The Shink Tank

Dima enters the Shink Tank to share her incredibly personal and heart-wrenching story beginning as a young girl in the Middle-East whose entire life was predetermined. She grew up in an oppressive culture, did everything she was "Supposed to do" only to discover she was not living the life she was meant to be living. Her story of breaking free will amaze and inspire the listener.

Dima has spent years leading global teams and developing future leaders for companies like IBM, Merrill Lynch, and Bank of America. She couples that experience with her own personal narratives to captivate and motivate her audiences by reaching into the depths of people's minds, hearts, and aspirations; sharing a vision of hope, courage, and wild possibilities.

Dima is passionate about the topics of diversity, equity and inclusion and how related initiatives improve people's lives.

Learn more about and connect with Dima at dimaghawi.com 

Rob Kirkpatrick is in a class of his own, a man wearing many hats at TownSquare media. Rob is on the air every day bringing news to Acadiana (Southern Louisiana) and is the Brand Manager for several properties.

Rob discusses the multi-faceted role of a brand manager and the inherent challenges and opportunities. He shares the difficult personal decision to leave a coveted position at CNN to relocate to a small market in Lafayette, Louisiana. Rob's story is relatable to all working parents who face the dilemma of finding the appropriate balance between work and life.

Additionally Rob discusses the future of news and, specifically, news radio.

This is a fun episode. Enjoy!

Do you have butterflies in your stomach?

That’s great! It means you care.

These nerves are just harnessed energy you can use to propel yourself forward. Can you focus on the power of that energy instead of the fear of failure?

Aaron Steffey, co-founder of Propeller Bonds joins me to share the intriguing story of why and how Propeller came to be. In our discussion we cover why he chose to partner with technology as a start up and the benefit in exchanging equity for true partnership. Aaron makes an interesting, if self deprecating claim that every day you see Propeller is their worst day (because they are always getting better). Propeller launched during the pandemic and Aaron shares the surprising story of how what would appear to be imperfect timing proved to be ideal. You'll hear about Aaron's "Quitting Moment"; it was not all smooth sailing for Propeller, as this company nearly failed to launch due to a last moment, change of course. Finally we discuss insuretech and disruption and Aaron unpacks why his company chose not to go direct to consumer. Enjoy the discussion and thank you for listening.

“Struggling isn’t failure. Struggling is successfully not giving up.” - I love this quote because it’s so true. How can you succeed or overcome challenges without a struggle?

I love it when one of my team members is open enough, trusts me enough to admit he/she is struggling. It allows us to work through challenges and find success together.

More Shink About It: linktr.ee/ryanshinkle 

Offering a proposal on an apples to apples comparison basis is a fool's errand. You make yourself and your product a commodity. If you have a strong value proposition which truly differentiates how or what you do you should never offer a proposal on apples to apples.

Cardinal Capital Co-Founder Robert Powell discusses growing through Improv, the benefit of actively listening to customers and employees and the exciting creation of Rainforest Cafe.

Seek to serve your clients in all ways especially when you’re struggling to open new opportunities.

This strategy will make you more valuable, trusted and important to your clients.

I had a great time with Joey Giangola on his excellent podcast "Change Insurance" discussing how we are changing the insurance buying process at Insgroup. By leading with value we are educating clients on cost of risk and forever changing their relationship with insurance and insurance brokers.