#lifechanges

Are You Okay?

In this episode, James Jones talks with Lynn McKoy about the importance of being real about mental health, and how she faced her mental health head on! She hopes that by having honest conversations about mental health, silent sufferers will seek help and no longer feel alone. 

A Washington, DC native, Lynn lives now in Durham, NC. She’s a mother, wife, sister, and friend, who has worked in the behavioral healthcare field for 19 years. She is the Director of Corporate Compliance for a managed care organization for publicly funded behavioral health care services.

Lynn shares her personal experiences with her mental health - the good and the ugly - in the hope that having honest conversations about mental health and the stigmas that have formed around it will reduce those stigmas. She, herself, was once a silent sufferer until three simple words forever changed her life: Are you okay?

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: November 8, 2023 | Duration: 34:18

From Connections to Kin: The Family Tree of Networking Growth

James Jones talks with Jose Velazquez, a former sergeant major of Army Public Affairs, in this week’s episode. Jose is a lifetime broadcaster who anchored the Army’s award-winning flagship newscast. He’s an early adopter of digital media and advocated for the US military to integrate social and digital media. He founded Velazquez Media Consulting to help transitioning service members and military spouses learn to use digital networking to reach their employment goals. Jose is a featured writer, and speaker, and also hosts a nationally syndicated radio program.

Jose and James discuss how growing your network and developing a brand are key steps to transitioning into the civilian sector from military service. Jose has a great analogy about networking and family, but we won’t give it away here. You’ve got to listen to the episode!

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: November 8, 2023 | Duration: 34:18

How I Fired My Boss

Robyn Grable, the CEO of Talents ASCEND, is James’ guest for this episode. Robyn developed a skills-based hiring process that is proactive, intentional and inclusive for veterans, and the disability and justice-involved communities. 

She is also the Founder of The ASCEND Collective: Veterans ASCEND, Ability ASCEND, Mission 2 ASCEND, the nonprofit arm of her company. Robyn is a proud Navy veteran, and worked in the corporate sector before founding her company.

James and Robyn discuss the challenges she faced after leaving the Navy. In her first 12 years in the civilian sector, she worked for 10 different companies. Robyn realized her employers didn’t understand the skills she brought to them, and thus didn’t challenge her to use them. And, she learned about the hiring process - and decided it was time to change it for the better.

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: November 1, 2023 | Duration: 31:08

How to Plan Your Military Descent

James’ guest for this episode is Ryan Padgett, who recently retired from the United States Air Force after distinguished career as a loadmaster on the C5 Galaxy aircraft. Ryan also served as a crisis intervention chaplain for the 1033 Foundation, offering stress awareness management, mitigation training, and specialized crisis intervention for first responders and service members. 

And, he is the founder of the Bold Face Fly Fishing Foundation, where he shares his lifelong pursuit of fly fishing with first responders, currently serving service members and their families as a source of stress relief and community.

James and Ryan discuss the value of planning early for any kind of transition, the challenge of losing one’s identity, the importance of remembering that transition is a team sport - your team being your family, and where you invest your time.

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: October 25, 2023 | Duration: 30:46

From We to Me

In this episode, James’ guest is Juanita Chang Pettersen, COL, US Army (ret), a strategic communications expert with expertise in leading global communications campaigns.

You’ll hear them discuss her transition from the military, including her participation in the Leader Transition Institute’s veteran transition program, Changing Focus: Moving From We to Me. Juanita shares some of her challenges as a leader as she moved into the civilian sector, and how she enjoys her life now.

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: October 18, 2023 | Duration: 33:46

In Sickness and In Health

When you’ve been told that there is nothing more the doctors can do for you, you have two choices: to live as if you’re going to die or to live like you’ve got a future.

Trent Brock is a three-time cancer survivor. In his words, “I was an IT dude by trade, but I started a kettle corn business with a guy that I met in the boxing gym randomly. They did not have kettle corn in New Zealand. I figured it would work, and boy was I right!”

In this episode, James and Trent talk about living each day to the fullest, and how when you do that, it compounds into living a great life.

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: October 11, 2023 | Duration: 34:24

The Only Constant In Life Is Change

Heraclitus (544 BC - 483 BC) is credited with saying, “There is nothing permanent except change.” The trouble with this statement is that, in general, human beings are resistant to change. We’d prefer almost anything else happening to us than having to make a change.

Kevin Dunlap is the founder and lead trainer of the Optimal Performance Academy, a platform and academy for entrepreneurs who want to grow their businesses and create an impactful online presence. 

In this episode, James and Kevin talk about identifying how and where we can successfully navigate change in our lives.

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: October 4, 2023 | Duration: 30:23

Who You Are Matters ... Take Time to Figure YOU Out

When you’re expecting a baby, you prepare, and prepare, and then you prepare some more. But once the baby arrives, your life is never what you think it was going to be.

Zebrina Warner, James’s guest for this episode, is Director Of Learning And Development for The Leadership & Coaching Center and co-author of The Leader's Choice: Bridging the Leadership Gap in an Uncertain World and Winning. 

In this conversation, Zebrina talks about one of the challenges service members face when they leave the military - losing their identity, and the importance of identifying your core values to understand who you are as an individual.

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: September 27, 2023 | Duration: 30:01

Riding Out the Storm

When it rains, it sometimes pours … and then, sometimes it storms. This happens to us in our lives as well. We’ll be dealing with one challenge, and then another comes along … and, then a crisis will pile on top of the stuff we’re already dealing with.

In 2017, author, speaker, and comedian Michael Cheshire wrote, “Life's most brutal storms leave us completely weak once they move on. But in the years that follow, we find they actually remade us incredibly strong. You may always hate your storm... But you'll forever owe it for what it made you into.”

In this episode, Michael, author of Conversation With My Storms, shares with James about losing his company and his marriage, and what he’s been doing to build himself back to having the life he wants.

Hosted by: James Jones Release | Date: September 20, 2023 | Duration: 22:53:00

You Don’t Have To Be Sick To Get Better

Over the course of their careers, professional athletes spend thousands of hours practicing their sports. On top of that, they spend significant time working on their mindset. It’s because there are times when their mindset will carry them through to success more than their ability or talent.

DJ Eidson, the co-founder and President of Limitless Minds, works with ordinary people sharing with them the same mindset concepts and training that elite athletes use so they can also have a competitive advantage. 

In this episode, James and DJ discuss the importance of mindset in our everyday lives.

Hosted by: James Jones | Release Date: September 6, 2023 | Duration: 31:22:00

A New Chapter

In this special episode, we embark on a seamless transition as we introduce James Jones as the new host of #zigszagsandpivots 

Join us in celebrating this transition and embracing the future of our podcast. As always, thank you for your continued support and listenership.

Hosted by: Annie Brock and James Jones | Release Date: August 23, 2023 | Duration: 29:32 

Note: This episode marks a significant shift in our podcast's journey, and we appreciate your understanding and enthusiasm as we make this transition. 

Summer Spell graduated from Azusa Pacific University with a degree in Global Studies. She spent a semester in Uganda staying with a host family.  She did an internship with elderly farmers who were struggling agains poverty. She listened to stories from 80-90 year olds. They talked a lot about the changes in the weather patterns since they were young. It used to be predictable, to the day, but in the last decade, the pattern has fallen apart. The sun was getting harsher on their crops.

She participated in creating a documentary about these people and the effects.

CLICK for link to the documentary trailer

Recommended reading:
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
The Story of More by Hope Jahren
The Biggest LIttle Farm documentary
Podcast How to Save the Planet

To see photos CLICK

Subscribe to the Women of the Northwest podcast for inspiring stories and adventures.
Find me on my website: jan-johnson.com