Jose Acevedo | Finding Arizona

Jose Acevedo is back on NextGen Native. One episode wasn't enough to capture his energy and excitement. To be honest, two shows probably isn't enough, either.! On the first show, we talked about his life. This time, we can skip the details (where you from, etc.) and dive into various subjects. Jose is the host of Finding Arizona, a podcast focused on entrepreneurs in Arizona. He is also part Hopi. We have a lot of mutual experience and energy to share amazing stories through our podcasts. You should check out his podcast and listen to the ways that disparate business people share common experiences, what their drive is, etc. On this episode, we dive deep into #NODAPL. We take a look at the movement from a variety of angles. The obvious and most direct is the importance of water to humans as it is to any other life form. But we also discuss different angles such as how the event has brought so many tribes together, that the camp is filled with people from all walks of Indian Country. We also chat about what we've learned from our podcast experiences and how those lessons transcend beyond podcasting. For example, I've sharpened my strength as a listener in a way that I often feel like my conversations with people feel like they could be a podcast episode because I'm listening, asking questions like I would if the mics were hot. We talk about some of the guests we'd each like to interview including A Tribe Called Red, Wab Kinew, Thosh Collins and more. We talked about how our podcasts helped us grow. When I listen to previous interviews I did, it's embarrassing. But I'm also able to see how I've grown with the podcast. Like anything, you don't get better unless you dive in. And so if you are able to gain insight from those that come on my show, and you definitely will, you can also see my podcast journey itself as a metaphor for personal growth. I will still interview people and learn about their journeys, but after several dozen episodes (maybe 100?) I plan to circle back to more of my previous guests so we can dive into current events and just shoot the breeze. And I'm sure we will learn just as much from them the second, third, fourth time around as we did the first.