Emily: It's like, but why didn't you already know your neighbors? Emily: Why did you not already know your neighbors? Like, please be honest about that. Emily: You know, and then while at the same time, it's like we have this loneliness epidemic. Emily: Talk to your neighbors. Talk to the people around you. Put the phones down. You know what I mean? Danny: Hi, and welcome to 5 Random Questions, the show with unexpected questions Danny: and unfiltered answers.
Danny: I'm your host, Danny Brown. And each week, I'll be asking my guests five questions Danny: created by a random question generator. Danny: The guest has no idea what the questions are, and neither do I, Danny: which means this could go either way. Danny: So sit back, relax, and let's dive into this week's episode.
Danny: Today's guest is Emily Williams. Emily is a Webby, Signal, and Anthem award-winning Danny: podcast host and former Executive Director of the Arcus Centre for Social Justice Leadership. Danny: A gender studies scholar and global advocate for social justice, Danny: Emily has worked with communities in more than 20 countries and co-founded the Danny: Social Justice Initiative at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Danny: Her work includes contributing to a global treaty adopted by the United Nations Danny: and decades of leadership in advancing equity, gender justice, Danny: and human rights in the US and beyond. Danny: So, Emily, welcome to 5 Random Questions. Emily: Thank you, Danny. I'm so excited to be here.
Danny: I'm excited to have you. And just going over your bio there in the introduction, Danny: it's an incredibly impressive list of achievements and Danny: reading on your website you previously worked Danny: you know at a normal sort of 9-5 job but you mentioned it's like a really stifling Danny: and unhealthy environment until you left and started to forge your own path Danny: so I'm curious was that the push that led you to where you are today was it
Danny: like the environment that put you on that path for part of what you campaigned for now? Emily: Interesting. Thank you. And thank you, Danny. I'm really excited to be here. Emily: You know, I would say it's not that... Emily: That position in particular that's gotten me to this path, I have noticed while Emily: being on this path that women of color experience a lot of hostility and aggression in the workplace.
Emily: And there's plenty of research to support this, that women of color and Black Emily: women in particular are the most harassed group in the workplace. Emily: And so it's an area that is not often focused on. Emily: And because I am someone who has a very strong sense of justice, Emily: someone who has a lot of experience advocating for justice, I also know that Emily: that then means that I need to advocate for justice in the workplace for myself and for others.
Danny: And I'd imagine, I don't live in the US and I'm of the stereotypical, Danny: very privileged position of being a middle-page white guy. Danny: I would imagine with changes at the government level, so different leaders come in. Danny: So obviously you have Democrat, Republican, Republican, Democrat, Danny: et cetera, and different leadership approaches, if you like.
Danny: How does that impact your work and what you're doing when you've got swing from Danny: up here to down here and all the things in between? Emily: Yeah, yeah, that's a really great question. Who's in office matters a lot for the work that I do. Emily: You know, when we have someone who is really promoting, you know, Emily: policies that make life more livable for people that, you know, Emily: honor the integrity of all human lives, right?
Emily: My work is much easier when we have an administration who is hostile to other Emily: human beings and who seeks to, Emily: sow division and creates harmful policies makes my life well my work a lot more difficult and uh. Emily: You know, that's a problem because, you know, number one, I think we're seeing Emily: that the majority of Americans do not want these kinds of hostile, Emily: harmful policies that we're seeing more of right now.
Emily: And actually, you know, the policies around or the emphasis on diversity, Emily: equity and inclusion, respecting human rights, ending war, those policies, Emily: you know, have been quite popular, actually. Emily: And we see that now even with the election of Zoran Mamdani and across the country Emily: where elected officials are trying to have these policies that represent a people Emily: first mentality and a profit sometime later mentality, right?
Emily: Which we also have seen here in Chicago just recently with the city budget and Emily: the mayor, you know, wanting to tax the largest corporations so that we could have, Emily: you know, more funds to support the people who live in Chicago. Danny: It is interesting. I'm not very well versed. I should say not versed. That's the wrong word.
Danny: I'm completely not very well versed in politics and, you know, Danny: policies, etc. My friend in Toronto, Sam, really well, he studied it for years as well. Danny: And it's always interesting to look at how different countries and governments, etc., approach things. Danny: I know one of the big things here in Canada, not to get too political because Danny: I do try to keep away from that. Danny: One of the big things here in Canada is UBI, Universal Basic Income.
Danny: Do you feel that's something that maybe the US and other countries that haven't Danny: adopted it may be thinking more of now as, you know, the world changes, I guess? Emily: I don't know that governments are thinking about that so much, Emily: but I know that activists are.
Emily: And especially as we see, you know, kind of this rise of artificial intelligence Emily: and, you know, the predictions that AI is going to take over, Emily: you know, so many jobs in the next, you know, one to three years. Emily: Well, then the question remains, if a large sector of society is going to get Emily: pushed out of the workforce, how will they then meet their basic needs if they're Emily: not able to work for wages?
Emily: So that then pushes us into this conversation about universal basic income. Emily: And here in Chicago, some places in Michigan and elsewhere in the U.S., Emily: there are some really interesting pilot programs around basic income. Emily: And it's not surprising to someone like me and probably not to you either, Danny,
Emily: they work really well, right? Imagine that, you know, a family, Emily: you know, who was previously low income can depend on having even $500 to $1,000 Emily: a month, and that they can actually plan to meet the needs of their family, right? Emily: So I think that, you know, along as AI continues to rapidly advance, Emily: I think that societies are going to be pushed into this conversation around Emily: universal basic income.
Danny: Yeah, it'll be interesting to watch. I know when the lockdown happened, Danny: the pandemic was in its prime, for want of a better word. Danny: The Canadian government gave an amount of X amount of $1,000 per month to people Danny: that needed it to top up income, etc. Danny: And that made a huge difference. That kept so many families afloat and so many Danny: houses not going under the hammer for auction, etc. Danny: So I feel that there needs to be something like that for sure.
Emily: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it's just another form of stimulus, right, Emily: of stimulating the economy, of bolstering the economy, really. Emily: So we can start, you know, this goes back to the people first policies. Emily: I think, Dani, honestly, I mean, I'm an optimist. I'm also a realist. Emily: I think it's only a matter of time before we're seeing many more of these kinds Emily: of policies that are much more humane, that are actually supporting people.
Emily: You know, at least here in the U.S., and I know that our policies aren't isolated Emily: to, you know, the landmass of the United States. Emily: I think we have at least a tough year, a few more tough months. Emily: But after that, I think we're going to see much more humane, Emily: much more just policies and approaches to governing. Danny: Well, fingers crossed. I will. I'm 100% with you on that. Fingers crossed.
Danny: I'm crossing toes in hell. But yeah, I know we shall get you a wee, Danny: well not wee, I'm not a royal wee I shall definitely get you back in the show, Danny: we'll have a look at, you know Let's revisit this in say two, Danny: three years time and see how things panned out Yeah Danny: In the meantime though, I'm going to switch lanes and bring you into the 5 Random Questions Danny: hot seat Are we ready for this Emily? Emily: Okay, I'm ready, I'm ready Alrighty.
Danny: Let's bring up the random question generator Danny: Okay. Yeah, I like this as a one to start, actually, with giving your background, actually. Danny: So, Emily, question number one. Do you believe people are inherently good?
Emily: This might be controversial, Dani, but I do not. I do not believe people are inherently good. No. Emily: I believe that there are some people who are good and great and super well-intentioned, Emily: and I believe that there are some people who are not well-intentioned. Emily: In fact, they are very malicious and have bad intent. I believe that. Emily: I mean, I think, you know, I got asked a question similar to this in an interview a few months back.
Emily: But, you know, it's hard to believe that, you know, for instance, Emily: what we're seeing play out here in the U.S. Emily: That, you know, we could cause so much harm and to believe that the people who Emily: are doing this repeatedly time and time again are inherently good. Emily: And so I don't think, you know, I said earlier, I'm an optimist, but I'm also a realist. Emily: I don't think there's anything wrong with that, right? I think it is okay.
Emily: I think we have to actually be able to prepare ourselves to say, Emily: there are some people who have really bad intentions and we need to know that Emily: so that we can navigate this life in a realistic way and in a healthy way. Emily: Because I think when we believe that everyone is good, then people aren't held accountable. Emily: You know, I think that's sometimes where we see things like toxic positivity Emily: having a really negative impact, right?
Emily: It's like, no, some people are not good. Some things are really harmful. Emily: There are some really negative things in the world and we have to be able to Emily: address them so that we can come up with solutions, right? Danny: It's interesting. As we recorded this on Thursday, January 8th, Danny: the latest episode just dropped earlier today. Danny: My guest on that, Rob Lynch, one of the questions he had was about...
Danny: It was a similar kind of question, but it was around about being good and bad. Danny: And does power come from, does toxicity and power, et cetera, Danny: come from if you have money early on or you work hard and you come from poverty Danny: or not having a lot of money to start with. Danny: So you work hard and you understand empathy and what it takes to be a good person,
Danny: show kindness, et cetera. do you feel sometimes that to your point that inherently Danny: good is not in everyone do you think that sometimes comes from Danny: background of how being raised you know and what obviously you know was there Danny: money and power involved where you basically had anything you want so you didn't Danny: really understand what it was like to be kind to others that were looking to Danny: help you if that makes sense yeah
Emily: No I think that's a really interesting question you know this notion that like Emily: well someone has early trauma you know and then that impacts their behavior Emily: and the harm that they cause as an adult you know how do we understand that? Emily: Or how do we consider that when we consider a person's actions?
Emily: And I do think, absolutely, childhood trauma or adversity, I think that certainly Emily: has a lot to do with, or it certainly informs a person's behavior throughout Emily: their life and into adulthood. Emily: And people are at various stages of healing or not healing at any given time. Emily: And at the same time, it cannot excuse any harm that's done, right?
Emily: So I think that we have to, you know, have create more spaces for people to Emily: heal, to normalize talking about these kinds of things, to normalize like a healing process. Emily: I mean, you know, really, it's only been in the last decade, Emily: decade and a half, that therapy has really become more in the mainstream, Emily: more normalized, right? Emily: And some people are just starting to dip their toe into that world. Emily: And Some have it, you know?
Emily: And so I think we also, and this is where, you know, we want to talk about like Emily: narcissists or sociopaths, all these things. Emily: Often there is a root cause of childhood trauma, right? Right. Emily: But I think we also need to have, you know, some really well-defined points Emily: of accountability, right? Emily: So, Dani, here's like a, this is like one thing I'm thinking about, right?
Emily: You know, what has, I mean, we've all done things that, you know, Emily: probably, you know, maybe our younger selves wouldn't stand by now, Emily: or maybe we did things unintentionally that had a negative impact, right? Emily: And, you know, when I think about like what causes people to change, Emily: is it that someone was coddling you and said, I know that you're a great person. Emily: You didn't mean it. And you had all these things.
Emily: Or was it the times when you had to face consequences for that negative behavior? Emily: I mean, what causes change, right? Emily: And I would say that more often than not, it's the consequences that create change, right?
Emily: And so, you know, when we see some of these, you know, Emily: very powerful, very wealthy people who are creating harm, Emily: even when they've had childhood trauma or childhood adversity, Emily: part of the reason why they continue to create that harm is because they don't Emily: have significant enough consequences right for their actions so i do believe Emily: in compassion i do believe in empathy i also believe in accountability and consequences
Emily: uh and i believe in in ending harm that's. Danny: A really important point i know um there's a lot of talk obviously about you Danny: know helicopter parenting uh And it's my wife and I, we've got two kids, they're both teens now. Danny: And it was always hard to, how far do you go to protect, but also how far do Danny: you go to let them go on their own to understand, well, what you did was bad and this is why.
Danny: And then also make sure that they learn, you know, without pushing back. Danny: Because, you know, as kids get older, the more a parent tells them we do one Danny: thing, they'll push back and that. Danny: So do you feel like not enough accountability happens at the family level And Danny: this is probably simplifying it. Danny: I apologise to anybody that feels that. I do apologise. Danny: Do you feel sometimes families, educators, etc. have more...
Danny: Or should have more allowance to show accountability. Danny: Because sometimes, you know, it's harder to discipline kids. Danny: Obviously, you don't want to strike kids or anything. Danny: But do you know what I'm trying to say? I feel like I'm struggling here. Danny: I don't want to simplify it. Emily: Yeah, no, I think I'm picking up what you're putting down. And one thing that Emily: I've, I think it's a generational shift.
Emily: You know, I think about some of the ways that I was raised. Emily: You know, tough love is a thing. You know, and I, and it was the thing that, Emily: you know, we had rules, we had consequences, you know, we had high standards Emily: and expectations for how we behave and how we treated one another and ourselves. Yeah. Emily: And, you know, that extended to things like school, that extended to things Emily: like athletics or extracurriculars.
Emily: And there's been a shift in that, like, we, I think it's gone too far in the Emily: other direction of we can't, we can't, you know, ask kids to do things that Emily: they don't feel comfortable with, right? Whether or not it's good for them. Emily: You know, one thing that I think about a lot in sports is that like, Emily: you know, I played basketball for a very long time and we got yelled at, Emily: you know, we, you know, our coaches were tough on us.
Emily: We were really good. You know, uh, we have a lot of character, Emily: but nowadays, you know, you can't do that. Emily: You can't yell at kids, um, in athletics. Emily: I'm not arguing for yelling that kids are not in sports, but I think that there's Emily: an absence of, you know, an ethic of learning from adversity, right? Emily: Navigating one's way through things and struggling a bit.
Emily: You know, everything shouldn't be easy, right? And everything shouldn't also Emily: be about an individual's comfort level, right? Emily: Because then we see hyper-individualization, right? Emily: Where's the collective values, right? Where's the community building? Emily: A lot of young people nowadays don't have those skills, right? Emily: It's very difficult for them to engage with a new person at the grocery store, right?
Emily: These things aren't normal. We should be able to say hello, look a person in Emily: the eye at the grocery store, right? Emily: And also, you know, going back to what I said earlier, people more often than Emily: not learn from consequences, right? Emily: As opposed to, well, let's just make everything easy, everything nice. Emily: You're lovable. I love you. All of that is, of course, but we also have to have the consequences.
Emily: And I think, you know, maybe we don't have to go to the extreme of like, Emily: you know, sometimes tough love can be abused, you know, but there's also something Emily: very real and useful about that notion of tough love of like, I love you. Emily: And so you need to develop, you know, this character skill, right? Emily: I know it's uncomfortable for you to speak to people at the grocery store, Emily: but you're going to need to put your phone down, look people in the eye,
Emily: say hello, say thank you, right? Hold the door open for someone. Emily: You know, I think that we've gotten away from some of those kinds of niceties, Emily: maybe even, is a problem. Emily: Because now it's like, you know, at least in the activist world. Emily: You hear so much about, well, we have to build community, build where you are. Emily: It's like, but why didn't you already know your neighbors? Emily: Why did you not already know your neighbors? Please be honest about that.
Emily: And then while at the same time, it's like we have this loneliness epidemic. Emily: Talk to your neighbors, talk to the people around you, put the phones down. You know what I mean? Emily: Maybe it's a little awkward. That's okay.
Emily: That's an experience too. You know, so, Emily: you know, going back to your question about is the parenting, Emily: you know, helicopter parenting or like the we're not going to make them do anything Emily: kind of parenting is I do think that we're not doing I think we're doing our kids a disservice. Emily: I think that kids need consequences. They need structure. Emily: They need love. And they got to get outside of their comfort zone.
Emily: And that often takes a nudge from parents and other supportive adults around them. Danny: No, I'd say that's a great answer. And you more eloquently stated it than I Danny: was trying to say. So I thank you for that, Emily. Danny: So that was definitely an interesting one to open up proceedings with. Danny: Let's have a look at what question number two brings up. Emily: Okay. Danny: Question number two, Emily. What was, as in past tense, what was your saddest moment?
Emily: Oh, my God. Why? I feel like I'm getting serious questions. Emily: Um you know danny and i i think i might i may feel really sad right i do feel Emily: sad about it right now but um my best friend um disappeared from a yoga retreat Emily: um in the summer 2024 and um, Emily: it was the kind of situation where from you know from the first um conversation Emily: with authorities she was in the Bahamas. Emily: So the first conversation with authorities, it was automatically suspect,
Emily: right? Things didn't sound right. Emily: And so myself and my friend's mother and a few other people, Emily: we went to the Bahamas and, you know, we tried to figure out what was happening. Emily: And that ended up being a long process because, you know, there was no real investigation.
Emily: Investigation we weren't able to like really we're having a Emily: hard time getting people to do their jobs Emily: essentially like you know um i'm not a police officer but i know the basic things Emily: that you need to do in order to have an effective investigation right so um Emily: you know it's it's been the saddest moment without a doubt and i'll say this too is that um.
Emily: Taylor was my best friend for about 16 years, you know, and that's been about Emily: the majority of my adult life. Emily: And, you know, for someone who's not married, who doesn't have children, Emily: you know, my best friend was my person. Emily: You know, Taylor was my person. You know, everything, every life milestone, Emily: you know, from the big things to the small things, you know. Emily: And so I miss her immensely. Emily: And it also just remains like a huge sense of injustice.
Emily: Number one, it's like, why did that happen to my best friend? Emily: And then two, Taylor is black and trans. Emily: And we are quite sure that it was an act of violence rooted in anti-blackness, Emily: rooted in transphobia, which led to her disappearance. Emily: And so that's another layer of... Emily: You know, I guess I could say sadness is probably at the root of it, Emily: but it's also just a lot of anger, you know, it's like, that's not right.
Emily: Nobody should be treated that way, you know, and trans people have a right to Emily: be who they are, just like we all do, you know, and, you know, Emily: despite so many efforts. Emily: And for me, someone like me, who's my entire career has been devoted to social justice, you know? Emily: And so, um, there's just another level of frustration and sadness. Emily: Um, but that's without a doubt. I mean, I miss my best friend every day, you know?
Emily: And in some ways it's like, you know, I still have these moments of like, is it real? Emily: You know, cause you know, also you have a bond with someone when you're so close Emily: with someone, when they're your person, you know, You feel them so deeply, Emily: right? The connection and the bond is so deep. Emily: And thank goodness that things like that don't go away. You know, Emily: the connection and that bond, at least that doesn't go away.
Emily: But I want my friend, you know, I want her here with me. Danny: One, I'm really, truly sorry for that happening. Danny: Thank you. And I can't even begin to imagine, you know, what that would feel Danny: like and did feel like at the time as well. Danny: Was there ever any closure? Danny: Was there anything on the case that was closed or is it still outstanding? Danny: If you don't mind me asking.
Emily: Yeah, no, it's OK. It's still technically an open investigation, Emily: but, you know, they're not actively investigating her disappearance.
Emily: You know the only thing and I said this in the press conference it's all over Emily: social media but the only reason why anything happened is because we pushed Emily: for it to happen you know and thank goodness that, Emily: media here in Chicago, in the U.S., and also some media in the Bahamas were Emily: really supportive to really push it forward and to raise awareness about what happened. Emily: And those kinds of things made the authorities do something.
Emily: But like I said, and I've said this from the very beginning, Emily: you can look at what the authorities said that they did and tell that they were Emily: not trying to find out what happened to Taylor. Emily: And so people know, people know what happened.
Emily: You know, I believe that people who were at that yoga retreat, Emily: who are part of the authorities in the Bahamas, probably who are, Emily: you know, somehow just part of like street culture in the Bahamas, Emily: I think they know exactly. Emily: And so, you know, my hope is that people will just come forward and say, Emily: listen, this is what happened. This is what we saw. Emily: You know, I hope that at some point someone's brave enough to do that, you know?
Emily: Yeah. So otherwise, no, we don't know. There hasn't been closure in terms of Emily: having the details of what actually happened. Danny: Yeah. Well, I mean, hopefully, and I don't want this to sound glib 100%, Danny: hopefully, you know, there will be some form of closure for you and Taylor's family and loved ones. Danny: Because, like I said, I can't even imagine, begin to imagine what that must
Danny: have been like. I'm really glad you got to spend 16 amazing years by the sounds of it with Taylor. Danny: And obviously you've got fantastic memories to take forward of Taylor so that's Danny: always something like you say when you have that bond, it's always nice to have Danny: that for the moments when you need it most, right? Emily: Right, right, right, right, yeah, that doesn't change, you know?
Danny: 100%, well, thank you for sharing that, I'm really, truly sorry for that and Danny: sorry for that question popping up but I appreciate your answering, Emily, thank you Yeah, Emily: Yeah, no problem. Danny: Let's look to switch things over um as you mentioned that's kind of two serious Danny: quiet kind of questions there i Emily: Know it's got silly.
Danny: So let's uh let's have let's have Danny: a look um this one i like this one actually um because it's i'm a bit of a geek Danny: at heart um i love superheroes etc so emily question number three if you could Danny: choose and this has been in an episode before but i really do i'm really curious Danny: about yours so far so emily if you could choose to have any useless superpower. What would you pick? Emily: Any useless superpower. What would I pick? Any useless superpower.
Emily: Um you know i think honestly i would just like fly would you class. Danny: That as useless though Emily: No that's not useless no you're you're right that's not i. Danny: Feel like it'd be kind of cool we like save on planes and stuff and people on Danny: planes that you don't like Emily: Right right and just hang out in the air you know in the sky um what would be Emily: like what would be an example of a useless superpower, like being able to read people's minds?
Danny: I guess it depends how you're going to use it, right? Danny: But maybe if having like, I mean, I don't know, I'm trying to think of the answer Danny: that my guest shared that time when this question popped up, Danny: but maybe something like, you could be the world's strongest person, Danny: but you can't do anything unless you use your pinky or something. Danny: Okay. I mean, that's not the answer. That's an example.
Danny: But yeah, I guess a useful superpower Or be something that's just no fun to have. Danny: Like, you could be invisible, which is awesome. But then you could be like, Danny: yeah, I don't know, like invisible. Danny: But also, you've got a very, very quiet voice. So people can't hear you. Danny: Or you've got a really loud voice. Like, that's better. Danny: You've got a really loud voice. And people know you're there anyway.
Emily: Okay, okay. Let me see about this. I think if I could have any useless superpower... Emily: You know, I just sometimes like I like to, I'm thinking about my dad here. Emily: I like to kind of say things to just get like a rise out of him, Emily: you know, and then I like to just kind of like make a joke out of it, Emily: you know, like real like youngest daughter stuff.
Emily: I would like to do that, you know, to be able to like, you know, Emily: like, you know, maybe like, Emily: um, help someone see something that they, um, is maybe like a, Emily: like an irritant for them or something.
Emily: Maybe it's kind of irrational, but then just like, did not have to like, Emily: have the consequences of it, be able to like, see it play out, Emily: you know, like, that's what I love doing about like my father, Emily: like I, I was home over the holidays and, um, he has like a very clean house Emily: and a very clean kitchen. Emily: And, um, I made a joke that I warmed up, um, some like lasagna in the microwave and it exploded.
Emily: And he was like, you know, popped up from the couch so quick, you know? Emily: And it was my brother and I thought it was hilarious, you know? Emily: And, um, Um, after that, that was like one of the early days that I was there Emily: after that, he like, he chilled out a little bit, you know, he wasn't on everybody Emily: about, well, get your dishes done, you know, clean the kitchen, all these things.
Emily: And so I think if there's a way, if I can have a superpower of like helping Emily: people see like, this is where you're wound very tightly, you know, Emily: but then not have them like be able to project it onto me was because you did whatever. Emily: I think maybe that would be my superpower of like, you're wound really tightly right here. Emily: I'm going to like have a superpower of revealing it to you, but you're not going Emily: to be able to make it about me, you know?
Danny: I do like that because it's still got kindness associated with it because originally Danny: when you're trying to wind people up, it's trying to get, like you say, Danny: get a rise out of them, which could get them really frustrated and ruin their day, obviously. Danny: But I do like that you sort of spin it back to where, you know, Danny: even though you've not got accountability, you know, shame on you from your Danny: previous answer, but no accountability on that one.
Danny: But yeah, I like how it's like maybe even helping them understand, Danny: hey, you've got this wheel a little bit wound tightly up. Danny: This is how you can maybe, you know, do you really need to be that way? Emily: Right. Is it really serving you? Danny: Yeah. I mean, it would suck. I've had stuff explode in the microwave before Danny: and it sucks. You've got to clean it up, but it's not fun. Danny: And then you can't eat it or maybe you can. I don't know. It depends on the explosion.
Emily: You have to scrape it off the sides. Danny: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. But yeah, I wouldn't want that to ruin my day because Danny: someone else did it, right? Danny: I understand it's his house and he wants it to be a certain way, etc. Emily: Right, right, right. Danny: And my guest on the first episode of this new season, Keisha TK Dutez, Danny: she was mentioning about her mom, who's from Jamaica, about, Danny: you know, having, you know, plastic on the sofa and everything.
Danny: Sounds similar, like a generational thing again, going back to your generational comment there. Emily: Right, right, right, right. and it's like you know how can you respect with Emily: also like but we want it to be just a little bit different you know or like Emily: there's a different way maybe of doing it like have you considered it you know.
Danny: Well i like that i think that's i think that class is more than classes as a Danny: useless superpower but one that brings value which is always a nice thing to Danny: have so i like that one okay okay let's have a look at what question number Danny: four brings up okay okay i'm going to ask this, Danny: because we were kind of chatting in the green room earlier before recording, Danny: Emily. So question number four. Danny: Do you prefer to travel or stay close to home?
Emily: That's a really good question. I... Emily: It's tough because I'm like the kind of person, I travel a lot. Emily: And I would always notice that just before like a trip, I would like have this Emily: kind of like nerve and anxiety of like, oh, I just want to stay home. Emily: You know, it's so comfy. I love it so much. I want to hang out with my friends here. Emily: And then when I would get out in the world or arrive at my destination, Emily: I would be like, I'm never going back.
Emily: So that tension is real for me. But I think that I would prefer to travel. Emily: I mean, the world is so big, you know, and there are so many beautiful places Emily: and people and things to see and experience and like learn from that. Emily: I would say, certainly I would rather travel. Emily: I, I, you know, I live in Chicago and I love it so much. Emily: And, um, there still are so many places that I want to see in the world, Emily: experience people I want to connect with.
Emily: And, you know, what I also really love about traveled is the anonymity of it. Emily: You know, it's like, okay, I'm like over here somewhere else in the world where Emily: I've never been, no one knows me. Emily: And, um, I find a real freedom in that.
Emily: And then I also find like a real, uh, like heartwarming affirmation and the Emily: kinds of connections that we're able to make with people, um, Emily: who we've ever met, who we have zero familiarity with in terms of culture or society.
Emily: And those are the kinds of experiences that really make me, you know, Emily: feel like, um, that are so valuable in life, you know, Emily: and, and really drive me, they really actually drive my sense of justice, Emily: you know, and my sense of community of like, you know, we're all out here, Emily: you know, we're all humans here trying to do, trying to live our lives in like Emily: the best way that we can, you know.
Emily: And, yeah, so, and, you know, and so when I, you know, see things, Emily: decisions, policies, people who infringe upon that, like, basic aspect of humanity Emily: or that basic humanity, it's like, I just feel like we really feel so much urgency Emily: around trying to protect that, Emily: you know, and not only protect it, but increase it for people. Danny: It's interesting that you mentioned about the anonymity, anonymity, Danny: put my words correct there.
Danny: And I'm just thinking back to your earlier answer about how, Danny: you know, we don't speak to our neighbours or people in the grocery store, etc. Danny: People easily speak to people, complete strangers, on a beach, Danny: you know, hiking up a mountain or whatever. Danny: I guess you've got to speak to people hiking up a mountain. Danny: It's a bit more isolated.
Danny: Do you think it's just because you're on holiday, you're on vacation, Danny: you're in a different place as opposed to your local neighborhood? Danny: Do you think that's maybe why it's a little bit easier to just say hi and strike Danny: up a conversation with a complete stranger from a completely other part of the world? Emily: I think that's true for some people, for sure.
Emily: Yeah, I think that, you know, I mean, I just also want to say, Emily: like, I know my neighbors, you know, but there's also an intimacy that comes Emily: with that, you know. So I know my neighbors. Emily: They know things about me just because we live near one another. Emily: And so I think that can be really uncomfortable for people.
Emily: And even when I, to maintain our rapport, I got to say hi to my neighbors even Emily: when I'm really feeling like not talking to anybody or whatever the case may be. Emily: Or when I'm frustrated with my dog, you know, I still have to say hi to my neighbors, you know? Emily: So, um, I think there's like an intimacy that people can be really uncomfortable Emily: with because you got to see those people again and again and again.
Emily: And I think when people are traveling, one, I think traveling, Emily: you know, I think even though people will maybe be cautious and. Emily: Protective, there's, it's also disarming in ways, you know, because everything's Emily: new, it's exciting and it's affirming in so many ways. Emily: So I think people are just often in a better mood while traveling. Emily: And I think it's time bound, you know?
Emily: And so people know, all right, I'm going to be on the beach here for two days Emily: and I'm going to make best friends with this, you know, the person who's serving Emily: me, you know, food and beverages or, you know, Emily: our taxi driver, we're going to like, you know, have the same taxi driver for Emily: the whole time that we're here. Emily: So I do think that that's easier. And I also just, I also think that.
Emily: Obviously not every other country, but in so many other countries, Emily: human connection is much deeper and much more regular part of society. Emily: So you go to a lot of cultures where there's all kinds of people out in public Emily: and everybody's talking to everybody and the expectation or the cultural standard Emily: is that, you know, people stick together, people support one another. Emily: And so that extends to the tourists who are there as well.
Emily: And so I think that also makes it easier because, you know, one is in this environment Emily: where this is just the standard. Emily: This is just how it happens, right? And so, you know, even for people who are Emily: reluctant at first, you know, you can only be immersed in an environment or Emily: culture for so long and resist it, right?
Emily: You know, it takes so much more energy to resist a culture like that than it Emily: does just be like oh hey let's connect let's talk you know all these things. Danny: Yeah i i hear you on that my friend Danny: um sam who had mentioned earlier actually um who's and you know learned politics Danny: etc etc um he turned 50 back in 2018 and we went to scotland uh for his 50th Danny: and it was just like just the two of us uh just like uh we did like a 30, 12, 13-day jaunt.
Danny: So the first half was like a whiskey tasting tour up in the highlands of Scotland, which was awesome. Emily: Yeah. Danny: And then the second half was sightseeing. And what Sam loved, Danny: because he's born and bred Canadian and lived in Toronto for the majority of Danny: his life, works in Toronto. Danny: So it's a really busy city, obviously. Yeah. Danny: And people are generally heads down, getting to their business, Danny: place they work at, et cetera.
Danny: When we were in Scotland, when we'd go out for dinner on an evening and watch Danny: football on the TV, all the locals would invite us over and just like Danny: Say hiya when you walked in the door. Ask him, you know, where you're from? Danny: How's your day's been? What do you want to drink? Danny: Here, you should eat that and that. And he was blown away. He said, Danny: you would never, ever get that in a downtown bar in Toronto, for example.
Danny: So just to your point on like a really simple level, it's a great example that you use there. Emily: Yeah, yeah. Thank you. And now, Danny, you're like, you're kind of stirring up my desire to travel. Emily: I have been like holding off for a little while. And I'm like, Emily: it might be time to get back out in the world. Danny: What's your ideal, like, if you could choose your preferred vacation? Danny: Is it, like, something that's busy and really full itinerary?
Danny: Or do you like to sort of just switch off, relax? Emily: In my ideal travel, Dani, is I like to have a little bit of, like, Emily: you know, if we can get, like, a solid two weeks on a trip, then I want to spend Emily: one week in the city, and I want to spend... Emily: Probably about five days at the beach.
Emily: I just, you know, call it what you want. I love a beach and, Emily: you know, being by the ocean, sometimes it just feels so spiritual and to, Emily: you know, kind of slow down after having been in the city, going to the cultural sites, Emily: you know, connecting with people, learning about things. Emily: And I've also, you know, I've worked globally. Emily: And so having the meetings in the city, you know, following that up with some, some quiet beach time.
Emily: And maybe it's not always so quiet, you know, but, you know, Emily: being able to be in the natural beauty and have that like reflection, Emily: feel the connection to the ocean and to the people who are nearby. Emily: That's how I prefer to do it. Yeah. Danny: I feel I think I'd be a bit similar. Like I say, we moved from a big city to Danny: a really small village and we're about a 15 minute walk from like a big lake.
Danny: So you can go there and you can kayak and canoe, just swim, do whatever you want, basically.
Danny: And I tend to find it in the summer especially not so Danny: much in the winter they're a lot harder to do but in the summer it's Danny: just nice if I've had like a really stressful day at work or whatever just Danny: get out on the lake for an hour and it just brings me right back down again Danny: so nice so I'm with you 100% on that with the water side things yeah yeah good Danny: well hopefully you'll get off to that that very soon and let me know how it
Danny: went and where you went and what you got up to that'd be awesome I Emily: Will I will. Danny: So we're almost at the end, Emily. We've done well so far. Danny: Let's have a look then to see what question number five brings up. Emily: Okay, what is that? Danny: Question number five. And this could go either way because obviously because Danny: of your work, there may be photos that you take for work. Danny: It may be nice and relaxing with your dog and Christmas, etc.
Danny: But question number five, Emily. What was the last picture you took on your phone? Emily: Oh, that's interesting. Can I look? Danny: Yeah, yeah. Emily: Let me look. Danny: I would never know what it was. I'd have to check anyway. Emily: Uh, let me see here. That's the last picture I took on my phone. Emily: Oh, okay. It was, um, I have a dog and I have a cat. Emily: My cat is, uh, she just turned 17 in human years in November.
Emily: Um, and my dog is four. And so it's been, um, they weren't automatically friends. Emily: Um, But just recently, they have been coming in closer proximity with one another. Emily: And so the last, the most recent picture that I took is a picture of the three Emily: of us on just relaxing on the couch. Emily: My cat's on my lap and then my dog is right next to me with his head very close to the cat.
Emily: And so it's a sweet moment because when I got the dog, you know, Emily: everyone was like, oh, the dog and the cat aren't going to get along, Emily: you know, whatever, whatever. Emily: And I was just holding out. I was like, I'm just holding out for that day when Emily: I come home and they're actually cuddling. Emily: And so I think we're getting closer and closer to that moment. Emily: So I took a picture and that was like really good for them to be so close.
Emily: It was also just sweet, you know. Danny: Well, that's it because, I mean, obviously you've got the stereotypical dogs Danny: versus cats and they're not compatible. Danny: And you've had the cat longer, I guess. Emily: Yeah, yeah. I've had her for 16 years and she's 17. Danny: 17, yeah. So I guess, I mean, I can understand. How long have you had your dog? Danny: You mentioned you've got a good sized dog, right?
Emily: Yeah, he's a big guy. Four? Yeah, he's four. And so I've had it for like three and a half years. Danny: Right. Yeah. So I could imagine that'd be a big, if the cat, Danny: was the cat always just the on the pet in the house? Yeah. Danny: Yeah. Yeah. That's, I can get the cat's point of view here because I'm very, Danny: I'm a grumpy Scotsman Gen Xer. Danny: So I can get the cat's point of view. It's like, this is my zone. Danny: This is my time with Emily. Who are you?
Emily: Right, right, right. Like you're still here. Danny: Yeah, exactly. I know we've got three little dogs. Danny: They're all the same breed. and we had one, we had three dogs prior and our Danny: two boy dogs passed. They got old and passed. Danny: So we waited a while, then we got two other dogs and there's mother and son, which is awesome. Danny: But the dog we had in the house with the two previous boy dogs took a while to adapt.
Danny: You know, like her domain, she was used to two older boys and now you've got Danny: like a lady dog that's younger than her, but it's a mum and the puppy's like
Danny: really rambunctious. so it was a big change you know for her Emily: And i think too like for dogs especially like you know they have little emotions Emily: and so like i think they also get a little jealous like at least i know my dog Emily: does i mean that's part of the reason why he came on the couch is because my cat came on, Emily: sat in my lap first the next thing you know here he is giving me those puppy
Emily: dog eyes asking to come up on the couch because he sees that the cat's getting attention, Emily: So I think for dogs, too, it's like, you know, they're sensitive to that. Danny: No, no. I know the girl dog that I mentioned, she growls if I'm petting. Danny: No, no, that doesn't seem like a nasty way. But it's like that jealousy that Danny: you mentioned, like the jealousy. Danny: It's like you're talking to someone, you're petting someone else.
Danny: I'm your dog. You know, pet me, pet me. Danny: So cats are special. Cats are so independent. Like, you know, don't mess with cats. Emily: Right, right. Don't mess with cats. And I feel like she, my cat really helped Emily: me train the dog because, um, you know, the dog, you know, sometimes it may
Emily: be like really rambunctious running through the house, chasing a tennis ball. Um, Emily: Next thing you know, here she comes around the corner with a paw, Emily: like just waiting for him, you know. Emily: And so he learned, you know, you don't just tear through the place. Emily: You've got to slow down and then check the corners, you know. Danny: Yeah, exactly. I've watched, one of my vices, if you like, is just like scrolling Danny: through a bunch of reels.
Danny: I get sucked into like that vortex where you just go through reel after reel or short after short. Danny: And I always get stuck on the videos where you've got cats that are taking revenge on dogs.
Danny: Where dogs are playing they're getting a bit close whatever and it's just like Danny: the super fast 10 swings of the arm really quickly and like even big dobermans Danny: and alsatian stuff are just off you know this little cat has scared them away yeah Emily: I know right exactly because i you know my dog is a he's an 80 pound german Emily: shepherd mix and my cat i mean she's actually pretty little you know she's you
Emily: know on a good day she's nine pounds um but she's not scared of that guy i'll Emily: tell you that but the other way around yes.
Danny: You should get like a little camera installed like one of these indoor security Danny: cameras and just see what they get up to they're probably just having the best Danny: day of their life while you're at work or out you know and then it's only when Danny: you come up the driveway and up there the pathway etc though they'll get back Danny: to you know just get back to who we are right Emily: Right right right yeah she's here.
Danny: Exactly well that is awesome and i I think it's a nice way to finish off your Danny: time in the random question hot seat, Alice. I do appreciate that. Danny: As is only fair, because I've had you, you know, on the pressure point, Danny: if you like, of the hot seat. Danny: As is only fair, it's now time to hand over the question, Master, but on to yourself. Emily: Okay. All right, Danny. Okay, so my question for you is...
Emily: As a result of doing all of these interviews with people, have you noticed that Emily: there's something that everyone has in common, Emily: like similarities or like what have you noticed about like people in this kind Emily: of experience with these random questions with an interviewer, you know? Danny: That's a really good question. I think one of the common threads is you're all Danny: silly enough to come on the show and put yourself in the horsey.
Danny: I'm joking. that no one of the i think it's been really refreshing to see how Danny: open people are um because generally and you've got your own podcast emily and Danny: you've been on you know countless interviews Danny: Um you know yourself sometimes as much as we don't want to we try to present Danny: the best version of ourselves whether that's on social speaking to each other Danny: on a podcast whatever that looks like
Danny: and you may come in with you know i've done it myself i've been guilty of Danny: myself coming in with prepared sort of if i Danny: get asked this this is going to be my soundbite moment where i can say Danny: this for example and i feel because of the Danny: form of the show um guests come in Danny: to know that a i'm i'm not trying to have a Danny: gotcha moment with you so you know i want to make sure Danny: we were talking earlier about you know comforts and comfort zones
Danny: etc i want to show you're comfortable and i think that's um Danny: the guests that come on because they know the format and they Danny: know that it's going to be completely random i think every Danny: guest i feel is probably a good open-minded Danny: person it doesn't mind being vulnerable we Danny: shared a vulnerable moment of your own earlier so it's it's it's been nice to Danny: to just speak to people and have a conversation that hopefully if we were to
Danny: bump at each other on vacation for example you know stuff like this would happen Danny: so yeah i feel that the most common thread is an openness to Danny: See where a conversation goes and go with that flow as opposed to trying to Danny: make it structured and X, Y, Z. Danny: And so far, everybody's been super nice and super, you know, Danny: super easy to chat with, like your good self, which helps me and makes my job a lot easier.
Danny: So thank you for that. And I feel that. Does that answer? Does that make sense? Emily: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No, that's good. That's great. Thank you. Seems like a fun, Emily: like, role that you have, you know, like, okay, a random question. Emily: You know random answers like what are people going to say you know.
Danny: Well and that's it it can be a little bit tough at times because if the answer Danny: if the question sorry not the answer if the question doesn't Danny: equate to like a an answer that's Danny: maybe one minute long i think well do i follow up and go Danny: another direction with that question or do i i just say you know Danny: what let's call it a day on that question let's go next one so it can be fun Danny: trying to you know keep the conversation going but you know for the most part
Danny: it's it's really really super enjoyable when i get to meet us and folks like Danny: yourself and and just basically i have you know a conversation about five real Danny: or six I guess really cool random things so yeah Emily: Yeah okay exciting well I'm excited for you to keep this work up and thank you Emily: thank you yeah yeah and I'll say for me too it's it's nice to be out of kind Emily: of like the structured environment you know of like what am I talking points
Emily: you know like what do we got to say now you know so.
Danny: No I can imagine and especially for the work you do Emily I Danny: can imagine sometimes I mean I'm not sure but maybe sometimes you know depending Danny: on political bias slants etc some interviewers may be trying to put you down Danny: a rabbit hole that you don't necessarily want to be going but their question Danny: in line might try place you there so yeah that's one of the reasons I try to Danny: keep you know political bias out of the show completely
Danny: and just have a nice conversation obviously it's important to speak about policies Danny: and you know and stuff like that for sure right uh but yeah well i would love Danny: to do a like a live show sometime just get the audience to actually ask the Danny: questions because then it's really random Danny: it'd be cool yeah Emily: So we'll see yeah that would be awesome yeah like a live recording and you know
Emily: funnily enough like i actually really enjoy asking kind of like random questions Emily: and i grew up playing 20 questions with my mom you know and so it just it's Emily: like a fun it's a fun thing to do And I think- Emily: We need things that are just purely entertainment and lighthearted and fun, Emily: but it also actually really does help with critical thinking skills, you know? Danny: Yep. Oh yeah, I can 100% agree on that for sure.
Danny: So Emily, as I mentioned, and thank you again for that question. Danny: I have really enjoyed chatting with you today. Danny: For people that want to A, listen to your award-winning podcast, Danny: B, find out more about the work that you do and see, even talk to you about, Danny: you know, working with you, where's the best place to check all that stuff out, Danny: connect with you, et cetera?
Emily: Yeah. Well, to connect with me directly, people should go to LinkedIn and search Emily: for Emily R. Williams, Chicago. Emily: I will come up and to listen to the podcast. It is beyond voting everywhere you stream podcasts. Danny: That is awesome. As always, I will leave the links to that in the show notes.
Danny: So whatever app you're listening on or if you're listening to this on the website Danny: just check out the episode show notes and that will link through to emily's Danny: linkedin as well as a podcasting website so all the stuff will be in there in Danny: the show notes so make sure you check them out so again emily thanks for appearing Danny: on today's 5 Random Questions yes Emily: Thank you so much danny.
Danny: Thanks for listening to 5 Random Questions and if this was your first time Danny: here feel free to hit follow and check out past episodes if you enjoyed this Danny: week's episode i'd love for you to leave a review on the app you're currently Danny: listening on or if you know someone else that would enjoy the show be sure to Danny: send us away it's very much appreciated until the next time keep asking those questions