award, and Doolittle Associates Award while an undergraduate at USC and the Anna Bing Arnold Fellowship while pursuing graduate work at USC.

Dr. Sparks is also a cutting-edge scholar of media, performance studies, and African American politics and culture. He has consulted and written for Disney Imagineering and when time allows, he mentors and teaches screenwriting and cultural studies at Cal State Fullerton, Occidental College, and USC.

Anthony Sparks is based in Los Angeles, where he is married to actor-director and USC School of Dramatic Arts professor and Associate Dean, Anita Dashiell-Sparks. They live in Los Angeles and are working hard to raise their three young children.

WEBSITE

INSTAGRAM: @sparks.anthony

TWITTER: @SparksAnthony

Show Notes:

-Ava Duvernay

-Gina Davis Institute on Gender in Media & Documentary ‘This Changes Everything’

-Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)

-Queen Sugar

Joe chats with performance psychologist Noa Kageyama about his musical journey starting with training with Dr. Shinichi Suzuki as a young musician to learning how to practice as a teenager and getting his undergraduate degree from Juilliard. He shares what studying with an olympic sports psychologist taught him about navigating performance anxiety and the insight that prompted him to learn the secrets of peak performance while getting his Doctorate in Psychology. Ultimately, whether standing on a stage at Lincoln Center, or in a classroom in front of the next generation of world class musicians, Noa shares insights about effective practice, the building blocks of confidence and so much more to inspire us on our journey as lifelong learners.

Who is Noa?

Performance psychologist Noa Kageyama is on the faculty of The Juilliard School and is a performance coach for the New World Symphony in Miami, FL. A conservatory-trained violinist with degrees from Oberlin and Juilliard before pursuing a Ph.D. in psychology at Indiana University, Noa now specializes in working with performing artists, teaching them how to utilize sport psychology principles and more consistently perform up to their full abilities under pressure.

He has conducted workshops at institutions ranging from Northwestern University, New England Conservatory, Peabody, Eastman, Curtis, McGill University, and the U.S. Armed Forces School of Music, to programs such as the Starling-Delay Symposium, The Perlman Music Program, and the National Orchestral Institute, and for organizations like the Music Teachers’ National Association and the National Association of Teachers of Singing.

Noa’s work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, NBC News, Musical America, Strings Magazine, Strad, and Lifehacker. He maintains a private coaching practice and online mental skills courses, and authors a performance psychology blog and podcast called The Bulletproof Musician.

website: bulletproofmusician.com

Upcoming projects:

I’ve begun offering live classes for music professionals and educators as well as for amateurs and lifelong learners. More info at: bulletproofmusician.com/courses

Noa’s (current) favorite quote:

E.E. Cummings — 'It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.'

Notes:

Anders Ericsson on Larry King: on the science of expertise

Dr. Suzuki

Julliard

Sports Psychology

Daily Writing Practice (don’t break the chain/atomic habits)

Sports Psychology for Dummies

Grit-Angela Duckworth