September 2020

SEPTEMBER 2020

COVER STORY

Three Ways to Break Out of Your Echo Chamber this Election Season, pg. 19 GetRuralLeaderMag.com | SEPTEMBER 2020 1

Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Kuanita E. Murphy, PhD Rural Leader Magazine, LLC is a digital publication that highlights every day people doing extraordinary things nationally and abroad. www.RuralLeaderMag.com www.GetRuralLeaderMag.com

About Us

Launched in March 2014, Rural Leader

Magazine, LLC is a digital publication with a mission to highlight every day people doing extraordinary things in business, education, music, community, art, sports, and leadership nationally and abroad.

Rural Leader Magazine honors exemplary individuals on a variety of levels, such as the 20 under 20 Honors, 40 under 40 Honors, Best Small Town Restaurant, Small Town America’s 100 Most Influential People, the Scholars of Collegiate Distinction, Fifty under Fifty, and the Eagle Elite Club.— Reproduction in any manner, in whole or in part, in English, or other languages, is prohibited without written consent.

Send editorial ideas to Kuanita Murphy, PhD, Editor-in-Chief editor@ruralleadermag.com Contact Us info@ruralleadermag.com editor@ruralleadermag.com

Contents

5 Back to school: How to set up your kids for success in 2020

6 How to shop and make money online during a pandemic 8 Innovation Behind What’s in Your Mailbox 10 What We’ve Learned from Working at Home

13 How to Prepare Youth for a Digital Workforce and an Uncertain Future

17 Six Questions to

Ask When Taking Your Business Online

COVER STORY 19 Three Ways to

Break Out of Your Echo Chamber this Election Seasonc

12 Healthcare Heroes You Haven’t Heard About

Tell us what you think about our publications, if you have a great idea for a story, or to just share. We may print your comments in Rural Leader Magazine. By sending us your comments, you’re giving permission to call you for an interview. Please be sure to include your name, address, email address, and phone number so we can reach you. Write to us at info@RuralLeaderMag.com— SUPPORT OUR VISION

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Editor’s Note Dear Readers, Inside this issue, there are a number of great articles about leadership best practices, building positive self-esteem and productivity! We hope you enjoy this issue.

As always, I hope you enjoy this issue and continue to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google +, and LinkedIn. Thanks again for your continual support!

Sincerely, Kuanita E. Murphy, PhD Publisher/Editor-in-Chief

What you do matters. @RuralLeaderMag

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Back to School: How to Set up Your Kids for Success in 2020 Back to school is always filled with excitement, anticipation - and maybe even a little dread - as summer comes to an end. This year, fall might look a little different. But whether your kids are getting ready to go back to school in person or not, it’s important to make sure they have nutritious meals to power their brains and bodies throughout the day.

To help you set up a healthy routine, Produce for Kids is launching the annual Power Your Lunchbox program.

Here’s how you can use the program to benefit you and your kids: Lunchbox inspiration. It’s easy to get stuck in a rut with weekday meals. From breakfast to dinner and all the snacks in between, Power Your Lunchbox has tasty and nutritious ideas and recipes to keep your kids on their toes. Plus, you can get helpful tips for easy, on-the-go foods when you’re in a time crunch like Chickpea Salad Stuffed Mini Peppers and Southwest Quiche Muffins.

Live cooking demonstrations. Check Instagram and Facebook for regular live cooking sessions the whole family will enjoy. And on Aug. 20 at 4 p.m. ET, join the #PowerYourLunchbox Twitter party to get answers to all your back-to-school questions around fueling kids’ minds, staying organized, distance learning and meal prep.

Distance learning resources. Power Your Lunch-

box not only spotlights kid-friendly and registered-dietitian-approved lunch ideas, they also feature valuable tips and content to help families navigate a fresh school year and new or unfamiliar ways of learning.

Health resources. Keeping immune systems in top shape and maintaining mental health will be top of mind this school year as families navigate various ways of learning. The Power Your Lunchbox program offers the multi-purpose resources parents and kids need to stay healthy, feel great and focus on education.

Fresh food donations. This year, the Power Your Lunchbox program is working with several produce brands to help increase access to fresh produce for children and families. These brands are making a $14,000 donation to the United Fresh Start Foundation to increase access to fresh produce in schools.

The program has already raised over $150,000 to benefit charities that support families around the country.

No matter where your kids are for back to school, these resources will help you keep them healthy, properly fueled and engaged. For more information, visit poweryourlunchbox.com.—

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How to Shop and Make Money Online During a Pandemic Canceled plans. Working from home. Financial stress. It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic is causing massive disruptions in many lives. Each day, people are getting more and more creative in discovering ways to stay productive and hold on to a sense of normalcy.

Online marketplaces have seen a major increase in activity over the last six months as some scramble to outfit their home office or home gym with the necessities - while others are cleaning the house and selling things they don’t use. Some are even supplementing their income by selling popular at-home items. Whether you’re offering a bargain or hunting for one, here are the tips you need to be successful by selling things online.

Sell what people are looking for. As items sell out on online stores, there’s an opportunity to make money by selling rare items locally. Home office items like desks and office supplies, including printers, tablets and webcams, are selling at higher prices than normal. Kids supplies like backpacks and laptops are also commanding higher interest. You can search for your item online to see what popular prices are before you sell it to maximize your profit.

Establish credibility. Whether you’re buying or selling, there are few ways to make yourself stand out as credible. On the OfferUp & letgo marketplace, potential buyers and sellers can click on your profile to view your ratings, profile badges and response rates.

The more complete your profile, the more trust6

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worthy your account appears. If you’re new, it may take some time to build up your reputation.

Beware of super-low prices. Watch out for potential red flags if you’re buying. If a price seems too good to be true - such as a $20 diamond ring or a $100 brand-new phone - it likely is. Before you make an offer or commit to buying, check prices of similar items and make sure you’re able to see several photos of the item.

Check shipping before you buy. Stay safe during the pandemic by choosing to ship your bought or sold items. OfferUp & letgo offers every buyer and seller access to nationwide shipping. When buyers see an item they like, they can choose to receive the item by mail, make their offer and pay through the app. Sellers receive a pre-paid shipping label and both parties can track the shipping process Meet in a public location. If a meet-up is necessary, opt for a well-lit public location with video surveillance - and remember to keep a safe, social distance. OfferUp has created more than 2,000 public community meet-up spots so everyone involved in the transaction can feel safe and know exactly where to meet. Simply search on www.safetradespots.com for a mutual location that works for you.

Online marketplaces can be a valuable resource for procuring your buying and selling needs - and helping others find theirs. Download the OfferUp app for more tips on being a successful buyer or seller.—

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Innovation Behind What’s in Your Mailbox The past century has seen technological advances no one anticipated. Take the simple act of sending mail. While the ability to send material to the next town or across the world has been around a long time, the methods have completely transformed. It once took days, weeks or months to receive a letter or package from afar, but now everyone expects to shop online one day and receive products the next.

How did this evolution happen? The postal system spurs commerce. While the United States Postal Service was established in 1775, the first U.S. postage stamps weren’t issued until 1847. When they were first used, there were concerns about stamp theft, and affixing them was not easy, as they required moistening.

At the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago, the USPS hosted an exhibition displaying its first picture postcards, along with the first event-commemorative stamps. By the century’s end, mail was delivered using transportation methods including stagecoach, train and ship.

The turn of the century brought increased demands on the postal system as mail order catalogs, introduced by businesses in the second half of the 19th century, became commonplace. But businesses still found mailing and shipping cumbersome and inefficient. Most stamps were affixed one at a time!

Early innovations. Chicago inventor Arthur Pitney, a wallpaper salesman and expert on adhesives, attended the World’s Fair in Chicago. He left the fair inspired to rethink the postal process. To eliminate the labor of hand stamping business mail and to prevent stamp theft, Pitney invented the first postage meter, patented in 1902.

Meanwhile in 1908, Walter Bowes incorporated The Universal Stamping Machine Company, which sold canceling machines to the Post Office. These machines made it possible to mark stamps to prevent re-use. When Arthur Pitney and Walter Bowes collaborated to form The Pitney Bowes Postage Meter Company in 1920, they changed the future of business mail forever.

This year Pitney Bowes celebrates their 100th anniversary. It was Sept. 1, 1920, that the USPS formally approved the use of their postage meter, followed by the Posts in England and Canada two years later.

Their improved product, built off Pitney’s original invention some twenty years earlier, the newly created Model A mailing machine expedited the process of 8

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business mailing, imprinting the postage amount and postmarking the date. For businesses, metered mail saved time and money while also providing accurate accounting and mailing records - something we may take for granted today, but a breakthrough in the early 1920s.

A century of change. The innovations kept coming. In 1939, Pitney Bowes, Inc. unveiled the “Mailomat,” a coin-operated postage meter and letter box.

Recognizing small businesses as a growth engine of economy, the company developed the first affordable postage meter for small businesses in the early 1950s.

In 1951, Robert Pitney, Arthur’s son, was issued a patent for a remotely resettable meter. This invention would pave the way for later innovations, from Postage by Phone in 1979, to today’s ability to reset postage online.

Signaling the end of the old-fashioned postage stamp, the first self-adhesive stamps were invented in 1979. While the early version was unsuccessful, a better adhesive was invented in 1989, quickly replacing its predecessors.

The digital age. With the advent of the internet and email, traditional mail naturally declined. Then came the explosion of e-commerce, with customers everywhere ordering products online and expecting them to be delivered to their door.

This provided new opportunities for businesses focused on shipping solutions. For example, Pitney Bowes partnered with eBay, developing technology for eBay shippers to print their own Postal Service labels from their accounts.

In recent years, the company has created technologically advanced solutions so businesses can streamline their mail processing and shipping operations more efficiently than ever before. In 2017 the company launched an all-in-one machine for businesses to weigh mail, assess shipping options, print labels, sort and track a high volume of packages and letters quickly and accurately.

E-commerce shows no signs of slowing down. On Cyber Monday 2019, the company’s Global Carrier Services platform printed over one million labels in a single day. At this point it’s hard to even predict where technology will lead business next.

To learn more about continual innovation at Pitney Bowes and its advances for mail and shipping over the last 100 years, visit PitneyBowes.com.—

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What We’ve Learned from Working at Home The recent transition to widespread working from home has shown that the experience has been both educational and eye-opening for many. Working at home means learning to cope with distractions, space constraints, managing time with family and learning new skills. And, according to new consumer research, it has also meant reassessing what is most important.

A nationwide survey conducted by Wakefield Research on behalf of LG Electronics reveals the many ways working from home has challenged and surprised Americans.* Connecting with loved ones. The most striking survey results show the importance of close relationships. Social distancing has caused many to reassess who is most important to them, and how much they may have taken friends and family for granted.

The global health crisis has turned socializing into a more deliberate act. More than half (53%) of homebound people said they felt closer to loved ones than before the outbreak, and 27% even said that they felt much more connected than before.

When asked what they want to do first when the crisis is over, the top answer was to visit loved ones, followed by going out to a meal.

Managing work-life balance. For many people, juggling priorities and obligations was difficult even before the switch to remote working. But having to work at home has shined a brighter spotlight on how we cope and find a healthy work-life balance.

Here are some of the tricks people have discovered: * Half said they take frequent short breaks to balance work and home responsibilities. * 37% are starting work earlier, while 17% are starting work later to manage schedules better. * 35% are learning to keep their whole household to a schedule. * 23% use visual cues (like signs) to let others know when they’re working.

Mastering technological challenges. Most people affected by the crisis say they have had to master (or learn from scratch) how to complete their work entirely from home, including the new norm of conducting video conferences from somewhere in their home.

Technology has been crucial to this adaptation. Almost half (47%) have discovered a new app or service 10

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they say they now can’t live without - especially video chat apps that have helped them learn how to communicate better with colleagues and loved ones.

As one might expect, a majority of respondents admitted to making conference calls from a common area in their house. However, some said they were stuck calling from a makeshift workspace in a lesser-used part of home. One-fifth of respondents admitted to calling from a basement or attic, while others said they took work on the go. The research shows 18% have called from their cars, and perhaps most surprisingly, 12% admit taking work calls in the bathroom.

For many, the time they’ve spent working at home has helped them appreciate how successfully technology has kept them connected on all fronts, including their work and personal lives.

Reevaluating life’s priorities. Overall, the experience of working from home has had everyone reassessing what - and who - is most important to them.

Among those who said they’ve discovered new apps, digital services or technology, many said that they were spending significant time using it for family or relationship management.

An overwhelming number of survey respondents said that they plan to continue at least one of their new practices even after returning to a “normal” work situation, including: * 39% plan to do more cooking. * 43% said they’re likely to arrange more family dinners. * 39% also said they would do more video chatting.

As a result of spending some more time at home, many have been rethinking their priorities, with nearly half considering buying or using fewer things.

Some (16%) have thought about beginning a new career, and others are considering starting their own business (14%).

No matter what your work-from-home experience has been, chances are it’s changed your attitudes about work and family life - and how to balance the two - in ways that will stay with you long into the future. *The LG WFH Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research among 1,000 U.S. adults, working from home due to COVID-19, between April 10 and April 15, 2020, using an email invitation and an online survey. —

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Healthcare Heroes You Haven’t Heard About As the country continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans are eager to celebrate healthcare workers on the front lines who cope with the disease every single day. You’ve probably heard countless stories of the amazing acts of kindness and courage exhibited by the doctors, nurses and other healthcare staff who are facing the virus head on.

But among the brave and selfless healthcare providers who put their energy, compassion and even their health on the line to give care to the suffering are many unsung heroes - the healthcare workers in long-term care facilities and nursing homes.

Their untold stories involve not only their capacity to acknowledge and mourn great loss, but also their dedication to providing the compassion and care required to help their residents persevere and recover.

In a time like this, they deserve recognition for their sacrifices.

Mother and daughter team. In Indianapolis, mother and daughter team Lenore Williams and Aubrey Baker both work at long-term care facilities.

Williams says that colleagues at CommuniCare, a national, family-owned company that operates longterm care, assisted living and rehabilitation facilities across the country, has helped hundreds of residents recover from the virus.

“Our division alone has recovered over 150 patients, and I think it has largely been due to the love and care our staff provides,” said Williams, a regional director of clinical care for CommuniCare.

To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, longterm care facility employees have learned and implemented strict new protocols for bolstering resident and staff health and safety - including lockdowns that unfortunately keep residents apart from their loved ones.

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“There are people who care about your family members that are in here. We are trying the best we can,” said Baker, a qualified medication aide at Wildwood HealthCare Center on Indianapolis’ east side.

“They are very scared, and I try to tell them that it is going to be OK,” said Baker.

Baker tested positive for COVID-19 back in March but has fortunately since recovered. As soon as she was cleared to return to work, despite her mother’s wishes, she went back to the COVID 19 unit.

Care at long-term facilities goes way beyond COVID-19. Healthcare workers at care facilities provide vital daily care and assistance for those unable to care for themselves. They are dedicated to continuing to provide that quality care to the best of their ability - despite the dangers and challenges of the current pandemic.

“For our patients’ physical and mental well-being, we wake up every morning, put on our scrubs and protect our patients,” says Ashley Johnson, nurse at Landmark Nursing Home in Texas. “We reduce injury. We improve health. We work with recovery, post-operative care and sometimes assist with palliative care. We maintain skills in supporting someone with degenerative diseases. We help people develop, recover and improve skills needed for daily living and working. We help people communicate ‘I love you’ to their loved ones after a stroke. We improve quality of life and will continue to do so for our residents.”

Read inspirational stories of recovery and kindness, then send your own messages of thanks and encouragement to healthcare workers and residents in long-term care and assisted living at CareNotCovid. com.—

How to Prepare Youth for a Digital Workforce and an Uncertain Future

For young people preparing to enter the workforce, knowing how to secure a job is challenging enough - but now there are even more obstacles to overcome due to the COVID-19 pandemic. People around the country are experiencing greater difficulty adapting to everchanging work environments and ongoing economic shifts. Pew Research Center recently shared that 90 percent of jobs lost during COVID-19 were positions that could not telework.

Fortunately for young people now entering the job market or making career moves, programs are available to help them succeed in any future career or workplace. Boys & Girls Clubs of America, in partnership with Toyota and The Coca-Cola Company, provides youth nationwide with workforce readiness programs, which includes access to real-life job experiences and resources needed to build valuable skills and become career-ready.

Below are three tips leveraged from Boys & Girls Clubs of America for how young people can prepare for success in the workplace and in life: 1. Develop Skills for Remote Work. With so many uncertainties in the world right now, it is critical you focus and refine skills that help position you as a strong candidate in the applicant pool. Establishing strong verbal and non-verbal communication skills ensures easier transitions to a remote workforce, which many people are adapting to. Practice public

speaking and writing with your friends and family, and ask them to make constructive critiques. With each time, you will learn how to better articulate your thoughts and present yourself with confidence and poise. Practicing proper body language, like eye contact and good posture, is also beneficial to best communicate with hiring managers during interviews as well as coworkers once you land the job.

Furthermore, identifying your areas of improvement is also very valuable to work on when preparing for a job. Is time management a struggle in fast-paced environments? Do you sometimes find it difficult to adapt to unexpected changes? If the answer is yes to either question, Purdue University suggests managing these situations better by identifying time wasters, setting goals and establishing routines.

2. Create Your Own Virtual Career Fair. Entering the workforce can be scary, but spending time researching and investing in resources to help you learn about different career paths can diminish that fear and make the job search fun. Creating your virtual career fair will help you identify various job opportunities, become familiar with the skills employers seek out in specific career settings and widen your horizons on the jobs available to you.

You might be asking yourself, “how do I create my own virtual career fair?” First, consider utilizing free, Continuded On Page 14 GetRuralLeaderMag.com | SEPTEMBER 2020 13

How to Prepare, continuded From Page 13 online resources like youth.gov and mynextmove.org that provide you with skill and interest assessments and point you to jobs that match your results. From there, you’ll be able to view job applications and internship opportunities with an idea of what you like and what interests you. Alternatively, virtual field trips or virtual career exploration tools are becoming more prevalent and popular among today’s youth.

For example, for teens who might be interested in manufacturing or engineering, Toyota North America offers a virtual behind-the-scenes look at their manufacturing plants through their Teen Drive 365 video series.

3. Prepare for Virtual Interviews . Before any interview, preparation is imperative so you’re able to put your best foot forward. First, you must create a resume that clearly and concisely highlights why you’re the perfect match for the job. Your resume is 14

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a recruiter’s first impression of you. To ensure you “wow” any recruiter, research free online resume writing tutorials or download resume templates to spruce things up. Also, ask for a second pair of eyes on your resume to check for any spelling or punctuation errors as well as to provide overall feedback.

Additionally, host mock video interviews with a parent or peer to make you feel fully prepared for the actual interview. Recruiters across the country are hiring young people virtually now, so becoming comfortable speaking through a computer will improve your confidence and show the recruiter you mean business.

Boys & Girls Club of America’s Workforce Readiness programs arm youth with a special set of skills and resources to shape their futures, feel confident exploring new opportunities and envision endless possibilities. Learn more at bgca.org/workforce.—

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Six Questions to Ask When Taking Your Business Online Whether you run a solo small business, or your business is moving from brick-and-mortar to e-commerce, you’ve likely got a long to-do list - and you may not know where to start. Or if your business is already online, you may be trying to improve your website and stand out from the competition. Do you have the skills and know-how to make that happen?

Not everyone does. Chances are, you know a lot about your products or services, but not necessarily how to promote your business and run it successfully using today’s digital tools. And due to the pandemic, increasing your online presence and running your business virtually has become even more crucial.

According to survey data released by Fiverr, 49% of U.S. small and medium-sized businesses are optimistic about their future prospects after the lockdown has passed, but not surprisingly, nearly a quarter (22%) of them do plan to increase their digital marketing spend as a result of COVID-19.

If you’re one of the many entrepreneurs trying to figure out your next steps for taking - or optimizing your business online, here are some questions to ask: 1. What are you selling? Are you selling a product or a service? This makes a difference in how you run your business. Can your business happen virtually (if it’s a service), or do you have to manage manufacturing, inventory and shipping on top of marketing and advertising, online ordering and finances?

2. Do you need your own website or online store?

Many small businesses can succeed - or at least start out - by selling products on an existing platform like Etsy or Amazon, rather than creating their entire online store from scratch. But it may not be as hard to build your own site as you think.

3. What do you need on your website? What will best serve your business? “About” and “Contact Us” pages? Do you want to include a blog? Customer testimonials and special promotions for new clients?

Do you need a catalog of products and services?

Does your business need to include a list of services, rates and shipping costs? Making a list of what your business needs is a useful starting point for whoever

you hire to help build your website.

4. What web templates do you see working best for your business? Are you familiar with WordPress, Wix and Squarespace? Which would be the best to suit your particular business?

5. What type of content do you want to see on your site? Would you like to see custom-made illustrations or animation? Stock or custom photography?

How about videos?

6. How do you make sure customers can find your website? There’s a lot of competition out there.

Unless you’re well-versed in SEO and how Google algorithms work, you may not know how to build an online presence others can find using a web search.

Some entrepreneurs find the thought of putting their business online daunting, but with an expert in your corner, it can be simple and hassle-free.

Fortunately, there’s a service that can help you find the right talent to create a web presence that really reflects your unique brand: Fiverr is a platform connecting businesses of all sizes with skilled freelancers offering digital services in over 400 categories including graphic design, digital marketing, programming, video and animation. You can view professionals according to their skills, along with ratings, reviews and cost of the service you need.

And now there’s a new tool to make it even easier to get started building a website for your business - Fiverr’s The Shift. This new resource hub includes a website developer matching experience that will match you with a verified, highly-rated professional specializing in web design and development. For those new to creating a website, the matched talent will act as a guiding force throughout the website creation process.

On The Shift hub, you can also browse inspiring case studies, read stories about how businesses have transformed their digital presence and get tips from helpful blogs, podcasts and many other useful resources for small and medium-sized business owners across all industries.—

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COVER STORY Three Ways to Break Out of Your Echo Chamber this Election Season At a time when the nation is more divided than ever over politics, race and whether to wear a face mask, the opinion of one side is often not just opposed to that of the other side but incomprehensible.

Living in separate digital spheres as well as different areas of the country, the two halves of America were “socially distant” even before the pandemic.

Trying to understand our fellow citizens is critical as we approach the presidential election - not to mention the Thanksgiving dinner table - and yet, it feels harder now than ever before.

But while the path toward greater division sometimes seems like a one-way street, there are actually many ways to bridge the gap of understanding.

“Curiosity is no longer an option, it’s required to understand the new world we are living in,” says Emmy-winning journalist and OZY Media co-founder and CEO Carlos Watson, host of The Carlos Watson Show, a new show on YouTube that aims to heal America’s wounds by presenting a series of meaningful conversations with diverse, influential guests.

With more than 10 million views since its August debut, Watson’s Anderson Cooper-meets-Oprah style of conversation clearly resonates with an audience that craves insightful, impactful and surprising conversations on everything from Black Lives Matter to love, with public figures who might not normally show up in their social media news feeds - from Sean Spicer and Baker Mayfield to George Lopez, Malcolm Gladwell and Tina Knowles-Lawson.

Here are some tips, curated by Watson, for how to break out of your bubble, just as he has facilitated at his own virtual coffee table.

1. Listen to others from across the aisle. This sounds like an obvious place to start, but in many ways it is the hardest step. Not just giving airtime but actively listening to opposing viewpoints is rarely practiced by TV talking heads. One good place to start is by following several people on social media with whom you disagree and seeking out interviews online - not for hot takes on the news of the day, but for in-depth profiles of their lives and careers.

While fiery debates are what often trend online, YouTube’s hidden gem is the respectful exchange

of differing opinions - and they too can rack up view counts. “This is genuinely the first time I have seen two opposing sides having such a respect for each other in the political realm,” comments Taylor Whiteside on an episode of The Carlos Watson Show in which Watson and actor Terry Crews debate the latter’s controversial “Black supremacy” tweets. “This is what true discussions should look like,” continues Whiteside in his comment on the most-viewed episode of the show so far, with 1.3 million views.

2. Seek out deep, meaningful conversations. In 2020, we might have forgotten what it means to have a heart-to-heart with a friend over a bottle of wine, but those long-form discussions are still very much possible through a computer screen. Don’t be afraid to talk about difficult issues like race and to openly advocate for change. But this doesn’t mean just talking politics - the broader conversations you can have, the better. Instead of searching for the “gotcha” moment, find ways to learn the backstory behind someone’s belief system.

3. Make the difficult choice to diversify your life Look around. Your church, your kids’ school, your group of friends, your barbershop and your gym are probably all full of people who look like you and think like you. Start by diversifying your media consumption - check out OZY’s 30-Day Justice Plan for some useful suggestions. To take the next step, would you send your kids to a more integrated school?

Would you change employers for the opportunity to have co-workers who hold different opinions from yours? Would you bring your family to a new place of worship if it meant more fully integrating your social world? Building relationships that cross traditional social lines - whether in race, politics, age or place of origin - is the first step toward understanding, empathy and, ultimately, a sense of shared fate that will demand real change.

Start your bubble-bursting journey by tuning into episodes of The Carlos Watson Show, every day on YouTube.—

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