Podcasts about Breaking Through

In this conversation, Tarun Agarwal draws parallels between Starbucks' business strategies and the challenges faced by dental practices. He emphasizes the importance of expanding service offerings to break through revenue ceilings and enhance patient care. By introducing new procedures, such as dental implants, practitioners can leverage existing resources and improve their practice's profitability. The discussion highlights the need for dentists to embrace growth and adapt to changing patient needs to avoid stagnation. Takeaways Starbucks' near failure teaches valuable lessons for dental practices.Many dentists feel stuck despite working harder and adding team members.Efficiency improvements alone do not lead to significant growth.Diversifying services is crucial for breaking revenue ceilings.Patients may leave for specialists offering broader menus.Testing new procedures can lead to substantial revenue increases.Committing to new categories can transform a practice's success.Overhead costs remain constant, making high-value procedures more profitable.Practices can plateau and fade if they don't adapt and grow.Growth in dentistry can be exponential with the right strategies. Titles From Coffee to Crowns: Lessons from StarbucksBreaking the Revenue Ceiling in Dental Practices sound bites "You've hit a menus ceiling.""TRT is your sandwich test.""Growth is exponential." Chapters 00:00 The Starbucks Connection: Lessons for Dental Practices02:36 Breaking Through the Revenue Ceiling05:46 The Sandwich Test: Expanding Your Offerings09:36 Going All In: Committing to New Categories13:43 Your Next Move: Embracing Growth in Dentistry Chapters (00:00:00) - How to Get Out of Trap Your Salary(00:01:19) - Dental Restorative and Preventative Procedures(00:02:34) - Why Starbucks didn't expand in 2003(00:08:40) - What Happened to Starbucks When They Stopped Testing and Went All(00:13:04) - Plastic Surgery

Get Dr. Vonda's latest insights on strength, bone health, longevity, and aging with power delivered straight to your inbox. Join her free health & longevity newsletter here: https://www.drvondawright.com/resources/aging-longevity   Through decades of caring for women as an orthopedic sports surgeon, I've seen how many health challenges go unspoken. Body odor, vaginal health, and the shame and silence around them are not small issues. They affect confidence, relationships, and how women move through the world.   In this conversation, Shannon and I explore how a simple clinical observation became a breakthrough in understanding how odor works on the body. We discuss why women were taught to mask symptoms instead of understanding their source and how deeply stigma has shaped the way they experience their own bodies.   Shannon shares her journey from clinical practice to building products based on physiology rather than marketing myths. We also talk about the power of listening without judgment and giving women the language, knowledge, and permission to understand their bodies without embarrassment.   What we cover: - How Shannon's clinical practice revealed a hidden but widespread problem for women - Why odor is a bacterial issue, not a hygiene failure - The difference between masking symptoms and addressing root causes - How shame has shaped women's health messaging for decades - Why the vulva, skin folds, and external body deserve the same scientific attention - What it takes to challenge medical dogma as a woman physician - The leap from medicine to entrepreneurship and the resistance along the way - Building products that respect women's intelligence and lived experience - Why listening to patients changes everything - How confidence, dignity, and health are deeply connected About Shannon Klingman: Dr Shannon Klingman is an OB-GYN, innovator, and founder of Lume. She brings a rare blend of clinical insight, scientific rigor, and fearless honesty to women's health. Her work has helped millions of women better understand their bodies, free from shame, misinformation, or outdated advice.   Connect with Shannon Klingman: Website: https://lumedeodorant.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shannon_klingman_md TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@shannon.klingman.md   Timestamps   00:00 Intro 02:27 The Birth of Lume: A Revolutionary Idea 05:42 Developing the Product 08:12 Facing Skepticism and Rejection 10:53 Breaking Through with Marketing 17:40 Scaling and Team Building 25:11 Balancing Family and Business 28:56 The Reality of Entrepreneurial Success 31:12 Personal Health and Lifestyle Changes 35:22 Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Recovery 45:06 Future Aspirations and Reflections  

Michael Kent, traveling comedian and magician, joins Marissa to share hard-won lessons from 20 years of marriage while spending up to 250 days per year on the road. Discover why performer relationships fail, the "dopamine trap" of audience affirmation, and the one ritual that saved his marriage. Learn the three pillars of healthy relationships (communication, respect, trust), how to communicate vulnerably without blame, and why human connection matters more than ever in our isolated world. Michael reveals advice from Ralphie May that transformed his marriage and shares practical strategies for maintaining intimacy across distance. Topics covered: Why entertainment industry marriages fail (and why his didn't) How to distinguish between audience affirmation and real love The power of saying "What can I do to help?" Reframing relationship conflicts Breaking the content vs. happiness debate Connection as the antidote to addiction and loneliness Keywords: healthy relationships, marriage advice, communication skills, long-distance relationships, relationship tips, emotional intimacy, relationship goals   Full Transcript:  Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Welcome, Michael. I'm so excited to have you on the podcast today. Thank you so much for joining us.    Michael Kent Absolutely. It's so good to be here. I was happy to have you on my podcast recently, and I've never been on a podcast like yours, so I'm kind of excited and nervous. Oh, don't be nervous.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) It's easy, breezy conversation. We're just chit-chatting. But tell everyone about your podcast, because I thought it was so much fun to be a guest on yours. Thank you. Sure.   Michael Kent Well, my podcast, it's funny because it has nothing to do with what I do for a living. So I make my living as a comedian and magician. During the pandemic, me and so many other people decided we were going to podcast. So I decided that mine was going to be about history, but not like the boring history. I am fascinated by the fact that I'm in my 40s and I'm still learning things. Every day, like there's new things to learn. And some of them are important. Some of them are just interesting. They're not important. And so what I decided to do was find a different story from history every week. And it has to sound like it's something that I just made up. And initially, the podcast was called Tell Me What to Google, because tell me what to Google, because there were people giving me these ideas like, hey, you should Google this. Because after the first season, I realized that it's really hard to be found on Google when you have Google in the name of your show. So my buddy Jonathan Burns came up with the title, The Internet Says It's True. And that's what it's been called for 267 episodes. Every week is a news story that sounds like it's absolutely made up. And they're all 100% verifiably true. I go through painstaking efforts to like go back and find the original newspaper articles and everything. But I present them in a way that's really fun and lighthearted. And then we do a quiz at the end. So yeah, it's been a fun project. It's really fun for me to work on something that is not me. It's not about my show and me.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) And it sounds really fun. History is so interesting, and there's so much fun stuff out there. I love being on your podcast. For the last couple episodes, we were talking about food, which anyone who knows me knows that food is a passion of mine. Not cooking it, just eating it. But yeah, so check out The Internet Says It's True. It streams everywhere. You can listen to the episodes I'm on. But let's jump into the Healing for Emotional Abuse podcast. Michael, so you mentioned that you are a traveling comedian and magician. Will you tell us a little bit more about what you do?   Michael Kent Yeah. Basically, my job for the last 22 years has been to give people an hour of their life where they don't have to think about what's going on outside. They don't have to think about the... about the... They Thank You know, the stress and the tests and the exams, or if it's a workplace, you know, the deadlines and the news and politics. I'm just giving them an escape, which is what magic is. Magic is an amazing ability for us to be able to suspend our disbelief as if we're watching a wrestling match. And it's really easy, it turns out, for people to believe that something's happening that's impossible, because we all want to believe that that's true. Even the most skeptical people react to magic in a way that is almost childlike. Magic has a different reaction from everyone. Everyone has a different way of reacting to it. And I really love that, but I don't love the tension that magic brings. So I do a comedy show. I do a comedy magic show that sort of acknowledges the strange elephant in the room, and that is, I'm a man in my 40s pretending to be a wizard. This crazy career has taken me quite literally all over the world to 49 states. I still need to go to Wyoming. I haven't performed there yet. But 49 states, 19 countries, I believe, and cruise ships and military bases. And gosh, I performed on board an aircraft carrier last year while they were active in the sea. It's been an amazing career for the last couple decades. I'm focusing my efforts now more toward corporate groups and providing corporate groups with sort of an engagement tool and being that engagement facilitator for them to improve their events. So that's sort of the focus of my career currently. But for the last 20 years, I've been one of the top comedian magicians on the college market. So that's how I know you.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) That's true. That's awesome. So you have... You've in one relationship for basically like the extent of all of your career. So 22 years on the road, and you and your wife, first, can you tell us how you met?   Michael Kent Yeah, it's not like one of those, you know, Hallmark stories. But my wife and I went to college together, had the same major and several of the same classes and never met.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) We figured that out after the fact.   Michael Kent So we met through the girl that I grew up next door to when I was a little kid. So from the time I was born until I was eight years old, I lived next door to this person who I won't name because I don't know if I have their permission to talk about them publicly. So I grew up next to her, and she's like a sister to me. And we reconnected after college, like right after college, for the end of college, and we're hanging out. And Allison, my wife, was always around in the friend group. And I started sort of jokingly referring to her as my girlfriend because I had a crush on her. And finally, I asked her out, and we went on what I thought was like an amazing date. It was an amazing date. And then, let's see what happened next. We went off and dated other people. It didn't last. And then we reconnected like four or five months later, and that was the end of that. And we're coming up on our 20th wedding anniversary in August.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Wow. Yeah.   Michael Kent And like any marriage, know, it's had ups and downs and good times and bad times. And much of the good times and bad times have come from dealing with exactly what you're talking about, the idea that I do spend. At one point, I spent 250 days a year on the road doing shows. And that's really tough on any relationship, married or not, however long, you know, it's... It's just a difficult thing to learn how to deal with. When we met and started, you know, getting serious about dating, I was wanting to be a magician. I was wanting to do this, but I wasn't very successful yet. So she was sort of my sugar mama for the first few years because she had a job and I didn't. And so, you know, it took a while for my career to take off. And then it's been obviously a very, like, fulfilling and lucrative career since. And so, yeah, that's sort of where we are. And she and I are one of those sort of opposites attract couples, you know, like she is a bit more conservative and pragmatic. And I'm sort of a dreamy artist who, you know, head in the clouds type. But we have sort of become more similar as we've gotten older. think that probably just happens with married couples. After a long time, our tastes have become more similar.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) That's awesome. So 20 years married, more than 22 years together. In our industry, like the college market, the traveling to entertain market, I don't know the statistic. I can look it up. But I think most marriages end with one partner that travels a lot and the other that doesn't. And thinking to the conferences that we go to or the colleagues that we have, most of them have been divorced. I can really only think of four people who have been consistently married to the same person. So keeping the communication, the love, the marriage alive is very challenging. So what do you and Allison do or like what have you learned over the years that has helped you guys navigate this, you know, kind   Michael Kent Yeah, first of all, she is a saint to be able to deal with this, right? Like when you think about someone being gone that much, and that's just the half of it. The being gone part is only half of the equation. We'll talk about the other half in a minute, but I was in Chicago Midway Airport headed to, where was I going? St. Louis. And I was headed to a conference, and the comedian Ralphie May, who has since passed, I recognized him just being a fan of comedy, and we struck up a conversation, and we sat next to each other on the flight, and we talked the whole way to St. Louis, and somehow we got talking about relationships. And at that point, Ralphie was married. He ended up getting divorced later, but he gave me the best relationship advice ever, and it sort of, I think, saved my marriage. And Basically, what he said was, the reason that show business relationships fail is because entertainers, night after night, get this amazing feeling from complete strangers. This affirmation that everyone would love. You'd be crazy not to love it. You have complete strangers. You know, it's like if your husband tells you, you look great today. It means something. It's important. But if a stranger at the gas station says, look great today, why does that? It means a little bit more because they don't have an incentive or motive, you know, like they don't have to tell you that. And that's kind of the feeling that entertainers get on stage is like, oh, my God, these complete strangers adore me. And then that night after night after night. And then you go home to your significant other. And they're like, where have you been? Your dirty laundry is on the floor. You didn't do the chore you said you were going to do. And you start comparing them to the people in the audience. And that's. It's so unfair because the people in the audience only know you for one hour at the most, and it's your best hour. It's the hour that you've been rehearsing. It'd be bad. It'd be weird if they didn't love you for that hour. You know what I mean? Whereas now you're comparing them to someone who knows all of you and all the warts and all of the, you know, the, the history and the, the arguments and your tendencies. And, and it's just not a fair comparison. You're comparing apples to oranges in that instance, and it's not And so I spent so much time like thinking about that and examining that and how, which one's wrong, which one's right? You know? And I think the answer is like, neither one's wrong. Neither one's right. But what I realized is that audience while I, God, I love them. I appreciate them so much that they come to my shows and that they laugh with me. They're not my friends in most Most instances. And so when the show is over, that relationship is over. Now, that's not to say, like, I don't want to, you know, put out content for them to consume and interact with people and enjoy their acquaintanceship. But those aren't family. They're not friends. And so that's the that is the struggle that most entertainers run into is that they see that feeling that they get from a complete stranger when they're on stage or when they're, you know, someone who's reacting to their art and they say, oh, this person sees me. This person really likes me because they see me and through my art and all this. But that's not a real healthy. That's not a relationship. That's just a one sided thing. And and so it took a really long time to realize that. And so what I did, I put in almost immediately after talking to Ralphie, a know, A new tradition slash ritual. When I finish a job, a gig, when I finish a show, after I load out, I have a schedule that I do normally. And this is just what I do. I get to, when the show's over and I've done a meet and greet or merch or whatever it might be afterward, when I start loading out and tearing down my show, I text my wife. I let her know I'm loading out. And both of us know that that means that I'm going to be sitting in my car in about 45 minutes to an hour. And when I get in my car, I don't put in the directions to the hotel. I don't put in directions to the airport. I just sit and I call her and we talk. And we don't talk about my show or my travels. We talk about her day. And we talk about the dogs and what's going on back home. And what it is, is a snapback to what is real. It's a snapback to what is good and what is real. And it's a buffer between this world that can make anyone feel like a king to a world that is more mutual, where this is like, this is reality. This is two-way now. It's not just a one-way thing. That call has met the world to me, and I think to Allison, too, because she doesn't want to hear about magic. Allison hates magic.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I tried to show her magic on our first date, and she goes, know what you're doing, and it's not going to work on me.   Michael Kent And she wasn't talking about the trick wasn't going to work. You know what I mean? I had just spent all those years in college using magic to impress strangers, and now all of a sudden I have to use my personality. I was like, I like this girl. So when we talk after the show, it's, you know, it's about her and her horses and the dogs and what's going on back home, you know, and it's, while that's nice for her, it's also nice for me because then... Let's see. I don't do what I used to do, which is before that, I would be like, how can I make this feeling of this audience continue? And I would start looking and saying, okay, who added me on Instagram? Who liked my show? Who commented on that photo? You know, and being like, you know, you just want that feeling to continue. It's why a lot of artists, musicians, comedians turn to substance abuse, because they're trying to continue the feeling that they get when they're on stage. It's an indescribable feeling, and I'm sure you get it when you speak as well. You know, it's indescribable how it feels to be affirmed by complete strangers in a room where there are hundreds of them looking at you. So it's a really difficult thing to compete with, but that's a much bigger aspect of the problem than is the just being gone. Because I could do, it doesn't matter if you're gone, if you're gone. All the time anyway, mentally or emotionally, you know, like that's the important thing is, are you emotionally there? And it's taken me a long time to do this. And you're talking, you're talking to someone who has spent years in therapy dealing with this. think therapy has been just as important as that discussion with, with, with Ralphie May on an airplane, you know.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) That's so interesting. I, first of all, that's really cool that you got to, you got to sit next to Ralphie May, but also like that, that advice and like that thought process makes a lot of sense. And I never really thought about it that way, where that like euphoric feeling of being loved and adored, right? Right. And then you turn to your family or your partner where, you know, they don't, you know, they know the full you versus other people who only know, like you said, the one dimension of you, you know, it's, and I wonder just in like the full world, not just our world, but how. that translates to them, right? Sure.   Michael Kent Well, it does, because like people that are in the workplace have their work life and their home life. And it's completely different. The people that the way that they interact with people at work is completely different than the way that they interact with their family. And. It's I know that this is a problem for a lot of people, because when you get to that place where you're pulling into the driveway or you're pulling into your garage or whatever to go home, there's a really harsh shift that has to happen between how you deal with work and how you deal with home. And it is it is incredible. It's the same with sports teams as well. When you're on a sports team, your relationship with that sports team or military unit is a bond that you might feel like you never can compete with, with your with your personal relationship. And you have you have to realize and look at it that. It's apples and oranges. It is not the same type of thing. And it's okay for both of those things to coexist. They are not competing with one another.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Yeah. And I think it translates a lot to why people cheat, right? Because if you, like even just looking at work wives and work husbands, right? You have somebody that you have developed a relationship with in your place of work and you're like, oh, this is my work husband or this is my work wife or my work whatever, you know? And then that person only knows the little bit of you that you show at work versus at home where, you know, you leave your dirty socks everywhere and, you know, or, or you're acting at your very comfortable personality, right? And then the other people, when you get upset with your partner and you talk to your work friends about it, right? Or like your work, whatever work wife about it. They're like, oh, I would never do that. I don't understand. I would never yell at you for something so minuscule. So that becomes very, um, attractive, right? Like, oh, this, Person, they would never treat me. But if they knew you the way that your home partner does, right, your real partner, they would absolutely not be okay with that, right? Or they would also have, there would be tiffs, right? And so I just think that that's so fascinating. That's such an interesting perspective.   Michael Kent Well, was a perspective that was sort of forced on me that I'm glad that I came to because, you know, when you are in a relationship that you value, that you really want to, if you realize in that moment the value of it, you'll do anything you can to keep it. And in my case, what I realized was that the problem was me, right? The problem was that, and it wasn't just me being gone a lot. Obviously, that's tough. But the problem was that, like, I needed to look at things realistically. And, you know, it's kind of like... When you look at an artist's painting that they've put up in a gallery, like if they put it up in a gallery, they know it's good. But what you're not seeing is all their early works that they're not proud of, that they're not showing off. And your relationship with your significant other probably knows and has seen those early works. And so to stick with the metaphor, the gallery goer might be like, this is the best artist in the world. They can never do anything wrong. You know what I mean? And that's that audience member. That's that person who's only seeing you for or knowing you for an hour. Or the people who only know that you're really good at work and you're a good problem solver. Oh, that person must be like that at home. And, you know, and you fantasize and you create this thing that's not there. And reality is often much more boring. And reality is the...   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) The reality is in between the highs and lows.   Michael Kent That's where most of our life happens, is in the waiting for the next exciting thing to happen. And so you have to kind of get, like, very comfortable with the fact that things aren't always exciting and full of affirmation and butterflies and puppy dogs. Sometimes the greatness of life is those days where you're like, you want to go out to dinner, but we're just so exhausted. So we're going to just make ramen and sit on the couch and watch TV. And that's going to have to be fine. And that's like even the most successful, exciting movie stars do that. You know what I mean? Like they have, it might not be ramen. might still be, you know, their executive chef cooks them something, but everyone has in between times where you might be in between projects or you might be in between this. And that's what, like, to me, that's kind of the beauty of relationships. It's like, this is someone who you have deemed to be comfortable with you when things aren't exciting, when things are good, and when things are really difficult and hard and you're at each other's throats and fighting, like, someone that you can get through that with. So, yeah. I'm talking, like, I feel like I'm really self-conscious right now talking about this because I know how I have struggled as a husband, and, like, I know how I've had my, like, shortcomings in the past, and I'm talking as if I'm some expert on relationships. It's taken a lot of work for me to get here, and in 10 years from now, I probably will look back at this and be like, I was, I didn't know what I was talking about because I will have learned more. You know, that's the hope anyway, right?   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) That's the whole point of life and relationships, right? Like, we are always growing. We're always learning, right? On your podcast, the premise of it was, I can't believe I'm in my 40s and I'm still learning every day. I have always been like an avid lifelong learner, right? I still – I'm in my mid-30s. I still want to go back for more degrees. I still want to do more learning. And my mother-in-law is always making fun of me because I told her at Christmas I want to go to law school. And she's like, why? Why do you want to go to law school? You don't want to be a lawyer. And I'm like, yeah, but I want to understand. And I want to be able to help. And like if you're not learning, you're dying, right? And so, you know, I can look back on things I wrote. My first book, know, Breaking Through the Silence, I wrote it in 2017. And when I put it out, I was like, oh, this is incredible. Like I did so much work. I did all of this. And look where I got, right? And now I read it and I'm like, oh, my God, this is so embarrassing, right? Because we are always growing. We're always learning. So where you are – about when I make a promo video for my show.    Michael Kent By the time I'm editing it, I'm embarrassed by it.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) That's how quickly I'm always changing stuff, you know? Yeah, but that's, I mean, we're always growing, and right now, especially in the world with technology and all that we have, we're absorbing so much stimuli and so much information every minute of every day to a point where our brains have shifted so much, and we're kind of getting off topic, but I'm happy about it because I like to talk about this. Yeah, two quick things.   Michael Kent Something that I realized that I have realized about relationships is another thing that makes them fail, in my opinion, is that people expect it to always feel the way it did in the beginning. I mean, this isn't a surprise to anyone. Everyone knows that this is a problem, right? You might feel that way with someone at work or someone that, you know, like comes through your life, incidentally, and you'll be like, oh, this is the way I felt with my significant other in the beginning. And what you fail to realize is that relationships always... Are changing and you're never going to have, I mean, I can't say never because I don't, you know, obviously there, I'm sure there are exceptions to this, but it's rare to be able to have the same relationship with your significant other that you had when you met and my wife and I have had different iterations of our life together, right? Like there have been different, it's almost like a different thing that you find that you love about that person and you both grow and you're not the same people you were back then. It would be silly if you were acting the same way you were when you were, you know, I met Ali when I was like 22 or something, right? So there's a, my favorite book is called Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki. It's just a book about Zen and the main premise of it is in the beginner's mind, there are many options. In the expert's mind, there are few and many possibilities, I think is what he says. And that is to realize that you don't know. Everything is the ability to learn and to change and to grow. Whereas if you say, well, I got married, I aced it, done, I succeeded, I'm at the plateau, now everything's always going to be like this, and everything's always going to be great, and I don't have to try anymore. That's death, right? That's death. As you described, when you stop learning, you're dying. So anyway, those are the two quick things I wanted to bring up.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) And I appreciate that. So Larry and I had a conversation, my husband, it was more of like a debate actually a few months ago where do you strive to be content all the time or do you strive to be happy all the time? Like what's the right, what's the right way to look at life, right? Because if we are striving to be happy, and I was on team, I want to be happy. Thank you. All the time, right? I want to always be feeling like I'm accomplishing. I always want to be feeling like I'm doing something and growing. And he was like, no, because if that's the case, then you're basically chasing a moving goalpost, right? If you always strive to be happy, then you are never happy where you are. And I thought that was so fascinating. So like striving to be content versus striving to be happy. It sounds like from what you said, you strive to be content, right? You know that things are changing and growing and you adjust and adapt and you grow together or you grow apart, right? But you guys work to grow together. So what's your take on that?   Michael Kent Well, you're right. mean, I think of those two options, I would say like striving to be content, but I'm not even sure I'm, I like the phrasing of like content because content, it can bring about feelings of like, I'm content, so I'm not going to strive for happiness or for joy, I guess is what I would replace happiness with is. So Or pleasure. Joy and pleasure are fleeting, whereas contentment is not. Contentment is what I would describe as the middle path or the middle road. If you can't tell, I'm really into Buddhism, and that's kind of where a lot of my philosophy comes from, is that it's going back to what I said earlier about how most of life are those in-between times. And those in-between times, contentment is a great way to describe those. You're fine. There's nothing wrong. You're lacking pleasure in that moment, maybe. But you're also lacking profound sadness or fear. You know what I mean? There's just times when you just are. And if you aren't happy, and I mean happy in a very large, vague sense here, if you can't survive, and if you're suffering in the times when... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... There's nothing to be particularly pleasurable or to be joyful about or whatever. That's most of your life. Most of our life are those in-between times. And so if you were on a desert island, a deserted island somewhere, and you didn't have anything, how would you be happy? What would you do to not suffer? And the answer is, you have to just be able to live with yourself. You have to be able to understand that we are beings. The only thing we have to do is breathe. And that's it. We have to eat and breathe and just be. Everything else is icing on the cake. So, but the reason I kind of have issue with the word content is because I think, at least in modern use, it sort of can mean settling or not striving. And I'm always... This is a struggle for me. Sometimes it's really difficult for me to just sit. And it sounds like you're the same way. You've written 40 books. Sometimes it's difficult to just be still. I always have to have that project to worry about. And thanks to my therapist, I know that that's a nervous system response. That's a nervous system response medicating me to try to run away from being here right now. And so it's okay once you have that in mind to do what you want. But realizing it is the hard part. Realizing it is the part where you have to be like, okay, my nervous system is telling me that I'm only doing this and I'm only stressing about this because I need something for it to stress about. We'll be right back. be right And so now that I know that, I can work on it, but not freak out if I don't do it, or not freak out if, you know, about having this thing. So, and allowing yourself to be kind to yourself and take breaks and do whatever else.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I think what you said about, you know, content being kind of sitting still, that's kind of exactly how I felt and feel. I just didn't know how to verbalize it. So thank you, because you just kind of gave me the more of an understanding of what I meant. Yeah, stillness is the middle way.   Michael Kent Like, it's the middle path. It's not the big hill you're trying to climb or the valley that you're falling into. It's just being. Yeah.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) And I love that. So I loved what you said about, like, if you were on a deserted island, what would you do to not suffer, right? Because you're not going to be happy sitting there on a deserted island every minute of every day. Like, you just can't. How does that translate? Out of relationships, right? So if you're not happy with yourself, you know, the theory is, and I 100% agree with it, but like, if you're not happy with yourself, you're not going to be happy with someone else because you're looking for what you're missing in someone else to come from someone else. So like, how does that, in your opinion, like, how does that translate?   Michael Kent Communication. I think you and your partner need to be able to tell each other how you're feeling. So I mean, it starts with you knowing how you're feeling, right? A lot of people just don't realize how they're feeling. But like, or a lot, you know, you might be feeling anxiety, but not know what the anxiety is about. And that's a perfectly acceptable thing to say to a partner, is that saying, I'm just on edge, and I don't know why. That's such a great thing to say. Because if you are short with your partner, and you didn't mean to be short with a partner, which is what most arguments start from, I think is like, you know, Someone's already have something going on by themselves, right? There's something in their life that they're stressed about, and they just accidentally put that on the other person in the act of normal conversation or whatever. If you start that by saying, by realizing, I'm really anxious today, or I'm really, I feel like I'm really on edge today. Just saying that can maybe stop that next interaction from blowing up into an argument or a fight. And because there's a little bit more communication and understanding of where the other person is coming from. And, you know, my wife and I both suffer from general anxiety at different times. And we both know that sometimes there's not a thing that triggers it. It's just there. And so we know that the answer isn't, why are you anxious? What's making you anxious? How can we make that go away? You know, sometimes the answer, a better answer is, what can I do to help? Which is... That's phrase that both of us use quite often with each other. And sometimes that question is enough to help. Because usually there's not a thing, you know, because our brains are weird and we don't understand them. And sometimes you just have anxiety about stuff. So what can I do to help is like one of the most loving things you can say to a partner. One of the most caring, one of the most efficient ways to show care is by saying, I'm here. That's all you're saying. You're not trying to solve problems. That's a big pet peeve of mine. That'll, that'll, if I tell someone my problem and I don't want them to solve it and they start trying to solve it, that is so frustrating. Not just relationship wise, but just in general, you know, family members, anything like that. Like sometimes I just want a . Just let me complain. And getting that complaint out is, is the purpose, right? So, you know, what can I do to help is like commit that to That statement, because there have been so many times my wife has said that to me, and it's all I needed to hear. Because what she's saying is, I'm here, I hear you, and I care. And that little bit of affirmation is enough to be like, oh, it's going to be fine. She's here to help me with whatever this is.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) So that's such a good point. And I teach that to a lot of people, especially college students, right? And you're not solving anyone's issue. Just ask what you can do. Be empathetic. I'm here with you, right? We're going to do this together. What do you need right now? You know, so I love that that's how you two communicate with each other and show support. We also both have anxiety and we both have bad days. I'll wake up sometimes and just be like, nope, this is one of those days I'm not getting out of bed. No bones day.   Michael Kent Yeah, yeah.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I'm going to melt into my couch and eat as much popcorn as my body can handle.   Michael Kent And that's my day, you know?   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) But I love that. So what piece of advice would you give to... listeners, to our listeners, about having healthy relationships and maintaining a healthy relationship.   Michael Kent You have to be brutally honest with yourself about what it is that you're feeling and be able to be vulnerable enough to share that with this other person. That's the thing. Because I think most fights from unspoken things, most fights stem from unspoken things. And humans are just notoriously bad at working our brains. Sometimes we just don't know why we're thinking the way we're thinking. But if you can acknowledge it, it all of a sudden doesn't seem that bad. There's an analogy that I like to use. It's like most suffering in our lives is, it seems a lot larger than it actually is. Whether it's like physical pain, you know, our nerve endings send these signals to our brain that say, like, there's danger, something's wrong, you should know about this. lives. All And that's the siren, not the thing causing it. That's the that's the response. So the analogy I like to use is like on your car, you have like a headlight. And if you've ever seen what a headlight is, it's a tiny little light the size of a pinky. It's a tiny little thing that plugs in. And that creates hundreds of feet of of brightness in front of you because of the reflector. Most of the suffering that we experience in our lives, we perceive from the receptor, not realizing that the thing that's causing the pain is the pinky is the little tiny little the tiny little element that's inside that thing. And so if you can find a way during painful moments, whether it be emotional pain or physical pain, to focus on the pain and what's causing it, it can actually alleviate some of the pain. It can alleviate some of the suffering because you're able to look at what attachment it might be that that brought you to that point. Or what it is. And it takes a lot of work to be brutally honest with yourself to know how you're feeling in order to communicate it. And you have to have a partner who is on that journey with you and receptive to hearing about that. Which is tough because a lot of people, when they hear someone's problems, they want to do what we were just talking about. They want to try to solve them. They feel like that's their job. And sometimes, you know, you just need to . That's sometimes all you need. I had a long conversation about that.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) My mom is a problem solver. And so I'd call her and just really want to vent. And she would try and solve the problem. And I'd be like, no, mom, I just want to talk. Right? So we've developed a system where if I call her to, you know, for anything, she'll stop before she says anything and say, is this for comfort or for advice? Like, do you want me to just sit and listen? Or do you actually want me to advise and you want my opinion? And then I get to choose. That's a huge win.   Michael Kent mean, what an evolved thing to be able to say, like. And that's because that's like, what she's asking you is, would you like me to turn my maternal instinct that's inside of my body and I can't get rid of off for a moment? And it's probably hard, really hard for her to do that. Because that's just a, I think that's just a parent thing. Parents hear your problems and it's been their job, you know, for the first 18 years of their life, it was their job to absolutely solve those problems for you. No questions asked. And so it's hard. It's got to be, I'm not a parent, so I don't know, but it's got to be hard to turn that off and be like, okay, I'll just listen. Yeah.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I mean, I can't, I had to remind her many a time, but we finally got to a point where I feel comfortable and safe talking to her. Whereas in the past I would call her for something and she would advise, advise, advise. And I'd be like, I don't want your advice. And it would, it actually caused a lot of rifts in our relationship. So it was, it took work, but, but we're in a good spot where like, she's very respectful of, of what I need, whether I want to just vent or, or get advice. So that could be really good way.   Michael Kent If you're listening, Marissa's mother, good job. Good work.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Thanks, Amy. You call your mom by your first name?   Michael Kent No.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Oh, okay. That was just for the show. Okay. Thanks, Amy.   Michael Kent I can say it. You can say it.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) So thank you for that advice. That was really helpful. I think even to kind of, it was, it is. And to kind of spin off that, not just to tell, you know, yes, tell like, I'm feeling anxious today. And being honest about it. So instead of saying something like, you know, you're always at work and we never talk, right? It's, I feel lonely, right? So like, I feel like I'm not a priority to you, right? Personalizing it. So you're not talking about this symptom. You're talking about the cause, right? I feel lonely. It feels like you're prioritizing work or it feels like you're prioritizing your friends or it feels like you're whatever over me, right? So it's addressing the things that you're feeling, but also making it honest.   Michael Kent And you also have to learn sometimes to sort of reframe that, that statement. So like, you know, if my wife says to me, you're always gone. My tendency is to hear that as what do you want me to do? Not work, not have money. You like, you know, like you're, my tendency is to hear it as a complaint. But I can reframe it to mean she's complaining because she wants me to be around more because she likes Like, you know what I mean? Like that's, you can reframe these types of things and think like, what is, what is this person really saying to me? And, you know, and that's the common thing that people say in relationships when there's some sort of issue is like, what's wrong? And the other person will say, I'm just tired. It's just the easiest thing to say. And it's usually a cop out. I mean, you could legitimately be tired, but usually there's something else going on. Even if you don't know what it is, or, you know, it might be depression, it might be anxiety, but usually it's not just that you're tired, but it could be. I mean, it could be, I do not have the ability to have an in-depth conversation right now because I'm emotionally exhausted or I'm physically exhausted or whatever it might be, and then sometimes you just have some space, but that goes back to communication, right? Like, that's a huge part of a relationship. Yeah.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) It's my three pillars, right? My triangle of healthy relationships, communication, respect, and trust, right? If you don't have all three of those things, you don't have a healthy relationship. If you can't communicate and resolve issues, right? If you can't trust each other to be honest and vulnerable, and then you don't feel like you're being respected or like your needs are being met by your partner, like the boundaries or what you say, you know, are not being respected, then you don't have a healthy relationship. And even missing one of those three, just the communication piece alone is so important. You know, it was trust, communication.   Michael Kent What was the third pillar?   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Respect. Respect. Okay. Yep, yep. If you don't have one of the three, right, you don't have a healthy relationship because trust is built on respecting communication.   Michael Kent Yeah, they all are interrelated, right? Yeah.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) And so it's important that you have, you know, that strong communication because no one wants to wake up every day and resent your partner because of an issue that happened 10 years ago. And I use Friends, the show Friends is a great reference for that because if you look at Ross and Rachel, right, they had one fight one time in like season two and they never talked about it. Like they talked about it, but it was always very nitpicky and jabby and aggressive.   Michael Kent Yeah. And so then by season 10, like there's still, I think it was 10, right?   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) There's still, were they on a break? Were they not on a break? I don't know. Cause they never had a 15 minute sit down, honest discussion about it. And so they are such an unhealthy relationship. But everyone's like, I want the Ross and Rachel kind of love.   Michael Kent And I'm like, no, you don't. No one would have watched if it was a healthy relationship. That's where most of the conflict and the storylines came from.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) In any show, right? The only show I can currently think of where the two protagonists have a very healthy relationship is Nobody Wants This. Have you seen that? No. Oh, it's so good. It's Adam Brody and Kristen Bell. But the toxic relationships. weird? I think I have two friends that are in that show. Oh.   Michael Kent And I've never watched it.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I do have two friends that are in that show. Like, I've never watched it.   Michael Kent And I have no excuse for that. So I'm sorry, friends.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) It's a really good show. But Adam Brody and Kristen Bell's characters, anytime there's conflict and there's a lot of external conflict, they have a conversation about it and they work it out together and they understand. So even when one is feeling slighted or one is feeling put off, they have a conversation about it and they resolve it. The rest of the conflict is from external sources. So you're seeing these two people. It's like us against the world, but in a very positive way. And so more shows, I think, are going to start to have that similar dynamic. But up until now, and I do this at colleges all the time, think of a TV show or your favorite movie and think of a healthy relationship dynamic that's in it. It doesn't need to be 100% healthy all the time because that's not realistic. But think of one relationship where through the arc of the show, it is built on healthy principles. Yeah, I can't. It's so hard. It is really hard. Because conflict, like we're addicted to that conflict. That's why we watch the reality TV shows, right? Love is Blind. It's all built on conflict. It's nonsense. Right. Real housewives and all that. It's all conflict. They're all unhealthy. It's all produced on purpose that way.   Michael Kent Also, like, you know, there was probably a push in the 60s that was like, we need TV couples to fight and to be unhealthy because real couples are. And people don't want to see the 50s, you know, Cleaver family, like perfect relationships because it doesn't they don't identify with it. So it might be a thing of like where, you know, reality, art imitates life rather than life imitating art.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) But I think the pendulum swung too far. Right. Now we look at like we've got Walter and Skylar White, who it's like impossible to know who's telling the truth and who's not. Right. And I mean, now we've set terrible expectations. Right. So in the 50s with Leave it to Beaver and all that, we set a terrible expectation for women. Right. If you are not happy and made up, if you don't like look at Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Did you watch that show? I watched. Right.   Michael Kent Real housewives and all that. It's all conflict.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) They're all unhealthy. It's all produced on purpose that way. Also, like, you know, there was probably a push in the 60s that was like, we need TV couples to fight and to be unhealthy because real couples are. And people don't want to see the 50s, you know, Cleaver family, like perfect relationships because it doesn't they don't identify with it. So it might be a thing of like where, you know, reality, art imitates life rather than life imitating art. But I think the pendulum swung too far. Right. Now we look at like we've got Walter and Skylar White, who it's like impossible to know who's telling the truth and who's not. Right. And I mean, now we've set terrible expectations. Right. So in the 50s with Leave it to Beaver and all that, we set a terrible expectation for women. Right. If you are not happy and made up, if you don't like look at Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Did you watch that show? I watched.   Michael Kent Some of it, but I'm currently rewatching Mad Men, but it's a similar era and the same vibe, yeah. If the woman isn't made up, hair perfect, dinner on the table the second the father gets home, right? Then if that's not what you're doing, you're a bad wife. Whereas now, it's like, you know, if you're not fighting about dumb stuff or if, you know, one of the people in the relationship isn't just a complete follower. Like, one person's not allowed to have an opinion and the other person has an opinion or whatever the dynamic is, right? It sets a terrible precedent for what people are willing to accept, which is why I have such a fundamentally challenging time at colleges when I do this activity. And inevitably, somebody will say, you know, well, Joker and Harley Quinn, I want that kind of love. Like, that's a healthy relationship. There's not a moment of time where that's a healthy relationship. But like when Suicide Squad came out, how many young women do you know dressed up like Harley Quinn for Halloween? Yeah. Yeah, there's a similar thing right now with one of my focuses with my career is engagement and dealing with, particularly in the corporate sphere, dealing with apathy and people who are not wanting to open themselves up to connect with other people. And it is somewhat generational, which I hate to say, but this is more of a younger person problem than an older person problem. And when you look at a very famous quote that came from Schitt's Creek, I'm trying really hard not to connect with people right now. It's on sweaters, it's on tote bags, it's on bumper stickers, and it's funny, but I hate it because it is contagion. Like there are people that now think like staying in and binge watching Netflix is a replacement for real live connection. And we are all needing more connection. And it becomes, you know, it's cliche to say, like, you know, because of the internet and social media and all that, but we need connection. We, like, people need connection to be fulfilled in our lives. It's how we, we are a very social species. And so everyone, when they get in that room with friends and they're connected, feels amazing. And if there's those times when you're in that room and you don't feel amazing, it's because you're not connected, which means you're either not present or you're not listening or you're not, you know what I mean?   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Like, but when you really, truly feel connected, there's no feeling like that. And it's, we're setting a really bad example by having these types of quotes, like, I'm really trying hard not to connect with people right now as, like, a popular feeling. Because it's, it becomes more than just a TV, you know, line. It becomes like... A whole culture type of thing where you're just, you know, this is more preferable. And I get it. It is more preferable sometimes to not like it feels more safe to just stay at home. But it's sort of lazy and it's sort of it's an easy way to you're letting your nervous system win. You're letting your, you know, your anxieties and everything win when you could be a much more fulfilled, happy person if you content person. If you do allow yourself to connect and be open to connection. Yeah. So fun fact, you might, you might be able to use this on your podcast, but the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia was the first penitentiary in the country that tried using isolation as a tactic as like a punishment for inmates. And what they found, yeah. So what they would do is like, they'd have everybody, um, uh, In their cells, staggered outdoor time. So they'd never know who was outside with them, and they couldn't see anyone. And they were all in like little, literally high wall, brick wall, five by five outdoor spaces. So they were completely isolated from each other. And they did not have any interaction with anybody, not in their cell, not around their cell, nothing. They were on one wall, separated by walls. And what they found was that within a few months of that lack of connection to anyone, these men went crazy.   Michael Kent They went bananas. They tried to unalive themselves. They like were starting to hallucinate and like having severe mental health like backlash from it. So it's not, you know, it is in us. It's biological, that need for connection. And so phrases like I'm trying really hard not to, you know, connect with people right now. I agree with you. It's very funny. I love Schitt's Creek. I'm rewatching it for like the 18th time right now. I just watched that episode. It's like the second episode. But it really does set a bad precedent. And then you have the backlash of that where the loneliness epidemic. And when I go to colleges, a lot of these advisors are talking about, my students come to me and say, I feel like I have no friends, like I'm not connected. But then they have events and the students don't come out to events, right? So it's kind of like you're shooting, you're cutting off your nose to spite your face. Yeah, it's a huge problem. And outside, I don't know whether or not in the higher education world, if this is as much of an issue, but it definitely fuels addiction in the real world. The isolation fuels addiction. And have you ever heard of the Rat Park study? There's a famous study in the 70s. I think it was in Canada, but like British Columbia. Basically, they had a bunch of mice or lab rats or whatever. And they gave them access to, in their water bottle, they had like drugs in the water bottle, like morphine or cocaine or something in the water bottle. And the rats that were isolated constantly drugged themselves, but the rats that were in a community of other rats did not. That's so interesting. Yeah, and it's been used for, you know, for 40 years as this or 50 years as this study that shows that, like, we need connection. We need connection because we don't have connection. find other ways to satisfy our, I don't know if that's our nervous system or whatever that is in us. But we end up, you know, basically the connection aspect of it replaces the need to get dopamine from other things, right?   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) So we're getting dopamine from those connections, which is critically important to our data. And it might not be substance abuse, right, particularly in those instances like you were talking about where the college students complain and then they don't leave.   Michael Kent Well, they might be getting dopamine from scrolling Instagram or scrolling TikTok or reading or watching Netflix or whatever it is that they're doing. I'm not saying any one of those things is worse than the other.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I'm just saying all of them are a thing you do when you're not connecting. If that becomes a replacement for connection to get your dopamine, that's when you're going to be, you know, basically you have to keep feeding that beast, you know, and keep you because that's where addiction comes from. need to keep feeding that dopamine thing because you're not getting it naturally. So I think the key here is, right, even if it's uncomfortable or if it feels, you know, weird, especially post-COVID, right, which I think creates...   Michael Kent Created a lot of disconnection. It's finding that connection somehow. And so it kind of takes you away from, you know, trying to find it in other sources. Is that, I love that. absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. You know, we, I think like just natural human connection provides a lot of dopamine. Yeah. But that's if you're actually connecting. That doesn't mean being in a room with a person. means actually connecting. Yeah. That's really interesting. I feel like we've overshot your episode. This is gonna be like three different episodes. No, this is great. Honestly, I love this conversation. I was going to say like, I think we, you know, I could talk to you about this kind of all day. I love your perspective. But we should probably, we should probably get on with our days, you know, but thank you so much, Michael, for being here. Would you mind, I know you just put out a book. So would you mind talking about that for a second, telling everyone where they can get it, how they can reach you? Yeah, I selected more than 50 episodes or topics. pass.,ages, take you It's from my podcast, The Internet Says It's True, and compiled them into sort of like a bathroom reader style book. So you pick this thing up, and each story is only three or four pages, and they're all these amazing stories that sound made up but are really true.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Like, for instance, one of the stories is about how before the Teachers in Space program from the Challenger space shuttle mission, their first idea was to put Big Bird in space.   Michael Kent And I did an entire episode about how they really were going to, and Carol Spinney, the guy inside Big Bird costume, agreed to it and wanted to do it. And so we talk about that and, like, why it eventually failed and didn't, you know, that's what launched the Teachers in Space program. So there's stories like that that were, like, you know, make you say there's no way that's true, and they're all true. And at the end of every chapter, there's a QR code that you can scan that links you to the episode where you get to hear not only, you know, that story, but then also...   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) A quiz with a guest, like we did with you on my previous two episodes. So, but yeah, you can find that wherever you buy books.   Michael Kent It's called The Internet Says It's True, Stories That Sound Made Up But Aren't. Thank you so much.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Thank you so much, Michael, for being here, for having this conversation. It felt very, I know we covered kind of a wide range of topics, but I think that it was all very valid and very, like, fascinating.   Michael Kent So thank you, and I'd love to have you back on any time that you'd like.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I would love to.   Michael Kent This is, I agree with you.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) We could have just kept going because I love to talk about things that aren't magic and aren't, you know, history. Like if I can get to a point where I can just talk about real world stuff that, you know, is affecting all of us, I love that. So I envy what you do for a living, that you're helping people in a way that's like very connecting A to B in a straight line, you know?   Michael Kent So it's really cool.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) Thank you very much.   Michael Kent And I love what you do.   Marissa F. Cohen (Marissa F. Cohen) I think magic is so fascinating and comedy just makes. People happy. I wish I was funnier. I always laugh when I'm talking to you, so. Oh, it's usually at me, but I appreciate it anyways. Well, you have a very happy new year, you and Larry, and it's good to talk to you again. Thank you. You too. That was awesome. Thank you very much. very welcome. Absolutely. Yeah, that was a lot of fun. Oh, good. And truly, anytime you want to come back. I will. Yeah. I don't know. I feel like we covered everything in the first episode. My episodes always range. Thank you. Yeah, absolutely. All right. So now I'm going to record my two episodes, and I won't have to do anything next week. Woo! Thank you. So I have one set up for this week and next week, so this will be probably January 21st, and when it goes up, I'll send it. me in it, and yep. Will do. Sounds great. Okay. Thanks, Marissa. Thanks, Michael. Have a good one. All right. You too. Bye. Bye.

This week on We Might Be Drunk, hosts Mark Normand and Sam Morril sit down with Bert Kreischer for one of the most unfiltered conversations yet. Bert comes in full force talking about life on the road, balancing family and fame, and the grind of building a career in comedy. They dive into touring, getting recognized everywhere you go, the comedy mindset, and the heat behind shooting new material at scale. Bert opens up about his Netflix series Free Bert and how the show pushed him into both ridiculous and reflective moments. He also gets real about recent changes in his life, how he approaches comedy at this stage, and what keeps him going when the stakes get high. Mark and Sam bring their signature raw style, pushing back, laughing hard, and finding the funniest corners of every topic. This is one of those episodes that captures exactly why Bert is one of comedy's biggest personalities. Follow the Hosts and Guest Bert Kreischer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bertkreischer Twitter / X: https://x.com/bertkreischer Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bertkreischer TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bertkreischer Mark Normand Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marknormand/?hl=en Sam Morril Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sammorril See Them Live Get tickets for Mark Normand shows: https://punchup.live/marknormand/tickets Get tickets for Sam Morril shows: https://punchup.live/sammorril/tickets Produced by Gotham Production Studios Producer: Matt Peters Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrmatthewpeters Sponsors Boxie Pro The litter that actually works. Odor-free, no fake scents, and incredible clumping. Get 30% off at https://boxiecat.com/WMBD Use code WMBD Shopify Turn your idea into a real business. Start selling today. Sign up for a $1/month trial at https://shopify.com/drunk IQ Bar Clean-label protein bars, hydration mixes, and mushroom coffee to fuel your brain and body. Get 20% off and free shipping. Text DRUNK to 64000 Message and data rates may apply. Quo The smartest way to run your business communications. Try it free and get 20% off your first six months at https://quo.com/WMBD 00:00 Leather Pants & Comedian Fashion 03:13 Stories of On-Stage Outfits & Standup Trends 07:40 Bert's Health Scare: Blood Clots & Flying 14:13 Recovery, Life Changes & Not Drinking 18:59 Gifts Between Comics & Crazy Generosity 21:33 Comedy Friendships, Fame & Keeping It Real 27:08 Comic Success, Growth & Staying Grounded 33:31 Health, Weight Loss, and the Standup Grind 39:22 Processed Food, Obesity & Global Problems 44:54 Political Rants & Crowd Work in Comedy 51:08 Weight Loss Drugs, Eating Habits & Vices 57:59 Friendship, Touring Stories & Missing The Old Days 01:04:24 Comedy Career Highs, Lows & Self-Motivation 01:11:54 Pitching the Show & Behind the Scenes of 'Free Bert' 01:19:56 Showbiz: Casting, Acting, & Industry Lessons 01:27:04 Breaking Through, Finding Your Voice as a Comic 01:34:41 From Struggles to Success: Building Your Brand 01:43:13 Wrap-Up: Free Bert, Future Plans & Goodbyes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For Philadelphia Eagles President and longtime Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) volunteer Don Smolenski, success is built on trust and care – and connecting with the community means everything. In the new episode of Breaking Through, Don joins Madeline to talk about what the team means to the city – and what makes the partnership between the Eagles and CHOP so special. It's an inspiring conversation that highlights how a collaboration built on shared values can make a difference for an entire community.  

Are your marketing efforts creating a real pipeline or just impressive-looking metrics that don't translate to revenue? Too many marketing teams celebrate vanity metrics while sales teams struggle to hit their numbers. There's a disconnect that's costing companies serious money. In this conversation with Scott Logan, Chief Marketing Officer at AmplifAI, we explore a radical approach to marketing that puts sales success at the center of everything. Scott brings a unique perspective, having started as a sales rep before moving into marketing operations, giving him firsthand experience on both sides of the revenue equation. The Revenue-First Marketing Philosophy Scott challenges the traditional marketing mindset with a bold statement: marketing's only purpose is to help sales sell more. This isn't about diminishing marketing's value—it's about aligning every marketing activity with measurable business outcomes that matter. We discuss why marketing teams should share the same dashboards, filters, and success metrics as sales teams. When marketing and sales are looking at different definitions of success, you create organizational friction that slows down deals and confuses buyers. Breaking Through the Noise with Strategic Creativity Forget cookie-cutter marketing playbooks. Scott shares compelling examples of how creative thinking beats big budgets every time. From a $500 billboard strategy that outperformed million-dollar campaigns to trade show tactics that generated equal engagement with a fraction of the staff, these stories prove that strategic thinking trumps traditional approaches. The key insight? Your competitors are following the same best practices you are. To stand out, you need to think differently about how you create awareness and engage prospects. AI-Powered Marketing That Actually Works We explore practical applications of AI in marketing that go beyond content generation. Scott explains how his team uses AI to analyze competitor landscapes, extract insights from sales calls, and turn complex survey data into actionable intelligence - all in minutes rather than weeks. One particularly interesting case study involves a summer intern who completed what should have been a three-week manual project in just one day using AI, demonstrating the productivity gains available to teams willing to embrace these tools strategically. The Compensation Alignment Game-Changer Here's where Scott gets controversial: every marketing role should have compensation tied directly to sales quota achievement. Not just at the leadership level, but down to individual contributors working on specific campaigns or content pieces. This alignment creates a fundamental shift in how marketing teams think about their work. When your bonus depends on the sales team hitting their numbers, every campaign decision gets filtered through a different lens. Here's what you'll gain from this conversation: 1.    A framework for aligning marketing metrics with actual revenue outcomes 2.    Creative strategies for maximizing brand impact without massive budgets 3.    Practical AI applications that save time and improve marketing effectiveness 4.    The case for tying marketing compensation directly to sales success 5.    Methods for building genuine partnership between marketing and sales teams Scott's approach challenges conventional wisdom about marketing's role in B2B organizations. His emphasis on sales enablement, creative problem-solving, and revenue accountability offers a roadmap for marketing teams ready to prove their impact on the bottom line. Key Moments of This Episode 00:00:00 - Marketing and Sales Alignment: The Foundation for Revenue Success Scott Logan introduces the critical concept that marketing, sales, and channel teams must align to one unified revenue number, with compensation tied to actual sales quota achievement rather than vanity metrics. 00:01:37 - Meet Scott Logan: From Sales Rep to CMO at AmplifAI Scott shares his journey from 2007 sales rep to CMO, including early marketing operations experience when SDRs didn't exist, and introduces AmplifAI's AI-powered CX performance management platform. 00:04:08 - Bowling Championships and Pet Lions: Getting Personal with Scott Scott reveals his unexpected talent as a two-time state bowling champion and shares his grandfather's fascinating story of owning exotic pets including a lion in the 1930s. 00:06:00 - Marketing's True Purpose: Helping Sales Sell More Scott explains why marketing's sole purpose should be enabling sales success, emphasizing the need for sales team involvement in every step from content planning to campaign execution and feedback loops. 00:11:12 - Revenue Accountability: Why Marketing Must Own Sales Targets Scott advocates for marketing teams having joint ownership of revenue targets with bonuses tied to closed deals, introducing AmplifAI's "money team" approach where all go-to-market leaders share unified success metrics. 00:13:25 - Brand vs Demand: Strategic Messaging That Drives Pipeline Exploration of how brand influences demand generation through proper messaging alignment, buyer priority matching, and strategic presence expansion rather than scattered marketing efforts across all channels. 00:18:47 - Breaking Marketing Best Practices: Innovation Over Convention Scott challenges marketers to move beyond 2017 tactics, using examples like strategic billboard placement and creative conference marketing to demonstrate how breaking conventional wisdom creates better results. 00:20:23 - Marketing Enablement: Spending 50% of Time with Sales Teams Discussion of practical strategies for marketing-sales collaboration, including the "did you help a sales rep today" mentality and building trust through direct engagement with sales professionals. 00:23:52 - AI-Powered Marketing: Scaling Pipeline Generation Intelligently Scott outlines how marketers should use AI for competitor analysis, sales call evaluation, content creation, and data segmentation while maintaining focus on sales team needs and buyer conversations. 00:28:55 - The Intern AI Success Story: Three Weeks to Ten Minutes Real example of how a summer intern used AI to complete a complex data analysis project in one day that would have traditionally taken three weeks of manual work. 00:35:12 - AI Agents in Marketing: Experimenting with Transparent Automation Scott discusses AmplifAI's experiments with AI SDRs, emphasizing transparency about AI usage while ensuring seamless handoffs to human representatives when complexity increases beyond automation capabilities. 00:40:31 - Social Selling Success: Eight Reps to President's Club Scott shares his early social selling program success story from 2011, where he helped eight of twelve sales reps achieve President's Club status through strategic LinkedIn coaching and training. About Scott Logan Scott Logan is a seasoned revenue and marketing leader known for building pipeline-driven growth engines that align sales, marketing, and operations. Currently the Chief Marketing Officer at AmplifA, Scott specializes in creating predictable demand, accelerating revenue, and operationalizing go-to-market strategies powered by automation and AI. With a career spanning both sales and marketing leadership, he brings a rare, practitioner-level perspective on what actually drives pipeline and performance. Scott is also the host of the Making Fun of Marketing podcast, where he challenges conventional B2B thinking and brings candid, real-world conversations to the forefront of modern revenue leadership. What differentiates Scott is his relentless focus on outcomes over activity—breaking down silos, simplifying complexity, and building systems that make revenue teams more effective and human at the same time. He's deeply passionate about helping organizations eliminate friction, rethink how buyers engage, and design revenue motions that scale with clarity and purpose. Follow Us On: ·         LinkedIn ·         Twitter ·         YouTube Channel ·         Instagram ·         Facebook Learn More About FlyMSG Features Like: ·         LinkedIn Auto Comment Generator ·         AI Social Media Post Generator ·         Auto Text Expander ·         AI Grammar Checker ·         AI Sales Roleplay and Coaching ·         Paragraph Rewrite with AI ·         Sales Prospecting Training for Individuals ·         FlyMSG Enterprise Sales Prospecting Training Program Install FlyMSG for Free: ·         As a Chrome Extension ·         As an Edge Extension  

Most producers say they want to dominate 2026, yet many are still waiting for permission. Waiting for the “right time” to invest in themselves. Waiting to see if someone else will sign off on it. That mindset quietly keeps people stuck—and it's far more common than most want to admit.In this episode, I sit down with my client and friend, Andy Neary, for an honest, no-fluff conversation about what actually holds high performers back. We talk about why driven professionals often struggle with self-worth, why chasing a “guaranteed ROI” can sabotage momentum, and how confidence isn't something you wait to feel—it's something you build by consistently showing up for yourself.This is a real conversation about responsibility, ownership, and what it takes to stop playing small as the new year approaches.About The Guest: Andy Neary is a speaker, author, podcast host, and coach dedicated to helping professionals build the mindset, habits, and strategies needed to excel in business and life. A former professional baseball player in the Milwaukee Brewers organization, Andy leveraged discipline, unshakeable drive, and consistent daily habits to succeed at the highest level — despite being undersized for his position. Andy Neary - Speaker, Author, ConsultantToday, he applies those same lessons off the field through Complete Game Consulting, a coaching and training company he founded in 2019, where he advises insurance professionals and agencies on mindset, marketing, branding, and performance. Andy is also host of Bullpen Sessions, a podcast for driven professionals focused on mindset and tactics for success. He's a contributing author to the Amazon best-selling book Breaking Through the Status Quo and is a sought-after keynote speaker for events and podcasts. Andy lives in south-central Wisconsin.If you enjoyed this episode, make sure and give us a five star rating  and leave us a comment on iTunes, Podcast Addict, Podchaser and Castbox about what you'd like us to talk about that will help you realize that at any moment, any day, you too can decide, it's your turn! 

That Solo Life, Episode 327: That Solo Life Looks Back at 2025 Episode Summary As 2025 comes to a close, it's the perfect time to reflect on the trends, challenges, and bright spots that defined the year for communications professionals. In this special year-end episode, hosts Karen Swim and Michelle Kane look back at their favorite moments from the podcast and the industry. They discuss the rapid evolution of AI from a shiny new object to a practical tool, highlighting the returning emphasis on the human element in communications. The conversation also addresses the rise of new social platforms like Threads, the power of community in overcoming adversity, and the growing trend of PR pros sharing their knowledge and experience more openly. Join them for a thoughtful recap of the year's key lessons and a hopeful look forward to what 2026 may bring for solo practitioners. Episode Highlights [02:18] The Evolution of AI: How perceptions of AI have shifted from a job replacement threat to a valuable tool that requires human intelligence and creativity. [04:24] Favorite Guest Moments: Remembering standout conversations with guests like Melissa Vela-Williamson on branding and bravery, and Jess Sato on finding your "big idea." [06:47] The Rise of Threads: Why Threads became a refreshing and rebellious bright spot in the social media landscape for communicators this year. [09:31] The Power of Community: A discussion on how challenges in 2025 strengthened professional and personal communities, leading to more connection and mutual support. [12:10] A Shift Towards Analog?: Observing a growing desire for in-person connection and tangible experiences in a digital world. [13:17] PR Pros on LinkedIn: Celebrating the trend of practitioners opening up, sharing processes, failures, and wins to help the entire industry learn and grow. [15:20] A Look Ahead to 2026: Carrying the lessons of connection and transparency into the new year. Related Episodes & Additional Information In this episode, Karen and Michelle mention several past guests who provided valuable insights throughout the year: That Solo Life, Episode 308: Branding, Bravery and Breaking Through with Melissa Vela-Williamson  That Solo Life, Episode 296: The Big Idea with Jess Sato That Solo Life, Episode 284: How PR Pros Can Use an Audit to Unlock Social Media Success with Nicole Lauren Host & Show Info That Solo Life is a podcast created for public relations, communication, and marketing professionals who work as independent and small practitioners. Hosted by Karen Swim, APR, founder of Words For Hire and President of Solo PR, and Michelle Kane, Principal of Voice Matters, the show delivers expert insights, encouragement, and advice for solo PR pros navigating today's dynamic professional landscape. Thank you for listening to our final episode of 2025! If you found value in our conversations this year, please help us grow by sharing this episode with a colleague. Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a five-star review on your favorite podcast platform. We'll be back in 2026 with more great guests and insights to help you thrive. Happy New Year

Sound you can feel changes how you heal. Alyssa sat down with sound healer and world musician Gabriel Logan Braun to explore Sonic Womb, a fully improvised journey that blends voice, handpan, Ngoni, didgeridoo, harmonium, crystal bowls, and live looping to regulate the nervous system and restore a felt sense of safety. Gabriel shares his path from a teenage dark night to bhakti-inspired practice, mentorship, and a decade of offering trauma-sensitive sound therapy in recovery centres, retreat spaces, and beyond.Together, they map the science and the soul: how slower rhythms and low frequencies support a shift from sympathetic arousal into parasympathetic ease; why alpha and theta brainwaves invite calm focus and liminal rest; and how vagus nerve activation, mindful breath, and gentle vibration reshape our stress response. We also dig into somatic release—those twitches, shivers, and waves of emotion that signal the body is completing what it once had to hold—and the role of safe containers in allowing that process to unfold.We pair heat with rest through Primal Fire, Gabriel's movement framework that stokes Agni with Qigong, dynamic breath work, primal locomotion, and freeform dance, then lands in Sonic Womb for integration. And we travel to Sedona's red rock country, where ancient iron-rich formations and year-round creeks offer a natural amplifier for presence and ritual. If you're curious to experience Gabriel's work, start with the Sonic Womb album, the Wildfire EP, or his new hip-hop track Breaking Through the Static—and, if you feel called, explore our intimate April retreat in Sedona, where Gabriel will co-facilitate with live sound journeys.If this conversation resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs nervous system support, and leave a five-star review so more people can find these tools. Ready to join us in Sedona or want to know if it's a fit? Book a call through the show notes and let's connect.Gabriel's IG: @gabrielloganbraunGabriel's Music: https://gabrielloganbraun.bandcamp.comhttps://m.youtube.com/channel/UCkeQ0YJnXpBXmljVL-6Nh1ghttps://open.spotify.com/artist/0KQuIR2Js4Nx9vTM7NBU7J?si=UESxxAfCTO6BzJkE6h4W8gAlyssa's IG: @wildfemininerise Work With Alyssa:Book a 1:1 Mentorship Session With Alyssa $165 USD Book a 2 Hour Ancestral Healing & Reconnection Session With Alyssa $222 USD Ancestral Alchemy—12 Week Immersive Journey Starting January 2026 Discount code to save $100 — BWR100 Sedona Retreat 2026 You can also email Alyssa with any inquiries at alyssastefanson@gmail.com

Particularly in the early stages, breaking through your sales plateau may just mean doing more of what you’re doing. But generally, at some point, we hit a plateau that is created by the fact that we can’t run any faster. We can’t do any more by ourselves. So we either need to implement new procedures and new processes, we need to get some help, or something needs to change fundamentally in the business in order to get us to that next level. Identifying the Real Causes of a Sales Plateau David: Hi, and welcome to the podcast. In today’s episode, cohost Jay McFarland, and I will be discussing the idea of breaking through your sales plateau. Welcome back, Jay. Jay: It’s so good to be here again with you David, and as always, I’m very excited about this topic. I know businesses that hit these thresholds. Breaking through can be a monumental task to get to the next level and they’re not sure how to do it. Is it marketing? Is it adding new products? I think that’s what a lot of them try to do. They’re like, well, let’s add 10 more products to the lineup and then we’ll do it. And oftentimes that can just make the situation worse and not better. David: Yeah, it’s true. Most businesses, I think it’s safe to say, at some point run into a sales plateau. They hit a level of sales and they can’t get past it. I believe in small businesses this is particularly true, where you’re just working and pushing and you’re trying to get to that next benchmark. And you just can’t reach it. There are thresholds in small business, getting to your first hundred thousand in gross sales and then your first 250, and then you hit 500 and then a million and then 2 million and going from there. In the early stages, you can generally do pretty well, like to get from a hundred thousand to 250 is often easier than it is to get from a million to 2 million. But most of us, at some point, will encounter some sort of sales plateau. You get there, you see it, you’re targeting it, you’re working toward it and you just can’t seem to hit it. Breaking through becomes a challenge. You May Not Know How You Got Here And so it’s really just a matter of getting stuck. It’s like, I feel like I’m stuck. I’m here, I need to be there and I’m not sure what to do next. Jay: Yeah. And I wonder how much of it is that they’re not really sure how they got to the first sales plateau. I mean, they may think that they know, David: That’s true. Jay: But it could be something completely different. And this could go back to something we talked about in a previous podcast: following up with your customers. Find out why they purchased, how they feel about their purchase. Are they returning customers? Are they not returning customers? So if you didn’t understand why they bought in the first place and how they felt about that purchase, it’s going to be hard breaking through that next sales plateau. David: It is, absolutely. And the biggest hangup that I see for most people is not knowing, “what do I do next?” And as you indicated, people get to a certain point in some cases, they’re not sure how they did it. What’s that referred to as? Unconscious competence? Jay: Mm-hmm, David: Where I’m doing things and it’s working, but I’m not even sure of what I’ve done. So I haven’t gotten around to building a system around it, to put that into place so I can replicate it. But there’s also the idea that what gets me to here will not necessarily get me to there. Right? So breaking through to level one won’t necessarily get me to level two. When Hard Work Doesn’t Result in Breaking Through That’s not always the case, particularly in the early stages, you can do more of what you’re doing to get to a higher level. But generally, at some point, we hit a sales plateau that is created by the fact that we can’t run any faster. We can’t do any more by ourselves. So we either need to implement new procedures and new processes. Or we need to get some help. Something needs to change fundamentally in the business, in order to keep breaking through that sales plateau and get us to the next level. Jay: Yeah, something that can be very hard for people, delegation, right? Letting go of your baby, right? David: Yeah. Jay: That you worked so hard on. And now you’re going to trust some new employee with some new aspect. It’s not easy to hand those things over. But often, if you’re not willing to do it, you’re not going to grow through that next sales plateau. Refusing to Delegate Can Lead to a Sales Plateau David: That’s true. And some people don’t want to. Some people are like, okay, look, I don’t want to have employees. I’m comfortable with the way things are. And if they are, then that’s fine. If they want to get to another level of sales though, then it’s really going to be a lot more about processes. If you’re determined not to get additional help, at least in terms of human resources, then you’re going to have to figure things out in terms of either technological resources or being able to do more of what you need to do so that you can keep breaking through to get to the levels you want to reach. So in looking at getting stuck, at hitting a sales plateau that you can’t reach, one of the first things I would suggest is that we ask ourselves, okay, what’s causing this? Am I just not able to get enough customers? In other words, could I handle more business, but I either don’t know how to do it, or I’m not successful in doing what I know? Is Your Breaking Through Problem Not Enough Customers? Or Too Many? Or I’m doing what I know and it’s not working? Because if that’s the issue, if it’s just a matter of getting more clients, there are very specific things that we can do to make that happen. On the other hand, if we’ve got a lot of clients and we feel like we can’t keep up with the clients we have, then that is certainly going to prevent us from breaking through to the next level. Unless we can either leverage things so we can get more from the clients we have without having to add more or we figure out how to get some help, depending on our willingness to want to do that. Jay: Yeah. And, an important one, can we take our existing clientele and get them to come back? We’ve talked about this before, right. You know, David: mm-hmm. Jay: It’s going to be easier to get an existing customer to repurchase if they were satisfied and if that’s your type of product. Some products are one and done, and that’s just the way it is. Breaking Through the Sales Plateau with Existing Clients But if you can have a product where they’re like, I like this, I need more of this. I want to come back for this… having systems to remind them to come back, drip, programs and those types of things, to get them to be a return customer. That could be the biggest source of your income. And you’re not spending extra money to acquire new customers for breaking through that next sales plateau. David: Exactly. And when we get to a point where we know we want to be somewhere, and we’re not quite there, identifying what that biggest bottleneck is, is one of the most important things. There’s a big distinction between the idea of potential, where I could potentially be, and what’s keeping me from getting there. And a lot of people focus on the idea of adding more potential. Well, maybe if I add this or I add this, or I add this, I add all these different things for the potential of getting to where I want to be. And instead, to get past that, what they really should be looking at is “what is the bottleneck?” Fixing the Primary Bottleneck that Creates a Sales Plateau What is the single biggest contributor to the fact that I’m not breaking through? What is the one primary thing that is preventing me from getting past that? Is it the people? Is it the customers I’m interacting with? There are a lot of businesses who, if they want to reach their sales levels, they’re going to have to jettison some customers who are not spending as much money with them. A lot of times, low-dollar, low-profit clients who take up a lot of time, who are very demanding, can take up valuable time that could be spent with people who understand and appreciate better, the value that you bring to the table. So if it is a situation where you don’t want to add staff, then you’re going to have to be extremely selective, going back to another point we raised in a previous podcast, about the people that you bring in the door to begin with. The prospects and clients that you choose to interact with. Jay: Yeah, and in that case, you’re going to have to have a system to identify what type of customer they are, classify them and then figure out is this the type of customer that we want? Letting Go of Poor Quality Clients If it is, then you’re going to want to target them and focus more on them. If it’s not, then you’re going to kind of want to let them slowly disappear so that you can focus on the ones that you want. David: Yeah. And I think for a lot of us, if you’ve been in business for any length of time, you have a favorite customer or two. And so a really easy exercise you can do is take a look at those customers and say, okay, what do they have in common? What is it that I like about them? Is it their attitude? Is it the way they communicate? I mean, communication is huge. One of the very first things that will tell you if you’ve got a problem client is their unwillingness to communicate. If they’re not communicating the way that you need to have them communicate in order to fulfill an order or get the work done, that is a relationship that’s really in trouble. Breaking through becomes much harder. Communication Problems: The Early Warning Sign In hindsight, every time I’ve had, in business, a relationship that didn’t work out, it almost invariably came down to a problem with communication. Where the person that I was trying to help was not willing to communicate enough to allow me to do that. And in today’s society, in today’s economy, we refer to the term “ghosting,” where you’re trying to reach somebody and they’re not getting back to you. And that’s a bad sign. When people do that to you consistently, you need to ask yourself, okay, is this the type of client that I really want to continue to interact with on an ongoing basis? Or am I better served to find clients who are open, and willing to engage, and responsive, so that we can do the things that we’re setting out to do together? Jay: Yeah, I love that. And also the customer who is responsive to your suggestions and ideas. I love the question when there’s been an issue, “what can I do to make it right?” I just love this question. Right? Let them decide. But we all know that there are customers who, no matter what you do, they just want to be mad. They just want to be angry. They just want to vent. And they’ve already decided they’re not going to use you. You have to be able to know at some point where you’re like, okay, I’ve offered three or four solutions. They’re not biting on any of them. They just want to continue to rail on me. When a Customer Won't Be Satisfied—No Matter What You Do I mean, at that point, you just have to cut bait and run. Because you just don’t have the time in your day to deal with those type of people. David: Yeah. I mean, you have to do the best you can. If there’s something that you did wrong, you need to do your very best to make it right. Do what you feel is appropriate. And if that’s still not good enough, and if you’re not able to do whatever it is, they’re suggesting. Yeah. Then you’re going to have to figure out a way to wrap that up as amicably as possible. But also recognize that you can do as great a job as you possibly could for a person. And for whatever reason, if they’re not happy, they can still go online and tell a hundred people about you. Jay: That’s true. David: Right? Jay: That’s true. What Clients Say Can Impact Your Sales Plateau David: So there’s this balance, particularly now, where you want to do your very best for the clients that you’re working with. You want to make sure that they’re satisfied as much as you possibly can satisfy them. But as you indicated, there are people who are just not going to be satisfied no matter what you do. And in those situations, sometimes you just have to cut your losses and take your lumps. And very often people will recognize when they hear people like that complaining, that “oh, okay. I think this is kind of what they do.” And as long as you’re not doing that with many people. I mean, if that happens once or twice, and you’ve got people over the course of a career where you’ve had a situation like that, that’s not going to cause a problem. Now, if a lot of people are reacting to you like that, then you got to really start looking at what you’re doing, what you’re putting out there and how you’re responding to them. Jay: Yeah, asking yourself those difficult questions. But you know, we’re talking about sales plateaus and breaking through a sales plateau. You mentioned, I mean the ideal is to have a customer review system where people can see all these five-star reviews. Reviews as a Sales Plateau Breaker I am amazed at how much I use those, even though I know that a lot of them, I don’t know how true they are, but it has still become part of my life to look at those reviews. And if there are negative reviews right off the top, I’m moving on to the next person. They’ve lost me instantly. So that’s an important part of this process. David: Yeah, absolutely. I know when I’m online, I definitely look at the reviews and I try to make sure there are enough of them. Jay: Mm-hmm David: If there are three of them and they’ve got all five stars, I could be skeptical. If they have hundreds of reviews or thousands of reviews, and they’re all five stars, I’m more inclined to believe it. Now that might be able to be done with bots, I don’t know. But I tend to have more confidence when there are actual comments there that look legit. And when there are enough of them. One of the things that we have on our website is what I call our Wall of Fame, which is clients that we’ve worked with, that we’ve helped to grow their sales and profits. And they’re at TopSecrets.com/results. Using Testimonials for Breaking Through If you go to that page, there are dozens or more. There are videos. There are audios. There’s text. All the people who have recently commented on experiences they’ve had so that when somebody’s considering doing business with us, I can say, Hey, listen, take a look at our Wall of Fame. I would love to see you on here. Right? So they can look at it from two standpoints. Not just, these are people who have been helped by this company, but also, wow, I think I’d like to be on there too. I’d like to be on the Wall of Fame. I’d like to be another happy customer, getting the kind of results that these other people are getting. And that also goes to the idea of community-building and interacting with people the way that we need to interact with them, to create the results we’re looking for. So from the standpoint of breaking through your sales plateau, it’s sort of all of the above. It’s about saying there are things that are preventing me from getting from here to there. It could be the quality of customers I’m interacting with. Or the quantity of customers I’m interacting with. It could be my own internal structures, systems, staffing. Zeroing In on Your Primary Obstacles So identifying certainly the top one, but the top two or three primary obstacles, and then systematically tackling those, is really what’s going to get you there. Jay: Yeah, I love that. But having an awareness of it. Talking about it. Discussing about it, you know, in your company and identifying those things. And, that’s what you’ll help them do as you workshop this through the week. David: Exactly. In the Inner Circle this week, we’ll be discussing how do we start breaking through our sales plateau? And in situations like this, it’s great to be able to interact with somebody who has a very specific situation, where they’ve been stuck at a certain point for a long time. And within a matter of a couple of questions, we can very often help them to pinpoint the area where they’re stuck so that they can apply some focus on that and start to get the results that they’re looking for. So if you’re not already a member, be sure to go to TopSecrets.com/ic. If you’re already a member, just log into the Inner Circle website and we will see you inside. Jay: Well, I love that. Real actionable advice that can make a difference, right away. David: Exactly. Jay: All right, David, it’s been such a pleasure. Thank you. David: Thank you, Jay. Need to Start Breaking Through Your Sales Plateau? If so, check out the five primary ways we help promotional product distributors grow: Just Getting Started? If you (or someone on your team) is just getting started in promotional products sales, learn how we can help. Need Clients Now? If you're already grounded in the essentials of promotional product sales and just need to get clients now, click here. Want EQP/Preferential Pricing? Are you an established industry veteran doing a significant volume of sales? If so, click here to get End Quantity Pricing from many of the top supplier lines in the promo industry. Time to Hire Salespeople? If you want to hire others to grow your promo sales, click here. Ready to Dominate Your Market? If you're serious about creating top-of-mind-awareness with the very best prospects in your market, schedule a one-on-one Strategy Session here.

This is the stuff they don't put in documentaries.Seth Ryan's first combat mission as an Army Ranger wasn't just historic — it was horrifying. We're talking chemical suits, pitch-black raids, gunships in the sky, and digging up decomposed soldiers with their bare hands. This is the real story behind the rescue of POW Jessica Lynch — told by the guy who lived it.And trust me... you've never heard it like this like you will on today's Urban Valor Episode!In this episode, Seth walks us through:- Growing up surrounded by drugs, prison-bound relatives, and trauma most kids never see.- The fire that burned down his home — and the weird, defining aftermath.- Getting mentally obliterated in Marine Corps boot camp... and reshaped into something tougher.- Switching to the Army Rangers and becoming a punching bag for hazing because of it.- Living in barracks filled with black mold, spitting blood from pneumonia — and not backing down.- Watching new guys break bones falling off rappel towers, or worse.- His first mission ever — a rescue op no one expected to survive.- Digging into a soccer field by hand to recover the rotting remains of American soldiers.The unspoken toll that moments like that leave behind… and why Rangers carry it alone.If you're here for real special operations history, raw emotional storytelling, and a side of war that doesn't make it into the headlines… you're exactly where you need to be.

In this episode of The Hacka Podcast, Greg Hackathorn sits down with Ray Ervin, a creator, producer, entrepreneur, and one of the leading voices behind the rise of Apostolic music. Ray shares his powerful personal story—from growing up in Birmingham and witnessing the transforming power of the Holy Ghost in his family, to discovering his calling in music, entrepreneurship, and Kingdom impact.We dive into the message behind Remnant Music, the strategy and stewardship it takes to reach beyond the Apostolic bubble, and how intentional rollout, excellence, and vision are shaping a new era of spirit-led music. Ray also opens up about his work with James Wilson, his A&R role at Tribal, breaking into major playlists, and why Apostolic artists must aim for a bigger net.Whether you're a creative, a leader, an artist, or someone with a God-given calling, this conversation will challenge you to dream bigger, steward better, and shine your light where God has placed you.For the full show notes, including links, go to - https://hacka.org/2025/11/27/212-ray-ervin-why-your-gift-is-bigger-than-you-think/------------Chapters 00:00 – Music as a Vehicle for Encountering God00:42 – Introduction to Ray Ervin02:27 – Ray's Story: Birmingham, Family, and Transformation05:26 – Discovering Music & Early Influences08:24 – A Life-Changing Encounter That Sparked His Calling13:31 – Founding Remnant Music & Finding His Voice17:52 – Breaking Through to Playlists & Billboard Success21:44 – Stewardship, Strategy & Reaching Beyond the Bubble30:18 – Partnership with Tribal & A&R Insights40:35 – Entrepreneurship & New Projects51:54 – Final Word: Let Your Light Shine------------Order Hacka Merch - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://the-hacka-podcast.myspreadshop.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠------------Listen to all episodes:Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/3PRSYKUSpotify - https://spoti.fi/3zCUsUoFollow us on social:Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thehackapod/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/hackaorgTikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@thehackapod

This episode is a little different. I was a guest on Catherine Jelinek's podcast, Breaking Through the Noise — and she generously allowed me to share the full conversation with you.We talk about leaving corporate, taking action, finding traction on TikTok, and the honest story behind building the Corporate Escapee movement. If you're stuck, burned out, or thinking about going solo, this one will hit home.In this episode, we cover:Why taking action is the #1 skill corporate trains out of youMy path from 25 years in corporate → consulting → fractional → building 10+ income streamsHow TikTok unexpectedly became the platform that changed everythingWhy 80% of my 76K TikTok followers are over 40The moment one video brought in 300+ strategy call requests in 48 hoursThe three stages of an escapee: Curious, Motivated, and LiberatedWhy your path out of corporate isn't a leap — it's a shiftThe reality of layoffs, RTO mandates, and the “profits over people” eraWhy authenticity beats production quality every timeThe mindset shift corporate doesn't prepare you forWhy this conversation mattersA lot of people want out of corporate, but they overthink the first step. This episode breaks down what actually works — and why you already have more than enough experience to start.Connect With CatherineCheck out Catherine Jelinek's podcast:

Welcome to Episode 100 of the Forged Ingold Podcast with Alec Ingold! In this special episode, Alec discusses Breaking Down vs Breaking Through. At life's tipping points we are often tested. Physically, Spiritually, Mentally. Listen in as Alec describes what it means to be Forged by Crucibles! This one is can't miss and thank you to our listeners! If you like the show please subscribe and leave a 5 star rating - that and texting it to a friend are the easiest ways you can help us grow. 

In this episode of Funky Friday, Cam Newton sits down with the legendary hitmaker Sean Garrett, a.k.a. “The Pen”, for a raw and unfiltered conversation about life, legacy, and the business behind the music. Sean keeps it real about how people play games in this industry, and what it takes to stand firm when the spotlight fades. From global hits to personal lessons, this talk is filled with gems, energy, and authenticity that only Funky Friday can deliver. Tap in and catch the game being given, not sold00:00 – Setting the Stage for Greatness 00:37 – Cam Introduces “The Pen” Himself - Sean Garrett01:55 – From Germany to Greatness: Sean Garrett's Early Life & Hustle04:23 – Finding Identity & Stepping Into Stardom 05:52 – Breaking Through the Noise: Sean's First Big Wins & Hard Lessons 10:02 – Inside the Music Biz: The Truth About Making Hits13:29 – Hit Factory Mode: Sean's Collabs & Songwriting Secrets35:11 – The Song That Was TOO BIG — and What Really Happened35:26 – When Competitors Cross the Line: Funky Friday Gets Real 38:13 – Verzuz, Ego & Competition in the Booth 38:54 – COVID Era Grind: How Streaming Changed the Game46:42 – Love in the Industry: Finding Something Real Amid Fame 55:46 – AI & Songwriting: Sean Garrett on the Future of Music1:02:49 – R&B x Rap Evolution: Sean Garrett Breaks It Down for the Culture

Who said cybersecurity had to be serious? The future of cyber is creative, human, and even a little sexy. In this special 400th episode, Ron Eddings celebrates six incredible years of Hacker Valley Studio with one of cyber's most creative voices, Maria Velasquez, Co-Founder of the Cybersecurity Marketing Society and Co-Host of Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing. Together, they discuss how bold storytelling, authentic community, and a touch of fun are reshaping the way we connect in cybersecurity. Maria opens up about turning burnout into purpose, building a 4,000-strong global movement, and why the next frontier in cyber might just be entertainment.   Impactful Moments: 00:00 - Introduction 02:00 - CISA layoffs and collaboration fragility 04:00 - Welcoming Maria Velasquez 06:00 - How loneliness sparked a global community 08:00 - Why collaboration fuels cybersecurity growth 10:00 - When cybersecurity marketing was “boring” 12:00 - The rise of creativity and brand power 14:00 - Story behind Torque's “Kill the S.O.A.R” campaign 15:00 - Making cybersecurity emotional and human 17:00 - Maria's advice for bold marketing leaders 18:00 - The next big thing: experiential marketing 20:00 - Inside Cyber Marketing Con 2025 24:00 - Final reflections on community and creativity 27:00 - Ron's takeaways: connection drives innovation Links: Connect with Maria on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-vepa/ Check out our upcoming events: https://www.hackervalley.com/livestreams Join our creative mastermind and stand out as a cybersecurity professional: https://www.patreon.com/hackervalleystudio Love Hacker Valley Studio? Pick up some swag: https://store.hackervalley.com Continue the conversation by joining our Discord: https://hackervalley.com/discord Become a sponsor of the show to amplify your brand: https://hackervalley.com/work-with-us/

Episode 141 - Founder Story - Humanising AI and Automation and ‘Breaking Through the Technology Overwhelm Barrier' with Mike Garde, on a Mission to Democratise AI and Reduce Anxiety. Disclaimer: Please note that all information and content on the UK Health Radio Network, all its radio broadcasts and podcasts are provided by the authors, producers, presenters and companies themselves and is only intended as additional information to your general knowledge. As a service to our listeners/readers our programs/content are for general information and entertainment only.  The UK Health Radio Network does not recommend, endorse, or object to the views, products or topics expressed or discussed by show hosts or their guests, authors and interviewees.  We suggest you always consult with your own professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advisor. So please do not delay or disregard any professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advice received due to something you have heard or read on the UK Health Radio Network.

In 1983, four Bloomington musicians — Chrissie Dickinson, Cynthia Hammond, Jenny Davis, and Emily Jackson — bonded over their shared love for the music of Patti Smith, X, and The Clash. Together they formed Sally's Dream, a post-punk band that went on to perform across the Midwest and later in Boston. Sally's Dream earned strong reviews from the Indiana music press and shared stages with national acts like Fishbone, Romeo Void, and 10,000 Maniacs. The group wrote and recorded striking, original music, but aside from a few compilation appearances and homemade cassette releases, their work remained largely unheard. That changed last month with the release of Breaking Through — an anthology that brings together the band's best recordings and marks the first full-length album ever released by Sally's Dream.  The collection was assembled in memory of Chrissie Dickinson, the band's guitarist and primary songwriter, who died in 2022. Outside of her work as a musician, Dickinson was an accomplished journalist, writing for the Chicago Reader, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and the Country Music Hall of Fame's Journal of Country Music. This week on Cultural Manifesto, Cynthia Hammond, Jenny Davis, and Emily Jackson of Sally's Dream will join host Kyle Long to talk about the band's history.

What if your business could grow without depending on you to drive every result? In this powerful episode, Lisa G. sits down with Charles Gaudet, CEO of Predictable Profits, to uncover the proven system that helps 7- and 8-figure companies scale sustainably — without the chaos.

Celebrating 200 episodes of personal finance education and money management tips! Since launching in January 2022, the City Girl Savings Podcast has helped thousands of women improve their financial literacy and build wealth. Wow. Time flies! Back in November 2023, the City Girl Savings Podcast had reached 100 episodes and I couldn't quite believe it. Fast forward to now and I'm still in awe of how far we've come, but also how quickly time seems to move. Not to get on my soapbox, but if there's a goal, investment, purchase or dream you've been putting off, TAKE ACTION NOW! Time will only keep going and you'll regret constantly pushing out the things that really matter to you. I launched this podcast in January of 2022 and I'm so glad I did. It's been such a wonderful journey and experience and knowing that people are encouraged and motivated from these episodes makes it all worth it. To celebrate 200 episodes of the City Girl Savings Podcast, I'm sharing my 10 all-time favorite episodes.   These top 10 City Girl Savings Podcast episodes featured: Mindset shift strategies from overspending to saving Investment advice and building wealth for beginners Financial confidence and money management psychology Setting financial boundaries and eliminating money anxiety Business lessons and entrepreneurship insights Daily habits for financial success and productivity   After 200 episodes covering everything from budgeting basics to advanced investment strategies, these 10 episodes represent the most transformative money lessons for building lasting wealth and financial freedom.   Here's a glance at this episode: [02:42] Money Mindset Transformation: Making the Mindset Shift from Spender to Saver made this list due to the true mindset shift that needs to happen to take someone from an overspender to an avid saver. [06:45] Investing in Financial Education: Do you struggle with investing in yourself to improve? Why You Need to Pay to Get Better with Money helps shift that mindset. [10:28] 10 Years of Business Lessons: Hear all Raya has learned after 10 years in business with a celebration of City Girl Savings reaching a decade. [14:27] Financial Confidence Building: Being a better steward of money has increased Raya's self-confidence tenfold and she shares just how in this episode. [17:00] Financial Boundaries That Work: Give yourself money to enjoy life with. This can be a financial boundary you set that ends up being a helpful tool.   Rate, Review, & Follow: Did you love this episode? Are you a fan of the City Girl Savings podcast? If so, please consider rating and reviewing the show! This helps spread the word about City Girl Savings, and hopefully helps more people make the best money moves possible on the way to their dream life! To leave a review on Apple Podcasts, click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode! Also, please make sure you're subscribed and following the City Girl Savings podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube!   Resources mentioned in this episode: Listen to Episode #149: Making the Mindset Shift from Spender to Saver Listen to Episode #3: Breaking Through the Stigma of Budgeting Listen to Episode #84: Why You Need to Pay to Get Better with Money Listen to Episode #159: 10 Years in Business: Growth, Lessons and More Listen to Episode #164: Plan, Prepare and Organize Your Finances with Alaina Fingal Listen to Episode #58: My Daily Morning Routine for Boosting Productivity Listen to Episode #141: How Managing My Money Has Boosted My Confidence Listen to Episode #62: 9 Ways to Manifest More Money Into Your Life Listen to Episode #182: 6 Ways to Set Financial Boundaries and Stick to Them Listen to Episode #178: Finding Peace in Your Finances: 5 Steps to Eliminate Money Anxiety Learn about Raya's Financial Focus Coaching Program Follow City Girl Savings on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok Join the City Girl Savings Facebook Group Subscribe to the City Girl Savings Newsletter!

Sometimes what hurts most isn't the migraine itself—it's living in a world that doesn't understand it and isn't built to support it. While visible disabilities often receive accommodations, migraine remains largely invisible—leaving millions to navigate environments that dismiss, overlook, or even worsen their pain.This episode of The Migraine Heroes Podcast explores the urgent need for advocacy in migraine care, blending personal storytelling with practical solutions. Hosted by Diane Ducarme, who has guided hundreds of women in reshaping their healing journeys, we look at how resilience and community can rewrite the narrative of living with this invisible disability.You'll discover:

Bret Robbins, Creative Director behind Dead Space and Call of Duty, joins Devoted SpeakEasy to share the unfiltered truth about creating a brand new AAA IP.

BREAKING Through the SOIL | Wallstreet Trapper (Episode 161) Trappin Tuesdays Before a seed becomes a tree, it gotta break thru the soil. That soil is heavy, it's dark, it's cold—it feels like pressure. But that pressure is the proof that growth is happening. Family, your dreams are the same way. The market will bury you in red days, in losses, in setbacks, but that's just the soil. The streets will test you with weight, life will cover you in darkness, but that's just the soil. If you keep pushing, if you keep trusting, if you stay disciplined, you break thru. Breaking thru the soil means breaking past fear, breaking past old habits, breaking past everything trying to keep you buried. The light is waiting, but first you gotta endure the dirt. Every great investor, every great builder, every great human had to fight their way through the soil. Don't quit in the darkness—because breaking thru the soil is what proves you're alive, what proves you're chosen, and what sets you up to stand tall like the tree you were destined to be. ⚖️

*Want the 7 books that transformed Sam's thinking this year? Get his list + reading strategy: https://clickhubspot.com/ekb Episode 740: Sam Parr ( https://x.com/theSamParr ) and Shaan Puri ( https://x.com/ShaanVP ) talk to Robert Greene ( https://x.com/RobertGreene ) about the most important ideas from his books and how to apply them today. — Show Notes: (0:00) Intro (00:48) Why specialists beat generalists (1:42) Your brain needs deep work (3:03) 300 books read for every 1 book written (14:58) Clues from childhood (21:27) Buffett's Inner Scorecard (23:16) The Power of Silence and Mystery (30:35) Find your purpose (31:02) Authenticity Is Overrated (34:31) Boldness attracts. Timidness repels (41:08) Who's Playing the Power Game Well Today (52:52) Turning a disaster into attention. (56:19) Breaking Through at 37 — Links: • The 48 Laws of Power - https://tinyurl.com/4ahkxzfj • The 33 Strategies of War - https://tinyurl.com/57vp9khn • The Art of Seduction - https://tinyurl.com/424mbtux • The 50th Law - https://tinyurl.com/zcte6826 • Mastery - https://tinyurl.com/3ch5ah8y • The Daily Laws - https://tinyurl.com/3n8pjv3t — Check Out Shaan's Stuff: • Shaan's weekly email - https://www.shaanpuri.com • Visit https://www.somewhere.com/mfm to hire worldwide talent like Shaan and get $500 off for being an MFM listener. Hire developers, assistants, marketing pros, sales teams and more for 80% less than US equivalents. • Mercury - Need a bank for your company? Go check out Mercury (mercury.com). Shaan uses it for all of his companies! Mercury is a financial technology company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group, Column, N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust, Members FDIC — Check Out Sam's Stuff: • Hampton - https://www.joinhampton.com/ • Ideation Bootcamp - https://www.ideationbootcamp.co/ • Copy That - https://copythat.com • Hampton Wealth Survey - https://joinhampton.com/wealth • Sam's List - http://samslist.co/ My First Million is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by HubSpot Media // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano

What if the biggest key to thriving through perimenopause wasn't another supplement, stricter diet, or grueling workout, but something totally different than pushing your body to new extreme? In this empowering episode, Louise, one of the world's leading health experts for avidly active high-achieving women and everyday female runners, pulls back the curtain on the real challenges women face in their late 30s, 40s, and beyond when hormones start shifting.She shares why so many active, driven women and runners hit a wall with fatigue, stubborn weight, hot flashes, and self-criticism, and how mindset, patience, and self-love become non-negotiable for success. From nutrition timing to balancing cortisol, building lean strength, and preventing injuries, Louise explains why quick fixes fail and what really works for lifelong sustainable success.Listeners will walk away with practical steps for supporting their bodies, celebrating progress instead of nitpicking flaws, and embracing the long game of maximizing health, running, and physique goals despite changing hormones. Whether you're chasing PRs or just want to feel vibrant again, this episode reminds you that you're already a badass, especially on days where you're not feeling it, and THAT is where lasting transformation begins!Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/Link to Louise's best-selling book, The Art of Breaking Through, on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4fRdMAu  Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion's science-backed clean products: https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing Link to our FullScript where you can see our curated best supplement picks & save 20%: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-startEpisode Highlights:(0:00) Intro(3:11) How changing hormones impact health and energy(5:29) Why progress looks different for every woman(7:06) The missing pieces: self-love, an empowered mindset and patience(8:51) Cortisol, stress, and blocked hormone production(12:21) Grace, consistency, and realistic expectations(16:03) Why perimenopause demands long-term strategies(21:00) Asking: “When will I be good enough for me?”(24:44) Practical action steps to move forward(29:36) Celebrating wins and redefining success(33:06) OutroTune in weekly to "Maximizing Fitness, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for a simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!I'd love to connect!Instagram

Season 15 of Highest Aspirations begins with Dr. Carol Salva, author of Boosting Achievement. In this episode, Dr. Salva shares updated strategies from the new edition of her book designed to support English learners, newcomer students, and students with limited or interrupted formal education (SLIFE). She discusses practical tools educators can use to accelerate language development, build student confidence, and create welcoming classroom environments that foster belonging and success.Key questions we address:Why was a second edition of the book Boosting Achievement necessary?How can educators best support multilingual learners and maintain hope during challenging societal times?What does an "authentic learning experience" look like in practice, and how can teachers create one?For additional episode and community resources:Download the transcript here.Dr. Salva's website: https://salvac.edublogs.org/ Order Dr. Salva's second edition of Boosting AchievementThe Circuit and Breaking Through by Dr. Francisco JimenezDIY PD a Guide to Self-Directed Learning for Educators of Multilingual Learners by Katie Toppel, Tan Huynh, Carol SalvaML SummitSubscribe to our weekly newsletter, The Community BriefFor additional free resources geared toward supporting English learners, ⁠visit our blog.Carol Salva is an award-winning educator with proven success working with unschooled/under-schooled, multilingual learners classified as SLIFE (Students with Limited or Interrupted Formal Education) or ELD (English Language Development) students. She is a key Seidlitz Education consultant for training, coaching, modeling, and supporting program leaders. Dr. Carol Salva is a co-author of Boosting Achievement: Reaching Students with Interrupted Our Minimal Education and a co-author of DIY PD: A Guide to Self-Directed Learning for Educators of Multilingual Learners. She has taught elementary, middle, and high school.Carol holds a doctorate in education in the area of ethical leadership from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas. She also has her Masters degree in Education Administration. Along with her ESL certification, she is a Certified Gomez & Gomez Dual Language Trainer and a Certified Abydos Writing Trainer. Dr. Salva is a Kahoot Ambassador and the co-chair of the NAELPA professional learning committee.

Earlier this year, baby KJ became the first patient in the world to receive a personalized gene editing therapy, which was developed by a team at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and Penn Medicine. In June, KJ went home after spending more than 300 days at CHOP. On this episode of Breaking Through, Madeline speaks to KJ's parents, Kyle and Nicole, about the treatment that changed KJ's life – and how he's doing today.

Feel like you're doing everything but still stuck at the same revenue level? You're not alone. In this episode, we're breaking down the exact actions, shifts and mindset required to break through from $20K to $60K months - without burning out or bottlenecking your business. Here's what we're covering: -Why sales avoidance is keeping you broke - and the script that changed everything -The real reason you're stuck at $20K (and it's not your staff) -The “cash flow calendar” that turns chaos into consistent sales -The brutal truth about undercharging, overworking, and doing it all yourself -What to delegate first so you can finally get out of the burnout zone -How to design your dream team with just 50 extra members -The biggest trap at $40K - and how to avoid starving your business of growth -Why your impact statement matters more than your income statement -The $1M shift: You're not selling sessions anymore - your product is your people Chapters: ⏳ [00:00] The Scariest Part of Scaling: Why You Can't Stay Stuck ⏳ [01:45] Every Revenue Level Has a Feedback Loop - Here's How to Read Yours ⏳ [03:00] Breaking Through the $20K Barrier: Leads, Sales & Cash Flow Calendars ⏳ [06:00] Stop Doing $30 Tasks - Here's How to Buy Back Your Time ⏳ [10:00] The Rule of Ones: Why Focus is the Fastest Path to $1M ⏳ [14:00] From $40K to $60K: The Team, Systems & Leadership Shift ⏳ [17:00] The Ideal Team Design That Funds Your Freedom ⏳ [21:00] Replacing Yourself: Why You're the Bottleneck ⏳ [24:00] Vision, Mission, Culture: The Untapped Power of an Impact Statement ⏳ [27:00] Fuel, Not Fear: How to Keep Going When Survival Isn't the Driver ⏳ [29:00] Your Next Move: DM “Map” for the Full $1M Revenue Plan Don't forget to like, subscribe, and comment below with your biggest takeaway. We read them all. Want to LEARN proven systems to grow your business without burnout? Go here: https://live.geronimoacademy.com/newsletter Connect with us: My website: https://thegeronimoacademy.com IG Geronimo: https://www.instagram.com/thegeronimoacademy IG Hey.Doza: https://www.instagram.com/hey.doza LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/andrewhandosa

What does it actually look like to internalize the identity of the soul as our own? To approach our own reflection with a deep understanding of our essence, of the way it does not hinge on anything but the piece of G-d inside? In this episode, Shterna Ginsberg explores how to stop depending on others for your sense of self and find the infinite worth that lies within.|| To find more of Shterna's work, visit www.energizedliving.org. To sponsor an episode, please visit humanandholy.com/sponsor or email us at humanandholy@gmail.com.Human & Holy is currently on a season break. This episode originally aired in June 2022. * * * * * * *To inquire about sponsorship & advertising opportunities, please email us at info@humanandholy.comTo support our work, visit humanandholy.com/sponsor.Find us on Instagram @humanandholy & subscribe to our channel to stay up to date on all our upcoming conversations ✨Human & Holy podcast is available on all podcast streaming platforms. New episodes every Sunday & Wednesday on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Google Podcasts.* * * * * * *TIMESTAMPS0:00 - The Search for Sense of Self0:36 - Meet Shterna Ginsberg1:47 - What is the Neshama? 2:59 - Roots vs. Fruits: Why We Miss Our Essence4:34 - The Self-Care Problem: No Self to Care For6:09 - How to Bridge Concept to Experience7:21 - Hidden Hashem in a "Realistic" World8:07 - Power Dynamics: Who Controls Your Life?10:57 - Healthy vs. Unhealthy Dependency11:48 - The Inner Island of Love & Dignity13:41 - The Bell Story: Faith Must Be Practiced16:08 - Chochma, Bina, Das: Three Steps to Integration18:32 - Dealing with Inner Resistance & Toxic Self-Talk19:29 - Setting Up Your Internal "Fire Department"20:45 - The Shaitel Story: Practical Soul Identity22:37 - Essence vs. Personality: What's Really You?25:40 - "Just Be Nice"26:38 - No Excuses for Not Shining Your Light28:18 - Marriage Without a Self: The Dangerous Dynamic30:14 - "I'll Give You Everything for a Sense of Self"32:40 - Parenting from Wholeness vs. Neediness34:16 - The Apple Story: When Identity Depends on Details36:10 - Unconditional Love Requires Soul-Centered Identity38:21 - Root of All Problems40:45 - "You Are Worthy" - Empty vs. Soul-Based Truth43:08 - The Virtual Reality Experiment46:27 - Living in Hashem's Reality vs. Virtual Reality48:44 - Breaking Through the Barrier50:35 - Practical Integration: Using Daily Mitzvos52:28 - The Bell System: Connecting Dots in Your Day54:04 - Who Is the Self?

In this episode, I take you live through a huge breakthrough moment I just had.I'm diving deep into the frequency of fun — the high-frequency joy, delight, and ease that we all deserve. But along the way, I'll also explore the shadow side of fun and how it's impacted me personally and spiritually. This episode is recorded live in the moment of my own breakthrough, and I'm inviting you into this real-time reflection.What You'll Hear:A Life of Luxury & Fun: Picture this: standing in the Caribbean ocean, cocktail in hand, chatting with a client, while being paid well for the privilege. Or, racing through New York on a hot summer day, texting, running errands, and simultaneously experiencing bliss. This is the fun frequency, and it's been a recurring theme in my life as a manifestation coach.The Internal Struggle: But here's where it gets interesting — I've recently felt a constriction around sharing the ease and luxury of my life. Why do we feel uncomfortable showing our joy and success? Why is it easier to share our struggles, but harder to share the bliss?The Spiritual Community's Invisible Structure: I talk about the spiritual community's subtle, yet powerful, constraints. The unspoken rules that often suppress our fun, pleasure, and ease. I reflect on how these energies impact not just me, but many women in this space, keeping them from fully stepping into their bliss and abundance.Breaking Through to Higher Frequencies: It's time to break through the fear of being judged for living a life of ease. I'm calling out the sacred yes and reclaiming the fun, high-frequency life that's available to all of us. Let's explore how to move past fear and step into the true joy of manifestation.[5:00] My breakthrough moment: Why I've been hiding the fun side of my life.[12:30] The discomfort of sharing ease and success — and why it feels unsafe to some women in the spiritual space.[22:00] Exploring the “spiritual community's invisible structure” and how it subtly holds us back from stepping into our bliss.[32:00] The power of the sacred yes in manifestation: how fun and joy are essential to bringing our manifestations to life.[40:00] Breaking through to high frequencies: Embracing bliss, luxury, and fun as part of our manifestation process.The Breakthrough Realized:For too long, I've subconsciously hidden the joy of my life — whether it's a spontaneous, joyful purchase or a luxurious call from the middle of the ocean. But in doing so, I realize that the true manifestation magic happens when we embrace both the bliss and the breakthroughs. Life is not just about surviving or enduring; it's about embracing the beauty of it all — the light, the love, the luxury, and yes, the fun!Listen now to hear how I'm making a breakthrough in sharing all of it: the success, the fun, and the luxury — and what that truly means for your own manifestation journey.Key Moments in This Episode:Are You Ready to Step into Your Bliss and Abundance?This episode invites you to reflect on where you might be holding back your joy and ease. Are you allowing yourself to fully experience the fun and pleasure that life has to offer? It's time to break free from the constraints and step into a life that's as luxurious as it is full of joy.Thank you for listening to this breakthrough episode. If you're ready to live your manifestation journey with more fun, ease, and abundance, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Come find me on Instagram or send me a message. Remember, the sacred yes is the key to unlocking everything you desire.Join the conversationFollow Jess Fenton on Instagram @goinward.co.uk for more insights, breakthroughs, and high-frequency inspiration.Call to Action:If you loved this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who needs to hear this breakthrough. Let's break through together into higher frequencies.Until next time, stay high-frequency and keep manifesting your dream life! ✨

That Solo Life, Episode 308: Branding, Bravery and Breaking Through with Melissa Vela-Williamson Episode Summary:  Tune in to this powerful episode of That Solo Life featuring Melissa Vela-Williamson, APR, Fellow PRSA, CDP,  an accomplished PR strategist, author, and advocate for inclusivity in communication. Hosts Karen Swim, APR, and Michelle Kane sit down for an intimate chat with Melissa, discussing her inspiring career and successful personal brand. Melissa shares why it is so important to be a little louder and how that benefits your career and lights the way for the next generation. Melissa does not hold back in sharing her challenges on the road to success and how she solves for fear and the expectations of others. Grab a group and listen to this episode together! Guests:  Melissa Vela-Williamson, APR, Fellow PRSA, CDP, Founder of MVW Communications, Author, and Speaker  Key Topics Covered:  [00:02:30] Melissa's PR career path and her inspiration for writing two books.  [00:07:10] The importance of self-promotion and building a personal brand as a solo PR pro.  [00:13:45] Overcoming imposter syndrome to gain confidence and attract the right clients.  [00:20:40] Using storytelling and cultural intelligence (CQ) to connect on a deeper level.  [00:29:15] Applying PR strategies to amplify diversity and inclusivity in the industry.  [00:38:00] Melissa's advice for staying consistent and authentic in your solo practice.  About Melissa Vela-Williamson, APR, Fellow PRSA, CDP: Melissa Vela-Williamson is an accredited, internationally recognized public relations strategist, national industry columnist, podcast host, and author. For over two decades, she has provided strategic public relations counsel, professional communication services, and shared leadership guidance with over 100 brands -- educating, equipping, and empowering diverse audiences ranging from children to CEOs. Melissa serves as a consultant, trainer, and account director at her boutique PR firm, MVW Communications. With unique experience in employee communications and DEI, Melissa leverages her PR expertise and acumen as a certified diversity professional to create social good. She represents only 750 PR professionals nationwide who have earned the elite PRSA College of Fellows credential. Her first book, “Smart Talk: Public Relations Essentials All Pros Should Know” was published Oct. 2022 and is an Amazon Bestseller. Her second industry book, “Latinas in Public Relations: Shaping Communications, Communities, and Culture” was published during Women's History Month 2025 and quickly became an Amazon Bestseller in three categories. She shares communication insights and advice through her podcast, “Smart Talk Series”, her Public Relations Society of America column,  and through her blog at mvw360.com.  Resources Mentioned:  Visit Melissa's website, MVW360.com, for more on her books, services, and resources.  Get Melissa's books: Smart Talk: Public Relations Essentials All Pros Should Know and Latinas in Public Relations: Shaping Communications, Communities, and Culture.”  Connect with Melissa on LinkedIn at Melissa Vela-Williamson.  Call to Action:  Don't miss an episode of That Solo Life! Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform to stay updated. If you enjoyed this episode, leave a review and share it with your solo PR network. For more resources and insights, join the Solo PR Pro community at our website. Your next level in solo PR starts here!

Breaking Through the Growth Ceiling with James Graham of SCALIFY OSOn this episode of The Thoughtful Entrepreneur, host Josh Elledge speaks with James Graham, Founder and CEO of SCALIFY OS, about how entrepreneurs can overcome growth plateaus and transition from founder-driven hustle to scalable, operational excellence. James works with businesses earning between $1M and $20M in revenue, helping them build the systems, leadership structures, and strategies needed to grow sustainably—and profitably.From Hustle to Scale: Building a Business That Runs Without YouJames Graham understands that passion and grit can take a founder far, but they're not enough to grow a company beyond its early success. Many entrepreneurs hit a “growth ceiling” where time, energy, and resources no longer stretch far enough—and chaos creeps in. That's where SCALIFY OS comes in.James helps founders step out of the weeds by installing operational systems, documenting sales processes, and establishing structured leadership meetings. His strategies are highly customized, focusing on each business's unique challenges and opportunities—rather than offering one-size-fits-all solutions. He also incorporates AI into his coaching model with “Jamie,” a proprietary AI business coach that supports clients with 24/7 operational guidance.If you're stuck working nights and weekends, can't delegate effectively, or feel your business is running you—this episode delivers a clear roadmap for scaling up without burning out.About James GrahamJames Graham is the Founder and CEO of SCALIFY OS, where he helps $1M–$20M businesses break through their growth ceilings by implementing operational systems, leadership development, and strategic coaching. With a background in business architecture and digital innovation, James is passionate about helping founders become CEOs.About SCALIFY OSSCALIFY OS is an operational strategy and coaching platform built for established entrepreneurs ready to scale. The company offers custom assessments, leadership systems, documented processes, and AI-enhanced coaching to help businesses grow sustainably—without relying solely on the founder's hustle.Links Mentioned in this Episode:SCALIFY OS WebsiteJames Graham on LinkedInEpisode Highlights:What the “growth ceiling” looks like for $1M–$20M businessesWhy operational systems—not hustle—are key to sustainable scaleThe importance of structured leadership meetings and clear accountabilityHow to document and delegate founder-led salesThe role of AI in modern business coaching with SCALIFY OS's “Jamie”ConclusionScaling a business isn't just about working harder—it's about thinking smarter. As James Graham shares, true growth requires systematizing success, empowering leadership, and stepping back from the day-to-day. With the right structure and support, you can break through the ceiling and build a business that thrives without you at the center of everything.Apply to be a Guest on The Thoughtful Entrepreneur: https://go.upmyinfluence.com/podcast-guestMore from UpMyInfluence:We are actively booking guests for our The Thoughtful Entrepreneur.

In this episode, Jesse welcomes Ms. Phyllis Winters, a seasoned expert with 30 years of experience across various industries like nuclear, healthcare, and construction. Phyllis discusses her journey from overcoming a challenging childhood to achieving significant milestones in the world of tech and business strategy. She emphasizes the importance of a problem-solving mindset and shares valuable insights on leveraging AI and technology for business growth. The episode covers practical tips for AI usage, the significance of strategy in tech implementation, and Phyllis's unique approach to making complex subjects accessible and enjoyable. Tune in to learn how Phyllis became a pivotal guide for businesses looking to innovate and scale.00:00 Welcome Back to LnM Family00:14 Introducing Our Expert Guest: Phyllis Winters01:45 Phyllis Winters' Background and Motto03:55 Overcoming Challenges and Early Life05:16 College and Career Beginnings06:26 Navigating the Tech Industry07:31 The Value of Life Experience12:56 AI and Problem Solving15:44 The Importance of Clear Communication with AI27:21 Breaking Barriers in a Male-Dominated Industry30:25 Breaking Through the Wall: Learning the Language30:48 Starting a Business: The Journey Begins30:56 From Accounting to Management Consulting33:46 The Rise of PCs: A New Opportunity34:51 A Business Partnership Gone Wrong35:53 Transition to the Online World38:02 Embracing Tech and Business Zen46:22 Leveraging AI for Business Success54:10 The Promise of Holistic Business Coaching59:00 Final Thoughts and ReflectionsMake yourself a priority and get more done: https://www.depthbuilder.com/do-the-damn-thing Download a PDF copy of Becoming the Promise You are Intended to Behttps://www.depthbuilder.com/books

In this episode of "The Self Talk Experience," Darnell and Traci delve into the influence of proximity on perspective and personal growth. They discuss the powerful impact of surrounding oneself with inspiring individuals and exploring environments that encourage growth!They'll unpack the importance of :Investing in Yourself:Encouragement to make sacrifices to be around impactful individuals who push you towards your goals.Discussion on the importance of being "in the room" to experience and understand growth opportunities firsthand.Self-Talk:The significance of positive self-talk and its effect on attracting opportunities and people.Shifting from “I have to” to “I get to” as a way to change outlook on tasks and responsibilities.Breaking Through to the Next Level:Strategies for getting out of comfort zones and embracing challenges.Stories of personal growth through changing environments and experiences.Reflecting on Past Experiences:The balancing act of learning from past struggles without becoming overshadowed by them.Importance of healing and inspiring others from a place of wholeness.and so much more!Connect with us on social media.https://www.instagram.com/darnell_selfhttps://www.instagram.com/traciselfhttps://www.instagram.com/theselftalkexperience/Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

How do you transform from the family business's biggest skeptic into its most passionate advocate?Kevin Tsao, Chief Sustainability Officer of Eno Brands, a fashion jewelry manufacturing company, didn't just resist the family business—he rejected it outright. But sometimes our strongest resistance reveals our deepest calling.In this powerful conversation, Kevin shares his transformation from a state government employee who vehemently opposed joining the family business to a leader who has found his purpose in community building and sustainability. Discover how he shifted the narrative from "Joyce's son" to a respected leader, why treating employees as "family" might not be the best approach, and how he's preparing for the next generation without repeating the pressures he once faced.This episode is a masterclass in finding your authentic path within a family legacy and turning resistance into purpose.0:04 Introduction and Initial Resistance3:21 The Immigrant Journey7:39 Overcoming Fear and Finding Logic11:52 Starting as a Receptionist: Earning Respect16:18 The Hidden Value of Small Family Businesses19:22 Redefining "Family" in Family Business25:05 The Manufacturing Journey from Taiwan to China28:00 Navigating Succession and Geographic Challenges31:47 Adapting to Tariffs and Global Changes36:22 Breaking Through the Leadership Plateau42:40 From CEO to Chief Sustainability Officer46:22 Building Legacy for the Next GenerationResources Mentioned:

David Lee Morgan (@DavidLeeMorgan) joins Jeff and Rod to talk about his award-winning documentary and book, Breaking Through the Lines: The Marion Motley Story. The guys discuss the magnitude of Motley's career and culture-changing achievements. You can find David's work at DavidLeeMorganJr.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Lehigh standout Luke Stanich joins the show fresh off winning a best-of-three series to make his first U20 World Team. We talk about his rise from the New Jersey high school scene, overcoming an early deficit in the Trials finals, and how he's quickly adjusting to freestyle with minimal experience. Luke reflects on his freshman season at Lehigh, his decision to bump up to 141, and the value of his redshirt year. We also dive into the culture in the Lehigh room, his path through NJ states, and the keys to his successful transition to college wrestling — plus a few rapid-fire questions and transfer portal thoughts to close it out.1:10 - Winning Best of 3 Series3:30 - Minimal Freestyle Experience7:00 - Down 0-4 Against Zepeda9:10 - Growth Points10:30 - Freshman Season Takeaways12:00 - Going up to 14114:30 - Redshirt Season15:20 - Lehigh Vibes for Next Season17:30 - Growing up in Jersey19:30 - Breaking Through at NJ States24:30 - Successful Transition to College28:45 - Rapid Fire Q&A34:20 - Transfer PortalBe sure to SUBSCRIBE to the podcast. NEW EPISODES WEEKLY/BIWEEKLY!Support the show & leave a 5-star rating and review on Apple Podcasts, and shop some apparel on BASCHAMANIA.com! For all partnership and sponsorship inquiries, email info@baschamania.com. BASCHAMANIA is a Basch Solutions Production. Learn more about Basch Solutions at BaschSolutions.com.SUBSCRIBE FOR VIDEO ON YOUTUBE!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxf0TDH1TTYTWITTER: http://www.twitter.com/justinjbaschINSTAGRAM: http://www.instagram.com/jbaschBASCHAMANIA: https://www.instagram.com/baschamaniaFOLLOW LUKE: https://www.instagram.com/luke__stanich/

Growth is not about doing more. It's about becoming more. But what if you're chasing the wrong version of growth?This episode dives deep into the powerful inner shift that distinguishes top-tier entrepreneurs from the rest. Scott Joseph shares a personal transformation story that redefined how he led his business and life, moving from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset.Join Scott as he explores: (3:53) The Illusion of Success* Scott describes feeling unfulfilled despite outward business success.* He identifies his past reliance on old business models and fixed mindset.(7:36) Breaking Through the Old Self* Scott's emotional and mindset transformation through coaching. * Letting go of attachment to traditional sales models opens new possibilities.(11:46) The Power of Pivots* Mindset—not market strategy—is the real growth catalyst.(15:12) The Growth Mindset Playbook* Four strategies to cultivate a growth mindset: embracing challenges, reframing failure, continuous learning, and surrounding yourself with the right people.BUSINESS, BOURBON & CIGARSBe sure to subscribe so you don't miss any episodes. * Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3SN2fHn * Spotify: https://spoti.fi/49EwtTo * YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MePlusUltraNetwork/ Business, Bourbon & Cigars is the preeminent resource for ambitious leaders who want a backstage pass to the top. Each episode, we sit down with ultra-successful executives and industry leaders who share their insider strategies for growth and success. And of course, we may even sip on some of the finest bourbon and light up our favorite cigars while we chat.Each week, we bring you in-depth interviews with high-level executives and industry leaders who have a proven track record and in-depth understanding of what it takes to grow a business. They'll share their no-nonsense approach, the challenges they faced on their journey to the top, and the strategies that helped them overcome obstacles and forge their own path to ultra-success.ME PLUS ULTRA Transform your business and redefine your world with Me Plus Ultra virtual masterminds and leadership retreats: https://MePlusUltra.com Me Plus Ultra is a place where visionary entrepreneurs come together, not just to network, but to forge lasting connections, inspire one another, and grow their businesses with confidence and purpose. With exclusive access to industry-leading knowledge, personalized growth strategies, and high-impact events, we empower you to transcend traditional business barriers. To elevate your business, join our Me Plus Ultra virtual masterminds and leadership retreats to surround yourself with peers who share your drive and passion.* Me Plus Ultra Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/me_plus_ultra/ * Me Plus Ultra Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MePlusUltra/ * Me Plus Ultra Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1011061052968028/ * Me Plus Ultra X/Twitter:

We all have access to a streaming presence of infinite intelligence, which is a wise internal source of love and wisdom. Kieves shares her journey from a successful law career to becoming a teacher and author, highlighting the transformative power of following our inner voice of genius and vitality. Tama Kieves graduated with honors from Harvard Law School, then chose to leave a prestigious law firm to become a teacher and workshop leader. Her books include: This Time I Dance! Creating the Work You Love (Penguin Publishing 2006) and Learning to Trust Yourself; Breaking Through the Blocks that Hold You Back (St. Martin's Press 2025)Interview Date: 3/21/2025 Tags: Tama Kieves, inner voice, self-criticism, beliefs, higher power, sleep, Personal Transformation, Psychology

In this engaging conversation, Bryce Stewart shares his transformative journey from being a public school teacher to a successful real estate investor with 37 doors. He discusses the pivotal moments that led him to realize the potential of real estate investing, the importance of taking action, and how faith plays a role in his financial decisions. Bryce emphasizes the significance of leveraging FHA loans and the concept of investing for eternal value, while also highlighting the importance of family and personal growth in his life.Ultimate Show Notes:00:01:05 - Bryce's Journey to Financial Freedom00:01:55 - Bryce's Background as a Teacher00:02:13 - The Epiphany: Realizing Money Beyond a Job00:06:22 - The Importance of Alternative Income00:07:53 - First Steps into Real Estate Investing00:09:09 - Finding the First Duplex00:11:59 - Breaking Through the Wall to Wealth00:19:01 - Faith and Financial Stewardship00:23:18 - Converting Temporary Gains into Durability00:25:19 - Philanthropy and Giving Back00:27:02 - Family Life and Summer Adventures00:28:01 - Scaling to 37 Units: The Capital Journey00:33:07 - Resources and Coaching Opportunitieshttps://www.brycestewart.net/ https://www.amazon.com/House-Hackers-Guide-Galaxy-Millions-ebook/dp/B08R2ZX7LH?ref_=ast_author_dp  Turn your unique talent into capital and achieve the life you were destined to live. Join our community!We believe that Capital is more than just Cash. In fact, Human Capital always comes first before the accumulation of Financial Capital. We explore the best, most efficient, high-integrity ways of raising capital (Human & Financial). We want our listeners to use their personal human capital to empower the growth of their financial capital. Together we are stronger. LinkedinFacebookInstagramApple PodcastSpotify

If I had to choose just one financial tool to improve my situation, hands down, it would be a budget. The course of my life changed with a budget nearly a decade and a half ago. Sure, I may have been forced into that situation, but regardless of how I got there, a budget turned everything around for me. Now, I've made a career helping women turn their own lives around with a budget. No matter how much or how little you make, a budget is truly a game-changer. In this episode, I'm sharing 5 ways budgeting is the key to living the life you've always dreamed of. Get ready to become a budget-lover, just like I became one so many years ago.   Here's a glance at this episode: [01:55] What had started as a necessity to budget has now become a career for Raya, as she coaches women to set and stick to budget plans. [04:04] An integral part of the budgeting process is making sure your spending is in line with your budget. Don't skip this step! [07:06] A budget helps you plan for both the expected and the unexpected. Handling money now becomes a stress-free lifestyle. [10:08] Budgeting is a way to sustain the life you currently have, so it can help you get to the life you actually want. [14:00] Not convinced a budget can help you create freedom? When you have control of your finances, you gain the freedom to say yes or no to everything.   Rate, Review, & Follow: Did you love this episode? Are you a fan of the City Girl Savings podcast? If so, please consider rating and reviewing the show! This helps spread the word about City Girl Savings, and hopefully helps more people make the best money moves possible on the way to their dream life! To leave a review on Apple Podcasts, click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode! Also, please make sure you're subscribed and following the City Girl Savings podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube!   Resources mentioned in this episode: Listen to Episode 1 – Big City Spender to City Girl Saver Listen to Episode 3 – Breaking Through the Stigma of Budgeting Request a complimentary call with Raya Learn about Raya's Financial Focus Coaching Program Follow City Girl Savings on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok Join the City Girl Savings Facebook Group Subscribe to the City Girl Savings Newsletter!

How do you build a life that can withstand anything? In this message, Pastor Dustin shares part 3 of our Breaking Through the Storm series with a timely and practical word: “Storm Proofing Your Life.” Learn how to build a life that won't collapse under pressure — by strengthening your foundation, forming daily godly habits, and trusting God to cover what you can't control. You'll learn: Why obeying God's Word is the foundation for unshakable faith The daily spiritual habits that fortify your life How to stop living in fear and start resting in God's peace Whether you're facing a storm now or preparing for one in the future, this message will equip you with the truth and tools you need to stand strong in every season. Key Scriptures: Matthew 7:24–25 • James 1:22 • Luke 6:48 • Proverbs 24:3–4 • Colossians 2:6–7 • Psalm 91:1–2

If your goal is to build a million-dollar business, you cannot treat your offer like a freelance gig. This week, we're exploring what it means to turn your offer into a true business asset that increases your income, streamlines your sales, and sets your business up for long-term growth. We'll walk through 5 key steps to help you design an offer that drives profitability and sustainability. When your offer is structured intentionally, it doesn't just make you more money—it simplifies your entire sales and lead generation process. Let's stop leaving money on the table and start thinking bigger!

In my over-a-decade of experience with budgeting, for myself and helping others, I've come across a myriad of reasons, excuses, fears and inaccurate rationalizations for why people choose not to budget.  And it's doing more harm than good. There was a point in time when I chose not to budget, and it cost me a lot. Thankfully, I got my act together and now I help women do the same. We all need to be budgeting, and if you've convinced yourself otherwise, I'm here to set you straight! In this episode, I'm sharing 5 budgeting myths millennial women (or any woman really) needs to stop believing because these myths are delaying a life of happiness. One of the most common things people do with their finances is trying to keep it all in their head. If you think you can keep your budget top of mind, you're setting yourself up for failure. I share some solutions to this particular myth.   Here's a glance at this episode: [03:05] When you rely on a mental budget, you're leaving so much room for error. We can't remember or account for everything in our head. [06:42] Just because you never learned how to budget in the past doesn't mean that you can't learn or succeed with budgeting in the present.  [09:15] When it comes to creating your budget, there are certain numbers that you do need to know, but you don't have to be responsible for always calculating them. [13:40] A budget should include the things you love and/or saving for the things that truly matter to you. [16:53] You can't predict the future. Certain things will come up that we can't plan for. That means you need to believe it's okay to be fluid with your budget.    Rate, Review, & Follow: Did you love this episode? Are you a fan of the City Girl Savings podcast? If so, please consider rating and reviewing the show! This helps spread the word about City Girl Savings, and hopefully helps more people make the best money moves possible on the way to their dream life! To leave a review on Apple Podcasts, click here, scroll to the bottom, tap to rate with five stars, and select “Write a Review.” Then be sure to let me know what you loved most about the episode! Also, please make sure you're subscribed and following the City Girl Savings podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube!   Resources mentioned in this episode: Listen to Episode 3 – Breaking Through the Stigma of Budgeting Let Raya create a budget plan for you! Learn about Raya's Financial Focus Coaching Program Follow City Girl Savings on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok Join the City Girl Savings Facebook Group Subscribe to the City Girl Savings Newsletter!

SUMMARYGary J. White, entrepreneur, speaker, and founder of Wake Up Warrior, joins the show to deliver one of the most raw, honest, and transformational interviews in recent memory. Known for his direct, no-BS approach to helping men reclaim power across their business, body, and relationships, Gary unpacks the origin story of his own breakdown—and the breakthrough that followed. From being millions in debt and emotionally destroyed, to launching a global movement for men, Gary reveals what it really takes to lead as a modern man.Throughout the episode, he dives into what it means to live the "Warrior's Way"—a four-part framework that empowers men to find balance and build legacy. He opens up about the moment he hit rock bottom, the pivotal decisions that changed his life, and why so many men today are quietly suffering. From business and marriage to fatherhood and faith, this conversation goes beyond self-help—it's a roadmap for transformation. The episode concludes with a powerful announcement of The Man Arena Tour, a nationwide event aiming to reignite purpose and leadership in men across America.CHAPTERS02:35 – The Real Wake-Up Call05:01 – When Business Success Isn't Enough07:37 – From Powerless to Powerful10:43 – The Rise of the Warrior Framework14:15 – Training Men to Lead Again18:21 – Balancing Business, Marriage & Fatherhood22:47 – Breaking Through the Bullsh*t27:04 – The $3K Gamble That Changed My Life31:16 – Sleeping in the Park, Betting on Himself36:00 – The Man Arena TourConnect with Gary J. White:Website: https://www.wakeupwarrior.comInstagram: @garretjwhiteYouTube: Wake Up Warrior OfficialPodcast: Warrior Week PodcastEvent Site: https://manarenatour.comConnect with Rudy Mawer:LinkedInInstagramFacebookTwitter

Law enforcement shutters Garantex crypto exchange. NTT discloses breach affecting corporate customers. Malvertising campaign hits nearly a million devices. AI's role in Canada's next election. Scammers target Singapore's PM in AI fraud. Botnets exploit critical IP camera vulnerability. In our International Women's Day and Women's History Month special, join Liz Stokes as she shares the inspiring stories of women shaping the future of cybersecurity. And how did Insider threats turn a glitch into a goldmine? Remember to leave us a 5-star rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Miss an episode? Sign-up for our daily intelligence roundup, Daily Briefing, and you'll never miss a beat. And be sure to follow CyberWire Daily on LinkedIn. CyberWire Guest In this special International Women's Day edition, we shine a spotlight on the incredible women in and around our network who are shaping the future of cybersecurity. Join Liz Stokes as we celebrate Selena Larson, Threat Researcher at Proofpoint, and co-host of Only Malware in the Building, Gianna Whitver, CEO & Co-Founder of the Cybersecurity Marketing Society and co-host of the Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing podcast, Maria Velasquez, Chief Growth Officer & Co-Founder of the Cybersecurity Marketing Society and co-host of the Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing podcast, Chris Hare, Project Management Specialist and Content Developer at N2K Networks, and host of CertByte, Ann Lang, Project Manager at N2K Networks, Jennifer Eiben, Executive Producer at N2K Networks, and Maria Varmazis, host of the T-Minus Space Daily show at N2K Networks for their achievements, resilience, and the invaluable contributions they make to keeping our digital world secure. Selected Reading Russian crypto exchange Garantex's website taken down in apparent law enforcement operation (The Record) Data breach at Japanese telecom giant NTT hits 18,000 companies (BleepingComputer) Malvertising campaign leads to info stealers hosted on GitHub (Microsoft) Canadian intelligence agency warns of threat AI poses to upcoming elections (The Record)  Deepfakes of Singapore PM Used to Sell Crypto, Residency Program (Bloomberg)  Edimax Camera Zero-Day Disclosed by CISA Exploited by Botnets (SecurityWeek) Magecart: How Akamai Protected a Global Retailer Against a Live Attack (Akamai)  Cybercrime 'crew' stole $635,000 in Taylor Swift concert tickets (BleepingComputer) Share your feedback. We want to ensure that you are getting the most out of the podcast. Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts with us by completing our brief listener survey as we continually work to improve the show.  Want to hear your company in the show? You too can reach the most influential leaders and operators in the industry. Here's our media kit. Contact us at cyberwire@n2k.com to request more info. The CyberWire is a production of N2K Networks, your source for strategic workforce intelligence. © N2K Networks, Inc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When New York Times bestselling author and entrepreneur Rory Vaden wanted to get better at public speaking, he went out and spoke 304 times… for free. It was perhaps the best investment he could have made in himself and his abilities. In this episode, Rory will explain how to communicate effectively and show off your authentic self while building trust.  In this episode, Hala and Rory will discuss: (00:00) Introduction (02:54) Rory Vaden's Journey to Success (05:21) The Power of Public Speaking (09:40) Building a Personal Brand (24:44) Overcoming Procrastination and Time Management (32:04) The Concept of Multiplying Time (36:32) Personal Branding Strategies (38:01) Mastering Book Launches and Monetization Strategies (38:38) The Key to Personal Branding (39:53) Breaking Through to Notoriety (46:20) The Power of Focus (51:13) The Importance of Personal Branding for Professionals (57:00) The Three E's Strategy (01:01:50) Common Mistakes in Personal Branding Rory Vaden is the New York Times bestselling author of Take the Stairs and Procrastinate on Purpose. He is an 8-figure entrepreneur and a Hall of Fame speaker with a TEDx talk that has more than 5 million views. Today, Rory and his wife serve as the co-founders of Brand Builders Group, where they teach mission-driven messengers to become more well-known and to build and monetize their personal brand. Their clients include people like Lewis Howes from The School of Greatness, Eric Thomas “ET Hip Hop Preacher”, Tom and Lisa Bilyeu from Impact Theory, New York Times bestselling author Luvvie Ajayi Jones, and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author Ed Mylett. Sponsored By: Shopify - youngandprofiting.co/shopify Airbnb - airbnb.com/host Rocket Money - rocketmoney.com/profiting Indeed - indeed.com/profiting     RobinHood - robinhood.com/gold  Factor - factormeals.com/factorpodcast    Rakuten - rakuten.com Active Deals - youngandprofiting.com/deals       Key YAP Links Reviews - ratethispodcast.com/yap  Youtube - youtube.com/c/YoungandProfiting  LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/htaha/  Instagram - instagram.com/yapwithhala/  Social + Podcast Services - yapmedia.com   Transcripts - youngandprofiting.com/episodes-new  Entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship podcast, Business, Business podcast, Self Improvement, Self-Improvement, Personal development, Starting a business, Strategy, Investing, Sales, Selling, Psychology, Productivity, Entrepreneurs, AI, Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Marketing, Negotiation, Money, Finance, Side hustle, Startup, mental health, Career, Leadership, Mindset, Health, Growth mindset. 

Is DOGE a cyberattack against America? The White House plans to nominate a new national cyber director. Patch Tuesday updates. Ivanti discloses a critical stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability. The GAO  identifies cybersecurity gaps in the U.S. Coast Guard's efforts to secure the Maritime Transportation System. An Arizona woman pleads guilty to running a laptop farm for North Korea. A notorious swatter gets a prison sentence. Our guests are  Gianna Whitver and Maria Velasquez, co-hosts of the Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing podcast. Plague-themed phishing tests take it too far. Remember to leave us a 5-star rating and review in your favorite podcast app. Miss an episode? Sign-up for our daily intelligence roundup, Daily Briefing, and you'll never miss a beat. And be sure to follow CyberWire Daily on LinkedIn. CyberWire Guest Today, we welcome Gianna Whitver and Maria Velasquez, co-hosts of the Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing podcast, sharing their plans for 2025. You can listen to new episodes of Breaking Through in Cybersecurity Marketing every Wednesday airing on the N2K CyberWire network and wherever you get your podcasts.  Selected Reading DOGE's Cyberattack Against America (Foreign Policy) Trump plans to nominate GOP insider Sean Cairncross as national cyber director (The Record) Microsoft Fixes Another Two Actively Exploited Zero-Days (Infosecurity Magazine) Chipmaker Patch Tuesday: Intel, AMD, Nvidia Fix High-Severity Vulnerabilities (SecurityWeek) ICS Patch Tuesday: Vulnerabilities Addressed by Schneider Electric, Siemens (SecurityWeek) Ivanti Connect Secure Vulnerabilities Let Attackers Execute Code Remotely (Cyber Security News) GAO Tells Coast Guard to Improve Cybersecurity of Maritime Transportation System (SecurityWeek) Arizona woman pleads guilty to running laptop farm for N. Korean IT workers, faces 9-year sentence (The Record) California Teenager Sentenced to 48 Months in Prison for Nationwide Swatting Spree (US Department of Justice) Phishing Tests, the Bane of Work Life, Are Getting Meaner (Wall Street Journal)  Share your feedback. We want to ensure that you are getting the most out of the podcast. Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts with us by completing our brief listener survey as we continually work to improve the show.  Want to hear your company in the show? You too can reach the most influential leaders and operators in the industry. Here's our media kit. Contact us at cyberwire@n2k.com to request more info. The CyberWire is a production of N2K Networks, your source for strategic workforce intelligence. © N2K Networks, Inc. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices