The Human Adventure

#224 - Business advice usually starts with scaling, margins, and “hustle.” This conversation starts somewhere more honest: what is business for, and who does it actually serve?

We sit down with Edi Odura, an engineer turned entrepreneur and fractional COO who helps mission-driven founders build systems that don’t burn people out. Edi shares how growing up Ghanaian American shaped her relationship with security and risk, why operations is really about protecting the human side of a company, and what changes when you stop treating process like paperwork and start treating it like leadership. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by your own growth, you’ll recognize the moment when a great product outpaces the systems meant to support it.

Edi also walks us through the bridge she’s building between Ghana and the US by placing vetted Ghanaian virtual professionals with founders stateside. We get into the practical realities of cross-cultural hiring, communication differences, and how to create clarity without losing kindness. Then we go deeper into regenerative business principles, contrasting them with extractive models that quietly profit from low wages, vague policies, or unequal power. The result is a grounded, actionable look at ethical outsourcing, sustainable operations, and values-driven entrepreneurship.

If you care about building a company with integrity, or rebuilding your own life after a major pivot, you’ll take something real from this. Subscribe for more conversations like this, share the episode with someone who’s building, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.

To learn more about Edith Oduraa check out her website https://edithoduraa.me/. 

To learn more about me and see clips from past, present, and future shows give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#223 - What does it take to stay teammates for 30 plus years while crossing borders, missing comforts, and choosing the hard route on purpose? I’m joined by John and Ann Craig Cinnamon, a travel power couple who’ve visited 120 plus countries on seven continents, and they’re honest about the part most people skip: real adventure travel can be exhausting, tense, and unpredictable, and that’s exactly why it changes you.

We dig into the way travel exposes personality fast, from idea-making to logistics to how you handle stress when plans break. John and Ann share the travel philosophy they call “While We’re In The Neighborhood,” why they rarely visit just one country at a time, and how experiences like the Running of the Bulls, Oktoberfest, and the Trans-Siberian Railway became markers in a life built on curiosity. Their all-time favorite story is a Himalayas trek from Kathmandu toward Mount Everest, where tea houses, altitude, a local guide, and even a hard-earned scar turned a difficult hike into a memory they still revisit.

The conversation also goes deep on authentic travel and human connection: meeting locals in Cambodia who insisted on giving a gift in return, laughing with a Mongolian guide who loved NBA shooters, navigating political conversations abroad, and facing fear during a Moscow airport interrogation. If you care about couple travel, travel storytelling, and the mindset behind meaningful trips, you’ll leave with both practical perspective and a bigger heart for the world.

Check out their book, Travel Is No Vacation: A Love Story, then subscribe, share this with someone you’d travel with, and leave a review so more people can find The Human Adventure.

To learn more about the Cinnamons and their book check out www.travelisnovacation.com.

To learn more about me and see clips from past, present, and future shows give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#222 - When was the last time you let yourself dream without limits, not as a cute idea, but as a serious practice that could change your life? I sit down with Jason VanDevere, an entrepreneur, planner creator, and author of Dream Driven, to talk about what happens when you walk away from the “sure thing” and build a life that actually fits.

Jason grew up in Akron, Ohio in a big family with a cow farm and a car dealership legacy. After college he entered the dealership track with a clear path to long-term success, but the deeper he went, the clearer it became that he needed something else. We unpack how a simple search for better time management and goal setting tools turned into a planner business, and why the early years felt brutal even while the product was selling.

We go beyond tactics into mindset and meaning. Jason opens up about fear of failure, the rush of doing too much, and the surprising idea that we can get addicted to stress and inadequacy. From there, the conversation moves into faith and Catholic spirituality, daily prayer and journaling, and the power of silent retreats for clarity. We also break down his “dream-driven” approach to entrepreneurship, why focus beats endless options, and how family boundaries reshaped his definition of success.

If you’re chasing goals but feel stuck in survival mode, hit play, then share this with a friend who needs a spark. Subscribe, follow, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

To learn more about Jason and get a copy of his book, Dream Driven, check out his website www.goalcrazy.com. You can also check out his Instagram channel @jasonvandevere. 

To learn more about me and see clips from past, present, and future shows give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#221 - A one-way ticket sounds romantic until you’re standing in a foreign airport, exhausted, hungry, and convinced you’ve made a huge mistake. That’s where Tracy Smith’s story gets real and why it’s so relatable. After a divorce, years of nonstop parenting, and a career grind that left little room to breathe, she finally chooses herself and discovers that freedom can feel like fear at first. 

We talk about what actually led to that first leap to Iceland and how one impulsive booking turned into a multi-country sprint through Iceland, Denmark, Norway, and Ireland. Tracy shares the messy details most people leave out: the panic of being lost, the running inner commentary, and the moment she realizes she has to stop asking whether she “deserves” to be there. From there, travel becomes a mirror for identity, especially as the empty nest edges closer and her work identity starts to wobble. 

You’ll also hear how she travels “solo” in a practical way, planning logistics and often hiring private guides for deeper context, connection, and safety. And yes, we get into the monkey scratch in Bali, the rabies-shot scramble, and how being a mom stays in the back of her mind even while she’s chasing adventure. Tracy’s book, The Purpose of Getting Lost, ties it all together with the episode’s biggest takeaway: permission is a skill you can practice. 

If Tracy’s message hits home, subscribe to The Human Adventure, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find these stories.

To learn more about Tracy and her book check out her website www.tracysmithauthor.com and check her out on social media @tracytravelseverywhere on both Facebook and Instagram.

I would love to have you join The Human Adventure Community on Instagram @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#220 - Behind every great joke is a real story and Danny Johnson’s story explains why his stand-up feels both clean and dangerously close to losing its cool. We talk about how he grew up in a loud Long Island family where roasting was basically a love language, and how that early chase for attention turned into a lifelong craft built on timing, authenticity, and connection. If you’ve ever wondered what makes an audience laugh at the exact same moment, Danny breaks it down in plain terms. 

We get nerdy about the comedy writing process: how a quick idea becomes a real bit, why research matters more than people think, and how Danny uses “filters” to find new angles on everyday frustrations. He also shares one of the most underrated tools in public speaking and stand-up comedy: silence. The pause can be the laugh, and learning to embrace it can change the entire energy of a room. 

Then we go personal. Danny opens up about weight swings, rebuilding confidence, eating well while traveling, and quitting drinking after realizing his time wasn’t matching his goals. We also talk about the upside and difficulty of clean comedy, corporate gigs, church venues, and why he’s focused on growing an engaged social media audience with original material, plus more voiceover and acting work. If you like interviews about creativity, resilience, and what it takes to make people feel better for an hour, you’ll leave with practical insight and a lot of laughs. 

Subscribe to The Human Adventure, share this with a friend who needs a laugh, and leave a review so more people can find the show. What’s a comedy habit or life habit you want to steal from Danny?

To learn more about Danny check out his website www.dannyjohnson.com and check him out on Instagram or other social media outlets @dannyjohnsoncomedy. To can also check out his comedy special on YouTube here.

To see clips from past, present, and even future episodes of The Human Adventure give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod and check out my YouTube channel @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#219 - A million-dollar decision can look a lot like a random pop-up ad and a quick, messy “why not?” Alex Boylan went from being a preacher’s kid on the North Shore of Boston to winning Season 2 of The Amazing Race, and that victory didn’t just change his bank account, it rewired his definition of work, purpose, and adventure. We talk through the early travel experiences that shaped him, the real dynamics of racing with his best friend Chris, and the pressure-cooker moments where relationships, strategy, and grit matter more than perfect plans. 

What sticks with me most is how Alex turns discomfort into a skill you can actually practice. He shares the behind-the-scenes realization that opened a whole new career path: travel producing and storytelling. From moving to Los Angeles with no roadmap, to betting on mentors and the right environment over job titles, his journey is packed with practical lessons for anyone navigating a career pivot, chasing a creative dream, or trying to feel alive again after getting stuck in routine. 

We also dig into Around The World For Free, the early interactive travel series that helped pioneer web-based travel storytelling before social media made it easy, and how that project evolved into bigger opportunities. Then we shift to what he’s building now with The College Tour on Amazon Prime, a show designed to help families explore colleges and higher education options without the cost of constant campus travel, plus his book The Miles That Make You and the life lessons he wants to pass on. 

If you care about adventure, personal growth, mindset, travel, human connection, and building a meaningful life through calculated risk, hit play. Subscribe to The Human Adventure, share this with a friend who needs a push, and leave a review so more people find the show. What’s one small discomfort you’ll choose this week?

To learn more about Alex and get a copy of his book you can visit www.alexboylan.com and if you want to follow Alex on Instagram check out @boylanalex. 

To see clips from past, present, and future shows give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod. You can also watch full length on YouTube @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#218 - At 92, Jim Paulk doesn’t sound like someone looking back. He sounds like someone still chasing the next idea, the next project, the next person worth learning from. Our conversation starts with a dream delayed, how a kid from Brunswick, Georgia missed his Naval Academy appointment, kept pushing, then got the call that changed everything. From day one at Annapolis, Jim learns what many of us learn the hard way: you don’t need a perfect plan, you need the willingness to keep choosing forward.

We follow Jim through a life of service and reinvention, from qualifying on submarines to building a second career at Procter & Gamble. Then the story swerves into marine conservation in Southern California, where he’s asked to take over a struggling gill net initiative and turn it into a winning campaign. Jim breaks down what leadership looks like when the clock is real: rallying volunteers, creating momentum, earning media, raising money, and building programs that actually last, including fish hatchery work that produces measurable results decades later.

The heart of the conversation is storytelling and relationships. Jim’s book, Shaking Up the World, collects 80 true stories by 59 Naval Academy classmates from the class of 1957, from “janitor to admiral” to survival through WWII internment camps to astronaut Charlie Duke’s Apollo 16 memories. Jim also shares how he met his wife Pat and why love and friendship are the ultimate measure of a life well lived. He donates all royalties to charity, because giving back is the point.

Subscribe for more human stories, share this with someone who loves leadership and history, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

To get a copy of Jim's book, Shaking Up the World, check out Amazon. 

Get connected with The Human Adventure. Check out my website www.thehamanadventure.net and give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#217 - What does it take to leave one life, build another, and then wager it all on saving a species? We sit down with Nigel Mason, whose path runs from blitz-era London to the beaches of Bali, from music PR to pioneering “armchair rafting,” and finally to a 30-year fight to protect Sumatran elephants. His story blends grit, heartbreak, and stubborn hope as he turns a sanctuary into a living classroom and proves that hands-on adventure can fuel real conservation.

Nigel opens up about the early wins and the gut-punch losses: a government order that shuttered his booming rafting business, the grind of rebuilding, and the shock of seeing elephants wasting away in Sumatra’s deforestation crisis. He shares the rescue convoys behind Operation Jumbo, the science and care that guide his team, and why he ended elephant rides while doubling down on close, ethical encounters—hand feeding, bathing, guided walks, and deep education. Along the way, we meet the true heartbeat of the park: mahouts who know each elephant by mood and memory, including a reunion after five years apart that says everything about trust.

This conversation goes beyond slogans. We talk palm oil and pulpwood, tourism that pays for welfare and veterinary care, and the tension between online outrage and on-the-ground responsibility. Nigel’s sanctuary is a designed jungle with lakes, treetop paths, and a museum that makes conservation tangible. COVID nearly erased it; debt and determination kept the herd safe. Through it all, Nigel’s focus is legacy—family ready to lead, a local industry he helped ignite, and a sanctuary built to outlast controversy.

If you care about ethical wildlife tourism, elephant welfare, or how adventure can drive conservation, this one will stay with you. Listen, share with a friend who loves travel or animals, and tell us: what does “ethical” look like to you? And if the story moved you, follow, rate, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

To learn more about Nigel and Mason Adventures be sure to check out www.masonadventures.com and check out their Instagram account @masonadventuresbali. 

To see clips from past, current and upcoming episodes and to learn about me (Jake) on a personal level give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod. 

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#216 - What does it really take to walk away from a steady paycheck and bet on your art? We sit down with singer-songwriter Nora Suknaic to trace the messy, exhilarating path from a corporate tour marketing job to a life built around honest songs, late-night writing sessions, and the small victories that keep a dream alive. Nora opens up about the moment she knew routine was crowding out purpose, the jolt of seeing “daylight” after quitting, and the tough shift from being told what to do to telling yourself the truth and doing it anyway.

Across our conversation, we explore the forces that shape a creative life—fear, faith, and mental health—without sugarcoating the hard parts. Nora talks about writing from lived experience, why her ballads lean sad, and how performing turns personal grief into shared healing. She breaks down the kindness-first approach that makes networking in Nashville feel human, the collaborative spark with producer Aidan Gray that brought 80s nostalgia to “Since I’ve Been Gone,” and the way friendship heartbreak sometimes cuts deeper than romance. We also get practical: routines that work, how to hold yourself accountable, finding rounds and collaborators, and redefining success as sustainable connection rather than stadiums.

There’s a vulnerable clarity to Nora’s story: confidence as practice, prayer as reset, and success as rooms where people lean in and say “me too.” If you’ve ever wondered whether it’s too risky to chase the thing that won’t leave you alone, this conversation offers a map and a mirror. Listen, share with a friend who needs courage, and then tell us: what leap are you ready to take? Subscribe, leave a quick review, and help these stories travel further.

To learn more about Nora and her music check her out on Instagram @its_justnora and check out her website www.itsjustnora.com. 

To see clips of my guests and to get to know me on my personal level check me out on Instagram @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure. 

#215 - Some adventures test your legs; others test your soul. We sit down with D Paul Fleming—a Navy veteran, Native American healer, and self-described hollow bone—to explore a life spent between worlds: military discipline on one side, spiritual warfare on the other. What begins with a hard childhood and a near-death moment at sea unfolds into a candid look at gifts he didn’t want, a calling he couldn’t refuse, and the thin line where free will decides everything.

D Paul shares how he learned to stop blocking what moved through him and to trust intent as the engine of prayer and change. He describes clearing spaces and people, the day he dropped his protection and met a serpent-like presence that came for his soul, and the fierce lesson that followed. We walk through a startling healing story involving a couple, a malachite stone, and an ultrasound that turned despair into relief. We step into the haunted corridors of a New England inn, police logs stacked with centuries of sightings, and a writing process guided by voices that ask to be heard.

Threaded through is lineage and language: his great-grandmother’s walk back to ancestral ground, parallels he sees between Native cosmology and the Christian trinity, and a sober take on titles that feel more like duty than applause. D Paul holds the tension with humor and love, arguing those two are the best tools any healer—or human—has. He won’t rewrite his past; every scar trained him for work that requires courage, humility, and the refusal to flinch when darkness tests the door.

If stories of spiritual healing, Native American heritage, paranormal investigation, and the power of intent spark your curiosity, press play and join us. Subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review to help more listeners find conversations that challenge, comfort, and surprise. What part moved you most?

You can get a copy of D Paul Flemings book, Mystery's at the Windham Inn, on Amazon. 

To see some clips from the show and see who is coming up on The Human Adventure give me a follow on Instagram @humanadventurepod.

Want to be a guest on The Human Adventure? Send me a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/journeywithjake 

Discover the journeys that do more than take you somewhere new—they change the way you see yourself and the world. Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel explores unforgettable adventures, hidden places, and the transformative power of stepping beyond the familiar.

Check out Wayfinder Life-Changing Travel and listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Xploreum connects you with authentic wilderness expeditions led by trusted local experts. Browse real adventures, book directly with experienced guides, and get $200 off your first trip using code HumanAdventure2026 at xploreum.io/humanadventure.