Perspectives on Learning

In this seventh episode I sat down with a good friend and mentor of mine.  Beau Collins is a police sergeant, and former US Army Special Forces weapon's sergeant.  In this installment, Beau and I talk about those influences that drove him as a young soldier as well as those experiences that formed him into the leader he is today.  We explored how one's reputation lay the foundation not only for their accomplishments in the past, but for their ability to remain relevant as a leader in the present.  Finally we will wrap up with some discussion about Booger the Bigfoot, and the importance of finding the motivation to pursue your dreams. 

In this sixth episode I sat down with Taki Kitamura who is the owner of State of Grace tattoo located in San Jose California.  In this installment, Taki and I discuss his experiences as a Japanese born American that was accepted into a traditional Japanese tattoo family by a world renowned tattoo master.  We explored how this experience, juxtaposed against his formal education, further developed his understanding of culture, social etiquette, as well as transcending him beyond anything he had previously imagined possible not only as an artist, but now as a master passing those important lessons onto his apprentice.    

In this fifth episode I connected via cell phone with Greg Crane who is the co-founder of the ALICE workplace violence response model.  In the wake of the Columbine High School tragedy of 1999 Greg, who's wife was an education professional herself, began to look at the deficiencies in the emergency response protocols that were being taught to our nations grade school employees and ultimately those children under their care.  After careful research, and multiple revisions with the help of his wife Lisa, the ALICE workplace violence response model was born.  In this installment Greg talks about his motivation, how the mind-set shift in response was made possible through collaborative efforts with America's police and educational professionals, and life on his ranch. 

In this fourth episode I connected via cell phone with retired Delta Force Sergeant Major Kyle Lamb.  Kyle spent the majority of his 21 years of services attached to the world's premier counter terrorism unit and in retirement he has taken those lessons learned and paid them forward as the CEO and head instructor of his company Viking Tactics.  In this installment Kyle talks about plans of instruction, how training to the standard and not the lowest common denominator can be accomplished through block training or by utilizing manageable chucks, and his Stay in the Fight Foundation.   

In this third episode I connected via cell phone with Gerald Lafon who is the head instructor of Judo America San Diego.  In this installment Coach Lafon and I discuss cultural immersion, his indoctrination to judo through traditional channels and how his ability to adapt and overcome not only led him to the United States Marine Corps., but continues to fuel his progressive instructional philosophies!  

In this second episode I sat down with head football coach Nick Bobeck of the University of Central Oklahoma.  In this installment Nick and I discuss the collaborative effort it takes to build a successful student athlete, those factors that lend to motivation and how lessons learned on the gridiron serve as a template to a successful life after football!      

In this first episode I sat down with my good friend Todd Stone who is a Senior Advisor for Customer Technical Training at the Dell computer corporation.  In this episode Todd talks about his early experience with on-line education, distance learning as working professional, adult learning theory and how the global campus parlayed into education and training development with Dell.  Todd also parallels his experiences with BJJ and future projects on his horizon.