Stuff I Learned Yesterday

I wanted to die. What was I supposed to do? Stand up and wave? Tell her thank you? Smile? I shrunk down in my chair, gave her a fake smile, and stared at my notebook the remainder of class. I still liked her as a teacher and found her class easy, but dreaded my seat and the attention she’d drawn to me. I appreciated the compliment on my work, but the whole situation just made me feel even more insecure. But I knew she meant well, so I didn’t have any hard feelings toward her. The post 608- Musings of a Wallflower appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

On business trips, business comes first. Whether I’m traveling on my dime or someone else’s, a business trip is for business purposes. Take care of business. But I also learned that it’s okay to get out of the hotel and enjoy the sights of a city while you’re there. I should have realized this by the behavior and encounters I’d had with my boss, but it took this encounter with Jim to help me fully realize it.  The post 607- Oh the Places You Will Go appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

In episode 44 I gave you a glimpse at the woman who would become my mother-in-law. She was wonderful on that day and she was a wonderful mother-in-law for the next 23 years. Last week was the two year anniversary of when we lost her. Today, I wanted to set aside this episode as a tribute to her. I’ve asked Dave, my father-in-law, my two brothers-in-law, Marc and Brian, and my wife, Kari, to send in contributions about her that share what they remember and miss most about her, what they want others to know about her, and what their grief process has been like.  The post 606- Tribute to Kay appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

I firmly believe we live in an age where it has never been easier to know the truth about God and his teaching, while also having never been easier to be deceived and led astray about God and his teaching. We hear something new, something that’s easier to swallow, less offensive, seems loving, or seems to bring a shiny new meaning to a passage that has been taught a certain way for generations. And too often we fall for it. The post 605- Hold Me Closer Tony Danza appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

One of my leading desires for SILY is that these stories would bring in sincere questions from listeners that would in turn bring about a deeper understanding of Christianity, the Bible, and what it means to live in this culture as a Christian both for myself and all of those listening. Put another way, I hoped questions would come in that would lead to spiritual growth for both myself and other listeners. Today’s Monday Mailbag episode will be entirely devoted to a question that I received via YouTube from Wishyouwerehere435. The post 604- Monday Mailbag appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

When I started podcasting in 2008, I never once thought that I might one day inspire someone else to become a podcaster. In times like these, I like to play the what if game. The quick version of it goes something like this: What if I’d never started my podcast about Fringe? What if JJ Abrams had never created Fringe? What if Cliff had never started his podcast about the TV show LOST. What if JJ had never been brought in to fix the original script for LOST?  The post 603- Planting Your Tree appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Trusting those you work with and those who work under you is incredibly important. But when they are entrusted to do their job with freedom and exercise their natural gifts, clients benefit, work culture benefits, you benefit, the company benefits, and your industry benefits. Remember, there’s no “I” in team, and even The Lone Ranger wasn’t alone. The post 602- There’s No Lone Ranger appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

You’ve heard me say it recently because it’s been on my mind a lot, but it’s so painfully true when they say the days are long but the years are short. In future episodes I’ll talk more about Colby moving out of our house and I even have a story about college marching band that I have scheduled for the beginning of football season. But for today, I want to stay focused on the idea of time. The post 601- The Shortening of the Years appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

In my early 20’s I lived in Texas for 3 years. There was also a guy I was associated with that had also moved to Texas from out of state. We’ll call the guy Mike. One day Mike had to go out of town for a few days for business. Apparently there was a meeting at the home office of the company he worked for. He and his wife had family there, so she traveled with him. The post 600- Right Handed Secrets appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

As a fully grown adult who loves marching bands and symphonies, I love the sound, size, and shape of the baritone. But as a scrawny middle school boy, I hated it. To me, it was only slightly better than the tuba. The tuba was the worst instrument. Only the fat nerdy kids played tuba and the baritone was its slightly less horrific cousin. I got to play treble clef music like a trumpet instead of bass clef music like a tuba, so that made it tolerable for me. The post 599- The Day the Music Died appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

All of us make instant judgments and develop opinions of people the instant we see them before we’ve even met them or heard them utter a word. Respect and authority are a two way street. I firmly believe we should respect those in authority over us. However, only fools think that just because they have authority they must be respected. As a recovering fool, I can testify that true respect is earned, not given. When authority is handled with humility, respect is not only returned, it is accompanied with loyalty. The post SILY 598- Showing Respect to Authority appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

In my family, we have a generational heritage of working on cars. Well, except for my brother. He has no interest in working on cars and has asked me why I do it. He’s been known to buy a car without ever popping the hood to see what the engine bay looks like. It’s okay. He has skills in other areas, so I’ll give him some grace on that. For me, it seems like part of my DNA. I love the satisfaction I get from taking on a new challenge, pushing myself to learn a new kind of repair, taking that post-repair test drive... The post SILY 597- The Circle of Wrenches appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

So I set aside time every day to pray. While I had no idea where I would end up, God did. While I had no idea what the makeup of my team would be, God did. While I had no idea whether or not I’d take over a new store or an existing store, God did. As I prayed, I asked God to shape me into the leader that my future team would need. I asked him to help me be humble, learn from Sammy the skills I would need, and prepare me for what lay ahead. I prayed for my team. I asked God to help prepare them. I asked him to work in their hearts to give them an attitude of humility and a desire to learn. I asked God to bless them and prepare them for the future we would have together.  The post SILY 596- A Tale of Two Prayers appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

I thought the New Kids were amazing. Girls liked the New Kids because they were cute, I liked the New Kids because they were cool. I heard someone once say that girls want to be with the New Kids, and guys want to be the New Kids. That was certainly true for me. I bought magazines of them and hung their pictures on my wall. I studied their wardrobe and tried to find clothes that looked like them. One time while in Walmart I saw a poster of Jordan that I liked. I asked my dad if he would buy the Jordan poster for me. I still remember the look of disappointment on his face when it turned out to be a poster of Jordan Knight instead of Michael Jordan. He didn’t buy me the poster. The post SILY 595- I am a Blockhead appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Making the world a better place doesn’t just happen from stages in front of crowds of strangers. Whether it’s your family, co-workers, colleagues, or a room full of total strangers, you have an opportunity before you. That opportunity is one that allows you to communicate love and encouragement, truth and compassion, kindness and generosity. Look around you, ponder, and consider how you might be able to make the world better for even just one person this week. We can all be world changers, and even if it’s only for the world of one, it’s worth the effort.  The post SILY 594-The World Is Not a Stage appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

I've realized that I get most frustrated with my kids when they are making mistakes that I made when I was their age. Sometimes it’s something involving their friends, other times it’s the way they spend their money, and sometimes it’s mistakes I see them making with their boyfriend or girlfriend. It could be any number of mistakes really. When I talk with my wife about it, I usually end up saying, “I remember the time I did that.” I want so much for each of my kids to heed my advice and not make the stupid mistakes I made. I want to spare them the pain.  But I know that’s just not the way we humans operate. To err is human is painfully true. The post SILY 593- Remember the Time appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

I think it’s important to make a distinction in believing the Bible is true, and that the Bible should be taken literally. What I mean is, it’s possible to believe that the Bible is inspired by God, written down under inspiration by humans, and therefore, true (or inerrant). It’s also possible to simultaneously believe that the Bible should not be taken literally. Or better said, it’s possible to simultaneously believe the Bible should not always be taken literally. Rather than taking the Bible literally at all times, I would argue that the Bible should be taken as it’s intended. The post 592- Do I Take the Bible Literally appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

Today is the Monday Mailbag! In today’s episode I share contributions from Geoff, Barb, Colby, Bradley, and Andrew. Did you know that mail delivery has been around since the 1500s? In 1505, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I established a postal system in the Empire, appointing Franz von Taxis to run it. This system, originally the Kaiserliche Reichspost, is often considered the first modern postal service in the world, which initiated a revolution in communication in Europe. The post SILY 591- Monday Mailbag appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

I love escape rooms. It’s no surprise really. I love all sorts of puzzles. Solving various puzzle-types is one reason I love The Legend of Zelda franchise so much. Once I learned about escape rooms, I had to try one out. To me, they seemed like a real life example of a Zelda dungeon puzzle. I remember asking my family about doing an escape room and it went just about like I expected. My son, who also loves puzzles and Zelda was all about it. He was super excited about the idea. My wife and daughter, on the other hand, were not excited at all. The post 590- Room to Grow appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.

When I left in 2013, I had my next job already lined up. I started my own company specializing in editing and launching podcasts. Over the last decade that company, Pro Podcast Solutions, has helped launch several hundred podcasts and we’ve edited tens of thousands of podcast episodes. When I quit my job I had two clients, and now I serve over 150 clients. The path from two to 150 has not been straight nor easy.  The post 589- Navigating Peaks and Valleys appeared first on Golden Spiral Media- Entertainment Podcasts, Technology Podcasts & More.