This week's Episode is a continuation of a conversation I had with Taylor Pilkington in our last Episode. The first part of this Episode picks up right where we left off. I recommend you listen to Part 1 first, but that's your call. 

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For this first of two episodes with this guest, I welcome Taylor Pilkington. Taylor is the Founder, Owner and Operator of Soccer Genome; a skills training facility located in Raleigh North Carolina. SG was established in 2011 with the philanthropic Genome Foundation which is a 501c3 getting up and running in 2015. And while many of you might be thinking that Taylor is just another soccer head and this was his obvious life path… you’d be partial right. While he is definitely passionate about the sport; it’s the varied examples of leadership and where they came from that make Taylor’s story unique. His philosophies … blended. Whether we’re talking about his deep rooted passion for the people he coaches and employs, the ever changing craft and art to coaching or his business philosophies that show an experience and interest similar to many C-Suite execs that I’ve dealt with over the years… Taylor’s passion, grit and mentality are full on and I can’t wait for you all to hear us chop it up. Air pods – Check. Favorite Beverage – Check. Excited to get down with Mentality Matters – Double Check. I hope you enjoy… 

https://www.soccergenome.com/

Episode 1 of 2 Details:

0:00 - Intro
3:00 - Being Emotionally Ready to Lead
6:00 - Reps Matter
11:00 - Accepting Criticism as a Coach
15:00 - Fun versus Growth
18:00 - Going Back to White Belt
24:00 - Mentor Diversity & The Skippy Effect
32:00 - Tolkien Effect
38:00 - Show Up When it Hurts
42:00 - Lasso Effect
43:00 - Mr. Miyagi Effect
54:00 - Hard Places Need Hard Leaders
1:03 - Pride in the Process
1:11 - Carnegie Effect

Part 2 of this Episode will be released on 12/4/2023...

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This week I’m joined by Susan White – a licensed and trained mental health professional who found exercise and running as a way to search out the hard things. But why? Why search out the hard? We talk about it. And we also dig into why it's vital that we allow our children to fail during our watch. She gives several “Ah-Ha” moments that I can’t wait for you to chew on. Like why the system surrounding young people matters and how a shift in our mentality about our own strength resiliency  and post traumatic growth can wildly affect how we view ourselves and how we can start to run our lives. I hope you enjoy listening  to this episode as much as I did. If so, share it, like it and give Mentality Matters a follow on your favorite streaming service and our Instagram page at Mentality _ Matters _ Podcast. So fill up you favorite mug. Enjoy the conversation. And much love! 

Episode Details - 

0:00 - Intro
2:00 - Damn. There She Goes
4:00 - Social Work as a Calling
7:00 - Risk Factors of Troubled Youth and Why Your Systems Matter
14:00 - Consistency Matters
21:30 - Inherent Strengths
23:30 - Emotional  Boys
26:30 - Unfair Demand on Teenagers Time/Attention
29:00 - Fitness Journey
36:00 - The 3 Goals - Stretch/Achievable/Attainable
38:00 - Power of an Accountable Mentality
41:00 - Welcome to the Thunder Dome
43:00 - The Boston
49:00 - 50 at 50 in the Appalachians
53:00 - It's Vital to Fail
1:00 - Post Traumatic Growth
1:08 - Wearing the Criticism
1:10 - Emperor Moth
1:11 - Man in the Arena

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Season 1 - Episode 6
For this week’s episode I was able to sit down with Mrs. Bonnie Mwanda who I have found to be a natural and exceptional leader. She is continually expanding and enriching the lives of the young people and peers that she interacts with on a daily basis by placing emphasis on building authentic relationships while acknowledging and tearing down the fences that are holding people back from achieving their true success. Finding their true identity. All because 16 year old Bonnie felt stifled and dismayed by the system around her. Bonnie’s is a story of paying it forward in a society that desperately needs the codification of equity while paying homage to a teenage girl that couldn’t comprehend the lack of cultural representation she faced in the public school system. 

Episode Contents - 

• 0:00 - Intro to Doc Mwanda
• 3:00 - Who is Bonnie?
• 6:30 - Honoring What 16 Year-Old Bonnie Needed
• 12:30 - Culture Based on Mental & Physical Safety
• 18:30 - What It Takes to Teach
• 21:00 - The Focus Group Philosophy
• 26:00 - How to Get Buy-In
• 30:00 - Being Visible is Vital
• 31:00 - Leaders are HYPE People
• 37:00 - Relationships Matter
• 51:00 - Staying Consistent with Young People
• 56:00 - Overcoming Barriers
• 1:00 - Helping Kids Dream Big
• 1:10 - What is Equity
• 1:16 - Stand On It
• 1:24 - "I'm That Girl" - Beyonce'

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Season 1 - Episode 5
For this episode, I sat down with a former player of mine that battled the circumstances life threw at him and has since earned his Juris Doctorate from Campbell Law School with a Masters in Trust and Wealth Management, mentors youth as a volunteer coach, is raising a family with his wife Ashley. His is a story about where he’s from and why that matters. His is also a story about breaking a familial generational curse that saw him escaping substance abuse, working a third shift job, living out of his car or on the couches of friends … all while attending high school. So if you’re looking for an example on what the power of self belief and deciding to just keep going, this is it. 

Episode Details

• 0:00 - Intro
• 3:00 - Where I'm From and Why It Matters
• 6:00 - Building on Sand
• 10:00 - Deciding to Decide
• 13:00 - Team 1st While Life Sucked
• 17:30 - Setting Audacious Goals
• 23:00 - Fatherly Connections
• 29:00 - Uncommon Amongst the Uncommon
• 31:00 - Why Applaud the Average?
• 35:00 - Climbing Onto the Boat
• 45:00 - Men Supporting Men
• 47:00 - Lessons for a 12 Year Old
• 50:00 - Power of Self-Belief
• 52:00 - Growing in Gravel
• 55:00 - Your Circle Matters
• 58:00 - Just Keep Going

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Bonus Content -
In this episode I talk about the importance of choosing the people in your tribe and why that matters. Are you a Blue Crab? Are you a builder? Do you inspire the people around you? Do they inspire you?

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This week, Kam and I dive into  living with an uber competitive mentality and juggling being a great teammate to her husband and kids; all while bucking the perceived traditional perception of being a woman and a mom.
https://raleighrugby.org/venom/
https://www.instagram.com/raleighrugbyclub/

Episode Notes:

• 0:00 - Intro
• 3:00 - Competition rooted in Cheer
• 9:30 - Calm in the Chaos
• 10:45 - Timing and Trust IS Team
• 14:30 - Birth and Growth of a Competitor
• 18:00 - Finding Competition as we Age
• 19:45 - Competitors Speak a Foreign Language
• 22:30 - Partners and the Fragile Male Ego
• 25:20 - Being a Great Teammate
• 32:15 - Fog of War and the Medieval Dance of Rugby
• 36:15 - Leading Adults of a Younger Generation 
• 40:30 - Failing Forward
• 47:00 - Mom's are Bad Ass Too
• 53:00 - Warrior Women
• 1:04.0 - Lessons of the Father
• 1:14.0 - ICU Battles
• 1:20.0 - How to Coach Kids

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For this week's Bonus Content I wanted to discuss the role of leaders when developing a team culture based on honest truth that puts the growth of the teammate in their hands because of uncomfortable conversations ~or~ when leaders decide to "dangle the carrot" and avoid conflict because of the peace it falsely brings. How do we foster a team culture that's not afraid of conflict and that's based on truth and growth? Love your athletes enough to trust them with the truth.

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