The Purpose and Progress Podcast Show

Dr. Jim Price
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The Purpose and Progress Podcast is where purpose becomes action and growth never stops. Each episode brings real stories, practical insights, and conversations designed to help you move forward with clarity and intention. Subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs encouragement today.

  1. 3d ago

    Undefeated: The Psychology of Strong Leadership, Cohesion, and Performance with Al Philip-Neri

    "If I answer the root question of what it takes to create success, I will just say… undefeated. It's a mindset that says you will continue; you'll persevere." —Dr. Al Philip Neri   An undefeated mindset isn't about never losing — it's about refusing to let a loss be the end of the story. In this episode of The Purpose and Progress Podcast, host Dr. Jim Price sits down with Dr. Al Philip-Neri, a performance psychologist, executive coach, and founder of Cohesion HQ, to unpack what it actually takes to keep moving forward after failure. Dr. Philip-Neri draws on 22 years as an entrepreneur, a 12-year government career, and his PhD research on cohesion in high-stakes environments to explain why self-awareness — not motivation — is the real engine of growth. He walks through a costly business partnership lesson, why payroll is the biggest line item most owners underestimate, and the five-pillar framework from his book, The Execution Advantage, that helps leaders build trust through calculated pressure rather than avoid it. This episode is for anyone rebuilding after a setback, considering a business partnership, or trying to lead a team through uncertainty without losing cohesion along the way. Being undefeated is a mindset choice, not a scoreboard — the only question that matters after failure is "what's next that moves the needle forward?" Real growth requires brutal self-awareness: knowing exactly where you're strong, where you're average, and where you need to collaborate instead of compete. A seven-year business lease taught Dr. Philip-Neri that partners need to align on the true purpose of a venture before signing anything, not just share enthusiasm for it. Payroll is typically the largest line item on a P&L, which is why many family-run businesses stay small and hands-on rather than scale with employees. Pressure isn't the enemy of a strong team — deliberate, calibrated pressure, applied the way a parent teaches a child to ride a bike, is what builds collective trust. The Execution Advantage framework moves teams through four stages: understanding behavior, creating alignment, applying pressure, and predicting execution. Ready to hear the full conversation? Tune in!   Connect with Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube Spotify   Chapters: 03:47 Meet Dr. Al Philip-Neri: From Government Service to Psychology 06:15 Learning From Failure vs. Learning From Success 10:35 The Seven-Year Lease Mistake That Redefined His Business 14:38 Why Payroll Is the Biggest Line Item in Any Business 17:30 Inside the Execution Advantage: Behavior, Alignment, Pressure 21:34 The Bike-Riding Metaphor: How Pressure Builds Trust  26:01 Closing Reflections   Resources:  📖The Execution Advantage: How Leaders Build Organizations That Drive Results by Dr. Al Philip-Neri, PhD Get Jim's Books    📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Philip:  Dr. Al Philip-Neri, PhD, is a Performance Psychologist and Founder of Cohesion HQ, specializing in team cohesion and leadership performance. He works with CEOs, founders, executive directors, and leadership teams to improve organizational execution and alignment. Drawing on experience in corrections leadership, state special operations, juvenile justice reform, and professional fighter development, Dr. Philip-Neri brings a systems-based approach to leadership. His philosophy centers on the belief that while culture is a feeling, cohesion is a system, and that sustainable organizational performance begins with aligned leadership and consistent execution. Website LinkedIn Instagram YouTube

  2. Oct 22

    Healing Childhood Trauma: Recognizing the Signs and Breaking the Cycle with Patricia Grenelle

    "Be aware. Take a look at your childhood. Look at it and say there is something there that I need to look at, and then start researching and studying. That would be very helpful." —Patricia Grenelle   Childhood trauma healing can begin with one powerful step: awareness. What happens when experiences from childhood continue to influence relationships, emotions, and reactions decades later? In this episode of the Purpose and Progress Podcast Show, Dr. Jim Price sits down with retired forensic psychologist and memoir author Patricia Grenelle to discuss childhood sexual abuse, narcissistic trauma, and her personal journey toward healing. Patricia shares how writing her memoir helped her recognize that she had an important story to tell—and how therapy at age 27 helped her understand that she had experienced childhood sexual abuse. The conversation explores: How childhood trauma can affect adult relationships Patricia's experience recognizing her own trauma The narcissistic abuse cycle of love bombing, devaluation, and discard Hypervigilance and other lingering trauma responses Why awareness can be an important first step Using the ACE test as a starting point for learning more about childhood experiences How Patricia's memoir aims to inform and support others This is a candid conversation about recognizing the past, understanding its influence, and moving toward greater self-awareness. Learn more about Patricia and her memoir: https://www.patriciagrenelle.com   Connect with Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube Spotify   Chapters: 02:36 Why Patricia Wrote Her Memoir 05:21 How Childhood Trauma Shapes Adult Relationships 06:40 Understanding Narcissistic Abuse 10:37 Recognizing Trauma Later in Life 12:19 Beginning the Healing Process 14:54 Hypervigilance and Trauma Responses 16:56 Using a Memoir as a Healing Resource 29:39 Awareness as the First Step    Resources:  📖Get Patricia's Book We Were a Nice Normal Family: A Memoir of Recovery from C-PTSD and the Trauma of Narcissistic Abuse   📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Patricia:  Patricia A. Grenelle, PsyD, is a retired Forensic Psychologist and survivor of childhood sexual abuse and C-PTSD. She brings dual perspectives to her writing: the raw emotional truth of lived trauma and the clinical expertise of decades studying it. Patricia wrote We Were a Nice, Normal Family to honor her sister, who suffered beside her, and for every survivor who's been told they were "too sensitive," blamed themselves for family dysfunction, or wondered if healing was possible. Through her work, she reaches those who have experienced abuse, helping survivors live more productive, happy lives by understanding what happened and why it still matters. Patricia lives in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona with her husband Ed, a retired US Army Major, and her service dog JP, a Goldendoodle who supports her through her own C-PTSD journey. She encourages readers to help stop childhood sexual abuse, rape, and trauma by supporting the organizations she highlights in her work.  Website LinkedIn Instagram Substack

  3. Oct 15

    Outsmart Your Smartphone: Training Your Mind to Be Your Ultimate Power Tool with Rob Yonover

    "I sell streamers through Amazon. I use social media. We're doing a podcast through the internet and Wi-Fi and Zoom. All these things are great, but they're tools. They're not the end game. The big tool is your brain, and if you don't use it, you lose it." —Dr. Rob Yonover   Train your mind before your smartphone does — that's the challenge PhD volcanologist, inventor, and Shark Tank alum Dr. Rob Yonover puts to host Dr. Jim Price on this episode of Purpose and Progress Podcast. Dr. Yonover has surfed Hawaii's North Shore for nearly four decades, dove two miles down in the Alvin submersible, and been featured by CNN, Discovery, and PBS. But the story he tells here is less about the adventures and more about the discipline underneath them: 19 years spent caring for his wife through progressive paralysis from MS while raising two kids, running a business, and inventing survival gear now used by militaries around the world. This episode is for anyone rebuilding their resilience, questioning their relationship with technology, or looking for proof that self-reliance is a skill you train, not a trait you're born with. Dr. Yonover connects his caregiving journey, his 40-plus-year fight to get his See Rescue Streamer invention adopted, and his blunt take on smartphones and AI into one consistent philosophy: your brain is the only tool that actually matters, and it only gets sharper if you use it. Key Takeaways: Dr. Yonover cared for his wife through 19 years of full paralysis while raising two children, running a business, and continuing his invention work. His See Rescue Streamer took over 40 years to gain traction with the military, proof that long-term discipline outperforms short-term motivation. He still carries a "dumb phone" on principle, treating devices as tools to control rather than habits to obey. His two-word caregiving and parenting rule — ignore and distract — reframes conflict as something to redirect instead of fight. He believes AI and smartphones are quietly outsourcing the one tool that built every other success in his life: his own brain. Creativity and human connection are, in his view, the only two pillars of a meaningful life — everything else is maintenance. Listen to the full conversation for the story behind the See Rescue Streamer, the Alvin dive to the Titanic wreck site, and the exact language Dr. Yonover uses with his grandkids to keep their minds — not their screens — in charge.   Connect with Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube Spotify   Chapters: 01:43 Meet Dr. Rob Yonover: Volcanologist Turned Inventor 05:08 Two Miles Down: Diving to the Titanic Site in Alvin 05:06 Why Education Became His Ultimate Power Tool 07:27 19 Years of Caregiving: When Resilience Was Required 11:35 Playing the Long Game Through Adversity 13:23 Inventing the Sea Rescue Streamer That Saves Lives 16:45 The Dumb Phone Test: Why He Won't Go Smart 17:50 Outsmarting AI: Training Your Mind Over Your Phone 23:15 Creativity and Connection: The Two Pillars of Life 26:03 Final Wisdom: Ignore, Distract, and Earn It    Resources:  📖Get Rob's Books  🤿Get Rob's See Rescue Streamer   📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Rob:  Dr. Robert N. Yonover received his Ph.D. in Geochemistry/Volcanology fromthe University of Hawaii with a Research Fellowship at NASA -Johnson Space Center and laboratory work at MIT. He invented the SeeRescue®Streamer survival technology, LIFE/FLOAT™ Rescue Board, Pocket Floatation Device, Pocket DeSalinator, and the Video Search and Rescue (vSAR) technology. The SeeRescue®Streamer technology is now in use by all branches of the U.S. military, including all U.S. Navy Submarines`and self-deploying Day/Night versions for US Air Force fighter jets. SeeRescue®Streamers are credited with 4 lives saved to date. Dr. Yonover's new book is entitled "Hardcore Inventing," and he has appeared on CNN, PBS, and Discovery Channel. Website  Instagram Facebook X YouTube

  4. Oct 8

    Life After the Spotlight: Turning Career Rejection Into a New Life Mission with Anne Montgomery

    "Don't be afraid of change… We have to keep going because life is never going to go the way we planned. But those twists and turns might really surprise you. Change is inevitable, and I'm going to embrace it." —Anne Montgomery   Career reinvention rarely happens on a straight line, and no one proves that better than former ESPN sportscaster Anne Montgomery. In this episode of the Purpose and Progress Podcast, host Dr. Jim Price talks with Anne about breaking into sports broadcasting as a teenager in 1972, anchoring at five TV stations, and then losing it all when she was pushed out of the industry in her late 30s. What follows isn't a highlight reel — it's an honest account of debt, depression, and the slow, uncomfortable work of career change after 40. Anne shares how she hid from her old life by working as an amateur sports official, how a Vietnam veteran dying of Agent Orange poisoning reset her entire perspective on complaining, and how that shift eventually led her into teaching journalism. From there, her story becomes one about fostering six children, publishing six novels, and finding purpose in the last place she expected. This episode is for anyone facing a career transition, job loss, or the fear that their best years are already behind them. Key Takeaways: Anne's broadcasting career ended in her late 30s because the industry's target demographic skewed young, proving that career loss can hit even at the height of professional success. A conversation with a terminally ill Vietnam veteran and umpiring partner reframed Anne's self-pity into gratitude and forward motion. Discovering she was dyslexic in her 50s reshaped how she understood her own early struggles as a student. Becoming "nicer" as a teacher — not just tougher — came from learning that a student's homelessness, not laziness, explained his tardiness. Fostering six young people, including one who called her from foster care because he was going hungry, became the most meaningful chapter of Anne's life. Her advice for anyone in crisis: grieve the loss, then treat change as inevitable and worth embracing rather than resisting. Listen to the full conversation for Anne's complete story of reinvention.   Connect with Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube Spotify   Chapters: 01:48 Meet Anne Montgomery: From Locker Room Outsider to ESPN Anchor 06:42 Why Female Sportscasters Got Pushed Out at 40 19:51 Life After the Camera: Hiding Behind an Umpire Uniform 14:05 The Veteran Who Changed How She Saw Her Own Complaining 16:39 Becoming a Teacher in a Title One High School 21:22 From Sports Scripts to Six Published Novels 22:39 The Phone Call That Made Her a Foster Mom 26:06 Anne's Advice: Don't Be Afraid of Change   Resources 📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Anne: Anne Butler Montgomery has worked as a television sportscaster, newspaper and magazine writer, teacher, author, and amateur sports official. Her first TV job came at WRBL-TV in Columbus, Georgia, and led to positions at WROC-TV in Rochester, New York, KTSP-TV in Phoenix, Arizona, and ESPN in Bristol, Connecticut, where she anchored the Emmy- and ACE award-winning SportsCenter.  She finished her on-camera broadcasting career with a two-year stint as the studio host for the NBA's Phoenix Suns. Montgomery was a freelance and/or staff reporter for six publications, writing sports, features, movie reviews, and archeological pieces. Her novels include Your Forgotten Sons, The Castle, A Light in the Desert, Wild Horses on the Salt, The Scent of Rain, and Wolf Catcher. Montgomery taught journalism and communication skills in a Title I high school for 20 years and was an amateur sports official for four decades, a time during which she called baseball, ice hockey, soccer, and basketball games and served as a high school football referee and crew chief.  Montgomery is a foster mom to three sons and a daughter. When she can, she indulges in her passions: rock collecting, scuba diving, and playing her guitar. She splits her time between Phoenix, Arizona, and St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands.    Website LinkedIn  Facebook  X

  5. Oct 1

    Quieting Burnout: The Science-Backed Power of Creative Self-Care with Alexandra Reid

    "The BIG success is getting your time back to yourself to choose how you want to spend it." —Alexandra Reid   Burnout recovery rarely starts with a five-year plan — sometimes it starts with a stick figure drawn during a Zoom call. In this episode of The Purpose and Progress, host Dr. Jim Price sits down with creative wellness coach and former research scientist Alexandra Reid to unpack how she rebuilt her sense of self after hitting a wall during the pandemic. Alexandra spent her career climbing the science ladder — bachelor's, master's, PhD, postdoc — before landing in quality and regulatory affairs at a medical device company. When her team was assigned to fast-track emergency ventilators during the pandemic's earliest, most uncertain months, the pressure of juggling 24/7 work with two kids doing remote school pushed her into full burnout. She couldn't even step into the art studio she loved. What brought her back wasn't a big creative project — it was doodling through meetings, almost by accident. That accidental habit became the foundation of her Creative Reset program, a 12-week curriculum that uses simple, judgment-free drawing exercises to help high-achieving women — especially those in STEM — set boundaries, manage stress, and reconnect with their own priorities. This conversation is for anyone who feels like their calendar is full, but their sense of purpose is running on empty. Burnout often builds slowly, like the frog-in-boiling-water analogy Alexandra uses — small overcommitments compound until exhaustion feels sudden. A five-to-ten-minute, judgment-free drawing exercise, done consistently, can lower stress in the moment and rebuild self-trust over time. The "batteries" exercise — sketching a battery for each area of life and rating how full it is — makes invisible energy drains visible. Creative wellness coaching differs from art therapy by staying forward-focused: it's about building new habits, not just processing the past. Most clients start Alexandra's program believing they don't have time, then finish it saying they've reclaimed hours they didn't know they had. Changing your physical environment — a walk, a café, a park bench — can reset your thinking faster than reflecting in the same space where the pressure lives. 🎧 Listen to the full conversation for Alexandra's boundary-setting advice and the exact doodling exercise that helped her recover.   Connect with Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube Spotify   Chapters:  02:01 Meet Alexandra Reid: From Bench Science to Burnout 03:21 The Ventilator Project That Triggered Her Burnout 07:55 Recognizing Burnout: Invisible Labor and Bad Habits 09:33 Reclaiming Time Through Self-Awareness 11:22 Inside the Creative Reset: Batteries and Boundary Work 16:01 The First Step: Change Your Scenery to Reset Your Mind 18:39 Where to Find Alexandra Reid's Wellness Program 19:15 Key Takeaways and Final Thoughts    Resources 📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Alexandra:  Alexandra (Lexi) Reid is a creative wellness coach, business owner, and former research scientist who helps high-achieving women in STEM overcome burnout, rebuild purpose, and strengthen resilience through creativity, mindfulness, and reflection. Drawing on her background in quality and regulatory affairs and her own experience of pandemic burnout while leading emergency ventilator projects, Alexandra developed The Creative Reset, a 12-week, science-informed program that uses simple, pressure-free drawing and visual journaling to help women reclaim their time, set healthy boundaries, and reconnect with joy. Through 1:1 coaching, group programs, and online resources at Mind Art Wellness (mindartwellness.com), she supports women at every stage—from grad school to mid-career pivots and beyond—in building sustainable habits, deep self-leadership, and a more creative, aligned life. Website LinkedIn Instagram Facebook YouTube  Pinterest

  6. Sep 24

    Choose Progress Before Certainty: A Mental Health Journey of Inner Healing & Purpose with Gloria Lorelai Lee

    "You know yourself best. So listen to your own intuition and your gut, and do the inner work to really know what it is that you value, that genuinely brings you joy, that genuinely lights you up, and just take that courageous step and follow it. Choose progress before certainty. Choose taking that courageous step before feeling like you're ready, because at times you're not going to feel ready, and sometimes you just have to do it. There's no way of failing if you're willing to try." —Gloria Lorelai Lee    Learning to take aligned action before you're ready is the thread running through this conversation with certified high-performance coach and energy healer Gloria Lorelai Lee. She built her coaching practice out of a childhood marked by anxiety, depression, and loneliness — and years spent searching for meaning through travel, humanitarian work in Africa, and a hospitality career she eventually left behind entirely. This episode is for anyone stuck between wanting to change and feeling ready to start. Gloria walks through what it actually looked like to move through anxiety and depression, why she nearly got stuck reliving her own trauma during the "inner work" phase of healing, and how she learned to balance reflection with forward motion. Host Dr. Jim Price draws out practical, personal-growth-driven insight on resilience, purpose, and mindset shifts that stick. Listeners will leave with a clearer sense of how to define success on their own terms, why recognizing a problem is the real first step toward healing, and how to treat every attempt—successful or not—as useful data rather than failure. Key takeaways: Progress beats certainty: taking a courageous step before you feel ready is often the only way forward. Doing "the inner work" without balance can trap you in your own trauma story instead of freeing you from it. Recognizing a problem exists is the first and most important step toward addressing mental health challenges. Defining success on your own terms — not society's — is what makes a goal sustainable. Every action you take, whether it "works" or not, is feedback you can use to refine your next step. Staying resourceful (books, podcasts, community) can fill gaps that formal support systems don't always cover. Listen to the full episode for Gloria's story of rebuilding her life around purpose, and subscribe so you don't miss the next conversation.   Connect with Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube Spotify   Chapters: 01:53 Meet Gloria Lorelai Lee: A High-Performance Coach's Origin Story 05:47 Facing Anxiety, Depression, and the Search for Meaning 08:12 Why Recognizing the Problem Is the First Step to Healing 09:06 Redefining Success: Living an Authentic, Aligned Life 13:49 Future Vision: Books, Retreats, and a Purpose Festival in Africa 18:27 Take Aligned Action Before You're Ready: Gloria's Core Advice 20:41 Where to Find Gloria Lorelai Lee Online    Resources 📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Gloria: Gloria Lorelai Lee is a certified high-performance coach and energy healer who helps purpose-driven individuals create clarity, courage, and resilience so they can take aligned action—even before they feel fully ready. Drawing from her lived experience with mental health challenges, anxiety, depression, and poverty, as well as her international work in Australia and South Africa, Gloria brings a grounded, compassionate approach to personal development, mindset, and spiritual growth. Through her coaching, upcoming books, and global wellness retreats, she empowers clients to transform adversity into a meaningful life of service, authenticity, and impact. Gloria's long-term vision includes hosting a global personal development festival in Africa, uniting seekers, leaders, and change-makers committed to healing and growth.   Website LinkedIn Instagram

  7. Sep 17

    Retired But Not Done: The Joy of Building a Second Career with Avalon Brown

    "There's a story in everything. If you just look in your environment or the people you're around, or you listen to other people talking, there's a story, and if there's a story, you have a vision. Just start writing." —Avalon Brown   A 43-year nursing career doesn't usually end with a bookshelf full of published titles — but for this episode's guest, becoming a nurse turned author wasn't a plan, it was a habit that finally caught up with her. In this episode of Purpose and Progress, host Dr. Jim Price sits down with registered nurse, healthcare leader, and author Avalon Brown to trace how jotting down thoughts on scraps of paper eventually became a growing library of children's books, nursing anthologies, memoirs, and even a spiritual poetry collection. Avalon walks through the exact moment her writing career began — pushed forward by a mentor at church who told her to stop talking about writing a book and go write it — and how that first manuscript grew into a full self-publishing career after retiring from nursing in 2023. Listeners will hear how she built a nursing anthology series that gives working nurses a platform to share their own stories, why marketing (not writing) has been her biggest challenge, and how everyday moments — a sick grandchild, a squirrel in a church garden, a car seat safety day at the local firehouse — became the seeds for an entire children's book catalog. This conversation is for anyone sitting on an idea they haven't started, anyone rebuilding an identity after retirement, or anyone curious about what self-publishing actually looks like once you get past the writing itself. Key takeaways: Avalon's first book began as a way to process nursing adversities she was living through in real time, starting in 2012. She built a 10-author nursing anthology, "Nursing Is Our Passion, We Can't Quit," by inviting working nurses from different specialties to each write their own chapter. Her children's books are drawn directly from real life — a granddaughter's frequent colds, a garden squirrel, and a fire station's car seat safety day all became published titles. Marketing, not writing, is the hardest part of being an author, which is why she still sells books in person at book fairs and festivals. She started with traditional publishing but moved to self-publishing after networking with other authors taught her how. Her nursing "How to Flourish" series will grow to seven books, each pulling from a different role she held — charge nurse, clinical manager, kidney transplant designee, and more. Enjoyed this episode? Subscribe to Purpose and Progress so you never miss a conversation.    Connect with Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube Spotify   Chapters: 03:23 Meet Avalon Brown: From Nursing Career to Author 05:57 Her Biggest Obstacle: Marketing a Self-Published Book 08:17 How a Book Festival Sparked Her Children's Books 10:51 Finding Story Ideas in Everyday Life 12:42 Inside Her 7-Book Nursing "How to Flourish" Series 13:46 Where to Find Avalon Brown's Books 17:13 Her #1 Advice for Aspiring Authors 18:29 From Traditional Publishing to Self-Publishing 19:54 Key Takeaways and Final Words of Encouragement     Resources 📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Avalon:  Avalon Soulette Brown is a passionate author, storyteller, and educator whose mission is to inspire, encourage, and empower readers through the written word. Since publishing her first book, It Was the Devil All Along, in 2021, she has built a growing collection of books that span children's literature, Christian inspiration, memoirs, nursing education, poetry, and collaborative anthologies. Whether she is writing heartwarming stories for children, faith-filled books that strengthen the spirit, or practical guides that encourage professional growth, Avalon writes with authenticity, compassion, and purpose. Her children's books celebrate family, imagination, kindness, and life lessons, often featuring her grandchildren as beloved characters. Her memoirs and inspirational works reflect resilience, faith, and the power of overcoming life's challenges, while her nursing publications draw upon decades of experience to mentor and inspire healthcare professionals. Avalon believes every book should leave a lasting impression. Her goal is not simply to tell stories, but to create books that educate, encourage meaningful conversations, strengthen faith, and inspire readers to pursue their own purpose with courage and confidence. Before becoming a full-time author, Avalon devoted 43 years to the nursing profession, where she served with excellence in clinical practice, leadership, and mentorship. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), and her extensive healthcare experience continues to shape many of her non-fiction works.    Website   Instagram Facebook  LinkedIn  X  YouTube

  8. Sep 10

    The 5 M's of PR: The Real Framework Behind Lasting Brands with Steve Turner

    "What we're trying to do with the campaign: long-term, build credibility, trust within the marketplace, and have some community impact. If it's PR, you want to do good things in the community, but we want a return on investment… If you do it the right way, I believe you'll be successful." —Steve Turner   The 5 M's of PR could save your brand from years of wasted ad spend — and PR veteran Steve Turner breaks down exactly how on this episode of Purpose and Progress. Steve is the founder of Solomon Turner, a St. Louis PR firm named to Small Business Monthly's top PR firms list 18 years running, and author of PR That Works: Real Strategies, Real Campaigns, Real Results. This episode is for small business owners, entrepreneurs, and anyone trying to build a personal brand without throwing money at tactics and hoping something sticks. Steve walks through his signature framework — Mission, Market, Message, Media, and Measurement — and shows how each piece builds on the last to create a campaign that actually moves sales, not just visibility. Along the way, he shares how a career broadcasting minor league baseball led him into advertising, why third-party media coverage outperforms self-promotion, and what it really takes to become a go-to thought leader in a crowded industry. Listeners walk away with a repeatable structure for building a brand — not another vague pep talk about "getting your name out there." Key takeaways: Every PR campaign needs a measurable objective tied to a real business goal, like unit sales, not just "getting press." Defining your audience by demographics alone (like "women 25–54") is too broad — niche down to the specific role, industry, or problem you solve. Third-party coverage from outlets like the Wall Street Journal or a local business journal builds more credibility than anything a company says about itself. Measurement isn't optional: track what's working, cut what isn't, and reinvest in the tactics producing real ROI. Writing a book, even a short one, instantly elevates your standing as a thought leader and opens doors to speaking and client opportunities. Finding a mentor who's already reached the level you're aiming for can save years of costly trial and error. Listen to the full episode for Steve's complete breakdown of the 5 M's and how to start applying them today.   Connect with Dr. Jim:  Website Instagram Facebook X YouTube   Chapters: 03:39 Meet Steve Turner: From Baseball Broadcasting to PR 07:54 The 5 M's of PR: Mission and Market, Explained 12:03 Message, Media, and Measuring Your PR ROI 15:57 Why Third-Party Press Builds More Trust Than Ads 19:13 Inside Steve's Book: PR That Works 23:02 Turning a Book Into Authority and Speaking Gigs 26:03 Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable: Steve's Advice 28:43 Find a Mentor: The Secret Sauce to Growth    Resources:  Get Steve's Book 📖 PR That Works: Real Strategies. Real Campaigns. Real Results. by Steve Turner   📖 The Adventures of Harold from the Hood Book Series by Jim Price:  🚙A Trip to the Park  🤝🏽Friends Like Different Things  🍟 Fun Time Lunch Time  😤 When I Feel So Annoyed   Meet Steve:  Steve Turner is a veteran public relations strategist and co-owner of Solomon Turner PR, an award-winning PR firm based in St. Louis. A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, Steve began his career in broadcasting, calling high school, college, and minor league baseball games for organizations including the Kansas City Royals, before transitioning into advertising and public relations. Over more than three decades, he has led successful campaigns for high-profile clients such as Tony Robbins, Brian Tracy, Steve Forbes, Northwestern Mutual, Coldwell Banker, and HealthSouth, as well as numerous regional and local brands. Under his leadership, Solomon Turner PR has been named one of Small Business Monthly's Top PR Firms in St. Louis for 18 consecutive years, and Steve has been recognized as a "Rock Star Publicist" by Authority & Media. Steve is the author of "PR That Works: Real Strategies, Real Campaigns, Real Results," which outlines practical PR tactics, case studies, and expert insights to help businesses and thought leaders build credibility and measurable visibility. A sought-after speaker and educator, he presents to universities, businesses, and professional groups on topics including branding, media strategy, and the evolving role of AI in PR, often centering his talks on his signature 5M's framework: mission, market, message, media, and measurement. He is passionate about helping organizations clarify their story, amplify their brand, and turn PR into real-world results and ROI.   Website  Website (Rockstar Publicist) LinkedIn Instagram Facebook

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The Purpose and Progress Podcast is where purpose becomes action and growth never stops. Each episode brings real stories, practical insights, and conversations designed to help you move forward with clarity and intention. Subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs encouragement today.

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