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The Design Thinker: Turning Childhood Dreams Into Business Success

“People come to me realizing that something’s not working, or, that they have an aspiration of what they want. At the end of the day, they want to make a pivot to something else. In order to get down there and make that pivot they need a strategy. And what I tell people is that it may take multiple strategies for you to get where you want to be. And we will get there. The question is, are you ready for a marathon? Because, it’s not a sprint.”

– Carla A. Fleming, CEO and Founder of Pivoting Strategies, LLC

Carla Fleming’s gloriously happy childhood dreams of doing meaningful work included being a teacher, a doctor, and a journalist. To the casual observer, work dreams such as these seem disconnected, but not to Fleming, who says that, together, they pointed her to a career that’s all about solving difficult business problems: “A teacher helps you learn to be better, a doctor makes diagnoses to make you better, and the journalist figures out what’s going on.” These, Fleming recalls, “laid the groundwork for consulting.”

And now, Fleming, uses design thinking in her consultancy to help business clients to thrive, scale revenues, and most important, connect with their consumers in what she calls “wearing the customer’s badge.”

In this episode, Carla the design thinker:

• Recalls her early childhood dreams and the profound influence of loving parents and grandparents on her life and career as a problem-solver [starts at 2:00]
• Describes in detail the process she has used to repurpose and reposition one of her clients [starts at 16:13]
• Defines her concept of “wearing the customer’s badge” and why it is important for today’s businesses to embrace in our digitally connected economy [starts at 22:43]

About our guest: Carla A. Fleming received a Bachelor of Science in Management, with coursework concentration in Journalism and Mass Media, from Rutgers University. She also earned a Master’s degree in Business Administration from The George Washington University. A successful marketing and management executive who held multiple executive roles at IBM, Fleming founded and is the CEO of business consultancy Pivoting Strategies, LLC. She lives and works in the Washington, D.C. suburbs of Northern Virginia.

EPISODE DATE: October 26, 2018

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Third Act By 28: One Man’s Unusual Journey to do Meaningful Work (Part 2)

“People said ‘well, he was a reporter, and a cop, and now he’s a cantor.’ When I look back on it, everything that I’ve done in my life, all of those jobs and the other smaller jobs in between, have always been about doing things with people, for people—helping them in some way.”

– Michael Shochet, Senior Cantor of Temple Rodef Shalom, Falls Church, Virginia; Chief Chaplain of Fairfax County, Virginia Police

Few of us can tell a personal career story as dramatic and ever-changing as Michael Shochet. After college, he became one of the youngest TV news reporters in Baltimore before pivoting to police work.

But, Shochet was hardly settled on patrolling the streets of one of America’s most dangerous cities.

Extreme on-the-job stress—and PTSD—sent him soul-searching. The work he eventually embraced, that of a cantor in Reform Judaism and police chaplain, would redefine his life and bring him boundless purpose and joy.

In Third Act by 28 Part 2, Shochet:

• Provides his first-person account of a police shooting that seriously injured his partner [starts at 1:28]
• Details his own struggle with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as well as the seemingly uncaring attitude of his superiors who expected him back at work quickly [starts at 7:55]
• Describes how he left policing to became a Cantor in Reform Judaism [starts at 12:40]

• Connects his skill and experience as a communicator, former police officer, and member of the clergy in the role of Chief Chaplain for Virginia’s largest police department [starts at 17:55]

About our guest: Michael Shochet received a Bachelor of Science from Ithaca College’s Park School of Communications and a Masters in Sacred Music from Hebrew Union College. He is the Senior Cantor for Temple Rodef Shalom in Falls Church, Virginia and Chief Chaplain of the Fairfax County, Virginia Police Department. Shochet and his family live in Fairfax County, Virginia.

EPISODE DATE: October 19, 2018

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:17 — 40.4MB)

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Third Act By 28: One Man’s Unusual Journey to do Meaningful Work (Part 1)

“When I was a little kid, I loved police officers. I could spot a police car a mile away. I think it started when I was seven or eight years old and a police car came into our neighborhood, which never happened, to go to someone’s house to talk to them about something. And he was really nice to us—all of my friends. Who knows if that set a journey for me in the back of my mind that police work—such a noble profession—is really important to society, but I always had a love of police officers.”

– Michael Shochet, Senior Cantor of Temple Rodef Shalom, Falls Church, Virginia; Chief Chaplain of Fairfax County, Virginia Police

Few can tell a personal career story as dramatic and ever-changing as Mike Shochet. As an ambitious high school student from an affluent Baltimore suburb, Shochet became “enthralled” with television production and news reporting. And soon after college graduation, he became a reporter for Baltimore’s NBC affiliate, WMAR-TV.

But the excitement of on-air reporting turned to agitation. Shochet wanted to help people through his work, but he felt that the “if it bleeds it leads” stories that his bosses wanted him to report wasn’t the way. So, at age 23, Shochet became a Baltimore City cop.

And that is only half of his story.

In Third Act by 28 Part 1, Shochet:

• Describes his early fascination with television production and reporting news [starts at 2:49]
• Recalls the on-the-air story he was assigned to report that upended his career [starts at 17:11]
• Relives his pivot to from reporter to Baltimore City Policeman [starts at 21:19]

About our guest: Michael Shochet received a Bachelor of Science from Ithaca College’s Park School of Communications and a Masters in Sacred Music from Hebrew Union College. He is the Senior Cantor for Temple Rodef Shalom in Falls Church, Virginia and Chief Chaplain of the Fairfax County, Virginia Police Department. Shochet and his family live in Fairfax County, Virginia.

EPISODE DATE: October 12, 2018

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:55 — 4.5MB)

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Beautiful Dreams: What did you want to be when you grew up? What were your dreams of doing meaningful work?

In this special episode of the podcast, we ask these questions which are so central to our personal narratives, but also to our pursuit of happiness.

You will discover the beautiful dreams of some of our season’s guests, like: Charles Glassman who knew early on that he wanted to be a doctor; Richard Ezike who saw himself building beautiful buildings and great cities; Edythe Richards who wanted to perform before a live audience, and; Michael Shochet who was enthralled with being on TV.

This season, we meet highly successful people—all leaders in their respective fields of influence—who overcame life and professional challenges to do truly meaningful work. Each shares their remarkable stories and useful insight on how we can aspire to do the work of our dreams—work that is profound, protects the planet, helps people, and is fun.

So…let’s walk this Tightrope together, to recapture our dreams of doing meaningful work.

Keyword “The Tightrope with Dan Smolen” on Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. And make sure to sign up for our newsletter at DanSmolen.com. That way you’ll hear about new episodes and important developments as they happen.

What were your beautiful dreams?

Please join us for an amazing experience. And do remember this: our best days lie ahead.