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In today’s episode, we host Paul Zelizer, a social entrepreneur and executive coach for impact leaders. His wealth of experience also extends to hosting the Awarepreneurs Podcast, directing social media for Wisdom 2.0, and pioneering a men’s center in New Mexico.

To start our conversation, Paul provides an overview of his storied career and impact work in Northern New Mexico before sharing key insights from his 25 years of activism and social entrepreneurship work. When having a positive impact on the world is not enough, there are plenty of other levels at which it is beneficial for companies to prioritize social issues. We explore these before Paul shares the stories of three activists that have inspired him most along the way.

 

Paul considers emotional intelligence an underrated business skill. He shares why it's so important to develop this skill in order to avoid harm and make a positive contribution, and reveals the value of self-assessment and recognizing your biggest zones of genius and areas of weakness. Lastly, we delve into the opportunity presented by podcasting, particularly for those in the impact space, and how to leverage it to move the needle on your sales. Thanks for tuning in to hear from today’s inspiring guest.

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Key Points From This Episode:

•   Paul Zelizer’s social impact work in Northern New Mexico. [0:02:36]

•   Key learnings from his experience as a social entrepreneur and the host of the Awarepreneurs Podcast. [0:05:52]

•   All the different levels at which it is beneficial for companies to place social issues on their radar. [0:10:10]

•   Three activists that have inspired Paul the most: Prashant Samant, Gary McBerryhill, and Nina Simons. [0:17:28]

•   Common barriers social entrepreneurs experience and how they overcome them. [0:24:00]

•   Why emotional intelligence is so important in the business context. [0:27:48]

•   The value of self-assessment and recognizing your strengths and points of weakness. [0:35:48]

•   The opportunity presented by podcasting, especially in the impact space. [0:39:23]

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Quotes:

“The zeitgeist of the culture has shifted, and that’s really exciting; wherever you are in your career, you can bring what you have and find incredible folks who will assess where you are, help skill you up and let’s get you to work because our planet needs us!” — @PaulZelizer [0:08:17]

“There’s a sense of purpose and relationship to some of the hard issues that humans on planet earth are facing. The businesses that are ignoring them are the same ones that are experiencing a lot of churn and are really struggling to attract talent.” — @PaulZelizer [0:11:57] 

“The pathways to social entrepreneurship are many, so I don’t think we can say that it’s one-size-fits-all.” — @PaulZelizer [0:24:04]

“Research tells us that emotional intelligence is much more effective in terms of actually moving the needle in a business sense than IQ.” — @PaulZelizer [0:28:18]

“Either side of the mic, there’s a ton of research that [podcasting] is a very powerful way to get your message out there and move the needle on your sales, whether its product or service, in the impact space.” — @PaulZelizer [0:42:26]

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Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Paul Zelizer — https://www.paulzelizer.com/

Paul Zelizer on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulzelizer/

Paul Zelizer on X — https://twitter.com/PaulZelizer

Awarepreneurs Podcast — https://www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast

Wisdom 2.0 — https://www.wisdom2summit.com/

Revolution Foods — https://www.revolutionfoods.com/

Kirsten Tobey on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirsten-tobey-176626/

Akido Labs — https://www.akidolabs.com/

Prashant Samant on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/prashantsamant/

Raven Indigenous Capital — https://ravencapitalpartners.ca/

Gary McBerryhill on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/mcberryhill/

Bioneers — https://bioneers.org/

Nina Simons on LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/nina-simons/

Search Inside Yourself — https://www.powells.com/book/-9780062116932/62-0

The Podcast Success Team — https://www.awarepreneurs.com/podcast-success

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