Run Your Life Show With Andy Vasily

Send us a textIt was a pleasure to have Jim Knight back on my podcast for a second time. I wanted to have Jim back on my show to take a dive into his Radical Learners online course called the First 90 Days of Instructional Coaching. Today’s conversation is pretty much focused on ideas and insight related to this course which you can find at courses.radicallearners.com/collections.In this course Jim Knight introduces the foundational principles, skills, and framework necessary for the first 90 days of instructional coaching, including The Partnership Principles, The Impact Cycle, and resources for coaching in action.I have been going through the course with some of my colleagues at The KAUST School in Saudi Arabia and it has sparked some excellent discussions on our leadership team around the role of the coach and how best to maximize time in order to be the most effective coaches that we can be for those who we serve. In our conversation today Jim and I review what the impact cycle is, how to facilatate discussions with teachers around their ‘current reality’ in order to set relevant, timely and meaningful goals, and to then look at strategies that they can apply in order to meet those goals. As well, Jim and I discuss the roadblocks that get in they way of successfully implementing and going through the impact cycle. Jim shares a lot of insight and knowledge that can be applied to the work that any coach does, but also major considerations when trying to deepen the impact that teachers have on student learning. It was an honor to have Jim back on the show. I hope that this conversation between Jim and I sparks some thinking on your part and that you get some valuable takeaway from this episode. About JimJim Knight, Senior Partner of ICG, is a research associate at the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning. He has spent more than two decades studying instructional coaching, writing several books on the topic.  Jim’s articles on instructional coaching have been included in publications such as The Journal of Staff Development, Principal Leadership, The School Administrator, and Teachers Teaching Teachers. Jim directs several research projects, including Pathways to Success, a comprehensive, district-wide school reform project in the Topeka, Kansas, School District. Jim also leads the Intensive Instructional Coaching Institutes and the Teaching Learning Coaching annual conference. Jim has presented and consulted in more than 40 states, most Canadian provinces, and around the world. He has also won several university teaching, innovation, and service awards.Connect with Jim:Website: https://www.instructionalcoaching.com/Radical Learners: http://courses.radicallearners.com/collectionsTwitter: https://twitter.com/jimknight99

Send us a textDr. Jim Loehr is a world-renowned performance psychologist, Co-Founder of the Human Performance Institute, and author of 17 books including his most recent book… Leading with Character- Ten minutes a day to a brilliant legacyIn the opening of his latest book, Leading with Character, Dr. Jim Loehr describes a pivotal moment in his life that happened when he was 16 years old. He considers this moment to be his first exposure to real evil in the world and explains how this experience would go on to greatly shape the career path that he would one day take. From his more than 35 years of experience and applied research, Dr. Loehr believes the single most important factor in successful achievement, personal fulfillment, and life satisfaction is the strength of one’s character. He strongly contends that character strength can be built in the same way that muscle strength is built—through energy investment.He has worked with hundreds of world-class performers from numerous arenas of sport, business, medicine, and law enforcement, including Fortune 100 executives, FBI hostage rescue teams, and military special forces including navy seals and green berets.Dr. Loehr’s ground-breaking, science-based energy management training system has achieved world-wide recognition and has been chronicled in leading national publications, including the Harvard Business Review, Business Week, Fortune, Newsweek, Time, US News and World Report, Success, Fast Company and Omni. He has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Nightline with Ted Koppel, the CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and CBS Morning News, and the Oprah Winfrey Show, as well most recently, he was on the very popular Tim Ferris podcast.In this episode, Dr. Loehr and I take a deep dive into the major themes that he wrote about in his latest book Leading with Character: Ten Minutes a Day to a Brilliant Legacy and the power that personal journalling can hold in our lives when we stick with it, when we are consistent and when we are very honest with ourselves. We unpack many of the themes he discusses in his book including how to construct a powerful, robust personal credo that will become a source code for vetting all future ethical decisions and for helping to build a strong and meaningful life and leadership legacy in order to have the deepest impact possible on the world. Dr. Loehr's Bio:Dr. Jim Loehr is a world-renowned performance psychologist, Co-Founder of the Human Performance Institute, and author of 16 books including his most recent, The Only Way to Win. He also co-authored the national bestseller The Power of Full Engagement. From his more than 30 years of experience and applied research, Dr. Loehr believes the single most important factor in successful acheivement, personal fulfilment and life satisfaction is the strength of one’s character. He strongly contends that character strength can be built in the same way that muscle strength is built throught energy investment. Jim Loehr is also well known for his individual work with top-flight athletes and Olympians. A sampling of his elite clients from the world of sport include: golfers Mark O'Meara and Justin Rose; tennis players Jim Courier, Monica Seles, and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario; boxer Ray Mancini; hockey players Eric Lindros and Mike Richter; and Olympic gold medal speed skater Dan Jansen. Connect with Dr. Loehr:Website: https://www.jim-loehr.com/Get his latest book at:  https://www.amazon.com/Leading-Chara

Send us a textIn this conversation, Dr. Yong Zhao and I unpacked many different layers of his life and his work. However, we devote much of this episode discussing his latest book Learners Without Boarders-New Learning Pathways For All Students which was published in July 2021. Dr. Zhao has written more than 20 books and has spoken and presented in many countries around the world and is widely recognized as one of the most influential education scholars. It was a pleasure to have this conversation with Dr. Zhao and I hope that anyone listening will benefit from hearing about his work and research. Dr. Zhao's BioYong Zhao is a Foundation Distinguished Professor in the School of Education at the University of Kansas and a professor in Educational Leadership at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education in Australia. He previously served as the Presidential Chair, Associate Dean, and Director of the Institute for Global and Online Education in the College of Education, University of Oregon, where he was also a Professor in the Department of Educational Measurement, Policy, and Leadership. Prior to Oregon, Yong Zhao was University Distinguished Professor at the College of Education, Michigan State University, where he also served as the founding director of the Center for Teaching and Technology, executive director of the Confucius Institute, as well as the US-China Center for Research on Educational Excellence. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Education and a fellow of the International Academy of Education.Yong Zhao has received numerous awards including the Early Career Award from the American Educational Research Association, Outstanding Public Educator from Horace Mann League of USA, and Distinguished Achievement Award in Professional Development from the Association of Education Publishers. He has been recognized as one of the most influential education scholars.Zhao was born in China’s Sichuan Province. He received his B.A. in English Language Education from Sichuan Institute of Foreign Languages in Chongqing, China in 1986. After teaching English in China for six years, he came to Linfield College as a visiting scholar in 1992. He then began his graduate studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1993. He received his masters in Education in 1994 and Ph.D. in 1996. He joined the faculty at MSU in 1996 after working as the Language Center Coordinator at Willamette University and a language specialist at Hamilton College.Connect with Dr. ZhaoTwitter: https://twitter.com/YongZhaoEdWebsite: http://zhaolearning.com/Dr. Zhao most recent book Learners Without Boarders can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Learners-Without-Borders-Learning-Pathways/dp/1506377351

Send us a textIn his early days, Dan Chambliss was inquisitive, well-read, and curious about the world around him. Growing up in a home that valued reading and learning, Dan was able to create strong connections across multiple disciplines that helped to broaden his view of the world and to gain deeper understanding of the nature of the human spirit. Dan had very little interest in sport when he was young and in his own words, struggled with the basic motor coordination needed to participate in many different forms of team sport. Although he didn’t consider himself even remotely close to being an athlete, he somehow ended up becoming passionate about swimming. He worked endlessly on improving his skills in the pool and began to thrive which helped him to understand the power of perseverence and the importance of developing a greater belief in himself and what is possible when he set his mind to it. As you listen to this episode, you will hear the passion that Dan has for the work that he does and his lifelong quest to better understand the power of group dynamics in helping to shape a person’s character and their pursuit of excellence both personally and professionally. I came across his research in Angela Duckworth’s best-selling book Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance. In her book, she outlines Dan’s amazing work with the US Olympic Swim Squad and shares what he learned not only by observing swimmers of all abilities, but in particular the elite swimmers. By studying how the best swimmers in the nation pursued mastery of their craft, he learned deeply about how they connected with their coaches and teammates and the importance of developing strong relationships when striving to be one’s bestDan has been a member of the Hamilton College (Clinton, NY) faculty since 1981 and earned Master's and Ph.D. degrees from Yale University; in 1982 his doctoral thesis received the American Sociological Association’s prize for the best recent dissertation on medical sociology. His research interests are higher education, formal organizations, social psychology and research methodsHe is the winner of the ASA's Theory section prize for his work on organizational excellence in his widely-reprinted 1989 article, “The Mundanity of Excellence: An Ethnographic Report on Stratification and Olympic Swimmers,” and is author of the book Champions: The Making of Olympic Swimmers, which was named the 1991 Book of the Year by the U.S. Olympic Committee. This episode was just a mini-dive into Dan’s life and his work, he’s done so much more and has made a huge impact in his field. You can click on his Twitter link below or any of the links seen in this introduction about him. Dan continues to remain open and curious about the world and strives to read and learn every day. When I asked him about the legacy he hopes to one day leave behind, with great affection he said that he wants to always be remembered as a teacher, not a researcher, a writer or an academic, but to be remembered as a teacher who always wanted to make a difference in the lives of the students he taught. He is a wonderful person and it was a genuine joy to interview him on my podcast. I hope that wherever you are in the world, that you find some gems from this episode that you can apply in your own personal and professional life. Connect with Dan: Twitter: https://twitter.com/DanFChamblissSpecial thanks to Bronx band Conversing with Oceans & Alex Bondarev for creating the podcast music.

Send us a textThis podcast is actually a re-release of an episode that I  recorded with renowned golf coach Shawn Clement on his Golf's Perfect Imperfections WRX Radio podcast in July. In this episode, Shawn (Director of Golf at Wisdom in Golf) and I sit down to have a conversation about coaching, goal-setting, vision and purpose, not only in regards to the game of golf, but life in general. Although this episode is framed around the game of golf, much can be learned from this discussion that applies to sport, business and education. We are joined as well by Munashe Masawi, Head Kinesiologist at Wisdom in Golf and former collegiate football player.  About Shawn ClementFor those of you who do not know yet who I am, please consult my bio and know that I am a lifer in Golf and was put on this planet to help people enjoy a game that is so profound on so many levels. Golf can be played so easily with the right focus and can be so incredibly frustrating and elusive when you are focused on the wrong task.The most important tool that started me properly on this journey was the experience I had from age 17 (I am now 51) with the Canadian Ski Patrol and their relentless passion in making sure you knew what you were doing when treating a victim with a broken limb on the ski hill before transporting to hospital with vital information for the Emergency MD.This information helped guide me through the maze of golf instruction that was based purely on opinions that were based on assumptions of how the human body works. To this day, we do not have any documents, seminars, manuals on basic anatomy in the field of golf instruction which is very disturbing considering we are on the front lines of your abilities to learn this game and play for life!Last 20 years:Director of Development for Royal Québec Golf Club and AcademyNew association with Retrieve’s revolutionary AI Platform (www.retrieve.com)Member of Callaway Canada’s Fitting BoardCallaway Golf-Best Club Fitter in Canada for 2020Golf WRX-Regular Instruction contributor to the best golf equipment websiteLaunched “Golf’s Perfect Imperfections” PODCAST available at www.golfwrx.com (their only instructional podcast)Member of Golf Channel Academy FamilyFinal Top 3 nominees for PGA of Ontario Teacher of the Year – 2011 & 2015Director of Instruction at the Richmond Hill Golf Learning Centre 2005 to 2018Playing and Instruction Editor for Golf Tips Magazine from 2001 to 2004Director of Instruction at Taboo Resort and Spa (Mike Weir’s Home Course) 2002-2004Medalist Canadian PGA playing ability test for Class A MemberThe only Canadian PGA member to ever play left and right in the same bagIntrawest Mt Tremblant 1999-2001Canadian Tour and North Florida PGA mini tour 1997 to 1999Most Popular Teacher on YouTube from 2007 to 2012 and top 5 instructor now with over 40 Million hits and counting with 73 thousand natural and unsolicited subscribersConnect with ShawnWebsite: https://wisdomingolf.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/clemshawFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/wisdomingolf

Send us a textToday’s conversation is with Pino Di Ioia, the CEO/Owner of BeaverTails, a one of a kind, very well-known, Canadian pastry chain. The chain started in 1978, but has spread widely throughout Canada and also has locations in 6 other countries around the world including France, Mexico, and Japan. With over 170 franchises and more opening each month, Beavertails is a massive success story that has been built on the vision of Pino and his amazing team working behind the scenes over the years. In this conversation, we’ll unpack some of the success principles that Pino has put into action over the years to help Beavertails thrive as an organization, but more importantly, we’ll take a dive into Pino’s life and learn how he was able to develop his world view from a young ago and capitalize on early strengths that he possessed that helped to give him the mindset of a champion. And I do not use the phrase ‘mindset of a champion’ lightly. To me a champion is someone who has the ability to impact those around them in a way that brings out their absolute best. Whether it be a professional athlete, best-selling author, or gold medallist in the Olympics, a champion mindset is not only about tapping into one’s own unique strengths in order to perform one’s best, it’s also about how they give back to the world in a way that helps others thrive. As you will see from this conversation, Pino, even at a young age, had a deeply entrepreneurial spirit and you will hear specifics on how he was able to consistently engage with the world in a way that tapped into his natural abilities to be curious, creative, innovative and resourceful and it’s these strengths that would later go on to help him build his hugely successful business. Pino’s capacity to put people first and focus on developing strong relationships is firmly rooted in his belief in the importance of autonomy in the workplace. Pino’s  encourages his employees in a way that not only feel supported but to contribute to the company’s success based on the strengths and abilities that they bring to the organization. You’ll learn specifics about Pino’s philosophy as we dig deeper into this episode. Beaver Tails has been enjoyed by many including former US president Barrack Obama, Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, and has even been featured as a question/answer on the game show Jeopardy hosted by the late Alex Trebek. It was awesome to be able to sit down with Pino on Zoom to have this discussion. It was a fun and insightful chat and I hope you enjoy it. Connect With PinoWebsite: https://beavertails.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/BeaverTailsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/beavertails/Special thanks to Bronx band Conversing with Oceans & Alex Bondarev for creating the podcast music.https://www.conversingwithoceans.com/

Send us a textAs a young boy, Simon Whitfield loved playing team sport. In particular, soccer and ice hockey, and through these pursuits, he was able to develop important skills that would go on to serve him well in the future. However, it was the sport of running that really captured his interest, inspiring him to think about what was possible in his life.He has nothing but fond memories when he reflects on his first time being introduced to triathlon, getting his start in the Sharbot Lake kid’s triathlon which was an informal, family friendly community-based event.He fell in love with triathlon and in order to become the very best he could be, he said his good byes to his family and friends and left his home in Kingston, Ontario, to travel alone, as a 16-year old, more than halfway across the world, to Sydney, Australia to complete high school and to train amongst its top-ranked triathletes. This decision would ultimately pay off for Simon and help spur him on to Olympic greatness. You’ll hear how in our discussion today. In this episode, Simon shares the role that visualization played in the process of winning his gold medal in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, as well how it always helped him to create and play out different scenarios in his head in order to always be ready for anything that happened in competition. Simon is a deep thinker, and in our discussion, he shares what he feels he has learned about himself, not only through success, but also through hardship and adversity. It’s these life lessons that continue to propel him on in his own journey, inspiring him to find meaning and purpose in his life that extend far beyond his identify as a world class athlete and Olympian to something that means so much more to him; the ability to always remain open and curious about the world and to always connect with nature, be out on the ocean as a certified paddle board instructor and to give back to his sport and to the younger generation of athletes striving to follow in his footsteps. Simon's BioSimon Whitfield, triathlete (born 16 May 1975 in Kingston, ON). Simon Whitfield is a four-time Olympian and Canada's first-ever Olympic gold medalist in triathlon. Whitfield won gold at the 2000 Olympic Summer Games in Sydney, the first year that the triathlon was an Olympic event. Although he did not medal at the 2004 Games in Athens, he sprinted to a silver medal at the 2008 Games in Beijing. Whitfield was the Canadian flag-bearer at the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London but crashed during the bicycle portion of the triathlon and was forced to pull out of the event. Whitfield has also amassed a total of 12 World Cup wins in addition to his gold and silver Olympic medals. He retired from competition in 2013 and was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.Connect with SimonTwitter: https://twitter.com/simonwhitfieldSpecial Recognition to: Special credit to CBC Sports for their video of Simon's Olympic Victory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg2SKW69AY0As well special credit to Hawksley Workman for their 'Beauty as Anger' song used in this episode: https://hawksleyworkman.com/Special credit as well to  the Tragically Hip and Jordi Savall for their music

Send us a textAlan Tait first picked up a club at 5 years old. His love for the game was evident from this very early age and it was always his dream to pursue a career in golf. By the time he was 17 he was playing off plus 2 and in 1986 he won The Scottish Boys Championship, before going on to win The Doug Sanders European and World Junior Championships in the same year. During his amateur career he represented Scotland and Great Britain and Ireland and became only the 5th player in Scottish Golf history to be capped at boys, youths and senior levels in the same year.Alan turned professional in 1990 and is probably best known for being the first player ever to shoot 64 (8 under par) at the Championship Course at Carnoustie in 1994 at The Daily Express 72-Hole Pro Am Championship. This record stood for 23 years until none other than Englishman and Ryder Cup star Tommy Fleetwood went one better shooting a 63 in The 2017 Dunhill Links. In this episode Alan shares a marvelous story about being pair with 15-time major champion Tiger Woods and 2-time Masters champion Ben Crenshaw for a practice round at Carnoustie in 1995, a memorable round of golf that gave him the opportunity to teach Tiger and Ben about how to play Carnoustie to help them prepare for playing the 1995 Scottish Open being held at the course. Although success was hard to find on the European Tour Alan looks back at his experience with fond memories. He enjoys working for BBC Radio Scotland, commentating at events such as The Open, Scottish Open, Ryder and Solheim Cups.Currently Alan is Director of Operations for the UK working for GolPhin. GolPhin is a company focused on growing the game from grass roots through their education programme, MyPathway2Golf coaching initiative and also their award winning equipment, designed for 3-14 year olds.Connect With AlanWebsite: https://usa.golphin.com/Email: alan@golphin.co.uk 

Send us a textFrom an early age, Oshiomogho Atogwe focused on the micro-steps needed to continually grow and learn and constantly refine and improve his skills as a football player. And as Atomic Habit’s author James Clear says, it’s the ‘aggregation of marginal gains over time’ that leads to long term lasting success. Little did Oshiomogho  know it at the time, but he would go on to be one of the best high school players to ever come out of Windsor, Ontario and also go on to receive a scholarship at Stanford University and be a defensive standout on the team. This would lead him to be drafted in the 3rd round of the NFL draft by the St Louis Rams and play 8 years in the NFL. 5 years with the Rams, 2 years with the Redskins and then finish his career with the Philadelphia Eagles. In our discussion, Oshiomogho and I talk about his journey in the NFL and what it was he came to better understand about himself through this experience. He has always been guided by his faith and the deep spiritual framework that he puts into action in his life to honor the talents and strengths that he feels he has been given and the responsibility to give back to the world in special ways to serve others with the gifts that he has been blessed with. Oshiomogho believes that a great coach has the power to change a persons life and that it is a role that cannot be taken lightly. Using his own experiences as an example, he speaks about the impact that his high school coach Harry Lumley had in his life and the difference he made. As a college football player myself and being from the same hometown, Windsor Ontario, it was great to connect with Oshiomogho  and have this discussion on my podcast. Wherever you are in the world listening to this, I hope you enjoy the conversation and share it with at least one person you feel with benefit from listening to it as well. About Oshiomogho Oshiomogho Isaac "O.J." Atogwe (born June 23, 1981) is a Canadian former professional American football free safety who served most recently as the secondary coach for the Memphis Express of the Alliance of American Football (AAF). He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football at Stanford. Atogwe was also a member of the Washington Redskins and Philadelphia Eagles.

Send us a textMy guest today, Ann-Renee Desbiens, exemplifies what it means to show grit and to have a never give up attitude. As the youngest of 5 kids, she learned a lot from her older siblings and it was through her exploration of sport that she ultimately found a love of ice hockey.Although she had opportunity to play a variety of positions, she would settle into the role of goalie early on in her ice hockey career. Due to her talent, hard work and effort, Ann Renee played only in boy’s leagues up until she was 19 at which point she accepted a full-ride scholarship to play ice hockey for, Wisconsin Badgers, one of the best female ice hockey teams in the NCAA. As she states in this podcast, she had many great memories playing in the boy’s leagues back in Quebec, but there were a number challenging moments she experienced that forced her to be strongly independent and develop a resilient mindset that allowed her to get through these difficult times. She speaks about these experiences in our conversation in this episode. Ann-Renee would go on to have an amazing career in the NCAA breaking numerous records and ultimately winning the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award which is given to the top female college player in the United StatesShe represented Team Canada in the 2018 Winter Olympics as starting goalie winning silver medal and will begin training in a few months time for the 2022 Winter Olympics being held in Beijing. As you will see in this episode, Ann-Renee has the mindset of a champion and everything she does is aligned with the thoughts, words, and actions necessary for constant growth and learning.  Connect With Ann-ReneeTwitter: https://twitter.com/adesbiens30Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anndesbiens/