Episode-84; Predictions, Take-2
The Outliers Inn
Video Version About the Podcast Welp, to start-off the year, JP pulled a major boner. We got together for this session on January 8th and it was a pretty good session; that is, until JP realized he forgot to hit the "record" button at the end of the session when he went to turn the recording off… DOH! So, you will understand the much deserved razzing at the beginning of the session as everyone takes turns bustin' on JP. Mule starts us off with a prediction that the robotics team that he coaches will crush all the other teams on their way to victory in the...
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Episode-83; Endings and Beginnings
The Outliers Inn
Video Version About the Podcast Welcome to another episode of The Outliers Inn With it being near the end of another year the theme of this episode is endings and beginnings where we will speak with our guests about what might have ended for them this past year and what they look forward to beginning in the next. We have a few new guests at The Outliers Inn; in addition to the regular irregular Stéphane from Belgium and your cohosts JP and Mule, Donna from upstate New York and Peter from the UK have joined us. Unfortunately Don the beer man is on assignment in...
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Episode-82; Oktoberfest
The Outliers Inn
Video Version About the Podcast So welcome back to The Outliers Inn! In spite of the incredible odds that recent history has demonstrated, Mule finally gets the timing right and is able to join as the co-host. It's just as well, because Don, "The Beer Man" is MIA for today's episode. Mule starts by sharing the reports of automobile break-ins throughout California are real. He was on assignment and went into a restaurant in a nice area of town and folks broke into his rental vehicle and stole his computer bag; notebook, phone, papers, all gone. … Note to self; avoid...
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Episode-81; What I did on my summer vacation
The Outliers Inn
Video Version About the Podcast So welcome back to The Outliers Inn! As is getting to be habit, our co-host Mule has somehow managed to weasel his way out of working his shift with some lame excuse about a traffic jam around Washington DC. How a person can live so long there and not expect traffic; well, perhaps we pick that up another time. It is a good thing that my irregular regular, Don “the beer man” Burshnick is willing and able to work both sides of the bar. JP Starts the conversation by sharing and experience from high school about returning from summer...
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Episode-80; (Re)Setting Attitudes, The Peter Principle, Golf, and more.
The Outliers Inn
Video Version About the Podcast Another episode of The Outliers Inn with "The Beer Man" joining JP and Mule as co-co-host. Maybe he will become a regular co-co-host (he's already an irregular regular guest here at The Outliers Inn. After a brief acknowledgement that the Super Bowl was pretty entertaining, but nobody we know really cared who won, we get into more interesting topics. JP shares his recent experiences visiting southern Africa for an assignment with him starting in Johannesburg (Jo'berg) and then going to Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. He had been there many...
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Episode-79; Travel, Robots, Focus, and ChatGPT
The Outliers Inn
Video Version https://vimeo.com/795988927 About the Podcast What’s better than two hosts? Why, three, of course! Mule said he couldn’t make it, so JP drafted Don (who is an irregular regular and has stepped-in to the role of co-host in the past). But, wouldn’t you know it, Mule was able to join. So, we have a three-way! The podcast starts as it normally does, with JP talking about air travel experiences and Mule talking about robots. As “process and systems guys”, air travel is always a source for some head-scratching and...
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Episode-78; Holi-DAZE
The Outliers Inn
Video Version https://vimeo.com/theoutliersinn/holi-daze About the Podcast This episode of The Outliers Inn finds the hosts, JP and Mule, a bit dazed and confused from the very start; as in, who’s going to start?! holi-daze JP starts by sharing that the year went by in a flash because of engagements and travel and this has left him a bit Holi-DAZED coming into the end of the year. This includes having to fight the horde on Thanksgiving Sunday and spending his 60th birthday in an airport hotel awaiting a return to Frankfurt (but at least the good folks at Saison at Newark...
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Episode-77; Thanksgiving
The Outliers Inn
Video Version https://vimeo.com/771047950 About the Podcast In this episode, JP is thankful to have a regular guest at The Outliers Inn, Don "Beer Man" Burshnick, able to step up and be the co-host on zero notice because Mule has forgotten (yet again) to be in a state of readiness to fulfill his hostly duties. Thanks Beer Man! Beer Man, coming from a long line of early starters, shares that he is thankful for recently becoming a great grandfather. And JP is thankful his book has been very well recieved and the thoughts contained therein has resonated with his intended...
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Episode-76; Harvest Time
The Outliers Inn
Video Version https://vimeo.com/theoutliersinn/harvest-time About the Podcast Mule welcomes everyone to The Outliers Inn and introduces this episode's theme; harvest time. And he kicks-off the conversation by sharing what he is presently harvesting from his garden; including sunflowers. Mule shares how there is some insect that infests the sunflowers and attacks the seeds so that they are empty. Not to be outdone, JP shares that his sunflowers would be just a day or two from being ready to pick and squirrels would beat him to it; gorging themselves on the...
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Episode-75; Coincidences
The Outliers Inn
Video Version https://vimeo.com/748326212 About the Podcast Mule kicks of the conversation at The Outliers Inn with the season wrap of robots season. Kids being kids, they start off wearing their "Sunday best" and end-up dragging the duds through the grass playing frisbee after the official goings-on are done. JP laments about how packed the flights are. But that there is an upside with his travels as the people along the route (flight attendants, restaurant personnel, and so on) have become familiar with his ways and see to it that all is good; and it is good. JP also...
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Video Version
About the podcast
In this episode, in addition to the (ab)normal hosts JP and Mule, Don "the beer man" Burshnick is able to join in real life. JP starts with a lamentation from having to be on a project earlier than he is used to and shares some words of wisdom; folks shouldn't need to wake-up early except for huntin' and fishin'.
But soon enough, the conversation moves on to it's main theme; mentorship.
JP shares a story about a person who is in a leadership role at the project he is working on and how that person is probably in over his head, even if his heart is in the right place. What makes matters worse is that the senior leadership feels he is failing and instead of helping, they are abandoning him. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy; they believe he will fail so they don't offer any help, and he fails. Seeing this, JP took him under his wing and gave him some coping skills and leadership training; making sure to be available when needed and checking in on him on a daily basis.
Mule and Don share their experiences in mentoring and being mentored along their life's journeys; in particular, Mule with high-school robotics teams and Don with Karate.
Andy who is outstandingly mediocre joins from the UK where the discussion is gravitates towards the difference between mentorship and coaching; with the purest form of mentorship being times when the mentor doesn't know they are being a mentor.
Doug joins us from "Joyzee" and is on the "back nine" shares his insights with recent mentoring opportunities; one with career advice and another where he offered his mentorship to a group of young people and was disappointed that so few accepted the opportunity (for reasons he is still pondering).
Finally, Esther joins us from Sweden and shares her experiences being a mentor. She expresses her concerns about the use of AI in the candidate selection process and the possibility (probability) of filtering the best candidates in favor of those who know how to game the system and tailor their submittals to meet the job description.