In this dojo, we continue the conversation on the resistance and talk specifically about how it shows up and how it manifests in our every day lives. Tony walks us through the different ways that resistance can manifest itself in our lives to prevent and distract us from being who we really are and from living our highest value:

1. Procrastination

In today’s dojo, we discuss specific examples so we can learn how to beat this force that can kill our dreams and kill our calling. We are all capable of doing it but we have to first realize that it’s real and be able to define and describe it. Resistance doesn’t care about us, it cares about shutting down who we are called to be.

Resources:

Steven Pressfield: The War of Art

We welcome Dr. Vincent Venditto back onto the podcast to talk about the recent updates regarding the COVID pandemic, vaccinations, and looking ahead to adapting to a brave new world. On this episode, Tony and Dr. Venditto dive into the importance of communicating science and understanding the scientific process. This conversation dives into understanding how science is a method- that there is no such thing as a perfect experiment when it comes to collecting data because there are things that we can’t predict or miss when originally designing experiments. This is why the peer-reviewed process is so important, as it serves to help authors identify the potential things that may have been missed when designing their experiment. Together, Tony and Dr. Venditto discuss how science can be communicated better, how we could start teaching critical thinking in early education and build that foundation at an early age, and how to have healthy skepticism about the information being given to us.

Dr. Vincent J. Venditto is an assistant professor in the College of Pharmacy at the University of Kentucky. He received training in organic synthesis and vaccine development. He obtained a BS in chemistry from Gettysburg College and then worked for two years at the NCI, NIH as a cancer research trainee before attending graduate school. He obtained a PhD in chemistry from Texas A&M University and worked on vaccine development as an NIH postdoctoral fellow at University of California, San Francisco. Students and fellows in his lab come from diverse backgrounds with interests in chemistry, biology, drug delivery and experimental therapeutics, but a common goal of exploring novel methods to modulate the immune system. Students and fellows in his lab are encouraged to utilize their skills to advance projects while learning new skills to better appreciate the various aspects of designing novel immunotherapies.

Resources:

• Addressing Concerns and Resistance to the COVID-19 Vaccine with Dr. Vincent Venditto

On today’s dojo, Tony gets into what he considers to be the biggest reason why many of us don’t live the life we’re meant to live. In this episode, we’re going to be talking about The Resistance, as described by Steven Pressfield in his book, The War of Art. In the subsequent dojo episodes, we’ll then talk about how it manifests in our lives and how we can go about beating this resistance.

Why is this relevant to people with disabilities? People with disabilities face an even greater resistance in their lives and have more reasons and excuses to not live the life they’re meant to live. As we dive into the characteristics and identifying the resistance, Tony’s hope is that we’ll be able to see how it truly is a force that impacts everyone. The problem is most of us don’t even see it, acknowledge it, or realize that we’ve already or are currently being affected by it.

Resources:

• Steven Pressfield: The War of Art

As someone who has a disability, Drew has 23 plus years of lived experience and 7 years of experience working with and advocating for people with disabilities. Since 2014, he has worked as a freelance motivational speaker and advocate giving talks to various organizations throughout the state of Florida. During that time, he has also served as the Media Relations Coordinator for the Gainesville “Night to Shine” Prom for people with disabilities sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation. He recently graduated this past summer from the University of Florida with his Bachelors of Science in Telecommunication-News. During his time at UF he was heavily involved in advocating for disability rights through UF organizations, such as, Disability Ambassadors and serving as a student advocate for the Disability Resource Center on campus.

Since graduation from the University of Florida, Drew has joined the wonderful CIL team serving as the High School High Tech program coordinator for Alachua Rural and Levy counties. In his role, he assist high school students with disabilities take their next life adventure after high school, with a focus on employment for people with disabilities. High School High Tech was created to empower young adults to pursue their dreams in areas including Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics through job shadowing, internships, and workshops. Being able to guide other people with disabilities like himself on their journeys to becoming productive members of society has been such a rewarding experience for Drew.

“We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.” -Franklin D Roosevelt

Resources:

• Drew's News Podcast

If you have topics you'd like for us to discuss with our community and listeners, leave a comment or contact us at [email protected]!

For More Information visit: Center For Independent Living of North Central Florida

• 352-378-7474 (Gainesville office)

As Tony concludes this dojo miniseries on life mission statements, he hopes it can serve as an example of why creating and having mission/vision statements for ourselves is important, as it can provide awareness and clarity especially during uncertain times. It might also serve as a compass for when we may not know where we’re going or it can help to keep us grounded.

Service to others is what Tony finds to be his purpose. In reflecting on why and how he’s become involved in serving others, he has his parents to thank for leading by example  and giving him the opportunity to see life from different perspectives and circumstances. On this dojo, he breaks down the components of service, based on his personal life experiences with serving others and his community:

• Privilege: it is a privilege and an honor to be able to serve

If you have topics you'd like for us to discuss with our community and listeners, leave a comment or contact us at [email protected]! We'd love to have guests participate with Tony on our Disability Dojos- so if that person is you, reach out and let us know!

For More Information visit: Center For Independent Living of North Central Florida

• 352-378-7474 (Gainesville office)

It’s a new year, which means we’re in a new legislative session! On this episode, Jane talks about the culture and climate for the Florida 2022 Legislative Session. She provides an update on COVID, Re-districting, potential Gerrymandering, and breaks down FACIL’s legislative agenda for the year.

Jane also highlights other types of legislative actions that are expected to take place, such as, changing the age in which students are considered to have developmental disabilities and eligible for educational services, and funding for the Florida Alliance For Assistive Services and Technology (FAST Program).  She will join us periodically throughout this legislative session to share updates and inform us on what may be coming down the pipeline. Jane’s continued efforts to provide knowledge on the legislative process and terminology helps to educate us on how the process works, which in turn, helps us to be better advocates.

For helpful general information and links to the House and Senate websites, statutes, the Florida Constitution and a directory of Florida lobbyists visit: Online Sunshine

You can also visit:

• Florida House of Representatives

Love is a spiritual condition that helps us to find meaning and purpose in our lives. Today’s dojo is a continuation of the previous dojo where Tony talks through the importance of having a mission or vision statement for ourselves, to help guide us through another new year. On this dojo, Tony talks about unconditional love for all and shares how unconditional love breaks down for him, in his life.

Today is also Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. Tony takes this this time to talk about his message and his vision, and how love ties into a lot of what Martin Luther King Jr. stood for. And one of his most powerful messages is perhaps the message of loving one another. It is in this message of love that we need to look towards to in order to be united, to overcome our differences, and to create a harmonious society.

Resources:

• Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It By: Kamal Ravikant

This week we continue the message of gratitude and sharing the independent life from the perspective of our guests within the Independent Living network. We have had the privilege of interviewing guests from all walks of life, across all age groups, with vastly different experiences, and an abundant amount of life lessons to share. We hear from leaders who have dedicated their life work towards making a difference in their community, champions for the people who strive to advocate for those unable to advocate for themselves, artists who are forging the path for disability representation in the media, educators and researchers working to examine access and support for those with disabilities, students learning to navigate their way through the education system and gaining resilience through the journey, and established legal professionals who’ve left their corporate career to make a difference in nonprofit work. These perspectives and countless others is what makes the independent living network so impactful, powerful, supportive, and life changing. Join us in leaning into the experiences of those paving the way for advocacy for all.

Listen to the full episodes from our guests featured on this episode:

• Brian Johnson

A mission and vision statement is critical to the success of an organization. From this perspective, Tony thought about the benefits we could gain from creating a mission statement for ourselves, which gives us direction so that we can be successful in our lives. On today’s dojo, Tony shares with us his mission statement and his personal formula for achieving inner peace in his life:

• Awareness

If you have topics you'd like for us to discuss with our community and listeners, leave a comment or contact us at [email protected]! We'd love to have guests participate with Tony on our Disability Dojos- so if that person is you, reach out and let us know!

For More Information visit: Center For Independent Living of North Central Florida

• 352-378-7474 (Gainesville office)

A new year is upon us, with unlimited potential for how we can continue making strides towards being the best version of ourselves that we can be. On this episode, we take a look back at some of our guests’ responses to “What does the independent life mean to you?” It is through the different perspectives and countless experiences of others that we may broaden our understanding on what it means to live independently for those who have adversities and challenges in their daily lives.

Listen to the full episodes from our guests featured on this episode:

• Shera Curtis