WEBVTT 00:00:05.540 --> 00:00:08.039 I do feel like a newsroom is like, it's like 00:00:08.039 --> 00:00:10.980 a team, it's sports, it feels sort of the same. 00:00:11.119 --> 00:00:13.720 You're on deadline, oh my gosh, you have to be, 00:00:14.140 --> 00:00:16.079 you have to meet the moment, you have to get 00:00:16.079 --> 00:00:18.739 it done, you have to, so maybe it's the adrenaline 00:00:18.739 --> 00:00:22.100 that I enjoy the most. 100%, it's kind of like 00:00:22.100 --> 00:00:24.679 you're struggling together a little bit, right? 00:00:24.739 --> 00:00:27.820 And there's that finish line at the end, like 00:00:27.820 --> 00:00:31.300 that victory, for sure. Yeah, you have definitely. 00:00:31.660 --> 00:00:35.380 bonding moments under pressure and then you have 00:00:35.380 --> 00:00:41.920 celebrations. It has it all. Welcome back to 00:00:41.920 --> 00:00:45.020 another episode of Life's Next Lesson Plan. I'm 00:00:45.020 --> 00:00:47.460 your host, Rachel, and today I'm thrilled to 00:00:47.460 --> 00:00:51.429 introduce you to Liz Sweet. Liz's story is one 00:00:51.429 --> 00:00:54.189 of passion, perseverance, and a commitment to 00:00:54.189 --> 00:00:57.530 making a difference. As a journalist, she's contributed 00:00:57.530 --> 00:00:59.869 to publications like the Wall Street Journal 00:00:59.869 --> 00:01:03.210 and House Beautiful magazine, covering everything 00:01:03.210 --> 00:01:06.890 from sports to architecture. But beyond her impressive 00:01:06.890 --> 00:01:09.489 writing career, Liz is also the founder of Fill 00:01:09.489 --> 00:01:12.810 the Stands, a nonprofit that's empowering schools 00:01:12.810 --> 00:01:16.200 to champion women's sports. We'll be diving into 00:01:16.200 --> 00:01:19.040 Liz's journey today, exploring how she followed 00:01:19.040 --> 00:01:22.060 her intuition, combined her diverse passions 00:01:22.060 --> 00:01:25.200 and navigated the challenges of bringing such 00:01:25.200 --> 00:01:34.620 a powerful vision to reality. Thank you for joining 00:01:34.620 --> 00:01:37.000 me for another episode of Life's Next Lesson 00:01:37.000 --> 00:01:39.900 Plan. I'm Rachel and I started this podcast during 00:01:39.900 --> 00:01:43.000 my 29th and last year as a high school teacher. 00:01:43.540 --> 00:01:45.900 The goal of my work with Life's Next Lesson Plan, 00:01:46.140 --> 00:01:49.040 as well as my Live and Learn Patreon, is to create 00:01:49.040 --> 00:01:51.760 a connection where we are all teachers. We all 00:01:51.760 --> 00:01:54.079 have lessons and stories to share that can help 00:01:54.079 --> 00:01:57.120 others. I'm so fortunate to be able to extend 00:01:57.120 --> 00:02:00.159 the four walls of my previous classroom to an 00:02:00.159 --> 00:02:03.310 unlimited audience. where we can all learn from 00:02:03.310 --> 00:02:05.769 each other. And my guests are some of the most 00:02:05.769 --> 00:02:08.729 inspirational people with the best stories and 00:02:08.729 --> 00:02:11.330 lessons I know, which is why I want to share 00:02:11.330 --> 00:02:14.330 them with you. Their words are something everyone 00:02:14.330 --> 00:02:16.729 should hear. It is my hope that you are able 00:02:16.729 --> 00:02:19.710 to take away something from each episode to apply 00:02:19.710 --> 00:02:22.650 to your own life, whether that be a career search, 00:02:23.270 --> 00:02:26.110 path to a more fulfilling life, or new ideas 00:02:26.110 --> 00:02:31.419 on current topics. This episode of Life's Next 00:02:31.419 --> 00:02:34.699 Lesson Plan is sponsored by Litteratus. Litteratus 00:02:34.699 --> 00:02:37.419 is more than just a bookstore. It's a hub for 00:02:37.419 --> 00:02:40.460 connection, community, and incredible stories 00:02:40.460 --> 00:02:44.479 waiting to be discovered. Rather than sending 00:02:44.479 --> 00:02:47.460 my listeners to big online retailers, I want 00:02:47.460 --> 00:02:50.500 to encourage you to support this beloved local 00:02:50.500 --> 00:02:53.419 business. Whether you're picking up a book we've 00:02:53.419 --> 00:02:56.199 discussed on the podcast or browsing their website 00:02:56.199 --> 00:02:59.360 for your next literary adventure, Literatus has 00:02:59.360 --> 00:03:02.379 you covered. Every week on the podcast, we dive 00:03:02.379 --> 00:03:05.479 into books that inspire, challenge, and transform. 00:03:05.879 --> 00:03:08.300 And now I'm thrilled to share a way for you to 00:03:08.300 --> 00:03:11.259 get those books while supporting a local treasure. 00:03:11.939 --> 00:03:14.960 Literatus, right in my own town of Watertown. 00:03:15.560 --> 00:03:17.960 By shopping at Literatus, you're not just buying 00:03:17.960 --> 00:03:21.180 a book. You're investing in our community. And 00:03:21.180 --> 00:03:23.599 who doesn't love the smell of fresh pages while 00:03:23.599 --> 00:03:26.879 you sip one of their handcrafted drinks, enjoying 00:03:26.879 --> 00:03:30.259 the charm of your local bookstore visit? Stop 00:03:30.259 --> 00:03:34.569 in today at 401 Vain Street in Watertown. or 00:03:34.569 --> 00:03:37.310 visit their social media or website to order 00:03:37.310 --> 00:03:40.469 online. Let's support the places that make our 00:03:40.469 --> 00:03:49.789 town special. I'm so excited to introduce you 00:03:49.789 --> 00:03:54.330 today to Liz Sweet who Unfortunately, I never 00:03:54.330 --> 00:03:57.610 had the chance to have her in my journalism classroom, 00:03:57.610 --> 00:04:01.750 but she was a journalism student at Homestead 00:04:01.750 --> 00:04:04.629 with the journalism teacher prior to me. Shout 00:04:04.629 --> 00:04:07.870 out to you, Mrs. Locker. And she's going to talk 00:04:07.870 --> 00:04:10.629 a lot about her early days in the high school 00:04:10.629 --> 00:04:14.509 journalism classroom. But then I did reconnect 00:04:14.509 --> 00:04:17.350 with Liz. We had some mutual friends through 00:04:17.350 --> 00:04:20.689 the years. And then she, as she'll talk about 00:04:20.689 --> 00:04:24.149 today, through her recent initiative was looking 00:04:24.149 --> 00:04:27.529 for high school journalists to help her in that 00:04:27.529 --> 00:04:31.629 capacity and she went back to her roots of journalism 00:04:31.629 --> 00:04:36.069 class and I was able to help her and connect 00:04:36.069 --> 00:04:39.610 a few of my students who were so excited to work 00:04:39.610 --> 00:04:42.029 with her and we'll talk a little bit more about 00:04:42.029 --> 00:04:45.189 that today. So it's just funny how in life, you 00:04:45.189 --> 00:04:48.350 know, your paths continue to cross sometimes. 00:04:48.430 --> 00:04:51.939 So I'm so excited to have Liz here. I know you're 00:04:51.939 --> 00:04:54.420 gonna find her journey really interesting. And 00:04:54.420 --> 00:04:57.480 so I'll let her introduce herself to you and 00:04:57.480 --> 00:05:01.740 we'll get started. Hi, Rachel. Thank you so much 00:05:01.740 --> 00:05:04.600 for having me. I'm so excited. Yeah, my name 00:05:04.600 --> 00:05:07.259 is Liz Speed. I'm a journalist. I work in a freelance 00:05:07.259 --> 00:05:10.740 capacity. I write about architecture and sports 00:05:10.740 --> 00:05:14.120 and started off in the shelter magazine world 00:05:14.120 --> 00:05:16.500 writing about interior design. and then sort 00:05:16.500 --> 00:05:19.279 of have evolved to the type of stories that I 00:05:19.279 --> 00:05:21.180 pitched and get to write about. And it's been 00:05:21.180 --> 00:05:24.920 a wonderful journey. I also am a nonprofit founder 00:05:24.920 --> 00:05:27.339 for Field of Stands, which is an organization 00:05:27.339 --> 00:05:29.420 that supercharges attendance for girls sporting 00:05:29.420 --> 00:05:31.959 events, something that's very close to my heart. 00:05:32.480 --> 00:05:35.579 And what I find really special in speaking with 00:05:35.579 --> 00:05:38.759 you is that Homestead was really just the start 00:05:38.759 --> 00:05:40.699 of all of these loves for me. I played sports 00:05:40.699 --> 00:05:43.660 at Homestead. and was a passionate journalism 00:05:43.660 --> 00:05:47.500 student, very enthusiastic. I was journalism 00:05:47.500 --> 00:05:49.060 and advanced journalism in those two classes. 00:05:49.220 --> 00:05:52.339 I loved them. But those were really where those 00:05:52.339 --> 00:05:53.860 two places and those avenues was really where 00:05:53.860 --> 00:05:56.579 my love of both of those things started. So thank 00:05:56.579 --> 00:05:58.720 you for having me. It's so nice. Absolutely. 00:05:59.439 --> 00:06:04.240 I was reading through some of your bylines today 00:06:04.240 --> 00:06:07.240 like from the Wall Street Journal and you know 00:06:07.240 --> 00:06:09.660 so I went down I think a rabbit hole on one of 00:06:09.660 --> 00:06:12.379 them about empty nesters designing their own 00:06:12.379 --> 00:06:15.699 house because that's coming into my life soon 00:06:15.699 --> 00:06:18.939 and I was like these stories look so fun but 00:06:18.939 --> 00:06:21.879 how fun to have like not only sports but then 00:06:21.879 --> 00:06:24.500 also the other side of the architecture too. 00:06:25.219 --> 00:06:28.540 Yeah, I mean I love every story I've ever done 00:06:28.540 --> 00:06:31.399 I go I tend to go deep on them, you know You 00:06:31.399 --> 00:06:33.399 kind of submerge yourself under water and get 00:06:33.399 --> 00:06:36.439 to learn everything about a particular architecture 00:06:36.439 --> 00:06:38.819 designer or just like every story is different 00:06:38.819 --> 00:06:42.019 So I really enjoy that Yeah, it's been a great 00:06:42.019 --> 00:06:44.779 a great journey so far. I started wanting to 00:06:44.779 --> 00:06:47.180 do interior like be a home editor for shelter, 00:06:47.180 --> 00:06:50.060 shelter magazine. Um, and I think the time that 00:06:50.060 --> 00:06:53.100 I graduated from college, the, it was around, 00:06:53.100 --> 00:06:55.339 it was 2010. So around 2009, which was a tricky 00:06:55.339 --> 00:06:59.759 time for media, um, print journalism, uh, magazine 00:06:59.759 --> 00:07:02.740 world. So there's been some evolution there, 00:07:02.800 --> 00:07:05.079 which has been really fun to see. And my journalism 00:07:05.079 --> 00:07:07.500 professors at Wisconsin did always say that we 00:07:07.500 --> 00:07:09.259 were training you for a job that wasn't created 00:07:09.259 --> 00:07:11.680 yet. And we're preparing us for that fluidity. 00:07:12.040 --> 00:07:16.449 So. I find that so interesting that all of those 00:07:16.449 --> 00:07:20.589 jobs, you know, a lot of the jobs that my former 00:07:20.589 --> 00:07:23.149 journalism students have now, I couldn't have 00:07:23.149 --> 00:07:25.550 told them about those jobs, especially, I mean, 00:07:25.550 --> 00:07:29.269 I started teaching 29 years ago. There's no way 00:07:29.269 --> 00:07:30.990 we could have predicted some of the things we 00:07:30.990 --> 00:07:35.449 have now. Yeah, absolutely. And I was enjoying 00:07:35.449 --> 00:07:39.329 talking to some of your students about the digital 00:07:39.329 --> 00:07:41.089 newspaper that you do now. It's just amazing, 00:07:41.449 --> 00:07:44.019 you know, and I felt Like I was like, in my day, 00:07:44.740 --> 00:07:48.399 we're cutting out layouts and doing the whole 00:07:48.399 --> 00:07:53.019 thing by hand for the print newspaper. So I really 00:07:53.019 --> 00:07:55.300 had fun following Alstead's publications because 00:07:55.300 --> 00:07:56.779 you get to see all the fun things you guys are 00:07:56.779 --> 00:07:59.759 doing. Yeah, I was trying to tell both the students 00:07:59.759 --> 00:08:02.879 and the person taking over my role yesterday 00:08:02.879 --> 00:08:06.379 when I was working with her about paste up, about 00:08:06.379 --> 00:08:08.660 literally, you know, and they're like glue and 00:08:08.660 --> 00:08:11.639 like paper. And I was like. Yes, I'm a dinosaur. 00:08:11.920 --> 00:08:14.540 Yes, that's what we did. Like that's how newspapers 00:08:14.540 --> 00:08:18.079 used to be. But that is how when I took over 00:08:18.079 --> 00:08:20.399 the program from Mrs. Locker that first year 00:08:20.399 --> 00:08:23.519 before we started doing the paper on InDesign, 00:08:23.980 --> 00:08:27.279 I remember sitting there with a glue stick and 00:08:27.279 --> 00:08:32.639 cutting out the articles. Yeah. We're getting 00:08:32.639 --> 00:08:38.419 to that point. She was an art director for Better 00:08:38.419 --> 00:08:40.799 Homes and Gardens in the 80s, and so she has 00:08:40.799 --> 00:08:44.019 this art directing experience, but being for 00:08:44.019 --> 00:08:47.240 BHG, that whole experience of creating a magazine 00:08:47.240 --> 00:08:50.340 in a completely different generation too. she 00:08:50.340 --> 00:08:52.399 and I would always talk about the differences 00:08:52.399 --> 00:08:54.179 when I was going through it. And now it's changed 00:08:54.179 --> 00:08:56.940 so much for me. So it's so fun to see it evolve. 00:08:57.320 --> 00:09:00.740 Yeah. Let's talk about some of those early days 00:09:00.740 --> 00:09:02.779 of your high school journalism career. I mean, 00:09:02.879 --> 00:09:05.860 obviously you must have signed up because you 00:09:05.860 --> 00:09:08.620 liked writing. And then when you were in the 00:09:08.620 --> 00:09:10.620 class, what were some of the things maybe that 00:09:10.620 --> 00:09:13.200 you learned or that you tried and really liked 00:09:13.200 --> 00:09:15.860 that spurred you to kind of continue that after 00:09:15.860 --> 00:09:19.409 high school? Well, I just, I think since I was 00:09:19.409 --> 00:09:21.950 a kid, I said, my mom was in magazine publishing 00:09:21.950 --> 00:09:26.169 and my dad is a, um, was in, he was a journalism 00:09:26.169 --> 00:09:29.529 major, but both of my parents had a strong interest, 00:09:30.049 --> 00:09:33.370 personal interest in publications. Um, so from 00:09:33.370 --> 00:09:34.970 that standpoint, I was always interested in, 00:09:34.970 --> 00:09:36.690 we had magazines and newspapers all over the 00:09:36.690 --> 00:09:39.269 place in our house. So I was always curious and 00:09:39.269 --> 00:09:42.269 I think I caught their curiosity too. And I loved, 00:09:42.269 --> 00:09:44.409 you know, in the journalism program at Homestead. 00:09:44.590 --> 00:09:47.049 that you would apply to be a writer and then 00:09:47.049 --> 00:09:49.730 you could follow the instinct of what you were 00:09:49.730 --> 00:09:53.250 interested in. So I do remember writing a story 00:09:53.250 --> 00:09:56.269 about Christmas trees and like how I was like 00:09:56.269 --> 00:09:58.169 how does that work because every year you have 00:09:58.169 --> 00:10:00.429 you know every year you have new ones and who 00:10:00.429 --> 00:10:02.210 grows them and what's the cycle and so I did 00:10:02.210 --> 00:10:04.629 I wrote a piece about that but then you have 00:10:04.629 --> 00:10:07.129 like a spark of of an idea or some curiosity 00:10:07.129 --> 00:10:10.610 that you get to. chase down and I think Miss 00:10:10.610 --> 00:10:13.909 Locker was really just open to all sorts of ideas 00:10:13.909 --> 00:10:16.570 and encouraging just to go do that and you would 00:10:16.570 --> 00:10:18.529 be able to kind of explore in the school too 00:10:18.529 --> 00:10:21.690 and go find sources and have interviews and be 00:10:21.690 --> 00:10:24.190 a part of that whole process. I just loved it. 00:10:24.250 --> 00:10:26.029 So there was journalism and then advanced journalism 00:10:26.029 --> 00:10:29.360 and I just really enjoyed both classes. Do you 00:10:29.360 --> 00:10:31.720 ever remember, I know one of the things that 00:10:31.720 --> 00:10:34.440 is really hard when you teach, I teach English 00:10:34.440 --> 00:10:37.039 and teach journalism is that students in an English 00:10:37.039 --> 00:10:39.960 class, they're writing an essay for their teacher, 00:10:40.480 --> 00:10:42.240 right? And then the feedback and the criticism 00:10:42.240 --> 00:10:44.759 that they're getting is just from one person. 00:10:45.240 --> 00:10:47.399 And a big thing that I think is hard for some 00:10:47.399 --> 00:10:50.460 students who don't quite understand that. journalistic 00:10:50.460 --> 00:10:53.360 articles don't just appear without going out 00:10:53.360 --> 00:10:56.220 and talking to possibly strangers, right? And 00:10:56.220 --> 00:10:59.340 like you said, pitching your own ideas that other 00:10:59.340 --> 00:11:01.960 people you think might want to read. Do you remember 00:11:01.960 --> 00:11:04.320 as a high school student dealing with that kind 00:11:04.320 --> 00:11:08.200 of feedback or criticism or? Yeah, certainly. 00:11:09.000 --> 00:11:11.539 Yeah. And, and considering the end reader too, 00:11:11.639 --> 00:11:13.519 which is something I do in my work where you're 00:11:13.519 --> 00:11:15.059 like, well, this is, you know, this is our high 00:11:15.059 --> 00:11:16.759 school newspaper. So what are the students really 00:11:16.759 --> 00:11:18.379 want to read? What's really important and what 00:11:18.379 --> 00:11:21.460 matters versus what, you know, what is your personal 00:11:21.460 --> 00:11:22.860 interest and like, Oh, well, I guess they probably 00:11:22.860 --> 00:11:25.200 wouldn't want to read this or that. And, um, 00:11:25.379 --> 00:11:27.019 I think that was a helpful lesson at that age 00:11:27.019 --> 00:11:28.919 and that's carried through, you know, at all 00:11:28.919 --> 00:11:32.049 levels. And I, you know, when I'm freelance for 00:11:32.049 --> 00:11:33.909 the Wall Street Journal too, you know, my editor 00:11:33.909 --> 00:11:36.210 will be like, okay, so why? And we'll kind of 00:11:36.210 --> 00:11:39.129 dig into certain, you know, certain sections 00:11:39.129 --> 00:11:41.190 of my story and be like, let's expand on this. 00:11:41.230 --> 00:11:43.210 Like what do we need? How can we serve the end 00:11:43.210 --> 00:11:45.909 reader better? And so that's always in the back 00:11:45.909 --> 00:11:47.870 of my mind, but that started too at the high 00:11:47.870 --> 00:11:50.289 school level. Yeah, interesting. I've never heard 00:11:50.289 --> 00:11:52.649 that term end reader. I need to use that now. 00:11:53.590 --> 00:11:55.809 The person holding the magazine at the end of 00:11:55.809 --> 00:11:57.490 the day or the person holding the, you know, 00:11:57.570 --> 00:12:00.519 the whatever it is, a newspaper. It's finding 00:12:00.519 --> 00:12:03.419 them where they are and how you can help them 00:12:03.419 --> 00:12:06.600 in their journey or just serve them. What are 00:12:06.600 --> 00:12:08.399 they looking for when they pick it up? What do 00:12:08.399 --> 00:12:12.840 they hope to learn? Yeah, definitely. As a freelance 00:12:12.840 --> 00:12:17.379 journalist, when you are getting sources, some 00:12:17.379 --> 00:12:19.840 live sources, I'm guessing, and then some are 00:12:19.840 --> 00:12:23.500 just like research online and things like that, 00:12:24.019 --> 00:12:27.320 Did that, does that look similar in your career 00:12:27.320 --> 00:12:29.899 to what it did in high school? And I know that 00:12:29.899 --> 00:12:33.580 there's a lot of nerves, which is typical for 00:12:33.580 --> 00:12:35.460 a high school student who's never done this before, 00:12:35.460 --> 00:12:37.740 and they may need to interview a student or a 00:12:37.740 --> 00:12:40.740 teacher they don't know. How does that translate 00:12:40.740 --> 00:12:43.980 into the professional world? Well, it's the same. 00:12:44.120 --> 00:12:46.200 You're just refining your craft as you get older 00:12:46.200 --> 00:12:48.100 and more experienced and every story you get 00:12:48.100 --> 00:12:52.009 better. And I'm, you know, So far, I'm far from 00:12:52.009 --> 00:12:54.049 my high school experience, but I still learn 00:12:54.049 --> 00:12:56.649 those things too. Like I'm always sort of sharpening 00:12:56.649 --> 00:12:59.370 the axe. Um, even if, you know, it doesn't matter 00:12:59.370 --> 00:13:02.129 what, what you're doing, but yeah. Uh, in high 00:13:02.129 --> 00:13:04.570 school, I remember having her certainly. And, 00:13:04.929 --> 00:13:08.590 uh, yes, I do. Let me think back on it. Um, but 00:13:08.590 --> 00:13:12.809 you learn that people are humans. And they're 00:13:12.809 --> 00:13:15.250 really, I find that if I'm really enthusiastic 00:13:15.250 --> 00:13:19.190 about a topic that my interest is sort of relaxes 00:13:19.190 --> 00:13:21.070 the other person and then they get charged. I 00:13:21.070 --> 00:13:22.549 don't know. I just, there's something about it 00:13:22.549 --> 00:13:25.909 where it's not as scary as you think it is coming 00:13:25.909 --> 00:13:29.289 from a place of genuine enthusiasm, which fortunately 00:13:29.289 --> 00:13:31.769 I never think it's very enthusiastic about things. 00:13:32.330 --> 00:13:36.149 Well, I think the more you do it too, right? 00:13:36.269 --> 00:13:38.450 Like you get used to it. Do you still get nerves 00:13:38.450 --> 00:13:41.690 now or no? I think I've gotten a little bit of 00:13:41.690 --> 00:13:44.590 nerves every time I sort of shift gears. When 00:13:44.590 --> 00:13:48.750 I was working in shelter media and those types 00:13:48.750 --> 00:13:50.769 of stories, when I was first doing it, I was 00:13:50.769 --> 00:13:54.070 a little bit nervous. And then when I had an 00:13:54.070 --> 00:13:56.269 inkling, I was like, oh, I love sports. I would 00:13:56.269 --> 00:13:59.730 love to cover sports topics. I was a little bit 00:13:59.730 --> 00:14:02.809 like, well, people go to school specifically 00:14:02.809 --> 00:14:05.090 for sports journalism. And so you have a little 00:14:05.090 --> 00:14:07.710 bit of like, oh, I wonder how this will translate. 00:14:08.210 --> 00:14:10.529 But then you, you just have to sort of push through 00:14:10.529 --> 00:14:12.750 that and trust your preparation. Just sort of 00:14:12.750 --> 00:14:14.610 like an athlete would say, you know, you rely 00:14:14.610 --> 00:14:17.750 on your preparation and you're just knowing that 00:14:17.750 --> 00:14:19.789 you can, you can do it. And again, once you get 00:14:19.789 --> 00:14:22.129 there with a human and you have a power station, 00:14:22.330 --> 00:14:25.090 everything feels better. Um, it's the apprehension, 00:14:25.090 --> 00:14:26.870 I think that keeps people from pushing through 00:14:26.870 --> 00:14:30.899 that. And I try to try my best to. Move through 00:14:30.899 --> 00:14:34.940 that. It's a natural part of it for sure So you 00:14:34.940 --> 00:14:37.419 knew in high school that you loved journalism 00:14:37.419 --> 00:14:40.360 and you decided you want to continue to pursue 00:14:40.360 --> 00:14:43.639 it and you did so at Madison Correct. And so 00:14:43.639 --> 00:14:47.080 how did that? Look, did you go? I think you have 00:14:47.080 --> 00:14:50.460 to wait a year to get into the Journalism school 00:14:50.460 --> 00:14:54.740 at Madison. Is that right? yeah, I have to think 00:14:54.740 --> 00:14:56.960 back to my time with the application process, 00:14:56.980 --> 00:15:00.259 but Yes, I mean and it's a great program and 00:15:00.259 --> 00:15:02.779 some of my professors are still there that it 00:15:02.779 --> 00:15:06.120 was very encouraging of Enthusiastic they think 00:15:06.120 --> 00:15:07.899 they like to take a temperature if you're you 00:15:07.899 --> 00:15:09.480 know, are you a right a journalism person you 00:15:09.480 --> 00:15:14.039 have enthusiasm You're hungry, you know I think 00:15:14.039 --> 00:15:16.779 it's a specific type of person that is really 00:15:16.779 --> 00:15:18.539 passionate about journalism and they do I think 00:15:18.539 --> 00:15:20.480 they take the time and consideration to figure 00:15:20.480 --> 00:15:23.740 out if you're one of those people You know once 00:15:23.740 --> 00:15:26.340 if it's in there it's in there. Yeah I feel like 00:15:26.340 --> 00:15:28.159 you can't do anything else. That's for you. You 00:15:28.159 --> 00:15:31.299 know journalism is your go -to. Right. Do you 00:15:31.299 --> 00:15:35.860 remember any classes or specific professors or 00:15:35.860 --> 00:15:38.860 mentors that kind of reminded you like I'm on 00:15:38.860 --> 00:15:41.340 the right path. This is what I want to do or 00:15:41.340 --> 00:15:46.240 inspired you onto your career path? Yeah, Kathleen 00:15:46.240 --> 00:15:48.639 Culver is still there. She was a wonderful professor 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:52.490 of mine. There was a class There still is, there's 00:15:52.490 --> 00:15:54.409 something called Curb Magazine at Wisconsin in 00:15:54.409 --> 00:15:57.250 their journalism program where you can be, you 00:15:57.250 --> 00:15:59.429 apply to be in this magazine specific class. 00:16:00.110 --> 00:16:02.230 And it's always called Curb, this magazine you 00:16:02.230 --> 00:16:04.970 create, but each class gets to reimagine it. 00:16:05.169 --> 00:16:07.330 So some, I think my semester we chose to make 00:16:07.330 --> 00:16:10.450 it a men's magazine. Um, and then some people 00:16:10.450 --> 00:16:13.590 are like, well, it'll be, you know, um, it'll 00:16:13.590 --> 00:16:15.629 choose a different focus of some sort, completely 00:16:15.629 --> 00:16:18.070 reimagine it, do the branding, the different 00:16:18.070 --> 00:16:20.559 types of stories. So every year you get to choose, 00:16:20.679 --> 00:16:24.100 which I think is really fun. Oh, that is cool. 00:16:24.480 --> 00:16:26.000 And it's so it's still called Curve and they 00:16:26.000 --> 00:16:28.940 do, you know, a release party and. all the writers, 00:16:29.000 --> 00:16:31.240 the students get to pick specific stories and 00:16:31.240 --> 00:16:33.659 research them. And that was a highlight for me 00:16:33.659 --> 00:16:35.840 in the journalism program in Wisconsin. Yeah, 00:16:35.840 --> 00:16:38.440 that sounds really interesting that they continue 00:16:38.440 --> 00:16:40.740 to change it and then they print it each time. 00:16:41.659 --> 00:16:44.379 OK. I still have mine. It's in my bookcase. Of 00:16:44.379 --> 00:16:47.159 course you do. I was like, I was so proud of 00:16:47.159 --> 00:16:49.460 it. I did a story on Iron Man, this amazing family, 00:16:49.700 --> 00:16:51.539 like a bunch of family members ran Iron Man. 00:16:51.580 --> 00:16:53.559 I was just like, this is the coolest job, the 00:16:53.559 --> 00:16:56.299 coolest thing ever. I really enjoyed that. That 00:16:56.299 --> 00:17:00.019 was neat. Yeah, that combines sports and journalism 00:17:00.019 --> 00:17:02.580 for you right there, right? Yeah, I really, it 00:17:02.580 --> 00:17:04.200 was great. You get to know the other students 00:17:04.200 --> 00:17:05.859 and you get the sense of what it's like to be 00:17:05.859 --> 00:17:08.000 on staff at a magazine and how to work together. 00:17:08.990 --> 00:17:12.630 I do feel like a newsroom is like a team. It's 00:17:12.630 --> 00:17:14.869 sports. It feels sort of the same. You're on 00:17:14.869 --> 00:17:19.130 deadline. Oh my gosh. You have to meet the moment. 00:17:19.190 --> 00:17:22.130 You have to get it done. So maybe it's the adrenaline 00:17:22.130 --> 00:17:24.349 that I enjoy about all of these things. A hundred 00:17:24.349 --> 00:17:26.309 percent. It's kind of like you're struggling 00:17:26.309 --> 00:17:29.470 together a little bit, right? And there's that 00:17:29.470 --> 00:17:32.730 finish line at the end, like that victory for 00:17:32.730 --> 00:17:36.430 sure. Yeah, you have definitely... bonding moments 00:17:36.430 --> 00:17:39.529 under pressure and then you have celebrations. 00:17:40.029 --> 00:17:46.549 So it has it all. So how did you plan your steps 00:17:46.549 --> 00:17:49.589 after college? How did that look? Like how did 00:17:49.589 --> 00:17:53.049 the application process look? You know, how did 00:17:53.049 --> 00:17:55.430 you go right into freelance? Can you explain 00:17:55.430 --> 00:17:58.369 that journey for us a little bit? And I feel 00:17:58.369 --> 00:18:01.480 like I need to mention also that I During my 00:18:01.480 --> 00:18:03.900 years, I went to Iowa, my freshman year of college, 00:18:04.079 --> 00:18:06.640 and then Wisconsin. And at Wisconsin, when I 00:18:06.640 --> 00:18:08.539 was newly there, I had an internship with Milwaukee 00:18:08.539 --> 00:18:10.880 Home and Fine Living Magazine. It was my first 00:18:10.880 --> 00:18:14.359 one. And then I had to do, I got to do, I was 00:18:14.359 --> 00:18:16.579 thrilled, but I got to do a number of internships 00:18:16.579 --> 00:18:19.220 before having sort of a full -time position, 00:18:19.500 --> 00:18:22.559 which I think, I wonder if that seems like a 00:18:22.559 --> 00:18:24.960 pretty normal experience in journalism. I think 00:18:24.960 --> 00:18:28.710 I did four before I finally... was brought on 00:18:28.710 --> 00:18:31.089 I was an editorial assistant right out of college 00:18:31.089 --> 00:18:33.450 thankfully I'm so grateful for this job at Chicago 00:18:33.450 --> 00:18:38.009 Humming Garden magazine which was a it was a 00:18:38.009 --> 00:18:40.890 smaller design focus magazine that was like an 00:18:40.890 --> 00:18:43.410 offshoot of Chicago magazine and I had an amazing 00:18:43.410 --> 00:18:45.549 editor there shout out to her name is Jan Parr 00:18:45.549 --> 00:18:48.789 she was lovely I got copy with her recently I 00:18:48.789 --> 00:18:51.329 just loved it with being her I was an intern 00:18:51.329 --> 00:18:56.079 editorial assistant hybrid and that was the first 00:18:56.079 --> 00:18:59.779 time being on staff as a graduate and they just 00:18:59.779 --> 00:19:03.220 soaked it up. It was great. What did we do? We 00:19:03.220 --> 00:19:05.380 did everything because we were a small staff 00:19:05.380 --> 00:19:08.140 of four and we would review projects to feature 00:19:08.140 --> 00:19:11.940 and we did blogs and social and it was just a 00:19:11.940 --> 00:19:13.660 small group so we had to do all sorts of things 00:19:13.660 --> 00:19:17.059 but that was my first really positive experience 00:19:17.059 --> 00:19:20.130 was college. And then the world was a little 00:19:20.130 --> 00:19:22.430 shaky for a magazine journalism, as I mentioned, 00:19:22.710 --> 00:19:26.569 and that magazine is no longer. And at the time 00:19:26.569 --> 00:19:29.630 Jan was so kind to me and he was like, yeah, 00:19:29.730 --> 00:19:32.549 it's a little experience. It was just helping 00:19:32.549 --> 00:19:34.470 me being like this, you know, I think she could 00:19:34.470 --> 00:19:38.069 see that the magazine wasn't probably a long 00:19:38.069 --> 00:19:42.369 -term viable option for them. And so he suggested 00:19:42.369 --> 00:19:45.900 I get digital. And then from that point, just 00:19:45.900 --> 00:19:47.880 an important thing to stay flexible. In the journalism 00:19:47.880 --> 00:19:50.400 world, I had an assistant with an ad agency in 00:19:50.400 --> 00:19:54.400 social media, which is what I did next. So that 00:19:54.400 --> 00:19:57.220 was really interesting and stimulating that I 00:19:57.220 --> 00:19:59.380 loved journalism. And from that point there, 00:19:59.480 --> 00:20:02.039 I had experience in social media. So then I applied 00:20:02.039 --> 00:20:03.779 for a job at Better Home for Saint Gardens as 00:20:03.779 --> 00:20:06.859 an associate social media editor. So I was able 00:20:06.859 --> 00:20:09.160 to pick that position and then worked with the 00:20:09.160 --> 00:20:12.859 HG. um, running social media and building community 00:20:12.859 --> 00:20:15.720 there, which is amazing. But it was a, it was, 00:20:15.720 --> 00:20:18.519 you have to sort of stay fluid. So it wasn't 00:20:18.519 --> 00:20:22.079 linear. And I went from sort of a magazine to 00:20:22.079 --> 00:20:24.619 an ad agency to a magazine focused on social 00:20:24.619 --> 00:20:28.960 media. Um, that was sort of my trajectory. And 00:20:28.960 --> 00:20:31.140 then life took me in a different direction. I 00:20:31.140 --> 00:20:33.880 was an interior design focus for about seven 00:20:33.880 --> 00:20:36.319 years. And then after that went freelance when 00:20:36.319 --> 00:20:40.390 I had my son. And freelance gave me the opportunity 00:20:40.390 --> 00:20:42.809 to be flexible, to be home for him, and then 00:20:42.809 --> 00:20:48.369 to be able to write during that time and late 00:20:48.369 --> 00:20:51.269 into the night. So just to be able to keep up 00:20:51.269 --> 00:20:53.890 with it and build my portfolio. But I went freelance 00:20:53.890 --> 00:20:56.690 later. But I wonder, I mean, I'm sure students 00:20:56.690 --> 00:20:58.809 now right out of college are taking that leap. 00:20:59.099 --> 00:21:02.079 right away, I would guess. Yeah, I do have one 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:06.519 who does that. And she travels all over crazy 00:21:06.519 --> 00:21:10.740 places and sounds pretty glamorous, but I know 00:21:10.740 --> 00:21:14.539 she works really hard. Yeah, yeah. And I'm grateful 00:21:14.539 --> 00:21:16.660 for the time to be in an office too and to learn 00:21:16.660 --> 00:21:18.599 with editors in person because I feel like that's 00:21:18.599 --> 00:21:22.119 a little harder to do now. And so I think that 00:21:22.119 --> 00:21:25.720 was a good starting point for me to have a good 00:21:25.720 --> 00:21:28.809 understanding of what serving a publication feels 00:21:28.809 --> 00:21:31.150 like and what stories are, you know, really meant 00:21:31.150 --> 00:21:34.069 to do, which is to serve the end reader as I 00:21:34.069 --> 00:21:36.690 earlier. So now in my freelance work, when I 00:21:36.690 --> 00:21:41.309 get some projects, I sort of use my internal 00:21:41.309 --> 00:21:44.170 arrow to decide, oh, this story feels right for 00:21:44.170 --> 00:21:46.450 this publication because that reader is looking 00:21:46.450 --> 00:21:49.650 to learn this or this reader is looking to likes 00:21:49.650 --> 00:21:51.230 to see these things and this would be helpful 00:21:51.230 --> 00:21:55.359 for them. So I was lucky. I loved my editors. 00:21:55.500 --> 00:21:57.519 They really helped me understand that it's not 00:21:57.519 --> 00:22:00.900 about me. It's about the person that picks up 00:22:00.900 --> 00:22:02.910 whatever it is that you've written for. Yeah, 00:22:02.910 --> 00:22:05.569 that is hard, especially when you have, I'm trying 00:22:05.569 --> 00:22:07.730 to say that to high school students, even just 00:22:07.730 --> 00:22:11.349 explaining editorializing and bias because they're 00:22:11.349 --> 00:22:13.069 so passionate, like they're pitching something 00:22:13.069 --> 00:22:15.009 that they're passionate about. And I'm like, 00:22:15.089 --> 00:22:17.789 okay, but you can't show your opinion unless 00:22:17.789 --> 00:22:19.490 you're writing an editorial, which we're not 00:22:19.490 --> 00:22:24.210 there yet. So it's a really hard thing, I think, 00:22:24.309 --> 00:22:27.430 to teach is like how not to choose words that 00:22:27.430 --> 00:22:30.950 show your bias in your reporting. Really important 00:22:30.950 --> 00:22:33.430 lessons early on that's yeah, that's great. Yeah, 00:22:33.430 --> 00:22:36.269 I mean it is hard Yeah, and yeah, and sometimes 00:22:36.269 --> 00:22:39.269 you do feel I think there's a line for me where 00:22:39.269 --> 00:22:41.750 I'm like, okay I feel the passion for this but 00:22:41.750 --> 00:22:44.910 I can be unbiased. So it's like I feel passionate 00:22:44.910 --> 00:22:47.769 about this topic So that's what I follow. Mm 00:22:47.769 --> 00:22:50.490 -hmm, but you but you have to be like an impartial 00:22:51.740 --> 00:22:54.859 I'm like, just say the facts, only the facts, 00:22:55.259 --> 00:23:01.000 no emotion in it. But your point about that time 00:23:01.000 --> 00:23:04.279 that your mentor was telling you like you need 00:23:04.279 --> 00:23:08.019 to expand your skill set was right around the 00:23:08.019 --> 00:23:10.799 time I think that I started teaching journalism. 00:23:11.539 --> 00:23:15.359 And I remember some students saying, well, my 00:23:15.359 --> 00:23:17.799 parents don't want me to take this because journalism 00:23:17.799 --> 00:23:20.940 is dead. And, you know, they only want me to 00:23:20.940 --> 00:23:23.380 take classes that I'm going to find a career 00:23:23.380 --> 00:23:27.799 in. And I was like, it's not journalism is dead, 00:23:28.180 --> 00:23:33.079 it's print. is changing right and print is being 00:23:33.079 --> 00:23:35.740 phased out for you know our newspapers are turning 00:23:35.740 --> 00:23:38.940 to magazines and then you know we did we changed 00:23:38.940 --> 00:23:42.019 the newspaper to a glossy magazine and that was 00:23:42.019 --> 00:23:44.900 the it thing at the time and then we started 00:23:44.900 --> 00:23:46.960 doing the yearbook and so eventually we turned 00:23:46.960 --> 00:23:50.140 the magazine into a website and that's kind of 00:23:50.140 --> 00:23:52.700 where industry trends were going but it was like 00:23:52.759 --> 00:23:57.880 Let's change the word dying to evolving or changing 00:23:57.880 --> 00:24:00.460 which is exactly what you're talking about Just 00:24:00.460 --> 00:24:03.460 like there's a ton of journalism if not more 00:24:03.460 --> 00:24:07.359 journalism than there ever was because of digital 00:24:07.359 --> 00:24:11.079 Yeah, 100 % I agree, but that was a really hard 00:24:11.079 --> 00:24:16.799 argument to get across Yeah, yeah, and the fluidity 00:24:16.799 --> 00:24:19.119 is so important and like the resilient like and 00:24:19.119 --> 00:24:22.619 to not be so focused on this is what I expected 00:24:22.619 --> 00:24:26.000 and so this is how it has to be. I've had jobs 00:24:26.000 --> 00:24:28.099 where I just love the people that I was around 00:24:28.099 --> 00:24:31.119 and it was journalism but it wasn't exactly what 00:24:31.119 --> 00:24:33.740 I thought that I would be doing but I learned 00:24:33.740 --> 00:24:36.700 something that served me so much later on and 00:24:36.700 --> 00:24:38.920 I'm so glad I learned my lesson there. Like I've 00:24:38.920 --> 00:24:41.720 never had a negative work experience because 00:24:41.720 --> 00:24:43.720 you feel like you learn something from every... 00:24:43.880 --> 00:24:46.339 Yeah and it goes back to what you're saying that 00:24:46.339 --> 00:24:49.819 there are jobs or roles that again today may 00:24:49.819 --> 00:24:53.180 not exist that 10 years from now and that doesn't 00:24:53.180 --> 00:24:55.960 mean that it's dying it means it's changing or 00:24:55.960 --> 00:24:59.859 evolving but I remember just like ah stop saying 00:24:59.859 --> 00:25:04.059 that it's just changing you know yeah it's just 00:25:04.059 --> 00:25:05.779 it's just you know it's just being fluid it's 00:25:05.779 --> 00:25:08.700 just making some changes yeah yeah really and 00:25:08.700 --> 00:25:11.150 changes too because When I was at Better Homes 00:25:11.150 --> 00:25:14.049 and Gardens, social media was opening the door 00:25:14.049 --> 00:25:16.869 to get to know the editors better, to get to 00:25:16.869 --> 00:25:19.829 see our offices, to get to see, you know, it's 00:25:19.829 --> 00:25:22.730 a brand that's so loved by so many, myself included, 00:25:23.049 --> 00:25:25.390 and really passionate readers. And I thought 00:25:25.390 --> 00:25:28.190 how wonderful they get to see, they get to peek 00:25:28.190 --> 00:25:30.089 into what photoshoot is like. They get to, you 00:25:30.089 --> 00:25:33.200 know, see the face behind who wrote it. That 00:25:33.200 --> 00:25:37.079 was in like 2013. And so it was right when social 00:25:37.079 --> 00:25:39.240 media people were still sort of fearful. It was 00:25:39.240 --> 00:25:43.059 so new. But it was sort of wonderful. I just, 00:25:43.279 --> 00:25:45.640 I remember all of my editors were really inspiring 00:25:45.640 --> 00:25:47.200 people. And so you get the chance for people 00:25:47.200 --> 00:25:49.799 to just get to see their faces and get to know 00:25:49.799 --> 00:25:56.539 more about them. Well, I'm excited to talk about 00:25:56.539 --> 00:26:01.079 your latest passion project related to journalism 00:26:01.079 --> 00:26:05.210 that allowed us to meet again, which is your 00:26:05.210 --> 00:26:07.450 nonprofit. Fill the stands, but I'm going to 00:26:07.450 --> 00:26:09.630 let you take a little breather here. We're going 00:26:09.630 --> 00:26:12.690 to have a little break to hear some ads, and 00:26:12.690 --> 00:26:32.740 then we'll be right back. high -performing clean 00:26:32.740 --> 00:26:36.160 products designed to support hormone health while 00:26:36.160 --> 00:26:39.720 reducing exposure to harmful chemicals. Because 00:26:39.720 --> 00:26:43.279 this topic has been my primary focus since ending 00:26:43.279 --> 00:26:46.700 birth control in 2024 in an attempt to regulate 00:26:46.700 --> 00:26:49.559 my changing mid -life hormones, after making 00:26:49.559 --> 00:26:52.720 healthy swaps in my diet, personal care products, 00:26:53.059 --> 00:26:55.980 and exercise routine, I've been able to lower 00:26:55.980 --> 00:26:59.380 my dose of anxiety medication I once relied very 00:26:59.380 --> 00:27:02.519 heavily on. and have restored balance to my nervous 00:27:02.519 --> 00:27:05.799 system and cleared up the brain fog I was experiencing 00:27:05.799 --> 00:27:09.099 in perimenopause. Pugh and Grace has played a 00:27:09.099 --> 00:27:12.359 key role in this transformation, offering safe, 00:27:12.680 --> 00:27:15.619 effective, non -toxic solutions that support 00:27:15.619 --> 00:27:18.910 my wellness journey. If you listened to episode 00:27:18.910 --> 00:27:22.329 16 with certified Mayo Clinic health and wellness 00:27:22.329 --> 00:27:25.210 coach Tracy Danielson Mitchell, you heard our 00:27:25.210 --> 00:27:27.269 talk about the importance of hormone health. 00:27:27.930 --> 00:27:30.349 To share with you everything I did throughout 00:27:30.349 --> 00:27:33.029 my journey to balance my hormones, I did a deep 00:27:33.029 --> 00:27:36.250 dive on my Live and Learn Patreon about all of 00:27:36.250 --> 00:27:41.130 the tests and supplements that I use in order 00:27:41.130 --> 00:27:46.170 to navigate this journey in my 50s. To find this 00:27:46.170 --> 00:27:49.849 episode, you can just visit patreon .com slash 00:27:49.849 --> 00:27:53.089 live and learn. 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Live and learn with me as 00:29:01.119 --> 00:29:04.299 we focus on living fully and feeling our best. 00:29:04.779 --> 00:29:08.369 Visit hewinggrace .com. slash lesson plan to 00:29:08.369 --> 00:29:10.730 see how easy it is to start making some healthy 00:29:10.730 --> 00:29:16.049 swaps on your way to non -toxic living. To those 00:29:16.049 --> 00:29:18.509 of you who have followed me for a while, you 00:29:18.509 --> 00:29:20.950 know that I value mental and physical wellness. 00:29:21.650 --> 00:29:23.210 Personally, I've worked with a few different 00:29:23.210 --> 00:29:26.029 coaches over the years and even been one myself. 00:29:26.599 --> 00:29:28.960 If you are looking for education and support 00:29:28.960 --> 00:29:31.500 in your own wellness journey, I would love to 00:29:31.500 --> 00:29:33.819 invite you to the wellness community I am currently 00:29:33.819 --> 00:29:36.740 in that keeps me accountable daily with my nutrition 00:29:36.740 --> 00:29:39.839 and movement. If you are a Facebook user, you 00:29:39.839 --> 00:29:43.339 can search for our free group called Team MG. 00:29:44.200 --> 00:29:46.740 This group is led by my coach, Megan Grimord, 00:29:47.240 --> 00:29:49.559 who is a certified trainer and nutrition coach. 00:29:50.119 --> 00:29:52.579 She offers lots of education and support for 00:29:52.579 --> 00:29:55.359 your wellness journey. If you want to get to 00:29:55.359 --> 00:29:57.579 know Coach Megan Moore, you can follow her on 00:29:57.579 --> 00:30:01.720 Instagram at all lowercase, Megan, M -E -G -A 00:30:01.720 --> 00:30:06.880 -N, underscore, grimoire, G -R -I -M -O -R -D, 00:30:07.440 --> 00:30:10.539 or even listen to her on episode 10 of the podcast. 00:30:11.339 --> 00:30:14.160 She has also created a discount code for my listeners. 00:30:14.400 --> 00:30:21.289 Just go to her website, www .team -mg .com. and 00:30:21.289 --> 00:30:25.329 enter code LESSONPLAN10 to get $10 off any of 00:30:25.329 --> 00:30:28.109 her premium coaching packages for the first month. 00:30:28.910 --> 00:30:31.670 Coach Megan is a busy mom like me who works full 00:30:31.670 --> 00:30:34.869 -time, so I appreciate her practicality mixed 00:30:34.869 --> 00:30:40.309 with some tough love to keep me going. It is 00:30:40.309 --> 00:30:43.529 time for Ask the Teacher Anything. So question 00:30:43.529 --> 00:30:47.549 one, what kind of guests or topics are you most 00:30:47.549 --> 00:30:51.440 excited to explore? Well, I've had a ton of fun 00:30:51.440 --> 00:30:54.779 already with the guests and the topics that we've 00:30:54.779 --> 00:30:59.400 been exploring, but I will say I have two guests, 00:30:59.640 --> 00:31:03.079 like my next two guests, who again are people 00:31:03.079 --> 00:31:07.200 I have not met in person in life, did not know 00:31:07.200 --> 00:31:11.460 them prior to my podcasting journey. One, I'll 00:31:11.460 --> 00:31:14.740 just give you a little hint, has, oh my gosh, 00:31:14.799 --> 00:31:18.599 such an amazing book and just life philosophy 00:31:18.599 --> 00:31:23.200 and like, I'm used to being surrounded by like 00:31:23.200 --> 00:31:26.619 brilliant people with large vocabularies who 00:31:26.619 --> 00:31:30.299 are super articulate and she blew my mind. And 00:31:30.299 --> 00:31:33.160 then a guest that I'm recording with this week 00:31:33.160 --> 00:31:36.940 that will come shortly after that guest is, oh 00:31:36.940 --> 00:31:42.980 my gosh, like super boss babe, professional in 00:31:42.980 --> 00:31:48.200 like money mindset. Energy with money and I know 00:31:48.200 --> 00:31:49.920 that's something that I've been talking a lot 00:31:49.920 --> 00:31:54.640 about so I am so excited for you to hear their 00:31:54.640 --> 00:31:59.640 episodes and Second question any must -have items 00:31:59.640 --> 00:32:02.940 you're going to be bringing along for your camping 00:32:02.940 --> 00:32:07.519 journey Yeah, we're just a couple weeks out here 00:32:07.519 --> 00:32:12.609 from picking up our baby camper And we actually 00:32:12.609 --> 00:32:15.670 this weekend bought a couple things for it, but 00:32:15.670 --> 00:32:19.349 me personally, I will be bringing my weighted 00:32:19.349 --> 00:32:21.849 blanket. I actually have two and one is in the 00:32:21.849 --> 00:32:26.089 storage unit because when I sleep, especially 00:32:26.089 --> 00:32:31.210 if I'm like a little uneasy, I need my weighted 00:32:31.210 --> 00:32:35.390 blanket. I've been wearing a sleep mask now for 00:32:35.390 --> 00:32:39.329 like six months or so to block out any light. 00:32:39.660 --> 00:32:43.039 As you can tell sleep is like really important 00:32:43.039 --> 00:32:48.880 to me and I never travel travel without a trusty 00:32:48.880 --> 00:32:52.680 water bottle so probably a Yeti or something 00:32:52.680 --> 00:32:55.660 Need to find a way usually when we travel even 00:32:55.660 --> 00:32:59.740 when we stay in hotels and stuff we go by Fresh 00:32:59.740 --> 00:33:03.279 water to have with us. I don't know or nerds 00:33:03.279 --> 00:33:05.859 like that So those will probably be some items 00:33:05.859 --> 00:33:10.279 that will be must -haves on the road We are back 00:33:10.279 --> 00:33:13.779 from break and I'm so happy that Liz is going 00:33:13.779 --> 00:33:16.839 to have a chance to talk about her passion project 00:33:16.839 --> 00:33:19.940 as she has said already in this episode She gets 00:33:19.940 --> 00:33:22.559 really excited about her ideas and her passions 00:33:22.559 --> 00:33:26.099 and this definitely blends all of her strengths 00:33:26.099 --> 00:33:28.980 and her interests and all of the work that she 00:33:28.980 --> 00:33:33.000 has been doing and It's centered on female empowerment, 00:33:33.099 --> 00:33:37.720 which I just love and two of my wonderful journalists 00:33:37.720 --> 00:33:40.180 who work so hard hard and both have an interest 00:33:40.180 --> 00:33:42.920 in this. They, when I ask them about it, their 00:33:42.920 --> 00:33:45.599 faces just light up and they get so excited. 00:33:46.059 --> 00:33:49.119 Um, so I'm really happy that they have this opportunity 00:33:49.119 --> 00:33:53.940 to work with Liz as well. So how did your nonprofit 00:33:53.940 --> 00:33:58.000 fill the stands come about? When, how, you know, 00:33:58.160 --> 00:34:02.119 tell us the scoop. Oh, it's, I mean, that's how 00:34:02.119 --> 00:34:04.400 I feel about it. I just love talking about it. 00:34:04.400 --> 00:34:06.960 It lights me up. I, um, so it starts back in. 00:34:07.200 --> 00:34:10.440 In high school at Homestead, I played basketball 00:34:10.440 --> 00:34:13.739 and soccer and track and press country, but basketball 00:34:13.739 --> 00:34:15.960 is my favorite. And it was something that meant 00:34:15.960 --> 00:34:18.780 a lot to me. And I loved every minute of that 00:34:18.780 --> 00:34:21.679 experience. But I did notice during my time playing 00:34:21.679 --> 00:34:25.599 that there was attendance discrepancy between 00:34:25.599 --> 00:34:28.719 girls basketball and boys basketball and football 00:34:28.719 --> 00:34:33.190 and, you know, subtle. I wasn't subtle in terms 00:34:33.190 --> 00:34:35.389 of attendance, but it is sort of a subtle message 00:34:35.389 --> 00:34:37.789 that I think female athletes get when they have 00:34:37.789 --> 00:34:40.269 difference in attendance numbers. And I remember 00:34:40.269 --> 00:34:43.269 being like 15 and thinking, what is happening? 00:34:43.570 --> 00:34:45.750 Like, and bringing it up and trying to talk to 00:34:45.750 --> 00:34:48.329 people about it. And I think the energy at that 00:34:48.329 --> 00:34:51.389 time, it was, you know, early 2000s was sort 00:34:51.389 --> 00:34:53.150 of like, Oh, well, you know, it is what it is 00:34:53.150 --> 00:34:57.909 essentially. Um, which I, I think a lot of female 00:34:57.909 --> 00:35:01.269 athletes probably heard and have felt that messaging 00:35:01.269 --> 00:35:04.170 over the years. And then I just noticed currently 00:35:04.170 --> 00:35:07.530 that that is still an issue. And I felt when 00:35:07.530 --> 00:35:09.550 I was going through it, I had a lot of questions 00:35:09.550 --> 00:35:12.809 about that. And I just wonder, you know, where 00:35:12.809 --> 00:35:16.610 people were and how, and it feels sort of, um, 00:35:16.769 --> 00:35:19.269 I think silently deflating for girls and attendance 00:35:19.269 --> 00:35:22.690 numbers aren't rich and enthusiastic. essentially 00:35:22.690 --> 00:35:24.409 being from, especially being from Wisconsin, 00:35:24.670 --> 00:35:26.230 where it's been such a rich, passionate sports 00:35:26.230 --> 00:35:30.150 culture. You know, being a big Packer fan growing 00:35:30.150 --> 00:35:32.849 up, and you see the enthusiasm in community sport 00:35:32.849 --> 00:35:35.630 in a lot of different areas in Wisconsin. And 00:35:35.630 --> 00:35:39.030 I just wasn't seeing that for girls my age, my 00:35:39.030 --> 00:35:41.309 high school experience. So fast forward many 00:35:41.309 --> 00:35:44.650 years later, I'm a mom, a journalist, and, you 00:35:44.650 --> 00:35:47.269 know, I'd have these journalists skills and start 00:35:47.269 --> 00:35:51.510 writing about sports and started to sort of get 00:35:51.510 --> 00:35:54.769 interested in attendance and why it matters and 00:35:54.769 --> 00:35:57.110 why we're still seeing some of these issues for 00:35:57.110 --> 00:35:59.429 girls sports. And so that's where Phil the Sands 00:35:59.429 --> 00:36:02.469 really was born was trying to make change in 00:36:02.469 --> 00:36:05.309 that space and to drive community support to 00:36:05.309 --> 00:36:07.630 support female athletes so they feel like my 00:36:07.630 --> 00:36:09.630 efforts matter because my community is showing 00:36:09.630 --> 00:36:13.130 up for me. So that was really the start of it. 00:36:13.269 --> 00:36:17.030 At Homestead I reached out to the head coach 00:36:17.030 --> 00:36:18.590 of the girls basketball program at the time we 00:36:18.590 --> 00:36:21.280 had coffee and I was thinking I would start an 00:36:21.280 --> 00:36:24.719 alumni group at Homestead to reconnect with my 00:36:24.719 --> 00:36:26.639 former players and just sort of keep people informed 00:36:26.639 --> 00:36:28.380 with how the team was doing in hopes that maybe 00:36:28.380 --> 00:36:31.519 we could supercharge a game at some point. And 00:36:31.519 --> 00:36:35.139 so that was sort of the start of me sort of testing 00:36:35.139 --> 00:36:37.780 and seeing how that would go. And so we did an 00:36:37.780 --> 00:36:40.340 alumni game at Homestead just before we officially 00:36:40.340 --> 00:36:43.739 launched Build It Stands to sort of see if we 00:36:43.739 --> 00:36:46.139 could get people there and how it would go and 00:36:46.139 --> 00:36:50.159 what would draw people in. And so then we It 00:36:50.159 --> 00:36:52.139 was great. I felt like it was a great success 00:36:52.139 --> 00:36:54.940 and it was wonderful to see old friends and we 00:36:54.940 --> 00:36:57.880 did see more attendance. Our corner, the alumni 00:36:57.880 --> 00:37:01.360 group, it was full and it was fun to see that 00:37:01.360 --> 00:37:04.260 sort of support for our girls' teams. And I feel 00:37:04.260 --> 00:37:05.960 really hopeful that we can do that for a lot 00:37:05.960 --> 00:37:08.860 of different sports and basketball and just sort 00:37:08.860 --> 00:37:11.119 of supercharged the enthusiasm around girls' 00:37:11.440 --> 00:37:14.579 sports so the girls don't feel that way who are 00:37:14.579 --> 00:37:18.500 playing now and in the future. But that was really 00:37:18.500 --> 00:37:21.619 an interesting sport. And so I mentioned, obviously, 00:37:21.780 --> 00:37:24.260 that I do have a couple students who are working 00:37:24.260 --> 00:37:28.579 with you and have earned board positions with 00:37:28.579 --> 00:37:32.420 you. And so how do you see their roles helping 00:37:32.420 --> 00:37:36.679 you and your goals that you have? Yeah. OK, so 00:37:36.679 --> 00:37:38.760 for the alumni game, I reached out to you racially 00:37:38.760 --> 00:37:41.219 or so kind. I said, well, I have this journalism 00:37:41.219 --> 00:37:43.900 background at Homestead. I played sports at Homestead. 00:37:44.219 --> 00:37:46.780 I wonder if we could have some of the journalism. 00:37:46.989 --> 00:37:49.210 students that they might be interested in supporting 00:37:49.210 --> 00:37:53.429 girl sports or future sports writers or future 00:37:53.429 --> 00:37:55.769 female sports professionals. Maybe they'd be 00:37:55.769 --> 00:37:58.449 interested in covering the game just to draw 00:37:58.449 --> 00:38:01.949 up additional attendance for the game and to 00:38:01.949 --> 00:38:04.210 draw more attention to the girls, the players, 00:38:04.349 --> 00:38:06.949 and the competition. So they did a wonderful 00:38:06.949 --> 00:38:09.150 job and they came. They were so enthusiastic 00:38:09.150 --> 00:38:12.409 and so talented and they had amazing ideas. They 00:38:12.409 --> 00:38:16.179 covered the game for the publication at homestead 00:38:16.179 --> 00:38:19.320 and they did a live stream on facebook and so 00:38:19.320 --> 00:38:21.699 that was a real it was a combination of my two 00:38:21.699 --> 00:38:24.300 it was just sort of full circle and wild but 00:38:24.300 --> 00:38:27.159 it felt really wonderful way to just help people 00:38:27.159 --> 00:38:29.099 remember that you know the games are happening 00:38:29.099 --> 00:38:31.860 and that we can go and what it means for girls 00:38:31.860 --> 00:38:36.659 to have full stands but so we have a junior advisory 00:38:36.659 --> 00:38:39.000 board it's our first time doing it we have six 00:38:39.000 --> 00:38:41.380 amazing high school students two of which are 00:38:41.420 --> 00:38:43.460 were participated with me on that alumni game 00:38:43.460 --> 00:38:46.820 and are so lovely. And they're working to create 00:38:46.820 --> 00:38:49.300 something called, we're calling a toolkit, which 00:38:49.300 --> 00:38:52.019 will be on fillthesands .org on our website at 00:38:52.019 --> 00:38:55.760 the start of the 2025 school year. But it's essentially 00:38:55.760 --> 00:38:59.039 a overview of how to supercharge attendance in 00:38:59.039 --> 00:39:01.539 your school. So any school could download it 00:39:01.539 --> 00:39:04.219 from anywhere and implement some of these changes 00:39:04.219 --> 00:39:07.500 to help drive attendance. Uh, they're going to 00:39:07.500 --> 00:39:09.179 help us design it in campus. So they're going 00:39:09.179 --> 00:39:11.199 to use some of their leader, their, um, yearbook 00:39:11.199 --> 00:39:13.179 skills and their journals and reporting skills 00:39:13.179 --> 00:39:17.059 and add color to it. And, um, I would love, you 00:39:17.059 --> 00:39:18.519 know, for them to do additional interviews with 00:39:18.519 --> 00:39:20.820 athletes. Um, I've had through this work, I've 00:39:20.820 --> 00:39:23.619 had a chance to talk to other female, um, high 00:39:23.619 --> 00:39:25.460 school athletes and ask them if this is an issue 00:39:25.460 --> 00:39:27.159 that they noticed too. And I hear it time and 00:39:27.159 --> 00:39:29.599 time again, yes. And I noticed this too, and 00:39:29.599 --> 00:39:31.440 we have low attendance for this sport and this 00:39:31.440 --> 00:39:33.840 sport. And so really amplifying the voices of 00:39:33.840 --> 00:39:35.599 female athletes and having that included also 00:39:35.599 --> 00:39:39.949 as a, some. Yeah, that's really exciting that 00:39:39.949 --> 00:39:43.789 once the toolkit is created, that it's available 00:39:43.789 --> 00:39:46.909 for anyone who's looking to get, you know, this 00:39:46.909 --> 00:39:49.730 initiative started in their school. And I know 00:39:49.730 --> 00:39:52.829 you mentioned that you started with the basketball 00:39:52.829 --> 00:39:55.130 program because that's where your roots are. 00:39:55.429 --> 00:39:57.969 But I think my students were telling me that 00:39:57.969 --> 00:40:00.190 maybe they're going to try softball, something 00:40:00.190 --> 00:40:02.909 similar to what you did with basketball with 00:40:02.909 --> 00:40:07.489 the softball program. Yes. All sports, we really 00:40:07.489 --> 00:40:10.630 have ideas of doing. So on our junior advisory 00:40:10.630 --> 00:40:13.369 board, we have girls that are doing flag football 00:40:13.369 --> 00:40:18.010 and swim. And, you know, we have all sorts of 00:40:18.010 --> 00:40:20.670 athletes in different fields, which is so great 00:40:20.670 --> 00:40:23.130 so that we can learn how to improve attendance 00:40:23.130 --> 00:40:26.510 in all of these areas. I was at a conference 00:40:26.510 --> 00:40:30.050 recently and met a bunch of girls that were on 00:40:30.050 --> 00:40:32.860 a new girls wrestling team that was a new initiative. 00:40:33.380 --> 00:40:35.280 And they, you know, they of course noticed a 00:40:35.280 --> 00:40:37.280 huge discrepancy in attendance for their meets. 00:40:37.659 --> 00:40:39.579 And so just to talk to them and be like, how 00:40:39.579 --> 00:40:41.739 can we support you? What kind of attendance would, 00:40:41.900 --> 00:40:43.880 like how many stands, how many people come? Like, 00:40:44.079 --> 00:40:47.000 or how many people can we get there? Um, and 00:40:47.000 --> 00:40:49.599 every sport is different, certainly in how you 00:40:49.599 --> 00:40:51.679 support attendance for them. And it's fun to 00:40:51.679 --> 00:40:53.599 figure out what the, you know, skeleton key is 00:40:53.599 --> 00:40:55.900 essentially. How do we get as many people to 00:40:55.900 --> 00:40:59.289 support as possible? Um, But yeah, the toolkit 00:40:59.289 --> 00:41:01.730 that our amazing Junior Advisory Board is helping 00:41:01.730 --> 00:41:04.730 us to create will be, I hope, just a really helpful 00:41:04.730 --> 00:41:07.349 resource for high schools everywhere, anywhere. 00:41:08.570 --> 00:41:11.809 That's exciting. That is really awesome. So when 00:41:11.809 --> 00:41:14.650 you knew, you know, you're talking a lot about 00:41:14.650 --> 00:41:17.150 just like following your passions and, you know, 00:41:17.329 --> 00:41:20.409 following your interests. And then also, how 00:41:20.409 --> 00:41:23.150 can you be of service and help something that 00:41:23.150 --> 00:41:26.130 was so important to you? How did you come up 00:41:26.130 --> 00:41:28.250 with the idea like, Oh, I'm going to start a 00:41:28.250 --> 00:41:30.409 nonprofit. And what is, you know, what does that 00:41:30.409 --> 00:41:33.789 look like? I have zero idea or experience with 00:41:33.789 --> 00:41:37.780 that. Well, I just felt like I wanted to do something 00:41:37.780 --> 00:41:40.780 to be helpful that was purpose driven and to 00:41:40.780 --> 00:41:44.139 be able to just be like purely in support of 00:41:44.139 --> 00:41:46.179 female athletes. Like, so a nonprofit to me, 00:41:46.340 --> 00:41:49.179 I thought, well, let's raise money and be able 00:41:49.179 --> 00:41:51.739 to support these programs. And, you know, sometimes 00:41:51.739 --> 00:41:54.719 schools just don't realize that there's maybe 00:41:54.719 --> 00:41:57.539 an imbalance in resources or funds or attendance. 00:41:57.739 --> 00:41:59.989 And it's just. traditional allocation of those 00:41:59.989 --> 00:42:01.349 things and they're not really thinking through 00:42:01.349 --> 00:42:02.829 these things or sometimes schools don't have 00:42:02.829 --> 00:42:06.309 the resources to support. So I think I was thinking 00:42:06.309 --> 00:42:09.670 I'd love to come in and offer grants to schools 00:42:09.670 --> 00:42:12.329 and to be able to make their girls' sporting 00:42:12.329 --> 00:42:15.469 competitions really dynamic events to drive attendance. 00:42:17.289 --> 00:42:19.630 I think just the non -profit angle that I really 00:42:19.630 --> 00:42:22.050 just wanted it to be just like pure good, you 00:42:22.050 --> 00:42:23.630 know, just like let's just put the good into 00:42:23.630 --> 00:42:25.730 the world and without thinking about anything 00:42:25.730 --> 00:42:28.579 other than the girls on the court. Did you have 00:42:28.579 --> 00:42:31.659 to do research into how I wouldn't know the first 00:42:31.659 --> 00:42:34.000 thing about setting that up or did you have background 00:42:34.000 --> 00:42:36.940 in that? Well certainly my journalism background 00:42:36.940 --> 00:42:39.519 of being a very you know enthusiastic researcher 00:42:39.519 --> 00:42:44.760 really came in handy. Yeah I think those skills 00:42:44.760 --> 00:42:47.340 of having an idea and you know you I'm willing 00:42:47.340 --> 00:42:50.320 to ask questions I love asking people that have 00:42:50.320 --> 00:42:52.159 you know really interesting backgrounds. How 00:42:52.159 --> 00:42:54.719 did you do it? What did you You know, why did 00:42:54.719 --> 00:42:56.059 you feel passionately about it? What's worked 00:42:56.059 --> 00:43:00.440 for you? Yeah, just a lot of research and questions 00:43:00.440 --> 00:43:03.400 and time, you know, online and trying to, you 00:43:03.400 --> 00:43:06.619 know, learn as much as I can. But I do think 00:43:06.619 --> 00:43:10.239 I don't really fear trying something that I've 00:43:10.239 --> 00:43:13.320 never done before, because when you're a freelance 00:43:13.320 --> 00:43:16.699 journalist, you have to do a lot of things that 00:43:16.699 --> 00:43:20.960 feel sort of uncomfortable. You have to occasionally 00:43:20.960 --> 00:43:23.159 send a cold email. you have to risk not hearing 00:43:23.159 --> 00:43:26.659 back from somebody. You have to sort of put yourself 00:43:26.659 --> 00:43:29.840 out there on a repeated basis. And I think over 00:43:29.840 --> 00:43:33.380 time, that's really, that's sort of lowered my 00:43:33.380 --> 00:43:36.440 fear in terms of just asking if you can do something, 00:43:36.519 --> 00:43:39.400 which I think is really interesting. And I think 00:43:39.400 --> 00:43:41.800 it's been a really good confidence builder for 00:43:41.800 --> 00:43:44.980 me. And so now I'm just my pump. So if I send 00:43:44.980 --> 00:43:46.619 a cold email and they don't find that's fine, 00:43:46.619 --> 00:43:49.579 you know, oh, well, you know, at least maybe 00:43:49.579 --> 00:43:52.400 I learned something or. At least I followed that 00:43:52.400 --> 00:43:55.780 idea through the end and I don't know. I don't 00:43:55.780 --> 00:43:59.800 really fear jumping in two feet. Usually, if 00:43:59.800 --> 00:44:02.500 you have good intentions, somebody will help 00:44:02.500 --> 00:44:05.280 and it'll work out. Yeah, that's such a great 00:44:05.280 --> 00:44:07.760 point about I'm always talking about the soft 00:44:07.760 --> 00:44:11.500 skills that journalism teaches, right? Oh my 00:44:11.500 --> 00:44:13.460 goodness, as you mentioned earlier, deadlines 00:44:13.460 --> 00:44:16.639 with time management and collaboration and communication 00:44:16.639 --> 00:44:19.599 and leadership and just that idea of getting 00:44:19.599 --> 00:44:21.719 out of your comfort zone where we talked about 00:44:21.719 --> 00:44:24.960 earlier, that first interview, I mean, or setting 00:44:24.960 --> 00:44:27.820 up the interview, reaching out to someone that 00:44:27.820 --> 00:44:31.199 you don't know. I mean, those all build into 00:44:31.199 --> 00:44:34.320 what you're talking about now is jumping head 00:44:34.320 --> 00:44:38.440 first into the unknown, right? So yeah, that's 00:44:38.440 --> 00:44:42.280 a great point. So I think you know, as we kind 00:44:42.280 --> 00:44:45.380 of wrap up here and talk about some of the lessons 00:44:45.380 --> 00:44:48.860 that you have shared, I mean, a big theme. today 00:44:48.860 --> 00:44:51.940 definitely is following your heart and following 00:44:51.940 --> 00:44:54.719 your passions and you've done such a beautiful 00:44:54.719 --> 00:44:57.940 job of melding all of your interests. You know 00:44:57.940 --> 00:45:00.199 they always say if you enjoy what you're doing 00:45:00.199 --> 00:45:02.840 for work it doesn't feel like work right and 00:45:02.840 --> 00:45:05.800 so that's why I called it a passion project for 00:45:05.800 --> 00:45:08.340 you although I know you've put in hours and hours 00:45:08.340 --> 00:45:11.340 of work. Is there anything else that you want 00:45:11.340 --> 00:45:14.719 to leave the listeners with today just about 00:45:14.719 --> 00:45:17.579 overall lessons or takeaways from your journey? 00:45:17.980 --> 00:45:22.920 I think also too I'd love for some of the listeners 00:45:22.920 --> 00:45:26.260 I know are people who are kind of at a career 00:45:26.260 --> 00:45:28.900 crossroads whether that means that they're starting 00:45:28.900 --> 00:45:31.840 out in their career or they have spent a lot 00:45:31.840 --> 00:45:35.179 of time in their career and I think your message 00:45:35.179 --> 00:45:38.280 today has a lot to do with like following your 00:45:38.280 --> 00:45:40.860 heart and your passion so kind of summing up 00:45:40.860 --> 00:45:43.880 you know your overall thoughts today and any 00:45:43.880 --> 00:45:46.719 advice or lessons that you have for the listeners. 00:45:47.980 --> 00:45:51.719 Yeah, I think for me, I think as I've gotten 00:45:51.719 --> 00:45:54.679 older, I've started to just trust my experience 00:45:54.679 --> 00:45:59.320 and just trust that when you jump for something 00:45:59.320 --> 00:46:01.780 that you feel really purpose -driven and passionate 00:46:01.780 --> 00:46:07.320 about, that it will sort itself out. And I think 00:46:07.320 --> 00:46:09.780 at the root of everything, from high school to 00:46:09.780 --> 00:46:12.320 now, I really wanted to be helpful for people 00:46:12.320 --> 00:46:14.500 in the types of content and stories that I write 00:46:14.500 --> 00:46:18.280 and I create. And so stepping into fill the stands 00:46:18.280 --> 00:46:21.059 and just focusing on how to serve and try to 00:46:21.059 --> 00:46:23.380 take yourself out of it. I think I think the 00:46:23.380 --> 00:46:25.659 times that I've gotten nervous is when I'm a 00:46:25.659 --> 00:46:29.119 little bit too in my own head about, you know, 00:46:29.119 --> 00:46:31.619 it's not about us. It's not about me. Ultimately, 00:46:31.719 --> 00:46:33.260 it's about, you know, the girls on the court 00:46:33.260 --> 00:46:36.159 and about, you know, I also coach six grade girls 00:46:36.159 --> 00:46:38.320 basketball. It's really important. No passion 00:46:38.320 --> 00:46:40.860 mine. And I think a lot about what they learn 00:46:40.860 --> 00:46:46.239 by observing my choices. I'm brave. and trying 00:46:46.239 --> 00:46:49.260 something that I feel is important and something 00:46:49.260 --> 00:46:51.199 I want to create and put into the world, I hope 00:46:51.199 --> 00:46:53.900 that they will find courage when they have a 00:46:53.900 --> 00:46:56.679 calling to do something too. So, you know, whether 00:46:56.679 --> 00:46:58.800 that's, you know, sending a pitch email, a call 00:46:58.800 --> 00:47:01.119 email to somebody that might be a little intimidating, 00:47:01.360 --> 00:47:03.960 but, you know, that's, that's kind of a brave 00:47:03.960 --> 00:47:06.440 thing. You can do that. There's not really a 00:47:06.440 --> 00:47:08.820 big, you know, there's not, there's not a big 00:47:08.820 --> 00:47:11.559 downside to that. I think in just following your 00:47:11.559 --> 00:47:13.340 cue, if I believe in this idea, I have an idea 00:47:13.340 --> 00:47:15.219 I'd like to send it to you. I mean, I'm confident 00:47:15.219 --> 00:47:17.400 to do that. And then if you want to pivot careers, 00:47:17.980 --> 00:47:20.679 trusting your experience and that people are, 00:47:20.679 --> 00:47:22.179 you know, if you're serving the greater good, 00:47:22.380 --> 00:47:25.230 it'll usually look out. That's such great advice. 00:47:25.369 --> 00:47:30.309 Yes, I love that. So I will put, like I said, 00:47:30.630 --> 00:47:34.090 all Liz's links and contact information in the 00:47:34.090 --> 00:47:37.730 show notes. They have a beautiful website for 00:47:37.730 --> 00:47:40.230 fill the stands. It's so interactive and so cool. 00:47:40.329 --> 00:47:42.849 I remember showing it to the students when you 00:47:42.849 --> 00:47:45.510 first reached out and they were like, so you 00:47:45.510 --> 00:47:48.090 have to definitely just go check that out and 00:47:48.090 --> 00:47:51.070 look at all their upcoming initiatives. Thank 00:47:51.070 --> 00:47:53.960 you again, Liz, for taking all. this time and 00:47:53.960 --> 00:47:57.260 being here today. I am so grateful. Thank you 00:47:57.260 --> 00:48:03.880 so much. I hope you found value in Liz's journey 00:48:03.880 --> 00:48:06.420 today. It's a powerful reminder that when we 00:48:06.420 --> 00:48:08.940 allow our passions to guide us and we commit 00:48:08.940 --> 00:48:11.860 to persevering through challenges, incredible 00:48:11.860 --> 00:48:14.800 things can happen. Her work in both the world 00:48:14.800 --> 00:48:17.599 of journalism and the impactful mission of fill 00:48:17.599 --> 00:48:22.190 the stands is a perfect example. To stay connected 00:48:22.190 --> 00:48:24.949 and receive bonus content, make sure you subscribe 00:48:24.949 --> 00:48:28.650 to our email newsletter. Just email us at Life's 00:48:28.650 --> 00:48:32.449 Next Lesson Plan dot com to join the list. For 00:48:32.449 --> 00:48:35.030 more personal connection and exclusive lessons, 00:48:35.150 --> 00:48:37.449 I invite you to explore my Live and Learn Patreon. 00:48:38.230 --> 00:48:41.690 Just visit Patreon dot com slash live and learn. 00:48:42.250 --> 00:48:44.710 And as always, you can find Life's Next Lesson 00:48:44.710 --> 00:48:49.170 Plan on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. We are 00:48:49.170 --> 00:48:54.909 down to less than 40 days of my teaching career 00:48:54.909 --> 00:48:58.829 so I do a video a day on YouTube to count that 00:48:58.829 --> 00:49:02.190 down. As always if you have suggestions for future 00:49:02.190 --> 00:49:05.670 guests or topics please don't hesitate to reach 00:49:05.670 --> 00:49:06.070 out.