Check out our sponsor, www.supplyhouse.com/t-m for all your electrical needs! In this episode of the Sparky Life we dive deep into the current ideals and approaches to building crews and apprenticeships in the skilled trades. Join us as we welcome back the incredible Chessa Trimble, a sister Sparky, to discuss the challenges and opportunities in the construction industry. We explore the concept of "tough love" in training and whether it truly produces great employees. Chessa shares her personal ...
Nov 28, 2024•36 min•Season 2Ep. 101
Join the Trademaster program: www.supplyhouse.com/T-M In this episode of The Sparky Life, we dive deep into the current state of higher education and its impact on young adults in America. With student loan debt soaring to $1.6 trillion and the average salary stagnating around $60,000, we question whether traditional college education is truly beneficial for students. Join us as we explore the financial burdens placed on graduates, the advantages enjoyed by universities, and the often misleading...
Nov 21, 2024•17 min•Season 2Ep. 100
In this episode of the Sparky Life Podcast, we dive deep into the evolving landscape of the skilled trades industry. With a significant labor deficit and a shift in how we identify and nurture talent, it's crucial to rethink our approach to recruitment and leadership development. Join us as we discuss: The changing perceptions of skilled trades and the impact of societal pressures on career choices. The importance of attracting and retaining the right talent in a competitive market. Strategies f...
Nov 14, 2024•48 min•Season 2Ep. 99
Welcome to this electrifying episode of our podcast! Did you know that we are all electricians in our own right? Our bodies generate electricity, and our brains are bustling with activity powered by billions of neurons. Join us as we explore the fascinating world of how our thoughts and movements are driven by electrical signals and chemical interactions. In this episode, we dive deep into: 1 - The role of neurons and how they communicate through electricity. 2 - The concept of action potential ...
Nov 07, 2024•11 min•Season 2Ep. 98
Welcome back to The Sparky Life! In this episode, we dive deep into the world of solar energy in residential sectors with our special guest, Chessa Trimble. Is solar a scam? Is it truly beneficial for the environment? Join us as we explore the pros and cons of solar panel installation and discuss whether it's a viable career path in the electrical industry. Chessa shares her insights on the current state of solar technology, the misconceptions surrounding it, and the challenges homeowners face w...
Oct 31, 2024•34 min•Season 2Ep. 97
Welcome back to The Sparky Life! In this electrifying episode, we sit down with Carly Steiman, a seasoned electrician with nearly two decades of experience and the proud owner of Lady Electric in Vancouver, Canada. Carly shares her inspiring journey from a high school graduate to a successful tradeswoman and reality TV star on "Tough As Nails." Join us as we explore Carly's passion for empowering women in the skilled trades, her innovative platform connecting homeowners with skilled tradeswomen,...
Oct 24, 2024•49 min•Season 2Ep. 97
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we explore unique and often overlooked careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . Lily Ghuzlan shares her journey into the skilled trades, her passion for furniture design, and the challenges she faced as a woman in a male-dominated field. The discussion highlights the importance of education in trades, the societal pressures surrounding career choices, and the entrepreneurial spirit that drives Lily to create her own path. Throughout the con...
Oct 17, 2024•38 min•Season 2Ep. 95
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we explore unique and often overlooked careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . We welcome back returning guest Chessa Trimble to explore the diverse educational pathways available for becoming an electrician. This episode is brought to you by SupplyHouse.com , your trusted source for reliable inventory, fast shipping, and friendly customer service across the U.S. Don’t forget to check out their Trade Masters program for free shipping and o...
Oct 10, 2024•47 min•Season 2Ep. 94
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we explore unique and often overlooked careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . In this episode, we dive into a fascinating topic— weird jobs you might not even know existed! This episode is brought to you by SupplyHouse.com , your trusted source for reliable inventory, fast shipping, and friendly customer service across the U.S. Don’t forget to check out their Trade Masters program for free shipping and order discounts at supplyhouse.com/t...
Oct 03, 2024•11 min•Season 2Ep. 93
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . This episode is brought to you by SupplyHouse.com , your trusted source for reliable inventory, friendly customer service, and fast shipping from coast to coast. Check out supplyhouse.com/tm today and explore their Trade Masters program, offering free shipping and order discounts. In this episode, we’re excited to welcome Stephen Dummit and Olivia Leigh from Tradewinds Leadership . Steph...
Sep 26, 2024•47 min•Season 2Ep. 92
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . This episode is brought to you by SupplyHouse.com , your trusted source for reliable inventory, friendly customer service, and fast shipping from coast to coast. Check out supplyhouse.com/tm today and explore their Trade Masters program, offering free shipping and order discounts. In this episode, we’re excited to welcome Eduardo Felix Diaz , a Senior Controls Tech at Johnson Controls , ...
Sep 19, 2024•46 min•Season 2Ep. 91
Welcome to another exciting episode of The Sparky Life Podcast with your host, Lia Lamela ! The Sparky Life Podcast reveals remarkable stories and shares unique points of view from journeymen and women who build the things that make our lives work. The lessons shared on The Sparky Life episodes are valuable not only for those engaged in the skilled trades but also for all of us, whether we use tools literally or figuratively in our daily lives. This episode has been inspired by Paul Harvey, wher...
Sep 12, 2024•9 min•Season 2Ep. 90
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . This episode is brought to you by SupplyHouse.com, your trusted source for reliable inventory, friendly customer service, and fast shipping from coast to coast. Check out SupplyHouse.com today and explore their Trade Masters program, offering free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/tm to join the Trade Masters program today. In this episode, we’re thrilled to welcome Con...
Sep 05, 2024•45 min•Season 2Ep. 89
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . This episode is brought to you by SupplyHouse.com, your trusted source for reliable inventory, friendly customer service, and fast shipping from coast to coast. Check out SupplyHouse.com today and explore their Trade Masters program, offering free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/tm to join the Trade Masters program today. In this episode, we’re excited to welcome Bran...
Aug 29, 2024•49 min•Season 2Ep. 88
Welcome to The Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . This episode is brought to you by SupplyHouse.com, your trusted source for reliable inventory, friendly customer service, and fast shipping from coast to coast. Check out SupplyHouse.com today and explore their Trade Masters program, offering free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/tm to join the Trade Masters program today. In this episode, we’re thrilled to welcome Eri...
Aug 22, 2024•38 min•Season 2Ep. 87
Welcome to the Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . The Sparky Life Podcast is proudly sponsored by SupplyHouse.com . SupplyHouse.com offers electricians the Trade Masters program, providing benefits like free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/tm to join the program today. In this episode, we’re excited to welcome Calvin Holston , a former business professional who transitioned into the nuclear industry and became a Seni...
Aug 15, 2024•49 min•Season 2Ep. 86
Welcome to the Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in skilled trades with your host, Lia Lamela . The Sparky Life Podcast is proudly sponsored by SupplyHouse.com . SupplyHouse.com offers electricians the Trade Masters program, providing benefits like free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/tm to join the program today. This week, we are honored to have Tara Garner , the visionary behind Under Construction Photography. Tara's work uniquely captures the spirit and resi...
Aug 08, 2024•30 min•Season 2Ep. 85
Welcome to the Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in construction with your host, Lia Lamela. The Sparky Life Podcast is proudly sponsored by SupplyHouse.com . SupplyHouse.com offers electricians the Trade Masters program, providing benefits like free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/team to join the program today. This week, we are honored to have Kiara Tymec , an Imagineer who brings fictional elements to life with her electronic builds. Some of Kiara's notable ...
Aug 01, 2024•42 min•Season 2Ep. 84
Welcome to the Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in construction with your host, Lia Lamela. The Sparky Life Podcast is proudly sponsored by SupplyHouse.com . SupplyHouse.com offers electricians the Trade Masters program, providing benefits like free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/team to join the program today. This week, we are honored to have Robert McLaughlin , the director of the Electrical and HVAC Training Center in New York. Robert is a certified OSHA a...
Jul 25, 2024•37 min•Season 2Ep. 83
Welcome to the Sparky Life Podcast, celebrating careers in the trades with your host, Lia Lamela. The Sparky Life Podcast is proudly sponsored by SupplyHouse.com . It offers electricians the Trade Masters program, providing benefits like free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/team to join the program today. This week, we are honored to have Colton Castleman, a seasoned fire alarm technician with a diverse background in both the electrical and fire alarm industries. Colton has e...
Jul 18, 2024•40 min•Season 2Ep. 82
Welcome to the Sparky Life Podcast, celebrating careers in the trades with your host, Lia Lamela. The Sparky Life Podcast is proudly sponsored by SupplyHouse.com . It offers electricians the Trade Masters program, providing benefits like free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/team to join the program today. This week, we welcome Paige Knowles , author of the Plumber Paige Bathroom Series , and Lianna Faber , founder of Women Pioneers in Unity. Paige's books introduce kids to sk...
Jul 11, 2024•29 min•Season 2Ep. 81
Welcome to the Sparky Life Podcast, where we celebrate careers in construction with your host, Lia Lamela . The Sparky Life Podcast is proudly sponsored by SupplyHouse.com . SupplyHouse.com offers electricians the Trade Masters program, providing benefits like free shipping and order discounts. Visit supplyhouse.com/team to join the program today. This week, we are honored to have Steve Kavallaris from ElectricalTime.com . He is a licensed master electrician, IAEI electrical inspector, chief ele...
Jul 04, 2024•38 min•Season 2Ep. 80
Are the opportunities available to women in the skilled trades? Tradeswomen Building Bridges non-for-profit organization is a North American network of women working in the construction trades. Noreen and Iesca, members of Building Bridges join the Sparky Life Podcast to discuss their network and if women can access the careers available with in the skilled trades successfully? Support the show
Jun 27, 2024•18 min•Season 2Ep. 79
Today welcome James Strang, Journeyman Drywaller and Finisher, better known as @jwol_finishes . It's well known with in the skilled trades community the sparks and drywallers can go head to head. Who wins this throw down? (music by purple-planet ) Support the show
Jun 20, 2024•42 min•Season 2Ep. 78
Since 2016, the IDEAL Electrician National Championship has been a platform that celebrates and showcases the incredible skills of Tradesmen and women across North America via a one-of-a-kind program and competition that ultimately crowns the best of the best electricians each year. Today Lia speaks with Emma Becker, returning semi-finalist, in the national top ten electrician competitors. How did Emma get here? (music by purple-planet ) Check out the link to compete: Ideal National Electrical C...
Jun 13, 2024•21 min•Season 2Ep. 77
On today's Sparky Life, Benedikte Vatne, a high voltage electrician and EIT field engineer joins Lia Lamela to discuss what it is like to ride a helicopter into work on the mountainous regions of Norway? Connect with our guest Benedikte: @energi_benedikte BIG NEWS SPARKIES: Are you a skilled electrician who wants to win an all-expense paid trip to West Palm Beach, Florida and your share of $30,000 dollars? Click on the link to check it out! Ideal Electrical National Championship Music by https:/...
Jun 06, 2024•22 min•Season 2Ep. 76
On today's Sparky Life, Mae, the Highway Hopper, and her husband Sean share their journey of leaving traditional jobs to start Orbital Jump Freight, a trucking company. They sold their house to fund the business, initially living in the truck as they ventured into the industry. Their story showcases a bold decision to pursue a life on the road, resonating with their passion for freedom and exploration through trucking. Connect with our guest Mae: @highway.hopper Music by https://www.purple-plane...
May 30, 2024•51 min•Season 2Ep. 75
In this episode, the host Lia Lamela speaks with the author of Confidence For Young Adults, Matt Eisenberg. " The purpose of this book, deeply rooted in my soul, is to empower our young adults—the torchbearers of tomorrow. By fostering their confidence, resilience, and self-belief, I hope to inspire them to become the embodiment of generosity, kindness, love, and fulfillment. May they not only discover their highest selves but also light the path for others." Matt and Lia discuss career paths, o...
May 23, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 2Ep. 74
In this episode, the host Lia Lamela speaks with the owner of Diamond Electric Solutions, Dominic Sonesen. They explore the journey from an IBEW apprentice to a successful business owner. Dominic highlights the perks of the electrical trade, from benefits to the joy of project completion, and the motivation derived from family. The episode is a testament to the skilled trades' potential and the value of mentorship for the next generation of tradespeople. Connect with us: @sparkylifeoflia @diamon...
May 16, 2024•34 min•Season 2Ep. 73
In this engaging episode host Lia Lamela sits down with Val and Emily, seasoned wastewater treatment plant operators and returning Sparky Life guests. They discuss the intricacies of wastewater management and highlighting the importance of flushing protocols. These women value their trade, emphasizing their contributions to safety, community, and morale in the workplace. First Sparky Life Episode with Emily and Val Waste Water Operators From Sewage to Superheros: The Waste Water Industry Connect...
May 09, 2024•33 min•Season 2Ep. 72