Our Story Began
Our story began as acquaintances, growing up in neighboring towns in southern California. At that time, we traveled in similar social circles, but did not know each other well. Josh was busy with school, playing volleyball, surfing with friends, and working at Manny’s Mexican Grill while Hollie was either studying, dancing, or slammed with activities as student body president of her school.
Our Journey as Friends
Our journey as friends started when we returned home from college during semester breaks. After running into each other, we learned about the similar non-profit work we were doing. Josh was the president and CEO of a non-profit company he started after working in a refugee camp in Morocco. While spending months helping refugees and building wonderful friendships, he struggled seeing all his newfound friends deported due to anti-immigration laws that were passed in Europe around 2001. The loss of their friendship and a way to contact each other—even to this day—inspired him to do something meaningful in their honor. His non-profit, Kaiizen—a Japanese word meaning doing a little better each day—started with that promise to himself.
Subsequently, Hollie was working at Interface Children & Family Services in the domestic violence division as a teen dating violence prevention specialist. Her work as a trainer and coach focused on teaching teens about relationship and family violence, helping to fulfill a state mandate which required schools to provide violence prevention education. Hollie trained thousands around the county in high schools, after-school programs, junior colleges and universities, and juvenile probation and lock-down facilities. She also gave multiple presentations at the International Conference for Family Violence, where she helped other agencies develop similar outreach programs for their communities.
Connection Is The Key
Connection is the key. While we were catching up one afternoon, we came to the conclusion that connection was the true key. By this time, Josh had developed a program for at-risk youths at his non-profit, Kaiizen, and was coaching more than directing. He arranged international trips for these youths, and helping them heal from past traumas and current addictions. Hollie was no longer training on dating violence and was spending more time coaching and training at-risk teens and adults at a vocational school, working with the Pacific Institute Education Initiative and their training, "Thought Patterns For Success," developed by renowned trainers and speakers Lou Tice and Dr. Joe Pace.
What we realized what we had in common that day was much more than the years of friendship and work history. We realized that we both were focused on helping individuals heal. We knew this healing sometimes fell short because caretakers didn’t understand how to build a connection with their loved ones before, during, or after their loved one had healed. When the loved one would return to their home environment after healing away from family and friends, they would regress. We talked about needing more resources to help caretakers learn what we had spent years learning through trial and error. One day, we came to the conclusion that we had to write down what we had learned in order to help these caretakers. We then set out to write Bang Head Here that day.
Bang Head Here
We hope Bang Head Here will answer many questions about how to connect with someone they love who is struggling to thrive. These books are a culmination of our decades of collective work as coaches, trainers, mentors, and friends. Each book is designed to help individuals learn and practice concepts before building on knowledge. In Bang Head Here: You in the Equation, we ask individuals to consider themselves in their relationship equation and how they are either adding or subtracting from their loved one’s current situation. Bang Head Here: Cracking the Communication Code will help break down the communication barriers that keep many stuck in a cycle of verbal violence and disconnect. Lastly, Bang Head Here: Creating a Culture of Connection is a collection of stories, ideas, and thoughts about how to build lasting connection by creating a healthy family culture.
We want to thank you for being our connection ally. Beyond our initial voyage into authorship, we will continue to coach and train from blog posts and private one-on-one sessions that you can request through our contact portal. We hope you stop by often.
Together, we can hope, heal, and thrive.
Josh & Hollie
