Wise Millennial

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial 
Kayleigh Christina, COO & Co-Founder of "ClearSTEM", sits down IRL to discuss her journey with acne and her line of groundbreaking, innovative products (anti-aging, anti-acne, non-toxic). We also discuss why education is so important, the high costs and effects of stress/hormone changes between men and women, setting personal boundaries, healthy work balance routines, self-image and mental health, pressures of being an entrepreneur and not feeling constantly behind compared to others, and how to find fulfillment in your current job.

LEARN ABOUT CLEARSTEM: https://www.instagram.com/clearstemskincare/

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• So Kayleigh, briefly explain to us what is ClearSTEM?
• People experience all of kinds of traumas or health issues, not everyone makes it their professional life. im curious what about your experience was so impactful that made you want to go into this full time and dedicate yourself to it?
• I’d like to focus in on is the education component to your business, and building a community around it. Because I feel like where most Millennials struggle is in finding fulfillment and meaning in their career, or doing things just for the optics of it. And you wear your heart on your sleeve and are very vulnerable to the outside world. Tell me more about that decision and strategy to focus on the education aspect
• Not to make this a gender thing, but I didn’t realize how much women deal with skin issues and the complex web of decisions and money associated with it. Let’s list them. Hormones, birth control, digestion, exfoliation, expensive serums, antibiotics, supplements, endless prescriptions. It’s exhausting just thinking about it. Do we need to educate men as much as we do women?
• Do you ever feel overwhelmed? How do you create routines and practices to find balance?
• After your own experience with acne and meeting Danielle, why did you decide to go the CPG/product route, as opposed to being a coach or creating an online course? 
• Let’s talk briefly about building community. How do you get the word out? How do you grow a community? Is it all word of mouth? Do you have to spend heavily on Instagram and facebook ads? What tips or lessons can you share?
• Other than improving their own skin, what does the ClearSTEM community care about? What are some common themes or trends you can share, or repeated misinformation?
• I want to ask you about self-image. Because you’re both a beauty company and a health company. On one hand, you help people regain confidence in themselves and improve their overall skin health. That’s an incredibly important thing, and there’s nothing controversial about that. There’s nothing wrong with people wanting to look and feel good, am I right? On the other hand, as a society, and with social media, often people feel really pressured to have perfect skin, perfect body, free from any imperfections, using filters. What’s your take on that, and where’s the balance from a mental health perspective?
• (Are we too much of a consumerist culture? As you said yourself, people always want whatever is new and exciting. But often it can be misleading.)
• What pressures do you feel Kayleigh?
• What advice would you give to those who don’t feel fully satisfied in their career or current job?
• Hypothetically speaking, if you hadn’t discovered Danielle, what would you be doing?
• What is something you wish you had known 5 years ago, or that someone had told you, which would have made your life so much easier?

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Tracy Komlos and Aimee Greenacre, Co-Founders of "LA Hike Club", sit down to discuss their journey creating a community with over 900+ members (and growing!) exclusively through word of mouth. We also discuss why having a barrier to entry is a good thing (hint: better group energy), how do you build a culture that people want to be a part of? Tips on how to create a community, fear of failure vs. fear of success, when does a side project turns into a full time business?, avoiding burnout, worldwide expansion, the importance of having a morning routine!

SOME OF TRACY AND AIMEE’S FAVORITE HIKES:

Temescal, Westridge Trail, Los Lionnes, Pasa nuermas, Will Rodgers, Murphy’s Ranch trail

LEARN ABOUT LA_Hike Club: https://www.instagram.com/la_hikeclub/
JOIN THEIR TELEGRAM GROUP: https://t.me/joinchat/1gZvzllfQ6M1NzBh

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Did you guys meet while you were both attending University of South Wales in Sydney? Tell us briefly about your journey to LA Hike Club and collaborating together.
• This to me is about so much more than hiking. Hiking is easy. What’s more interesting is how do you build a culture that people want to be a part of? The importance of having consistency, even when no one initially shows up. Everyone has to start from the ground floor so to speak. I’d love for you to share with listeners some insights into key lessons you’ve learned about building a community, managing a community. It takes a lot of work.
• A lot of people don’t start things or take initiative because they either fear failure, or actually fear success. I’m curious if you’ve ever felt that way, and how did overcome that? What advice can you give to others?
• As you grow, how do you make sure that new people feel welcomed? Is that important? Are people nervous or self-conscious about their own level of fitness when they show?
• How do you create a community that doesn’t feel cliquey, and is inclusive? Hiking requires a certain level of fitness, so it probably attracts people who are into wellness, or aspiring to increase their level of fitness. As you grow, how do you make sure that new people feel welcomed? Is that important? Are people nervous or self-conscious about their own level of fitness when they show?
• What are your goals for LA Hike Club? After what # of members do you feel the need to monetize? What if you wake up and tomorrow you have 20,000 members in your telegram group?
• Conversely though, how do you avoid burnout?
• What is something you wish you had known or that someone would have told you 5 years ago that would have made life so much easier? How can people learn more about LA Hike Club and get involved?

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Kelsey Tracewski, Founder of "The Chronically Well", sits down to discuss her career transition from a busy corporate lifestyle to owning her own wellness coaching practice, her journey with Crohn's and important lifestyle changes to prevent chronic illness, the effects of stress and inflammation in our daily lives, the challenges of switching careers later in life, importance of community and accountability, and how to differentiate yourself professionally within any competitive landscape.

LEARN ABOUT THE CHRONICALLY WELL: https://www.thechronicallywell.com/
INSTA: @thechronicallywell

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• So tell us a little more about this big change in your career, what motivated you to start the chronically well? What’s the backstory?
• When did you start thinking about changing careers?
• Let’s talk about Crohn’s. So I have to admit I know of the term, but honestly don’t know exactly what the disease is. Can you describe to us a little more about what is Crohn’s disease? From a very high level?
• So is your work specific to helping people with Crohns, or any chronic illness? It’s hard to group all chronic illnesses under the same umbrella, is it not? Or do all chronic illnesses respond favorably to your program?
• Can changing your lifestyle now be preventative for the future? And how do you get that across to someone who doesn’t currently have a problem and thinks their lifestyle is okay? In other words, not to scare people, but is it possible that I may genetic predisposition to a chronic illness that I’m not even aware of, and maybe I’m a month away from it revealing itself? I’m sure most people only seek help after there’s a problem, not before. I’m curious of your thoughts on this?
• Should or can people test for genetic predispositions to chronic illnesses?
• I’m sure there are people listening now who also are thinking about changing careers, but fear taking that plunge. Who might be feeling stuck in a comfy corporate lifestyle. We all have financial concerns, no matter what our financial situation is. What advice would you give to others who might be considering making a career change? What are some lessons you’ve learned so far in your journey?
• I’m going to ask you a tough question. There are many coaches in the world. What gave you the confidence to say to yourself, “I can enter this really competitive landscape and differentiate myself”? And how does one differentiate themselves?
• Tell me about the community aspect to your work. 1 on 1 coaching is necessary. But how can you leverage a community to help people? In other words, we all need accountability partners in order to make sustainable change. It’s hard to commit to something by yourself.
• What is something you wish had known 5 or 10 years ago, that would have made your life so much easier had you known?
• How can we learn more about you and get involved? 

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Eric Dybvig & Meredith Baker, Co-Founders of "More Of That", unique and "bar-alternative" experiences to foster deeper meaningful connection, sits down IRL to discuss their origin story, their experiences living across the world and the psychology of tribalism, loneliness & social anxiety, how to prevent people from being "cliquey"?, alcohol and why many Millennials rely on substance-use for social connection, insights into their ideation process, differences between being single vs. in a relationship, and the what the future holds for More Of That....

LEARN ABOUT MORE OF THAT: https://moreofthat.life
INSTA: @more.of.that

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• What is More of That? More of what?
• What’s been your favorite event so far?
• What’s your Origin Story?
• Why are people tribal? How do we break that pattern?
• Loneliness -Why does connection need structure in order to work?
• Alcohol - I’d be really curious to hear your thoughts on why alcohol, or drugs or substances in general, plays such a predominant role in social interactions. Does it go back to social anxiety? Or just looking cool? 
• Why is it so hard to scale community businesses?
• What's your Ideation process. You’re promoting unique, alternative events. How do you come up with these events? Do you feel pressure like you constantly have to “one up” each previous event in terms of creativity?
• I feel like when you’re single you care more about meeting others, and then there’s a clear divide. Once you start a family, you no longer actively seek out connection. Is that a fair statement?
• How can people get more involved and learn about more of that?

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Tasha Blank, founder of "The Get Down", a conscious dance party, and her newest project "The Portal", sits down virtually to discuss the former Get Down (the best dance party in New York City), how the dance floor is a microcosm of life, her upbringing raised outside D.C. and Minneapolis growing up surrounded by music and creativity, the connection between dance and trauma healing, her own struggles with shyness, social anxiety, sadness, anger, and how dance allows to connect with your inner beauty, feeling judged, brave vs. safe when feeling aligned, her post covid pivot, burnout, and next steps with portal.

LEARN ABOUT THE GET DOWN: https://www.thegetdownnyc.com/
JOIN THE PORTAL: https://tashablank.mykajabi.com/tasha-blank
INSTA: @tashablank

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Briefly explain, what is The Get Down?
• This to me feels like a Millennial version of Studio 54. It is the coolest, most fun, eclectic dance party out there. To me, it is the archetypical Millennial community. At face value, it seems so simple, centered around dance. But it’s actually much deeper than that, and touches many social issues, in terms of inclusivity, stereotypes, gender, race, etc. Is that a fair statement?
• Tell me about your upbringing briefly. I know you attended NYU….did you grow up in New York City? How would you define your childhood?
• I know you’ve spoken previously about trauma, depression, eating disorders, feeling defeated. What advice can you share about trauma healing? Other than dancing as the cure.
• I want to talk about inclusivity…..But to go from the opposite approach, what has happened with society, where it feels like we can’t even express ourselves with words? We’ve become so polarized, so overly sensitive to anyone feeling marginalized, that the least controversial thing we can do is move our bodies….and even that might be politicized or labeled. Is dance the only safe way to express ourselves anymore?
• Covid has to be hardest thing for you….how has get down pivoted? So much of energy is about experiencing it with other people, feeding off their body movements. You lose that virtually.
• What are the barriers? What prevents people from signing up?
• Dancing often can be associated with drinking or drug use, festivals, burning man, etc. allowing us to free ourselves. but interestingly, you encourage the opposite, and promote sobriety at your events. I’m curious if you could shed light on this decision, and why that is such an important aspect?
• Competitors….daybreaker. What makes you different? What's the magic sauce that differentiates you?
• What is something you wish someone had told you five years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own, but would have made life so much easier had you known?

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Tarek Kholoussy, Founder of "Nomads Giving Back" and "Nomad Skill Share", a community and social enterprise inspiring the nomad movement to connect with locals and give back to local communities, sits down IRL to discuss the multiple subplots of his life, his 180 degree journey from corporate life at Goldman Sachs to becoming a nomad, capitalism vs. social impact (can they co-exist?), the divided society we live in of traditional and non-traditional career paths, why the label “digital nomad” can be offensive, is “structure” a good thing or bad thing?, his future vision for the company, and overcoming fears.

JOIN THE NOMAD MOVEMENT: https://nomadsgivingback.com/
INSTA: @nomadsgivingback
CLUBHOUSE: search "Nomads Skillshare"
TAREK: @tarek.world

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Tell us, what exactly is Nomads Giving Back, and the soon to be launched Nomad Skillshare?
• Not to get political, but is there something inherently wrong with the capitalistic society we’ve created?
• So I do have a few specific questions I want to ask you.
• I feel like there’s a divide in the United States. Either you work in corporate life and have a feeling of stability, or you’re a risk taker and entrepreneur. It feels like a very binary choice. And depending on what path you choose, people from the other camp are going to have a hard time understanding you. My question is, why is it so difficult for people to be open minded about non-traditional career paths?
• You’re obviously very plugged into the digital nomad community. What are some of the top lessons you’ve learned from your peers in all of your experiences you’ve had, compared to city life?
• Side question: Can you finally explain and educate me as to why people don’t like being labeled as a digital nomad? I’ve never understood that.
• For the first time in my life, I’ve now lived overseas for the last 6 months, and I can tell you it’s hard to find community and structure. I don’t know if it’s just that nomads are too independent to a fault, or if it just takes an extra layer of discipline to stay focused while living a remote lifestyle. I’m curious of the challenges you have faced, if any, in staying structured and any tips you can provide?
• It’s interesting, I feel like as tragic as covid has been for so many, it has given your organization a shot in the arm (no pun intended), because post-covid so many people are now virtual. I’m curious of your thoughts on what the world looks like on the other side of this pandemic? Isn’t now the strongest case you can make for converting people to nomadic life?
• What’s your vision for Nomads Giving Back? Obviously, empowering local communities is your main focus. But is it to have a huge online community to leverage for corporate sponsors? Do you want to have a licensing model and have independently operating communities all over the world? Ten years from now, what does success look like for you?
• Tell me about your vision for Nomad Skillshare?
• What is something you wish someone had told you five years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own, but would have made life so much easier had you known?
• How can people find out more about you and get involved?

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Julia Sokol, Founder of "Sass Class," a women's empowerment dance studio and community, sits down remotely to discuss her novel “Dance Video Program”, her journey growing up in Manhattan and New Jersey to graduating cum laude from Brandeis, her marketing background working for Tripadvisor and Carat; choosing a career path solely to appease friends and family, sex and empowerment, balancing masculine energy of the workplace, Sass Class for men and male empowerment.....Do men need to feel more empowered? Or less?..... a female's innate desire for celebrity and fame (hint: it's more about wanting attention and admiration), her business model, competition, franchising vs. licensing, and the importance of trademarks and having a good accountant!

JOIN SASS CLASS: https://www.sassclassnyc.com/
INSTA: @sassclassnyc
YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCiccpOHsjT4KlvU0yOQkWg
SLIDE INTO JULIA'S DMs (business & cat videos only): @julsoko

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• So briefly explain what is SassClass?
• Why do you focus on female empowerment? This seems to be more about the emotional experience than the dancing.
• When did you realize you weren’t passionate about the corporate trajectory you were on?
• What advice can you give to Millennials that are struggling with this idea of being disowned from their family?
• Let’s talk about sex and empowerment. To be frank, a lot of your dance style is very sensual. You talk about part of the genesis of SassClass is being rooted in balancing the “masculine energy of the workplace.” You would naively hope that it’s 2021 and we’ve overcome this by now, but it seems we still have a long way to go. How does dance liberate you from feeling overpowered by men? And is sex, as a weapon, the solution to this problem?
• Let me play devil’s advocate….,not to be controversial or make it about gender, but whats the equivalent of sassclass for men? Do men need really need to feel empowered more? Or less?
• Okay, so I understand the appeal of sass class from a female empowerment perspective. You’ve also mentioned it makes you feel like being a kid again – a feel of innocence, childhood. But let me take a different perspective. On the other hand, part of the appeal is this fantasy and desire for celebrity and fame. If that didn't exist, there would be no Sass Class. Why do we glorify media and entertainment, and is this a problem? Is this really where we should be putting our attention to?
• Let’s talk business..What is your competition? Are you competing against the yoga and classpass studios of the world? I noticed you have “drop in” classes. Or is it all these tik tok dance videos? What about a company like steezy?
• You previously stated, “I persist knowing that what I'm doing is for the greater good. In the same way, my clients and even colleagues do not see the big picture that I see as the CEO & Founder of my company” – So Julia, What is the bigger picture here? Do you want to create a franchise or licensing model?
• What is something you wish someone had told you five years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own. But would have made life so much easier had you known?
• How can we find out more about you and get involved with Sass Class?

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Dylan Gambardella and Justin Lafazan, Co-Founders of "NextGen HQ" sit down remotely to discuss “The Momentum Movement”, their global business hub supporting entrepreneurs to "fire them up and chase their dreams", their journey from meeting at a high school party to attending Duke and Wharton, respectively, founding their first startup "Students4Students", before founding NextGen in 2014. We discuss the importance of freedom and momentum (and what kills it), Why entrepreneurship is so tough? And how to break past that?, Constant validation/dealing with negative feedback, Importance of a co-founder, If and when to accept failure (secret: never), How to monetize and measure TAM and KPI’s, and their Vision for the future of entrepreneurship.

JOIN THE MOVEMENT AND SIGN UP FOR THEIR NEWSLETTER, CLICK "GET MOMENTUM" ON THEIR WEBSITE: https://nextgenhq.com/
INSTA: @nextgenhq

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Can you briefly explain to the audience what exactly is NextGenHQ and NextGen summit?
• Why were you so resistant to going into the traditional corporate world?
• Shifting gears to nextgen. Why do you focus on momentum as the primary focus for nextgen? Why is momentum so difficult to obtain? Or can you boil it down to simply a lack of self confidence and negative self talk? And related, how have you struggled with momentum in your professional lives?
• Do you think our generation needs constant validation?
• Is it important to have a cofounder? Does that help solve the momentum problem? 
• You also recognize that many startups fail. You talk a lot about supporting the entrepreneur’s journey, as opposed to an incubator. What was the opportunity you saw which didn’t exist? 
• Do you guys not accept idea of failure? I mean it’s one thing to be energized and talk yourself up, and don’t get me wrong, that’s a crucial ingredient to potential success.  I mean, at what point do you say to yourself, “I’ve been doing this for X number of years. I spent X number of dollars. This just isn’t working. It’s not the right idea, or it’s not the right timing”? 
• Talk to me about monetization and your business model (which may be changing with covid). How did you come to a conference-based monetization strategy? Why not charge dues or create a private membership model instead of just a free facebook community? Or is the model more of a freemium model, to ramp up user engagement first, then start charging for services later?
• What are your KPI’s and internal metrics that define success for you? Is it number of tickets sold? Number of facebook group members? The reason I ask is because you guys are working double time, not only are you trying to grow your network of users, but at the same time you’re trying to convince enterprise companies of your legitimacy and leveraging your community strength in hopes they’ll sponsor or partner with you.
• Let’s talk about Gen Z and Millennials.  I’ve noticed though that a large majority of your core user base is Gen Z. I’m wondering if you can shed light on why that is, and the differences you’ve learned between these two generations?
• What’s your biggest challenge to growth? Is it just awareness?
• What is something you wish someone had told you five years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known?
• What is the best way for listeners to get more involved?

Playing METAPHOR DICE with Taylor Mali live!

(SEE PREVIOUS EPISODE FOR INTERVIEW, OR CLICK HERE: https://apple.co/31xl4oE
*FOR A FREE PAIR OF METAPHOR DICE, LISTEN TO FULL EPISODE AND FIND THE HIDDEN GIVEAWAY EASTER EGG!)

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Taylor Mali, 4x National Team Slam Poet Champion, original Def Poetry Jam member, author of multiple books, creator of "What Teacher's Make" and founder of "METAPHOR DICE", sits down remotely to reunite with his former sixth-grade student (me) and discuss the strategy of poetry slams, the etymology of the poem “what teacher’s make”, why property taxes influence schools, what makes a “good teacher” vs. a “bad teacher”, why social media discourages expression of ideas, the anti-intellectual culture of Millennials and poetry, the power of nuanced opinion, and the creation of METAPHOR DICE….and Taylor’s continually failed quest to be published in The New Yorker Magazine (I feel this is the year!)

ENTER PROMO CODE "MILLENNIAL" AT CHECKOUT TO RECEIVE A 10% DISCOUNT: https://www.metaphordice.com/
INSTA: @metaphor_dice
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/MetaphorDice/

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

CAREER
Take me back in time briefly to 1995-1996. How do you make the transition from teaching to poetry? We’re you already doing it as a hobby? 
What did you actually say to the lawyer at the dinner party when he asked you what teachers make? Did you just laugh it off regretfully? Does he know about the poem?
TEACHING
What makes a bad teacher from a good one?
If you hadn’t become a teacher what would you have done instead? Taylor the advertising executive?
Respectfully, you don’t come across as a politically charged person. I don’t hear it in a lot of your poems. But teaching is a very political issue – problem isn’t getting smart people to teach, it’s incentivizing them and paying them enough to want to, instead of them going into finance or other industries. And then there are issues of tenure, unions, etc. I’m not suggesting money is everything, but many teachers can barely get by. How do we solve this issue?
POETRY
How do you make poetry cool and mainstream for millennials? Had a moment. Def poetry jam – in the early 2000s. slamnation documentary and slamplanet. Then we seemed to get caught up in EDM electronic music and cat videos on social media. One of my biggest frustrations with millennials is that it somehow became cool to be anti-intellectual. You post something educational on social media, it gets 5 likes. You post two girls doing a choreographed dance, it gets 10,000.
To follow up on that, I would argue social media has made it hard for people to want to express themselves out of fear of being attacked for their own views. Which doesn’t help encourage people to write poetry. Curious of your thoughts?

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Taylor Mali, 4x National Team Slam Poet Champion, original Def Poetry Jam member, author of multiple books, creator of "What Teacher's Make" and founder of "METAPHOR DICE", sits down remotely to reunite with his former sixth-grade student (me) and discuss the strategy of poetry slams, the etymology of the poem “what teacher’s make”, why property taxes influence schools, what makes a “good teacher” vs. a “bad teacher”, why social media discourages expression of ideas, the anti-intellectual culture of Millennials and poetry, the power of nuanced opinion, and the creation of METAPHOR DICE….and Taylor’s continually failed quest to be published in The New Yorker Magazine (I feel this is the year!)

ENTER PROMO CODE "MILLENNIAL" AT CHECKOUT TO RECEIVE A 10% DISCOUNT: https://www.metaphordice.com/
INSTA: @metaphor_dice
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/MetaphorDice/

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• CAREER
• Take me back in time briefly to 1995-1996. How do you make the transition from teaching to poetry? We’re you already doing it as a hobby? 
• What did you actually say to the lawyer at the dinner party when he asked you what teachers make? Did you just laugh it off regretfully? Does he know about the poem?
• TEACHING
• What makes a bad teacher from a good one?
• If you hadn’t become a teacher what would you have done instead? Taylor the advertising executive?
• Respectfully, you don’t come across as a politically charged person. I don’t hear it in a lot of your poems. But teaching is a very political issue – problem isn’t getting smart people to teach, it’s incentivizing them and paying them enough to want to, instead of them going into finance or other industries. And then there are issues of tenure, unions, etc. I’m not suggesting money is everything, but many teachers can barely get by. How do we solve this issue?
• POETRY
• How do you make poetry cool and mainstream for millennials? Had a moment. Def poetry jam – in the early 2000s. slamnation documentary and slamplanet. Then we seemed to get caught up in EDM electronic music and cat videos on social media. One of my biggest frustrations with millennials is that it somehow became cool to be anti-intellectual. You post something educational on social media, it gets 5 likes. You post two girls doing a choreographed dance, it gets 10,000.
• To follow up on that, I would argue social media has made it hard for people to want to express themselves out of fear of being attacked for their own views. Which doesn’t help encourage people to write poetry. Curious of your thoughts? How do we bring this to the next generation?
• How do you make a name for yourself, when so much of poetry is subjective? In other words, what makes a good poet from a bad poet?
• What is something you wish someone had told you five years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own, but would have made life so much easier had you known?
• METAPHOR DICE
• Briefly explain, what is it? How did you come up with the idea?
• What is the biggest challenge you’re facing in terms of scaling it?
• What is THIS IS THUNDER DICE?

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Veronica Kaulinis, founder of "Vulnerable AF" sits down remotely to discuss her community movement and event series that encourages vulnerability and connection, her journey from growing up in Central Islip, Long Island, attending Stony Brook University, working in corporate marketing roles such as Publishers Clearing House; What makes a bad coach from a good coach (what makes someone effective)?, Is it possible to “over-share” with someone? And how to find an appropriate balance, the difficulty between genders (if any), her own personal struggles with being vulnerable, advice for Millennials who feel they don’t have meaningful friendships or are struggling to find their people, and how to overcome your fears (too generic or cliche of a question?)

LEARN MORE ABOUT VULNERABLE AF: https://www.veronicakaulinis.com/vulnerableaf
INSTA: @vulnerableaf
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/vulnerableafnyc/

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Briefly tell people, what is Vulnerable AF and how did you come up with it?
• You talk about the story of not feeling comfortable calling anyone. Respectfully, is it fair to say the idea was born from an overcompensation? A desire to find people who are likeminded to yourself?
• You grew up in Long Island, and transferred from Suffolk County Community College to Stony Brook. What was it like growing up in Long island? Were you not able to have deep conversations with people?
• You’ve worked in several marketing jobs over the years, including publisher’s clearing house. Was your dream always to be a coach?
• What makes a good coach from a bad coach? I see many coaches, all of whom are doing great things and have great intentions, but that doesn't mean they are all equally effective. What makes someone effective?
• To play devils advocate, what would you say to someone who says, you know, those millennials, they’re too used to being coddled. That Veronica girl, she’s part of the problem of why we aren’t more emotionally tough?
• Where do we find the balance between sharing too much? Is there such a thing? You can’t reasonably expect everyone in your network to equally care?
• Why is it hard for people to feel vulnerable? You mention your “mission is to bridge the gap between Men and Women”. Not to play into traditional gender roles or stereotypes, but how are men and women different? Is it harder for one gender?
• What is the end goal? Is to help as many people as possible end, once and for all, rejection? Can we make it permanently stop?
• I’m just curious, Do you still struggle being vulnerable? ….Where does that come from?
• What’s the advanced version of this? I understand the concept of helping people who struggle to be vulnerable open up. But Lets say I put you in a room full of highly vulnerable people who are not afraid? What would you say to them? What’s the 2.0 version? Or are they good to go in the world and fly on their own?
• Millennials in particular really struggle with this. I mean, we all want to be liked and accepted for who we are. So what advice would you have for people who don’t feel like they have meaningful friendships? Or don’t feel like they belong to any one group and are struggling to find their people?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Zachary Schleien, Founder of "Filter Off" sits down remotely to discuss his newest venture, a video-first speed dating app (events + matchmaking), swiping vs video advantages/disadvantages, his journey from growing up in New Rochelle, attending Syracuse as a history major, founding top romp, tedx talk and his passions for mental health, marketing, fundraising to why he's so fascinated by dating apps; Facetiming pre-date, Why are there so many beautiful, motivated, single people? (Have we become too picky?), video-game superficiality of swiping, Spending money, super-swipes, “endless scroll”, KPI (key performance indicators), the importance of making mistakes, putting yourself out there and who you should listen to when receiving unsolicited feedback

LEARN MORE ABOUT FILTER OFF: https://getfilteroff.com/
INSTA: @getfilteroff

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• So Zach, tell us briefly, what is filteroff?
• Talk about lucky timing with COVID huh?
• Who’s your target demographic? Who’s the right or wrong person for filteroff?
• Why video first as opposed to swiping? Is it more about removing catfishing, or preventing endless text conversations and ghosting? Or both?
• Let me ask the opposite question, Why swiping over video first? Are there any advantages?
• How are you curating? What if I prefer specific types? Blondes? Etc. We need to be physically attracted to our partner. At what point do we get too granular and superficial?
• Why events? It’s an interesting branding strategy? Do people get more excited emotionally when they’re signing up to an event?
• Lets talk about you for a sec,
• You’re a very impressive guy Zach. Correct me if any of this is wrong. You grew up in new Rochelle, in upstate New York. Then went to Syracuse for undergrad and majored in history, then got your masters there as well. You are a serial entrepreneur, and have started several different businesses, including top romp which was dating related. You seem to have several passions in mental health, marketing, fundraising, and starting companies. You gave a tedx talk. How do you land at online dating? Have you always been focused on finding love? Or did you just see an opportunity there to do something different?
• Let’s talk about Millennials and dating. It’s always a fun topic, because we all want to find love in our lives, but our quest can often lead to awkward moments along the way.
• What’s your theory on why there are so many beautiful, eligible, smart, motivated, individuals who are single? Men, women, and everyone in between. Have we become too picky?
• I would be embarrassed to admit the amount of money I’ve spent over the years on dating apps, including super likes, super swipes, etc. A little here, and there, it all adds up to well in the thousands. And I’m still not married or engaged. Why is the ROI so bad? And how do we fundamentally fix this problem in our generation? What’s really going on here?
• How do you measure success? What are your KPIs? Is it dangerous to promote # of relationships formed?
• Briefly, What’s the best romantic story you’ve heard from the app?
• What’s the hardest part of your job? You work at Johnson and Johnson. How are you able to do this on the side in terms of time management?
• What’s something you wish someone had told you five years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own, but would have made life so much easier had you known?
• Lastly, how can we get involved with your community and learn more about it?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Jonathan Stone, Founder of "Flow+Tell" sits down remotely to discuss his yoga journey from tearing his meniscus to discovering yoga, his transition from UNC-Chapel Hill, to NYU Stern, and working at corporate tech companies at Facebook, Google, YouTube & IBM to starting his own business; different types of yoga, what makes something "transformative"? (hint: you need to be primed), how to manage a side business, What’s the difference between “religious” vs “spiritual”, and the role the yoga community can play in racial inequality.
(EASTER EGG: Don't miss his special beatboxing performance!)

LEARN MORE ABOUT FLOW+TELL: https://www.flowandtell.com/
INSTA: @Flowandtellwellness
Growing Heart Events Festival (as mentioned): https://www.growingheartevents.com/

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Jonathan, briefly tell us a little about Flow and Tell, what is it? How did you come up with the idea?
• What kind of yoga is it? Can you briefly educate us on the different types?
• Why is the post yoga portion of the evening so important?
• You are passionate about quote, “creating transformative experiences”. I’m so curious about this. Can you elaborate? What makes an experience transformative. Is it the setting? The content? The people? Can anyone have a transformative experience at any moment?
• You have an interesting background….and correct me if im wrong, but you went to UNC Chapel Hill for undergrad, then got an MBA from NYU Stern. You worked mostly for tech companies your whole life, including facebook, google, youtube, IBM, you were a consultant for deloitte. Now you also run stone advisory.
• What would you say to other entrepreneurs out there who are trying to do something on the side on top of their main job? How do you manage two things at once?
• Millennials and spirituality; there seems to be somewhat of a dividing line among young people. There are certain buzzwords I can immediately identify; alignment, flow, energy, either you’re accused of being too “woo woo” and in the clouds, or too grounded, business like, and stiff. How do you bridge that gap?
• Where does religion come into play? More and more young people are not going to church or temple, or seeking traditional organized religion. What does it mean to identify as spiritual?
• I have to ask you, given everything that is going on in the world regarding inequality and racial disparity, what role can flow and tell play, and the yoga community as a whole?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can people get involved and learn more about you?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Ariel Viera, Founder of "Urbanist" sits down remotely to discuss his journey from studying engineering at CUNY and working as a community manager for Foursquare, Gawker, and Vox, to his passion for the history of cities and vlogging; how to build organic growth, live streaming vs. pre-recorded, the validation of our friends, the Millennial "insecurity gene", how to not be boring (or not care?), why our identity is often wrapped in money, and why entertainment is so important.

LEARN MORE ABOUT ARIEL: http://arielviera.com/
FACEBOOK: @UrbanistLive
YOUTUBE: Urbanist Channel

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Please explain briefly what is urbanist?
• You have over 40,000 followers across YouTube and facebook. What was the pace of the growth? I’m trying to understand how you accomplished that? Was that organic? Was it through marketing? I’m sure other entrepreneurs want to know.
• Why are you doing this? You went to queens college, you studied engineering at city college which is part of CUNY. How did you decide to get into film history?
• Topics
• Labels and comparison
• A lot of millennials fear putting themselves out there. We tend to get in our head a bit. We worry that everything has to be very polished and manicured in appearance. I know i feel that way sometimes. Call it insecurity or whatever you want. You seem to not care and your videos are very raw and authentic. Do you just not share this millennial insecurity gene?
• diversity and inclusion
• Another feature of millennials is that they can become very tribal. I go to this gym. I live in this neighborhood. I wear this designer brand. Not always, but often it has to do with money. Its some form of identity. You travel all around the world. Why do people do this? And what has history taught us? I mean can’t we all just get along? I thought you’d be the perfect person to ask
• Travel and entertainment
• Millennials love to travel and explore. We pay a lot of rent to live in a place like New York City only to want to leave and go other places. Why do we have this travel bug? Where does it come from? And why is entertainment so important generally?
• Ask about you..
• Why are you focused on cities? Are interesting things not happening in rural areas? Or just don’t have the same history?
• What’s your favorite episode you’ve shot or subject matter?
• This might be a loaded question but are there any insights you’ve learned about people generally over all of your experiences?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can people get involved and learn more about you?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Jenn Trepeck, Founder of "Better Life Now LLC" sits down remotely to discuss her weight loss journey from growing up in Michigan and dancing while in high school, to working at a hedgefund in New York City; her transition from finance to launching her own health coaching business, the TLS system, baseline principles for weight management, Millennials and body image/self worth, behavior vs. mindset, dating apps, and the ultra-tricky and sensitive question, "how do you mention weight to your partner?"

LEARN MORE ABOUT JENN: http://www.betterlifenowllc.com/
INSTA: @jenntrepeck
SALAD WITH A SIDE OF FRIES PODCAST

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Can you first briefly explain what is better life now, and the community you’re building?
• So first off, you grew up in Michigan. So did my father actually in Ann Arbor. You went to Ross school of business at the university of Michigan. And i guess you were experiencing weight issues then? Or did it start earlier?
• What is TLS? And respectfully, without sounding like an infomercial, why does it work?
• What are the basic principles of weight management? Is there anything we can agree on?
• Millennials and body image. Why is it so hard to just "love yourself"?
• Controversial, but does instagram actually help put more emphasis on weight loss?
• What's the difference between behavior vs. mindset? Can't we just say, "eat less and move more"? Is that too oversimplified?
• How much of a role should weight play in choosing a partner? And how are we supposed to navigate dating apps?
• Ultra sensitive question, how do we tell our partner they're (respectfully) not making the cut physically?
• Body image. Why do millennials struggle so much with body image and self acceptance? And what would your advice be?
• If you could change anything in society, what and why?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can people get involved and learn more about you?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Jonathan Legg, TV Host and Creator of "Road Less Traveled" sits down remotely to discuss his journey from growing up in Peoria, Illinois, to the Philippines, and Los Angeles; his careers in teaching English, being a flight attendant, modeling & acting, his love for travel, adventure and "performance", tribalism and Millennials, the "Hero's Journey", psychedelics, and why we need to get off the caravan (metaphor) for Covid-19.

LEARN MORE ABOUT JONATHAN: http://www.jonathanlegg.com/
INSTA: @jonathan_legg
AWE NETWORK: www.awetv.com

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• You grew up in Peoria, Illinois. Your dad moved your family to Hong Kong and the Philippines when you were young. You then studied communications at southern Illinois and got a masters in linguistics from West Virginia university. Did you always want to travel for a living? Or were you trying to become an actor? How did you get into this?
• Why do you travel? Is it escapism? Are you figuratively or literally trying to seek something better? You talk about connection. What is it that you really seek?
• Millennials love to travel. I’m sure at one point or another we’ve all fantasized about getting paid to travel for a living. But you’re actually doing it! Is it everything that it’s cracked up to be? Is it a fantasy? Or do you miss connection with friends, family, and it must be hard to date. Please enlighten us. Is it really a fantasy? Give us the real version
• Topics i want to ask you
• Tribalism and prejudice as it relates to Millennials. You talk about challenging cultural beliefs and prejudice as it relates to foreign cultures around the world. The irony is the whole time I’m thinking to myself the same could be true about the Millennial generation. It’s the same Interesting dichotomy.  They want to feel part of a larger group. But don’t want to labeled. “I want to be part of a community and surrounded by people, but i don’t want to be compared to anyone.” I’ve never fully understood it. You deal with both primitive and advanced cultures all around the world. So my question is What lessons can you share regarding tribalism. And how can our generation learn from that to compare each other a little less and be more accepting of one other?
• You talk a lot about the Hero’s journey and the idea of our larger identity. Can you elaborate more? What do you mean by this? And what revelations have you had in your own journey?
• Covid 19 and reinventing yourself. Rebirth is something you like to discuss. And not feeling enough. Or that we’re all competing with one another. I love your caravan analogy. We’re all on the same caravan trying to one up each other. Why do you think we all jumped on the caravan in the first place? Who’s brilliant idea was that? And What are the lessons our generation can learn from this period in our lives? What do you want to change moving forward?
• I want to ask about you personally.
• What are some personal emotional challenges or struggles you’ve dealt with in your career? How did you overcome them?
• Favorite location in the world?
• Do you ever get tired of travel? Does it ever feel burdensome to you to the point where you don’t get enjoyment out of it?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can people get involved and learn more about you?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Nikhil Krishnan, Founder of "Get Real/Get Smart", sits down remotely to discuss his journey from Columbia University and a "quarter-life crisis" to creating an "online first, offline second" modern community. We discuss how to create diverse and engaging communities generally, different types of revenue business models, how does someone become an “expert” in anything(?), the effect of covid-19 on Millennials, and the concept of "dunbar’s number".

LEARN MORE ABOUT NIKHIL: www.nikhilkrishnan.com
TWITTER: @nikillinit
GET REAL: www.getreal.club

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Tell me briefly about get real/get smart and also your new venture out of pocket?
• You are a native New Yorker. You went to hunter high school and Columbia university. You studied sustainable development and business management. How do you connect that to community and healthcare?
• A few topics:
• Inclusivity and making friends. 1) Why is it so hard for people to open up and be vulnerable?
• 2) And how are you able to stay so neutral and not let your own ego get in the way? If it’s your role to allow people to feel accepted, are you allowed to have opinions on people. Are you even allowed to react negatively against someone in your own community? How do you balance that?
• Diversity
• You have an incredibly diverse audience. Who is your main demographic? Especially in a place like New York City, how do you get people from very different walks of life, different socioeconomic situations, and different attitudes come together?
• 
  
• Do the demographics change when you start charging people? If so how? People who want something for free. On the flipside there are ppl that are attracted to things which cost money who may not have been attracted before?
• Covid 19 and the future of community.  My question is, now that everything is virtual, and we spent years trying to reduce our screen time, is this a step forward or a step backward for millennials?
• Monetization. For any entrepreneurs and influencers listening, what’s the strategy nikhil in converting followers among different platforms to convert into dollars? How do you do that? Is it a 2 year curation cycle of giving them free content? That’s not economically sustainable.
• Internet person. What’s defines an expert? What are you an expert of? Is it bringing people together? Looking at things differently? I’m curious what is the unique skill you bring to the table? And i only ask this because 1) many millennials struggle with discovering their own unique talents and 2) how does one become an expert when there’s so much noise online and everyone is positioning their own projected opinion as some kind of fake authority
• Ask about you:
• What personal challenges or fears do you face building these communities, especially being an entrepreneur and recently making the plunge to do this full time?
• Do you ever get tired of meeting people? How do you manage and maintain all these friendships? How deep can you really go when the quantity gets so high?
• What’s your all time favorite meme?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can people get involved and learn more about you?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Jackie Cantwell, Director of "mediclub" and partner of "The Big Quiet" (founded by Jesse Israel), sits down to discuss her journey from Pratt Institute, running away and battling depression, excessive drinking and partying, being homeless (living out of a car/friends' couches), owning two art galleries, and becoming director of Mediclub. We discuss her tour with Jesse and Oprah, the science behind sound bowls, why Millennials struggle with acceptance, the impact of COVID19 on virtual community, how to get past "surface level" conversation, and marketing ("attracting" vs. "selling").

LEARN MORE ABOUT MEDICLUB: @mediclub
THE BIG QUIET: https://thebigquiet.com/
JACKIE CANTWELL: @itsjackiecantwell

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• You went to Pratt institute to study art. You’ve been involved with, and founded, many different things, mostly related to the art world. SHIM, the Bishop, project remember, just add bacon, to name a few. What is the big picture goal for you? And why art?
• How do you go from art to meditation? Can you briefly share your story of how you originally discovered mediclub and how you eventually became the director?
• I’m curious, what was it like going from being in front of 200 people to 15,000 in packed stadiums? 
• how did you get into sound bowls? What are sound bowls?
• Topics
• Mental health and millennials. Why do millennials struggle so much with acceptance and belonging? Did previous older generations not have this issue? Or they just pretended not to and sucked it up?
• I have to ask you about community and covid19. So much of the spirit and soul of mediclub is about meeting people in person and having that intimate connection. Is it possible to have a real sense of community virtually? Are we just filling in time until things get back to normal, or is this a longer term societal shift that you think is going to stick around?
• Communication. Interestingly i hear a lot of my millennial peers struggle with making connection and making or keeping friends. People struggle with communication, and getting past surface level conversation. How have you personally broken through that? What advice can you share?
• Branding and messaging. Authenticity is a big component to mediclub and the big quiet. It seems to have a very cool vibe. You don’t pay for advertising. Its all word of mouth. You use a basic google forms doc to sign up. You don’t have a website. You don’t try to sell people on benefits. You’re very careful in the language you use, only really stating your purpose and why you gather. In a world where we’re constantly being sold things and everyone tries to create hype and exclusivity as marketing gimmicks, how do avoid that temptation? What strategy are you using when thinking about promotion?
• What personal struggles or fears have you had to overcome in your journey through mediclub and the big quiet?
• Other than oprah, What is your personal all Time favorite mediclub or big quiet moment?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can people get involved and learn more about you?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Rogelio Plasencia, Development Officer of the "Apollo Circle" young patrons group at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, sits down to discuss his journey from NYU University through various cultural institutions, including the American Museum of Natural History, El Museo del Barrio and the Smithsonian, to name a few. We discuss the unique challenges of Millennials (vs. older generations), how you measure the ROI on "young patron groups" generally, navigating bureaucracy and the importance of building team consensus, diversity, and the love of arts.

**COVID-19 UPDATE**
This was recorded prior to the epidemic in the U.S. While the Met is currently closed, they have amazing online/virtual programs happening which you can learn about at www.metmuseum.org

(*Note: Any opinions shared during this interview (for example, on Millennials, etc), are the sole opinion of Rogelio and not The Met as an institution)

LEARN MORE ABOUT APOLLO CIRCLE: https://www.metmuseum.org/apollo
INSTA: @metapollocircle

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• First off, explain a little more about the Apollo circle and its mission or purpose?
• Did you always want to work in development and especially young people. And why do you prefer larger institutions over smaller ones?
• What are the unique challenges that millennials bring to your day to day job and how do you deal with them?
• Second millennial question. I’m a millennial. You’re a millennial. We don’t have the same level of income as older generations so theyre not moving the needle financially. Could you make an argument that it’s just not worth the time, energy and resources for the ROI of young patrons? And how do you calculate that ROI?
• Two questions: Bureaucracy and change. Millennials really dislike (I’m being careful not to use the word hate) bureaucracy, and corporate hierarchy. The idea “this is just the way its always been done”. In all of your experiences with these large cultural institutions, not just the Met, how do you handle that? And secondly, Millennials want fast paced change. As a millennial does it ever frustrate you, if for example you have an idea for something, but receive pushback. For people listening who may be in similar professional situations, what advice can you give?
• Diversity and representation. As a cultural institution that has a very diverse audience, it’s important that its membership also reflects its visitorship. How do you ensure this, both culturally, ethnically, and socioeconomically, especially given the financial barrier to being included in the apollo circle?
• What personal struggles have you had on your professional journey? Or just in constantly dealing with museum patrons?
• How do you emotionally separate the constant asking and need for money vs the love of the arts? Do you ever think about that? Is it ever burdensome to feel so transactional at times?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can we learn more about the Apollo circle and get involved?

JOIN US IRL: www.instagram.com/wisemillennial
Steve Dean, "super-connector" and Founder of Dateworking, NYC Salon, and Hygge, sits down to discuss his journey from exploring over 250+ dating apps, what it means to be a "super-connector", loneliness and digital friendship, the importance of offline connection,  boundaries of privacy, the "cost" of rejection, paying $$ for people's attention, and whether or not monogamy is dead?

**COVID-19 UPDATE**
This was recorded prior to the epidemic in the U.S. All of Steve's platforms are now virtual, so I strongly encourage you to sign up and stay connected.

LEARN MORE ABOUT STEVE: https://about.me/stevenmdean
INSTA: @stevenmdean
PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/stevenmdean

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:

• Tell us about dateworking, nyc salon, and hygge.
• Is there any common thread or connection between these? How did you get involved in creating these? And why didn’t you just stop at one?
• Tell us briefly about how you got here. You went to swathmore college. You were an honors student in political science and public policy. The optics of that looks like a government job or a consulting role in a private company. How did you end up being a community builder?
• I have several topics i want to ask you about:
• Loneliness and millennials. We live in a virtually connected age, yet loneliness and depression are on the rise dramatically. Why do you think this is? Aren’t we all supposed to feel connected with each other?
• Especially in today’s world, people have their public/social media persona or projected image, and their true self, which are often not aligned with their true thoughts and feelings. According to Instagram, everyone is rich, beautiful and living on a secluded island somewhere. No one is apparently struggling. So when we meet someone and then look them up online, are we setting ourselves up for disappointment? How are we supposed to process social media information?
• What’s the biggest barrier you find that people struggle with in forming relationships, whether its romantic, professional, or just friendship? I feel like sometimes with millennials they need a bit of structure and hand holding in forming relationships. Almost like we’re in the fourth grade again and being forced to play with each other in school.
• Lets pivot to dating for a second. I have to ask you about monogamy and polyamory. This is something write about a lot. Millennials seem to have popularized the concept of open relationships. I don’t think this is a new concept for this audience, but essentially that means being in a relationship with multiple people at once, is my understanding. Is monogamy dead? Why, in your opinion, can’t people be committed to one person?
• What is something you wish someone had told you 5 years ago, or you had told yourself, that you had to learn on your own? But would have made life so much easier had you known.
• How can people get involved and learn more about you?