Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Rick Griggs of North Scottsdale/Cave Creek

We recently had the chance to connect with Rick Griggs and have shared our conversation below.

Good morning Rick, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Connecting with friends and acquaintances I have not been in touch with for a while. It is fun and energizing to revisit the memories and experiences that I had with them. Also, it realizing the impact you have had on each other.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am so fortunate to have done many things and all things that I have a passion for! I started doing radio when I was in high school. Being on the air was so special knowing that I could impact people. To be able to entertain them with music or discussion and take them away, at least momentarily, from their everyday challenges was rewarding. From on-air I went behind the scenes into a management role in helping to create and build on-air content of numerous radio stations. That eventually led to being one of the pioneers of sports radio. The early days of the sports radio was exciting and fun but challenging because there was no template for the format. I started the premiere sports radio consultancy, RSA Sports, and had the pleasure of working with and for some amazingly brilliant and talented people including ESPN, Fox Sports and numerous other clients in the US, Canada and Europe.

Photography always intrigued me as a kid and later in my adult life. I enjoyed capturing unique images that expressed emotion, beauty and feeling. I was fortunate to have my work in several galleries as well as display at the opening ot the Photography Gallery in Lishui, China.

Like photography, I was curious about woodworking. I remember as a kid sitting on the front porch watching my grandfather whittle some amazing things from simple sticks. My uncle was also into woodworking as a carver. He did some incredible pieces that I still have! Over the years I dabbled in different projects but what really pulled me in totally was doing live edge pieces. It is rewarding to take a piece of raw wood and create a table. What makes my work unique is the way I incorporate pieces of stone and stone powder mixed with epoxy to fill the voids in many of my tables and wall art. My goal is to create a one-of-a-kind conversation piece.

Currently I am working on a round monkey pod ball. It is about 16 inches in diameter. I have incorporated Chrysocolla from Peru and copper as the inlay. It is a very unique piece, definitely one-of-a-kind. I am also working on a cocobolo end table that had a huge void in the center. I started with a pieces of Arizona ironwood surrounding it with various green stone including moss agate and leopard stone from Zimbabwe. I am also finishing up several wall pieces including a buckeye burl piece and maple burl piece with some stunning malachite inlay.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What breaks the bonds between people—and what restores them?
The lack of respect breaks the bond between people! It is human nature driving all of us to seek acceptance and respect from others. Just because a person’s life experiences and background prompt them to have an opinion or perspective that is different from ours is not a reason to disrespect them. We all view things differently and that does not make someone right and another person wrong.

What restores the bond? Trust and acceptance with a genuine effort of inclusion builds bonds between people!

What’s something you changed your mind about after failing hard?
As numerous people have said, “Success is a series of failures”. There is no one specific experience or situation that stands out but many that have the same theme. The key is knowing when you have made a mistake and learning from it. I had a mentor who said, “When you make a mistake learn from it and don’t do it again. Making the same mistake more than once means you haven’t learned anything.”

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
Helping others achieve success. It is rewarding seeing someone tap into their potential because of something you have shared or helped them with. During my time in radio I was very fortunate to see that happen frequently. People unlocking their talent and having tremendous success.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
Yes! The outside recognition is nice but it about a feeling of accomplishment for me. I only know one way to approach things and that is give it my best. Succeed or fail if you know you have given it your best that’s all you can do.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.naturalwoodedge.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/liveedgecreations
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rickgriggsaz/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@rickgriggs9074
• Other: https://www.threads.net/@liveedgecreations

Image Credits
all images from Rick Griggs