PODCAST · business
The Distiller
by Brandon Dawson
The Distiller is a series of conversations with people from all walks of life about how we find meaningful work, and how we find meaning in the work we do. Recorded on-location, and generally with a drink in hand, The Distiller explores the work that defines our lives, and how we think about that work.
Episodes
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#51 – Drs. Eleanor Glass & Amy Mechley On The Value Of Direct Primary Care
What is Direct Primary Care? Doctors Amy Mechley and Eleanor Glass are the owners of Integrative Family Care, a “Direct Primary Care” family clinic in Cincinnati. If you’re not familiar with the concept of Direct Primary Care, it’s a somewhat new model of providing care directly to patients…
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#50 – Communications Pro Lauren Worley On The Power of Relentless Optimism
Lauren Worley is “all-in” on everything she does. Lauren Worley has perhaps the most immediately impressive resume of anyone we’ve had on the show so far. Press Secretary for NASA. Global Talent Lead for Bono’s ONE Campaign. High-profile jobs in political strategy and public education. And most...
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#49 – Industrial Designer Colin Nourie On Staying Close To The Details
Colin Nourie designs environments that make work happen. Colin designs systems furniture – furniture for large offices and industrial installations. On the surface it might seem straightforward: design furniture for professional settings with a few customizable options. But when you get into the...
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#48 – Food & Dining Writer Polly Campbell On The Meaning In A Good Meal
Polly Campbell is more than just a restaurant critic. As the food & dining writer for the Cincinnati Enquirer, Polly Campbell covers anything and everything going on in Cincinnati that has to do with restaurants and food culture. That means covering trends, and writing about food and dining…
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#47 – VA Psychologist Brandon Irvin On Seeing The Humanity Behind Illness
Brandon Irvin meets mental illness with compassion every day. In order to understand the work Brandon Irvin does, it’s important to first understand how the patient population he treats is different from other environments. It’s no overstatement to say that Brandon’s patients are the “sickest of...
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#46 – Happen Inc. Founder Tommy Rueff Brings Families Together Through Creativity
Tommy Rueff didn’t set out to run a community non-profit. Four years after Tommy Rueff to Cincinnati from Chicago to start an advertising agency, a chance event changed his life and pointed him in the direction of his life’s work. He wasn’t looking for a change. He wasn’t even unhappy in his…
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#45 – Tony Moore & Lew Weeks On The Flavor Science Behind The Food You Eat
Lew Weeks and Tony Moore have great taste. Okay, pardon the pun, but it’s true. First, they know flavor in a way that is an entire vocabulary. But as a part of their work in flavor science, they also understand what people want, and what makes something taste great. That combination of skill and...
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#44 – Designer Jason Snell’s Long View Of The Creative Life
Jason Snell Wants You To Feel It. Bob Dylan once sang “The country I come from, is called the Midwest.” For a creative professional, sometimes working in the Midwest really does feel like another country. Finding a way to stand out in your field can be particularly difficult if you’re not on the...
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#43 – Comedian Luna Malbroux On Fostering Diversity Through Humor
Luna Malbroux is America. In fact, that’s even the URL of her website, LunaIsAmerica.com. And she should know, because she’s seen a lot of it. Luna Malbroux grew up in Louisiana, attended college in New York, and settled in San Francisco to begin her career. And what a career it’s shaping up to…
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#42 – STE(A)M Educator Allison Lester On Creating Space for Learning
Allison Lester believes in the power of technology to educate. After all, she’s seen it work. As a career STEM/STEAM educator, Allison believes the interaction of technology and space is key to facilitating learning. For those unfamiliar with the terms, S.T.E.M. stands for Science, Technology,...
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#41 – Paperless Post’s Carrie Farler On Getting The Job You Want
Carrie Farler Sees A Lot Of Resumes As the “Head of People” for Paperless Post, Carrie Farler oversees all aspects of recruiting, hiring, compensation planning, and a lot of things people in the HR industry call “Performance Management.” It’s all the mysterious HR-related stuff that relates to…
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#40 – Author Dani McClain On The Politics of Black Motherhood
Dani McClain believes motherhood is inherently political for black women. As a journalist and author Dani McClain writes and reports on race and reproductive health policy and issues. She is a columnist for the progressive magazine The Nation, and recently published her first book, We Live For…
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#39 – John Faherty On The Library As Cultural Guardian
John Faherty knows he has the perfect job. The Distiller interview with John Faherty at Wódka Bar OTR After previous careers in television and print journalism, four years ago John Faherty took a bit of a left turn. Today he is the Executive Director of the historic Mercantile Library in...
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#38 – Cole Imperi On The Value Of Death To A Full Life
Cole Imperi wants to talk about death. Thanatologist Cole Imperi (photo courtesy of Cole and AmericanThanatologist.com) Perhaps more importantly, she wants you to talk about death. As a thanatologist Cole Imperi studies, teaches, lectures, and writes about death, dying, and grief. Cole’s work…
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#37 – Myra Ballentine Fights Discrimination with Virtual Reality
Myra Ballentine is familiar with discrimination. VECTRE Co-Founder Myra Ballentine Born and raised in Pakistan, Myra Ballentine knows first-hand the thousands of micro-aggressions a woman or a person of color experiences every day. But through them she sees the opportunity for her most meaningful...
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#36 – Mandy Nagel On Creating “I Thought Of You”
Mandy Nagel has done a lot of things. And maybe that’s why we love her at The Distiller, because she’s got the only resume that rivals ours for sheer meandering goodness. She worked at Apple in Cupertino. For a while she flipped houses with her father. There were years at advertising agencies…
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#35 – ShakeIt! Records’ Darren Blase On Music, Technology, and Heritage
Darren Blase didn’t set out to be a music historian. But that’s essentially what he’s become. You’d be hard pressed to find anyone who knows more about Cincinnati’s musical history than Darren and his brother Jim. And it’s not just knowledge. ShakeIt also has one of the largest collections of...
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#34 – Bar Owner Julia Petiprin On Making Space for Community
Julia Petiprin’s ready for the next adventure. When she moved to Cincinnati in 2014 to open the iconic bar Sundry & Vice, she thought she’d be here a year. Open the bar, get it running, and then head back to LA. But never underestimate the seductive powers of a beautiful post-industrial…
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#33 – Meteorologist Allison Rogers Makes Weather Personal
Allison Rogers knew she wanted to be a meteorologist when she was twelve years old. When Hurricane Katrina blew through her hometown, Allison relied on the TV weather to let her know if things were going to be okay. She says she immediately knew that’s what she wanted to do when she grew up, “I...
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#32 – Tattoo Artist Jeremiah Griswold on Creativity that Changes Lives
Jeremiah Griswold wears his art on his sleeve. Spend any amount of time with tattoo artist Jeremiah Griswold, and two things become immediately apparent. First, he’s a deep thinker, who does nothing without considering the philosophical aspects of his actions. And second, he’s a true artist, who…
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#31 – Design Impact’s Ramsey Ford & Kate Hanisian On Truly Meaningful Work
Design Impact Was Built To Make A Difference It sounds simple when you hear it, but the idea of involving those most affected by social problems in the development of solutions is somewhat revolutionary. It’s far more common, and perhaps far easier, for those in positions of power to assume they...
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#30 – Filmmaker Yemi Oyediran On Work That Builds Community
Yemi Oyediran is full of surprises. We might have expected Yemi Oyediran to immediately jump into promoting his new film, “Queen City Kings,” about the legendary Cincinnati studio and record label King Records. But to get there, we needed to talk first about how he got interested in computers at...
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#29 – Songwriter Kim Taylor On Sustaining a Life of Creativity
Kim Taylor knows how to be vulnerable. After all, as a songwriter with five full length albums and two EPs under her belt, she’s practiced and cultivated vulnerability for years. She’s honed the craft of opening her heart and putting herself into a song. But when she recently got the chance to…
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#28 – The Distiller Podcast 2018 Year In Review
The Distiller Podcast is one year old. Our first episode aired on December 16, 2017, and featured Danny Korman of green general store Park & Vine, interviewed at The Anchor OTR in Cincinnati. Since that first show we’ve produced a show every two weeks. That’s 52 weeks. 26 shows. 32 guests. In…
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#27 – Kelly Dolan of Ingage Partners On the Impact of B-Corp Businesses
Kelly Dolan knows business can do good and make a profit at the same time. Kelly, along with her business partner Michael Kroeger, are the co-founders of two companies, Ingage Partners, and Thrive Impact Sourcing, that are both Certified B-Corporations. You’ve likely heard of C-Corp and S-Corp...
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#26 – FireLab Creators Anne-Marie & Luis on Immigration, Work, and Hope
There’s a lot of talk about immigration right now. In fact it’s become one of the central hot-button issues in our political discourse. But studies have shown that cultivating relationships with people from other cultures and races has a significant impact on one’s politics. Personal stories are...
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#25 – Tree House Builder Django Kroner On A Life In The Trees
Django Kroner lives in the trees. Working as an arborist and tree house builder with his company, The Canopy Crew, everything Django does “professionally” involves trees. And it’s a pretty magical life, by all accounts. Django is the child who dreamed of living in the trees, and actually made it...
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#24 – Piano Technician Nevin Essex On Craftsmanship and Mastery
Nevin Essex doesn’t play the piano. At least he wouldn’t call himself a pianist. But he’s directly responsible for thousands of pianos, and tens of thousands of performances. Through his art, Nevin makes the art of others possible. And that’s a beautiful thing. In the forty-plus years he’s been...
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#23 – Melis Aydogan of Ruya Coffee On A First Generation View of Meaningful Work
Ruya Coffee is the realization of a lifelong dream. That’s not surprising, since Ruya means “dream” in Turkish. Melis Aydogan, the founder of Ruya Coffee, never saw herself as an entrepreneur, or a small-business person. But when a chance meeting on a bus from Chicago to Cincinnati started her...
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#22 – Justin & Tasha Golden On Navigating Work Transitions as a Couple
Tasha and Justin Golden have been married a long time by any standard. Just about twenty years, in fact. And you don’t stay married that long without learning some pretty good lessons about relationships. During that time, they’ve also gone through some fairly major life changes. They’ve both...
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#21 – Humanist Chaplain Bart Campolo on the Intersection of Work and Belief
When Bart Campolo lost his faith, he didn’t lose his desire to minister. After all, the word “minister” was a verb before it became a noun. The fact that Bart no longer believed in a God didn’t mean he was any less interested in helping people work through the problems in their lives. Bart still...
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#20 – EcoATM Founder Mark Bowles On Entrepreneurship and the Tech Startup World
Mark Bowles Is Not Afraid to Fail, He’s Done It Many Times Before. Talk with Mark about his experience in technology startups and venture-based entrepreneurship, and you’re just as likely to hear the stories of his failures as his successes. But Mark didn’t start out with a silver VC spoon in his...
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#19 – Theatre House Owner Marty Boyer on How Values Guide Decisions
Theatre House owner Marty Boyer is a high-character individual. Marty is a unique individual in that his ego has (apparently) almost no bearing on what he does for a living. Marty is the most pragmatic individual I’ve ever met. He has the ability to make a clear-eyed assessment of his skills, and...
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#18: Potter Christie Goodfellow and Sculptor Beth Graves on Creativity in the Gig Economy
Christie Goodfellow and Beth Graves Are Two Very Different Kinds of Sculptors. The similarities and differences between Christie and Beth’s work creates an interesting give and take between the two of them. Still, they share enough in common to exchange techniques and tips, but the work that...
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#17: Libby Hunter on Overcoming Poverty with Literacy
Libby Hunter Believes Storytelling Is the Key to Overcoming Poverty When you talk with Libby Hunter about literacy, you’d better buckle your seat belt. Libby talks quickly, and with purpose. Aside from a brief stint in real estate to pay the bills, she’s been working in the non-profit sector…
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#16: Artist Mark Dejong Turns His Profession Into His Passion
It took a while for Mark Dejong to call himself an artist. Mark Dejong was born in The Netherlands, but his family moved to Cincinnati when he was a child. In his 20’s he took classes at the University of Cincinnati’s prestigious School of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (better known...
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#15: Homeschool Mom Liz McEwan on the Work of Family
Liz McEwan is not your typical homeschool mom. Or perhaps she is. Maybe the “typical” homeschooling parent doesn’t actually exist. Most of The Distiller‘s guests have some professional ambition or goal they’re pursuing. The majority of our discussions about “work” necessarily center around...
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#14: Chef Derek Dos Anjos on the Business of Food
Chef Derek Dos Anjos’ Secret Weapon May Surprise You Ask a chef or restaurateur what skill is most important to running a restaurant, and you’re likely to get a lot of different answers. Maybe it’s the ability to multi-task. Perhaps it’s knowledge of specific kitchen skills. For some, it might be…
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#12: Corben Bone – Professional Soccer Player
Corben Bone’s Work Is Play On the field or off, Corben radiates energy. Watch him play in his midfield role for the F.C. Cincinnati soccer team, and you’ll see the way he sparks the team to life when play lags. In person Corben is direct, approachable, and no-nonsense, both physically and...
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#11: Dr. Meredith Shockley-Smith – Equity, Inclusion, & Community Specialist
Meredith Shockley-Smith just took a big leap. (Updated 6/9/17 – we forgot to include the link to the podcast Brandon mentioned in the episode; it’s Shankar Vedantam’s NPR podcast “Hidden Brain.” The episode, originally aired March 20, 2017, is titled “The Scarcity Trap: Why We Keep Digging When...
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#10: Michael Wilson – Photographer
Michael Wilson Is More Than Just A Photographer. He’s a Master. A storyteller. A record-keeper. A history maker. Michael Wilson has been making pictures* for nearly 40 years, and in that time he’s developed a look and feel that is instantly recognizable. When you see a Michael Wilson photo, on an...
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#9: Julius Jenkins – Dancer, Educator, Community Activist
Julius Jenkins Wants to Bring Street Culture Back to Life. You may already know of Julius Jenkins, or his work, and not even know it. You may have seen his choreography as part of the street dance event “Heroes Rise.” Perhaps you’ve seen one of his collaborative performances with the Cincinnati...
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#8: Megan Trischler – Community Designer
Megan Trischler Helps Make Dreams Come True. And we’re not just talking about her current position as Program Director for People’s Liberty. Megan brings design thinking and a desire to “make the ordinary extraordinary” to everything she does – and she’s done a lot. From founding the restaurant…
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#7: Tamaya Dennard – Cincinnati City Council Member
Tamaya Dennard is the future of local politics. As one of the newest members of the Cincinnati City Council, Tamaya Dennard represents everything happening right now in political discussions across the US. This is Tamaya’s first time holding public office. It seems clear that it will not be her...
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#6: Matt Hart – Punk Rock Poet
Matt Hart Is Not Afraid to Go Deep. When discussing motivation, or empathy, or the pure punk rock power of a kick-ass poem, Matt is not afraid to get involved, to shed a tear, to raise his voice. And that’s why The Distiller wanted to talk with poet and teacher Matt Hart. We thought this…
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#5: Stephen JohnsonGrove – Public Policy Attorney
Stephen JohnsonGrove is a professional do-gooder, the Deputy Director for Policy at the Ohio Justice and Policy Center, a non-profit law and advocacy office in Cincinnati. OJPC offers pro-bono legal services to incarcerated people, along with advice and representation for people who have a…
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#4: Matt Gunderman – Director of UC Health Air Care & Mobile Rescue
Matt Gunderman saves lives for a living. Some people do work that seems sexy…exciting…but when you dig a little it’s just another job. Other people make a difference in the lives of individual humans every single day. Matt Gunderman is one of the latter: an everyday superhero. Links &…
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#3: Musicians Ric Hordinski & David Wilcox at Brew House
Ric Hordinski and David Wilcox have known each other for over 20 years. They’re craftsmen in the truest sense, and two guys who bring a great deal of intention to everything they do. David is an award-winning folk singer and songwriter with 18 albums to his name. He crafts smart, funny, poignant...
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#2: Dominic & Judi LoPresti – Spun Bicycles
People talk a lot about “work-life balance” these days. But what if your work is your life, and vice-versa? What if your work life is also your marriage? And what if the combination of the two is tied to your mental health and well-being (how could it not be)? And if you’re a small business…
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#1: Danny Korman – Small Business Owner, Outdoor Advocate
Danny Korman has been a fixture in Cincinnati for the past decade, but things change. In the inaugural episode of The Distiller, Danny talks about moving from Chicago back home to start his “green general store” Park + Vine in the early 2000’s, as well as the store’s amazing 10-year run and…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
The Distiller is a series of conversations with people from all walks of life about how we find meaningful work, and how we find meaning in the work we do. Recorded on-location, and generally with a drink in hand, The Distiller explores the work that defines our lives, and how we think about that work.
HOSTED BY
Brandon Dawson
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Distiller have?
The Distiller currently has 51 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Distiller about?
The Distiller is a series of conversations with people from all walks of life about how we find meaningful work, and how we find meaning in the work we do. Recorded on-location, and generally with a drink in hand, The Distiller explores the work that defines our lives, and how we think about that...
How often does The Distiller release new episodes?
The Distiller has 51 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to The Distiller?
You can listen to The Distiller on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Distiller?
The Distiller is created and hosted by Brandon Dawson.
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