#628: Dr. Elisse Barnes JD, PHD and Mitchell Levy on Thought Leader Life Credibility Episode

Baby boomers who needed to find a job and wanted someone who could explain this LinkedIn thing to them. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Dr. Elisse Barnes JD, PHD (https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissewbarnesjdphd/) who is the owner, CEO and lead trainer at A Certain Vintage Workforce Educational. She is also a LinkedIn Trainer empowering baby boomer job Seekers, Career Transitioners, Entrepreneurs, and Nonprofit Leaders.

Elisse teaches baby boomers to harness the power of LinkedIn through hands on, individual and small group “driving lessons” and “Mindset Reset” presentations that acknowledge their unique learning style and security concerns regarding the use of social media.

If you’re a boomer or you know somebody in your network who’s a boomer who hasn’t tried #LinkedIn yet, you should reach out to Dr. Elisse Barnes JD, PHD by visiting https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissewbarnesjdphd/.

Here are a couple of AHA messages from this episode:

* Baby boomers who know they should be on #LinkedIn but they just don’t know how, should reach out to Dr. Elisse Barnes JD, PHD. https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissewbarnesjdphd/ @ElisseBarnes

* If you want to exist in a world where there’s business going on, you need to be on #LinkedIn and you need to be credible on it. https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissewbarnesjdphd/ @ElisseBarnes

* In the world we live in now, you have to be on social media. You need to have an online footprint and unfortunately, a lot of people don’t explain it to them. They just tell them they need to be on it. #LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissewbarnesjdphd/ @ElisseBarnes

* I call my driving instructor methodology which means they do all of the work under my guidance. #LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissewbarnesjdphd/ @ElisseBarnes

* The magic of #LinkedIn is not just in having a profile, the magic is engaging with it. https://www.linkedin.com/in/elissewbarnesjdphd/ @ElisseBarnes

To view the video interview click here.

#629: Kaelen Revense and Mitchell Levy on Thought Leader Life Credibility Episode

Understanding the feelings of LGBTQ+ community by learning how to accept them from who they are and what they are. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Kaelen Revense (https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaelenrevense/) who is the CEO and Founder of Celebrate You. Kaelen Revense is an author, public speaker, LGBTQ+ advocate and Life Coach.

Kaelen has her MAED degree in Adult Education and Training. She has been teaching youth and adults for over 30 years. Her passion is teaching. She is also an author, speaker and life coach. She is the author of the book, “It Was Never About Me: An LDS Mother’s Journey Toward Loving Acceptance of Her Gay Son’s Reality,” coming Fall 2019. As a the mother of her gay son, she coaches Christian parents in navigating the waters towards loving and accepting their LGBTQ+ children where and as they are.

If you know someone who is immobilized by the life that their child is living and you know that life can be better for them, I would highly suggest that you reach out to Kaelen Revense by vis...

In a study of nearly 2,500 journalists, MuckRack unsurprisingly found that media coverage has completely been thrown on its head because of The Corona. But some of the reasons why are surprising, including what they’re having to do about it, among furloughs and layoffs.

While 62% of those they surveyed are full-time writers, 38% are freelancers or part-time journalists. They are experts, with 60% having more than 10 years of experience and 72% report online or in print. To boot, the average journalist surveyed covers more than three beats, which is something to keep in mind as you go about pitching—they’re scattered and, as I like to say, a bit over their skis while they try to manage the workload of multiple people.

According to the study by MuckRack, which I’ll link to in the shownotes, 94% of journalists say that some, most, or all of their reporting have pivoted to angles related to The Corona. 

Nearly everyone (98%) said they are doing more stories about COVID-19 and/or health and wellness, and more stories about remote work and/or virtual communication. And, while 19% of journalists say they have less work in general, 23% say they have a larger workload due to the layoffs and furloughs of others where they work.

What all of this means for you, how you do that, and other interesting findings are what we discuss on today’s episode of the Spin Sucks podcast.

Resources Included

* The State of Journalism 2021

* Spin Sucks Community

#624: Daven Michaels and Mitchell Levy on Thought Leader Life Credibility Episode

Giving entrepreneurs their time back in their lives by helping them identify the other points in their business that they can optimize. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Daven Michaels (https://www.linkedin.com/in/davenmichaels/), he is the Founder of Virtual Entrepreneurs Association and CEO of 123 Employee. He is also a Business Success Builder, Marketing Maestro, Outsourcing, Virtual Team Building Expert and Global Lifestyle Entrepreneur.

Daven has been an entrepreneur since the age of 15, that’s over 30 years now. During this time, he stumbled across a business formula that he used to turn multiple diverse business ventures into extremely successful businesses, including a few multiple-million dollar home runs.

If you’re an #Entrepreneur and you are working on shit that you really shouldn’t, you should reach out to Daven Michaels by visiting his website at http://123employee.com/ or through https://www.linkedin.com/in/davenmichaels/.

Here are a couple of AHA messages from this episode:

* #Entrepreneurs who are working on shit that doesn’t matter should reach out to Daven Michaels by visiting his website at http://123employee.com/ or through https://www.linkedin.com/in/davenmichaels/.

* #Entrepreneurs are the only people on the planet that will work 80 hours a week for themselves so they don’t have to work 40 hours a week for someone else. We help lifestyle starved entrepreneurs to get their time back in their lives. https://www.linkedin.com/in/davenmichaels/ @Davenmichaels

* We actually work with #Entrepreneurs identify the kind of the lowest hanging fruit in their business because that’s the great place to start. We want them to start making money and start getting their time back. https://www.linkedin.com/in/davenmichaels/ @Davenmichaels

* We start working with #Entrepreneurs go deeper to help them identify the other points in their business that they can optimize. https://www.linkedin.com/in/davenmichaels/ @DavenMichaels

* I love speaking on stages all over the globe. I love writing books. As a matter of fact, my 10th book is in stores right now and I just love sharing the word for me. It’s not work. It’s fun. It’s so very gratifying. #Entrepreneurs https://www.linkedin.com/in/davenmichaels/ @DavenMichaels

To view the video interview click here.

#625: Dan Riley and Mitchell Levy on Thought Leader Life Credibility Episode

Creating brand identities and campaigns from Fortune 500 companies who struggle on marketing designs. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Dan Riley (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-riley-a08a76/) who is a Principal Partner at Riley Design Associates, LLC.

Dan has created brand identities and campaigns for many national and international companies.

If in a Fortune 500 company and have marketing design challenges, you’re going to want to reach out to Dan Riley at https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-riley-a08a76/ or https://www.rileydesign.com/.

Corporate Social Responsibility has never been hotter. With younger workers insisting on working for purposeful organizations, a surge of interest in investment funds that focus on sustainable companies, and organizations embracing comprehensive ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) initiatives, communicators have their hands full. From reporting ESG results (annual ESG reports jam-packed with data are becoming commonplace) to pitching companies’ CSR commitments, challenges abound. Simply checking off CSR boxes (donation made: check) no longer cuts it.

Four IABC Fellows gathered on March 19, 2021, to discuss the state of CSR and the role communicators play in helping companies get it right and engage stakeholders appropriately.

About the panel

In a career spanning roles as a colonel in the Army, a Ph.D. in organizational communication (Fulbright Fellow) and professor in a business school, a communication consultant, teacher, and trainer, Rajeev Kumar is an author and recognized speaker with a significant profile regionally, across many cultures and languages. Rajeev has a strong commitment to the profession and IABC, demonstrated through local and regional and international leadership roles. Rajeev’s work and references reinforce his commitment to the IABC values and he is a brand ambassador for the association in all aspects of his professional life.

James E. Lukaszewski, America’s Crisis Guru ®, is a bestselling author, national speaker, and trusted strategic advisor to FPO and NPO business operators and leaders during crises, disasters, reputation attacks, contentiousness and when the boss’s future is at stake. Corporate Legal Times listed him as “one of 22 crisis counselors to have in your speed dial when all hell breaks loose.” For more than 30 years, he has confidentially guided hundreds of company leaders thru tough, touchy, sensitive situations. Lukaszewski’s strategies inspire constructive, ethical problem resolving management behavior. A powerful and inspirational speaker, he teaches executives and managers the lessons he has learned. A prolific author, he is quoted and interviewed often as one of the most recognizable leaders in his profession. Lukaszewski is on the web at www.e911.com.

Ritzi Ronquillo is a multi-awarded communication leader in corporate, community, and associations in the Philippines and abroad. Ritzi is an Accredited Public Relations (APR) Professional and a Fellow of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), the highest honor bestowed upon an IABC member with significant impact on their organization, on IABC, and on the communication profession at large. She brings four decades of experience in communication and PR to her assignments.  She is a broadcast communication graduate of UP.A university entrance scholar and scholar of the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas/Broadcast Media Council (KBP/BMC).

Brad Whitworth is a veteran communicator and communication coach at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Brad was most recently a communication manager at Hitachi Vantara. Before that, he was an executive communication manager at Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and senior communication manager at Cisco Systems. Before Cisco, Brad led communication programs at HP, PeopleSoft, and AAA. He earned undergraduate degrees in both journalism and speech at the University of Missouri and an MBA at Santa Clara University. A former broadcaster, Brad has made more than 300 presentations to executives, communicators, and university classes around the world. Brad has a long history with IABC, including serving as chairman of the international board and president of two local chapters. He is one of the authors of The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication.

Andrea Weckerle first appeared in an FIR Interview a decade ago after she had founded CiviliNation, a non-profit that is “taking a stand against online harassment, character assassination, misinformation, and violence.” That’s a tall order given the state of civil discourse these days. In this FIR Interview, Andrea is joined by CiviliNation’s new president, veteran technology journalist Jolie O’Dell. The conversation covers the organization’s approach to addressing the issues that underlie outrage culture, doxxing, and other behaviors that undermine the potential of online conversation.

FIR co-hosts Neville Hobson and Shel Holtz spoke with Jolie and Andrea on Monday, March 8.

About our conversation partners

Jolie O’Dell is a journalist and nonprofit leader. As a news writer and editor, she contributed to tech-focused publications such as ReadWriteWeb, Mashable, and VentureBeat, with bylines appearing in national print outlets periodically. She also frequently appeared on local and national news and podcasts as a tech industry analyst. In addition to her media duties, she was also heavily involved in event planning and newsroom management. O’Dell is the author of four books with a fifth coming in 2023. She lives in Virginia with her dog, Lt. Barclay.

Andrea Weckerle is the founder of CiviliNation and the author of Civility in the Digital Age: How Companies and People Can Triumph over Haters, Trolls, Bullies, and Other Jerks. She earned her Juris Doctor at the University of Richmond School of Law, where she served on the Senior Staff of the Richmond Journal of Law & Technology. She also holds a Master of Arts (MAIS) degree with a focus on Public Relations/Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University. Prior to founding CiviliNation, she ran her own boutique communications consultancy and also worked with national agencies, where her experience included legal and corporate communications, online communications, and social media.

By now, most or all of you are somewhat digitized and working remotely, if not entirely. 

As one CEO of a large tech company recently stated, “We are witnessing what will surely be remembered as a historic deployment of remote work and digital access to services across every domain.”

Indeed, recent data show that we have vaulted five years forward in consumer and business digital adoption in a matter of around eight weeks. Five years!

Banks have transitioned to remote sales and service teams and launched digital outreach to customers to make flexible payment arrangements for loans and mortgages. 

Grocery stores have shifted to online ordering and delivery as their primary business. 

Schools are either all in-person, some sort of hybrid, or all virtual. And don’t get me started on the hybrid schedules plus having to quarantine because a friend in class tested positive. Oy vey! 

As some regions reopen fully and lift mask mandates, businesses are considering how to return to some semblance of full speed in a still unstable environment. What does that look like as we consider how we market? Are there changes we’ll need to make? If so, how?

The answer is in creating values-based marketing.

That’s what we discuss on this week’s episode of the Spin Sucks podcast.

Resources Included

* Bud Light Thursday Night Shoutout

* EatOkra

* The Who We Are Project

* Spin Sucks Community

#621: Rene Johnson and Mitchell Levy on Thought Leader Life Credibility Episode

Lead from your power zone and not from your comfort zone. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Rene Johnson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/renesjohnson/), an elite authority in personal power dynamics, author, coach, keynote speaker, and CEO of Power Zone Coaching. She holds an ICF Certified Empowerment Coach degree from Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching (IPEC).

Rene is passionate in partnering with purpose-driven business leaders, turning leadership into their greatest profit center, while having more joy in life. She is an instructor who can inspire audiences with energy, insight, and expertise to become positive and power-filled change agents.

If you’re a small to mid-sized company and you have “power leaks,” consider reaching out to Rene Johnson by visiting her websites https://www.linkedin.com/in/renesjohnson/ and https://powerzonecoach.com/.

Here are a couple of AHA messages from this episode:

* Small and mid-size leaders but are “power leaks” should reach out to Rene Johnson. https://www.linkedin.com/in/renesjohnson/

* My role is to turn your leadership into your greatest profit center and the vehicle to live your best life. #LeadershipWhy https://powerzonecoach.com/ @pzcoach

* I can work with you in identifying and converting “power leaks” which are wasted time and resources that are wasting your and your team’s strengths and talents. #LeadershipWhy https://powerzonecoach.com/ @pzcoach

* I can teach you how to activate the “magic” in your power zone, where against the odds, you can accept your true calling to reveal your greatness. #LeadershipWhy https://www.linkedin.com/in/renesjohnson/

* I can mentor you in uncovering the “why” behind your leadership approach to increase your influence and business results to make a significant difference in people’s lives. #LeadershipWhy https://powerzonecoach.com/ @pzcoach

To view the video interview click here.

#622: Jared Brick and Mitchell Levy on Thought Leader Life Credibility Episode

How to create a strategy to solve digital confusion. This episode features #ThoughtLeader and #Expert Jared Brick (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaredbrick/), he is the Media Producer, Director and Founder of Brick House Media. He is also a Media Marketing Strategist, Video Director and Content Creator. He helps Thought Leaders who have digital confusion.

Jared Brick’s vision is to become a professional photographer, and share new perspectives of this dynamic evolving world. He founded Brick House Images in 2000, to fulfill his creative passion. He’s always possessed an attraction to visual media, with talents in social marketing, skills in digital education, business strategy and a lifetime of expertise in photography and video. Jared offers an opportunity to leverage these expertise areas for emerging thought leaders and break through bold clients.

If you’re a thought leader or small business owner and you do have #DigitalConfusion, you should consider reaching out to Jared Brick by visiting his website at

The March installment of The Hobson & Holtz Report includes reports on these stories:

* The road to hell is paved with good intentions, which Burger King learned after one well-meaning but poorly thought-out tweet

* Do you subscribe to a podcast or follow it? (Or listen to it?) These verbs may have consequence, especially in attracting new podcast listeners.

* Another company has fired another employee who built a following sharing work-related TikTok videos.

* A racing drone’s 87-second flight through a bowling alley has captured Hollywood’s attention.

* Neville is trying Timely, an Android-based competitor of Clubhouse.

* NFTs — non-fungible tokens — are a hot topic right now. Will they become a staple of marketing and communication or will remember them as a flash in the pan in a few years’ time?

* Dan York has updates on WordPress and Google in his Tech Report.

Our FIR recording sessions are now being streamed live, because why not? We already stream it in order to capture a backup recording on YouTube; we’ve just been making these restricted streams. We have decided to make them public so you can watch and comment. Our next recording is Saturday, April 17 at noon ET. You’ll see our pre-recording conversation as well as seeing how the sausage gets made. Watch live here.

(You can watch the video of the making of this episode, though it’s clearly too late to share comments we can read right into the show.)

We are hosting an FIR Communicators Zoom Chat each Thursday during the stay-at-home period at 1 p.m. ET. For credentials needed to participate, contact Shel or Neville directly or request the credentials in our Facebook group or send an email to [email protected]. Spread the word to your communications community.

Special thanks to Jay Moonah for the opening and closing music.

You can find the stories from which Shel’s FIR content is selected at Shel’s Link Blog. Neville’s link blog, Outbox, is available, as well.

Links from This Month’s Episode

* Latest Politemail Internal Comms Benchmark Report

* Burger King UK under fire for tweeting ‘Women belong in the kitchen’ on International Women’s Day

* Burger King’s Snafu Puts Focus on the Danger of Using Shock Value as a Social Media Strategy

* KFC Gaming tells Burger King to delete ‘women belong in the kitchen’ tweet

* Burger King Gets Grilled for ‘Women Belong in the Kitchen’ Tweet Supporting Female Chefs

* Podcasting: What word to use instead of “subscribe”?

* Subscribe or Follow a Podcast: What’s in a Word?

* Brands: Let your internal culture out

In May 2021, Google search rankings will start to include more user experience ranking factors – are your websites ready?  Using a set of metrics called ‘Core Web Vitals’, your web pages will now be ranked based on how fast they load, how quickly a user can start interacting with a page, and how stable the page is while it loads. In this episode, I explore questions such as: what does this mean for your websites? What tools can you use? What can you do to improve your sites so that they don’t lose any search engine ranking (and perhaps increase their ranking)? In this time when commerce has moved online, and Google search remains a critical way for people to find websites, how can businesses ensure their websites remain competitive?

Learn more:

* Mindmap with links for this episode

* Google’s page on Core Web Vitals

* PageSpeed Insights

You can’t visit a news site or check your feeds right now without seeing articles about NFTs — non-fungible tokens — and how they have captured imaginations. Taco Bell, the National Basketball Association, the Kings of Leon, Jack Dorsey, and artists like the one who sold a JPG for $69 million are examples of digital assets that have been purchased (or are up for grabs) with NFTs.

There are scenarios that make NFTs exciting for brands and, by extension, for communicators. What are they and how do they work (in terms we communicators can understand)? For that, we turn to Phil Gomes, former digital executive at Edelman and current head of global communications and marketing for Bloq‘s multiple services and brands.

About our Conversation Partner

Phil is chief communication and marketing officer for Bloq’s multiple services and brands. Prior to joining Bloq in 2018, Phil spent 13 years at Edelman, guiding the world’s largest communications firm’s initial explorations across two generational technology shifts — social media and blockchain — and building its global blockchain center-of-excellence. In his near-decade in Silicon Valley prior to Edelman, Phil worked with startups and enterprise companies alike. His work helped guide clients to win the Technology Pioneers Programme Award at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Twice. Known for industry “firsts,” Phil is widely considered to be the first PR professional to start a blog (2001) and the first to describe and demonstrate the value of blockchain technology in communications (2015).

Links to Resources Mentioned in the Interview

* Mintable.app

* TrustWallet

* Rarible

* Foundation

* Imogen Heap and the Blockchain Revolution

* The Trust Machine (documentary by Alex Winter)

* Coinbase

* About the Kings of Leon NFT