Teach, Coach, Mentor

Lemonade Stands to Leadership: Kendall Morris on Building Durable Skills for Kids Through Entrepreneurship

Kendall Morris turned down Shark Tank, built a marketing company that landed Verizon as a client, then walked away from it all to teach kids the durable skills schools skip. On this episode of Teach Coach Mentor, Mike Wish sits down with the founder and CEO of Founders Mark to unpack how youth entrepreneurship builds leadership, grit, and problem-solving in ways a classroom never can. Key Takeaways: * Why 76% of job postings list durable skills as a top requirement, according to AmericaSucceeds.org data * How to let kids fail at the right scale, building real grit without risking their confidence or the family savings * The parenting habit that quietly kills initiative in kids (hint: over-scheduling) * Why a "crowded" market rarely stops young entrepreneurs from succeeding * How Mike's own framework, stay aggressively curious, experiment joyfully, get a little obsessed, mirrors what Kendall sees in every successful kid and adult she coaches Timestamps: 00:00 Kendall's path from classroom teacher to founder 04:00 Turning down Shark Tank and why it paid off 07:00 Scaling a marketing company and spotting the skills gap 12:00 Launching Founders Mark with her own three kids 15:00 The six durable skills backed by hard data 19:00 Building grit in kids without letting them fail too big Kendall Morris is the founder and CEO of Founders Mark, a youth entrepreneurship organization partnering with schools, YMCAs, and Boys & Girls Clubs to teach durable skills through real business building. Enjoyed this one? Subscribe to Teach Coach Mentor, leave a review, and share it with a parent or educator who needs to hear it. More Kendall: LinkedIn: 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/kendalllmorris/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kendalllmorris/] Website: 🚀 https://founders-mark.com [https://founders-mark.com] More Mike: LinkedIn: 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/] Podcast Site: 🎧 https://teachcoachmentor.org/ [https://teachcoachmentor.org/] Company Website: 🏫 https://vellelogos.com [https://vellelogos.com] Personal Website: https://michaelwish.com [https://michaelwish.com]

The Three Chairs Framework: How Veterans Can Carry Their Past Into Their Future with Dr. Arielle Jordan

Dr. Arielle Jordan brings a rare combination of credentials to this conversation: Army veteran, licensed trauma therapist, keynote speaker, and entrepreneur. She breaks down why telling veterans to seek help has not been enough, and what actually has to change for mental health support to land. Key takeaways: * The PTSD Coach app (developed by the VA) works for anyone dealing with anxiety, anger, or sleeplessness, not just combat veterans, and it is free. * Destigmatization campaigns fail when the system does not back them up. If getting help costs you your career, you will not get help. * Community erosion is a real mental health driver, both inside and outside the service. Intentional calendaring is one practical fix. * The three chairs framework: your past self (survivor), your present self (wisdom), and your future self (visionary) all have to be in the room. * 988, then press 1, connects you to crisis support trained in military culture. It is not just for emergencies. 00:03 AI and the PTSD Coach app 05:30 Veteran mental health trends and systemic gaps 11:00 Community, loneliness, and intentional connection 17:00 Patriot Boot Camp and veteran entrepreneurship 19:30 The three chairs mindset framework Dr. Arielle Jordan is a licensed trauma therapist, Army veteran, and founder of Mindset Quality, LLC, working with veterans, first responders, and high-achieving professionals navigating stress and resilience. Subscribe, leave a review, and share this one with a vet who needs to hear it. Find Arielle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ariellejordanlcpc/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ariellejordanlcpc/] More Mike: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/] Podcast Site: https://teachcoachmentor.org/ [https://teachcoachmentor.org/] Company Website: https://vellelogos.com [https://vellelogos.com] Personal Website: https://michaelwish.com [https://michaelwish.com]

Doodles, Difficulty, and Deep Learning with Devika Toprani

What if doodling isn't distraction, it's the missing layer in modern learning? Devika Toprani, creator of the Somagraphic Learning Method, joins Teach Coach Mentor to make the case that drawing shapes before instruction begins is one of the most powerful tools educators and corporate trainers have for building real understanding in an AI-saturated world. Key Takeaways: * Somagraphic Learning is a visual scaffold inserted before instruction to lower the entry barrier and create genuine engagement regardless of learners' academic backgrounds * Desirable difficulty is non-negotiable for actual learning, and the reflex to use AI immediately is quietly erasing it * The Attempt-Map-Refine cycle applies in higher ed, K-12, and cross-functional corporate teams * Embodied learning, using the hand to make thinking visible, produces stronger conceptual clarity than passive content consumption * AI belongs in the refine phase, not the attempt phase Timestamps: * 00:44 Devika's origin story across Oman, Dubai, India, and the US * 09:16 What is the Somagraphic Learning Method? * 10:05 Desirable difficulty and why AI is short-circuiting it * 15:25 Applying Attempt-Map-Refine in corporate training * 21:01 Shape, Emotion, Grammar as educator scaffolding tools * 25:18 What's next: pilots, EdTech partnerships, and the app Devika Toprani is a global educator and researcher whose Somagraphic Learning framework bridges early childhood education, higher ed, HR, and accreditation experience across three countries. Subscribe, share, and visit teachcoachmentor.org for show notes, transcripts, and more. Keywords: Somagraphic learning method, embodied learning, desirable difficulty in education, AI in the classroom, visual learning scaffold, doodling for learning, attempt map refine framework, shape emotion grammar, cognitive offloading AI, lifelong learning strategies, EdTech innovation, active learning techniques, teaching methods, K-12 education, corporate training Find Devika: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devika-toprani/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/devika-toprani/] Research Paper: https://osf.io/preprints/edarxiv/fnk7z_v1 [https://osf.io/preprints/edarxiv/fnk7z_v1] Substack: https://doodlesbydevika.substack.com [https://doodlesbydevika.substack.com] More Mike: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/] Podcast Site: https://teachcoachmentor.org/ [https://teachcoachmentor.org/] Company Website: https://vellelogos.com [https://vellelogos.com] Personal Website: https://michaelwish.com [https://michaelwish.com]

The Art of Introspection: Lindsay on Healing, Listening, and the Difference Between Coaching and Therapy

Surviving domestic abuse led Lindsay to therapy... and therapy led her straight to a calling. Lindsay, founder of the Balanced Bureau, breaks down why coaching and therapy aren't interchangeable, why "work-life balance" is the wrong goal entirely, and what it actually means to hear yourself clearly. * Coaching vs. therapy isn't just semantics — knowing which one you need first can be the difference between breakthroughs and spinning your wheels * Imposter syndrome is a syndrome, not an identity — the shift from "who am I?" to "I am me, and that is enough" changes everything * EFT tapping resets the nervous system before the mind can catch up — it's not journaling, it's the thing that makes journaling work * Men's mental health starts with one permission: it's safe to get quiet and listen to yourself * Internal balance, not work-life balance, is what most people are actually searching for 00:54 Lindsay's origin story — from domestic abuse survivor to coach 04:17 Reframing imposter syndrome as something you can actually get over 09:58 The Balanced Bureau rebrand and what "balance" really means 11:53 EFT tapping explained — nervous system reset for emotional regulation 14:06 How to know whether you need coaching or therapy 19:32 Men's mental health and the art of introspection Lindsay is a life coach, aspiring licensed therapist, speaker, and founder of the Balanced Bureau, with a mission to build transitional housing for women and children fleeing domestic violence. Follow Lindsay: 📸 Instagram: @the_balanced_bureau | 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/balancedbureau/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/balancedbureau/] | 📺 https://www.youtube.com/@Balanced_Bureau [https://www.youtube.com/@Balanced_Bureau] Subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone who needs to hear themselves differently. More Mike: 💼 https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelwish0802/] 🎧 https://teachcoachmentor.org/ [https://teachcoachmentor.org/] 🏫 https://vellelogos.com [https://vellelogos.com] 🌐 https://michaelwish.com [https://michaelwish.com]

Celebration of Knowledge: Frank Narducci on Award-Winning Teaching

Summary In this conversation, Michael Wish interviews Frank Narducci, an award-winning physicist and professor at the Naval Postgraduate School, discussing his approach to teaching advanced physics to military officers. They explore the value of repetition and review in learning, the difference between memorization and true understanding, and why Frank reframes exams as a "Celebration of Knowledge." Frank also shares how his father and legendary quantum optics researcher Leonard Mandel shaped his career, what the PhD mentor-student relationship really demands, and the one piece of advice every teacher needs to hear. Takeaways * Frank Narducci is a recipient of the Richard Hamming Teaching Award at the Naval Postgraduate School. * Starting each class with a review of prior material is a deliberate and effective teaching strategy. * Covering less material thoroughly outperforms covering more material quickly. * Conversational teaching is more effective than traditional lecturing. * Exams should function as learning experiences, not just measuring sticks. * Understanding underlying principles matters far more than memorizing formulas. * Choosing a PhD program is 5% about the school and 95% about the advisor. * Great mentors ask whether the work is fundamental enough to be worth doing. * Flexible teaching — pivoting when the moment calls for it — produces deeper learning. * The best teachers design lessons from the student's perspective, not their own. Titles Celebration of Knowledge: Frank Narducci on Award-Winning Teaching Don't Memorize the Formula: Frank Narducci on Teaching Physics and Mentorship Chapters * 00:01 Introduction and the Richard Hamming Teaching Award * 01:15 The Review-Before-Teaching Method * 05:53 Conversational Teaching vs. the Lecture Model * 09:48 Celebration of Knowledge: Rethinking Exams * 11:00 Memorization vs. Understanding * 16:49 Teaching, Coaching, and Mentorship in Academia * 17:29 How to Choose a PhD Advisor * 20:08 Leonard Mandel and a Father Who Sparked a Career * 24:36 Research Philosophy: Is It Fundamental Enough? * 26:49 Advice for Teachers and Mentors * 31:06 The LIGO Nobel Prize Pivot: Connecting Physics to the Fleet Keywords quantum physics, physics education, Naval Postgraduate School, NPS, award-winning teaching, teaching strategies, spaced repetition, active learning, exam anxiety, knowledge retention, mentorship in academia, PhD advisor, Leonard Mandel, quantum optics, laser physics, military education, lifelong learning,