72. Tri Cities Influencer Podcast featuring Justin Raffa

Tri-Cities Influencer Podcast with Paul Casey

Paul Casey:

So a goal is like pulling the rope when you cannot clearly see what is on the other end. You know the treasure is there, but you can only see a shadowy outline. With each pole, the treasure becomes more and more clear until there it is right in front of you.

Speaker 2:

Raising the water level of leadership in the Tri-Cities of Eastern Washington, it's the Tri-Cities Influencer Podcast. Welcome to the TCI Podcast where local leadership and self-leadership expert Paul Casey interviews local CEOs, entrepreneurs, and non-profit executives to hear how they lead themselves and their teams, so we can all benefit from their wisdom and experience. Here's your host, Paul Casey of Growing Forward Service, coaching and equipping individuals and teams to spark breakthrough success.

Paul Casey:

It's a great day to grow forward. Thanks for joining me for today's episode with Justin Raffa. He is the artistic director of the Mid-Columbia Mastersingers. And a fun fact about Justin he said his little whistling thing, Justin talk about that.

Justin Raffa:

It might be easier if I just do a little demonstration Paul. Should we just-

Paul Casey:

Please do.

Justin Raffa:

... and then I'll explain later?

Paul Casey:

Okay.

Justin Raffa:

[inaudible 00:01:16] So there's a little taste of this annoying whistling approach that I learned as a kid. I use my teeth and I look really goofy if you were just watching me. [inaudible 00:01:35] this funny embouchure but I can do things like that. That's the piccolo solo from Stars and Stripes Forever-

Paul Casey:

Yes, it is.

Justin Raffa:

... and I've learned how to do the little trills and yeah.

Paul Casey:

Yes, and it was funny because we laughed about this because I used to have a gap or a chip tooth right in the front for like 20 years. And I was able to also whistle through that gap, so that's pretty funny. Well, we're going to dive in after checking with our Tri-City Influencer sponsor.

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Paul Casey:

Thank you for your support of leadership development in the Tri-Cities. Well, welcome, Justin. I was privileged to meet you many years ago when I was working at a church and you came alongside the music director there and was helping with oratorios and then the Messiah, and it's like, "There's this young guy coming in here with all this musical talent." I remember that. And then through leadership at Tri-Cities, we've had a chance to work together, volunteer together through that to promote leadership development in the Tri-City. So, great that I get to interview today.

Justin Raffa:

Thank you so much for this opportunity, Paul. I'm a big fan of the work that you do on this leadership front for our community. I've had the pleasure of working with you as a facilitator with one of my groups. And I don't know that I'm a Tri-City influencer. My friends like to call me a pusher and an instigator. They use those terms a lot, but I'm delighted to have a chance to talk with you today. Thank you for the invitation.

Paul Casey:

We could change this podcast because it's still an eye, Tri-Cities Instigator, right? I think that would be really creative. Well, help our Tri-City Influencers get to know you. Take us through a couple of your career highlights that led you to where you are now.

Justin Raffa:

I'm a South Jersey native. I grew up outside of Philadelphia in the part of New Jersey where it gets its nickname, the Garden State. I was heavily involved in music for years. I loved singing in church choirs as a kid, and then in all of my different levels of school, I was always involved in music. And it was about my junior year of high school where I thought, "Maybe I could do this for a living." And my high school choir director, who was my favorite teacher of my favorite class, gave me an opportunity that year. And she asked me, "Hey, would you like to teach the class? Would you like to run a couple of rehearsals on this piece and conduct it in the concert?" And I couldn't believe that she would give me that opportunity as a student. She sat in the back of the room and I was down there running the show and I really got hooked. So I'm grateful for those opportunities that I had in high school.

Justin Raffa:

I went off to my undergraduate degree. I had a lot of opportunities to intern with volunteer community choirs, learning more about the nonprofit side of my industry, which is my bread and butter now, which is what I love the most. Being an intern for a variety of choirs in the Princeton area in Central Jersey, I went to Westminster Choir College in Princeton, not part of Princeton University, but the university was just a 10-minute walk from my campus, so I did spend a lot of time there. But I just took every opportunity I could, which a lot of performing artists do early in the career. You never say no. Whatever chance you have to get in front of people to get on the podium conducting a group, I just ate up, eat, slept and breathed music for so long.

Justin Raffa:

My first teaching job was in Bisbee, Arizona, a little town on the border of Mexico. It was 2,500 miles away from everyone and everything I ever knew. I'm an only child, so when I finished my undergrad, I was just ready to get out of Jersey, to get out of the east coast. I was just ready for an adventure. And as a young teacher, you want to go out there and change the world. So I thought, "Let's take this job."

Justin Raffa:

I didn't speak a lick of Spanish. Most of my students there were bilingual. I am as pasty gringo complexion, I had to stay calm. My father's family is Sicilian and my mother's kind of generic UK, but I had a really wonderful time. I was 22 years old and I was out there by myself and had a chance to run the choir and drama departments of the Bisbee High School. And I was also quickly promoted as the lead conductor, the artistic director of the Bisbee community course. So here I am now 22 also in front of adults and getting to pick music and program concerts and things that if I had stayed on the east coast, I probably would have still had to be the intern for the another decade of my life.

Justin Raffa:

It's just very saturated. My industry back on the east coast, there's a lot of us looking for work, so at the border of Mexico, I had a lot of opportunities and I'm grateful for that. I got to test things out. I made a lot of mistakes in my first couple of years of teaching and working with adult choirs. I also was on the city of Bisbee's Arts Commission, which is where I first stepped into the government sector of advocating for arts.

Justin Raffa:

I did my master's degree a couple of years after, 27 years old, I needed a job, and I found this interesting little community called the Tri-Cities in Washington State. I'd never spent any time in the Pacific Northwest. I was interested. I was ready to move to another corner of the country ready for that next adventure. I came up for an interview, they liked me, I liked them, and 13 years later, here I am.

Justin Raffa:

And again, I was 27 years old when Mid-Columbia Mastersingers hired me to be its lead conductor, the artistic director. That's a big responsibility for someone that's still fairly early in their career. The board took a chance on me and I'm grateful for that. And that original team and I worked very close together to really build and start to rebrand the organization.

Paul Casey:

Yeah, it sounds like say yes to opportunities, I heard in that story. I heard about mentorship in that story. I heard take a chance on somebody that's showing promise, so a lot of good leadership lessons.

Justin Raffa:

But the salary that the Mastersingers offered me that first year, by the way, which I am happy to share. I don't mind talking about money. I know some people get weird about money. It was basically a $4,000 stipend for the year. And my parents back in Jersey were like, "You're doing what?"

Paul Casey:

For the year.

Justin Raffa:

"You're doing what? You're moving to another corner of the country to take on a job that pays you four grands." I was like, "Mom, dad, you got to start somewhere in this industry. It's a small-sized nonprofit performing arts organization. I think I can invest in this and build it, and it's going to give me the opportunities that I want to work in my field."

Justin Raffa:

I'm glad that we've been able to build the organization and my salary along with it in these past 13 years. But yeah, taking chances and recognizing that, for a lot of us who are artists money is definitely secondary. And we hope that it comes, but it takes a lot of time to build up your experience where you're at a level where you're being compensated for what you think you're worth. But I was happy to do it when I was 27, or I actually I would do it again now.

Paul Casey:

Well, that's a real love for it. So being in your strength zone can multiply your influence, so how do you add the most value to your organization?

Justin Raffa:

I have talked a lot over the years about getting the right people on the bus.

Paul Casey:

Yes, the bus.

Justin Raffa:

And for me, when the Mastersingers hired me, the organization was a 30ish thousand-dollar annual budget, pretty small, seven or eight members of the board of directors, most of which were singers or singer spouses. So very much the early stages of what nonprofits look like. So I was very intentional and strategic from day one about who do we want on the board? What other staff positions do we want to create? And who are the best people to fill those jobs?

Justin Raffa:

The board and I, we are very protective of who we bring into that inner circle, because we know that one bad apple can really-

Paul Casey:

So true.

Justin Raffa:

... poison the water. So we've been very diligent about who we invite to come on our board. And as we've grown staff positions, I am fastidious about who we're hiring. I'm on all the selection panels. And that's part of my role as artistic director, when we're bringing additional artistic roles, just, you got to get the right people on the bus.

Justin Raffa:

And in choir, it's all about team. I could be the greatest, most intelligent musical mind that this country has ever seen, but at the end of the day, it doesn't matter because the work I do is so contingent on groups of people. So yeah, getting the right people on the bus I think has been a really important step for me in growing my organization.

Paul Casey:

And then on the flip side, you have to be self-aware of your weaknesses. So is there a favorite way you sabotage yourself?

Justin Raffa:

Yeah, and I've just recently started addressing this. But when you work for a nonprofit organization, when you work for a nonprofit arts organization in communities like Tri-Cities, sometimes it's hard to set work boundaries. We do have a physical office space, but I do not have set office hours. I do not have a nine-to-five job where I need to report to this physical location.

Justin Raffa:

I can go into the office, but mostly my colleague, Wendy, who is our managing director, she's the front face of the office, so I almost never go in. Which means that at times I find myself answering emails on Friday night at 11 o'clock at night. Because I feel that there's this urgency to get it done. And not having those clear boundaries about showing up to a physical space to work and following a 40-hour work week nine to five, working in the nonprofit sector can be really consuming. And you feel like you're just on, 365 days a year you're just on call 24/7. And so I've had to be really intentional about balancing my time and setting up those limits and said, "I'm not going to answer emails after nine o'clock at night. Let's try that."

Paul Casey:

Right.

Justin Raffa:

And it's hard because things might come in and I see it, especially now that we all have phones where we get little dings when anything else comes like, "Oh, it'll just take me a second to answer." No, it can wait. Or, "It's the weekend, I'll get it on Monday morning." So it's been really hard for me because I love my work so much. And I often do have the time. I could take a couple minutes right now and answer that despite the fact that it's 11 o'clock at night.

Justin Raffa:

So just having to solidify those boundaries and those time restraints so that I don't feel that I'm constantly living my job.

Paul Casey:

Yeah, and that is hard when you love your job. I totally can relate to that as well, but it will drain you. And it also sets an expectation sometimes of the recipient of the email that, "Oh, I got to respond at 10 o'clock or 11 o'clock as well."

Justin Raffa:

Right. I don't want to condition people to think that, "Oh, well, Justin's going to answer my email within 30 minutes because he always does." That also sets up unhealthy habits.

Paul Casey:

It does.

Justin Raffa:

And end up, because you could see what time this email was sent, what time the response was sent, all of that is tracked. And I'm trying to help my staff colleagues as well. We've all been culprits of this. Like, "Folks, let's just take it easy. This is not so urgent. If something's urgent, pick up the phone and call me. But have a nice weekend, see you Monday morning."

Paul Casey:

Good stuff. Well, rarely, by the way, only children unite just saying that if any of those-

Justin Raffa:

Yeah, it's a thing.

Paul Casey:

... actually influencers out there that are only children will have to start a meetup. But rarely do we achieve our highest potential by ourselves. And you said, it's all about the team in choir. Who keeps you accountable? Who keeps you energized to getting your goals accomplished?

Justin Raffa:

It's pretty easy for me as a conductor because it's my singers.

Paul Casey:

Yeah.

Justin Raffa:

It is the wonderful array of volunteer people that I serve in this community who look to me weekly in rehearsals or when we're doing events. Being a choir director is a very authoritarian job in many ways, it's not a democratic institution. The conductor is front and center, usually elevated standing on a podium, and is calling the shots, is dictating, "This is what we're going to do, and this is when we're going to do it, and this is how we're going to do it."

Justin Raffa:

So I answer to my singers. I am responsible to them. I am inspired by them. And as I mentioned a moment ago, I could be the most skilled, experienced conductor, but if my singers aren't having a good experience, if they're not happy with the nature of rehearsals or how the organization is operating under my leadership, they're all volunteers, and they don't have to show up next week. And I'm nobody without a choir.

Justin Raffa:

Standing up there by myself, waving my arms, it doesn't matter, right? Everything I do is based on my singers. And since we are a volunteer co-organization, that all of our singers are volunteers, most of them do not have professional musical backgrounds. They have other day jobs, and callings, and spouses, and partners, and children, and things that take their time. So they need their time to be well-spent when they are assembled with me for rehearsals and performances, or they can just opt out.

Justin Raffa:

And all of the professional development that I do to stay up to date on what are the newest cutting edge trends in choral music, all the professional development workshops and things I attend, is so that I can be of better service to my singers. Keep them connected, keep them engaged, keep them excited, and keep them coming back.

Paul Casey:

I love that, because they could vote with their feet.

Justin Raffa:

Absolutely.

Paul Casey:

Do you also have a formal feedback mechanism or are they just free to give you feedback at any time?

Justin Raffa:

We typically have a series of surveys that we'll share with them. And we survey a lot of our stakeholders, so following a performance, we survey our audience. Recently in this era of COVID, we've done a number of surveys with our singers to gauge initially, what do you want to do and what do you not want to do since we can't be assembled, since we can't be together in person singing? Because the staff and I didn't want to just arbitrarily create all these online offerings, whereas the majority of our singers would go, "Nah, I'm not digging that. I don't want to do that."

Paul Casey:

Yeah.

Justin Raffa:

So just trying to gauge their interests. And now, as we see a lot of businesses and industries that are transitioning back to hybrid services and in-person services, asking the singers, "Do you want to do this? Are you ready to be back together? What's the timeline? How eager?" Or, "What are the conditions that you want to see met before you would be comfortable resuming in-person rehearsals?" So that I would like to think that we've created a lot of opportunities for singers to give them feedback.

Justin Raffa:

Many of them have become good personal friends, they're in my social circle, so I would also hope that they would feel comfortable approaching me if there was an issue that needed to be addressed. But we also have a number of other staff and obviously a board of directors who are my bosses. If there was an issue, they are points of contact for singers to give that feedback, if they're not comfortable talking with me.

Paul Casey:

Yeah, you mentioned it's slow now of course, during COVID, and I feel for you because it's your passion and you can't assemble to produce these works of art. But when, before COVID, and hopefully very soon, replenishment of energy is a big deal, because you said you could be on all the time because you love what you do. So what do you do to manage stress other than the boundaries that you mentioned earlier trying to put a cap on replying to email?

Justin Raffa:

Paul, I am a massage junkie.

Paul Casey:

Are you?

Justin Raffa:

I try to go every two weeks if I can, if my budget allows it.

Paul Casey:

Nice.

Justin Raffa:

I also, a couple of years ago, started receiving acupuncture treatments, which I think are very complimentary, the yin to the yang of massage. If massage is the macro, acupuncture is the micro treatments. So that self-care is very important to me. I have a hot tub on my back patio that I use very frequently.

Paul Casey:

Oh, yeah.

Justin Raffa:

And it's funny because in this era of COVID, my industry was among the first to officially shut down because the nature of performing arts. We're all about big groups of people being together in the same physical space and usually in very close proximity. That's what choir is. Choir singers, we stand shoulder to shoulder often.

Paul Casey:

Yeah.

Justin Raffa:

So I have taken advantage of all of this free time I've had to really reflect on my health and stress management, because I historically have done a terrible job at it. I will just work myself to death. So I calmed myself into a daily exercise routine. I get out of the house every day. I think it's important to be outdoors, get some sunshine. I take a 30ish-minute walk. I'm very privileged, I live in Richland, close to the River Walk, so I have a built-in walk that's right out my back door.

Paul Casey:

Nice.

Justin Raffa:

And then I started a 30-minute exercise routine. I rotate arms day, legs day, core day. And if you had said to me over a year ago that this would be my future, I would say, "No way. I hate working out. I hate exercise. I'm not a gym guy." But so many of my doctors and my healthcare team, people that care about me have said, "Justin, as you approach 40, you need to take care of yourself and build muscle mass."

Justin Raffa:

I'm a pretty flexible person. My massage therapists have always told me that, but you need core muscles to be strong, so I don't turn into a shriveled hunchback of an old man when I'm 50.

Paul Casey:

Right.

Justin Raffa:

So I think devoting the time to take care of your physical wellbeing is something that I'd never prioritize, but that I've been able to do. I've seen a lot of benefits from that. And I've also recently been working on learning mindful meditation, something I'm interested in, but since I've had so much time by myself that I can really focus in on it.

Paul Casey:

Well, Tri-City influencers, a lot to put on your wellness self-care checklist that Justin just ran through. So hopefully you got some great ideas to make sure you've got in your own replenishment plan. Well, before we head to our next question on people development, a shout out to our sponsor.

Paul Casey:

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Paul Casey:

Justin, people development, that's what you do, it's crucial for leadership, and if you could clone the ideal person for your organization, what are you looking for? What traits would they have?

Justin Raffa:

Artists, and I'd say teachers and conductors in general, we are so focused on product versus process. We're working towards a performance and perfecting that performance. So we tend to put a lot of value on skill sets, on people's training. But at the end of the day, what I have discovered is, I could bring in the most talented and experienced artistic team, but if they're jerks, if they're not pleasant to work with, if they aren't good team players, the whole process is miserable. And then you could have the most beautiful high-quality aesthetic product, but it's not worth it to me anymore.

Justin Raffa:

So early in my career, I really looked up to these pillars. I idolized a lot of celebrities in my industry who I discovered are really nasty people. So I want to clone people who are flexible, who are pleasant to work with, that I'm going to look forward to going into the weekly staff meeting with them, and not dreading, "Oh gosh, I hope Paul doesn't go off the handle again because we didn't have enough green M&M's in his dressing room." Because a lot of that happens, a lot of artists who have wild expectations, and are very needy, and very demanding, and I don't want to play with those people.

Justin Raffa:

I would rather have a less-quality product, but that I have really enjoyed the process of getting there, working with people that bring me joy, that I really value the time that I spent, because we do. We spend so much time together as ensemble artists building a product. So I want to clone a team of, I don't know what that physically looks like, but flexible and reliable, that they're going to get the job done and not just do lip service. And for me as a leader, I want to a team of folks that I know if I'm going to divvy out these responsibilities, which has also been hard for me, sometimes it's like, "Well, I'll do it. I'll take care of it myself," if I divvy that out, I trust that the team is going to deliver.

Paul Casey:

Which is crucial for delegation, crucial for that. Yeah, and I also agree that we want to hire people, in whatever leadership position you're in, that you look forward to being with. That we don't think about going to a meeting with them and it's like, "Oh, I've got to go to a meeting with so-and-so." I heard it said that you want to hire people that you would choose to go to dinner with. That's one of the filters to look through and so, I love that.

Paul Casey:

Well, you have to think of your organization as the head of a nonprofit, you've got to look further out, long-term, you've got to look at the big picture, how do you do that, Justin?

Justin Raffa:

I have also historically been terrible at this, because I've often said, "I live in the present moment, and I'm just paying attention to what's in front of me." And as I approach turning 40 and coming into formal middle age I suppose, I feel like it's a big shift for me.

Paul Casey:

Yes.

Justin Raffa:

A lot of this, I think just comes with age that we become more experienced and it forces us to think ahead about what's next. When I was in my 20s, it didn't matter. I got a job for $4,000 a year. I'm not thinking about retirement or savings, it's like, "I'll spend it when I got it and have fun and I'll worry about tomorrow, tomorrow." But as I've worked in particular with the Mastersingers, if we have big goals, if we have big dreams about what we want our organizations to accomplish, if I don't want to keep working for the same 30ish thousand-dollar annual budget organization, we have to plan ahead. We have to set those goals because it does take a long time to get there.

Justin Raffa:

The choir's budget is now, just over $250,000 a year. And I'm so proud that we have built that here in the Tri-Cities. It can be done, a performing arts organization that thrived. At a time when, I was hired in the summer of 2008 in the midst of the big economic downturn that the country was facing where so many performing arts organizations were closing up shop, going bankrupt. You've got to set goals if you want to actually grow, and set your sights big, because I am. I want a big, bigger, better, bolder community. I want a bigger, better, bolder organization. And it's not something that I can do today or tomorrow, it takes the time to invest. Work with the team, set those big visions, because it's going to take a lot of time to get there, but you will, if you invest the time.

Paul Casey:

Well, congratulations for what has been built through you with the team, because that is phenomenal.

Justin Raffa:

Thank you. I'm proud of the role I've played, but it's because of the team. We got the right people on the bus when we need them.

Paul Casey:

That's right. And to use your macro/micro wording from earlier. So macro vision, the big goals, wanting to make this even more phenomenal than it is. What are the small acts of leadership in your role as artistic director? How do you make a positive difference in each one of your volunteers?

Justin Raffa:

When you and I went through LTC, we learned about five leadership traits in a particular system. And one that I had never really considered, because it's not important to me as an individual, is called encourage the heart.

Paul Casey:

Yep.

Justin Raffa:

And I think that conductors, classical music conductors are also notoriously terrible at this. We are trained to be pragmatic. We are fixing problems. And when something is correct, we just check it off the list and we move on. It's like, "What else needs to be fixed? Where else are the problems?" So I was so appreciative of my time in LTC that one of my biggest takeaways was stop and celebrate successes. And not just the big ones, once a year at the annual meeting, celebrate the little things, thank people, thank them more often than you think.

Justin Raffa:

And again, it's because I find that myself as an individual, that's not so important to me. I don't need a lot of lauds and thanks. I often say, "It's my job, I'm doing my job." But not everyone is like me. And of the diverse team and volunteers that I serve, it goes a long way in a rehearsal to stop and say, "Altos, that was really beautiful, thank you for that." And they look at me like, "Oh, my gosh." Because they're waiting for, "Altos, you're still singing the wrong note and I just don't know why." So this idea of encourage the heart, celebrate successes not just the big ones, and thank people often.

Paul Casey:

Thank people more than you think, I like that. Well, if one of our Tri-City influencer listeners asked you what are some leadership resources they must go to, it could be books, it could be podcasts, it could be other ways to grow their leadership skills, where would you point them?

Justin Raffa:

I used to be such an avid reader for pleasure, but now as a conductor, most of my "reading time" is spent studying music scores. But there are a couple of resources that I've enjoyed over the years as a leader. One of which I just mentioned, the leadership challenge, I believe is the formal concept that you and I studied in Leadership Tri-Cities and there's a book that came out with that. I very much enjoyed that book. It really changed my perspective on identifying those five key roles because two of them were very obvious to me. It's like, "I know I already do this pretty well, but the other three it's like, oh, I never really thought of that." So I certainly encourage people to read that.

Justin Raffa:

And the rest of my response, probably I would take this in a different direction than some of your other guests say, I think it's important for us here as leaders in the Tri-Cities to read the Tri-City Herald. I am a subscriber online, but we need to know what's happening in our community locally. And despite all the changes that the Herald has had in terms of staffing or the parent company that's in charge, they remain the best authority of local news. And I think it's important for us to know what's happening in our community on all these various fronts of business sectors and politics, because ultimately it is going to affect me and my organization.

Justin Raffa:

I think good leaders need to be aware of the big picture of what's happening in their community. Not just that I know all the latest arts and culture news, but that I'm aware of what's happening at PNNL and Hanford and on the tourism front, all those things come together. And support your local paper, right? We need good media. So be a subscriber to the Herald. It is a great resource.

Justin Raffa:

And then out for my daily walks, I usually listen to the New York Times, puts out a podcast called The Daily. It's about 30ish minutes, so it is the length of my walk. And that is focusing on different national issues, little 30ish-minute clips of what's going on nationally or even internationally what's happening in the world. And I have a lot of respect for The New York Times. I think it's a great publication. It's got a good team of people that are doing that investigative journalism that is not always guaranteed with a lot of our news and media sources these days.

Justin Raffa:

So those are things that I consume on a daily basis, in addition to reading lots of meeting minutes of city councils and other jurisdiction meetings, I try to keep myself up to speed on what local governments are doing. And since I can't attend every single meeting of every jurisdiction, I go back and read a lot of meeting minutes, which can be a little stale, but again, good to know what's going on? And what are our local elected officials? What are the decisions that they've been making for our community?

Paul Casey:

Great to stay aware. Good reminder. Well, finally, Justin, what advice would you give to new leaders or anyone who wants to keep growing and gaining more influence?

Justin Raffa:

Be present in the community, get out there and be visible, meet people. I continue to spend a lot of my work putting in time, getting out of the choir rehearsal, going to networking events and the chamber of commerce luncheons, any kind of communal gathering. I think it's important that I'm advocating for my organization, that I let people know that we exist.

Justin Raffa:

That was one of the biggest challenges when I moved here in the summer of 2008, as I was house hunting and people would say, "What brings you to Tri-Cities, you work in a Patel?" "No." "Are you hired by one of the Hanford contractors?" "No. I am the new artistic director of adult community choir called Mid-Columbia Mastersingers." And inevitably people said, "Who? Never heard of them." So I've had to build the profile of my organization. And a lot of that is just being present, getting out there.

Justin Raffa:

And getting out outside of your industry. We tend to cluster with people we know. All the arts and culture folks in town are good friends, they're in my social circle, I meet them at local watering holes, but sometimes we just become too insulated, right? All the doctors hang out with the doctors and all the lawyers hang out with the lawyers. We need to intersect those paths. Leadership Tri-Cities was a big help for me on that front. Some of my closest friends in my class were the most different from me and worked in sectors that are farthest removed from what I do as a musician.

Justin Raffa:

So get out there and meet people, meet people outside of your industry, and build your reputation that people know you to be a kind, compassionate and reliable person. Not just that, "Oh yeah, Justin is the quiet guy." Everybody knows that. They know I'm a music person, but I also hope that they know me to be kind and caring and reliable, that if I'm involved in a project or I've joined a board that I will deliver, I will show up when I'm given a task, I have a reputation for seeing it through. Build that community profile that people just don't think of you as, "Oh yeah, well, he's the CEO of this company." What beyond our titles do people know you for? I think that's so important, building those relationships, positive relationships with people.

Paul Casey:

Great reminders, to weave yourself into the fabric of your community and be that go-to dependable person. Well, Justin, how can our listeners best connect with you?

Justin Raffa:

Well, Paul as you and many know I did throw my hat in a political arena this past year.

Paul Casey:

Yes.

Justin Raffa:

I stood as a candidate for local office. If people are interested in engaging on those issues and just a lot of local community awareness, I do maintain a Facebook page called Elect Justin Raffa. I am not running for anything, I have not made any declarations, but I wanted to keep that page alive to just continue to talk about local community issues that I think are important. I also have a Twitter presence as well. You can follow me there, electjustinraffa. You can email me directly, it's [e-mail]. My first and last name, R-A-F-F, as in Frank, A, is how I heard my mother pronounce my name for years over the phone, because inevitably the letter F might sound like a letter S.

Paul Casey:

And Justin, you probably also would love them to support the arts fundraisers in town as well, right?

Justin Raffa:

Yeah. In fact Mid-Columbia Arts Fundraiser is the name of an organization that supports not just my own, but some of our partners Mid-Columbia Ballet, Mid-Columbia Musical Theater, Mid-Columbia Symphony. There is such great art being made here in the Tri-City. Sometimes we're not so visible because we don't have a brick and mortar. We haven't built that performing arts center just yet. Maybe we'll talk about that next time. That's the long-term goal of mine that I will see through before I leave this community. We are going to get it done.

Paul Casey:

Yes, keep being a champion. Well, thanks for all you do to make the Tri-Cities a great place and keep leading well. Let me wrap up our podcast today with a leadership resource to recommend. He was one of the stalwarts in the personal development world, passed away several years ago, a guy by the name of Jim Rohm, jimrohn.com, J-I-M-R-O-H-N.com, and he lives on through his blog through The Success Academy, their resources, a team that just wants to keep getting his stuff out there. He was one of the personal development gurus of the 20th century. Stuff on goal setting, communication and leadership, all of my passions, you might want to hit up jimrohn.com to learn more.

Paul Casey:

Again, this is Paul Casey. I want to thank my guest, Justin Raffa from the Mid-Columbia Mastersingers for being here today on the Tri-Cities Influencer Podcast. And we want to thank our TCI sponsor and invite you to support them. We appreciate you making this possible so we can collaborate to inspire leaders in our community.

Paul Casey:

Finally, one more, a leadership tidbit for the road to help you make a difference in your circle of influence. Zig Ziglar said, "Outstanding people have one thing in common, an absolute sense of mission." And so next time KGF, keep growing forward.

Speaker 2:

Thank you to our listeners for tuning in to today's show. Paul Casey is on a mission to add value to leaders by providing practical tools and strategies that reduce stress in their lives and on their teams, so that they can enjoy life and leadership and experience their key desired results. If you'd like more help from Paul in your leadership development, connect with him at [e-mail], for a consultation that can help you move past your current challenges and create a strategy for growing your life or your team forward.

Speaker 2:

Paul would also like to help you restore your sanity to your crazy schedule and getting your priorities done every day by offering you his free Control My Calendar Checklist, go to www.takebackmycalendar.com for that productivity tool, or open a text message 72000 and type the word 'growing'.

Paul Casey:

Tri-Cities Influencer podcast was recorded at Fuse SPC by Bill Wagner of Safe Strategies.