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“Conventional is the enemy of the interesting.” – Sherlock Holmes

As we further explore ideas and concepts that shatter conventional wisdom, challenge the status quo and bring about real solutions to complex challenges, we delve into the world of nutrition.

Perhaps no other issue of of our modern era has more significant effects on our daily quality of life and longevity than this issue of nutrition and it’s connection with the modern health care system.

The problem is, there is no nexus. The modern medical care system rarely intersects with nutrition – at least with the areas where nutrition really matters.

Have you ever stopped to thing why America is so fat? There’s a misconception that it’s because “fat people over eat.” The truth is much more nuanced than that, and the facts take us down a rabbit hole of discovery at the end of which lies the possible cure to the vast majority of chronic illness facing modern America.

If you are ready to feel better, look better and be healthier, you should listen to this podcast in which Cameron Mills and I speak with acclaimed actress and author Elle Russ from The Primal Blueprint. You’ll be amazed at how simple, yet largely unknown the pathway to better health, longer life and looking better really is.

Listen to the podcast and then check out the following sites for more in depth information:

Marks Daily Apple

Elle Russ 

The Primal Blueprint Podcast

Check out Elle’s ongoing Women’s Empowerment Project “Rise Up and Kick Ass.”

Noted author, public speaker and social media leadership expert Jason Falls walks us through the pitfalls and dangers of social media done wrong as well as the enormous opportunities in social media done right! Whether you’re a small, medium or large business, or someone who’s looking to keep their employment options open, your brand is vital and in today’s world social media can be your largest cheerleader or greatest enemy. Good news is, it’s all in your hands!  Find out more about Jason Falls HERE.

This week’s guest can throw a spear 199 feet.  Dana Lyon is a world class athlete, lifelong American patriot, and strong Christian.  She shares her story of victory, defeat and victory again. She missed the Olympics by 2 inches, won a national championship, served her country in the United States Air Force for over a decade, lost her husband to an IED in Afghanistan while they were both deployed, and now coaches track and field at Air Force Academy. She shares how God lifted her up in her deepest valleys and how she prepares her athletes and students for life and success both on and off the field, physically and spiritually.

Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY) is the only member of the U.S. House of Representatives who lives totally off the grid. He uses a combination of solar, generators, composting, water collection systems and one very interesting innovation – a home made Tesla power wall – to power his home.

In this episode of The Disruption Zone, he gives us the details of his exhaustive search to find a viable Tesla battery from a wrecked car, and his step by step process to build a more efficient, off the grid power system.

For more on Massie’s battery adventure, here’s his youtube video on the subject.

The Disruption Zone is about people and ideas that break down paradigms, challenge the status quo, and innovate into new territories. As we like to say, “opportunity lives where the status quo  dies.”

Change is good but it is possible to be so focused on change that we are unable to execute it effectively. The secret to being able to make quick changes and keep up with constantly evolving business cycles is to not be singularly focused on change itself, but instead, focused on the things that will not change.

I once worked for a company where all the employees joked that each new policy change was the “flavor of the week.” We changed them so often that employees often had a hard time remembering the new processes. It was like that scene in the movie “Office Space” where all his bosses were wondering if Peter was putting the new cover sheets on his “TPS Reports.” The company was so worried about keeping up with best practices, they had no discernible long-term practices at all. Employees were confused, managers were confused, and most damagingly, the customers were confused.

Sometimes we’re so afraid that the competition is going to be ahead of the curve that we expend too much effort trying to read the tea leaves when what we really need is a thing I like to call concentric flexibility.

Security forces often talk about “concentric rings” of vulnerability or protection, meaning the target they are trying to protect is in the middle and there are layers of vulnerability emanating outward like ever wider ripples in a pool.

For example, if you are protecting an airport and you secure the terminal, then the vulnerability moves out to the ticketing area. Once you secure the ticketing area, the threat could move to the parking area, then the airport entry and so on. While the security personnel have concerns about the outer rings, they maintain the majority of their focus on the central element they are protecting.

When applied to business, I call this concentric flexibility. If you stay focused on what’s important, – your core business goals, your customer’s core needs – then you can be more flexible to make positive changes around the edges.

Jeff Bezos of amazon.com once said that what separates people and businesses who achieve lasting success from those who don’t is the ability to focus on the things that won’t change. Bezos understands that his customers want three things: a quality product, at a fair price, delivered quickly. That’s never going to change. He’s now the richest man in the world. Ever.

This is more than just Bezo’s philosophy. It should be as much a business principle as gravity is a physical law. Regardless of the business you are in, there will always be core needs your customers have that will never change. The processes by which you meet those needs or the packaging your product or service comes in may change with time, but the needs themselves simply won’t.

In football, when a running back is handed the ball he has one main focus. Advance the ball. The path to achieve this will be at least slightly different on every single play he ever attempts. But the goal of advancing the ball will never change. He’ll make small decisions on the fly as he runs the ball to achieve his goal. Do I zig? Do I zag? Do I jump? But his focus will always be on the same outcome – advance the ball.

When you focus on the specific and unchanging needs of your customers, you can stay flexible and nimble enough to incorporate new processes to accomplish meeting those needs. Instead of trying to stay ahead of the curve in terms of technology or emerging best practices, you can put new ideas to a simple test. Does this new app, technology, or practice make meeting the unchanging needs of my customer easier and more efficient?

Maybe it is easier to actually be cutting edge when the cutting edge isn’t your main focus.

Chronic disease is rising in America, rates of obesity, cancer, heart disease, arthritis and many more are skyrocketing. Could it be that this rise in chronic health problems is not only fixable but preventable?

A little over a year ago, my wife and I started following a new dietary lifestyle commonly referred to as Paleo, or Primal (these days you’ll also here it referred to as Keto as well.) It has done amazing things for our health and body composition.  At 42, I feel better than I did at 24.

I’ve been wanting to use my platform to spread the word. One of the most highly researched, reputable and heavily followed sites in this community is Mark’s Daily Apple.  I reached out to them to invite them on my show to discuss this amazing new health revolution of eating low carb, high fat, moderate protein and the advantages that come with it. Elle Russ, host of the Primal Blueprint Podcast and author of the Paleo Thyroid Solution joined me recently from sunny Malibu, California by phone at my WHAS radio studios in Louisville, KY for a wide ranging and fun  conversation.

So, let’s change the paradigm.

Sit down and assess what your priorities are for the next five years. If there’s a big, grand change or accomplishment on your radar, break it into smaller achievable chunks. Drive toward the accomplishment of those smaller goals, while constantly assessing your progress. This helps you take risks more often while being able to correct your path before you get too far off track.

Here are four ways to prioritize and achieve your goals:

Prioritize God. I am a Christian, and for me, all goals should run through his will. This is the way I view the world and it’s non-negotiable. Prayer time is vital to clearing the mind, keeping us honest, and making sure that our goals are not based purely on self interests. The things we accomplish in our lives that don’t lift others up will mean absolutely zero after your gone.

Prioritize change. This is one reason I stopped doing New Year’s resolutions. I came to the conclusion that, if you see something in your life, goals, or plans that needs to be changed, why wait? Change it now. Instead of specific resolutions at the end of a year, I tend to assess or reassess my standing life’s goals. “Where do I want to be in one year? Three years? Five years?” If I can see that I’ve made measurable strides toward those short, medium and long term goals, I’m satisfied. If I’m not making those strides, I re-evaluate. “Is this really that important to me right now?” “Are there other areas of exploration and accomplishment that would be more valuable to me?”

Prioritize people. Go through all of your personal and professional relationships. Are the people in your life helping you or harming you? Do they edify you? Do they challenge you? Do they hold you accountable? Do they encourage you? If the answer is no, drop them. If the answer is yes, seek ways that you can reciprocate and strengthen those relationships. Trust me, this may be the best investment you make toward overall lifetime achievement. As mom always said, “we are who we hang with.”

Finally, prioritize your time. This statement is a cliche for a reason. Time is like money. Successful people control it, it doesn’t control them. When working toward a large goal, constantly be vigilant of your time. Assess all of your commitments. Do they help or hinder your progress? That doesn’t mean you don’t do things that have nothing to do with your goals. In fact, taking time away from your normal pursuits allows you to clear your mind, see the problems you face from a different perspective and generally refreshes your ambition when you get back to the task at hand. But you want to be sure that whatever you do fits into this paradigm of helping, not hindering towards your goals.

Prioritize this way and I’m confident you won’t overestimate what you can do in a year and you’ll be surprised how far you’ve come in five!

Yep, it’s true. Businesses will get the biggest benefit from the tax cuts. Here’s why you should celebrate that.  The value of your labor just went up.

Prior to the recently passed tax cuts, the U.S. corporate tax rate was the third highest in the developing world. The rate dropped form 39% to 21%. The average corporate tax rate in the developed world is a little over 29%, so these cuts don’t make us the lowest by far (Ireland has a rate of just 12.5%) but it makes us competitive when you consider the other perks we bring to the table like educated workforce, natural resources, innovation, etc.

The bottom line is, real people don’t live in the vacuum that Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer do. It’s not a static world, nor do we want a state run economy.

Wells Fargo, Boeing, Fifth Third Bancorp, AT&T all announced some combination of bonuses, pay raises or charitable contributions as a direct result of these tax cuts.  Of course these were PR stunts meant to capitalize on the political fervor around the rate reductions. But that isn’t what matters. What matters is what they symbolize.

Forget all the namby-pamby “social responsibility” nonsense that some companies try to pass off as the reason they exist. All businesses, without exception, exist to make money. There may be some very nice people out there who use a business as a means to do some very nice things, but the fact is, they started their business to make money. What they use the money they make for is another thing altogether, but I cannot stress this enough, ALL BUSINESSES EXIST TO MAKE A PROFIT. PERIOD DOT COM.

Listen to “Leland Reacts to Tax Cut Bill Passage” on Spreaker.

Now, with that in mind, assuming you have the strong work ethic, educational background and outstanding expertise that you think and say you do, the value of your labor just went up.  Here’s why: If the business you work for is able to make more money due to less regulation and lower taxes, then they have more money to pay and promote their best employees. Whether they choose to invest their new profits in this way is up to them, not leftists in congress who whine about what companies do with their money. So, let’s say you’ve worked hard, paid your dues, made your boss a lot of money and so on, and lets say you go in and ask your boss for a raise and she says no, now what? All your hopes and dreams are dashed? Bernie Sanders was right? Not exactly.

Assuming you weren’t lying about your work ethic and skills base, there’s probably a competitor within ear shot that would love to offer you that raise you’ve been looking for and maybe even more to bring your ample talents to their organization and help them beat your greedy old boss at the competition game. That’s how the free market works.

Politicians may talk a big game about equality of outcomes but that’s an impossible task unless you want to live in a totalitarian society without liberty. They don’t decide what companies do with their profits, nor should they. Government has but one thing to do to ensure a roaring economy: get out of our way. These tax cuts along with President Trump’s push for deregulation are two big steps in that direction.

This is all good news for hard working common folks like you and me. But it gets better. Not only did the value of your labor just go up, but the fatness of your wallets did too. According to the latest figures I’ve seen, the average working American making around $50,000 per year will see an extra $1,000 in their pockets next year in the form of lower withholdings. I don’t know about you, but an extra grand is real money to me.

Now, there’s a lot about this tax plan I don’t like. For one thing, while the higher standard deductions do indeed make it easier for most Americans to do their taxes without paying outside professionals to do the paperwork, the code itself is no simpler. There are still seven income brackets. It’s still progressive, and certainly no flatter. There’s also still a lot of loopholes and deductions. (In order to eliminate these without increasing tax burdens it would require much lower average rates overall.)

But by and large, most Americans will see a meaningful boost in their pocketbooks throughout the course of next year, and that’s a good thing.  Combine that with a clear horizon for American companies to compete on a global scale in a way that hasn’t been possible in a generation, and everyone wins, well, except for those listless souls aimlessly beating the drums of statist wealth redistribution, but I’m always glad when they lose.