Category: Podcast

According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, the average person now holds ten different jobs before the age of 40. With the rise of AI and rapid technological change, this number is likely to increase in the future. The question is, how can you future-proof yourself in your chosen field while avoiding self-sabotaging behavior that can derail your career or get you laid off? Our guest in this episode is Carter Cast. Carter has reinvented himself several times, starting out as Marketing Manager at PepsiCo, moving on to become CEO of Walmart.com, and later a venture capitalist and professor. In his work life, he has been forced to confront some hard truths, which he documented in his book,The Right and Wrong Stuff: How Brilliant Careers
Are Made and Unmade. Carter’s formula for avoiding career disaster involves knowing yourself and your weaknesses, becoming more agile and learning to control risky behaviors. As our work lives inevitably become less certain and more intellectually demanding, Carter’s insights are essential for anyone who has long-term career or business goals.

This is an important episode and it probably affects people you care deeply about including yourself, I bet. After all, we’ve all been through some childhood trauma and what they say is, “What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger,” and as pervasive as domestic violence is, it’s never okay. The victims aren’t just those who were directly targeted by the perpetrators. The collateral damage always includes the kids, even if their exposure was as a “witness only.” This is called Childhood Domestic Violence or CDV. Our guest is Brian F. Martin. He is not only a successful entrepreneur who’s been involved with many high-profile brands in the executive level, including Adweek, Pfizer and Walmart, he’s also a passionate advocate for children who have been affected by domestic violence.

If you run a business, you’ve probably considered switching to a remote workforce. Why not? There are plenty of proven benefits for both you and your employees. That’s not to say there aren’t some challenges. For one, it can be difficult to keep track of what your team is working on, how many hours they’ve worked and if they’re staying focused. My guest for this episode is Rob Rawson, a serial entrepreneur with employees in over nine different countries. That’s not the only reason he’s an expert in outsourcing. Rob also created Time Doctor, a time tracking program that helps your workforce easily keep track of their hours and optimize their productivity. It’s so good, I even use it myself for my own team. If you have an outsourced workforce or you’re thinking about heading down that route, this episode is a must as we reveal the secrets of going remote and getting the most out of your employees when they’re working from home. You’ll never want to see an office cubicle again.

You already know that your body needs regular exercise to stay fit and healthy. What about your brain? Poor diet and lifestyle choices can make your mind flabby, lethargic and prone to disease. In order to keep your mind sharp, you need a workout routine, and maybe even a personal brain trainer. Dr. Andrew Hill’s Peak Performance Institute provides just that. Using quantitative EEG or qEEG, brain mapping, and neurofeedback, Dr. Hill assesses your mental abilities and then devices a unique coaching program to help you reach peak mental performance. I got to experience this brain mapping and brain training firsthand and I was so impressed, I’m going to be making his program a major part of my 2019.

Tragically, we seem to be facing an epidemic in brain diseases from autism, Alzheimer’s, dyslexia and attention deficit disorder. This didn’t use to be the case. Is it environmental toxins, vaccines, some epigenetic trigger? One thing we can all agree on is that treating these disorders like ADD, ADHD, autism, Asperger’s and so on with drugs from Big Pharma is not ideal. What if there was another way? According to my guest, Wynford Dore, these and many other learning difficulties like dyslexia can be treated by personalized training that gets to the root of the problem rather than focusing on the symptoms. Wynford is a serial entrepreneur whose latest business sold in 2011 for a nine-figure sum, but that isn’t what lights him up. He wants to change the world one brain at a time. His ventures include the withZING Brain Development program and a world-renowned private school in England.

In talking with various branding experts over the years, I have heard many definitions of the word, brand. My favorite of these definitions is this: A brand is a promise fulfilled. It is so short and so elegant. I have rebranded. The Optimized Geek Podcast is no longer. Welcome to Get Yourself Optimized. The reason for the rebrand is simple. I want to appeal to more than just geeks. My brand promise is to help you get optimized, regardless of whether you identify as a geek or not. This wider audience will allow me to make a difference for many more people. Speaking of which, if you know anybody who could benefit from this podcast, please share it with them. That will help them out and it will help me out.

Do you feel like you have a secret identity? Maybe we all have a Superman or Superwoman inside us waiting for the right moment to leap out and save the day. My guest for this episode, Dr. Chris Zaino, certainly believes that. He’s the Creator of the “I Am HERO” Movement, where he helps people shed their complacency and tap their inner superhero to win heroic victories in their lives. He is also a speaker, entrepreneur, author and former Mr. America and Mr. Universe. In his late twenties, he became a hero himself when he defied a terminal disease, which inspired him to get his Doctorate and found a wellness clinic that would expand worldwide to help thousands of patients. If you’re interested in changing your mindset, looking after your long-term health or unleashing your inner hero, stick around for some hero-sized insights from Dr. Zaino.

If you own a business or thinking of starting one, then you’re going to want to hear what my guest in this episode has to say. John Warrillow is the author of Built To Sell and of The Automatic Customer. He’s also the Founder of the Value Builder System, which has helped thousands of business owners drastically increased the value of their companies. John is also the host of Built To Sell Radio, which I’ve had the pleasure of appearing on as a guest. He’s a general expert in all things business and finance. How can you make your business more valuable and how do you set things up to ensure that you can make a smooth exit if and when you decide to sell? We’ll be talking about these topics and more including valuations, earn-outs, company structures, investment and plenty of other good stuff to make your business better. Stick around because this episode might just make you a lot of money.

It’s easy to let others define what success, happiness and value look like for us. When we try to live our lives using a framework that doesn’t resonate authentically with who we are, it will only lead to disappointment. My guest for this episode is an expert in personal transformation and communication. She has helped thousands of people from Russia to Ghana move towards success, leadership, mastery and redefine their lives around their own personal vision. Bettie Spruill is a certified Master NLP Practitioner, entrepreneur, coach and consultant, whose clients include Northwest Airlines, United Airlines, the Harlem Globetrotters and Honeywell. She is someone who has thought deeply about the human condition and how to help others solve the major problems in their lives. She’s also an award-winning educator and someone who believes in giving back. Whether you want to be a more successful leader or simply want to live a more fulfilling life, stick around. You might be about to hear something that changes your life forever.

My guest for this episode is one of the best-kept secrets in Hollywood, someone many famous athletes, celebrities and executives would rather you didn’t know about. Dr. Matea is a doctor who’s trained in both Western medicine and natural therapies. She’s also a musician and vocalist, and the Founder of a line of aromatherapy products. Dr. Matea’s work taps into both science and spirituality, allowing her to provide a more holistic approach to healing, enhancing or maintaining her patients’ health. Her specialties include IV vitamin therapy, nutritional supplements, custom herbal medicines and meal plans. She often develops innovative treatments for conditions that have responded poorly to conventional remedies. If you’re someone who’s serious about your health and general well-being, then the advice you’re about to hear will be invaluable.