Ari sits down with Kimm Hunt, President of the International Animal Training Certification Board (IATCB), to dive into the IATCB certification exam—how it’s developed, maintained, and what it means for animal trainers. They also explore Kimm’s work with shelter dogs, tackling tough topics like behavioral euthanasia and the importance of understanding behavioral science to help all learners thrive.

If you have a shout-out you’d like us to share, a question or a topic you’d like us to discuss, or a suggestion for a guest we should have on the show, let us know at [email protected]!

Chris is off at the AZA mid-year meeting, so Ari is joined by NEI Senior Trainer Josh Flagg for this episode! They dive into the challenges and joys of being the new person on a zoo team. From making new staff feel safe and welcome to knowing when (and when not) to let your "weird flag" fly, Josh and Ari explore ways to set teams up for success. They also share tips for uncovering a team’s culture even before you start. Check out this episode for valuable insights into building a positive and thriving team culture right from the start in the animal care field!

If you have a shout-out you’d like us to share, a question or a topic you’d like us to discuss, or a suggestion for a guest we should have on the show, let us know at [email protected]!

Chris once again ambushes Ari with a surprise topic for discussion, thanks to a great email we received: now that the definition of "enrichment for animals" has evolved, what might "modern, goal-based enrichment" look like for the humans we work alongside in the professional animal care field?

We chat about the staff-driven professional development offerings that happen during "Growvember", the focused feedback that we get from "intention projects", the important silliness that is the "NEI Off-Topic" WhatsApp chat, and the important skills we're all building thanks to the game GeoGuessr.

If you have a shout-out you’d like us to share, a question or a topic you’d like us to discuss, or a suggestion for a guest we should have on the show, let us know at [email protected]!

Ari and Chris steal a bit of time out of a busy day to chat with NEI's Steve Martin to follow up on last week's episode and talk about the practical, observable, and trainable behaviors that we see great trainers do. Focusing both on skills people can build in themselves and help build in others, the trio talks about meeting people where they're at, the importance of having a solid plan (that can change at any time based on feedback from your animal's behavior ), being an "actively adjusting" trainer, understanding that an animal saying "no" is a call to action to forge a path to "yes," letting your ego stay in the car, and the crucial role of flexibility.

Also, stay tuned for the WILD origin story of one of NEI's most well-known show bits: the dollar bill routine. Do your best to not throw up!

If you have a shout-out you’d like us to share, a question or a topic you’d like us to discuss, or a suggestion for a guest we should have on the show, let us know at [email protected]!

References from the episode:

"The Top 10 Behaviors of Expert Animal Trainers" by Steve Martin (Paper | Webinar)

With Chris busy being immersed in our Immersion Workshop, Ari is joined once more by Adam Geltz (Senior Trainer, Natural Encounters, Inc.) to discuss a listener email asking us to share some thoughts about cultivating great animal trainers. They start by talking about setting up strong antecedents to foster a safe environment for learning, move on to building training skills through offering and accepting valuable feedback, and finally chat about finding reinforcers that encourage more training and learning in the future. Come break it all down with us!

If you have a shout-out you’d like us to share, a question or a topic you’d like us to discuss, or a suggestion for a guest we should have on the show, let us know at [email protected]!

References from the show:

• The Jocko Podcast with Jocko Willink
• The Top 10 Behaviors of Expert Trainers by Steve Martin
• The Top 10 Behaviors of Expert Human Mentors by Chris Jenkins
• The TEC Talk Library of Behavior and Training Webinars
• Behavior Analysis and Learning by W David Pierce and Carl D. Cheney
• Learning and Behavior by Paul Chance
• Don't Shoot the Dog by Karen Pryor
• Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High
• Animal Training by Ken Ramirez

Chris and Ari sit down with Ramon Castillo, who Ari first connected with through NEI’s work with Bearizona Wildlife Park—when he reached out to chat about reptile training! They discuss his time at Bearizona, his transition to The St. Augustine Alligator Farm, and how he’s working to make animal programs more accessible in both English and Spanish. Tune in for insights on breaking barriers and creating universal connections with wildlife!

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If you have an idea for how you can make our show better, you can let us know by filling out our quick, anonymous survey about our show at ⁠https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/tectalkpod⁠ until Feb 28, 2025, or just reach out to us at [email protected] - thanks for listening!

With Ari out conferencing in Tennessee, Chris is joined by fellow NEI'er Adam Geltz to talk about their takeaways from Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babbin. They chat about the importance of recognizing when your ego gets in the way of making decisions that are best for the team, how vulnerability and delegation build trust and influence, why you have to be careful where you choose to spend your "leadership capital", where punishment might and might not be the best tool, and why setting expectations and enforcing them is important to help everyone be successful.

If you have a shout-out you’d like us to share, a question or a topic you’d like us to discuss, or a suggestion for a guest we should have on the show, let us know at [email protected]!

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If you have an idea for how you can make our show better, you can let us know by filling out a quick, anonymous survey about our show at ⁠https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/tectalkpod⁠ until Feb 28, 2025.

With Chris busy teaching at NEI's Professional Contemporary Animal Training and Management Workshop, Ari gets some coworker support and is joined by special co-host Adam Geltz and returning guest Shay Gruman! The three talk about how they've each been working on their personal and professional growth outside of NEI, reflecting on how breaking goals into smaller parts can help increase one's rate of reinforcement, the importance of building both active and passive skills, the gift we give others when we intervene less, and what continual growth looks like as people with different backgrounds that are currently in three different levels of the company.

References:

• Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott
• Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High by Grenny, Patterson, Et Al
• FYI: For Your Improvement - A Development and Coaching Guide by Michael Lombardo and Robert Eichinger
• The HealthyGamerGG Podcast with Dr. K
• The Animal Training Academy Podcast Show with Ryan Cartlidge
• Drinking From The Toiletby Hannah Brannigan
• Jocko Willink - Retired US Navy Seal, Author, Leadership Instructor

If you have an idea for how you can make our show better, you can let us know by filling out our quick, anonymous survey about our show at⁠https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/tectalkpod⁠ until Feb 28, 2025.

Chris is joined by fellow podcaster and all around amazing Kiwi, Ryan Cartlidge, founder of Animal Training Academy! Ryan chats about how a desire for better work-life balance led to exploring non-zoo jobs beyond consulting, how a friend with a recording studio led to ATA's first online course, why it's important for people in the field to "keep their swords sharp," the joy of working with happiness engineers, and why you should thank people when they say "no."

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If you have an idea for how you can make our show better, you can let us know by filling out our quick, anonymous survey about our show athttps://www.surveymonkey.com/r/tectalkpod until Feb 28, 2025.

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References from the show:

• Making Ripples by Animal Training Academy
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
• Reptelligence - Reptile Enrichment, Training, and Education

HAPPY 250TH EPISODE, TEC TALK!

To celebrate this fun landmark, Ari and Chris are joined by four amazing people who've had a huge impact on us and our field: Ken Ramirez (Karen Pryor Clicker Training), Steve Martin (Natural Encounters, Inc.), Susan Friedman (Behavior Works), and Tim Sullivan (Brookfield Zoo Chicago)! Our guests talk about how they all met each other (spoiler alert: everyone was intimidated by everyone), reflect on the impact on their lives of the late Karen Pryor, share some of their current biggest peeves/vendettas/crusades, reveal things they are working on about themselves, and give us suggestions for topics and guests for future episodes. It's an incredible talk with incredible people, and our way of saying thank you to our listeners for supporting the show - here's to the next 250!

If you have a shout-out you’d like us to share, a question or a topic you’d like us to discuss, or a suggestion for a guest we should have on the show, let us know at [email protected]!

References from the episode: