Creativehood

From the world of Shakespearean theater, improve and television acting comes our next guest - Anthony. He now serves full time as a Care Pastor at my favorite church in Hoboken, New Jersey (Biased because I used to attend and work there). We’ll hear how important it is to learn the business side of show business, how his journey prepared him for a life of empathetic service, and what a Pastor does outside of just Sundays. Two very different careers in the same episode. Ready? Let’s take a listen. (Recorded Pre-2020)

Get ready for a lesson in entrepreneurship, marketing, PR, leadership, building your dream career and the community to keep you going. Meghan (IG: @mkellehernyc)started her consulting business by taking a chance and emailing 55 contacts to let them know about the services she'd soon be offering - 51 wrote back. Now, on the other side of a never having a slow season, Meghan shares what keeps her going and how she does it. What you'll hear: what it means to be a professional storyteller, the exciting projects she's worked on, what it means to manage a crisis, the valuable practices of an opera singer, how she's taking 13+ years of work experience and using it to empower women around her, how important community is to keeping her strong in a career that can be demanding. Thank you for being on Meghan, and wishing you all the best in this next big move of yours!! Check her out. @mkellehernyc (Recorded Pre-2020)

"Alexa, manage over 200 features in the next NBA app update." As a project manager, that's been the role of a very organized, very effective friend - also named Alexa. She started as a 10-month project hire, but quickly took on more responsibility. Even becoming the voice and face of the WNBA's social media. Now, she's working for the MLB, awarding grants to communities who could use some athletic funding and being a time management boss - inside and outside of work. What you'll hear: what a project manager does, what a standard app update (for a company the size of the NBA) requires of a project manager, the qualities you can start building now to manage such projects, the benefits of being a student athlete, where time management and project management intersect each other and your life, the sister who paved the way, the journey of a sideline reporter, what it takes to be a sports reporter, how that opportunity took her to the All-Stars and Finals and Seattle, the importance of community and using your skills to bring out the best in those around you, finding and cultivating the talents God gave you, reframing big decisions as "not a leap, but a step in the direction you want to go in." Thank you Alexa for being on the show! And once again thank you to all the guests for giving your time in exchange for only a glass a water - and the hope that we might make a difference in someone's life. (Recorded pre-2020)

Self-taught street photographer, my conversation with Al goes beyond photo basics 101. "What do you want to say?" Is how he determines his style, composition and subject. He's been published, he publishes on IG and he works professionally for himself and for small businesses. If you have any interest in using a camera, you'll love this hour. What you'll hear: how living in England and France has influenced his style, how to turn photography into a business, lens talk, ways to get a good candid shot, the lessons we learn from journaling, what he gets out of workshops, his favorite things to photograph, and many philosophy points around photography. (Recorded pre-2020) Enjoy!

Everyone has a favorite teacher. For hundreds of kids out there, the teacher they'll remember forever is Annie. In this episode we'll all learn a little something. How to inspire creativity in others, how limitless a child's perspective is and what we can do as adults to raise an empathetic generation. When so much of school is centered around testing, her approach to teaching is built on a foundation of relationships. She believes that when a child feels supported and connected, their true potential will reveal itself. This was recorded pre-2020. Before we asked more of this already extremely giving profession. It's in their blood. So, go do something to support a teacher today. Because they're finding ways to support your child every day.

Onjoli is the coolest. That's all you need to know. But, (pre-2020 at the time of recording) she worked as an associate producer on Desus & Mero on Showtime. So, that confirms it. She's the coolest. Plus, she's politically savvy, a fan of Disney Channel Movies and hilarious. Enjoy this deep dive into television and learning what kind of paperwork happens behind the scenes. ---- What you'll hear: The journey of a woman who earned her Master's because she didn't know what else to do as a young prodigy (my words, not hers), the benefits of letting others know your career dreams, and how she went from the ad world to the tv world. You'll learn what "field" production is, the difference between a "show day" and "non-show day" - and the deceiving truth behind comedy edits.

She moved to the U.S. on her own, studied at a school she knew no one at and made waves at an ad agency that sponsored her visa. This is Susan and she's a trailblazing Account Executive at VMLY&R. Learn how she pulls off the great balancing act of keeping creatives and clients happy - all while finding time to take great photos for her instagram. Thanks for chatting with me Susan!

Yaiseli is a self-proclaimed lucky charm and a part of my origin story. She currently works as an art director at VMLY&R - formerly known as Y&R, where we were each other's first creative team partner. We bonded as fellow Miami (and Miami Ad School) natives. We laugh, we cry, we reminisce. And we hype each other up. Way up. She started her career in Prague and Berlin before landing in NYC, where our destinies crossed. I don't know how, but we worked and lived together! (What's work/life balance?!) We're blessed to share a beautiful NYC story, first living in Harlem, sharing one bathroom with six other people. Turning a freelance gig into a full-time one. And producing work alongside some of the greatest ad people in the world. Classic NYC. So fortuitous, it could be a movie. Enjoy this time capsule of some of my most treasured years. Oh, and learn what an art director does in advertising. You might really like it. (Recorded pre-2020) What you'll hear: first we'll talk the basics of what it means to be an art director. Then, it's the "Adventures of Mel & Yai." Concluding with more of Yaiseli's story. Which, started in Cuba, involves winning a lottery, a high school newspaper class, portfolio school and living the American Dream. We'll talk you through a whole ad campaign from creative brief to legal approval to working with a production house. We'll talk about our passion projects and why you need them. Lots to talk about. So, let's get to it! @slayseli @muymoodi

From 48 hour film festivals to visual effects on Oceans 8, Josh shares the knitty gritty of his job as an editor. His journey starts in Ohio, goes to L.A., back to Ohio, and then to New York City where he's been a Visual FX Editor for multiple film and tv projects, the 3D Editor on The Nutcracker and The Four Realms, and an assistant editor - which was his foot in the door. If you're interested in film, any aspect of it, you could have a career as one of the hundreds of people working behind the scenes. Or as part of the smaller team that works on post-production. Buckle in and enjoy this conversation with Josh. Consider this episode "locked." Industry lingo...you'll get it later. (Recorded Pre-2020)

Now, we're talking about unions on Broadway - Veronica talks about how unions work, how to get into one, and how they protect the creative jobs in theater. In the previous episode we talked about how Veronica became a stage manager, and what it's like working at the revival of Oklahoma! on Broadway. Check it out! See what Veronica's up to at IG: @veronicaflee