#214 Flowing with Cal Fussman

Shannon is so happy to introduce you to this week’s guest if you don’t already know him. Cal Fussman is a journalist and New York times bestselling author who has interviewed a variety of leaders from around the world, including Mikhail Gorbachev, Jeff Bezos, Robert DeNiro, Muhammed Ali, Quincy Jones, and the list goes on and on. But let us backtrack for a moment, Shannon met Cal on a whim in Lake Tahoe at a Spartan race where he was interviewing the founder of Spartan and getting ready to begin training to participate in his own Spartan event. Shannon and Cal road up and down the Tahoe summer slopes on a gondola while they had a wonderful chat. And what Shannon discovered is someone who is an amazing listener, and avid student of life, humorous and kind, and who has a huge heart. From there, Cal invited Shannon on his podcast Big Questions and Shannon is pleased to say their friendship has continued from there. His call to action of “Change your Questions and Change your Life” is an amazing perspective shift for those looking to change their trajectory. So when it came time for Shannon to ask people to read her book and offer their thoughts, Cal was top of her list, and he graciously undertook the task. Cal is a force to be reckoned with. He is an amazing speaker, writer, podcaster, and quester! For what his latest quest is, listen to this episode. Maybe there’s a way you can help Cal out with the daunting task he has decided to dedicate himself to!! Shannon is always grateful for their conversations, and they’ve had a few now! And she is thrilled to finally have him on the podcast. Please check out the show notes for more info on Cal and how to connect with him. With Cal as a friend, Shannon truly feels like she has someone in her corner. He is a genuine gentleman who follows his heart. Shannon is thrilled to get to introduce you to Cal Fussman!

20180108_Cal+Fussman_8077_v2.jpg — Get to know Cal Fussman

WHO AM I?

I am someone who is always going someplace new.

Young people wearing earbuds may only know of me through my podcast, Big Questions, which recently cracked the iTunes top 50 in its first week.

People who recognize me in airports because of my Fedora are likely to have seen me speak at conferences and corporate events around the world over the last couple of years.

Readers may know me for some time now as a New York Times best-selling author.

Magazine lovers may recognize me as the writer who spent a week with Muhammad Ali for an Esquire Magazine cover story, and interviewed Mikhail Gorbachev, Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, Robert DeNiro and hundreds of others who’ve shaped the last half-century.

Wine lovers will know me as the guy who became sommelier at Windows on the World at the top of the World Trade Center just before it was taken down on 9/11. Took me ten years to process that experience, and write a story about it. I’ve never been a big fan of awards, but I was proud of the James Beard medal I got for that one.

Relatively few people got to see me as the dad on the practice football field every day from the time my son couldn’t kick an extra point through the day he won a game with a 40-yard field goal in the final moments to the day he could kick them from well beyond 50. Kids in the cul-de-sac saw me as the dad who cooked breakfast for the entire neighborhood on Sunday mornings and beamed when his toothless oldest daughter said with pride: “My dad makes pancakes from scrap!” A select few friends and relatives saw me enter Carnegie Hall to watch my youngest daughter perform with her choir.

My three kids see me as the man in the photo above my desk sparring with Julio Cesar Chavez when he was 87-0 with 75 knockouts and junior welterweight champion of the world.

Quite a few people know me as the guy who married his dream, a woman I met on a bus at midnight headed toward the most beautiful beach in Brazil.

Before we were married, many people from many different cultures knew me as a wanderer with a backpack who drifted around the world for roughly ten years without a home.

There were a few stops along the way, so some may relate to me during that time as an eighth-grade English teacher. Others may remember me as an Emergency Medical Technician working in a hospital operating room.

Those who graduated along with me from the University of Missouri Journalism School may recall me as a sports writer who got his start at The Cincinnati Enquirer, The Miami Herald and the St. Louis Post Dispatch.

Going further back, more than a few will remember me as one of the kids lucky to have grown up on the famous 15th Street in Deer Park, Long Island.

Did I leave anything out? A lot. Herding reindeer on the Arctic Circle and swimming over a 17-foot Tiger shark immediately come to mind. But you get the picture . . .

Source:

https://www.calfussman.com/about