Addressing the ELEPHANT in the Room

Addressing the Elephant in the Room with April Ballestero. Join us as we interview guests, shed light on difficult subjects, and learn to better address the elephants in the rooms of our lives.

Addressing the ELEPHANT in the Room

Overcoming Fear of Other People’s Opinions

What you will learn in this episode:

  • Parm's main elephant is the fear of other people’s opinions
  • Why fear stands for: False Evidence Appearing Real
  • How our life journey is similar to a train
  • How Parm’s history working as a juvenile counselor at the probation department initially stirred up a lot of fear in her
  • How she reassessed her evidence when she felt that she needed to quit her job out of fear, and how sticking it out ended up shaping her character and career moving forward
  • After reassessing her evidence, Parm chose to overcome her fears and persevere, and now she’s able to enjoy and celebrate the simple pleasures in life
  • The importance of being conscious of your own mental, spiritual, and physical health and making it a priority
  • Why you shouldn’t allow other people’s criticism to dull your sharp focus

Resources:

Is it Really Christian if it’s Fiction? With Eva Marie Everson and Taryn Souders

Eva Marie Everson is the CEO of Word Weavers International & the director of Florida Christian Writers Conference. She is a multiple award-winning author and speaker and is the 2022 recipient of the AWSA Lifetime Achievement Award. Eva Marie has served as a mentor for the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild, an adjunct professor at Taylor University, and is widely recognized and respected at writing conferences. A seminary graduate, she enjoys teaching the Word of God and speaking at women's events and retreats. She is a wife, mother, and grandmother. She and her husband make their home in Central Florida where they are owned by their cat. To connect with Eva Marie, go to: EvaMarieEversonAuthor.com 

Taryn’s middle grade novels have been named to multiple state award lists, including Pennsylvania’s Young Readers Choice Awards, Alaska’s Battle of the Books, Ohio’s Buckeye Children and Teen’s Book Awards, Wisconsin’s Golden Archer Awards, Alabama’s Camellia Children’s Choice Book Award, Nebraska’s Golden Sower Awards, and Florida’s Sunshine State Young Readers Awards. Her book, Coop Knows the Scoop, was a 2021 Edgar Award nominee for Best Juvenile mystery novel. She is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and Word Weavers, International. She is represented by Sally Apokedak of Apokedak Literary Agency. Taryn currently lives in Sorrento, Florida with her husband, David, their three children, and two cats—an overly fuzzy Ragdoll named Mordecai and a polydactyl Hemingway named Sebastian—who like to terrorize flies. While she’s somewhat decent at math, she is terrible at science and has an intense dislike of tarantulas. To connect with Taryn, go to:  www.TarynSouders.com

What you will learn in this episode:

  • Eva Marie and Taryn’s background in writing and details about the Florida Christian Writers Conference
  • Common presumptions and misconceptions about Christian fiction and their logical inaccuracies
  • How God demonstrates His creativity through His creation, and why Eva and Taryn believe God made us to be creative beings
  • The dynamic of being a Christian author in the general  (non-Christian) market 
  • How weaving Christian principles into your work will help reach people that wouldn’t otherwise be reached
  •  The graphic reality of the Bible’s historicity and why it’s important to acknowledge
  • The value of using storytelling to subtly communicate important truths to a wide audience

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Necessary Endings, with April Ballestero

April Ballestero is a leadership expert and the founder of One Light Ahead, a coaching agency that helps business leaders shine at their brightest. With two decades of coaching experience, April knows exactly how to help business leaders achieve their full potential and become more effective, more energized and more enthusiastic in their interactions with their teams, clients, families and communities.

What you will learn in this episode:

  • Applying Dr. Henry Cloud’s book, Necessary Endings to your business and relationships
  • Different types of necessary endings and the emotions that often come with them
  • What it means to “cut the monkey tail” and how you can apply it to your situation
  • How applying “Necessary Endings” has helped April coach people through pivotal moments in their lives
  • The value of applying this to your relationships and how the concept of Building Bridges is connected to this elephant
  • Why April believes you should “Stay in curiosity.”
  • How to use your evidence to verify if its a necessary or unnecessary ending

Resources:

Detecting Confirmation Bias, with Ron Toye

Detecting Confirmation Bias

confirmation bias

the tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of one's existing beliefs or theories.

This week's guest, Ron Toye: Purchasing, refinancing, or renovating a home can be a complicated and intimidating process. Here at the Ron Toye Team, we begin by listening. We aim to understand your goals and priorities so we can offer home loan solutions that align with your current and long-term plans. We serve hundreds of families each year with their home investment journey. Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer or long-time homeowner, we’re dedicated to providing you with industry-leading customer service that you will rave about.

My mentor and branch manager, Andy Tuttle, imprinted this message on my heart and it inspires my dedication to every client and partner I serve: “What do we help people with? One of the biggest financial decisions of their lives! How do we treat them? Like family!” From application to closing and beyond, I’m honored to provide the outstanding experience my clients and partners deserve.

What you will learn in this episode:

  • How Ron has personally experienced negative consequences of un-addressed confirmation biases
  • The effects of social and mainstream media on our expectations
  • How confirmation bias shows up in the mortgage sphere vs. the personal sphere, and the dangers of allowing it in either situation
  • How to recognize when you’re in a loop of confirmation bias
  • Why understanding yourself is key in avoiding confirmation bias
  • How being aware of your possible confirmation biases aligns with our theme this season of “Assessing and Re-framing your Evidence”

Resources:

Speeding Up Your Response Time, with Kelly Gonyo

Kelly is the founder and President of Blue Line Insurance Agency, Inc. She has been in the insurance business since 2001 and has worked in just about every role within the independent agency. Although she specializes in commercial insurance, she has experience in helping you with any of your insurance needs and loves to meet with any of her current or potential clients whenever she can. When she is not in one of the offices, she is either traveling or enjoying everything the Adirondacks and North Country has to offer.

What you will learn in this episode:

  • How today’s culture of instant-gratification affects workplace communication
  • Creative ways to open up and expand your conversations with your customers
  • How your response time directly affects your customers and team members
  • The importance of prioritizing fulfilling customer needs in a timely manner
  • Examples of how giving simple support can be powerful enough to make a noticeable difference in someone's life

Resources:

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