DE265 What Are You Doing At Home?

What Are You Doing At Home? - dHarmic Evolution Podcast

Welcome back to the show everyone. I hope you’re all managing to handle things in the midst of the current pandemic that’s hit the entire globe.

Today’s show is going to be a little different and special.

I’ll be diving into what I’ve personally been keeping myself busy with, and share with you some tips and strategies on how you too, can cope with the strange and unknown situation that we’ve all unfortunately found ourselves in.

Since moving from New Jersey to Nashville at the beginning of last August, I’ve really had no time to sit down, relax and enjoy the comfort of my T.V. So with the self-quarantine state of affairs that we’re all in, I decided to make the most of it by finally hanging my big 55” HD Panasonic that was sitting in the basement with a moving blanket covering it.

And because it was the lent season, I also ditched any alcoholic beverages, something that I have been doing for years now. It always surprises me just how easily this falls away as an unnecessary vice and its quickly forgotten about. This made me realize that there’s a lot of habits that become a part of us, habits that we feel we are not only accustomed to but also bonded to as well. But the simple truth is that they really don’t have as much influence over us as we give them the power to do so.

Less Criticism – More Compassion 

Let’s be frank. The entire COVID-19 pandemic caught so many of us unaware and unprepared. Up to date, scientists are still revealing new information about the virus every day! From the way, it spreads to the way it affects and destroys the body of its victim.

Pointing fingers and playing the blame game won’t help solve any problems. We should all be supportive of the great work that the President’s task force has been accomplishing in a quite impossible environment.

Thus, we should be less critical of the efforts put in place by not just our administration, but people everywhere, and we should be more considerate of the less fortunate in society. The ones with nowhere to sleep and no idea what meal they’ll have next.

My Schedule. 

It’s hard to come to terms with the physical reality we’re all witnessing in our cities. Of late, it’s been so strange to be outside. No people, no traffic, and almost all office and commercial buildings, venues, retail, etc,  have been deserted.

One of my personal highlights for spending my weeks was volunteering in downtown Nashville every Sunday morning to feed the hungry some hot steaming breakfast. Due to the current situation though, the entire operation has been put on hold. However, I still am, alongside my fiancée, offering the needed help at the Family Life Centre, for women and children in Nashville.

My weekly duties have now changed to a bit of running as an exercise, shopping for the essentials, volunteering, and an occasional car wash every one in a while.

Stay tuned and find out how I’ve slowly, through the help of my fiancée, been able to substitute my love and craving for Yoga with running. I am actually getting better! and of course, it’s all about the singing!

The Depression Fighters Manual. 

In the show, I also give a quick review of my Depression Fighters Manual and how you can download and utilize it to the fullest during this tough crisis that’s been coupled with worry and anxiety.

Part of what I cover include the  7 best strategies to fight depression, which include;

1. You’ve got to move

2. You’ve got to laugh

3. You’ve got to help somebody

4. You’ve got to be loved

5. You’ve got to eat something wholesome

6. You’ve to go love the drugs – Natural drugs that give you the rush!

7. You’ve got to love nature.

And a bonus strategy of how loving and connecting to God for spiritual nourishment, can cure all your troubles, and most importantly, help you deal with the worries of tomorrow.

I also want to give a special thanks to all of you who took up my request to make a music video featuring past artists that have been on the dHarmic Evolution as part of the Here to Share Challenge, with which we hope to express God’s message that we were all put here to share and care for one another, there are “no stars” in this music video, it’s all about the message!

Timestamps 

00:40 What we’ll be covering on the show today

3:09 Connecting my T.V for the first time in seven months

5:11 How I spend my days

8:02 The great job the President’s task force is doing.

10:32 How everyone else is pulling through

14:06 Working using Zoom

15:40 My depression manual – What’s in it and How you can get it

30:25 The backstory to Here to share and Care project.

34:14 My Guest appearance on ABC and how you can watch it

35:46 Listen to share and care.

Download Depression Fighters Ebook here!

Selected links and mentions 

Dr. Anthony Fauci Scott Geller 
Rev. Dr. Christine Mercy Johnson
Ray Williams  
Jimmy Fallon 
Ellen 
Oprah
JFK 50 Mile
Zoom
Trump’s Task Force Efforts
NASHVILLE RESCUE MISSION – FAMILY LIFE CENTER (FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN)  

DE157 Ray Williams | From Motown to Soul Town to Nashville! Ray adds a unique flair to her music! 

DE168 Alumni Professor Scott Geller | V Tech University “Ut Prosim” 

DE 237 “How do we get people to believe?” Archbishop Christine Mercy Johnson explains 

As always, thanks a lot for being a part of the dHarmic evolution podcast, be sure to subscribe to the podcast and connect with us on social media.

Follow our Podcast on Facebook Twitter Instagram

You can also see the show on The James O’Connor Agency YouTube channel and join our community on dHarmic Evolution Community Facebook Group 

DE264 Azalea, Australia & Canada combine beauty and Art, then steal your heart!

Azalea, Australia & Canada combine beauty and Art, then steal your heart! - dHarmic Evolution Podcast

“Azalea” is the musical duo of Benjamin and Mia Hackett, they are an Australian-Canadian couple that write, produce, and perform original music together.

Before they met, Benjamin and Mia both worked on their own solo music projects, but for some reason, it always felt to them that a key ingredient was lacking in their art. Having fatefully met in 2004, the duo worked on their first songwriting project together, and the magic they created from their chemistry was undeniably great. It was then that they discovered that the secret ingredient lacking in their pieces, was each other.

16 years down the line and the duo has now released 5 studio albums, 1 live album, were named semifinalists at the 2018 International songwriting competition, and have previously been nominated at the 2018 International Acoustic Music Awards.

Show Notes

Joining us on the show today is the dynamic music duo of Benjamin and Mia, otherwise known as Azalea.

Having been performing on cruise ships for the past one and a half years, we start the show off with the duo narrating their dramatic cruise ship experience courtesy of the COVID-19 pandemic.

From being stuck at the dock for 12 days in a ship with no passengers to hopping from ship to ship until they finally booked their own plane ticket back home. Benjamin and Mia have had a challenging first-hand experience with the effect of the current global pandemic.

Now with a day left until their 14-day social quarantine is over, the couple can’t wait to go outside and do some grocery shopping!

As they’re a fairly introverted couple, when not on stage or creating new music, Benjamin and Mia are very close friends and enjoy being with their pets and their comfy home in Canada.

Stay tuned as the lovely duo gives us a tour of what it’s like to be performers in a cruise ship. Despite their introverted nature, Benjamin and Mia enjoy socializing with their fans before and after their performances. This, they claim, is a great way to have an intimate connection with your audience and get their personal thoughts and opinions on how they feel about your music and performance.

They’ve enjoyed every single cruise trip and performance as this has enabled them to meet different people, cultures, and lifestyles worldwide. Something that would have otherwise been impossible to afford without their gigs. The Cruise ship contracts have also proven invaluable in terms of steady, reliable work and ample free time to work on their music writing project’s on the side.

And even with the current global crisis still heating up as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, this lovely couple has chosen to see the positive side of it, and thank God for the ample time that they now have to tackle their art and life projects that they’ve been postponing for a while.

I hope you all enjoy the show and feel empowered by the message of hope and creativity that Azalea shares with all on the show today.

Quotes

It grows you, in such a big way, I can’t even remember the person I was before I started the journey. – Mia on her experience performing in cruise ships.

It’s a very intimate relationship between you and the people you’re performing for in a cruise ship. Consorting and getting to know them at a personal level, and what they love about your show. It’s like free market research.

Socializing with your audience is a great way to know what people connect within your songs and performances. This helps in improving your performance and music in general.

We’ve seen so many different cultures, lifestyles and ways of life. This has made us realize how we’re all so different, but still essentially the same. It’s practically a great way to make the world smaller and make it feel like home.

We take different approaches in terms of the tools and environment in order to experiment with how the general audience feels and how emotions would change when producing our songs. There’s a lot of challenges to it, but it’s generally a good experience.

We’re basking in the fact that we now have time to tackle the creative endeavors that we’ve always wanted to pursue – Benjamin on using the current COVID-19 social quarantine measure to their advantage.

We still have milestones that we need to hit. And we feel that we’ll get there eventually. We just have to keep writing, keep playing and keep being our genuine selves. We hope to create art that’s meaningful to us. Because if it means something to you, then it’s going to mean something to everyone else – Benjamin on their future art and music projects.

If you work too much, you kind of lose your touch with creativity. Creativity comes from play.

Timestamps

Azalea’s experience and joy performing cruise ship gigs (7:08)

Listen to ‘Your Lullaby’ by Azalea (10:02)

How they met and the undeniable chemistry that kept them together (14:25)

Benjamin and Mia’s previous gigs before they started performing on cruise ships. (17:45)

Listen to ‘Dusty Motel’ (21:03)

Azalea’s process of creating and producing different songs. (25:21)

How they’ve been affected by the virus (29:44)
Listen to “The Masquerade” (32:55)

House Concerts and Lives streaming, Azalea’s plans for the near future (41:20)

Benjamin gives us a view of the story behind the song ‘Butterflies and Alchemists’ (43:03)

Listen to ‘Butterflies and Alchemists’ (44:44)

How they got their band name ‘Azalea’ (51:24)

Benjamin and Mia’s message to you (56:34)

Connect with Azalea

Website:
www.azaleamusic.net
Facebook:
@AzaleaMusic.net
Twitter:
@AzaleaMusic
Instagram:
@azaleamusic
YouTube:
www.youtube.com/user/AzaleaTV/featured
Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/album/1dDVpHA12UrdADS32m3weI
Apple Music:
https://music.apple.com/ke/artist/azalea/1311120597

As always, thanks a lot for being a part of the dHarmic evolution podcast, be sure to subscribe to the podcast and connect with us on social media.

Follow our Podcast  on Facebook Twitter Instagram 

You can also see the show on The James O’Connor Agency YouTube channel and join our community on dHarmic Evolution Community Facebook Group 

DE263 Winston Justice, NFL, Wealth Management, Leadership through Service, “the Blueprint”

Winston Justice, NFL, Wealth Management, Leadership through Service, “the Blueprint”

Winston Justice is a former NFL offensive lineman who from 2006 – 2014 played with the Philadelphia Eagles, Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos.

Born and raised in Southern California, Winston’s skill, hard work, and passion for Football landed him a spot on the University of Southern California football team where he went on to win a national championship in 2003.

Having graduated from the University of Southern California with an undergraduate degree in Public Policy, Winston is currently a Vice President at the Nashville headquarters of Bernstein – a wealth management company that manages over a hundred billion USD for its client’s –

Winston is leaving footprints in the finance world through his dedication and life philosophy of leadership through service. At Bernstein, Winston works as an asset manager to multigenerational families, entrepreneurs, and nonprofits.

Winston has been the recipient of numerous decorations and awards including the Walter Payton Philadelphia Man of the Year award in 2010. Winston relocated to Nashville in 2010 with his wife and their 3 children.

Show Notes

I hope you’re all excited for today’s episode, as we’re being joined for the first time ever, with a former NFL star, Winston Justice.

Winston has had an exciting and diverse career in the sport, corporate and entrepreneurial world. On today’s show, our guest Winston will be shedding light on some of the knowledge, pitfalls, and emotions involved in these industries.

Get to find out how Winston was nominated for and helped in solving the 2008 NFL lockout and how this event shaped his passion and future career in wealth management.
With an insider look at wealth management, Winston offers us the blueprint that goes into financial management for different groups, ranging from athletes, NGOs, entrepreneurs, and other interested parties.

There’s no doubt that hard work, passion, and commitment, is what football players and other athletes dedicate to their careers. But despite it all, a lot of failures and disappointments are experienced in this industry. From financial nosedives, short-lived careers, and bad advice, Winston explains to us the various challenges -mentally, emotionally, financially and physically- that athletes have to fight through every day, and why, in spite of landing lucrative deals and lifestyles, some athletes end up with almost nothing to show for at the end of their careers.

We also cover Winston’s personal experience working as an NFL player and how having a supportive wife and team staff was the cornerstone of his success in football and in life.

Having learned a lot from football. Winston has applied some of this knowledge in his other endeavors, such as the coffee shop he started with his brother in law and wealth management for his clients.

With so much discipline and passion for helping people and learning new things, Winston enjoys every bit of work put into the process of helping companies and individuals in managing their wealth and portfolio, something he describes as the beauty of building a legacy through finance.

Quotes

Unlike a business owner that sells his company, when a player gets drafted and then gets a new contract, everyone knows it. And on top of that, you’re mostly surrounded by people very different from you, who are genuinely not the best type of people. Half the battle is surrounding yourself with the right type of people.
Unlike in other professions, failures that athletes encounter financially are magnified by the media.

You think about it the first time you put on your pads. It’s so finite. You know that any play could be your last play, and it’s all very scary too. It’s almost like asking a doctor, ‘What are you going to do if you’re not a doctor?’ – Winston on football players thinking of another career.

As men, we find our identity in what we do.

Throughout any career, there’s going to be some really extreme highs, and lows as well.

Through playing football, you learn a lot of life attributes. Like I remember my coach telling me there are no mistakes, only opportunities to get better. And I applied it to every aspect of my life.

You never know when the best time is to pursue a different career or path in life. But you don’t want to look back and have any regrets, as well. You should give your all to the present moment, and even if that moment is coming to an end, you should enjoy it to the fullest – Winston’s advice to athletes.

Everything starts with a conversation – Winston on new business partnerships.

Be present. Don’t get caught up in the panic selling. – Winston’s advice on the market’s and current COVID-19 pandemic.

Timestamps

Winston’s role in finding a resolution for the 2008 lockout (03:04)
Discussing the financial failures of athletes (07:23)
When do football players start to think and plan for life after football? (08:58)
Transitioning dreams from basketball to football (10:41)
Winston’s experience changing NFL teams (12:44)
How Winston is weathering the current COVID-19 Storm (16:23)
Stepping into the entrepreneurial and financial world of Coffee business and Wealth management (21:24)
Moving and settling into Nashville (32:09)
Learning about life through football (35:39)

Selected Links and Mentions

Pete Caroll
Elixr Coffee
Walter Payton Man of the Year Award
Bernstein
NFL Lockout – ESPN.com
Redefining the Scholar-Athlete – Frontiersin.org
About Private Wealth Management – Investopia.com
Life After the NFL: Planning Post-Football Careers – Lastwordonfootball.com