Modern Minorities Sharon Thony & Raman Sehgal

“Make the time to scratch beneath the surface in each state. Spending time with the people - in the cities, in the towns, at the restaurants - you're always going to uncover something.”
Summer marches on, and we’re making plans to get out and about. Hear part TWO of Raman’s USA Travel series (from his other pod LEARNINGS FROM LEADERS) - covering the second half of stories and learnings from Raman + co-host Drew’s travels across America - from Nebraska to Wyoming. The only way to truly understand all that is this big, wonderful, and diverse country of ours is to get out into it - and go beyond your comfort zone. Be sure to check out part one for more on the United States of Laughter - and Learnings...

LEARN MORE

BOOK: United States of Laughter (Drew Tarvin): goodreads.com/book/show/36269422-the-united-states-of-laughter


SONG: Home (Edward Sharp & The Magnetic Zeroes):youtube.com/watch?v=DHEOF_rcND8


CO-HOST: drewtarvin.com


OTHER POD: pgalums.com/podcast



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”I'm grateful she doesn't have that crazy addiction - they are getting a new relationship with technology. Smartphones and social media have basically caused a great rewiring of childhood.”
As parents today, Blippi & Taylor Swift aren’t all we have to worry about. When it comes to our (young kids), it’s near impossible to avoid TV, tablets, and video games - we’re increasingly anxious about the role of smartphones, social media, and ultimately their mental health. For many of us these devices and apps start creeping into elementary school, and with middle and high school right around the corner, a thoughtful vigilance is required at home and school. Longtime friends of the pods Claire Yoon Elvers & Seif Hamid join Raman for an important chat we ALL need to be having in our communities with our fellow parents. 
Author Jonathan Haidt's recent book — THE ANXIOUS GENERATION The Anxious Generation — has ignited some much needed conversations - online, and in communities. provides hard evidence to show the linkage between smartphones/social media to the decline in adolescent mental health. It's the data we needed to support what many of us already knew. And like many other parents we're chewing on this with mixed emotions - excited that the conversation is front and center with the potential to spark change over time. Yet also feeling a bit stuck given we're in the throes of parenting tweens/teens NOW.
We don’t pretend to have the answers to ANY of this, but it’s a conversation we ALL need to be having with each other, because the companies behind these technologies aren’t incentivized to help. While there is some cautious optimism that our governments will help (shoutout to NY governor Kathy Hochul), we have to be have to be raising these issues in our homes, schools, and communities. We hope this open and honest conversation inspires you to start your own, and is the first of many...
LEARN MORE

BOOK: the Anxious Generation: goodreads.com/book/show/171681821-the-anxious-generation


ARTICLE: End The Phone-Based Childhood Now: theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/03/teen-childhood-smartphone-use-mental-health-effects/677722/


INTERVIEW (Daily Show): youtube.com/watch?v=tcr0yg7Mvg8


NY NEWS: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/30/new-york-smartphone-school-ban-bill



CLAIRE & SEIF - PAST POD APPEARANCES

Claire Yoon Elvers (Jan’22): podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/claire-elvers-wayfairs-head-of-global-brand/id1509346585?i=1000547310780


Seif Hamid (Oct’20): podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/seif-hamid-and-sound-as-a-ny-arab/id1507595726?i=1000495612657


Ramadan (Apr’21): podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ramadan-mubarak-for-us-all/id1507595726?i=1000556141573


Seif + Arab of the Future (Jan’21)

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-arab-of-the-future-vols-1-4-culture-clashes-everywhere/id1516509265?i=1000505705732


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”Being a writer is just bloody hard work and passion. It is a kind of madness, which compels you every day to go to say, ‘OK, let's do it again today’ “
Manreet Sodhi Someshwar’s the author of nine novels - including the Long Walk Home, Radiance of a Thousand Suns, and most recently the Partition Trilogy - a historical fiction novel series which Raman is a BIG fan of. Manreet’s  articles and essays have appeared in the New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, and the South China Morning Post, among others. She has taught for the New York Public Library and the City College of New York - and she’s a former corporate citizen having done stints in Asia, and a parent grappling with the world our kids will inherit. Manreet’s recently complete Partition Trilogy - a series of 3 books titled Lahore, Hyderabad, and Kashmir - are a historical fiction set during, before, and immediately after the Partition - and independence of - India and Pakistan of 1947. Partition is among the the great humanitarian disasters of the 20th century - and the largest mass migration in history
The history of Partition is a topic near and dear to Raman - and impacts and informs much of what is happening today, in both Asia, and the United States - from the tensions between India and Pakistan, and the rise of nationalism / extremism in our politics around the world. Manreet’s unique voice focuses not just on the personal musings of these larger than life historical figures - like India’s founding fathers Gandhi & Nehru, but she also breathes life into characters who represent the stats and figures that we sometimes gloss over when we hear of a tragedy (including the role - and subversion of women by history). We talked a lot about the weaponization of history, and how storytelling - and fact-checking - have to work hand in hand. You’ll enjoy this candid and thoughtful conversation with Manreet, who's using her creative drive to make a statement for the world today - including the next generation. 
LEARN ABOUT MANREET

Lahore (book): goodreads.com/en/book/show/59617445


instagram.com/manreetsomeshwar

goodreads.com/author/list/265630.Manreet_Sodhi_Someshwar


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"It truly is a matter of exploring, discovery, knowing your boundaries - to gradually get there. The key is to keep your eye on the North Star - what is it that makes you come alive?”
In this personal conversation from Raman’s other podcast “Learnings from Leaders” - Raman chats with Bernice Ang, an Executive Coach who helps senior leaders design a purpose-centered personal brand, enabling them to integrate their work and personal lives so they can thrive, not just survive. Bernice started her career in Brand Management in P&G Asia Pacific. From there, she took on several Global Marketing leadership roles in the US with Coca-Cola, Pepsico, and Mars-Wrigley. Five years ago, Bernice left her corporate career to pursue her dream of becoming an Executive Coach. Today, Bernice is among the top 4% of professional coaches who holds a Master Certified Coach designation, the highest credential awarded by the International Coach Federation. Bernice also helped co-found the P&G Alumni Network Coaching program, ringing together Professionally certified Executive Coaches with proven track records. You’ll enjoy this candid and very personal conversation about IKIGAI - the Japanese concept which encourages people to discover what truly matters to them - to live a life filled with purpose and joy.

LEARN MORE

berniceang.com/

coaching.pgalums.com

pgalums.com/podcast


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"How do you express what you want in a way that activates you, is unignorable, and automatically aligns your beliefs, your values, and how you show up in the world?”
Bonnie Wan knows what it feels like to struggle with burnout and uncertainty about where to go next. As a celebrated advertising strategist she spent years helping brands like Pepsi and BMW get clarity on their values and purpose, but she one day found herself mired and directionless in her own life–a “recovering perfectionist” with a crumbling marriage, a big job, and three young children. So she put her “work brain” to work - and sketched out a creative brief (one of the key tools of the ad trade) for herself, granting clarity on what was missing and what she really wanted in her life. Not only did “the Life Brief” save Bonnie’s marriage, recenter her parenting, and catapult her career (she was named Ad Age’s Chief Strategy Officer last year)—it has since gone on to help thousands of others through her speaking at Apple, Bain & Co, Change.org, Google, Goop, Jane Goodall’s “Activating Hope” Summit, SXSW and more. Her new book — “THE LIFE BRIEF: A Playbook for No-Regrets Living “ — creates a clear guide for anyone to break through life’s clutter and create deeper meaning through three simple stages: Get Messy. Get Clear. Get Active. This is a perfect conversation to help so many of us who seem to “have it all” yet feel restless or rudderless. 

LEARN ABOUT BONNIE

Thelifebrief.com

BOOK: goodreads.com/en/book/show/176443602

 
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"Some have to carry more weight than others - everybody's got to do their part to try to lighten their load."
Linda Clement-Holmes served as P&G’s Chief Diversity Officer AND P&G’s Chief Information Officer - significantly elevating early efforts in corporate Diversity & Inclusion. Starting as a systems analyst in 1983, Linda has led a global career as an “executive of firsts” - the first Black female Senior VP, and later President. Linda’s been named one of Computerworld’s Premier 100 IT Leaders, Black Enterprise magazine’s Top Executives, and Working Mother’s “Working Mothers of the Year,” among many other honors. Linda is an active active Board leader among many business and community organizations, is a graduate of Purdue University, and a proud mother of two accomplished sons. In this candid conversation about authenticity and courage, Linda speaks about her personal - and professional - experiences in race, and comments on the unique moment we face today. Linda shares how she works everyday to lighten the load of others, and gets everyone to do their part. 
For Black History Month, we’re sharing conversations from Raman’s other podcast “Learnings from Leaders” where we have candid mentorship style conversations - with business leaders, entrepreneurs, and philanthropists, many of whom are alums of Procter & Gamble - where many industry leaders got their start with a foundation of purpose, values, and principles. 
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