I had the great opportunity to participate in a program called "Celebrities with a Cause" which highlights individuals in Hollywood who are making a difference in the world today.  So, I headed down to the CNN Long Beach studios to tape an interview with show host Brad Pomerance.  Formerly a lawyer, his new regular gig is as host of the CNN spot called "Local Edition", which is normally a political forum, but from time to time Brad throws in a special report called "Celebrities with a Cause", in which I was there to participate.  

Traffic wasn't too bad the morning that I went down to the studios, and thankfully, I arrived a least 45 minutes early before my segment was set to record.  I quickly discovered that this was a huge blessing, because that extra time gave me an opportunity to meet Brad and develop a nice rapport with him in person.  As we sat there chatting away in his office, I loved how the entire staff was laid back and casually popped their heads in and out of his office to have their questions answered.  Brad accommodated their requests with precision and with a laugh and a smile.  He was so layed back, it was great!  He has been doing this kind of work for quite a long while, so even the fact that he had eight back-to-back interviews lined up that day didn't phase him at all.

Before confirming the gig, I watched a few of his 5-minute segments on YouTube and I really liked how nice he seemed and how engaged and inquisitive he was on camera.  Indeed, it turned out that he was even nicer in person and even though I hadn't been on camera in a while, he put all of my nerves to rest. 

Once on camera, the interview flew by because Brad knew exactly how to keep the conversation moving while he skillfully touched on every important point that I wanted to cover.  He nailed my intro, which made brilliant use of my on-topic last name, and he segued that directly into talking about my green jewelry business. He got to the point by asking me about my recycled 14k gold earrings and how they're made. We discussed why I choose to work only with fair trade gemstones and 100% recycled gold and why that makes a significant impact on being a responsible steward of precious natural resources. He even personalized the interview by slipping in that his wife loves 14k gold jewelry and that she recently graduated from her studies with the GIA in diamonds. And lastly, toward the end of our interview he allowed me to speak about the charities that I work with: Global Green USA, Heifer International and Charity: Water.

The information that we got across in the segment felt really well-rounded and incredibly informative for having been given only 5-minutes. I think that my green jewelry, 14k gold earrings and Green Hollywood charity work was really well-represented, and I'd love to go back and visit him and the Local Edition production staff anytime.  Thanks Brad!