Wild Ideas Worth Living

Eric’s Wild Idea: To travel around the world, cook with different cultures, and then inspire others through photography. Eric Wolfinger has been called the Annie Leibovitz of food photography. He’s published over a dozen award-winning books, and done even more photo and film commissions with amazing chefs from around the world. While he wasn’t always a photographer, after college Eric, who was also a longtime surfer, wanted to find a way to combine his passions for traveling and cooking. The unexpected answer was photography. While working as an apprentice at the famous Tartine Bakery in San Francisco, Eric traded surf lessons with owner Chad Robertson for bread baking tips, and soon after was commissioned to take the photos for the Tartine Bread cookbook. It was nominated for a James Beard Award in 2011 for Best Cookbook Photography, and since then, he’s become a sought after food photographer. I’ve known Eric for a long time - we went to high school together and grew up surfing. He’s gone on to do some pretty wild things. In fact, today Smug Mug released an amazing film about Eric.  On this show, Eric and I talk about how the film got made, how he ended up shooting the Tartine Bread book, and how you can not only get that killer food shot for your own Instagram, but make a living doing what you love. Listen to this episode if:  You love snapping pictures of your food. You want to travel the world. You can always be found in the kitchen. You devour cookbooks. You want to make a living doing what you love. You’re curious what to cook for dinner tonight. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/20

Sarah’s Wild Idea: To bring all of you, to everything you do. To be your most extreme version of yourself and live to your fullest in work and life. And to stop being so afraid of failure. Sarah Robb O’Hagan is the Founder and Chief Extremer of Extreme You. Formerly the President of Gatorade and Equinox, she’s also worked at Nike, Virgin, Air New Zealand, and is currently the CEO of Fly Wheel. Sarah shares about success,  failure and how to thrive in work and life. Her new book, Extreme You, interviews everyone from Condoleezza Rice to Skier Bode Miller, with nuggets of wisdom from superstars in their fields. Sarah has a great Kiwi accent and a positive sense of self. We talk about how to live wildly even if you work at a big company, why failure is a good thing, bringing your all to your business, and how to have a work-life balance.  Listen to this episode if:  You are afraid of failure or have ever failed. You work at a large company and want to be a badass, even 9 to 5. You are a fitness and adventure fanatic. You’re a working parent and athlete. You are looking for a better work/life balance. You want to know how to thrive in a male-centric career. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/19

Chris’s Wild Idea: To establish and climb the most challenging routes in the world.  Chris Sharma is one of climbing’s most accomplished athletes. He started climbing at the young age of twelve in gyms in his native Santa Cruz, CA and now searches out the most difficult, beautiful, and seemingly impossible climbs known to man. He continues to push the limits of what’s possible in the sport, and isn’t afraid to pursue routes that can take him years to accomplish. In 2013, he opened a gym, Sender One, in Los Angeles. He now lives in Barcelona, Spain with his wife and daughter, where he just opened his own climbing gym, Sharma Climbing. I recently had a chance to sit down with Chris at a friend’s dinner party and got to ask him about his climbing and life philosophies, his passion for deep water soloing, the evolution of the sport, being a stunt double on the movie Point Break, and so much more.  Listen to this episode if:  You’re a climber.  You want to try deep water soloing. You love travel and adventure. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/18

Amy’s Wild Idea: To impact the world though yoga and activism.  Amy has the dream job of a traveling around the world as a yoga teacher, which she started doing in the 1980s. She has a different take on yoga than many. It’s not just about working out and breathing. The practice of yoga also has ties to activism, which is why Amy does things like take her yoga to the oceans to raise awareness for the environment and animal conservation.  Amy is a faculty member at the Omega Institute, Esalen, and Kripalu, and a regular presenter at Yoga Journal Conferences, Asia Yoga Conference, Wanderlust Festivals, and more. She’s also a prAna ambassador, which is how I was lucky to meet her.  Listen to this episode if:  You practice yoga or want to get more involved in yoga. You want to live a healthy lifestyle physically and mentally. You’re an activist. You want to help save our planet.

David’s Wild Idea: To optimize your health, athletic and mental performance, and sex appeal with a plant-based diet and intermittent fasting. David has some unique ideas when it comes to nutrition, fasting, and health. He’s all about using fasting as well as an exclusively plant-based, whole foods diet to promote optimal health and performance. David studied physiology and nutrition at Columbia University and is a registered dietician. He worked at Columbia Athletics as a strength and conditioning coach, and has been a nutrition consultant at Facebook. Most recently David is at True North Health in Santa Rosa, CA which is a supervised water fasting center, where he manages the fitness program. In addition to all of this, he also works with professional athletes on plant-based nutrition and using intermittent fasting to improve their performance. David eats every other day, does some wild experiments when it comes to his health and nutrition, and is always pushing the envelope and testing new ways of using the fuel we put in our bodies. Listen to this episode if:  You want to try intermittent fasting You are interested in water fasting You’re ready to move to a plant-based diet You’re interested in improving your mental and athletic performance

Brendan’s Wild Idea: To create a more environmentally and socially sustainable world.  Brendan Brazier is one of the most well know plant-based elite athletes on the planet. He’s the author of bestselling book Thrive, and the founder of several companies including Vega, a plant-based nutrition company. His new magazine, Alive, is available for free at health food stores around the country. He also advises celebrities like Venus Williams, Hugh Jackman, and entire pro-sports teams about their nutrition.  Brendan is all about living a healthy, sustainable lifestyle, and his mission is to help educated people about the possibilities when it comes to an environmentally friendly diet. Listen to this Episode if: You’re interested in a plant-based life You want to know how to train hard while eating a plant-based diet You’re interested in starting a business You’re passionate about environmental and social sustainability For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/15

Caroline Paul’s Wild Idea: To overcome fear, cultivate bravery, and encourage others to live with more adventure. Caroline Paul is the New York Times best-selling author of four books, including Fighting Fire, a memoir about being a San Francisco firefighter; the illustrated Lost Cat, A True Story of Love, Desperation, and GPS Technology; East Wind, Rain; and The Gutsy Girl: Escapades for Your Life of Epic Adventure. She’s competed alongside Olympians as a luger, swam for dead bodies in the San Francisco Bay, made first ascents down Class V rapids, surfed giant Ocean Beach waves, attempted a Guinness Record (in high school), and even walked across the Golden Gate Bridge. She just presented @TedWomen, and is a highly entertaining and empowering story-teller. Listen to this Episode if: - You want to cultivate bravery. - You want to overcome fear or look at it from a new perspective. - You want to become a firefighter, writer, or just live with more adventure. - You want to listen to an amazing story-teller and one badass woman. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/14

Chris Burkard’s Wild Idea: To become an adventure photographer. Wanting to discover the best photographs in nature, Chris Burkard decided to go to the most remote and raw of places. While he was well on his way to become a leading surf photographer, spending most of his time in tropical water, Chris wanted to go to places that were a little more untrammeled by man. He knew a little sacrifice, just might yield amazing results and photos. Listen to this episode if: You want to be an adventure or nature photographer. You want to find a deeper connection to nature. You want to know how to balance family and travel. You want to learn tips on how to become a successful photographer. You have ever seen one of Chris Burkard’s stunning photos. You just want to listen to a great storyteller. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/13

Kate and Kim’s Wild Idea: To create an athletic company to empower women to cultivate their grit to find their grace. To make women feel good and safe while working out. And to create athletic clothes are are fashionable and effective. Kimberly Caccavo and Kate Nowlan are the founders of activewear brand GracedByGrit. They started this business from scratch, and it has now become a successful company with a team of rocking women at the helm. They believe in a business with a mission, and are passionate about teaming up with causes they care about to raise both funds and awareness. It’s an inspiring conversation about starting a company, building an awesome team, and creating an exciting culture. Listen to this episode if: You’ve ever thought about starting your own company You’re passionate about women led businesses You are an active, athletic, fashionable woman Giving back is important to you For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/12

Alana Nichols’ Wild Idea: To become a world-class athlete despite any limits. At 17, Alana was on her way to college on a softball scholarship when she attempted a flip snowboarding, and landed directly on a rock on her back. She suffered a spinal cord injury that left her paraplegic. Instead of giving up sports altogether, Alana transitioned to adaptive sports, quickly becoming a top Olympic competitor in skiing, wheelchair basketball and sprint kayaking. She has some crazy stories about falling, and about winning. She has most recently taken up surfing, and is one of a few females competing in adaptive surfing, and helping pave the way for more to come. Listen to this episode if you: - Want to get massively inspired. - Love the Olympic Games and sports. - Have ever felt like giving up on anything. - Want to hear what it's like to be on shows like Conan O'Brien and compete in the Olympics. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/11