The Movement Maker Show
Most of you are not aware I used to have my own show. You're probably also not aware I was in Newsies--but that's a story for another time. While working for my previous employer, I started a video podcast with my buddy, Rex "wait for it" Williams. We sought out people within the company who were change agents making a difference in spite of the bureaucracy inherent in large organizations. These people didn't wait for permission from three layers of management. We called them "movement makers" and we told their stories in hopes of inspiring others to take action.
Our show had no budget and no company sponsorship. Like our guests, we didn't wait (or ask) for permission. We produced, directed, hosted, and edited on our own time, using whatever resources we could scrounge up. I loved it. Producing the show allowed me to dust off skills I learned in Eagle TV, my high school's video production club. We sourced our guests from the network of colleagues Rex and I knew throughout the enterprise. As the show gained viewers, that network grew. Fans of the show started reaching out to us with suggestions for guests. We got to meet new people--really great people with really great ideas. In turn, we got to introduce those great people--and their ideas--to the rest of the company (at least the ones who were viewers of the show). In Rex's words, "we want everybody to know everybody." When I left the company in late 2017, the show was about a year old, and the wrap of my farewell episode was number 21.
Most of our episodes involved interviews with informal leaders who had figured out how to execute great ideas with limited resources and no explicit permission. They weren't in management (though we did interview the vice president of engineering, Dennis O'Donoghue). Hopefully one day I can share some of those episodes with you. In the meantime, Rex and his new co-host, Jeremiah Bonsmith, invited me back on the show last week for a special quarantine episode. We recorded from our homes and talked about quarantine, so this one I can readily share. Doing the show one more time reminded me of how much fun it was to make and how much I miss it. There may be a new video podcast coming in the near future as a result. In the meantime, I am pleased to share this quarantine episode of The Movement Maker Show with you. I hope it brings you some inspiration in this time of national COVID quarantine. At the very least, maybe it will give you something to watch briefly besides The Tiger King.
Go be a movement maker.
