Dr. Rob Pool wears many hats, Vice President of Student Affairs and Auxiliary Services at Ashland University, faith-driven leader, mentor, husband, and lifelong drummer. But in this episode of Caller ID, we strip away titles, roles, and résumés to get to the real question: Who are you when the labels are gone?

Rob and I go way back — from playing in bands together to walking through leadership, faith, and life’s hardest seasons side by side. In this conversation, we dive into identity, trust, calling, and what it means to stay grounded when your job, influence, and responsibilities keep growing.

This episode is about:

• Why your identity cannot be your job
• Learning to trust when outcomes feel uncertain
• Leading with humility, not ego
• Faith, doubt, obedience, and surrender
• And how music has remained a grounding force through every season

If you’ve ever wrestled with purpose, burnout, ambition, or the pressure to perform — this one will hit home.

Dr. Rob Pool, thanks for taking the call.

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Thanks for listening to Caller ID.

You can follow Caller ID wherever you listen to podcasts, and if you’re enjoying the show, a quick rating or review helps more people find it.

New episodes drop weekly, featuring conversations with people across disciplines who are thoughtful about their work and honest about the cost of doing it well.

I’m Brandon Davis Wells and thanks for answering the call.

Jim Pfander is the General Manager of the Akron RubberDucks and the 2025 Minor League Baseball Executive of the Year, but his journey to the GM’s chair came with real tradeoffs, sacrifices, and moments of letting go.

In this episode of Caller ID, Jim and I reconnect as Ohio University classmates and broadcast program peers to talk honestly about what it takes to build a sustainable career in professional sports. From early internships with the Cleveland Indians to leadership roles across Minor League Baseball, Jim reflects on the decisions that shaped his path, including the reality that sometimes you have to give up one dream in order to chase a different, better-fitting one.

This conversation isn’t just about baseball. It’s about patience, adaptability, family considerations, and the cost of saying yes, and no, along the way. Jim offers a grounded look at the business behind the dream and what success actually requires over the long haul.

Whether you’re a student, a young professional, or someone wrestling with career direction and identity, this episode is a reminder that calling is rarely linear—and that the right path often emerges through sacrifice, clarity, and courage.

Support the show

Thanks for listening to Caller ID.

You can follow Caller ID wherever you listen to podcasts, and if you’re enjoying the show, a quick rating or review helps more people find it.

New episodes drop weekly, featuring conversations with people across disciplines who are thoughtful about their work and honest about the cost of doing it well.

I’m Brandon Davis Wells and thanks for answering the call.

What does Kobe Bryant have to do with Shakespeare?

More than you might think.

In this episode of Caller ID, I sit down with Mark Rankin, a Renaissance literature and English professor whose approach to calling, identity, and excellence is shaped as much by the Mamba Mentality as it is by Milton.

We talk about following your passion, but how much work that takes. We also tackle the hard work required to live at the center of ikigai, and why the most meaningful work is often the most demanding. Mark also shares how teaching 12-year-olds has made him a better college professor, and how working with college students has sharpened the way he shows up for younger learners.

This is a conversation about discipline, formation, and becoming who you are called to be, even when it’s harder than you expected.

Support the show

Thanks for listening to Caller ID.

You can follow Caller ID wherever you listen to podcasts, and if you’re enjoying the show, a quick rating or review helps more people find it.

New episodes drop weekly, featuring conversations with people across disciplines who are thoughtful about their work and honest about the cost of doing it well.

I’m Brandon Davis Wells and thanks for answering the call.