September 11, 2024 • 17 mins
In this episode of Connect the Knox, host Julia Hurley talks with Wil Davenport, founder of It Begins Within, a leadership and growth coaching system. Davenport shares his fascinating journey from working in a church in Maryville to establishing his own business focused on psychological aspects of leadership development. Through an innovative approach involving active listening and experiential learning, Davenport trains individuals and organizations for real impact. The episode also touches on the importance of female leadership, Davenport's favorite Knoxville spots, and how his training methods are shaping the community.
Show Highlights:
(00:00) - Intro
(01:22) - About It Begins Within
(02:42) - An exercise in active listening
(09:05) - Ad - Just Homes Group
(09:35) - How you can contact Will and It Begins Within
(11:03) - Wil's favorite parts of the Knoxville community
(13:08) - Wil's favorite restaurants
(14:09) - Changes in South Knoxville
(15:27) - Wil's dream opportunity to present his coaching
(16:45) - Where you can find Wil and It Begins Within
Links Referenced:
- It Begins Within: itbeginswithindl@gmail.com
- Wil Davenport: (865) 414-3900
- Navigating Difficult Conversations in the Workplace with Paul Boyles: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/navigating-difficult-conversations-in-the-workplace-registration-945650535207?aff=oddtdtcreator
Connect with ConnectTheKnox
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- Connect with Julia -
- Buy or Sell a home in Knoxville -
- Just Homes Realty Group: www.justhomesgroup.com
- Find my Home Buyers & Home Sellers Guide here: https://linktr.ee/thejuliahurley
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:05):
Welcome, everybody, to another episode of Connect the Knox.
I'm your hostess with the mostest, Julia
Hurley, connecting Knoxville to the nation.
Today's guest is Will Davenport, founder of It Begins Within.
And as I'm reading through his bio, I am so excited to share this
(00:27):
growth and entrepreneurial coaching system with everyone out there.
I feel like it's something that Knoxville really could use more of.
Will, welcome to the podcast and tell us a little bit about yourself.
Thank you so much, Julia.
I'm super excited to be here today and I have been a
part of this Knoxville community for almost 20 years now.
(00:47):
Started off in Maryville, actually working in a church.
And, uh, loved that season of my life.
And then about 10 years ago, I started a
different business called More Than Memories.
And as I built that business, I had just a part of what I did in ministry
and in other areas of my life that I hadn't really been able to focus on.
And I missed that, which was investing in and
(01:09):
developing leaders as a part of the church.
I had had the opportunity to do that a lot.
And so I was super excited to get to refocus a little
bit and draw some energy into that area of my life.
Very nice.
So, tell us a little bit about your, well, tell us a lot about
it, tell us a lot about what your company is and what you do.
So what we do with It Begins Within is, I think, kind of what makes us unique
(01:34):
is the focus that we take when we do leadership development, and that is we
really take into account the psychological aspect of leadership development.
One of the experiences that I've had over the years has been that if I
am learning a new skill or teaching a new skill and there are some things
going on inside of me that are keeping me from being fully present, that are
(01:57):
keeping me from applying what I'm doing, there's a lid on how far I can grow.
And unless those psychological issues are
addressed, that growth will always be minimized.
It'll never reach its full potential.
And then I think the other aspect of it that I think is
unique is I come at training from an educator's perspective.
From Christian education and from the things I'm doing, and I'm not going
(02:19):
to be the one to stand up in front of the group and lecture for a long time.
I don't believe in that.
I don't think that's the way most people learn.
Little bite sized learning sections followed up by lots of
hands on practice and activities and not just discussion.
I want people getting up and moving, creating things, doing things that
are going to help them apply what they're learning while they're there.
(02:39):
So they'll be more, more likely to use it when they leave.
I love it.
Well, I understand that today you have an experiment for me.
So we're going to do something that we rarely
ever do is let, let someone practice on me today.
Let's go.
I'm ready.
Maybe.
Yeah.
One of the two skills that I like to teach folks about
navigating difficult conversations is active listening.
(03:03):
And that's probably not something new that people haven't heard of before,
but I think it's a skill that we don't practice enough in our lives.
And so today, what I'd like to do is give you the opportunity
to share about something that you're passionate about.
And maybe one of the topics I thought of before we got
on the air today was something that frustrates you,
(03:24):
maybe in this community, that you'd like to see changed.
And I am just going to practice active listening,
and there's two things that I'm going to try to do.
Number one, I want to be able to restate to you in a
way that you agree with that I heard what you said.
And number two, I want to be able to tap into that emotion and you
feel like not only did I hear what you said, but how you said it.
(03:46):
So I can start off with a question for you and we can go from there.
All right.
All right.
Julia, I know you're extremely passionate about this
community and I'd love to hear something that is difficult
or frustrates you that's going on this community.
I'm never frustrated as much as I'm maybe disheartened or
downtrodden at times about the, not necessarily detained ability
(04:09):
for females to gain leadership potential, but more of the
nonchalantness of the lack of female leadership in our community.
So, going around as, um, as a former female elected official.
Twelve years ago, in a space where less than 1% of 1% of the state
(04:31):
of Tennessee's entire elected official base was female, yet 90% of
the employees running the government were female, I find that that
seems to be the case in many large corporations and businesses in our
market, that the majority of the employees and support base are female.
Yet, such a slim opportunity for CEO or C suite leadership.
(04:55):
So, I would very much like more conversations and
programs geared toward teaching female leadership.
So, what I'm hearing, Julia, is you're excited about this community, but you
still see in particular some limitations in regards to females opportunities
in the political arena, especially the ones who are out front leading.
(05:19):
There's a very small minority of the leaders in this state that have that up
front role that are female, yet they're, they're backed by a lot of women.
And you'd like to see that change and be very intentional about that.
And you feel like that could be something that would really change
things, not just for you, but for other women in this community.
(05:41):
I think one of the biggest conversations that I have, and not to downplay the
ability of all people to create and all people to contribute, But I have found
in my time that when you educate a female, a woman, you educate a community.
They will tell their friends about what they learned,
they will have conversations about it, they will be
(06:02):
more apt to share their information with other people.
And not because that they are less selfish, not because they
are less prone to self-growth, because females in general seem
to be more excited about sharing new things in general, right?
With their children, their families, their
spouses, their partners, their community.
(06:24):
They talk more, like 20 something more words per conversation than men, right?
So they just talk about better things faster and stronger, and then they
want to bring other people in because it's an idea and they want to share it.
Men have a tendency to act on ideas, which is great.
We need action.
We cannot live without action.
We do need the ability to have that educational share, and when more
(06:46):
women are in leadership positions, they share more leadership positions.
So it's more about sharing is caring.
So offering those opportunities for leadership for
more younger women, especially, I would love to see.
Women in their mid twenties, early thirties, really start
to learn the conversation of C suite, learn the conversation
of leadership, and learn how to play nicely in the same face
(07:10):
as the elder community of leadership, which is mostly male.
So, learning that communication style and appropriateness,
uh, earlier in life to give them a better opportunity to lead.
I love that, Julia.
And so, what I'm hearing in part as you're talking is The
clarity that's coming to what you're really looking for.
And I think they're at the end, investing in those young women, helping
(07:33):
them to learn the skills that would allow them to get into C suite
positions, to move into an area that's been male dominated, because
not only will it benefit them, but it will have a multiplying effect
because of the way they'll share what they're learning with others.
Agreed.
Yes.
And so that's the whole purpose of the paraphrasing is
(07:54):
because in this case, both of us are in agreement about what
we're discussing, but let's say we weren't and we disagreed.
And I took the same time that I just did to listen and hear what you said.
I know from personal experience and also from research that until a person feels
fully heard, they're not really open to having a conversation with someone else.
(08:16):
They're going to be defensive generally.
It takes, let me say it this way, it takes a lot of
self awareness to strongly disagree with the person that
you're sitting across from and still have a conversation.
If you take the time to listen, which seems counterproductive
at times, but really listen and hear and rephrase back to them,
until they come to the point where, just like you said, that's
(08:38):
a good paraphrase, or you said what I was trying to get at.
Then, you can ask a question like, "Now that I've
listened, would you mind if I share as well?"
And my guess is, nine times out of ten, the person is going to say yes.
And that creates dialogue and that creates the opportunity to navigate
those difficult conversations that we have in family, in work, at church,
(08:59):
in the community, in all the different avenues and areas of our lives.
I would absolutely agree to that.
Yes, I love that.
We all know that real estate is location, location, location.
Our team at Just Homes Group has the true expertise,
pairing buyers and sellers with the right opportunities.
Whether you're looking to buy or sell.
(09:20):
Sell a Home right here in Knoxville, Lenore City, Clinton, or Farragut.
We have the expertise throughout every Knoxville surrounding area.
Call Just Homes Group today.
So this is, this is what you offer.
Tell us how people can find you because that is, that is
(09:40):
something that it's a skill that does have to be practiced.
Conversational awareness has to be practiced.
How can someone reach you or hire you or sit with you?
Tell us about what your business offers and how people can get involved.
So, there's a couple of avenues right now, let me just share a couple
of places that I've had the opportunity to work with recently that
(10:01):
might help folks have a sense of who I'm, I'm doing things with.
So, the West Young Professionals for the Farragut West Knox
Chamber, I'm doing a training for them coming real soon.
I did something with their leadership already.
I've worked with the United Way of, um, Greater West Knox.
I will also be working with the YMCA.
In the future, I've worked with Emerald Youth Foundation, um, AA Air,
(10:24):
Central City Heating and Air, did a training for them as well, and
then another upcoming that I'm super excited about, there's another
leadership development guy in this community doing great work.
His name is Paul Boyles.
Oh, I know Paul.
Yes.
Yes.
And we're doing a training together in September and you would
probably ask me the date and I don't remember it off the top of
(10:46):
my head, but I can get you that information for the show notes.
And that one is going to be open to the community.
Anybody can sign up for it.
And it will be kind of the best of the things that I've done
and the things that he's done and we're pulling it together
to have some great impact for folks in our community.
I love it so much.
So, let's talk about the community.
(11:06):
Let's talk about some of your favorite things about the Knoxville
community because it's called Connect the Knox, and we have a little
over 14,000 subscribers nationally who listen in, and they love to know
about local people and local things and things they don't know about.
So, one of my favorite questions is, when someone
visits you from out of town, what is your secret place?
(11:28):
That you immediately think of these five things these people have to do.
Yeah, well for sure is Ijams Nature Park.
I live in South Knox, and I live at a back entrance to it.
Um, I have the cutest dog in the world.
I know people have disagreements about
that, but my dog Pepper, she's the cutest.
And we love to just walk those trails.
I feel spoiled rotten.
(11:50):
To be living inside the city limits and have
something so amazing right there to be able to to see.
I think number two on my list would probably be, I live so close to
UT and there's just so many interesting restaurants and shops nearby.
Just trying all kinds of different things.
I discovered Highwire, which is a pub not too far from here.
(12:12):
They, they only serve the drinks.
You bring the food and the entertainment, and it's just a great
place to be able to meet, so I'm excited about that as well.
And let's see, if I were to go beyond that on my list, I probably would just
take them out to Smoky Mountain National Forest and just go somewhere there.
I love being outdoors.
And to me, that's one of the most unique things that we have here is
(12:35):
the most visited national park in the United States is right next door.
People come here to visit and they end up staying for life.
It is, it is a special space and it's limited space.
We're right on a mountain.
We're right at the valley of the mountain.
Not a lot of level land around here.
We do have beautiful mountains, beautiful
scenery, beautiful lakes, beautiful hiking.
Ijams Nature Center is probably the most coveted space.
(12:58):
in Knoxville.
We're so lucky that that is a protected space, and
a family has given that gift to all of us to enjoy.
So we are very, very lucky to have that.
What are some of your favorite restaurants?
I love Tomato Head.
So my wife is gluten free and um, they're one of the few
restaurants in town that makes everything from scratch.
And so they know there's probably a lot that do that.
(13:19):
Okay.
I'll take that back.
But in this case, They're very aware of what makes something gluten free.
And so we feel absolutely confident that when we go in there,
whatever it is that she's going to have is going to be great.
And I love their pizza, which I think is amazing.
Um, and so I always enjoy going there for somewhat similar reasons.
I love to go to Jason's Deli as well.
(13:41):
And then, uh, my, my favorite place to go with my daughter is Panda Express.
Now that's not a fancy restaurant, but she loves it.
And I love it.
It's healthy food.
It's fast.
Um, so that's our spot.
That's our spot.
Anytime we get together, that's where we go.
Every kid's favorite place to eat anymore.
When I was a kid, it was McDonald's.
McDonald's was the treat.
(14:01):
And now every kid I know is like, I want to eat a Panda Express.
Take me to Panda Express.
They love grilled chicken at Panda Express.
It's a thing.
It's a thing.
So where, so you're in South Knoxville.
South Knoxville is now the hot country.
Spot for growth in the Knoxville market.
What are, what changes are you seeing in traffic patterns?
What changes are you seeing maybe, um, maybe in the younger people, the
(14:24):
younger generation now graduating and choosing to stay in Knoxville?
How is that impacting what you see the future of South Knoxville becoming?
I would say the community that I live in, I'm sure
that the houses aren't inexpensive, but compared to
the rest of Knoxville, I think they are a little less.
And so, um, I think this is, uh, the community that I live in right
here next to Ijams has a lot of young couples that have moved in.
(14:48):
So I'm excited to see all of that.
I feel, like you were talking earlier about training and investing in young
women, just younger folks just are so exciting to me to get to work with.
So, I'm excited to live next door to some great people.
And then the apartment complexes, my goodness,
they are going in everywhere around here.
(15:09):
And I'm sure the traffic has gotten busier for sure.
I think the game changer is going to be a few years down the road
when that bridge from the stadium across that will completely
change what it is to be in South Knox because people that are
normally north of the river are going to be south of the river too.
Well, like we always say on this podcast, we're going to
(15:29):
give you the opportunity to put it out there in the world.
Whatever you put out there is what you get back.
What would be your dream opportunity to present your coaching style
and your business leadership entrepreneurial style to the nation?
Like what?
What stage would you want to be on?
Yes, I think the stage that I'd want to be on, and I don't have an
exact answer to that, but I would love to be in a room filled with
(15:52):
young professionals who are eager to take the next step of growth.
They're gaining some of the technical skills
that they need through some of their training.
Maybe in school or through their work, but they
really need to work on the soft skill side of things.
They want to maximize those relationships that they are
engaged in, and I would have the opportunity to reach them in
(16:14):
a large setting and then to break it down into a small setting.
If I could have that opportunity on a
regular basis, that would be super exciting.
Well, it just so happens that we interviewed a couple of people
who have different young professional network leadership spots,
and as our podcast is aptly named, we do connect the Knox.
I am a super connector.
(16:35):
That is the gift that I present to the world,
and that is why we started this podcast.
So I will make sure to connect you with all the people that I know.
Cannot say thank you enough for taking time to be on our podcast today.
Before we jump off here again, please remind everybody who you are.
What your business is and where they can find you.
So my name is Will Davenport.
The name of my business is It Begins Within,
(16:57):
with Inside of You, Developing Leaders.
They can reach me at ItBeginsWithinDL, as in DevelopingLeaders, at gmail.
com, or they can call me at 865 414 3900.
Those are the two best ways to reach out to me at this point.
I love it.
We're gonna move forward with some new leadership at Knoxville.
(17:17):
I hope that you are the one that brings all that coaching forward.
I'm very excited to hear about your and
Paul's event coming up here in September.
Feel free to send that information to me so we can add it to your show notes.
Everybody, I'm Julia Hurley, your hostess with
the mostess, connecting Knoxville to the nation.
Until next time, thank you for tuning into the show.
Make sure to like and subscribe, leave a five star review
(17:40):
on your podcast player of choice, and if you would like
information on moving to Knoxville, send me a private message.
As always, this is Julia Hurley, connecting Knoxville to the nation.
Welcome, everybody, to another episode of Connect the Knox.
I'm your hostess with the mostest, Julia
Hurley, connecting Knoxville to the nation.
Today's guest is Will Davenport, founder of It Begins Within.
And as I'm reading through his bio, I am so excited to share this
(00:27):
growth and entrepreneurial coaching system with everyone out there.
I feel like it's something that Knoxville really could use more of.
Will, welcome to the podcast and tell us a little bit about yourself.
Thank you so much, Julia.
I'm super excited to be here today and I have been a
part of this Knoxville community for almost 20 years now.
(00:47):
Started off in Maryville, actually working in a church.
And, uh, loved that season of my life.
And then about 10 years ago, I started a
different business called More Than Memories.
And as I built that business, I had just a part of what I did in ministry
and in other areas of my life that I hadn't really been able to focus on.
And I missed that, which was investing in and
(01:09):
developing leaders as a part of the church.
I had had the opportunity to do that a lot.
And so I was super excited to get to refocus a little
bit and draw some energy into that area of my life.
Very nice.
So, tell us a little bit about your, well, tell us a lot about
it, tell us a lot about what your company is and what you do.
So what we do with It Begins Within is, I think, kind of what makes us unique
(01:34):
is the focus that we take when we do leadership development, and that is we
really take into account the psychological aspect of leadership development.
One of the experiences that I've had over the years has been that if I
am learning a new skill or teaching a new skill and there are some things
going on inside of me that are keeping me from being fully present, that are
(01:57):
keeping me from applying what I'm doing, there's a lid on how far I can grow.
And unless those psychological issues are
addressed, that growth will always be minimized.
It'll never reach its full potential.
And then I think the other aspect of it that I think is
unique is I come at training from an educator's perspective.
From Christian education and from the things I'm doing, and I'm not going
(02:19):
to be the one to stand up in front of the group and lecture for a long time.
I don't believe in that.
I don't think that's the way most people learn.
Little bite sized learning sections followed up by lots of
hands on practice and activities and not just discussion.
I want people getting up and moving, creating things, doing things that
are going to help them apply what they're learning while they're there.
(02:39):
So they'll be more, more likely to use it when they leave.
I love it.
Well, I understand that today you have an experiment for me.
So we're going to do something that we rarely
ever do is let, let someone practice on me today.
Let's go.
I'm ready.
Maybe.
Yeah.
One of the two skills that I like to teach folks about
navigating difficult conversations is active listening.
(03:03):
And that's probably not something new that people haven't heard of before,
but I think it's a skill that we don't practice enough in our lives.
And so today, what I'd like to do is give you the opportunity
to share about something that you're passionate about.
And maybe one of the topics I thought of before we got
on the air today was something that frustrates you,
(03:24):
maybe in this community, that you'd like to see changed.
And I am just going to practice active listening,
and there's two things that I'm going to try to do.
Number one, I want to be able to restate to you in a
way that you agree with that I heard what you said.
And number two, I want to be able to tap into that emotion and you
feel like not only did I hear what you said, but how you said it.
(03:46):
So I can start off with a question for you and we can go from there.
All right.
All right.
Julia, I know you're extremely passionate about this
community and I'd love to hear something that is difficult
or frustrates you that's going on this community.
I'm never frustrated as much as I'm maybe disheartened or
downtrodden at times about the, not necessarily detained ability
(04:09):
for females to gain leadership potential, but more of the
nonchalantness of the lack of female leadership in our community.
So, going around as, um, as a former female elected official.
Twelve years ago, in a space where less than 1% of 1% of the state
(04:31):
of Tennessee's entire elected official base was female, yet 90% of
the employees running the government were female, I find that that
seems to be the case in many large corporations and businesses in our
market, that the majority of the employees and support base are female.
Yet, such a slim opportunity for CEO or C suite leadership.
(04:55):
So, I would very much like more conversations and
programs geared toward teaching female leadership.
So, what I'm hearing, Julia, is you're excited about this community, but you
still see in particular some limitations in regards to females opportunities
in the political arena, especially the ones who are out front leading.
(05:19):
There's a very small minority of the leaders in this state that have that up
front role that are female, yet they're, they're backed by a lot of women.
And you'd like to see that change and be very intentional about that.
And you feel like that could be something that would really change
things, not just for you, but for other women in this community.
(05:41):
I think one of the biggest conversations that I have, and not to downplay the
ability of all people to create and all people to contribute, But I have found
in my time that when you educate a female, a woman, you educate a community.
They will tell their friends about what they learned,
they will have conversations about it, they will be
(06:02):
more apt to share their information with other people.
And not because that they are less selfish, not because they
are less prone to self-growth, because females in general seem
to be more excited about sharing new things in general, right?
With their children, their families, their
spouses, their partners, their community.
(06:24):
They talk more, like 20 something more words per conversation than men, right?
So they just talk about better things faster and stronger, and then they
want to bring other people in because it's an idea and they want to share it.
Men have a tendency to act on ideas, which is great.
We need action.
We cannot live without action.
We do need the ability to have that educational share, and when more
(06:46):
women are in leadership positions, they share more leadership positions.
So it's more about sharing is caring.
So offering those opportunities for leadership for
more younger women, especially, I would love to see.
Women in their mid twenties, early thirties, really start
to learn the conversation of C suite, learn the conversation
of leadership, and learn how to play nicely in the same face
(07:10):
as the elder community of leadership, which is mostly male.
So, learning that communication style and appropriateness,
uh, earlier in life to give them a better opportunity to lead.
I love that, Julia.
And so, what I'm hearing in part as you're talking is The
clarity that's coming to what you're really looking for.
And I think they're at the end, investing in those young women, helping
(07:33):
them to learn the skills that would allow them to get into C suite
positions, to move into an area that's been male dominated, because
not only will it benefit them, but it will have a multiplying effect
because of the way they'll share what they're learning with others.
Agreed.
Yes.
And so that's the whole purpose of the paraphrasing is
(07:54):
because in this case, both of us are in agreement about what
we're discussing, but let's say we weren't and we disagreed.
And I took the same time that I just did to listen and hear what you said.
I know from personal experience and also from research that until a person feels
fully heard, they're not really open to having a conversation with someone else.
(08:16):
They're going to be defensive generally.
It takes, let me say it this way, it takes a lot of
self awareness to strongly disagree with the person that
you're sitting across from and still have a conversation.
If you take the time to listen, which seems counterproductive
at times, but really listen and hear and rephrase back to them,
until they come to the point where, just like you said, that's
(08:38):
a good paraphrase, or you said what I was trying to get at.
Then, you can ask a question like, "Now that I've
listened, would you mind if I share as well?"
And my guess is, nine times out of ten, the person is going to say yes.
And that creates dialogue and that creates the opportunity to navigate
those difficult conversations that we have in family, in work, at church,
(08:59):
in the community, in all the different avenues and areas of our lives.
I would absolutely agree to that.
Yes, I love that.
We all know that real estate is location, location, location.
Our team at Just Homes Group has the true expertise,
pairing buyers and sellers with the right opportunities.
Whether you're looking to buy or sell.
(09:20):
Sell a Home right here in Knoxville, Lenore City, Clinton, or Farragut.
We have the expertise throughout every Knoxville surrounding area.
Call Just Homes Group today.
So this is, this is what you offer.
Tell us how people can find you because that is, that is
(09:40):
something that it's a skill that does have to be practiced.
Conversational awareness has to be practiced.
How can someone reach you or hire you or sit with you?
Tell us about what your business offers and how people can get involved.
So, there's a couple of avenues right now, let me just share a couple
of places that I've had the opportunity to work with recently that
(10:01):
might help folks have a sense of who I'm, I'm doing things with.
So, the West Young Professionals for the Farragut West Knox
Chamber, I'm doing a training for them coming real soon.
I did something with their leadership already.
I've worked with the United Way of, um, Greater West Knox.
I will also be working with the YMCA.
In the future, I've worked with Emerald Youth Foundation, um, AA Air,
(10:24):
Central City Heating and Air, did a training for them as well, and
then another upcoming that I'm super excited about, there's another
leadership development guy in this community doing great work.
His name is Paul Boyles.
Oh, I know Paul.
Yes.
Yes.
And we're doing a training together in September and you would
probably ask me the date and I don't remember it off the top of
(10:46):
my head, but I can get you that information for the show notes.
And that one is going to be open to the community.
Anybody can sign up for it.
And it will be kind of the best of the things that I've done
and the things that he's done and we're pulling it together
to have some great impact for folks in our community.
I love it so much.
So, let's talk about the community.
(11:06):
Let's talk about some of your favorite things about the Knoxville
community because it's called Connect the Knox, and we have a little
over 14,000 subscribers nationally who listen in, and they love to know
about local people and local things and things they don't know about.
So, one of my favorite questions is, when someone
visits you from out of town, what is your secret place?
(11:28):
That you immediately think of these five things these people have to do.
Yeah, well for sure is Ijams Nature Park.
I live in South Knox, and I live at a back entrance to it.
Um, I have the cutest dog in the world.
I know people have disagreements about
that, but my dog Pepper, she's the cutest.
And we love to just walk those trails.
I feel spoiled rotten.
(11:50):
To be living inside the city limits and have
something so amazing right there to be able to to see.
I think number two on my list would probably be, I live so close to
UT and there's just so many interesting restaurants and shops nearby.
Just trying all kinds of different things.
I discovered Highwire, which is a pub not too far from here.
(12:12):
They, they only serve the drinks.
You bring the food and the entertainment, and it's just a great
place to be able to meet, so I'm excited about that as well.
And let's see, if I were to go beyond that on my list, I probably would just
take them out to Smoky Mountain National Forest and just go somewhere there.
I love being outdoors.
And to me, that's one of the most unique things that we have here is
(12:35):
the most visited national park in the United States is right next door.
People come here to visit and they end up staying for life.
It is, it is a special space and it's limited space.
We're right on a mountain.
We're right at the valley of the mountain.
Not a lot of level land around here.
We do have beautiful mountains, beautiful
scenery, beautiful lakes, beautiful hiking.
Ijams Nature Center is probably the most coveted space.
(12:58):
in Knoxville.
We're so lucky that that is a protected space, and
a family has given that gift to all of us to enjoy.
So we are very, very lucky to have that.
What are some of your favorite restaurants?
I love Tomato Head.
So my wife is gluten free and um, they're one of the few
restaurants in town that makes everything from scratch.
And so they know there's probably a lot that do that.
(13:19):
Okay.
I'll take that back.
But in this case, They're very aware of what makes something gluten free.
And so we feel absolutely confident that when we go in there,
whatever it is that she's going to have is going to be great.
And I love their pizza, which I think is amazing.
Um, and so I always enjoy going there for somewhat similar reasons.
I love to go to Jason's Deli as well.
(13:41):
And then, uh, my, my favorite place to go with my daughter is Panda Express.
Now that's not a fancy restaurant, but she loves it.
And I love it.
It's healthy food.
It's fast.
Um, so that's our spot.
That's our spot.
Anytime we get together, that's where we go.
Every kid's favorite place to eat anymore.
When I was a kid, it was McDonald's.
McDonald's was the treat.
(14:01):
And now every kid I know is like, I want to eat a Panda Express.
Take me to Panda Express.
They love grilled chicken at Panda Express.
It's a thing.
It's a thing.
So where, so you're in South Knoxville.
South Knoxville is now the hot country.
Spot for growth in the Knoxville market.
What are, what changes are you seeing in traffic patterns?
What changes are you seeing maybe, um, maybe in the younger people, the
(14:24):
younger generation now graduating and choosing to stay in Knoxville?
How is that impacting what you see the future of South Knoxville becoming?
I would say the community that I live in, I'm sure
that the houses aren't inexpensive, but compared to
the rest of Knoxville, I think they are a little less.
And so, um, I think this is, uh, the community that I live in right
here next to Ijams has a lot of young couples that have moved in.
(14:48):
So I'm excited to see all of that.
I feel, like you were talking earlier about training and investing in young
women, just younger folks just are so exciting to me to get to work with.
So, I'm excited to live next door to some great people.
And then the apartment complexes, my goodness,
they are going in everywhere around here.
(15:09):
And I'm sure the traffic has gotten busier for sure.
I think the game changer is going to be a few years down the road
when that bridge from the stadium across that will completely
change what it is to be in South Knox because people that are
normally north of the river are going to be south of the river too.
Well, like we always say on this podcast, we're going to
(15:29):
give you the opportunity to put it out there in the world.
Whatever you put out there is what you get back.
What would be your dream opportunity to present your coaching style
and your business leadership entrepreneurial style to the nation?
Like what?
What stage would you want to be on?
Yes, I think the stage that I'd want to be on, and I don't have an
exact answer to that, but I would love to be in a room filled with
(15:52):
young professionals who are eager to take the next step of growth.
They're gaining some of the technical skills
that they need through some of their training.
Maybe in school or through their work, but they
really need to work on the soft skill side of things.
They want to maximize those relationships that they are
engaged in, and I would have the opportunity to reach them in
(16:14):
a large setting and then to break it down into a small setting.
If I could have that opportunity on a
regular basis, that would be super exciting.
Well, it just so happens that we interviewed a couple of people
who have different young professional network leadership spots,
and as our podcast is aptly named, we do connect the Knox.
I am a super connector.
(16:35):
That is the gift that I present to the world,
and that is why we started this podcast.
So I will make sure to connect you with all the people that I know.
Cannot say thank you enough for taking time to be on our podcast today.
Before we jump off here again, please remind everybody who you are.
What your business is and where they can find you.
So my name is Will Davenport.
The name of my business is It Begins Within,
(16:57):
with Inside of You, Developing Leaders.
They can reach me at ItBeginsWithinDL, as in DevelopingLeaders, at gmail.
com, or they can call me at 865 414 3900.
Those are the two best ways to reach out to me at this point.
I love it.
We're gonna move forward with some new leadership at Knoxville.
(17:17):
I hope that you are the one that brings all that coaching forward.
I'm very excited to hear about your and
Paul's event coming up here in September.
Feel free to send that information to me so we can add it to your show notes.
Everybody, I'm Julia Hurley, your hostess with
the mostess, connecting Knoxville to the nation.
Until next time, thank you for tuning into the show.
Make sure to like and subscribe, leave a five star review
(17:40):
on your podcast player of choice, and if you would like
information on moving to Knoxville, send me a private message.
As always, this is Julia Hurley, connecting Knoxville to the nation.
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