Episode 43: Becky Curran – Advocating for disability inclusion
Beyond 6 Seconds: Neurodiversity stories from neurodivergent people
01/14/19
•51m
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Becky Curran is the Disability Equality Index (DEI) Director at Disability:IN, where she is responsible for managing the overall DEI program. Born with achondroplastic dwarfism, Becky talks about her life & career as an advocate for increasing disability inclusion, including:
- Her childhood health challenges and experiences with social exclusion
- The importance of her support system of family, friends and doctor
- How she navigated through multiple challenges to forge her own career path in the media and entertainment industry, to improve the representation of disability in the media and advocate for actors with disabilities
- Why she started sharing her own story publicly, and the impact that her public speaking is having on individuals and corporations
- Why she's comfortable with people coming up and asking questions about her appearance and about her life as a little person
You can contact Becky on her website www.BeckyMotivates.com and learn more about her motivational public speaking and her story.
Becky's full bio:
Becky Curran serves as the Disability Equality Index (DEI) Director at Disability:IN. In her current role, she's responsible for managing the overall DEI program.
Becky received her Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Providence College, where she gained a passion for influencing change behind the scenes in the entertainment industry. Upon graduation and after 100 job interviews, Becky started working in the Entertainment Marketing department, followed by the Comedy Touring department, at Creative Artists Agency, the world's leading entertainment and sports agency. Five years later, she worked at CBS Television Studios, where she assisted with the casting of pilots and television series. During this transition, she also served as the Marketing Director and Co-Founding Board Member of the Catalina Film Festival. She also founded DisABILITY In Media, which focuses on positive disability inclusion storytelling through social media.
After her six and a half years of working in the entertainment industry, Becky launched a public speaking business. A prolific public speaker and advocate for disability inclusion on a global scale, she has spoken at over 100 venues, including schools, corporations, nonprofit organizations and government agencies, throughout the United States and Kenya. She's really passionate about disability inclusion in schools, the workplace, and everywhere else.
More recently, she spent three and a half years working in the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) & Diversity department at Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), the world's largest entertainment union. At SAG-AFTRA, she supported the implementation of a national diversity plan of action to achieve accurate representation of those groups historically excluded from the entertainment and news media.
Becky serves on the Board of Advisors for the National Center For Disability Journalism (NCDJ) at Arizona State University.
Previous Episode
Episode 42: Mark Metry – Humans 2.0
January 7, 2019
•56m
Mark Metry is the Host of Humans 2.0, a Top 100 podcast where he interviews billionaires, New York Times bestselling authors, and other legendary world-class human beings. He's also the founder of VU Dream, a virtual and augmented reality marketing & advertising agency based in Boston.
In this episode, Mark talks about his childhood as the son of immigrant parents, and how one of his entrepreneurial ventures as a teenager lifted his family out of poverty. Despite this financial success, he battled severe social anxiety and feelings of hopelessness – then one day, he decided to take responsibility for his life and health. By studying and adopting nutrition, meditation, and other life-changing practices, he started on his path to reaching his full potential, and created his current business and podcast. He shares how he makes initial contact with his high-profile podcast guests, how his interaction with Seth Godin was a breakthrough moment, and how podcasting has changed his life.
Listen and subscribe to the Humans 2.0 podcast at https://www.markmetry.com/humans-2-0-podcast or on your favorite podcast player. You can also connect with Mark on LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter or by email at mark@vudream.com .
Next Episode
This episode features Larry Sprung, the President and Founder of Mitlin Financial, Inc. He also serves on the National Board of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP).
On this episode, Larry discusses the critical events in his life that shaped his career and advocacy:
- How his mother's long battle with breast cancer led him to a career helping people plan for critical financial events in their lives, and
- How the loss of his brother-in-law to suicide led Larry to become involved with AFSP and, along with his wife Denise, raise more than $1,000,000 for the organization through the Keith Milano Memorial Fund. The fund was created at AFSP in memory of Larry and Denise's brother-in-law and brother, respectively.
Larry also talks about some of the important work that AFSP is doing to help people "Seize the Awkward" by having potentially life-saving conversations with the people in their lives who may be suicidal, and AFSP's Project 2025, which aims to lower the suicide rate by 20% by the year 2025.
You can get in touch with Larry through the Mitlin Financial website at www.mitlinfinancial.com and learn more about the Keith Milano Memorial Fund at www.keithmilano.org .
You can also find more information about AFSP's work at www.afsp.org and the Seize the Awkward campaign at www.seizetheawkward.org .
Larry's full bio:
Lawrence Sprung CFP® is the President and Founder of Mitlin Financial, Inc. He entered the financial industry in 1996 and continues to be inspired and energized by the challenge of helping his clients achieve and even surpass their financial goals.
Mitlin Financial, Inc. is an SEC Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) that prides itself on facilitating their client's financial future. Being a fiduciary is a perfect fit for Larry's personality and business perspective as he puts clients first and consistently helps them make decisions that are right for them.
Larry is known as a devoted educator. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and regularly films the firm's "Mitlin Minute," which is designed to provided information regarding relevant financial topics.
Today, Larry is proud to be serving the second and third generations of his clients. He has seen first-hand how strong financial habits instilled in parents, children and grandchildren, can impact a family's wealth and wealth stewardship for generations.
As an active volunteer, Larry serves on the National Board of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). With his wife, Denise, he has raised more than $1,000,000 for the organization through the Keith Milano Memorial Fund. The fund was created at AFSP in memory of Larry and Denise's brother-in-law and brother, respectively.
Larry has been recognized as one of Long Island Business News' "40 Under 40," and his commentary is regularly featured in publications such as Long Island Business News, U.S. News & World Reports, Newsday, Investopedia, Yahoo Finance, and Nasdaq's website.
If you have the pleasure of meeting Mr. Sprung, you will find that he is more often found conversing about AFSP, his sons' or a hockey game. Doing business and creating relationships is at the heart of who Larry is and it is all done with style and grace.
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