Connection Request Shrug Content

Today on the show, I’m talking to Kristin Mitchell, the founder and creative director of Gathered in Style, a boutique event planning business based in New York City. Kristin is a magician when it comes to events. You might call her an event scientist. 
If you were to scroll through her Instagram page, you’d see a K-pop themed birthday party, an elevated state fair soiree, a private dinner in a small grocery store, a pasta pool party, and my new favorite thing – a churro umbrella. 
We talk about Kristin’s career journey, from planning high profile events like Reuters Newsmakers and client events at the Aspen Ideas Festival and the Super Bowl - to going off on her own to start her own business. We also trade stories of both of our experiences at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington DC, including the time NFL linebacker Von Miller stood me up at the airport.
Kristin shares some excellent advice on what she’s learned running her own business and creating a brand from scratch, as well as practical tips for anyone who’s looking to take their next gathering to the next level. She also shares her philosophy on why we should celebrate everything, how to catch a vibe, and how she learned to love business. And her love for accountants.
New episodes released every Thursday wherever you get podcasts. 
☕️ Season 2 is presented by SK Coffee, a specialty coffee roaster, based in Minnesota, shipping worldwide. Learn more: https://bit.ly/skconnection 
Connect with the show 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ConnectRequest 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connectionrequest/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@connectionrequest 
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@connectionrequest 
Email: connect@shrugcontent.com  
Connect with Joel 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joelleeman 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jleeman/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joelleeman/ 
About Connection Request 
Connection Request is a podcast about career journeys, produced by Shrug Content. Hosted by Joel Leeman, a producer and strategist who has spent the past 10 years making media for the Internet, the show profiles a variety of fascinating people, digging into how they spend their waking hours, what they’ve learned along the way, how they make decisions, and why they do what they do. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Today on the show, I’m chatting to Kris Ehresmann, the architect of Minnesota’s COVID-19 pandemic response, and the former long-time director of the Infectious Disease Division of the Minnesota Department of Health. 
Kris spent more than 30 years of service in public health before retiring, and played key roles in many public health issues both in Minnesota and nationally. Minnesota leaders have called her “an extraordinary public servant”, a “true leader”, and responsible for cultivating “a new generation of talented public health leaders.” 
We talk about what she learned during the global pandemic, a time she describes as being a frog in a pot of boiling water. We also talk about other outbreaks during her career, why public health is linked to social justice, as well as what public health has taught her about the world. She also details the biggest learning experience of her career and how the pandemic taught her how to swear. And, she describes some of the immense challenges of the politicization of public health and public service, and what she’s been up to since retiring. 
New episodes released every Thursday wherever you get podcasts. 
☕️ Season 2 is presented by SK Coffee, a specialty coffee roaster, based in Minnesota, shipping worldwide. Learn more: https://bit.ly/skconnection 
Connect with the show 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ConnectRequest 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connectionrequest/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@connectionrequest 
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@connectionrequest 
Email: connect@shrugcontent.com  
Connect with Joel 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joelleeman 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jleeman/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joelleeman/ 
About Connection Request 
Connection Request is a podcast about career journeys, produced by Shrug Content. Hosted by Joel Leeman, a producer and strategist who has spent the past 10 years making media for the Internet, the show profiles a variety of fascinating people, digging into how they spend their waking hours, what they’ve learned along the way, how they make decisions, and why they do what they do. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Today on the show I’m talking to Dale Whittaker. He’s a Senior Advisor at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and has spent his career working in academia at institutions including Texas A&M, Purdue University, and the University of Central Florida. He’s also a watercolor artist and plays a mean harmonica. 
I wanted to pick Dale’s brain on the state of higher education around the world, both from his perch inside institutions, and now outside as part of the Gates Foundation. We talk about how education relates to careers today, how artificial intelligence will impact the future of learning, and how education remains one of the strongest levers and predictors of economic mobility. We also dig into some of the various alternative learning movements, like coding bootcamps and Google certifications, and unpack the real value of higher education today. 
Dale also tells the story of his time as president of the University of Central Florida, which ended in a very public battle with Ron Desantis and the Florida legislature. I’m grateful to him for being so open about that journey and what he learned from a traumatic period in his career journey. I also of course ask him for his thoughts on Desantis’s prospects for the presidency.
New episodes released every Thursday, right here on YouTube, or wherever you get podcasts. 
☕️ Season 2 is presented by SK Coffee, a specialty coffee roaster, based in Minnesota, shipping worldwide. Learn more: https://bit.ly/skconnection 
Connect with the show 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ConnectRequest 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connectionrequest/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@connectionrequest 
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@connectionrequest 
Email: connect@shrugcontent.com  
Connect with Joel 
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joelleeman 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jleeman/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joelleeman/ 
About Connection Request 
Connection Request is a podcast about career journeys, produced by Shrug Content. Hosted by Joel Leeman, a producer and strategist who has spent the past 10 years making media for the Internet, the show profiles a variety of fascinating people, digging into how they spend their waking hours, what they’ve learned along the way, how they make decisions, and why they do what they do. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.
 

Today on the show I’m talking to Tim Niver, the restaurateur behind beloved Minnesota restaurants Mucci’s Italian and Saint Dinette, owner of Mucci’s Frozen Food, and host of Niver Niver Land, a podcast about the changing restaurant industry.
Tim has worked in restaurants for a long time, working here in Minnesota, as well as New York, Colorado, and a stint in Las Vegas opening up the Bellagio. I’ve long been a fan of Tim’s as we chat about in today's conversation. I especially appreciate how open he is about the ups and downs of his industry, through his podcast, social media, and interviews he does with the media. He displays that openness and vulnerability in our conversation as we talk about what success looks like in his field, what he’s learned from going through the pandemic, and how the restaurant industry is still changing dramatically today.
We also chat about his multiple business and creative adventures, going toe to toe with Muhammad Ali, and his dream guest for Niver Niver Land.
New episodes released every Thursday, right here on YouTube, or wherever you get podcasts.
☕️ Season 2 is presented by SK Coffee, a specialty coffee roaster, based in Minnesota, shipping worldwide. Learn more: https://bit.ly/skconnection
Connect with Tim
https://www.youtube.com/@niverniverland3707 
https://www.instagram.com/tim_niver/
https://www.muccisitalian.com/
https://www.saintdinette.com/
Connect with the show
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ConnectRequest
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connectionrequest/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@connectionrequest
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@connectionrequest
Email: connect@shrugcontent.com
Connect with Joel
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joelleeman
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jleeman/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joelleeman/
About Connection Request Connection Request is a podcast about career journeys, produced by Shrug Content. Hosted by Joel Leeman, a producer and strategist who has spent the past 10 years making media for the Internet, the show profiles a variety of fascinating people, digging into how they spend their waking hours, what they’ve learned along the way, how they make decisions, and why they do what they do. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Today on the show, I’m talking to Taylor Misiak. She’s an LA based actor best known for starring as Ally on DAVE on FX, the comedy starring the rapper and comedian Dave Burd, better known as Lil Dicky. She also starred in Lil Dicky’s music video Pillow Talking alongside Dave and John C. Riley, and has acted in shows on Netflix, Paramount Plus, and NBC.
The actors’ strike has now been going on for more than 100 days, so I wanted to understand from Taylor’s perspective what SAG-AFTRA is fighting for, what the strike has been like for her, and the knock-on effects for the industry. Her decade has also been marked by mega movements in the industry like the streaming wars, MeToo, the pandemic, and now artificial intelligence, so we unpack all of that too. 
We spend time digging into what being on DAVE has meant for her career, how collaborative the show has been, and how she was able to help shape her character. We also talk about why despite her recent success she feels like an underdog, and the characters she still wants to play. And we chat about why she loves working on short films, sketches, and how she’s been writing and pitching her own material.
Taylor also is the co-host of Table Flipping, a podcast about reality TV, so we had to get into some of her thoughts on reality TV, including why she thinks 90 Day Fiancé is actually a better show than DAVE(!).
Stick around for the rapid fire for her thoughts on the Golden Bachelor and her favorite celebrity run-in.
New episodes of Connection Request are released every Thursday, right here on YouTube, or wherever you get podcasts. 
☕️ Season 2 is presented by SK Coffee, a specialty coffee roaster, based in Minnesota, shipping worldwide. Learn more: https://bit.ly/skconnection 
Connect with Taylorhttps://www.instagram.com/taylormisiak/https://twitter.com/taylormisiakhttps://www.imdb.com/name/nm5357286/
Connect with the show Twitter: https://twitter.com/ConnectRequest Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connectionrequest/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@connectionrequest TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@connectionrequest Email: connect@shrugcontent.com  
Connect with Joel Twitter: https://twitter.com/joelleeman LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jleeman/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joelleeman/ 
About Connection Request Connection Request is a podcast about career journeys, produced by Shrug Content. Hosted by Joel Leeman, a producer and strategist who has spent the past 10 years making media for the Internet, the show profiles a variety of fascinating people, digging into how they spend their waking hours, what they’ve learned along the way, how they make decisions, and why they do what they do. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Today on the show we’re talking to Mandi Jung, better known as Sabocat on TikTok, aka Fox News' #1 worst nightmare.
Mandi is a public school teacher who has grown a large following on TikTok sharing both her thoughts and resources on teacher unions, the intersection of capitalism and education, and other critical issues in her space. I love Mandi’s joy and passion for both students and teachers alike, and I think you’ll hear that come through in the interview.
We discuss what the broader public gets wrong about teachers, her friendship with Minnesota’s attorney general, the far right’s push to delegitimize public education, and about what it’s like to get roasted by Fox News and mentioned by Donald Trump.
We also get into why she started her TikTok out of spite, her run-in with Dave Matthews, and do a quick round of hot takes on important issues like book bans, free lunch, and critical race theory. New episodes released every Thursday, right here on YouTube, or wherever you get podcasts.
☕️ Season 2 is presented by SK Coffee, a specialty coffee roaster, based in Minnesota, shipping worldwide. Learn more: https://bit.ly/skconnection
Connect with Sabocat
https://www.tiktok.com/@sabocat
https://twitter.com/sabocat_teacher
https://www.instagram.com/sabocat_teacher/
https://www.sabocatteacher.com/
Connect with the show
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ConnectRequest
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connectionrequest/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@connectionrequest
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@connectionrequest
Email: connect@shrugcontent.com
Connect with Joel
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joelleeman
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jleeman/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joelleeman/
About Connection Request
Connection Request is a podcast about career journeys, produced by Shrug Content. Hosted by Joel Leeman, a producer and strategist who has spent the past 10 years making media for the Internet, the show profiles a variety of fascinating people, digging into how they spend their waking hours, what they’ve learned along the way, how they make decisions, and why they do what they do. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.