Jessica Baron's guest appearances

Jessica Baron

Unconventional Leadership Podcast

Guitaromanie

Henpicked Menopause Podcast

Joey Price

Sarah Brown

Pete Scazzero

Todd Henry

Mary Miller

Mike Kelly

Ryan Hawk

Jason Vieaux

Jackie Bledsoe

Kevin Taylor

Janet Reid

Jennifer Brown

Dan Hurley

Vanessa King

Steve Hess

OwlTail

Guitars In the Classroom founder, Jessica Baron tells about the incredible work she and her cohorts are doing to make the world a happier, smarter, more peaceful, and beautiful place. 

Guitars In the Classroom founder, Jessica Baron tells about the incredible work she and her cohorts are doing to make the world a happier, smarter, more peaceful, and beautiful place.

14. Jessica Baron

Clare Blankemeyer

This week’s episode is inspiring and has many great lessons on impact as Jessica Baron takes the mic to talk to mover and shaker Clare Zlatic Blankemeyer, the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives for the Mayerson Foundation and President of Impact 100. Among many topics, they discuss how thinking about problems from a different perspective invents new possibilities.  They start out by discussing the Mayerson Foundation’s Activation Funding pilot to enhance the impact of philanthropic dollars on the agencies they fund, specifically: “to look at what’s best in people, and how are non-profits activating, accelerating, sparking what’s best in people...not only looking at a deficit and what’s wrong with them...whatever label might be attached to a client of a non-profit.” Clare Blankemeyer (2:30)One example is sparking hope from one of the world’s darkest hours with their support for the Center For Holocaust and Humanities. (3:09)Clare says, “We can choose as people to be our best selves, even when it imperils our lives.”  She shares the story of one mother’s courageous and tragic act as a celebration of human strength (4:04) It “calls on us to what we can do in the face of injustice...what strengths can we call upon to act differently.” (4:57)  She shares positive examples of people standing up for hate even when it doesn’t apply to them (7:56) Clare discusses how  “Positive Psychology” influences everything that the Mayerson Foundation does, in order to inspire and create a “window of hope” (8:20)LISTEN NOW! Jessica shares her personal experience with the exhibits about being inspired and hopeful to engage in impact. (11:02)“Up-standers are not always extraordinary people.  They are ordinary people who made courageous decisions in a moment...The Holocaust was a result of people being bystanders, people not tapping into their strengths and sayiing ‘wait a minute. This is wrong.” We have opportunities to call on that everyday.” Clare Blankemeyer (11:34)Next they discuss how “activation funding” from the Mayerson Foundation is supporting organizations who empower their clients, not simply “tell them what to do.” (13:00)This work is carried through in another organization Clare is passionate about, Impact 100. Her inspiring quotes and outside-the-box thinking carry through, as she shares THE primary flaw in traditional philanthropy and how nonprofits are changing(16:23) How an embarrassing moment created an opportunity to think differently (21:20) A lesson in authenticity.   

This week’s episode is inspiring and has many great lessons on impact as <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicabaron/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Jessica Baron</a> takes the mic to talk to mover and shaker <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/clarezlaticblankemeyer" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Clare Zlatic Blankemeyer</a>, the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives for the <a href="https://www.mayersonfoundation.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Mayerson Foundation</a> and President of <a href="https://impact100.org" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Impact 100</a>. Among many topics, they discuss how thinking about problems from a different perspective invents new possibilities.   They start out by discussing the Mayerson Foundation’s Activation Funding pilot to enhance the impact of philanthropic dollars on the agencies they fund, specifically:  “to look at what’s best in people, and how are non-profits activating, accelerating, sparking what’s best in people...not only looking at a deficit and what’s wrong with them...whatever label might be attached to a client of a non-profit.” Clare Blankemeyer (2:30) <ul><li>One example is sparking hope from one of the world’s darkest hours with their support for the Center For Holocaust and Humanities. (3:09)</li></ul> <ul><li>Clare says, “We can choose as people to be our best selves, even when it imperils our lives.”  She shares the story of one mother’s courageous and tragic act as a celebration of human strength (4:04)</li></ul> <ul> <li>It “calls on us to what we can do in the face of injustice...what strengths can we call upon to act differently.” (4:57) </li> <li>She shares positive examples of people standing up for hate even when it doesn’t apply to them (7:56)</li> </ul> Clare discusses how  “Positive Psychology” influences everything that the Mayerson Foundation does, in order to inspire and create a “window of hope” (8:20) LISTEN NOW!  Jessica shares her personal experience with the exhibits about being inspired and hopeful to engage in impact. (11:02) “Up-standers are not always extraordinary people.  They are ordinary people who made courageous decisions in a moment...The Holocaust was a result of people being bystanders, people not tapping into their strengths and sayiing ‘wait a minute. This is wrong.” We have opportunities to call on that everyday.” Clare Blankemeyer (11:34) Next they discuss how “activation funding” from the Mayerson Foundation is supporting organizations who empower their clients, not simply “tell them what to do.” (13:00) This work is carried through in another organization Clare is passionate about, Impact 100. Her inspiring quotes and outside-the-box thinking carry through, as she shares <ul> <li>THE primary flaw in traditional philanthropy and how nonprofits are changing(16:23)</li> <li>How an embarrassing moment created an opportunity to think differently (21:20)</li> <li>A lesson in authenticity.  </li> </ul>

Looking At Things Differently To Make A Greater Impact with Clare Blankemeyer and Jessica Baron

Paaras Parker

Jessica Baron, Vice president of Centennial Inc, talks with Paaras Parker, the Head of Human Resources at Kroger Digital. They start things off with a conversation about family.Family Principles Through the GenerationsPaaras’s family moved to the Cincinnati area from Pakistan when she was just about to enter kindergarten - and this is a huge move for any family. They navigated through the transition the same way. Paaras lives her life now - according to 4 principles: Be honest, do good work, give back, value something bigger than you. There really shouldn’t be a distinction between your personal life and your work life when it comes to these principles.Starting at Victoria’s SecretBack when Paaras was starting work, there was no digital, but she needed a job in between semesters of the university. Like most people back then, she printed off her resumes and walked the mall until she got to Victoria’s Secret, where she was interviewed, and then hired on the spot. She wasn’t expecting it but loved the company, their values and how they invested in her training and education.  Her family wasn’t wild about the idea initially but trusted that Paaras would make the right choice for herself and her career. Looking back, she thinks that the mix of great experience in business at Victoria’s Secret, and the psychology classes she was taking were an absolutely winning combination. Connections and TransitionsPaaras’s position at Global Lead is where things really came together. As a consultant who is also a woman of color, getting to help other organizations optimized employee success. As a consultant, you learn the method of your firm, but you also need to spend time learning about the businesses you’ll be working with - this means building relationships, giving yourself time to learn and make mistakes, solidifying your network. Having mentors has also been critical to Paaras’s success, including Dr. Janet Reid, who taught her that you need to find people who are going to be honest with you. Helping Others SucceedThere’s a big difference between help and enable. Paaras talks about what it means to help someone vs enable them to take action on their own. She talks about how she uses this idea at home with her children and draws parallels for how it can be done in the workplace. Jessica points out that Centennial and the Talent Magnet Institute believe strongly in the connection between how you show up at work and how you show up at home, and she and Paaras discuss how you need to create the space for people to be their best. Paaras leads with trust and believes her fundamental role is creating those spaces. She’s grateful that other people have done that for her in the past. Is Independence Ever a Problem?Letting people take the lead and make all of their own choices can definitely backfire. Everyone processes information and goes about work differently. This means it doesn’t always work the way you want it to. Paaras shares her process for giving people room to grow and experiment, but make sure that objectives and outcomes stay prioritized. When you start with the outcome you need and empower people to meet it, more often than not - they will, and all you have to do as a manager is coach and check-in.  Human Resources is ChangingHR, historically, has been the department you call when you need to fire someone, or were otherwise in a bad situation. Now, HR’s function is shifting into how people work, how to support them, and how to make sure you have the right people doing the right things. The focus is on the talent of the individual rather than solving a problem.ResourcesPaaras Parker

Jessica Baron, Vice president of Centennial Inc, talks with Paaras Parker, the Head of Human Resources at Kroger Digital. They start things off with a conversation about family.Family Principles Through the GenerationsPaaras’s family moved to the Cincinnati area from Pakistan when she was just about to enter kindergarten - and this is a huge move for any family. They navigated through the transition the same way. Paaras lives her life now - according to 4 principles: Be honest, do good work, give back, value something bigger than you. There really shouldn’t be a distinction between your personal life and your work life when it comes to these principles.Starting at Victoria’s SecretBack when Paaras was starting work, there was no digital, but she needed a job in between semesters of the university. Like most people back then, she printed off her resumes and walked the mall until she got to Victoria’s Secret, where she was interviewed, and then hired on the spot. She wasn’t expecting it but loved the company, their values and how they invested in her training and education.  Her family wasn’t wild about the idea initially but trusted that Paaras would make the right choice for herself and her career. Looking back, she thinks that the mix of great experience in business at Victoria’s Secret, and the psychology classes she was taking were an absolutely winning combination. Connections and TransitionsPaaras’s position at Global Lead is where things really came together. As a consultant who is also a woman of color, getting to help other organizations optimized employee success. As a consultant, you learn the method of your firm, but you also need to spend time learning about the businesses you’ll be working with - this means building relationships, giving yourself time to learn and make mistakes, solidifying your network. Having mentors has also been critical to Paaras’s success, including Dr. Janet Reid, who taught her that you need to find people who are going to be honest with you. Helping Others SucceedThere’s a big difference between help and enable. Paaras talks about what it means to help someone vs enable them to take action on their own. She talks about how she uses this idea at home with her children and draws parallels for how it can be done in the workplace. Jessica points out that Centennial and the Talent Magnet Institute believe strongly in the connection between how you show up at work and how you show up at home, and she and Paaras discuss how you need to create the space for people to be their best. Paaras leads with trust and believes her fundamental role is creating those spaces. She’s grateful that other people have done that for her in the past. Is Independence Ever a Problem?Letting people take the lead and make all of their own choices can definitely backfire. Everyone processes information and goes about work differently. This means it doesn’t always work the way you want it to. Paaras shares her process for giving people room to grow and experiment, but make sure that objectives and outcomes stay prioritized. When you start with the outcome you need and empower people to meet it, more often than not - they will, and all you have to do as a manager is coach and check-in.  Human Resources is ChangingHR, historically, has been the department you call when you need to fire someone, or were otherwise in a bad situation. Now, HR’s function is shifting into how people work, how to support them, and how to make sure you have the right people doing the right things. The focus is on the talent of the individual rather than solving a problem.Resources<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/paarasparker" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Paaras Parker</a>

Making Space for Excellence with Paaras Parker and Jessica Baron