Are you paralyzed by stage fright when speaking, performing or competing? Meet Dr. David Lee Fish! David is a Performance Anxiety Expert who himself had his own challenges with stage fright since elementary school days. He works with professionals who are excellent at their jobs but fall short of their potential when they speak in front of others, whether in formal presentations, team meetings, online sessions, or job interviews.  His approach to performance anxiety has an unusual origin and has helped professionals reclaim the confidence that anxiety was suppressing.  David launched the revolutionary 5-Day Solution used by speakers, performers, and professionals in helping them manage performance anxiety and find confidence on stage. Listen as David shares a different, more effective approach in overcoming speaking and performance anxiety.  Key Takeaways: - the biggest misconception about stage fright - the role of the amygdala and threat detection  - why so many capable professionals doubt themselves  - why confidence does not solve the anxiety problem  - the counterintuitive solution vs universal advice  - how mindfulness kicks in when in high-stakes situations  - a different approach from general public speaking coaching  - why anyone can overcome stage fright and performance anxiety  - why you lose confidence despite being an expert  ...and so much more! Connect with David: Website: https://riseupeight.com Listen to the Podcast, subscribe, leave a rating and a review: Apple:  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-overcome-public-speaking-anxiety-w-dr-david-lee-fish/id1614151066?i=1000792031163 Spotify:  https://open.spotify.com/episode/6SMlrJTGr866RxqnNzvQsD?si=38mMkLd7SfeZqu-sgBNL_A https://open.spotify.com/episode/6SMlrJTGr866RxqnNzvQsD YouTube: https://youtu.be/J8D3pGqS5gg

Is humility a weakness? Modern neuroscience says the exact opposite. In Episode 55 of The Humility Advantage, we unpack Chapter 5 of our deep dive: “Humility Rewired—Building Strength from the Inside Out.” We challenge the outdated corporate myth that strong leaders must constantly project dominance. Instead, we explore the hard science and biology proving that humility is a measurable, powerful brain state that expands empathy, builds trust, and drives long-term strategic success. Join us as we break down how checking your ego actually alters your brain chemistry to make you a more effective, highly calibrated leader. In this episode, we cover: The Neuroscience of Humility: How your brain's Prefrontal Cortex and Mirror Neurons literally rewire themselves when you shift from ego-protection to mission-focus. The Biology of Connection: Why humble leaders trigger "trust hormones" like oxytocin and lower team cortisol levels to create high-performing, psychologically safe environments. The Missing Link of Emotional Intelligence: Why empathy without humility can become manipulation, and how to balance the two for maximum impact. Real-World Case Studies: How titans like Tim Cook (Apple), Jensen Huang (Nvidia), Pixar, and the U.S. Marine Corps use the phrase "I don't know" as a massive competitive advantage. The Leader's Playbook: Practical, everyday tools to help you shift from defensive reactivity to intentional presence, including the "Two Admits" rule and the Pause-and-Presence Drill. Stop performing and start transforming. Tune in to learn how to ground yourself, step out of the "defensive snap," and rewire your leadership from the inside out.

In this episode of The Smarter Campus Podcast, Zach sits down with Kevin Anselmo, strategic communications consultant and founder of Experiential Communications, to explore an overlooked side of the AI conversation in higher education: communication and research impact. While much of higher education’s AI conversation has focused on cheating, grading, and classroom policies, Kevin argues there is a massive opportunity for researchers, faculty, and academic leaders to use AI as a kind of personal PR assistant. The technology can help translate complex ideas, prepare for interviews, repurpose research, and communicate important work to audiences far beyond academia. Kevin also breaks down his Clarity, Capability, and Momentum framework for AI adoption. The key is starting with your goals, audience, and message—not the technology. From there, customized AI workflows can dramatically reduce the time spent on communication while still keeping human strategy and judgment at the center. The conversation also explores “AI slop,” why dismissing AI because of poor outputs misses the larger opportunity, and why higher education may need to rethink everything from slow-moving AI policies to traditional four-year credentials. For researchers in particular, Kevin leaves listeners with a challenge: great research only creates impact if people actually understand it.

In this episode of Why Distance Learning?, Seth, Allyson, and Tami continue their conversation with Dr. Mark Deschaine — Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Mississippi and editor of the Journal of Contemporary Research in Education — about what it actually means to individualize, differentiate, personalize, and build presence in online learning environments, and why treating those four things as synonyms has real consequences for practice. Deschaine frames the discussion through decades of research in special education policy, online learning design, and teacher preparation. Together, Seth, Allyson, Tami, and Mark explore the four distinct instructional frames — individualization, differentiation, personalization, and presence — unpacking each one's theoretical basis and what it requires from a teacher or program designer. Mark introduces a four-quadrant framework for educational decision-making — theoretical, legal, empirical, and practical — that grounds those choices in something more durable than intuition. Seth synthesizes the two frameworks into a single arc: differentiation creates the conditions, individualization targets the path, personalization restores the learner's agency, and presence is the measure of whether it worked. The conversation then turns structural: as tens of thousands of students leave traditional systems for homeschooling and micro schools, school districts lose not just enrollment revenue but their roles as the primary economic engines of rural communities. Mark traces how state variation in school choice policy, educational savings accounts, and the decentralization of federal funding are reshaping where families live — and what kinds of learning infrastructure those communities can sustain. The episode ends on a question Mark leaves deliberately open: does a community have the resilience to absorb this level of change? Key topics: Individualization, differentiation, personalization, and presence as four distinct instructional frames Four-quadrant decision-making: theoretical, legal, empirical, and practical How special education's IEP model illuminates what individualized learning actually requires Homeschooling growth and its impact on traditional school enrollment and funding School districts as community economic engines — and what happens when they shrink State variation in school choice, educational savings accounts, and online learning access Geographic equity gaps in who can access distance learning Links & Resources: "Framing Instructional Strategies as a Concept in K-12 Digital Learning" — Deschaine, Rice & Rose, ResearchGate, March 2026. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/402734231 "Providing Special Education Services in Fully Online Statewide Virtual Schools: A Policy Scan" — Deschaine et al., 2020. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340436252 National Standards for Quality Online Learning (NSQOL): https://nsqol.org/ Michigan Virtual: michiganvirtual.org The Reflective Practitioner — Donald Schön: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/donald-a-schon/the-reflective-practitioner/9780786725366/?lens=basic-books Guest Bio: Mark E. Deschaine, PhD Mark Deschaine is a Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Mississippi, where he prepares MA, EdS, EdD, and PhD candidates for school and district leadership roles and serves as editor of the Journal of Contemporary Research in Education. His research focuses on online learning policy, special education in virtual school settings, and differentiated instruction — grounded in a practitioner career spanning building-level principal, special education teacher, and paraprofessional. He is a Research Fellow at Michigan Virtual and a Leadership Team Member for the National Standards for Quality Online Learning. About the Hosts: Seth Fleischauer is the founder of Banyan Global Learning and a host of Why Distance Learning, a podcast for education leaders and practitioners making real decisions about how virtual learning gets designed, adopted, and sustained. Through Banyan, he designs live virtual programs that connect K-12 classrooms to global peers and expert facilitators. See https://www.banyangloballearning.com/programs/global-cohorts Allyson Mitchell and Tami Moehring are co-hosts of Why Distance Learning and members of the team at CILC — the Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration — which connects students to real experts through live virtual field trips and experiences. See https://cilc.org

Mike Caldwell talks with Nanette Merrill, executive director of the Idaho Charter School Association, about her path from stay-at-home mom to teacher, principal, and now state-level leader. They swap rapid-fire favorites (leadership books, reading habits, best advice), then dig into what makes strong schools stand out—clear mission, visible leadership, and a culture of belonging. Nanette shares insights from visiting dozens of charter schools this past year, the value of mentorship and coaching for school leaders, and her new coaching initiative supporting Idaho's charter leaders.