Posts by David Shriner-Cahn

In today’s episode of Smashing the Plateau, I have the honor of interviewing Ruth Messinger, President of the American Jewish World Service. The American Jewish World Service is the leading Jewish organization working to promote human rights and end poverty in the developing world. AJWS advances the health and rights of women, girls and LGBT people; promotes civil and political rights; defends access to food, land and livelihoods; and aids communities in the aftermath of disasters. AJWS pursues lasting change by supporting grassroots and global human rights organizations in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean and by mobilizing supporters in the U.S. to advocate for global justice. Working together, the AJWS community strives to build a more just and equitable world.

Ruth also discusses:

• Social justice work/giving back
• How AJWS was virtually invisible when Ruth was brought on board
• The challenges of scaling an organization
• Becoming more clear about what you are as an organization in order to maintain and expand
• Learning how to listen as a leader
• What it means to be a leader in 2015

Ruth W. Messinger is president of American Jewish World Service (AJWS), the world’s leading Jewish organization working to end poverty and realize human rights in the developing world. Ruth came to AJWS in 1998, after a 20-year career in public service in New York City. As a leading activist for human rights around the globe, Ruth lectures widely and holds leadership roles in the faith-based advocacy arena. She currently sits on the State Department’s Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group and co-chairs the Sub-Working Group on Social Justice. Ruth has been honored by many national Jewish organizations and has been named on lists of the world’s most influential Jews and religious leaders by The Jewish Daily Forward, The Jerusalem Post and The Huffington Post.

Learn more about Ruth at ajws.org, or follow her on Linkedin and Twitter.

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Professional life coach Alexander Hamilton Dunlop joins Smashing the Plateau this week to discuss the nexus of personal growth and business success. Drawing from his own experiences, from Wall Street consultant to shaman’s apprentice, Alexander covers a wide range of topics from emotional intelligence to improving health and well-being, all geared towards helping people find clarity and achieve personal and entrepreneurial growth. In his own business, he employs a deck of cards and a bit of math to help clients better understand themselves and ultimately find direction by acknowledging weakness and leveraging strengths. Unconventional though that may be, he describes how no matter where you find clarity, it is a vital step to smashing business’s (and life’s) plateaus.

Alexander also discusses:

• Finding meaning in the work you do – or finding meaningful work
• Identifying patterns to help reduce wasted energy and stress
• Establishing diet and lifestyle as a basis for peak performance
• Developing power, inner drive, and authority to advance to higher tiers

Alexander is a professional life coach. He is also a successful entrepreneur, having launched a holistic health center in Manhattan. He has worked as a minister and been trained as a Roman Catholic priest; he was also initiated as a Swami while living in India and has apprenticed in the Shamanic traditions. He is a Harvard graduate and former Wall Street Consultant.

Learn more about Alexander’s business at www.alexanderhamiltondunlop.com, or visit his non-profit foundation, Spiritual Nutrition, at spiritualnutrition.org, for free gifts and numerology reports.

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This week on Smashing the Plateau, dive into the world of content marketing with successful entrepreneur Michael Schein. As marketing has increasingly shifted to online platforms, businesses face incessant demand to constantly update content and keep up with the wild pace of the internet. Start-ups can be especially disadvantaged by this expectation due to limited staff, time, and resources. Michael saw this obstacle as an opportunity rather than stumbling block. His business, MicroFame Media, creates templates for content updates that make the job easier and more efficient for businesses of all sizes. Systematizing your marketing strategy – and other straightforward elements of your business – can be the stepping stone to spending more time and energy on new directions and next big things.

Michael also discusses:

• Becoming an authority in your field and gaining acknowledgement
• Recognizing ‘shift-points’ and forging progress
• Using media to gain exposure with other business leaders
• How to differentiate your business in today’s climate

Michael is the CEO of MicroFame Media, a content marketing and strategy agency that implements systems and processes for turning organizations into recognized authorities in their fields for the purpose of generating new business. He has created or facilitated the production of content for companies such as eBay, LinkedIn, Abila, TESLA, Inc., SEER Interactive, Interiors by Steven G., Magento, Vitalyst, Intellect, Arise Virtual Solutions, and Citrix, to name a few. He writes a weekly column for Inc and is a contributor to Fortune and Huffington Post.

Find out more about Michael’s business or get in touch him directly at microfamemedia.com.

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Theresa Fette describes her professional journey as a fortuitous meeting of luck and planning. After earning four degrees and working in law, she took over a failing trust company and transformed the shaky business to an asset management powerhouse. On this week’s episode of Smashing the Plateau, Theresa shares her experience in transitioning from entrepreneurship to building a legacy. She discusses how both traditional and non-traditional business practices played a part in her success, the challenges she has faced, and how to maintain business stability while remaining open to change and improvements.

Theresa also discusses:

• Making fans early on by removing road blocks for others
• The importance of developing the ‘likeability factor’
• Interpreting metrics and employing decision matrices
• Handling difficult or unrealistic client requests
• Engendering a positive office culture while managing and motivating employees
• Defining one year success goals for new hires

Theresa is a founder and CEO of Provident Trust Group, a leading self-directed retirement plan administrator and alternative-asset custodian. In six years, she increased the organization’s assets under custody from $300M to more than $5B. Fortune honored her as one of its most powerful women entrepreneurs for 2012.

Theresa is also a board member of Venovate Holdings, Inc. She holds a LL.M. in Taxation from the University of Missouri – Kansas City, a Juris Doctorate, a Masters in Accounting, and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting, each from the University of Arkansas.

Connect with Theresa on LinkedIn; learn more about her business at trustprovident.com.

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Jason Treu joins Smashing the Plateau this week to discuss the power of relationships in the business world and how to develop the relationship-building skill sets that will be key to your success. He emphasizes how essential skills such as building rapport, likeability, and trust, can be developed by anyone at any point in their career. Jason outlines specific steps to build self-confidence, become engaging and influential, and form relationships with the right people. His philosophy that everything we accomplish depends on other people inspires him to invest in the people around him, and to seek out accomplices, mentors, or simply those with common ground to move his business passion forward.

He also discusses:

• Creating a business people want to work for
• Forming habits around strong communication
• Following your passions and the importance of making your journey measurable
• The value of building relationships with busy people

Jason is a top business coach, speaker and author. He’s a leading expert on social engineering, influence, persuasion, and networking. At the heart of his strategy is the understanding that people and your relationships are your true “wealth.”

Jason’s bestselling book, Social Wealth, a how-to-guide on building personal and professional relationships, has sold more than 30,000 copies and has been #1 in four business and self-help categories. Jason is also a frequent contributor to publications such as Brazen Careerist, Thought Catalog, Under30 CEO, KillerStartups, and others.

Learn more about Jason and his business coaching live at BeExtraordinary.tv, on Twitter (@jasontreu), on LinkedIn (JasonTreu), or at his website.

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Entrepreneur and Sprinklr Global Evangelist Ekaterina Walter joins Smashing the Plateau this week with insider advice on moving your business forward and keeping up with today’s ever-advancing consumer. In this discussion, she highlights the importance of leveraging community and self-learning to achieve these ends. She also discusses self-empowerment and utilizing technology to learn more about your passions, take on new roles and initiatives, and form partnerships with those who share your interests. She describes how having self-confidence, and recognizing your surrounding support systems, are crucial to building networks, taking your business to the next level, and building success.

Ekaterina also discusses:

• Empowering employees where it matters in efficient ways that lead to growth
• Online opportunities for self-education
• Customer engagement with your brand on the ground and through social media
• How to create consumer experiences in a consistent fashion

Ekaterina has led strategic and marketing innovation for Fortune 500 brands such as Intel and Accenture, and she currently serves as Global Evangelist at Sprinklr. She has written for Forbes, Fast Company, Inc., Huffington Post, and Entrepreneur, and has appeared on CNBC, ABC, NBC, FOX News, Forbes, TechCrunch, CNN, WSJ, Inc., and published the best-selling Think Like Zuck in 2013.

She received a 2013 Marketer of the Year honor (SoMe Awards), and was named #3 on The Forbes 2014 World Top 40 Social Marketing Talent. In June 2014, Fortune magazine included her in the list of the most impactful business people on social media.

Learn more about Ekaterina at www.ekaterinawalter.com or follow her on Twitter (@Ekaterina).

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With two successful entrepreneurial endeavors under her belt, CEO and owner of LunaMetrics Robbin Steif is well-positioned to describe some of the common challenges facing entrepreneurs today. One challenge she discusses here is creating a balance between keeping full control over the quality of your product vs. empowering other team members to be actors and decision-makers. Robbin points out the importance of finding the right people for the job, but also of becoming aware of your own strengths and weaknesses as a leader. Because you are a critical component of your business, taking the time to put work into yourself is likely to translate into business success.

She also discusses:

• Using data analytics to become a more efficient and cost-effective business
• Leaving the corporate track to become an entrepreneur
• Overcoming personal issues to advance business
• When to release a product on the market
• The pros and cons of relying on resumes when hiring new talent

Robbin is CEO and owner of LunaMetrics, an Internet consulting firm that recently celebrated its tenth birthday, and is now an Inc. 5000 company. LunaMetrics is her second entrepreneurial endeavor. Steif is a graduate of Harvard College and the Harvard Business School. She was awarded a 2013 BusinessWomen First award from the Pittsburgh Business Times, as well as a 2014 Diamond Award for leadership.

Learn more about Robbin Steif on LinkedIn; connect with her on Twitter (@robbinsteif); and learn more about LunaMetrics at www.lunametrics.com.

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Nicole Valentine is passionate about opportunities to grow, improve, and mature a business. In this interview, the founder of Synergy Business Development describes how, from entrepreneurship to exit strategy, the successful business leader always asks “What’s next?” Nicole also touches on the importance of adjusting your product to keep up with the ever-changing human experience, and creating a simple-yet-complete business model that can be transformed and shared. She describes how these forward-thinking strategies can help you move forward throughout a career, from start-up to successful exit.

She also discusses:

• Creating a vibrant culture and community feeling by bringing together different perspectives
• Making a habit out of being creative
• Keeping teams engaged, strong, and productive through clear communication and strong leadership
• Considering alternatives to getting an idea to market, such as forming partnerships and utilizing existing channels

Valentine worked as a Wall Street Corporate M&A Lawyer before launching her New York-based consultancy Synergy Business Development. Synergy advises startup CEOs, strategy teams at Fortune 500 Companies, and social entrepreneurs in business development and strategic growth. Last year, Nicole launched a business strategy app, Winly, to deliver her business growth methodology to entrepreneurs around the world. Available on IOS Apple iPad and iPhone, Winly (www.winlyapp.com) includes a suite of Playbooks to inspire teams to win by making strategy a daily exercise.

Learn more about Nicole at www.synergybusinessonline.com, or follow her on Linkedin (www.linkedin.com/in/nicolevalentinemoody) and Twitter (@ValentineSaid).

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Even by entrepreneurial standards, Chuck Ealey has had a diverse career—or three careers: football star, businessman, and community leader. After a record-setting college football career in Toledo—which, he says, he viewed as a vehicle to getting his degree in business economics—Chuck was passed over in the NFL draft in an era when black quarterbacks were almost unheard-of. Leaving the NFL, he went on to an outstanding career as a quarterback with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, and the Toronto Argonauts (he describes how “I went to Canada to live the American dream and play quarterback.”)

After leaving football, Chuck went on to establish himself as a leader in the financial industry. Today, he is a Certified Financial Planner, radio host, and has been the Mississauga Regional Director for the Investors Group Financial Services Inc. since 1987. Here, he talks about his career and the things that have made him successful:

• Handling transitions and difficult periods by moving “one play at a time, one day at a time”—and focusing on what you can control in the moment
• The importance of fully focusing on an endpoint or outcome, and having a plan to reach it
• The potential communication gaps in inter-generational communication in the workplace, and why “we can’t just overlook it and say ‘do it like me’”
• Mentoring younger workers in the workplace, and emphasizing long-term goals over short-term gratification.

Chuck is a recipient of the Herb Carnegie Community Leadership Award and the African Canadian Achievement Sports Award. He is the founder of the Chuck Ealey Foundation and the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga.

Learn more about Chuck at www.chuckealeyspeaks.com or at www.undefeatedspirit.com.

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After a career in the British finance industry, Nigel Savage successfully made the leap from the private sector to non-profit management. He founded Hazon in 2000, with the goal of building a more sustainable Jewish community and a healthier world. Here, Nigel discusses the similarities between for- and non-profit enterprises, including: finding the right people for the job, maintaining competitive advantage, organizational systems and structure, and common road blocks.

He also discusses:

• Assessing personal strengths and weaknesses and knowing when to ask for help
• Recognizing what business components will require continuous or additional work after implementation—such as social media communications, human resources, and internal structure
• Overcoming discomfort with fundraising
• Reducing bureaucracy while maintaining systems
• Keeping the faith: applying religious and community-based assets to solving real-world problems

Nigel founded Hazon with a bike ride across America to raise awareness of environmental issues; today, the New York-based nonprofit has staff in 7 locations around the US, and was designated by the Sierra Club as one of the top 50 faith-based environmental organizations.

Nigel has studied at Georgetown, Pardes, Yakar, and Hebrew University, and has experience as the executive director for a number of independent films. He was a founder of both the New Israel Fund in the UK and Limmud New York. Currently, her serves on the board of Romemu. He has twice been listed in the Forward’s annual list of America’s 50 most influential Jews.

Learn more about Hazon on the web at www.hazon.org, on Twitter (@Hazon), or on Facebook.

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Tamela Rich’s solo travels across North America have put her face-to -face with fears of humiliation, loss of autonomy, and even death. In this interview, the author, storyteller, and adventurer discusses how fear can hinder us from overcoming challenges in our personal and business lives. As she observes, fear does not need to hold us back from achieving business goals: with the right mix of confidence, humility, and self-reflection, we can channel fearful energy in a productive way towards growth and reward.

She also discusses:

• The benefits of positive thinking and self-reflection to leadership
• How focusing on personal strengths—both our own and those of others—is more productive than lingering on weaknesses
• Turning setbacks into opportunities for growth
• The positive implications of getting to know your “true self,” such as being more adaptive and more able to navigate unpredictable circumstances

Learn more about Tamela, her writing (including her book, Living Full Throttle), and her motorcycle adventures at TamelaRich.com, or follow her on LinkedIn (Tamela Rich) or Twitter (@TamelaRich).

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Marilyn King knows something about the power of thinking: after a car accident in 1979 rendered her unable to train physically for her third Olympic Team, she placed second at the Olympic trials for the 1980 Moscow Games after using only mental training techniques. A two-time Olympian in the five-event pentathlon, Marilyn has spent 30 years as an expert in the field of exceptional human performance. The president of Way Beyond Sports, she helps others apply skills learned through sports to three specific areas: business, education and peace.

In this interview, she discusses:

• The importance of daily practices – not only physical, but mental: how you approach the day, what the plan is, how to be more effective.
• The power of Olympic thinking: Passion, Vision, Action.
• Why leaders need to understand the conditions under which people are willing or able to change
• How leaders can tell a company’s “Story of Now” to give employees a sense of excitement and purpose
• How leaders can mine the collective wisdom of the company’s employees
• How Olympian Thinking can help us achieve the world we want to live in

Marilyn’s work includes programs conducted for senior executives at Fortune 500 companies, such as AT&T, Apple Computer, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Ikea, Microsoft, Nokia, Oracle, Swiss Reinsurance, Starbucks and Wells Fargo. She has been featured on Forbes.com, The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, and NBC Nightly News. Currently, Marilyn is involved in a joint Russian-American venture called “The Peace Team,” and has twice spoken at the United Nations.

Learn more about Marilyn at her website, www.WayBeyondSports.com.

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