The Larsen Group

Daniel Landers is 18 and already an accomplished singer, songwriter, musician and actor with fans across the globe. Born in Beverly Hills, California to a show business family, Daniel began his Hollywood acting career at age two, was on stage at age four, and hit the European music charts singing in several languages with his talented mother, Audrey Landers, by age nine. Today he is a college student and singer/songwriter/pop rock star and recent finalist on European X Factor in the Netherlands.

www.landersproductions.com          December 31, 2011                      20 minutes

Amanda Belch has practiced the healing arts for over 20 years, personally moving towards grace through yoga and meditation to overcome pain from an immobilizing accident.  Today Inner Sanctum Yoga and Massage of Tucson offers private and group sessions and includes specialties in injury rehab, massage for athletes, chronic and acute pain mitigation, and modalities to release blocked or stagnant energetic patterns resulting from physical or emotional trauma.  Amanda’s clients focus on mind, body and spirit.

www.isamandayoga.com                       December 31, 2011                     20 minutes

Audrey Landers is a talented television and movie actress, internationally recognized singer/songwriter, writer, producer and director of children’s television shows, and entrepreneur in women’s fashion. For eight years Audrey played Afton Cooper in the 1980’s television series Dallas, a show rated No. 1 in over 100 countries.  Europeans also know her for a platinum music recording and performing career.  The Landers Star Collection, established with her mother and life long manager-turned-business partner, Ruth, is offered through television shopping networks in the US and United Kingdom. 

www.landersstarcollection.com       December 24, 2011                    20 minutes

Dianne Trinque is the founder of Sabino Artisan Chocolates.  A chemist by academic training and former high school science teacher from Connecticut, Dianne’s story involves childhood dreams of candy, an East coast-based German family business mentor, and her brother’s and then her daughter’s forays into culinary businesses.  Dianne was “bit officially by the chocolatier bug,” and in March of 2011 opened a specialty chocolate store where she creates each and every piece for retail and special order clients.  How very sweet changing in life can be!

www.sabinochocolates.com                  December 24, 2011                   20 minutes

www.drjody.com                                   December 17, 2011                   20 minutes

Jennifer Utsch of Jendala Metal Art is a former firefighter, law enforcement officer and real estate agent who moved from Tucson to the wine country of California. Sustainable, inspiring, affirmational, and colorful, Jendala handcrafted creations bring a smile through uniqueness, forming words and shapes.  Jen uses recycled metal, cut, painted, and often assembled with select beads and bells purchased from sustainable workshops in India and Indonesia. Her mantra – Love Your Thoughts, Love Your Life.

 www.jendala.com                                  December 17, 2011                   20 minutes

David Milgrim has created 25 books for children since 1993 as both award-winning author and illustrator.  His new book is a parody of the 1940’s classic children’s book, Goodnight Moon.  Written under the pseudonym Ann Droyd, Goodnight iPad is currently on the New York Times and Los Angeles Times Best Seller lists, poking loving fun at our obsession with technology. It suggests that the whole family turn off those switches once and awhile, at least long enough to sleep. But the book also assures us that we need not worry; our gadgets will still be there, fully charged and waiting for us in the morning.

www.davidmilgrim.com                       December 17, 2011                   20 minutes

Tom Van Dyke is an experienced fine art painter and sculptor, and long time career professional in the documentary film and product marketing videography industry.  An award-winning screenwriter for 40 years, Tom’s newly released first book is A Cowboy Christmas, an action-packed adventure told with comic wit.  It is a heavy book in a light way, a true piece of art whose inspiring adventure of strength, character and discovery delivers a heartfelt hug for the holidays and every day. 

www.tomvandyke.com                          December 10, 2011                   20 minutes

Brian Diamond is Chief Strategy Officer of Qponomics, a Los Angeles-based mobile coupon and advertising company that has deployed a free application to allow local merchants to advertise coupons directly through mobile devices.  Brian and his colleagues continuously monitor complex factors that span emerging technology, global competition, and changing consumer behaviors to triangulate upon the right approach to serve its diverse customer base.  Brian believes the more positive change he can force upon himself, the better prepared he is to adapt to changes that are beyond his control.

Robert Mayer is an experienced lawyer whose firm represent clients both big and small, negotiating deals on everything from amphitheater developments to the sale of vintage aircraft.  A frequent coast-to-coast radio guest, Robert also conducts negotiation, mediation, and persuasion seminars and workshops in both the United States and abroad.  His book How to Win Any Argument without Raising Your Voice, Losing Your Cool, Or Coming to Blows advises readers in order to get things to go you way, you need to get out of your own way first.

www.thewaytowin.net                 December 3, 2011           20 minutes

Kent McManis and his wife, Laurie, are 40-year veterans of exclusively brokering collectible Native American art – hand-carved stone fetishes, kachina dolls, Inuit pottery, jewelry and hand woven decorative rugs – through Grey Dog Trading Company in Tucson. Kent has taken over 1,000 trips to 180 reservations across the US, connecting with multiple generations of artistic tribe members.  Kent recently seized the opportunity (took a leap of faith) to relocate his retail store, and despite the tougher economic times, is riding the wave of business growth through new associations.  Experimenting is the key!

www.greydogtrading.com           December 3, 2011           20 minutes

Greg Schwem is a man on a mission – a corporate comedian and writer based in Chicago who goes right to the epicenter of the frustrations of technology in our business and personal lives.  A father of teenage girls and founder of “Comedy with a Byte” (as in computer byte), Greg’s book Text Me If You’re Breathing covers observations, frustrations and life lessons from a low-tech Dad – proof that parenting will never come with technical support.  Greg entertains audiences at some 100 corporate engagements each year, known for customizing his material with insider information.  Ladies and Gentlemen, You can run, but you cannot hide!

www.comedywithabyte.com       December 3, 2011            20 minutes

Susan Schindehette is a two-time New York Times best selling author who moved from the spotlight as the top feature editor and writer for People magazine to found MiWorld, a remarkable new model for a humane form of capitalism. Susan is on a mission to “open up the world” and change the game of philanthropy across global borders by getting the stories of people in need connected to innovators and producers of the right products and services to improve their lives.
www.miworld.com             November 26, 2011                   20 minutes

Cindy Haas is a talented Tucson artisan who has been designing, custom building, and refinishing wood furniture of all ages, shapes, sizes and composition for nearly 30 years.  Over 10 years ago she invested in a 1950’s vintage motor lodge near 1^st Avenue and Fort Lowell that today is Many Hands Courtyard, a destination spot housing a potpourri of small business studios catering to patrons of the arts and nature.  The community believes strongly in collaborating and giving back to help others less fortunate.
www.manyhatscourtyard.blogstop.com  November 26, 2011      20 minutes

Stephen Shapiro is an authority on innovation culture, collaboration, and open innovation. For over 20 years, Stephen has worked with clients to position their new product, service and business effectiveness teams for higher performance.  A popular public speaker, his messages to people in forty countries have focused on why innovation only occurs when organizations bring together divergent points of view in an efficient manner.  Author of five books, Stephen’s most recent is Best Practices are Stupid:  40 Ways to Out-Innovate the Competition.
www.stupidpractices.com            November 19, 2011                 20 minutes
www.stephenshapiro.com

Gary Schwartz is CEO of Impact Mobile, a pathfinder in the world of how our cell phones are not just shaping our communication behaviors, but also prompting major shifts in our shopping behaviors like the gold rush of the Wild West changed the economic landscape of the frontier.  Gary’s new book, The Great Impulse Economy: Understanding Mobile Shoppers and What Makes Them Buy explains m-commerce trends toward the mobile wallet, and how the marketing, security and payment models of the past are being turned upside down.
www.impactmobile.com             November 12, 2011             20 minutes
www.theimpulseeconomy.com

Jennifer Kushell is a literal and figurative globe-trotting entrepreneur who leads Your Success Network from the Los Angeles area.  YSN.com is her team’s on-line community which connect early career professionals from around the world, and is dedicated to helping companies, agencies, and most recently governments in the developing world tap into the emerging 1 billion member talent segment through trend-based insights on career change.  Jen reminds us we are a lot more alike across the world than we are different, particularly when it comes to seizing opportunities to make a positive difference.
www.ysn.com                                         November 12, 2011                 20 minutes

Barbara McAfee is a voice coach, professional singer/songwriter and keynote speaker who blends practical content, sassy music, useful wisdom, and sophisticated humor in her keynote presentations. Her new book codifies the practices she offers her clients – Full Voice: The Art and Practice of Vocal Presence.  Barbara stresses how we may often overlook the many voices we each can develop, intentionally direct, and mindfully capitalize on to positively enhance our interactions with others.
www.barbaramcafee.com                  November 12, 2011            20 minutes

Ross Shafer is a six-time Emmy award winning TV host, comedian, and TV producer who moved to use his show business experiences to teach corporations how to better understand buying habits, changes in attention span, and the cultural and technological events and trends that cause some businesses to grow, while others die.  His fourth book is Grab More Market Share: How to wrangle business away from lazy competitors.  Ross’s insights include advising how to get beyond brand to a self-generating community of creativity to “hiring back to the future” (engaging a more senior workforce).

Laura Klock is every bit the motorcycle product and business expert, plus set a Bonneville Salt Flats record on the Biker Build-off bike.  As active in the philanthropic community as Brian, Laura leads Helping with Horsepower, a series of inspirational programs to enable women to strive to their fullest potential.  Laura’s teen daughters, Erika and Karlee Cobb are also in the business, and with their mother comprise the first mother-daughter-daughter team with Bonneville records.  All over 195 mph!

www.kustomcycles.com         November 5, 2011            2, 20 minutes
www.kustombaggers.com
www.lauraklock.com

David Rolfes is an international operations director for an institute funded by the US Agency for International Development, the US State department and other donors.  Their mission is to bring the tenants of democracy to life in troubled parts of the world through new government formation, security, social and economic stabilizing programs and infrastructure.  David's work has spanned more than thirty transitional and post-conflict countries, including Kosovo, Iraq, and Sudan.  He encourages us to see beyond 10 second news clips to broaden our perspectives on the changing world.

Scott Cassell launched BargainsthatBenefit.com in July, a Groupon-type website offering special deals from local businesses, with 20% of the proceeds of sales redirected to help underfunded Tucson Unified School District’s public school programs.  Consumers can designate which school they would like to support, or direct the donations to go to related Tucson non-profits, such as the Educational Enrichment Foundation. Lissa Gibbs is the executive director of this community foundation, and like Scott, is passionate about helping Arizona move up from being 50^th in the nation for per pupil spending.    

www.bargainsthatbenefit.com        October 29, 2011                    20 minutes

www.authenticconversations.com        October 22, 2010           20 minutes

Ian Bogost is a professor of Digital Media at Georgia Institute of Technology and an internationally known videogame designer and co-founder of Persuasive Games.  A media philosopher and prolific author, Ian’s new book How To Do things with Videogames discusses the contemporary role of gaming in our culture, going beyond entertainment into politics, advertising, learning and art.   He views videogames as cultural artifacts, focusing his research on contextualizing games in the long history of human expression, how games make arguments, and the relationship between computer hardware and expression.  Videogames are a communication medium, and as such are art.

Diane Turner is a Chicago and Tucson-based psychotherapist and founder of Imagine That Coaching.  Known as compassionate, tough, and authentic, Diane works with individuals, couples and small groups.  “Living in Possibility” is her mantra, with a focus on personal growth and expansion through a strength-based approach.  She leverages meditation, guided imagery, hypnosis and shamanic practices from South and Central America to facilitate transformation on a deep, profound level.

Carol Swinney is a Casper, Wyoming-based artist who paints with a palette knife instead of a brush, traversing the countryside and mountainsides to create dramatic, light and color intensive landscape oil paintings.  In just six years she has amassed over 20 awards from Best in Show to People’s Choice and a Governor’s Cup Award, plus been featured in magazine articles across the art world.  Her authentic 1940’s ranch home was built by her grandfather and is also home to a famous line of pedigree Welsh Corgi dogs, a business her mother founded years ago that Carol continues to enjoy.

Judith Blair is a Senior Olympian, kidney organ donor, and multiple non-profit organization and social good volunteer.  Her life story reads like a “mission impossible” touched by an angel, with challenging incidents leading her path to help others.  Formerly in real estate, law and the family services career world, Judith is currently media manager for the American Heart & Stroke Association’s Go Red for Women awareness campaign.

www.heart.org                                    October 15, 2011                20 minutes

Stephanie Hartman founded Catalyst Performance Consulting in the small rural town of Hood River, Oregon, transitioning from being an organizational development consultant inside a large Fortune 500 company. As she says, “Whew, I’m glad that’s over,” one year into having a steady stream of clients.  Her advice – get involved in your community at the relationship level, become very focused on your unique offering (hers is strategic planning and change management), plus resize and clarify your message in the language of your clients.  In Hood River, those are small, owner-operated businesses.

www.catalyst-performanceconsulting.com    October 15, 2011    20 minutes

Dr. Steven Kussin is a practicing physician in New York and author of the newly released book Doctor, Your Patient will see You Now: Gaining the Upper Hand in Medical Care. Old world and new world medical practices and research are often conflicting, coupled with unprecedented amounts of information for doctor and patient alike to evaluate. Dr. Kussin and he colleagues at their Shared Decision Center weigh in pragmatically and provocatively on how people can manage “patienthood”, becoming their own best medical advocate.  Not just cope, but take charge.

Dr. Joseph Chambers is a cardiologist with Carondelet Health Network, a major sponsor of the American Heart & Stroke Association’s annual Go Red for Women awareness campaign.  Heart disease is the number one killer of women, more than all of the cancers and diabetes combined.  Dr. Chambers is dedicated to helping patients not just recognize and act upon the symptoms early, but shift their lifestyles to prevent heart disease.  He believes we need to take control and be aggressive in seeking answers from health providers to meet our individual needs.

www.carondelet.org                           October 8, 2011                 20 minutes

www.heart.org

Laura Tremaine is a senior loan officer at Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation.  In spite of the choppy economic waters, she believes we are in a perfect storm of opportunity for home investors to secure increased value, lower interest rates, and tap into a large inventory of properties.  Armed with over 20 years in international franchising followed by starting a personal services business, Laura shifted to the mortgage banking/lending sector 10 years ago.  Her sales, marketing and contract experience compliment her love of helping others navigate a complex system requiring professionalism, rigor and quality delivery.

www.tremaineloans.com                      October 8, 2011                  20 minutes

www.fairwaymc.com

Subroto Bagchi is co-founder, Vice Chairman, and Gardener of Talent at Mindtree Ltd, a global information technology, research and development consulting company headquartered in Bangalore, India.  Subroto spends one-on-one time with the top 100 leaders in their “personal-professional” space, expanding leadership capacity to ready Mindtree to step into billion-dollar company league.  His third bestselling book was just released in the US, The Professional:  Defining the New Standard of Excellence at Work. Lifetime wisdom ripe for every professional – regardless of age, role, career, industry or nationality to pick, learn from, and apply in our daily lives.

www.mindtree.com/subrotobagchi       October 8, 2011                   20 minutes

Jon Gilutin is a talented and versatile keyboardist and composer who has worked with an impressive list of recording artists on tour and in studio for over 30 years.  Jon has also written, performed, and produced music for Hollywood films and television. Grammy Award-winning composer of the song “New Attitude”, Jon recently released two CDs to let his own voice come forward, proving “you can keep the music playing, yet the song does not remain the same.”  He is currently studying spiritual psychology as part of a career shift, visioning new intentions for personal transformation.

www.jongilutin.com                           October 1, 2011                    20 minutes

Louise Serpa is known by many in photography, art and cowboy circles as “The Ansel Adams of Rodeo.”  Taking black and white photos for over 40 years from every angle inside and outside the ring, Louise demonstrates a natural instinct for anticipating the action.  Her camera has been a passport to the world of most any equestrian venue, portraits, landscapes and human interest subjects.  Originally from New York City, Louise escaped to the West, believing “It takes more courage to do what you have to do, not what you want to do.”

www.louiseserpa.com                         October 1, 2011                   20 minutes