Podcasts about 25m

In this week's episode of the Coin Stories News Block powered exclusively by Ledn, we cover these major headlines related to Bitcoin, macroeconomics, and global finance: What the wave of Bitcoin company closures and bankruptcies tells us about where we are in the bear market 84% of Bitcoin is now held by long-term holders — the highest level ever recorded AI agents just paid each other in Bitcoin over Lightning for the first time BlackRock, Fidelity, and seven other institutions pledge $15M to protect Bitcoin from quantum threats — and critics are calling it "Big Bitcoin" Strategy repurchases $25M in STRC at $86.52 and boosts its cash reserve to $3.75 billion ---- The News Block is powered exclusively by Ledn – the global leader in Bitcoin-backed loans, issuing over $11 billion in loans since 2018, and they were the first to offer proof of reserves. With Ledn, you get custody loans, no credit checks, no monthly payments, and more. My followers get .25% off their first loan. Learn more at www.ledn.io/natalie  ---- Order Natalie's new book "Bitcoin is For Everyone," a simple introduction to Bitcoin and what's broken in our current financial system: https://amzn.to/3WzFzfU If you'd like to buy using Bitcoin, just head to https://shop.talkingbitcoin.com and pay in sats! ---- Read every story in the News Block with visuals and charts! Join our mailing list and subscribe to our free Bitcoin newsletter: https://thenewsblock.substack.com  —- References mentioned in the episode: BitMEX Ends Operations After 11 Years BitMart to Wind Down Its Exchange Satsuma Shareholders Approve Bitcoin Treasury Liquidation Smarter Web Company Sells Bitcoin to Repay Debt Poolin Files for Bankruptcy Poolin Files Chapter 11 and Sets $52 Million Floor Bid Bitcoin Standard Treasury Company Scraps Original SPAC Terms Jack Mallers Steps Down as Twenty One Capital CEO MARA Sells $1.5 Billion of Bitcoin Amid AI Shift Bitdeer Empties Its Bitcoin Treasury as Miners Pivot to AI Natalie Brunell Interviews MARA CEO Fred Thiel 84% of Bitcoin Is Held by Long-Term Holders Bitcoin Conviction Is at an All-Time High Lightning Labs Launches Wavelength Jensen Huang Explains Why Open AI Models Matter Mark Zuckerberg on Open Source and Preventing Centralization Elon Musk Says X's Code Will Be Open Source and Audited Jack Dorsey Announces Buzz Michael Levin Demonstrates Buzz and Wavelength Working Together Satoshi Nakamoto on the Root Problem With Conventional Currency Mike Schmidt Explains the Bitcoin Security Consortium Brian Armstrong on Preparing Bitcoin for Quantum Computing Official Bitcoin Security Consortium Announcement BlackRock, Coinbase and Strategy Join $15 Million Security Consortium Nine Firms Launch the Bitcoin Security Consortium Galaxy Launches the Bitcoin Quantum Readiness Initiative Strategy Overhauls Its Bitcoin Capital-Markets Metrics Strategy Announces Its New Bitcoin Capital-Markets Metrics ----  

We're still surprised people did this but... 50+ founders worth $10M to $4B reveal their personal finances. Here it is: https://joinhampton.com/mw-wrWhy do we do this? Because if you're an aspirational person or someone who runs a business and is making money, it's incredibly challenging to figure out what to do. Information is impossible to find — and that's what we put together: the net worth reveal and why we do this podcast, Moneywise.He got his first $5M check and expected to feel superhuman. The next day was one of the most disappointing of his life.Jesse Pujji walked away from a Goldman Sachs job where he made $500K at 25 — with a boss making $3M and a group head making $20M — to bootstrap an ad agency on $33K per partner and a stack of Amex cards. Ampush cracked the Facebook arbitrage before almost anyone: $100K in monthly revenue in June 2010 became $2M a month with $600K in EBITDA fourteen months later. He scaled it to half a billion in annual ad spend and 250 employees without raising a dollar, turned down $25M at 27, sold 20% to Red Ventures in 2015, and sold the whole thing to New Mountain Capital in 2022 for somewhere between $40M and $60M on a 35% stake. He never got the nine-figure number he made up in his head, and he says chasing it was the mistake.This episode gets into the exact allocation of a post-exit portfolio, why Jesse refuses to let his advisors put illiquid startup equity on his balance sheet, what $500K a year of "normal" spending actually buys, and why he asked his financial advisor how people possibly spend more than that. He's honest about the gap between the money he expected to change him and the money that didn't. And we spend real time on the part most founders avoid: three kids who never saw him grind, a Greenlight allowance split into thirds, a $63 JCPenney paycheck at 16 that taught him more than any of it, and the question of whether to leave them anything at all.Also, this podcast is made by Hampton, which is a community for founders doing on average $20 million a year in revenue. We saw a lot of these money conversations happening privately behind closed doors and we thought, "What the heck, let's make it public." If you are a founder, apply here: http://joinhampton.com/mwTimestamps:00:00 — Jesse's origin story: immigrant household in St. Louis, a snow shoveling business in middle school, and $33K each plus Amex cards to start Ampush02:00 — The Facebook arbitrage that changed everything: $100K/month in June 2010 to $2M in revenue and $600K in EBITDA fourteen months later02:49 — "Sandbox entrepreneurship" — Facebook cold-calls them: "Who the hell are you guys? You're one of our top 100 advertisers"04:24 — Why he left Goldman at 25 making $500K: "I would rather make half of my future expected earnings and do something I feel excited about"06:18 — The $25M offer two years in, why they said no, and the $3M dividend they took instead — $1M each, which bought his SF house07:30 — The made-up number that wrecked them: hoping for $150M, getting $60–75M offers, and turning down $190M in Marin stock09:24 — The Red Ventures deal and $5M after tax: "I thought I would get wings or superhuman strength... nothing changed"11:16 — 2022: selling to New Mountain and walking away without going with the deal13:12 — The exit number, on the record: a $40–60M range on a stake "a little bit more than a third"16:04 — The Zone of Genius framework, and why being a CEO sat in his zone of excellence — good at it, drained by it17:52 — Gateway X by the numbers19:06 — Whether the scarcity ever goes away: "nine days out of ten" became "one day out of ten," and the coach question he couldn't answer20:16 — The Deer Valley condo, and finally understanding why people buy vacation homes21:08 — Full portfolio breakdown and why he tells his advisors to mark his startup equity at zero23:24 — Annual spend 26:52 — The schedule that makes it work: Tuesdays and Thursdays he misses bedtime, Monday/Wednesday/Friday he doesn't, and he deletes Slack on vacation28:16 — The thing that keeps him up: "They've gotten all the fruits of the grind without actually observing the grind"29:23 — Greenlight, allowance equal to their age, and splitting it into thirds — spend, save, give30:19 — Running a Starbucks P&L with his 9-year-old daughter in the store32:30 — The four-bucket framework: spend it, give it to the government, give it to charity, or give it to your kids34:44 — A Schnucks family board member on generational wealth: "Money doesn't ruin kids. Lack of values does."35:36 — What Jesse wants said at his funeralSponsors: Daily Body Coach - achieve your dream body with https://moneywise.dailybodycoach.comSubscribe to Moneywise: https://www.youtube.com/@themoneywisepodcastFollow Daniel on X: https://x.com/danielcberkListen on Spotify / Apple Podcasts: [search "Moneywise Hampton"]

Many apparel founders believe growing revenue is the key to building a successful brand, but revenue alone won't keep your business alive. Without healthy profit margins, even brands generating millions of dollars in sales can struggle with cash flow, inventory purchases, hiring, and long-term growth. In this episode of the Business of Apparel podcast, Rachel explains why profitability, not revenue, is the most important metric every apparel founder should be tracking. She shares real examples of brands that looked successful on paper but ultimately failed because they ignored their margins, along with practical guidance for calculating profitability, understanding company-wide weighted margins, and making smarter inventory and pricing decisions. Rachel also discusses how experienced mentorship and the right financial systems can help founders avoid expensive mistakes and build brands that are positioned for sustainable, long-term success.

Most nonprofits start with the tools. The better question is, what's the scalable opportunity technology can solve so your team can stay focused on the human interactions that matter most?With 1 in 2 people impacted by cancer in their lifetime, Mike Osborne and his team at Cancer Council Victoria are applying that thinking to one of their biggest pressure points: freeing up counselors from digging through systems so they can stay present and support more people in less time.Mike also reveals research-backed hot takes on AI-generated search summaries, and why teens are more likely to open up to a chatbot than talk to an adult.Resources & LinksConnect with Mike on LinkedIn and learn more about Cancer Council Victoria on their website. Bloomerang is the proud presenter of Missions to Movements. See how one team surpassed a $1M match and raised $2.25M for their mission with Penny, Bloomerang's AI-powered fundraising strategist. Learn more at bloomerang.com.The Monthly Giving Builder: Generate your comprehensive monthly giving plan and build your program step by step - with a guided companion working alongside you from start to finish. Let's Connect!Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show!My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good.Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

Antoine Pouppez co-founded neuroClues six years ago. Today it's raised over £25M and employs 40+ people across Belgium and France, building MedTech that treats neurological disorders through eye tracking.His approach from day one: if it's core to the product, you build it yourself, no matter how much longer or more expensive that is. James and Antoine get into why that decision holds up outside MedTech too, how he kept investors on side through a year long delay, and the one question that decides what's worth doing properly versus what can wait.More from James:Connect with James on LinkedIn or at peer-effect.com 

Yesterday a reporter at the All Star festivities called Paul Skenes a ‘future Yankee.' As annoying as it is – is it true? Does it anger you to hear people doing this? If Skenes costs 500+ million bucks, is it worth it for the Pirates to make that deal? What if a salary cap is instituted? The Penguins have agreed to terms with Nicholas Robertson after trading for his rights 2 weeks ago. The deal with Robertson is 2 years for $3.25M/year. His brother, Jason Robertson, is still with the Stars, but continues to be part of major trade rumors. What is the price looking like to acquire the 45-goal scorer? Afternoon radio host on 670 The Score in Chicago Matt Spiegel joined the show. Matt was able to tell us about Jacob Gonzalez, one of the newest Pirates. Gonzalez was acquired by the Pirates on Friday night in a deal with the White Sox. Matt said Gonzalez started to catch his stride in the minors, but was bumpy when he got called up to the bigs. The White Sox asked him to play 1B, which he played none of in the minors. Matt thinks the Sox may regret parting ways with Gonzalez if they have an injury or two in the second half. Matt thought Gonzalez actually made it difficult for the White Sox to take him out of the lineup even after a rocky start. Matt explained why the trade was made from the White Sox perspective, but he thinks Ben Cherington may find something here.

In this episode, the discussion focuses on a 54-year-old performance exhaust manufacturing business and the creative SBA financing structures, inventory risks, and seller financing strategies that could make—or break—the deal.Business Listing – https://www.sunbeltnetwork.com/sacramento-ca/buy-a-business/listings/listing-details/northern-california-exhaust-component-manufacturer-sc2139-53520/Welcome to Acquisitions Anonymous – the #1 podcast for small business M&A. Every week, we break down businesses for sale and talk about buying, operating, and growing them.Looking to build a professional website in minutes? Try Wix: https://wix.pxf.io/c/6898629/3115214/25616?trafcat=templateHubSpot is the backbone for how businesses scale without chaos. Try them out here: https://go.try-hubspot.com/OeG9VrSubscribe for more episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@AcquisitionsAnonymousPodcast?sub_confirmation=1Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://www.acquanon.com/newsletter

For years, we've been searching for a better way to help Apparel Ffounders bridge the gap between learning industry concepts and actually applying them inside their businesses.   That's exactly why we're launching Boardroom Notes, a brand-new weekly Substack newsletter designed to help founders take the lessons from the Business of Apparel podcast and turn them into practical action.   In addition to Boardroom Notes, you can also subscribe to In the Margins with Rachel Erickson, a behind-the-scenes newsletter documenting the journey of writing and releasing my first book, The Business of Apparel. Whether you're trying to improve your margins, make smarter business decisions, or get an inside look at the ideas shaping my upcoming book, you'll want to join us over on Substack at https://businessofapparel.substack.com  

BEEF As expected, beef pricing for middle meats is moving lower. Strips, ribeyes and tenderloins all coming off a bit from pre-holiday highs. I expect we will see this continue right to the end of the month. Grinds on the other hand are keeping prices high and will be moving higher. Ground beef is still the value in the beef complex even with advancing prices. Chucks and rounds will be coming off a bit, but don't expect too much from these primals as far as discounting. Beef production during the holiday shortened week was 458K head down from the prior week's 537K head and down compared to last year's holiday when the harvest was 474, keeping beef tight and expensive. Thin meats are a mixed bag; declines in briskets and sirloin flap while flank still has support pushing higher. With inventories tight, I'd recommend staying ahead of your needs, but you will see better pricing over the next few weeks. POULTRY We'll start talking about poultry with avian flu. Our good run has come to an end. Only one case reported, but it is 1.2 million egg layers in Utah removed from the food supply. Talking about current chicken market, wings are on fire moving up strongly for next week. Randoms and tenders are holding steady at least for next week. Production continues strong but demand is pushing this market. I don't expect chicken to take a big run up we should see a pretty steady market through the summer. GRAINS China is back to purchasing soybeans after the protracted tariff disruption, booking 132K metric tons with commitment to purchase 25M metric tons through 2028. Shooting started again with Iran; both those events turned a promising decline in soy oil right around with prices inching higher every day.  Corn closed up at $4.48/bushel over last week's $4.31 close. Wheat is up across the board too. Though we have so much corn we'll not see much effect from this latest move higher, wheat could push flour pricing up. Right now, the action is in soy.  PORK Pork bellies finally showing some direction closing at $132 up from last week's $119. We'll keep watching to see if this is an event or a trend, I'm betting trend, but I've been fooled a couple times this year, so let's see it play out. If this is the expected belly summer climb, now it when to buy bacon. Butts and ribs holding steady and a good value, loins actually moving a few cents lower makes a great value in protein. DAIRY The CME closed today with the block up 8, the barrel up 4 and butter moving down 2. This is the most active we've seen this trade in quite a while.  Savalfoods.com | Find us on Social Media: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn

In this episode, the discussion focuses on a 54-year-old performance exhaust manufacturing business and the creative SBA financing structures, inventory risks, and seller financing strategies that could make—or break—the deal.Business Listing – https://www.sunbeltnetwork.com/sacramento-ca/buy-a-business/listings/listing-details/northern-california-exhaust-component-manufacturer-sc2139-53520/Welcome to Acquisitions Anonymous – the #1 podcast for small business M&A. Every week, we break down businesses for sale and talk about buying, operating, and growing them.Looking to build a professional website in minutes? Try Wix: https://wix.pxf.io/c/6898629/3115214/25616?trafcat=templateHubSpot is the backbone for how businesses scale without chaos. Try them out here: https://go.try-hubspot.com/OeG9VrSubscribe for more episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@AcquisitionsAnonymousPodcast?sub_confirmation=1Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://www.acquanon.com/newsletter

When apparel founders fail to create a profitable business, it's not because they lack talent or great product ideas. They struggle because they're forced to navigate a highly technical industry through expensive trial and error, often making costly mistakes that could have been avoided with the right guidance. In this episode of the Business of Apparel podcast, Rachel shares the common challenges she's seeing apparel founders face and explains why learning the industry as you go can put your business at risk. Through real client stories, she breaks down how poor product development processes, weak financial planning, inaccurate pricing, and unclear production documentation can quickly lead to cash flow problems, wasted inventory, and even business closure. Rachel also explains why building strong operational systems early, tracking profitability instead of just revenue, and seeking expert support can dramatically reduce risk and help founders build profitable, sustainable brands.

Voodoo's Path of Kings looks like Skyrim from the surface. It plays more like Tinder. And underneath the swipe mechanic is one of the more clever fusions of gameplay and monetization we've seen — where the gameplay itself is basically the offer pop-up.We break down Path of Kings, the Voodoo mid-core idle RPG they flagged on the Creative Trends episode. They walk it live — the swipe-to-choose mechanic (swipe right and you go straight into a purchase, swipe left and you skip), the Legend-of-Mushroom-style idle core streamlined for a Western fantasy audience, the ads-as-biggest-upgrade loop, the prestige treadmill that resets the map when content runs out, and a genuinely useful tangent on how to actually price a "remove the interstitials" offer (Felix does the ad-monetization math live). Then the numbers and the bigger picture: Path of Kings is doing ~$30K/day and sits right at the make-or-break threshold early Voodoo games have to clear, while Voodoo overall is doing ~$25M/month in IP revenue off Marble Sort and Castle Clashers/Busters — a real mid-core pivot that has everyone talking IPO. Plus the creatives: ~1,384 in 30 days, 100% AI, and gloriously broken (floating horses, dragons you don't sit on, four art styles per video).This episode is brought to you by Kinoa — the AI operating system for mobile game operations: flows, live segments, in-app messages, push notifications, and A/B testing in one place, run by the operators who own the numbers. Carry1st saw +43% ARPDAU; PlayStudios saw +31% revenue on Tetris Block Party. Learn more at Kinoa.http://www.kinoa.ai?utm_source=MatejPodcast&utm_medium=Link&utm_campaign=Matej+Podcast&utm_id=100--------------------------------------PVX Partners offers non-dilutive funding for game developers.Go to: https://pvxpartners.com/They can help you access the most effective form of growth capital once you have the metrics to back it.- Scale fast- Keep your shares- Drawdown only as needed- Have PvX take downside risk alongside you+ Work with a team entirely made up of ex-gaming operators and investors---------------------------------------For an ever-growing number of game developers, this means that now is the perfect time to invest in monetizing direct-to-consumer at scale.Our sponsor FastSpring:Has delivered D2C at scale for over 20 yearsThey power top mobile publishers around the worldLaunch a new webstore, replace an existing D2C vendor, or add a redundant D2C vendor at fastspring.gg.---------------------------------------This is no BS gaming podcast 2.5 gamers session. Sharing actionable insights, dropping knowledge from our day-to-day User Acquisition, Game Design, and Ad monetization jobs. We are definitely not discussing the latest industry news, but having so much fun! Let's not forget this is a 4 a.m. conference discussion vibe, so let's not take it too seriously.Panelists: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jakub Remia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠r,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Felix Braberg, Matej Lancaric⁠Join our slack channel here: https://join.slack.com/t/two-and-half-gamers/shared_invite/zt-3bckldvr8-8PXvzciMWdheOzED9hq0SA---------------------------------------Matej LancaricUser Acquisition & Creatives Consultant⁠https://lancaric.meFelix BrabergAd monetization consultant⁠https://www.felixbraberg.comJakub RemiarGame design consultant⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakubremiar---------------------------------------Please share the podcast with your industry friends, dogs & cats. Especially cats! They love it!Hit the Subscribe button on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple!Please share feedback and comments - matej@lancaric.me---------------------------------------If you are interested in getting UA tips every week on Monday, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠lancaric.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ & sign up for the Brutally Honest newsletter by Matej Lancaric

Most founders end up as their own default CFO, buried in spreadsheets, cash flow, and pricing decisions. In this episode of Growth Think Tank, Gene Hammett talks with Brennan de Raad, founder of Vessel Advisors (No. 2,665 on the Inc. 5000). We explore the key signs that it's time to bring in strategic financial leadership, especially as your business grows beyond $5 million in revenue and the founder is still managing the finances. Gene sits down with Brennan De Raad of Vessel Advisors to discuss how fractional CFOs, controllers, and back-office accounting teams help businesses gain financial clarity, improve cash flow visibility, and make better decisions with actionable reporting. We also dive into how AI is transforming recurring finance tasks, the importance of tracking leading indicators alongside traditional financial metrics, and why weekly revenue, cash flow forecasts, and sales activity deserve closer attention. The conversation wraps up with a practical discussion on pricing strategy and gross margin, two of the most overlooked drivers of sustainable growth and profitability. Episode Highlights & Time Stamps 0:03 Fractional CFO Basics 4:23 AI in Finance 7:19 When to Hire a CFO 15:03 Tracking the Right Numbers 19:47 Pricing and Margin Blind Spots 24:32 Final CFO Takeaways Key Takeaways The $5M threshold: Once a business crosses roughly $5M in revenue, it's usually strong enough to benefit from a fractional CFO but not yet large enough to justify a $250K–$600K full-time hire.  Warning signs it's time to hire: Financial reports stop making sense, revenue grows but cash stays tight, or the founder feels lost in a finance world they no longer fully understand.  AI is reshaping finance functions: Platforms like QuickBooks, NetSuite, and Sage are building in native AI agents, while tools like Claude are cutting cash-flow forecasting projects from hours down to a fast, natural-language process.  Fractional works at scale too: Vessel Advisors now supports companies north of $100M on a fractional basis, a shift from a decade ago when a $25M company "had to" have a full-time CFO.  Track leading indicators, not just lagging ones: Trailing 4–6 week revenue, a 13-week rolling cash forecast, and sales activity metrics (like meetings booked) give founders earlier warning signs than a monthly P&L.  The #1 hidden problem: Most companies haven't audited their actual pricing and gross margins in years; the deal they thought was a 35% margin project might really be closer to 4–12%.  Time is the real cost: Founders who stay in spreadsheets they should have delegated aren't just losing hours; they're losing the deals, meetings, and strategic moves that would have grown the business faster. Pricing increases rarely cost you customers: One example shared: a 9% average price increase across the board resulted in customer gratitude, not attrition, once the founder finally acted. This episode is a must-listen for CEOs and executives looking to lead innovation with purpose, scale responsibly with AI, and build cultures where people feel empowered to think boldly and grow. Connect With Today's Guest Brennan De Raad is the Founder & CEO of Vessel Advisors. Vessel Advisors provides Fractional CFO, Controller, and Back-Office Accounting services for growing businesses, helping founders gain financial clarity, improve cash flow, and scale with confidence. How to Connect with Brennan De Raad: LinkedIn: Brennan De Raad https://www.linkedin.com/in/brennanderaad/ Company Website: Vessel Advisors https://vesseladvisors.com/ – to learn more about his work and platform

Way too much of our human capacity is spent on tasks that DON'T require human empathy. That's how Tim Bachta from Children International is thinking about growth as his team works to expand from 220,000 to 275,000 children served.Tim shares how his team is using Microsoft Copilot to eliminate the manual work that's been slowing them down (like letter translation processes that once took months, to systems running in DAYS!) so their staff can focus on building relationships and supporting families.This episode is a powerful look at what happens when you stop asking, “how can we use AI?!” and start asking where your team's time is being wasted and who your champions are to help drive change.Resources & LinksConnect with Tim on LinkedIn and learn more about Children International on their website. Bloomerang is the proud presenter of Missions to Movements. See how one team surpassed a $1M match and raised $2.25M for their mission with Penny, Bloomerang's AI-powered fundraising strategist. Learn more at bloomerang.com.The Monthly Giving Builder: Generate your comprehensive monthly giving plan and build your program step by step - with a guided companion working alongside you from start to finish. Let's Connect!Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show!My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good.Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

Today, we're diving into Reddit stories with betraying bestie drama!Please sign the petition for Evie's Law here: https://c.org/9qRrkkzvL4Podcast Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thatgirlthepod/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1DAlTJgYiop4tdUZ6Tm2ixApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/that-girl-an-audience-and-reddit-stories-podcast/id1631617176TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thatgirlthepodEmail: thatgirlthepod@gmail.comMy Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gracetorie/Pinterest: https://pin.it/4mQ1DQkSubstack: https://substack.com/@gracetorieTimes:00:00 intro02:23 My [25F] longtime best friend [25M] keeps messaging me from his honeymoon; I don't know how to end the friendship16:14 AITAH: My best friend of nearly 9 years ended the friendship after my (F, 27) weddingStory Links:Story One: https://www.reddit.com/r/BestofRedditorUpdates/comments/1upjzzb/my_25f_longtime_best_friend_25m_keeps_messaging/ Story Two: https://www.reddit.com/r/BestofRedditorUpdates/comments/1upk021/aitah_my_best_friend_of_nearly_9_years_ended_the/ Tags:reddit, reddit stories, aita, aita reddit stories, aita smosh, storytime, reddit stories to fall asleep to, reddit stories smosh, reddit smosh, reddit am i the devil, charlotte dobre, smosh pit, two hot takes, bridezilla stories, best reddit stories, best of reddit stories, kallmekris 2nd channel, petty revenge, reddit top posts

When James Reinhart walked into a Cambridge consignment store with a bag of business school clothes in 2008 – a J.Crew cashmere sweater, a Brooks Brothers coat – and was told they had no resale value, he didn't accept the answer. "I can't believe this cashmere sweater is worth zero," Reinhart tells Ken. That moment became Thredup. Sixteen years later, the company he co-founded as a broke ex-teacher earning $24K a year is a public marketplace approaching $400M in annual revenue, with 25M+ items sold this year across 35,000 brands.In this episode of The Retail Pilot, Ken sits down with James Reinhart – Co-Founder and CEO of Thredup – to unpack how a former 8th grade teacher built one of the most operationally complex companies in fashion. They explore the founding story, the "Netflix of shirts" pitch, the unit economics driving 80% gross margins, the Resale-as-a-Service partnerships with J.Crew, Athleta, Steve Madden, and Cotopaxi, the peer-to-peer launch competing with Poshmark and Depop, and the 4-day work week that became permanent.In this episode you'll learn:How a Cambridge consignment rejection and a J.Crew cashmere sweater became the genesis of ThredupWhy the first year ran on $70K with 7 employees – and why Boston VCs passed before Silicon Valley said yesThe "Netflix of shirts" original pitch – and why it was a "terrible business" that taught them everythingHow Thredup hit ~$400M in annual revenue and a 25% YoY increase in active buyersThe KPIs James actually tracks: contribution margins, LTV to CAC, and units per hour throughputThe supply-side strategy: why dominating sellers is the playbook (and what Airbnb, OpenTable, and Spotify taught him)Resale-as-a-Service: how J.Crew, Athleta, Steve Madden, and Cotopaxi power resale with ThredupThe direct listings launch: how Thredup is competing with Poshmark and DepopInside Thredup's distribution centers: hundreds of thousands of items processed daily, 1M+ photos a dayThe Dallas warehouse: 4 football fields, 4 stories high, 10M items, $600–700M in throughputHow AI is powering search, discovery, and Pinterest-board-to-shop curationThe 4-day work week experiment that never ended – and the sabbatical and maker day policies before itWhy Thredup went public – and why James thinks it made the company "so much better"This episode is for you if: you're a founder building operational moats, a retail operator exploring Resale-as-a-Service, an investor tracking unit economics, a brand leader weighing circularity, or an HR leader curious about the 4-day work week.Subscribe to The Retail Pilot for more conversations with retail leaders shaping the future of commerce.If you missed our last episode, where Denise Incandela unpacks Walmart's fashion transformation, be sure to tune in.Connect with Ken:-Follow Ken Pilot Ventures on LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Dustin Nielson and former NHL netminder Joaquin Gage finally reunite to share the microphones. It has been quite some time since these two anchors shared the airwaves, so the boys open up the program with a much-needed catch-up on life, summer schedules, and golf games before plunging headfirst into a volcanic week of hockey headlines.   On Today's Show: Dusty & Gager Catch Up: Before tearing into the hockey whiteboard, the fellas trade some opening notes on where they've been, how they spent their recent time off, and why the studio chemistry hits completely differently when they're both locked into the microphones. Dissecting Stan Bowman's Massive Roster Overhaul: The boys spent a significant chunk of today's broadcast sorting through the volcanic ash of the recent open-market madness. From the historic decision to move Darnell Nurse's entire $9.25M contract to San Jose without retaining a single dollar, to the incoming depth signings, the landscape in Oil Country has fundamentally shifted. Gager and Dusty share their raw, unfiltered thoughts on the new structural look of this team. The Remaining Cap Room Crossroads: With the current depth chart taking shape, the Oilers still find themselves holding onto a healthy, unusual layer of cap flexibility. The boys debate the primary summer crossroads: Does Stan Bowman aggressively weaponize that remaining cash on the open market right now for a top-six forward, or do the Oilers play a tactical, highly patient waiting game until the trade deadline rolls around? The Leo Carlsson NHL Offer Sheet Bomb: The guys pull back the macro-lens to look at the massive roster anarchy that sent shockwaves through front offices on Friday afternoon. The Philadelphia Flyers completely shattered convention by dropping a historic five-year, $90 million offer sheet on Anaheim Ducks' 21-year-old star center Leo Carlsson. At an $18M average annual value, Dusty and Gager debate the immediate fallout: Will the Ducks blink and match the poison-pill contract? More importantly, is this ruthless tactic a definitive sign of things to come across the NHL as aggressive GMs start weaponizing offer sheets against rebuilding squads? Russian Bear Never Sleeps: Gager and Dusty take a different approach as they look at the greatest Russian NHLers of all time. Is Alex Ovechkin the obvious #1? Who comes in at #2? Do Nielson and Gager have different lists? Anybody on the rise?   2 Guys & a Goalie is presented by GS Construction!

Building a successful apparel brand takes more than creating great products. The strongest brands are built around a clear purpose, a committed community, and a culture that inspires people to keep growing. In this episode of the Business of Apparel podcast, Rachel sits down with Jason Daniel, founder of globally recognized activewear brand LSKD, to discuss his entrepreneurial journey from selling T-shirts at motocross events to leading a company with hundreds of employees and a worldwide customer base. Jason shares the story behind LSKD's "1% Better Every Day" philosophy, how discovering a deeper purpose transformed the trajectory of his business, and why community, culture, and continuous improvement have become the foundation of the brand's success. He also offers practical advice for founders looking to define their values, build stronger teams, and create brands that stand for something bigger than the products they sell.

What does the latest recurring giving data actually tell us? In this special State of Recurring Giving episode, three leaders from CharityEngine, GivingTuesday Data Commons, and World Central Kitchen are joining me to unpack the latest recurring giving benchmarks AND one of the most compelling monthly giving case studies of the year.Together, we're exploring the trends shaping recurring giving today, why monthly donors generate nearly 3x the annual value of one-time donors, and how World Central Kitchen turned 2,800 new monthly donors into an estimated $6 million in lifetime value with their Kitchen Core monthly giving program.Resources & LinksA special thank you to CharityEngine for making this quarter's State of Recurring Giving webinar possible. Bloomerang is the proud presenter of Missions to Movements. See how one team surpassed a $1M match and raised $2.25M for their mission with Penny, Bloomerang's AI-powered fundraising strategist. Learn more at bloomerang.com.The Monthly Giving Builder: Generate your comprehensive monthly giving plan and build your program step by step - with a guided companion working alongside you from start to finish. Let's Connect!Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show!My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good.Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

Spy Ninjas Entertainment is a creator-led media company based in Las Vegas, and is home to Spy Ninjas, the longest-running serialized narrative show on YouTube, which has 47M+ subscribers and 18B lifetime views since its launch in 2018. Founded by creators and entrepreneurs Chad Wild Clay and Vy Qwaint, the company recently announced it is investing $25M into its content pipeline and production capabilities, and aims to hire 50 new employees this year. Shelly Soriano is President of Spy Ninjas Studios, part of the creator-led media company, Spy Ninjas Entertainment, which reaches tens of millions of fans, anchored by its eponymous flagship original family entertainment franchise. Spy Ninjas is the longest-running, serialized narrative show on YouTube. With a career rooted in building and scaling digitally native companies, Soriano has transformed emerging brands into breakout businesses through new platforms and content formats, strategic acquisitions, and high-impact partnerships. As COO for Jubilee Media, she helped drive accelerated company growth through collaborations with top brands such as Amazon, Google, Netflix, Spotify, and McDonalds, and original premium content, including the launch of the viral internet series Surrounded.

"On va essayer d'être présent un peu partout, tu vois, comme on est universel." Le D.E.V. de la semaine est Loïc Mathieu, Lead Software Engineer chez Kestra Technologies qui vient de lever $25M dans une série A menée par RTP Global. Avec plus de vingt ans de dev derrière lui, Loïc raconte comment Kestra vise à devenir l'orchestrateur universel, capable de piloter aussi bien de la donnée en giga qu'en tera, de l'infra ou du business. On parle migration de workflows sans big bang, adaptation aux nouvelles technos, et compromis permanents entre performance et polyvalence. Loïc partage des retours très concrets sur les usages inattendus de Kestra et la vision produit derrière chaque plugin. Un épisode dense, sincère et technique, pour tout dev qui rêverait d'un chef d'orchestre central mais pas monolithique. Vous pouvez suivre Loïc sur Bluesky ou sur son blog.Chapitrages00:00:54 : Orchestration de la donnée00:04:06 : Pourquoi Kestra est né00:06:11 : Une plateforme unifiée00:08:35 : Triggers et workflows00:11:01 : Modèle d'exécution00:15:36 : Du data à l'infrastructure00:18:04 : Migrer sans tout casser00:20:15 : Formats de données00:22:45 : Volume et performance00:26:10 : Sécurité des workflows00:34:24 : Orchestration des agents IA00:40:58 : Capacity planning00:46:07 : Les prochains défis Liens évoqués pendant l'émission Viza "Made in Tchernobyl" : Spotify Deezer Apple Music

Serin Silva is an intuitive strategic advisor and executive coach who helps powerhouse women move from stuck to strategic growth. After two decades leading transformation as a VP at Fortune 500 companies, including taking Williams-Sonoma to half a billion in sales and launching Hearst Corporation's first digital division, Serin now guides CEOs and executives to make clear, confident, and energetically aligned decisions in the moments that matter most. Her work blends sharp business strategy with intuitive insight, a rare combination that's helped clients scale from $10M to $25M, land CEO roles, and transform from self-doubt to self-belief. Serin helps high-achieving women recalibrate how they lead, turning overwhelm into clarity and performance into purpose. Her clients include leaders from Apple, Patreon, Airbnb, Genentech, UCLA, and Microsoft.  

What if the question nobody in the room could answer became the business you spent a decade building? In this episode, Tyler Ryan, founder of LTV Numbers and former NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory engineer, shares how a physics degree, a baseball bleacher conversation, and a single moment at a business event in 2018 led him to build a software company that helps online entrepreneurs finally see what has been invisible in their own data for years. Tyler didn't set out to build an analytics company. He set out to start something, anything, that would let him use his engineering brain in a business context. What he found was that the people around him needed him more than they knew. And one relationship in particular taught him the single most important lesson he has ever learned about business partnerships.   [00:03:30] What He Does and Who He Serves Founder of LTV Numbers, a software platform for online course creators, coaches, and digital businesses Helps businesses understand customer lifetime value at day 0, 30, 60, 90, and beyond Serves e-commerce, info product, and online businesses that sell to customers more than once [00:07:00] How He Got Here Dad was a career musician; that entrepreneurial mindset shaped Tyler from an early age Majored in physics at UCLA; got his master's in mechanical engineering Landed an internship at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory through a bleacher conversation at a high school baseball game Fell in love with coding through that internship and knew he would use it to build something [00:09:00] The Startup Apartment and the Fork in the Road Left NASA with a college friend to build a company in a Burbank apartment Spent two years going all in with zero revenue; nearly exhausted all savings His co-founder went back to Google; Tyler refused to quit Emptied retirement and investment accounts to join masterminds and get into the right rooms [00:12:00] The Moment That Built a Business Was the only tech person in a room full of fitness coaches and online business owners Started helping people with websites and automations for free without thinking anything of it With less than 30 days of money left, announced he was offering tech consulting to the group Made $3,000 in seven days; that was the proof of concept that changed everything [00:14:30] The Event That Crystallized Everything: Joel Marion Attended Craig Valentine's Perfect Life Retreat in 2018 and watched a talk by Joel Marion of BioTrust Marion asked 400 entrepreneurs how many knew their LTV at day 0, 30, 60, 90, and 180 by product, funnel, and traffic source Four hands went up; their businesses were doing $15M, $25M, $35M, and $50M Marion said: the reason we scaled BioTrust from zero to nine figures in 18 months was because we knew that answer better than anyone [00:17:30] What Inspires Him: Lifting the Fog Was an engineer who knew nothing about business; that insecurity held him back for years Sees brilliant business people constrained not by their ability but by their visibility Loves the moment a business owner finally sees what has been invisible for years Mission: make data-driven decision-making the default for every online business [00:20:00] Client Impact: Joe DiGalbo and Live Anabolic Joe was one of his earliest LTV Numbers clients; they met in the original mastermind Joe's fitness business had been stuck at $5 million a year for three years After deep work on LTV visibility and scaling decisions, the company hit $13 million last year Has been on a weekly call with Joe for years; Joe is one of his favorite people in the world [00:23:30] The First Relationship That Changed Everything: Steven Cornford Steven was the father of a high school baseball teammate; Tyler ran into him in the bleachers a year after graduation One conversation about physics led to an internship at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory that summer That internship introduced him to programming and set the entire trajectory of his career The lesson: say yes early to opportunities you can't fully see; the path reveals itself later [00:25:00] The Relationship That Healed Everything: Joe DiGalbo Got into several business partnerships from a place of desperation and insecurity Partners looked great on paper but produced negative results; the company went backwards Joe was different; not because of his skill set but because of who he is as a person That relationship taught him to over-index on character and values, not skills [00:28:00] The Compound Effect of One Great Relationship Joe introduced him to Robbie, a mentor and advisor who became a close friend Has been on a weekly three-way call with Joe and Robbie for years Robbie's company is finishing an acquisition; a new chapter together may be forming One great person leads to more great people; pour into the relationship without needing to see where it goes [00:37:30] Final Word: Seven Minutes of Terror and Knowing Your Numbers Was in the JPL auditorium when the Curiosity Mars rover landed in the early 2010s Due to signal delay, the auditorium was only finding out what had already happened as they listened When mission control said "touchdown confirmed" the entire auditorium burst into tears The rover landed within a mile of its target after flying through space entirely on its own; that is what knowing your numbers makes possible   KEY QUOTES "Your skill set determines your potential. But if your visibility is terrible, you are going to operate well below that potential." - Tyler Ryan "I could partner up with a person I loved with very little marketing skills, who would run through a wall for me, and they probably would have produced a better outcome." - Tyler Ryan "Once you find that one person where you're like, I don't know how, but I would want to work with this person on anything, just keep pouring into it. It might be three years later, but it changes your life." - Tyler Ryan CONNECT WITH TYLER RYAN Website: https://www.ltvnumbers.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylerjryan Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetylerjryan   Thanks for tuning in! If you liked my show, please LEAVE A 5-STAR REVIEW, like, and subscribe! Find me on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | iHeart Radio | Stitcher

What separates investors who scale from those who stay stuck? In this episode of the Abundance Mindset Podcast (Abundance Thursdays), Vinney Chopra and co-host Gualter Amarelo break down one wealth-building principle that's behind every deal Vinney has ever closed: accept what can't be changed — then create an advantage.   Vinney walks through the real numbers on his Columbus, Ohio hotel: bought for around $11M, undergoing a $25M renovation, converting from a Hilton into a full-service Marriott, and expanding from 195 doors to 230 keys — with a projected exit near $70M. You'll also hear how he turned 1,000 unused lockers into revenue-producing meeting rooms, refinanced his way out of a variable-rate apartment deal in Knoxville, and survived the COVID gut-punch when occupancy on a brand-new hotel fell from 87.5% to 25% overnight.   If you're a real estate investor, capital raiser, or aspiring syndicator trying to build wealth in a high interest rate environment, this conversation is a masterclass in solution-focused thinking. As Vinney says: whenever there's a big wall, there's always a window somewhere — you've got to find the window.   ⏱️ TIMESTAMPS 00:00 – "There's Always a Window": The Mindset Behind Every Deal 00:35 – The Columbus Hotel: A $25M Renovation Into a Full-Service Marriott 01:20 – Accept What Can't Be Changed → 195 Doors Become 230 Keys 02:15 – Estimating a $70M Exit (+ Accredited Investor Disclaimer) 03:00 – What a 506(c) Offering Actually Means for You 03:40 – 1,000 Lockers Into Meeting Rooms: Finding Hidden Revenue 04:25 – The Knoxville Apartment & the Variable-Rate Problem 05:00 – Refinancing the Wall Into a Window 06:00 – Why a HIGH Interest Rate Market Works in Your Favor 07:50 – The Hilton-to-Marriott Flag Change & Marriott "War Rooms" 08:40 – Control the Controllables 09:10 – The Banker Call That Saved $60K Now + $60K Every Year 11:00 – The Exit Plan: Sell, Go Passive, Manage the Managers 13:50 – Hospitality Roars Back + the New Tampa Acquisition 15:00 – Finding an Operator Who Isn't Stretched Too Thin 16:00 – No Capital or No Experience? Partner & Create an Advantage 18:30 – The COVID Gut-Punch: A Hotel Bought December 31, 2019 19:20 – From 25% Occupancy to a $6M → $12M Win 20:30 – Build a Mind That Hunts for Solutions 21:20 – FREE Books & Resources (the "Keep More" Tax Guide) 23:00 – Vinney's Closing Message  

Matt Arsenault, VP of Corporate Development & Strategic Alliances at Jamf Venture-backed companies are priced at their future state, not their current revenue. When growth stalls and another fundraising round stops making sense, the gap between VC valuation and what a strategic buyer will pay becomes the hardest conversation in any deal process. Matt Arsenault, VP of Corporate Development & Strategic Alliances at Jamf, has run this play across hundreds of targets. His work starts before the deal does, with the founder relationship, the cap table, and a clear-eyed conversation about risk tolerance that most corp dev teams never have.  What You'll Learn Why a $25M offer today can beat a $125M VC exit three years out How AI is shrinking the moat of wrapper-product startups and changing target screening The seven stakeholder groups in any acquisition and why most founders miss them How liquidation preferences and cap table structure change the math behind any offer Why VC relationships matter as much as founder relationships before a deal starts How to structure deals for underwater targets without losing the team What entrepreneurs should know about VC terms before taking their first check If you're working a deal where the founder's VC valuation is the first thing they said and the last thing they'll let go of, DealPilot, powered by M&A Science, gives you the guidance to close the gap without overpaying. ____________________ This episode of M&A Science is presented by DealRoom. DealRoom just launched the only MCP server built for Buyer-Led M&A™ — so your AI and your deal data finally work together. Connect Claude, ChatGPT, or Copilot directly to DealRoom and let your AI read your pipeline, analyze due diligence documents, and automatically write findings back.  See for yourself: dealroom.net/mcp ____________________ Episode Chapters [00:01:14] Introduction and Kison's overview [00:03:32] Matt Arsenault's background and path into M&A [00:05:17] How VCs actually value companies: the two major components [00:06:52] Where VC and strategic buyer valuations diverge, and why [00:09:29] The current market for VC-backed acquisition targets [00:10:39] Rule of 40, profitable growth, and what AI is changing [00:25:01] The liquidation preference math: $25M today vs. $125M later [00:31:38] Cap table dynamics, voting power, and co-founder alignment [00:33:10] How to have the valuation conversation with a founder [00:35:35] How to structure deals when a company is underwater [00:36:45] Stakeholder management: severance, retention, and employee equity [00:44:03] Structural tools for bridging valuation gaps [00:49:21] What entrepreneurs should know before taking their first VC check [00:51:03] Due diligence war stories: what a code scan revealed

If you're feeling exhausted as the CEO of your apparel brand, it doesn't necessarily mean you're working too hard. It may be a sign that you've become the bottleneck preventing your company from growing. In this episode of the Business of Apparel podcast, Rachel shares why every founder eventually reaches a point where they need to stop doing everything themselves and start building a team that supports long-term growth. Drawing from her own entrepreneurial journey, she explains the importance of hiring before you feel desperate, delegating strategically, and creating systems that allow your business, and your people, to thrive. She also gives a behind-the-scenes look at the concepts covered in the Scalable Team Blueprint masterclass and discusses how leadership, mentorship, and organizational planning all work together to build a stronger company.

Did you know 92% of donors say giving is part of who they are? And that 94% say they're MORE motivated to give when they know exactly where their money will go?Today I'm doing one of my favorite things – diving into the data and research from Bloomerang's 2026 Giving Signals Report, and sharing the major opportunity gaps every nonprofit should be paying attention to. Generosity isn't disappearing, but it's becoming much more intentional!This episode is packed with several high-impact changes that can help you remove friction, strengthen donor relationships, and increase giving.Resources & LinksCheck out Bloomerang's latest research in their 2026 Giving Signals Report. Bloomerang is the proud presenter of Missions to Movements. See how one team surpassed a $1M match and raised $2.25M for their mission with Penny, Bloomerang's AI-powered fundraising strategist. Learn more at bloomerang.com.The Monthly Giving Builder: Generate your comprehensive monthly giving plan and build your program step by step - with a guided companion working alongside you from start to finish. Let's Connect!Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show!My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good.Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

What if the real reason your business cannot scale is not your people, your market, or your effort, but that everything still depends on you? In this episode of Sharkpreneur, Seth Greene interviews Hector Alvarado, Co-Founder of Optimize Business Systems, who explains how small and mid-sized businesses can reduce founder bottlenecks by building stronger systems, clarifying roles, improving leadership, and ensuring consistent execution. He also explains why business owners must shift from day-to-day firefighting to strategic leadership if they want to build companies that can grow without being in constant emergency mode. Key Takeaways:→ Owner-dependent businesses struggle to scale because too many decisions flow back to the founder. → A business is harder to sell when its value depends entirely on the owner's day-to-day involvement.→ Second-line leaders are essential to building a scalable company. → Business owners need regular time away from the weeds to see the bigger strategic picture. → Strong systems are more than SOPs; they encompass leadership, execution, accountability, and clarity. Hector Alvarado is an entrepreneur, operations executive, and business consultant with 27+ years of experience transforming companies across the logistics, transportation, construction, and home-service industries. His expertise isn't theoretical—it's built on decades of diagnosing operational chaos, fixing broken systems, and leading organizations through high-stakes growth. One of Hector's most notable accomplishments was the complete turnaround of Willy's Trucking. As VP of Operations, he led the company from a $1.3M annual loss in 2018 to a profitable sale exceeding $25M in 2021—a feat that earned him industry-wide respect. Today, he serves as VP of Operations for the largest NGL and Butane hauler in Western Canada, overseeing large fleets, operational excellence, and strategic expansion. Hector is also a Lean Black Belt, Continuous Improvement Master Trainer, and EOS implementor, bringing a rare blend of tactical expertise and strategic leadership. Beyond his corporate roles, he runs three successful businesses under Family Legacy Industries and manages a growing real estate investment portfolio, providing firsthand insight into entrepreneurship and wealth-building. Connect With Hector:Website: https://optimizebusinesssystems.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/optimize_business_systems/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Optimize-Business-Systems/61574764979478/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/optimize-business-systems/

In life, you need the 3 Cs.    The first one is connection.    In business, if you're the go-to guy for anything from attorneys, to doctors, or other service providers, you'll never have to go make new friends.  They'll come to you as long as you're doing the right things.    The second C is Capital.  You need money to run your business. And yes, those who are worth $50 million dollars sometimes need capital.  In order to keep things rolling, you have to have capital.    The last and most powerful C is Coaching.  I don't coach anyone, but you need to have a mentor to help you navigate where you want to go.    I suggest finding someone who is above you in business. If you are grossing $5M a year, find someone who is doing $20-$25M to help you.    Pay them for their time and save yours in the process by expediting your learning curve.    Stick to the 3 Cs and you'll have everything you need.    About the ReWire Podcast   The ReWire Podcast with Ryan Stewman – Dive into powerful insights as Ryan Stewman, the HardCore Closer, breaks down mental barriers and shares actionable steps to rewire your thoughts. Each episode is a fast-paced journey designed to reshape your mindset, align your actions, and guide you toward becoming the best version of yourself. Join in for a daily dose of real talk that empowers you to embrace change and unlock your full potential.    Learn how you can become a member of a powerful community consistently rewiring itself for success at ⁠https://www.jointheapex.com/⁠   Rise Above 

Managing employees well starts long before difficult conversations ever happen. In fact, the systems you put in place from day one can determine whether your team grows together or struggles with disengagement and poor performance. In this episode of the Business of Apparel podcast, Rachel explains why great leadership and effective employee management go hand in hand with preparing for the possibility of letting someone go. She shares how to set clear expectations and implement performance improvement plans that protect both your team culture and your business. Rachel also discusses how underperforming employees can impact morale and why retaining A-players sometimes requires making tough decisions.

With AI adoption exploding, what does that actually mean for how you grow your team, your donors, and your impact?Naria Santa Lucia brought SO much energy and joy to her MC role at the Microsoft Global Nonprofit Leaders Summit, that I had to sit down with her to hear how nonprofit leaders can build practical pathways for using AI in their day-to-day work and cut through the hype.Naria also brings a perspective every nonprofit needs to hear: take the big swing, stay true to your mission, and don't pivot just to chase funding. When you focus on real impact (and communicate it clearly!) you'll draw the right supporters in.Resources & LinksConnect with Naria Santa Lucia on LinkedIn and learn more about Microsoft Elevate here.Not sure where to start in building your program? Start with this $5 audit to know where your gap is. Takes 5-10 minutes max, and you'll know where to start --> Monthly Giving Interactive Audit  Bloomerang is the proud presenter of Missions to Movements. See how one team surpassed a $1M match and raised $2.25M for their mission with Penny, Bloomerang's AI-powered fundraising strategist. Learn more at bloomerang.com.The Monthly Giving Builder: Generate your comprehensive monthly giving plan and build your program step by step - with a guided companion working alongside you from start to finish. Let's Connect!Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show!My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good.Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

Trump family made $2.3 BILLION in crypto profits while everyday investors lost nearly the SAME amount — Reuters EXPOSED the $TRUMP coin, World Liberty Financial & American Bitcoin playbook. Plus Bitcoin's worst week since FTX, Canada's $100M to Palestine & more.A bombshell Reuters investigation found the Trump family pocketed at least $2.3B across four crypto ventures — World Liberty Financial, the $TRUMP meme coin, ALT5 Sigma, and American Bitcoin — while buyers lost roughly the same, with the family risking virtually none of its own capital. We break it all down, then run the worst week in Bitcoin since the FTX collapse, a $20M token exploit, a 20-year U.S. BTC sell-ban bill, Monaco's 0% crypto tax, and a packed Notable North on Carney's Canada.In this episode of the Canadian Bitcoiners Podcast:

The Stanley Cup has officially been handed out, meaning the NHL off-season calendar is officially running at maximum velocity! Dustin Nielson is anchor-locked in the studio alongside former NHL netminder Gager to sort through a massive pile of burning questions in Oil Country... Now that there are no more pucks to be dropped on the ice, all eyes turn to the front office. Stan Bowman is staring down a chaotic summer blueprint—and the fellas are here to dig into the rumours.   On Today's Show: The Off-Season Clock Is Ticking: The playoffs are completely wrapped, which means the regular-season safety net is gone. What is management's immediate priority this week, and how fast do they need to move before the NHL Entry Draft and Free Agency completely take over the league? The Darnell Nurse Trade Puzzle: The smoke hasn't even begun to clear from #25's shocking, formal trade request. Realistically, how do the Oilers actually navigate moving a massive $9.25M cap hit with a full no-movement clause? Gager and Dusty look at his rumoured 3-to-5 team destination list, debate how much salary Edmonton will be forced to retain, and look at what a realistic roster return looks like. Oilers Need A Coach: The silence out of 104th Street regarding the open bench seat is getting deafening. Now that the Vegas Golden Knights have officially been eliminated from the postseason, will Kelly McCrimmon finally grant the Oilers permission to interview Bruce Cassidy? Or is management stuck in a holding pattern while the league's Mike Babcock investigation plays out? The guys debate the timeline, the leading candidates, and who will ultimately pull the strings behind the bench next season. Of course, they touch on John Tortorella's release from Vegas...   2 Guys & a Goalie is presented by GS Construction!

Projecting Vikings Extensions Under Nolan Teasley: O'Neill, Addison, Redmond, and a Kyler Murray Scenario — Tyler Forness and producer Dave discuss how new decision-maker Nolan Teasley might shape the Vikings roster by prioritizing contract extensions and their salary-cap effects. They project four possible extensions: RT Brian O'Neill (three years, $72M, $48M guaranteed) structured to lower near-term cap hits; WR Jordan Addison (three years, $82.5M, $34M guaranteed) with rising future cap numbers and void years; DT Jalen Redmond (three years, $48M, $23M guaranteed), noting his restricted free agent status and tender leverage; and a post-season Kyler Murray extension (four years, $140M) contingent on performance and Arizona's guaranteed-money timing. After all four, they estimate about $25M in 2027 cap space, discuss managing void-year dead money for several veterans, and preview training camp and a member call-in show. 00:00 Teasley Extension Outlook 01:40 Why Pay Your Own 02:54 Brian O'Neill Contract Case 06:07 Cap Math And Structure 12:06 Market Value Comparisons 16:36 Jordan Addison Extension Model 22:15 Cap Space After Two Deals 22:27 Jalen Redmond Extension Debate 27:46 Greenard Trade Fallout 28:29 Kyler vs McCarthy Extensions 30:26 Timing Guaranteed Money 31:19 Projecting Kyler Deal 33:34 Contract Structure Breakdown 36:23 McCarthy Fifth Year Option 39:55 If McCarthy Sits 43:08 Cap Space After Extensions 45:32 Draft Hits vs Free Agency 47:38 Front Office Uncertainty 48:39 Training Camp Countdown 49:53 Wrap Up And Membership _______________________ ⭐️ Subscribe to us here! - https://www.youtube.com/@vikings1stskol92 ⭐️ Our Twitter can be found at @Vikings1stSKOL ⭐️ Our Discord at https://discord.com/invite/493z6mQXcN ⭐️ Tyler Forness can be read at A to Z Sports - https://atozsports.com/nfl/minnesota-vikings-news/ ⭐️ Submit questions: forms.gle/7LJkCAern9kdUkuD8 ⭐️ On Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/vikings1standskol ⭐️ Watch the live show here: https://youtu.be/BGrNdO5SG6M Fan With Us!!! Tyler Forness @TheRealForno of Vikings 1st & SKOL @Vikings1stSKOL and A to Z Sports @AtoZSportsNFL, with Dave Stefano @Luft_Krigare producing this Vikings 1st & SKOL production, the @RealFornoShow. Podcasts partnered with Fans First Sports Network @FansFirstSN. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Projecting Vikings Extensions Under Nolan Teasley: O'Neill, Addison, Redmond, and a Kyler Murray Scenario — Tyler Forness and producer Dave discuss how new decision-maker Nolan Teasley might shape the Vikings roster by prioritizing contract extensions and their salary-cap effects. They project four possible extensions: RT Brian O'Neill (three years, $72M, $48M guaranteed) structured to lower near-term cap hits; WR Jordan Addison (three years, $82.5M, $34M guaranteed) with rising future cap numbers and void years; DT Jalen Redmond (three years, $48M, $23M guaranteed), noting his restricted free agent status and tender leverage; and a post-season Kyler Murray extension (four years, $140M) contingent on performance and Arizona's guaranteed-money timing. After all four, they estimate about $25M in 2027 cap space, discuss managing void-year dead money for several veterans, and preview training camp and a member call-in show. 00:00 Teasley Extension Outlook 01:40 Why Pay Your Own 02:54 Brian O'Neill Contract Case 06:07 Cap Math And Structure 12:06 Market Value Comparisons 16:36 Jordan Addison Extension Model 22:15 Cap Space After Two Deals 22:27 Jalen Redmond Extension Debate 27:46 Greenard Trade Fallout 28:29 Kyler vs McCarthy Extensions 30:26 Timing Guaranteed Money 31:19 Projecting Kyler Deal 33:34 Contract Structure Breakdown 36:23 McCarthy Fifth Year Option 39:55 If McCarthy Sits 43:08 Cap Space After Extensions 45:32 Draft Hits vs Free Agency 47:38 Front Office Uncertainty 48:39 Training Camp Countdown 49:53 Wrap Up And Membership _______________________ ⭐️ Subscribe to us here! - https://www.youtube.com/@vikings1stskol92 ⭐️ Our Twitter can be found at @Vikings1stSKOL ⭐️ Our Discord at https://discord.com/invite/493z6mQXcN ⭐️ Tyler Forness can be read at A to Z Sports - https://atozsports.com/nfl/minnesota-vikings-news/ ⭐️ Submit questions: forms.gle/7LJkCAern9kdUkuD8 ⭐️ On Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/vikings1standskol ⭐️ Watch the live show here: https://youtu.be/BGrNdO5SG6M Fan With Us!!! Tyler Forness @TheRealForno of Vikings 1st & SKOL @Vikings1stSKOL and A to Z Sports @AtoZSportsNFL, with Dave Stefano @Luft_Krigare producing this Vikings 1st & SKOL production, the @RealFornoShow. Podcasts partnered with Fans First Sports Network @FansFirstSN. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump family made $2.3 BILLION in crypto profits while everyday investors lost nearly the SAME amount — Reuters EXPOSED the $TRUMP coin, World Liberty Financial & American Bitcoin playbook. Plus Bitcoin's worst week since FTX, Canada's $100M to Palestine & more.A bombshell Reuters investigation found the Trump family pocketed at least $2.3B across four crypto ventures — World Liberty Financial, the $TRUMP meme coin, ALT5 Sigma, and American Bitcoin — while buyers lost roughly the same, with the family risking virtually none of its own capital. We break it all down, then run the worst week in Bitcoin since the FTX collapse, a $20M token exploit, a 20-year U.S. BTC sell-ban bill, Monaco's 0% crypto tax, and a packed Notable North on Carney's Canada.In this episode of the Canadian Bitcoiners Podcast:

An absolute franchise-altering atomic bomb has just detonated over Oil Country. The Oil Stream is live on Edmonton Sports Talk, and today Reid Wilkins and Hernan Salas are stepping up to lead the charge on what is officially the wildest Friday in recent Oilers history! Grab a beverage and lock in, because the boys are breaking down a massive roster development from every single angle. On Today's Show: The Bombshell: Darnell Nurse Wants Out! It is official. Reports from Elliotte Friedman and Mark Spector confirm that veteran defenseman and alternate captain Darnell Nurse has formally requested a trade out of Edmonton. After 12 seasons and nearly 800 games in the blue and orange, #25 is ready for a fresh start. The boys dive straight into the deep end of the chaos: Where will he go? With early leaks connecting him to teams like the Los Angeles Kings and Pittsburgh Penguins, what does his 3-to-5 team trade list actually look like? What will the return be? How does Stan Bowman navigate trading a massive $9.25M cap hit with four years remaining and a full No-Movement Clause? Will the Oilers be forced to retain salary or give up a major sweetener? Is this good for the Oilers? Does clearing this cap space unlock the financial flexibility management desperately needs to rebuild the blue line, or does losing a core leadership piece create a massive hole? Is it good for Darnell? Does escaping the high-pressure Edmonton media fishbowl allow Nurse to revitalize his game elsewhere? The Ongoing Coaching Carousel: Even with the Nurse news taking over, the head coaching vacancy isn't going anywhere. Reid and Hernan look at where things stand with the ongoing Mike Babcock saga, the public pushback, and whether this sudden roster shakeup changes the front office's blueprint for their next bench boss.

After building $25M across 10 franchise units, Josh Rathweg is now President of Cloudbound, and as Co-Founder of Presence on Purpose, he teaches entrepreneurs to lead with intention, integrity and impact. Top 3 Value Bombs 1. Your business doesn't plateau because of strategy; it plateaus because of your leadership presence. 2. Presence means pausing, reflecting, and responding intentionally instead of reacting on instinct. 3. You don't fix culture by fixing your team; you fix culture by fixing your presence first. Play Above the Clouds. Curated for fun, cultivated for development - CloudBound Sponsors HighLevel - The ultimate all-in-one platform for entrepreneurs, marketers, coaches, and agencies. Learn more at HighLevelFire.com. 50 Days - Join JLD on his free '50 Days to Something' video series on YouTube and create something special in 50 days.

Hiring the right team members can feel like searching for a needle in a haystack, especially when the candidates you're attracting aren't who you hoped for. In this episode of the Business of Apparel podcast, Rachel explains why attracting poor job candidates is often the result of a weak or generic job description rather than a lack of talent in the market. She shares how apparel brand owners can attract A-player employees by focusing less on qualifications and more on the outcomes, goals, and opportunities a role provides. 

Most AI conversations are loaded with productivity hacks, but it's also accelerating scientific discovery in ways most people aren't even thinking about.In this live conversation from the Microsoft Global Nonprofit Leaders Summit, I'm talking to Clare Durrett from Answer ALS and Terri Thompson from OnPoint Scientific about how they're helping cut ALS research timelines by 65%! With a shared platform called Neuromine, researchers now have access to clinical data, genetics, bio samples, and more, all in one place. Even if you're not in the research space, this episode is a super powerful example of what becomes possible when you break down silos and build the right partnerships.Resources & LinksConnect with Clare on LinkedIn and learn more about Answer ALS on their website.Connect with Terri on LinkedIn and learn more about OnPoint Scientific on their website.Learn more about Team Gleason, a nonprofit that improves daily life for people living with ALS.The Science of Scaling by Dr. Benjamin Hardy Bloomerang is the proud presenter of Missions to Movements. See how one team surpassed a $1M match and raised $2.25M for their mission with Penny, Bloomerang's AI-powered fundraising strategist. Learn more at bloomerang.com.The Monthly Giving Builder: Generate your comprehensive monthly giving plan and build your program step by step - with a guided companion working alongside you from start to finish. Let's Connect!Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show!My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good.Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

In our 41st episode of This F*cking Guy, Erin and Alyssa dive deep into the past of the Dumb-a** Daddy's Boy, Jared Kushner. From slithering into the top Ivy League with help from his corrupt father, to being one of NYC's most soulless slumlords, to his abhorrent handling of COVID and his Middle East meddling under his father-in-law, this may be one of our more notorious nepo-baby guys yet.For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast, episode title, and episode date.For Kushner, Israel Policy May Be Shaped by the Personal (NYT)Jared Kushner's Mysterious Role in the Trump Administration (The Atlantic)Epstein Files (DOJ)Jim McGreevey and His Main Man (NY Mag)Jared Kushner May Profit From Expanded Israeli Settlements (Jacobin)Jared Kushner says Gaza's ‘waterfront property could be very valuable' (The Guardian)Jared Kushner's Psychopathic Incompetence (The New Republic)“That's Their Problem”: How Jared Kushner Let the Markets Decide America's COVID-19 Fate (Vanity Fair)Five Reasons Why the Abraham Accords Are Ceding Ground to Arab-Iranian De-escalation (Baker Institute)Jared Kushner's Grandmother Bemoaned the “Closed Doors” That Faced Refugees to America (Pro Publica)Jared Kushner's ‘Breaking History' Is a Soulless and Very Selective Memoir (NYT)Why Did Cory Booker Vote to Confirm Jared Kushner's Dad? (The New Republican)I worked for Jared Kushner. He's the wrong businessman to reinvent government. (The Washington Post)Ivanka Trump Marries Jared Kushner in Lavish Ceremony (People)Kushner properties accused of illegally inflating rent (CBS News)AP Report: Kushner Companies regularly filed false documents with NYC (KSL)Kushner Companies Lied About Rent Stabilized Tenants on 30th Ave, 38th St Properties (QNS)The group of Kushner Villages tenants says the properties' fire sprinklers don't even work. (Legal Reader)Kushner Cos. fined $210K by New York for false documents (AP News)Port's New Head, Sued by Brother, Faces an Inquiry (Observer)How Jared Kushner's Bold Bets In The Middle East Made Him A Billionaire (Forbes)Jared Kushner's Net Worth Surges as He Joins Exclusive Club With Trump (Newsweek)Jared Kushner is back – and so are big questions about his financial ties (The Guardian)Jared Kushner Solicits Funds for His Firm While Working as Mideast Envoy (The New York Times)Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner walked into the White House with troubled finances but left with millions (INews)Newly Released Transcript Shows Jared Kushner Misled Congress About a Contact Involving Russia (Mother Jones)The Hill: Dem rep: Kushner ‘lied', should be investigated (lieu.house)Kushner ties to Russia questioned as Trump blasts media lies (MPRnews)Did Jared Kushner Help Russia Hack the Election With Fake News? Trump Son-in-Law's Digital Operation Under Investigation (Newsweek)Jared Kushner lied to NYC because he could get away with it (cityandstateny)Jared Kushner's Firm to Pay $3.25M for Deceiving & Cheating Tenants in Baltimore's “Kushnerville” (Democracy Now)People Are Talking (Again) About How Jared Kushner Got Into Harvard (Vogue)Trump White House had a secret crypto booster in Jared Kushner, new Mnuchin file dump shows (CNBC)Report: Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner Made Their Secret Service Detail Go to Extreme Lengths “to Find a Bathroom” (Vanity Fair)Secret Service spent more than $16,000 on Kushner's UAE and Qatar trip. Both countries invested in his firm (Citizens For Ethics)What Secret Service spent on Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump's Whistler trip (CBS News)Kushner Deal in Serbia Follows Earlier Interest by Trump (The New York Times)Jared Kushner 'admitted Donald Trump lies to his base because he thinks they're stupid' (Independent)Jared Kushner once wanted Kanye West to lead a ‘healing church service' at the White House (Forward)Political Contributor and Developer Charles Kushner Sentenced to Maximum 24 Months for Witness Retaliation and Other Crimes (Justice.gov)Trump Pardons Jared Kushner's Dad, Who Paid a Prostitute to Seduce His Brother-in-Law (People)Trump chooses Jared Kushner's father for ambassador to France (BBC)U.S. Ambassador Charles Kushner banned from meeting with French government over summons no-show (NBC News)

This Week In Startups is made possible by:Northwest Registered Agent - NorthwestRegistereAagent.com/TWISTEvery - Every.ioSentry - Sentry.io/TWISTToday's show:Want to get to space? Several launch companies can help you. SpaceX, Rocket Lab, the Russians, the list goes on. But what about once you make it upstairs, then what? Impulse Space CEO and CTO Tom Mueller is building the next stage of our orbital economy. With its Mira and Helios spacecraft, we'll soon be able to take mass from lower orbits to higher orbits, or even to the Moon, with ease.Meanwhile, venture capitalists are enamored with the idea of humanoid robots — robots share our shape, our work environment, and even our tools. But startups like Dusty Robotics are taking a different tack; instead of building human-shaped robots, Dusty has built a small, wheeled 'bot that can mark out building sites quickly and accurately. And it's doing more revenue than all humanoid robotics companies combined, I reckon. Dusty's CEO, Dr. Tessa Lau, joins Alex to go deep on purpose-built robots in today's build-crazy market.Timestamps:0:00 Blue Origin, and why fixing things in orbit is hard2:19 What Mira is and what it does4:35 Why was the commercial demand for Mira softer than expected5:20 Space Force demand and the GEO-capable Mira7:08 Helios: a "rocket on top of a rocket."10:10 Sentry - Your team should be focused on shipping features — not chasing down bugs. New users can get $240 in free credits when they go to https://sentry.io/twist and use the code TWIST11:35 How Helios beats Falcon Heavy on price ($25M)13:35 Reusability, in-orbit refueling, and propellant depots15:38 Landers, the Moon base, and "Mega Helios."18:52 NSSL and the politics of flying government payloads20:16 Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit https://every.io20:51 Why the Moon matters: megastructures and data centers in space25:09 The space talent market and the SpaceX "mafia."30:16 Northwest Registered Agent: Get more when you start your business with Northwest. In 10 clicks and 10 minutes, you can form your company and walk away with a real business identity — Learn more at https://northwestregisteredagent.com/twistSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisThank you to our partners:Check out all our partner offers: https://partners.launch.co/Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason's suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.com

This is the first time in 18 years that Christoph Hilligen sees a possibility to radically change the way NGOs operate.As the CEO of World Vision Germany, he's already using AI to launch emergency appeals in HOURS and build personalized donor journeys. One of the most fascinating examples? His team uses predictive models to flag which donors may be at risk of canceling, so they can step in earlier and build stronger relationships.AI is definitely no longer optional, and the nonprofits who move faster, personalize better, and use their data to guide decisions will raise more and create more impact without risking falling behind. This is exactly the kind of case study I could have talked about with Christoph forever!Resources & LinksConnect with Christoph on LinkedIn and learn more about World Vision Germany on their website.Bloomerang is the proud presenter of Missions to Movements. See how one team surpassed a $1M match and raised $2.25M for their mission with Penny, Bloomerang's AI-powered fundraising strategist. Learn more at bloomerang.com.The Monthly Giving Builder: Generate your comprehensive monthly giving plan and build your program step by step - with a guided companion working alongside you from start to finish. Let's Connect!Send a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and let us know what you think of the show!My book, The Monthly Giving Mastermind, is here! Grab a copy here and learn my framework to build, grow, and sustain subscriptions for good.Want to book Dana as a speaker for your event? Click here!

20+ AI agents in daily production. 2.25M sessions. 614 meetings booked by a single agent. Millions of interactions across the stack. Amelia Lerutte, Chief AI Officer at SaaStr, and Jason Lemkin, Founder and CEO of SaaStr, take you behind the scenes of the AI agent stack running SaaStr every day, with live demos of the actual backends. In this session, they go deep on the top agents in production: 10K, SaaStr's AI VP of Marketing, built on Replit with 1,000+ commits in 4 months QB, the AI VP of Customer Success, managing 150+ customers end-to-end Annie, the AI Event Producer running saastrannual.com (46K+ lines of code) Amelia AI, the inbound agent on Qualified that booked 614 meetings and handled 402,000 chats for SaaStr Annual alone Agentforce, reviving the leads humans never followed up with Ava (Artisan) for warm outbound on the B leads humans won't touch Monaco for fully cold outbound that fills its own funnel with lookalikes You'll also hear the honest stories: the day Annie sent emails from a prohibited address, why Replit and Lovable versions of the same agent come to different conclusions, why the traditional CSM role is dead, and how headless Salesforce + Replit is the fastest path to your first real agent. The biggest takeaway: don't put AI on your A leads. Put it on the B leads your humans won't follow up with. That's where the real revenue is. Recorded live at SaaStr AI Annual 2026. Part of The Agents series.

The first business Joe Wechsler bought had $280k of SDE. Seven years later, he runs a fund with $50m of buying power.Register for the webinar: Franchising for the ETA Buyer: Resales, Roll-Ups, and Real Deals - Thu, June 4 - https://bit.ly/4vnGP5uTopics in Joe's interview:Background in management consultingInspired by Rich Dad Poor Dad to own assetsJoining an early cohort of the Acquisition LabSearching is more fun with a partnerFirst deal died 10 days before closingDiscovering employees had never been paid overtimeTotal office staff turnover in first 4 monthsAcquiring 4 diverse businessesLaunching a $25M equity fund with 5 partnersIt's all about the peopleReferences and how to contact Joe:LinkedInBlueline VenturesWho by Geoff Smart and Randy StreetRich Dad, Poor Dad by Richard T. KiyosakiGet a free review of your books & financial ops from System Six (a $500 value):Book a call with Tim or hello@systemsix.com and mention Acquiring MindsDownload the New CEO's Guide to Human Resources from Aspen HR:From this page or contact jenny@aspenhr.comWork with an SBA loan team focused exclusively on helping entrepreneurs buy businesses:Pioneer Capital AdvisoryConnect with Acquiring Minds:See past + future interviews on the YouTube channelConnect with host Will Smith on LinkedInFollow Will on TwitterEdited by Anton Rohozov and produced by Pam Cameron

#856: Retail stocks are surging thanks to US shoppers continuing to spend, spend, spend (even if it's squeezing their budgets). Anthropic surpasses OpenAI as the most valuable AI startup. Dell wins a $9.7B Pentagon deal. JPMorgan owes an ex-employee $4.25M for wrongful termination. Finally, Blue Origin's attempted launch ends in a spectacular explosion (no one was hurt).  Learn more at Linkedin.com/MBD Sign up to join our trivia night! https://mbdtrivianight-june2026.splashthat.com/  Subscribe to Morning Brew Daily for more of the news you need to start your day. Share the show with a friend, and leave us a review on your favorite podcast app. Listen to Morning Brew Daily Here:⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.swap.fm/l/mbd-note⁠⁠⁠  Watch Morning Brew Daily Here:⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@MorningBrewDailyShow⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if cutting half your team could be the secret to explosive growth?In this Fan Favorite episode, Cameron Herold sits down with Benjamin Surman, COO of Somewhere (formerly Support Shepherd), a company that rocketed from $1M to $25M and is still hungry for more. The conversation tackles the real-world, often-unspoken operational questions: When do you fire instead of hire? Where's the hidden margin in automation? Why are so many leaders clinging to headcount when systems could do the job faster, cheaper, and with less chaos?If you're addicted to the idea that bigger is always better, this episode will shake your assumptions. Miss it and risk drowning in legacy thinking while your competitors eat your lunch. Listen now for the strategic edge you won't hear anywhere else.Timestamped Highlights00:48 – The real reason behind a bold global rebrand02:29 – How one contractor quietly took the reins as COO08:54 – Why bootstrapping (not VC money) set the right culture11:00 – The micro-influencer lever that brings 4,000 referral partners13:25 – What no one tells you about hiring in Latin America17:41 – The $3M decision: Slashing 120 employees with zero regrets20:13 – Behind the curtain of an automated sales pipeline25:37 – The COO playbook for uncovering invisible inefficienciesAbout the GuestBenjamin Surman is the Chief Operating Officer of Somewhere, a hyper-growth headhunting agency revolutionizing global talent acquisition. With a relentless focus on automation and operational excellence, Benjamin Surman has scaled the business from $1M to over $25M in just three years.

Download your free personalized $100M scaling roadmap in under 30 seconds: https://www.acquisition.com/roadmap?el=yt-alex-486r&htrafficsource=youtubeCory, the owner of an HVAC cleaning and ductwork business, was stuck at $1.25M in revenue, 38% margins, and $60K in debt. In this episode, Alex diagnoses exactly what's holding the business back, from mispriced services to a leaking funnel, and offers a systematic game plan to scale. One year later, Cory has scaled from $1.25M to $2.5M, nearly doubled lead flow, and is eyeing a second location.In this episode00:00 A review of Cory's HVAC business04:37 Game plan and Cory's position on the roadmap06:21 Pricing strategy: increasing prices for higher profits09:27 Ads and landing page optimization16:02 Reactivation emails, campaigns, and angles21:01 Cross-platform retargeting and email sequences24:00 Affiliate program strategy30:28 Recap of the action plan and a look at one-year resultsMore Value:Join The Live Scaling Workshop In Las Vegas: https://www.acquisition.com/o-vegasDownload your free personalized $100M scaling roadmap in under 30 seconds: https://www.acquisition.com/roadmap?el=yt-alex-486r&htrafficsource=youtubeDiscover The Easiest Business I Can Help You Start (Free Trial): https://www.skool.com/hormoziFree Books and Video Courses: https://www.acquisition.com/trainingGet the $100M Book Bundle: https://shop.acquisition.com/pages/100m-book-bundleFollow Alex Hormozi's Socials:⁠⁠LinkedIn ⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠YouTube ⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Acquisition ⁠DISCLOSURE Information shared here is for educational purposes only. Individuals and business owners should evaluate their own business strategies, and identify any potential risks. The information shared here is not a guarantee of success. Your results may vary. Copyright © 2026.