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In a People Business, Success Begins With People
PL&L company founders and trainers living their extraordinary lives . . . on the water, on the field of their dreams, in the air, climbing bridges, hiking mountain tops, visiting historical ruins, bike riding . . . all living with exhilaration and joy!
Lindon Crow
Lindon Crow is the Co-founder and President of Productive Learning & Leisure. He has written, designed, conducted and facilitated corporate and private sector workshop programs, courses and learning vacations. He brings over 20 years of experience in the seminar and training industry to his corporate program facilitation. He leads professional, executive and management level workshops covering topics such as strategic intent, vision/goal setting, creativity, communication skills, conflict resolution and more. With his unique facilitation style, participants learn through inquiry, exploration and discovery. Clients gain confidence and awareness in their thinking process. Lindon incorporates written processes, interactive tools and experiential activities in his workshops.
Lindon was a member of the U.S. National Volleyball team and also played college football. These experiences led Lindon into coaching where he demonstrated his unique communication and management skills. For over 12 years he served as a trainer for the Summit Organization, a nationally recognized personal development seminar firm. In 1992 Lindon co-founded PL&L--a private educational organization where he and the company's trainers combine education with recreation. Using his unique skills and talents, Lindon has helped to enhance the lives of thousands of people. He's adamant that people need to do more than copy or admire success in others. They need the tools to make it happen and developing the skill for making effective choices is an excellent beginning.
Rick Itzkowich
Rick Itzkowich is the Co-founder and Vice President of Productive Learning & Leisure. He brings over 20 years of experience in the seminar and training industry to his corporate program facilitation. Rick conducts executive and management workshops covering topics such as communication skills, conflict resolution, goal setting and the study of the mind in business. His style is one of inquiry and discovery for the participants in his training sessions. Individuals take away both constructive and usable information on their own thinking and communication habits. Rick interacts with participants as both individuals and as members of a team. He incorporates humor, interactive tools and experiential activities in his presentations. With Rick's casual, yet firm demeanor, he excels in bringing out the best in people. Attendees benefit from his mastery of group dynamics and his in-depth knowledge of the topic he is presenting.
Prior to launching the firm in 1992, Rick was a senior trainer for 12 years with the Summit Organization, a nationally respected seminar company. He received his BSBA in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix in 1990 and took courses in Communications and Psychology at the University of Southern California. He has trained thousands of individuals over his career. Born and raised in Mexico City, Rick played baseball, fast-pitch softball and golf on numerous championship teams. This combination of a sports and organizational training background makes him uniquely qualified to lead innovative and insightful trainings.
Susan Mayginnes
Susan Mayginnes is an experienced leadership development consultant. She has designed, conducted and coordinated Senior Executive workshops and seminars for over 20 years. Her emphasis is on professional relationships, communication skills, conflict resolution, problem solving, decision making, group dynamics and team building. She coaches Executives in the communication, relationship and stress management skills that will help them inspire greater levels of performance in their teams. She coaches team members to resolve conflicts quickly and successfully and utilize their diverse strengths for the greatest team advantage. Her tailored tools and experiential activities accelerate insight and help clients create positive changes that last. With her assistance, individuals and teams can expect to exceed their previous performance ceilings.
Susan held the position as Senior Trainer and Executive Director for 16 years with a large training organization creating and delivering innovative professional and personal development trainings. Seven years of her career were spent as an Independent Organizational Trainer and Executive Consultant presenting trainings to facilitate organizational culture change and leadership development. Susan has worked with such companies as The Monsanto Company, Renessen, Seiko Instruments USA, First National Bancorp and more. The past ten years she has positioned herself as an Executive Coach working with corporate leadership to master the communication and relationship skills necessary for accelerated performance.
Mark Nicole
Mark completed his BA in Marketing and BS in Spanish from Miami University. He studied abroad for seven months at Universidad Nacional Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile. At 20 he was working at Doxa Consultores in Madrid, Spain. When he returned to the states, Mark settled in Southern California and entered the telecom industry where he advanced from account manager to product manager in just two months. As life would lead him, the young man from Ft. Wayne, Indiana readily recognized his love of lifelong learning, self-development and adventure. When a position opened at Productive Learning & Leisure Mark immediately pursued the opportunity.
Mark has been working with PL&L for over 6 years now and focuses on sales, professional speaking and training. As a Program Consultant Mark helps his clients match their personal growth needs with 4 to 9-day accelerated learning trips as well as 2-day or extended workshops. In the capacity of keynote speaker, Mark presents the company's signature presentation, "Does Your Thinking Limit Your Success?" to groups and organizations of all sizes. His dynamic presentation style is both entertaining and thought-provoking. As a trainer Mark uses his intuitive nature and people skills to make his interactions with his clients worthwhile and valuable.
Mark's favorite aspects of his work include the close relationships and honest communication he develops with clients, the number of times he laughs during the day and the intrinsic payment of watching people grow. Personally, Mark enjoys his beach front office, his town home in San Juan Capistrano and is an outdoor enthusiast. You might find Mark hiking, surfing, mountain biking, skiing, salsa dancing and doing yoga. His hobbies include photography, cooking, reading and gardening. Mark says his keys to success are to smile, laugh, listen and learn.
Joe Thigpen
Since 1979 Joe Thigpen has consulted with business and industry in the areas of executive assessment, coaching and development. He focuses on key areas of organizational development: selecting, assessing and developing executive talent; executive coaching and consultation; developing teamwork and team effectiveness; customized executive training; and development to enhance leadership, interpersonal effectiveness and performance management.
Joe received his Master’s degree from George Washington University, and his Ph.D. and undergraduate degrees from the University of Florida. He served in The Peace Corps in Brazil. While in the U.S. Army, he was assigned to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He was the Executive Director of the Alachua County Crisis Center for eight years. He received the Edwin Shneidman Award for outstanding scientific contributions to the field of life-threatening behavior. He was the Regional Vice-President with Gehlhausen/Ruda and Associates. In 1988 Joe formed his own consulting firm and has worked with many successful growing enterprises.
Betty Jo Waxman
Betty Jo completed her BA in Economics at UCLA in 1976. Her interest in education motivated her to go on to Vanderbilt University where she earned her MA in Art History. While pursuing a career in business, Betty Jo discovered she had a gift for teaching and public speaking. She turned this into a career path she has followed since 1981.
Betty Jo met the founders of Productive Learning & Leisure while teaching Personal Development seminars for The Summit Organization, a nationally respected seminar company. She has extensive experience leading courses on various subjects, including communication, personal presentation, team building, relationships, motivation, problem solving and self-esteem. She has received numerous awards for her teaching excellence and participants in her courses attest to the effectiveness of her trainings.
At Productive Learning & Leisure, Betty Jo is a course instructor with over 24 years of experience leading seminars. She also trains instructors and presenters for the company. Her passion and love of her work is evident in her trainings where her style of working with people makes it safe for them to discover and learn. Betty Jo is dedicated to providing high value to the participants in her courses and making a difference in the lives of those she trains. In her spare time, she enjoys family life with her husband and two children.
Lindon Austin Crow
Lindon Crow is the most youthful and arguably the most passionate member of Productive Learning & Leisure. He is currently a speaker for Productive Learning and en route to lead and train classes. His educational background in Psychology and Religious Studies aids him on his quest to fully understand himself and what drives all of us as humans. Lindon’s official entry into PL&L started in 2010 but personal growth and self awareness have been sprinkled throughout his life through guidance and support from his father who is the co-founder, President and senior trainer of Productive Learning.
Lindon believes that the right choice is always present to you, the problem is many times it is clouded with false beliefs and unjustified assumptions. His personal goal is to become fully aware of these beliefs and thus make the choices that lead him to an extraordinary life.
Growing up in San Clemente and San Luis Obispo, Lindon has grown a strong sense of passion towards nature and the outdoors. He enjoys mountain biking, hiking and camping. His pastimes include playing guitar and playing beach volleyball. He doesn’t like chocolate but thinks that may be for the better in the long run.
Cassie McDowell
Born and raised north of the Golden Gate, Cassie McDowell is a striking example of California’s energetic entrepreneurial spirit as she pursues her business goals with her MBA in Global Strategic Management in hand at the precocious age of 26.
Cassie didn’t wait until she graduated with her initial BS Degree in Business Administration and Marketing in 2007 to begin honing her business acumen. As a student, she was already working as an events consultant, responsible for marketing and organizing high profile wine country events throughout Sonoma County. She then continued cutting her teeth on new challenges as an assistant at a large travel agency and several years as a real estate agent. Amid all these multiple opportunities, Cassie discovered her enthusiasm and strength in organizing, coordinating, managing, communicating, marketing, and motivating.
Ultimately these qualities have led her to take on the challenges of her current position as a Presenter at the personal development and training firm of Productive Learning and Leisure. Cassie says that interacting with people in professional situations inspires her.
"I love business because of the people," says Cassie. Throughout her career choices thus far, Cassie realizes, "...the common thread among all my decisions is the ability to work with people."
"My goal is to be the change I want to see in the world. If I am able to help each person achieve their goals, then I have done my job in making this world a little better than I found it."
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