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unSeminary Podcast
From Imitation to Innovation: Finding Your Church’s Own DNA with Sam Hamstra

unSeminary Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 3, 2026 34:30


Welcome back to another episode of the unSeminary podcast. Today we're joined by Sam Hamstra, Lead Pastor of Anthem Church, a fast-growing, multi-ethnic and multi-generational church serving Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland. Anthem became an independent church in March 2020—the same week the world shut down—and has since grown to multiple locations and thousands of people. In this conversation, Sam shares how clarity around mission, values, discipleship, and vision has helped Anthem develop a distinct ministry culture and sustain healthy growth. Does your church know exactly who it is and how it does ministry? Are your leaders aligned around a shared playbook—or are you borrowing someone else's model without adapting it to your context? Sam offers practical lessons on creating organizational clarity that shapes everything from calendars to leadership development. Move from imitation to innovation. // Sam is quick to acknowledge how much Anthem learned from churches and networks that came before them. But even before Anthem launched, he began recognizing that another church's model could not simply be copied and pasted into Northwest Indiana. The local culture, demographics, ministry environment, and people were different. Healthy leaders learn from others while also doing the harder work of discerning what God is uniquely calling their church to become. Clarity takes courage. // Copying an established model feels safe because leaders can see evidence that it works somewhere else. Developing your own approach requires greater faith because the outcome is less predictable. Sam believes churches must have the courage to move into that uncertainty. Rather than endlessly chasing the next successful strategy, leaders should prayerfully identify the unique blueprint God has given their church and commit to it. Define your “way.” // Inspired by Patrick Lencioni's The Advantage, Sam and his leadership team spent roughly nine months working through five foundational questions: Why do we exist? How do we behave? What do we do? How do we live? Where are we going? Their answers eventually became what they call “The Anthem Way”—a framework that brings clarity to mission, values, discipleship, spiritual formation, and long-term vision. Mission and vision are not the same thing. // Anthem's mission is to lead people to know Christ and make Him known. That mission remains constant because it flows from the Great Commission. Vision answers a different question: where is God taking this particular church? Separating those ideas has helped Anthem distinguish between the timeless calling of the church and the specific future they believe God is leading them toward. Let your discipleship pathway drive the calendar. // One of the biggest benefits of clarity has been simplifying Anthem's yearly ministry calendar. Instead of allowing every ministry to bring new ideas and events to the table, leaders evaluate opportunities through their defined discipleship pathway. The result is greater focus and consistency. Sam says their annual rhythm has remained largely the same for years, helping both staff and attenders understand what comes next. Boring can be a strength. // Churches often feel pressure to constantly create something new, but Sam has learned that repetition can be one of the greatest drivers of health. Anthem maintains a weekly prayer gathering, predictable discipleship rhythms, and recurring ministry events rather than continually reinventing the calendar. The goal is not novelty. It is consistency around the few things the church believes matter most. Create intentional invite moments. // Anthem builds four major invite opportunities into its annual rhythm: Easter, a Summer Kickoff, Homecoming, and Christmas. These predictable moments give the congregation specific opportunities to invite friends and family. Sam has seen the church grow following these events because people know when the church is intentionally creating space for them to bring someone who may not normally attend. Values have to become behaviors. // Anthem's core values include “We Love People,” “We Choose Joy,” and “We Bleed Passion.” But Sam emphasizes that values only matter when people can see them lived out. Loving people means creating a culture where people can belong before they behave. Choosing joy means approaching ministry with gratitude rather than obligation. Bleeding passion means refusing to settle for the status quo and remaining willing to change as God leads. Use clarity to protect multisite culture. // As Anthem expands to additional locations, the Anthem Way provides clear boundaries for what must remain consistent. Sam is not claiming Anthem's approach is the only way to do church, but he does believe it is important for every one of their locations to understand and embody Anthem's distinct way of doing ministry. That documented clarity gives leaders freedom while protecting the culture across campuses. Check out Anthem Church’s About page to see how their story, mission, values, and discipleship pathway fit together. You can also follow @SamHamstra and @ThisIsAnthemChurch on Instagram. Thank You for Tuning In! There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose unSeminary, and I'm grateful for that. If you enjoyed today's show, please share it by using the social media buttons you see at the left hand side of this page. Also, kindly consider taking the 60-seconds it takes to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, they're extremely helpful when it comes to the ranking of the show and you can bet that I read every single one of them personally! Episode Transcript Rich Birch — Hey friends, welcome to the unSeminary podcast. Really looking forward to today’s conversation. This is a funny one because literally yesterday I was talking to a church in a coaching call. We were talking about this exact issue that we’re going to unpack today. They’re wrestling with these things. I know that this is going to help you. So you’ve tuned in for a great conversation today with Sam Hamstra. Super excited to have him. He and his wife, Taylor, they founded Anthem Church in March 2020 with a vision and heart to lead people to know Christ and make them know known. Rich Birch — Over the past few years they have seen this mission become a reality, continues to grow. It’s a multi-ethnic, multi-generational family made up of thousands of people from all walks of life in Northwestern Indiana, Chicagoland, and beyond. It’s one of the fastest growing churches in the country. So honored that you’re with us today, Sam. Welcome.Sam Hamstra — Rich, so honored to be with you. This is a full circle moment for me. I’ve been following you for quite some time. So super honored to be on your on your show.Rich Birch — Oh, come on. That’s I’m glad you’re here. We, we’ve got a lot to learn from you today. So March, 2020, it’s one of those dates that sticks in all of our brains. Cause like, we all know, what were you doing? March 15th, 2020. We all can say exactly what we’re, where we were. That’s a wild month to, to launch.Rich Birch — It’s funny because I keep bumping into people who are telling a similar story. They’re like, we started during the pandemic, right at the beginning, right after that sort of thing. Give us a picture today and kind of from that moment all the way on to today, kind of bring the story, bring us, tell us a little bit about Anthem. Give us a flavor of the church.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so we currently today we’re headquartered in Hammond, Indiana, which when we say Indiana, different people have different thoughts. But we’re we’re actually butting up to Chicago.Rich Birch — Yep.Sam Hamstra — Joking around right now, we’re going to be the future home of the Chicago Bears soon.Rich Birch — Nice.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. But um yeah, so we’re headquartered in Hammond. Our second location is in Merrillville, Indiana, about 30 minutes from here. So currently um our family’s grown to about 2,500 people in English. And we also have a Spanish service as well. And God’s done a phenomenal work over a six-year time frame.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so we did launch in March of 2020. Our first Sunday was the same Sunday the world shut down.Rich Birch — Wow.Sam Hamstra — And so the third week of March was our first service on the internet.Rich Birch — Dude, that’s amazing.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — That’s incredible.Sam Hamstra — Yes. So in God’s divine plan, kind of underneath our origin story, we we were actually a part of a church in Tinley Park, Illinois. We were a location of that church called Christian Life Center.Sam Hamstra — And our senior pastor and I, Pastor Jerry McQuay, we had been having an ongoing conversation about him making us independent, which is a whole long story. And he decided to really lean into what he believed God was doing in our lives and in this region and made us independent in God’s divine plan. That started in March of 2020. Rich Birch — Wow.Sam Hamstra — And so we transitioned from being a multi part of a multi site church a location up to being independent in March. And yeah, we started with nothing. We didn’t have any cameras, didn’t have anything. I called our media guy and said, do you have anything at your house? And he brought it. Yeah.Rich Birch — What gear you got in your basement? Yeah, that’s amazing.Sam Hamstra — Yeah and he he brought a camera from his house. And yeah, that’s how we started. One continuous shot streaming online. And that was the start of Anthem Church in March of 2020.Rich Birch — Wow. Yeah, that’s amazing.Sam Hamstra — So God’s done a great work.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s amazing. That’s incredible. That’s cool to hear and fun to see where it’s come, you know, since then. When you look back on that experience, you know, a lot of what you’re trying to define in those early days of a church, you’re trying to bring clarity to like, what is our approach? And part of what we do is you know, we there’s ah there’s, I think, some good copying and pasting. You’re like, hey, here’s the way they do it over here. Maybe we could try a little bit that. But then eventually you start kind of coming up with your own way. You kind of birth your own a approach, playbook, you might call it. Rich Birch — When did you start to feel… ah the kind of transition from, hey, I just want to do it like in this case, either CLC or another church over there. And you started to realize, hey, there’s something unique here at Anthem. And we got to try to define some of that. Talk us through maybe from um a timeline point of view or from a revelation point of view, like, oh, this is kind of things I started to see. Talk us through what that looked like.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so about two years before we launched Anthem, God started to really kind of do a work in our heart just on unique DNA. And we were coming out of like heavily influenced by ARC, Church of the Highlands, and learned so much from there.Sam Hamstra — And we’re seeing just how like clarity really was so important on where we’re going.Sam Hamstra — And so we were coming in there and I just was really praying and seeking the Lord on, okay, this is great. But in our context here, there’s some some differences, there’s some nuances.Sam Hamstra — This is, um we’re over here. what What does this look like here? And so really took the foundation of that and started looking at what does this look like? So when we started Anthem, it was with the thought of, we really want to lean into this unique blueprint of how God designed us and what God has called us to here. Sam Hamstra — So it really started from the jump from from day one. And so but it was a couple years ahead of time to say, OK, this is great. Let’s let’s use this. Let’s we’ve been imitating. Let’s imitate now move to a little bit of innovation and what the Lord would have for us.Rich Birch — Yeah, and there’s obviously there’s like an art and science to that, right? There’s like the, the yeah, insert whatever church, Church of the Highlands is fantastic. They’re doing a great thing, but you’re not Birmingham, Alabama. And you know and so there’s cultural differences, there’s community differences, there’s different resources and all that. That’s like the kind of science-y part of it. Rich Birch — But then there’s the art part of it, which is a little bit more… like intuitives, it’s like vibes, that kind of thing. How did you discern, okay, what are those things that we should be thinking about that are different that you start, or maybe things you started to see, evidence you started to see like, oh, maybe this isn’t working, just importing. Was there evidence of that that you saw?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so like, and it was like small things, you know, just on approach to Sunday service. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — You know, like, hey, this is open door, we don’t do this on Sunday. And we had just been starting to see like pretty early on, we’re we’re reaching lost people through like a hard approach to the gospel.Sam Hamstra — And it was just like, it wasn’t really seeker sensitive. Rich Birch — Sure.Sam Hamstra — It wasn’t, not saying they are, but just, it was just a little bit different in in our context where people were coming from. On the multi-ethnic side, it was just some approaches being super intentional with sounds, sights, all of that in in our context. And so, and even on the discipleship model, you know, groups, what kind of groups are we doing? How are we setting these up?Sam Hamstra — And so it was definitely like these nuances in the different categories, I would say, of discipleship that we started to pay attention to. That that was really the start, I think, of innovating what we have now.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s cool. Why do you think so many of us just reach for someone else’s model rather than doing the longer, harder, deeper, like it’s more annoying work to try to define you know our own thing and and then ultimately to document it which we’re going to get to here. what What did you actually do to kind of try to codify that? But why do you think we avoid that as leaders?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so I think on one end, what’s established, you can see that the model works. And so um there’s great success you’re seeing. I mean, it’s working everywhere. And so I think it’s safe. And so deep down, it’s like this is established. I see it work. And so I can kind of press play on this. And and I know to a level that this this works. Sam Hamstra — And so it takes courage to do something that you haven’t seen before. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And deep, deep down, i think in our hearts, to me, that’s probably foundational thing. It’s like, man, I haven’t really seen this so his is going to require some courage, require some faith to press into the unknown.Rich Birch — Right. Right. Sam Hamstra — And so I do think that unknown word leads to some different decisions sometimes.Rich Birch — Well, and your church is an interesting um example just because it’s grown so quickly. I, you know, even in the… the lead up to it, I was thinking about, you know, the word, the term church plant.Rich Birch — Like, I don’t know when that term, you know, I was talking with a church that had been around for 30 years and they’re a big church. They’re like 20,000 people. And they, the lead pastor was like, well, we still think of ourselves as a church plant. And I’m like, yeah, I don’t at some point you stop being a church plant and just be, you start being a church. Rich Birch — And I think actually this is one of those, one of those differentiations is when you start saying, okay, like we’re going to, we believe that kind of God’s called us to this unique thing. There’s something in there. You built something that I think you call the Anthem Way. Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — Walk us through what that is. How does it function? What is the Anthem Way? Help us understand that.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so this was actually birthed in an odd place. I was reading “The Advantage” by Patrick Lencioni,…Rich Birch — Yeah. Sam Hamstra — …and he was talking about organizational health, and one of the keys is clarity. Rich Birch — Yes.Sam Hamstra — And I had I have kind of, I’m somewhat of a mutt in church in my upbringing. Rich Birch — Love it.Sam Hamstra — So I’ve been in a lot of different environments and seen to a lot of different things. And so it was really just kind of like looking like, how can we just be crystal clear on who we are, where we’re going and different things. And so I read that book and in that book, he actually laid out these questions that he was like kind of pointing to every successful organization needs to answer.Sam Hamstra — And Iwas kind of seeing that with some of the stuff I’ve been hearing. And I’m like, and there’s a couple of missing pieces for me that he pointed to that I thought was so important in church world that I would actually point to that have been some of the biggest things I think that have been what I would call probably the secret sauce of what we’ve seen as far as clarity. Sam Hamstra — Just the separation of something simple, but the difference between mission and vision, you know, why we exist compared to where we’re going. And so, yeah, I read that book and in there he laid out questions that you need to answer. I took that to our leadership team and we wrestled with these probably for about nine months. Sam Hamstra — I’m just going back and forth on wording, how we say things. question by question in five different questions. We answered those and we gave it a name called the Anthem Way. And so that was the foundation, but I want to give credit where credit is due. It came through the book, The Advantage by Patrick Lencioni. Yeah.Rich Birch — Yeah, no, that’s great. That’s fantastic. And I, you know, one of the things I love that you’ve hit on here is I’ve talked in other contexts that our vision, well, this is the problem with with vision, mission stuff is it’s like, first you have to have a conversation. How do you define vision? How do you define mission?Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — But the big thing that we’re called to, the big idea, it comes from Jesus, right? We’re supposed to reach people and grow them up in in in relationship with him. All churches should have that as their core. That is at the core of what we do. Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — But getting clear on how we do that, you know, these other questions I’m assuming has helped give you a bit of a more of an edge, something that’s a little bit different. Do you want to rattle through the five questions… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — …and maybe some high level, I know we can’t get into all the detail, but kind of high level how you’ve answered it. And then the follow-up I’m going ask you is, which are those couple that have given you what you think are the biggest distinctives around Anthem… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Okay. Rich Birch — …that kind of that that kind of, um you know, that provide that edge that’s a little different, you think.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. So five questions and I’ll rattle them off quick. But so first one is why do we exist? Mission – the mission question, um which you just said it, I 100% agree, you know, every church really is called to the same thing. Let’s make disciples who make disciples, the Great Commission is still our first priority.Sam Hamstra — And so the way we say that is to lead people to know Christ and make them known. That was something we just prayed into language. We want to share language that people could really rally around. Sam Hamstra — Next question is how do we behave? The values question. We wanted to boil down in our culture those not aspirational values like truly who we are. So we boil those down to three things and wrestle with the language a lot. We wanted them actionable, but we choose joy. We love people and we believe passion. Sam Hamstra — And those all have disclaimers and really feed into our culture of what we call multi-everything. We love people from all walks of life, belong before you behave, and all that falls in there.Sam Hamstra — What do we do? Patrick Lencioni was talking about how that’s really your your business definition, so to speak, not for external use, but internal. We answered that with, we provide defined discipleship pathway.Sam Hamstra — It’s what we do day in and day out. It’s why we wake up in the morning. We’re not trying to reinvent the wheel. We’re not a country club. We’re not here to make money, we’re a church and and this is this is how we do, like what we do to ah to reach our why.Sam Hamstra — How we live is the spiritual question for us. We wanna make disciples. So we wanted to be able to weigh spiritually what a disciple is. And so we looked at Acts 2:42, which we felt like was a really good, definition of these handles on a disciple. And so we have five kind of disclaimers on what we want to see in our people at our church. And we offer resources on those, but from daily devotion to prayer to we share our Jesus story. How do you testify? How do we share? How do we make Christ known?Sam Hamstra — And then the last one is where are we going, which is the vision question. And we’ve we’re wrestling with the timing right now. We currently have a 10 year vision statement, which is just kind of pointers on like, this is where we believe God is taking us as a people.Sam Hamstra — And so those five questions are give us the framework for what we call the Anthem Way. What I’ve seen, as basic as it sounds and in our context. And I don’t know if this resonates with anybody. One of the most frustrating meetings I had in church context was the yearly calendar meeting.Rich Birch — Yeah, so true.Sam Hamstra — And I just felt like everybody was coming every year with their own ideas. Some of them had to do with our mission, some didn’t. And these are just in past experiences. And so it just felt like everybody was trying to, and some, you know, just different reasons, good, bad, indifferent.Sam Hamstra — And what what gave me great clarity was to look at our defined discipleship pathway and say, this is how we create our calendar. And um that’s been one thing that has simplified everything for us.Sam Hamstra — So every year in the last six years, our our yearly calendar flow has been the same. And our people are starting to understand it. The next steps fall within it when we even, you know, baptisms, we’re doing it this time. And So that’s been one thing is basically that sounds like what do we do?Rich Birch — No, no, that’s good. I like it.Sam Hamstra — I found a lot of confusion on that in the past, on like, how do we do groups? How do we have services? To define everything within that in the discipleship pathway, to me has been life-giving, not only for us as a team, but as as our church as well.Rich Birch — Yeah. Pull that apart a little bit more. I think, because I think this is where we fall down on this type of work is, you know, and, and I know it’s none of the people that are listening in, but there are churches that like, they do a retreat and we’re like, we’re going away. We’re going we’re reading Lencioni. We’re going to define the five questions. We even make a snappy poster and we put it up on the wall. And then we go back to business as usual. It’s the same thing we’ve always done. But you’ve been able to make the connection there, particularly with the calendar.Rich Birch — Maybe talk us through, give us some examples of how this work is shaping, how you’re actually defining, you know, how you operate as a church.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so one example I would say is prayer. I had somebody call me and I like to think our prayer culture is strong. And they said, how did you get your prayer culture strong? And I said, well, this is really mind blowing. We have a weekly prayer meeting.Rich Birch — Right. Right.Sam Hamstra — And so because of that, and and still as the lead pastor still today, I take responsibility for leading that because I believe it’s it’s a high value for the church. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — So it’s on the calendar. We you know And we’re not adding to it. It’s just 6 p.m. to 7 every Thursday. And we support it, which I think is the secondary layer behind that because it’s important. Now we have staff support. We have worship team support. We’re, we’re like staying very focused, on a few things rather than getting broad and going to a retreat and saying, this is a silver bullet. I don’t think there, I think the whole thing is a silver bullet, the whole pathway.Rich Birch — Right. Sure.Sam Hamstra — And so we always say, you know, I took this from somebody, but, you know, we want to be Ruth’s Chris, not Ponderosa. We want a one page menu and we really want to just do that.Rich Birch — Yep.Sam Hamstra — And it might even get boring. And we we’re trying to learn that boring is good.Rich Birch — Yeah, yeah. Boring stuff grows churches. I love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — One of those five is sharing Jesus. Every disciple has one mission, to make Christ known. We don’t keep the gospel to ourselves. We share it through our words, our actions, our lives, wherever we go. We carry the hope of Jesus to a world that needs him.Rich Birch — Unpack some ways that that value drives behavior at the church, that actually drives calendaring and and you know what you’re talking about, that sort of thing.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so deep, you know, we always want to empower everybody to be inviters and not just share. I think the key word in that is share your Jesus story. You know, we have to be people who understand how to share a testimony outside the four walls with it, you know, with a pretty quick invite to be like, hey, come be part of this community if you don’t have a community.Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And so that is really through calendaring. We that’s really probably intrinsically baked into what we’re doing. So anytime I bring a guest to church, I’m saying it from the pulpit. And this is my friend. They’re here. I invited celebrating those through baptisms.Sam Hamstra — We let people testify of so you’re hearing stories of that. And then really resourcing people to make Christ known by sharing their story, teaching them how to do that.Sam Hamstra — So In the context of the calendar, um you know I took this from your playbook, sir, so thank you. We wanted to create four big events in our flywheel… Rich Birch — Yep. Love it. Sam Hamstra — …that are big invite events, that these are the moments where you need to bring 10 people. Rich Birch — Right. Sam Hamstra — We have found in our calendar since day one that we are seeing people respond to that and our church grows after every single time we do a big event. Rich Birch — That’s great.Sam Hamstra — And so we’re we’re doing four quarterly things.Rich Birch — Are those are those four the same every year? Are they, are they, yeah.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, yes.Rich Birch — So what are they? What are those four? If you don’t want me asking.Sam Hamstra — So, you know, Easter, of course… Rich Birch — Yep. Sam Hamstra — …summer kickoff was something we just created… Rich Birch — Yeah, great. Sam Hamstra — …to start the first Sunday of June. We rented a football field and we just say, bring everybody. We don’t… Rich Birch — That’s great. Sam Hamstra — …in our culture here, this is one thing, like, we’re like, we don’t shrink in the summer. This is a great time to grow.Rich Birch — Keep going forward. Yep. Love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. And then we created something years ago called Homecoming, just, you know, it was really show up Sunday, invite day. Rich Birch — Yeah. Yep. Sam Hamstra — And then Christmas. Rich Birch — Love it.Sam Hamstra — So those are our four homecomings in November on the calendar. It just kind of flows quarterly for us that way.Rich Birch — That’s great. I love it. Well, I love what we’ve seen in fastest growing church in the country, friends that are listening in, is, you know, lots of churches will get, they have two big days, Christmas and Easter. But what we see is the behavior that you’re doing, which is you kind of end up having to make up a couple other days where you’re kind of injecting energy. We’re recording this in the summertime. You know, lots of churches have pulled a page out of Life Church’s book around At the Movies. And they, at the movies is one of their biggest attended days of the year on the the front end of that.Rich Birch — It’s just made up. There’s no reason for you to come the first week of August… Sam Hamstra — Yeah, absolutely. Rich Birch — …but they’ve decided, hey, we’re going to do that. That’s great. So we’re going to link to your about page where a lot of this is on that that page.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — On the how our core values, how we behave: We love people. We bleed passion. We choose joy. There’s some unique stuff in there. So talk me through. We love people, I think could be universally true of lots of churches… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — …but I’m not sure that every church would say we bleed passion. We choose joy. Talk me through those as how those are kind of a unique thing that is helping you define what it means to be Anthem.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so you know on the love people thing, is you do hear that a lot. And I found there’s a difference between hearing it than living it out. And in religious environments sometimes, you know, I think we all pray we wanna reach the lost until you reach the lost. Rich Birch — True.Sam Hamstra — And our first service, our first Easter Sunday here, we only had one door into our auditorium. And I still remember we had the whole back of the auditorium smelled like weed.Rich Birch — Oh, wow. Okay. Love it.Sam Hamstra — And it was like this tense moment, you know, like of like, okay, this is what we pray for.Rich Birch — Yes.Sam Hamstra — And kind of diving deep into that. So we really own that language within that of we belong before we behave. And so we’re, you know, you can come from all walks of life and we believe Jesus died for all people. So we love all people.Sam Hamstra — And then the we choose joy…Rich Birch — I love that. Before we move on, the thing I love about that… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — …that you’re calling out, that I do think is a nuance that we miss in too many churches, which is oftentimes we say we want to reach people. But what that comes with is messy pastoral care, hard conversations, stuff that doesn’t make sense, and long nights. Like, it’s just hard. Rich Birch — And, um you know, if you’re, it’s easy to reach Christians from the other church across town. It’s hard to reach people who don’t normally journey in this stuff.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Yeah.Rich Birch — And I love I love that story, even of your opening weekend with the the smell of weed in the back of the room.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — I love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Definitely messy.Rich Birch — That’s great. Yes, yes, love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. You know, the “We choose joy” has just been, um i think one of the greatest testimonies we had was from somebody that just, it was their first time guest. So like, man, everybody feels like they’re the same here. Everybody’s so happy. And we just wanted to build in just this, we believe that, you know, joy should be a badge that every believer wears. It’s just been, you know, you go into the different environments and some people just, it seems like a chore to be alive.Sam Hamstra — And so we just wanted to drive in. This is a privilege to be part of what God is doing in the earth in this hour, even if it doesn’t look perfect. Rich Birch — That’s great. Sam Hamstra — And then with “We bleed passion”, um that’s really our way to say here, you know, if you’re looking for a place that’s content with status quo, you’re probably not going to like it here. We’re always going to be changing. We’re always going to be moving. We’re always going to be shifting. We always want to go with where the Lord is leading. And so we’re a sending church. Don’t get comfortable. There’s always going to be more services. There’s always going to be new churches. Sam Hamstra — So we tried to to really get that in the DNA from the front side.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s so good. I love it.Rich Birch — I love that “we choose joy”. When I was at Liquid Church, are one of our three in this in this coupling was “Church is fun”. And you know the way we would talk about that is we would say, you know we we we say good news or we say gospel. We’re like, we should be gospel people or we should be good news people. Rich Birch — But what that actually means, how that actually should work itself out in our culture is when people interact with us, those people are a lot of fun to be around. Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — Because they’re redeemed people who have figured out, man, we’re following a God who loves us dearly. So what that should actually like, I love the way you’ve said it, we choose joy. Joy should be the natural outcome of our churches… Sam Hamstra — Yes. Rich Birch — …which is, again, that should not be rocket science, but it’s amazing how much that is a cultural difference or can be a huge cultural difference in many churches.Sam Hamstra — Yes. 100%. Yep.Rich Birch — That’s cool. So um you’ve been using this really throughout your how you develop leaders, how you onboard people, how you, you know, how do you come back to this time and time again? What are you using? How are you using these tools in your leadership development, in your raising up of volunteers, that sort of thing?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so foundationally, I got to give credit where credit is due once again on this. I heard University of Kentucky’s baseball coach say this about culture, and it was like the best thing I’ve ever heard. He totally transformed his program, and he said it was culture at at the root of it. He said culture is every day. Culture is what you accept, and culture is what you reinforce.Rich Birch — It’s good.Sam Hamstra — And so we try to keep that in front of us as much as we can. It’s you know not something we just say we want to lead the way every day. So within these three, we actually just came out with 10 leadership values that all fit within those three…Rich Birch — Oh, that’s cool.Sam Hamstra — …that give a little more language to our leadership, like, you know, we love people, so we park in back. And so really speaking to the culture of, you know, we put other people first, we serve. Rich Birch — Oh, that’s good.Sam Hamstra — And so, you know, we try to outdo each other. You know, I park about a half mile away from church on Sundays. We don’t we don’t do pastor parking, you know, or anything like that. umAnd so just, it’s every day.Rich Birch — Yes.Sam Hamstra — We do a value at every single one of our pre-service huddles on Sunday. So we’re taking those three values every Sunday, one, here’s what we’re doing.Sam Hamstra — And then Leadership Pipeline, we implemented this two years ago and we’re teaching our Anthem way across the board to a new set of leaders three times a year. And so we really zone in on culture a lot. We’ve just realized people coming from a lot of different places and what makes our culture, our culture are these distinctives. And so we’re teaching those and then really trying to walk them out. And the best testimony we’ve been hearing is people say, yeah, we see that in the leadership of the church. So that’s been really cool to hear.Rich Birch — That’s really cool. I love it. And friends, this just reminds me of the like such a foundational thing we’ve all got to get right and work on and then repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.Rich Birch — We’ve got to keep on top of this language and and just come back to it time and time again. So you’re multi-site, you’re you’re going to launch more campuses down the road. Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — How does this tie into that conversation around, you know, there can be in you know, some multi-site churches, there’s like this tension of uniformity, you know, versus autonomy. And like, how how does that how does how does your thinking work out with the Anthem Way in multiple locations?Sam Hamstra — Yeah. So I want to preface this with I’m new, so I am figuring this out in real time. Rich Birch — Sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah.Sam Hamstra — I’m coming from from being a campus pastor to now being in the position I’m in. We’re two years into our first ah plant location campus. So and we’ve seen it be successful.Sam Hamstra — But what we’ve agreed on is we are going to be uniform in the Anthem Way. So we’re choosing uniformity and everything that falls within that box of the Anthem Way. Um, and so that has been like the running lanes for us to define what we’re doing, how we’re doing it, the way we talk, the way we move, our style of church, um, and all of that. So that’s been, you know, we’ve been really struggling with, with, with what you just said, that uniformity versus unity versus, you know, autonomy. Sam Hamstra — And so, the Anthem Way is to become our framework on how we’re starting locations. And we feel like as long as everybody’s in sync with all, and it and it entails a lot, right? I mean, how we do church, our approach to a lot of things.Sam Hamstra — And so that’s been that’s been our overarching theme is we want to be uniform in this. Rich Birch — yeah that’s good. Sam Hamstra — And so that’s what we’ve been trying to make sure it’s documented, ready to go.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s good. Yeah, that’s an interesting, that’s like a, we could have a whole other half an hour just on on on that issue.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — But one of the things we have seen over the long arc of the multi-site movement is churches that are choosing clarity and um and more, yeah, an understanding of, in your case, what is Anthem and how do we do what we do, those churches are the churches that, from my perspective, and not just statistically, are actually benefiting more from the multi-site movement. Rich Birch — The churches where they’re like, hey, let’s spend a lot of time. It can actually be the worst model because it’s like, we have a lot of people thinking about all the different ways you could potentially do church. As opposed to saying, no, no, like this is the way we’re not, we’re not saying this is the best way. We’re just saying it’s our way. We’re not saying that this is the only way to do it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — We’re just saying this is the way we do it. And, um and we’re okay with that. We’re settled on on that as an issue.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. That’s good. That’s good.Rich Birch — That’s interesting. Is there anything that changed or that has changed as you, I realize you’ve influenced ben to this from the beginning, but like, has there been anything that has kind of changed as you got clearer on the Anthem Way over the over the years? You know, something you cut or improved or, you know, is there anything that jumps to mind on that front?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, we’re would I might use the word refined rather than changed. Rich Birch — Sure. Yep, that’s good. Sam Hamstra — I was just talking to our discipleship director this morning just on, you know, is there is there a small group model? So like our three kind of handles in our discipleship pathway are know Christ, grow in Christ, and and make Christ known.Sam Hamstra — And, you know, our small group model isn’t working. We added what we call the Mosaic School of Ministry, which is is another thing in Grow. And we’ve actually seen way more interest and success in that. And so, you know, we have a way higher percentage right now going through what we call a School of Ministry, which is classes and and discipleship then we’re getting in small groups. Sam Hamstra — And so we’ve been just kind of wrestling with that a little bit. Like, is that culture, is it good, is it bad? And so I think those those refining moments have have really changed. We started off, though, I feel soft saying this, but it worked in our context. But we would start every year with 21 days of prayer and fasting in the beginning. And do 21 days again in the fall.Rich Birch — Love it.Sam Hamstra — We’ve actually gone down to seven days to start the year. There’s seven days in the fall. We just feel like we’re seeing actually better results with more people getting involved just with those minor tweaks, just to say this…Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s good.Sam Hamstra — …his is we’re we’re seeing bigger impact there. Rich Birch — Sure. Sam Hamstra — But so I think those refining things have been really good.Rich Birch — Has there been any of that refining that has come not from you, but from a member of your team? Like, has anyone called you out or called the church out on like, hey, like on prayer or on any of these where, you know, like when that’s happened in my life, I kind of like that. Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — I’m like, oh, well, that’s a pleasant thing that just happened there, even though it feels weird to be the person being called out.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — Have you had any experiences like that?Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Yes. I’m laughing because, yeah, I’ve had quite a few. I could point to the one with prayer fasting. Rich Birch — Yes. So somebody on our team was like, hey, pastor, you know that there’s really no a place in the Bible where there’s a three week corporate fast. Rich Birch — Sure. Sam Hamstra — Yeah like where the whole church is coming together for three weeks and I’m like well I got a challenge, I’m gonna look. And I’m like sure enough you know, I’m maybe somebody could find it, but it was like these times and seasons where people come together for specific things of like, oh man you’re right. Rich Birch — Yeah. Yeah, love it. Sam Hamstra — So and so that was like one of those um yeah it’s it’s definitely happened quite quite a bit and so which I love that too and so it’s been such a blessing of solid team that feels free to speak when when they need to.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s great. Well, this has been a good conversation, just as we’re kind of coming to land. If you think about a church out there that feels like okay they’ve listened to this and they’re like okay, we maybe they’ve opened up your website. And they’re like, hey, we’re not as clear on this that as we could be, we need to get much clearer on that.Rich Birch — What’s kind of one first step that you would encourage people to take? What would be kind of the best first step towards getting clarity on this front?Sam Hamstra — Write the vision, make it plain so that he that reads it may run.Rich Birch — Dude, I love it. And with that, we end the episode. That’s fantastic. No, that’s great. Unpack that a little bit.Sam Hamstra — Um, you know, I for so much of my life, I was always looking to be so unique and so different. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And I felt like I just needed the next best thing. And it was wasn’t until I just locked into this is what the Lord has for us. And it might sound like somebody else it might look and that’s OK, but this going to be very unique to us. And this is what we’re doing. And just to be very clear on that and then just this is for me, but I get bored so easily. And to just, just not get bored and just keep doing the same thing in the same direction day after day.Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And in that that flywheel, to use your words, it does work. And just to see that go and to to get very clear and and simple and and let people know where you’re going and just keep saying the same thing over and over is so life-giving.Rich Birch — That’s so good. So good.Rich Birch — Well, I really appreciate you being here today. If we want to send people anywhere online to track with you or to track with the church, where do we want to send them?Sam Hamstra — So first name, last name would be all my personal stuff. So @samhamstra, last name H-A-M-S-T-R-A.Sam Hamstra — And all church stuff is weareanthemchurch.com. And then weareanthemchurch on social as well.Rich Birch — Love it. So good. Appreciate that, Sam. Thanks so much for being here. Honored that you take some time to be with us today.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, thanks so much, Rich, my honor.

The One-Person Business
What Solopreneurs Should Stop Copying From Big Brands

The One-Person Business

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 1, 2026 30:52 Transcription Available


Warren Kornblum spent decades inside some of the biggest brands in retail, including Toys R Us across 27 countries, and he is convinced the solopreneur holds an advantage the giants would kill for. In this episode, Warren joins Carly and Joe to break down what really builds a brand when you are a business of one.Warren makes the case that branding was never about technology, reach, or advertising. It is about the customer, and solopreneurs are uniquely positioned to keep that focus razor sharp. He introduces his idea of the brand stand, the promise your business makes and keeps, and explains why a relationship will always beat a transaction.You will also hear why chasing followers and views can quietly work against you, the difference between share of mind and share of heart, and the danger of using AI to do the personal work that actually earns trust. Warren keeps it refreshingly real, and by the end you will have one simple thing you can start doing this week.In this episode you will learn:Why the solopreneur has a branding advantage over billion-dollar companiesWhat a brand stand is and how to build one that does not collapse into performanceThe difference between share of mind and share of heartWhy vanity metrics mislead you and what to measure insteadHow to earn trust without selling your soul for likesWhere solopreneurs most often overpromise and underdeliverWhether you are just starting or years into building your business of one, this conversation will change how you think about your brand.

Lap 76
Lap 76|#643 Ples po suncu Marquez - Acosta - Bezzecchi za uspomene! Martin prosečan, ali vodi u šampionatu...

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 1, 2026 170:25


Aragon 2026. nam je doneo predivno trkanje u sve tri kategorije, preticanje za pamćenje - dva, kao i još kompleksniju brobu za titulu šampiona sveta.OMV, ZVANIČNI PARTNER LAP 76 ⛽️Preuzmite OMV MyStation mobilnu aplikaciju, podržite Lap 76 - https://www.omv.co.rs/sr-rs/mystationPretvorite poene u trenutke radosti - svaka kupovina na OMV stanicama vam donosi poene, koje možete pretvoriti u trenutke radosti u prodavnici OMV-a.Pri kupovini goriva, preporučujemo MaxxMotion, za koji ostvarujete i popust!

THE STEFANIE GASS SHOW - Clarity Coaching, Kingdom Entrepreneurs, Podcasting, Courses, Christian Business Coach

You haven't started yet. Or you started, and it's just not working. And somewhere along the way, "figuring it out" turned into doing a hundred random things and hoping one of them finally sticks. In this episode, I'm asking the hard question: is it possible your business has quietly become the thing you're serving, instead of the God who gave you the idea in the first place? I'm walking through five signs you've made your business an idol without even realizing it. Doing a hundred random things. Googling instead of asking God. Following the world's formula. Copying someone else's version of success. DIY-ing everything because trusting God with the money feels riskier than trusting yourself alone. By the end, you'll have the A.L.I. Method, Ask, Listen, Invest, a simple three-step way to trade the frantic hustle for actually hearing God again. Friend, if any of this stung a little… good. That means it's time!   Ready to Start or Grow Your Business and Make Consistent Income From a Podcast? Join my FREE, LIVE 5-Day Profitable Podcast Bootcamp! Discover a simple, God-led way to use a podcast to create sustainable income and meaningful impact, without hustling or being glued to social media.

Lap 76
Lap 76|#640 Raul Fernanez sedmi pobednik u 2026, ali Jorge Martin ide ka novoj tituli! Gde je nestao Ducati?

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 30, 2026 135:10


OMV, ZVANIČNI PARTNER LAP 76 ⛽️Preuzmite OMV MyStation mobilnu aplikaciju, podržite Lap 76 - https://www.omv.co.rs/sr-rs/mystationPretvorite poene u trenutke radosti - svaka kupovina na OMV stanicama vam donosi poene, koje možete pretvoriti u trenutke radosti u prodavnici OMV-a.Pri kupovini goriva, preporučujemo MaxxMotion, za koji ostvarujete i popust!

Lap 76
Lap 76|#641 Max i Red Bull suštinski nerazdvojni i jedina moguća kombinacija...za sada! Ima li još titula u RB?

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 30, 2026 135:10


Četvorostruki šampion sveta nastaviće saradnju do kraja 2030. godine s ekipom s kojom je osvojio sve dosadašnje titule i zabeležio sve dosadašnje pobede. Kombinacija odnosa, mogućnosti, uticaja i moći jedinstvena u istoriji Formule 1.IGRAJ I OSVOJI PUT NA TRKU F1 - Red Bull TryOuts: https://www.redbull.com/rs-sr/projects/red-bull-tryouts

Lap 76
Lap 76|#642 Lando pobeđuje drugi put zaredom u 2026! Kimi iskusno do sigurnih poena uz timske naredbe Mercedesa

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 30, 2026 187:47


Ferrari s druge strane po svojim starim dobrim običajima uprkos fantastičnom tempu, ponovo pravi sam sebi haos i vrši samouništenje trke...OMV, ZVANIČNI PARTNER LAP 76 ⛽️Preuzmite OMV MyStation mobilnu aplikaciju, podržite Lap 76 - https://www.omv.co.rs/sr-rs/mystationPretvorite poene u trenutke radosti - svaka kupovina na OMV stanicama vam donosi poene, koje možete pretvoriti u trenutke radosti u prodavnici OMV-a.Pri kupovini goriva, preporučujemo MaxxMotion, za koji ostvarujete i popust!

Lap 76
Lap 76|#638 Lando Norris i McLaren zabeležili prvu pobedu u 2026! Piastri od svitanja do sumraka

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 29, 2026 187:47


Šampion i šamoionska ekipa najzad zabeležili trijumf u najnovijioj eri Formule 1. Brzina je tu, ali i sreća ovoga puta, da ne kažemo Max Verstappen, koji je u svojoj bici za pobedničko postolje zaustavio nalet Lewisa Hamiltona i Ferrarija. Gde je nestao Leclerc? Šta uraditi sa vozačima koji zasotaju za ceo krug i ne pomeraju se nikome?IGRAJ I OSVOJI PUT NA TRKU F1 - Red Bull TryOuts: https://www.redbull.com/rs-sr/projects/red-bull-tryouts

Screw The Commute Podcast
1165 - More Great Tips For Your Phone: Tom talks Phone Tips

Screw The Commute Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2026 7:36


Screw The Commute Podcast Show Notes Episode 1165 Today we're going to talk about another great episode of Phone Tips. And you Android people, don't despair. You can do most of this stuff. It's just I don't know how to do it on an Android. Just take the idea and then Google how to do it on your phone. Publicity Masterclass - https://www.screwthecommute.com/publicity Podcasting Masterclass - https://www.screwthecommute.com/pod Launch Team - https://www.ScrewTheCommute.com/launchteam Please watch this short trailer to the end and leave a comment - https://www.facebook.com/AmericanEntrepreneurFilm/videos/558575401181955 AI Hacks - https://www.ScrewTheCommute.com/aihacks AI Hacks Video Masterclass - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miJed0mCFHQ Professional Speaking Masterclass - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFLR1MLTnf0 Email Marketing Masterclass - https://youtu.be/_wlvw073xP0 How To Automate Your Business - https://screwthecommute.com/automatefree/ Internet Marketing Training Center - https://imtcva.org/ Higher Education Webinar – https://screwthecommute.com/webinars See Tom's Stuff – https://linktr.ee/antionandassociates 00:23 Tom's introduction to Phone Tips 01:43 Sharing Reminders from your phone 03:25 Press and hold "123" for typing numbers without switching keyboards 04:26 Copying and pasting from a text message 05:12 Using the spacebar to place the cursor for editing Entrepreneurial Resources Mentioned in This Podcast Higher Education Webinar - https://screwthecommute.com/webinars Screw The Commute - https://screwthecommute.com/ Screw The Commute Podcast App - https://screwthecommute.com/app/ Screw The Commute Podcast Producer - https://screwthecommute.com/larryguerrera/ College Ripoff Quiz - https://imtcva.org/quiz Know a young person for our Youth Episode Series? Send an email to Tom! - orders@antion.com Have a Roku box? Find Tom's Public Speaking Channel there! - https://channelstore.roku.com/details/267358/the-public-speaking-channel How To Automate Your Business - https://screwthecommute.com/automatefree/ Internet Marketing Retreat and Joint Venture Program - https://greatinternetmarketingtraining.com/ This is the shopping cart system Tom uses! Kartra - https://screwthecommute.com/kartra/ Copywriting901 - https://copywriting901.com/ Become a Great Podcast Guest - https://screwthecommute.com/greatpodcastguest Training - https://screwthecommute.com/training Disabilities Page - https://imtcva.org/disabilities/ Tom's Patreon Page - https://screwthecommute.com/patreon/ Tom on TikTok - https://tiktok.com/@digitalmultimillionaire/ Email Tom: Tom@ScrewTheCommute.com Internet Marketing Training Center - https://imtcva.org/ Related Episodes Don't Try To Be Number One - https://screwthecommute.com/1164/ More Entrepreneurial Resources for Home Based Business, Lifestyle Business, Passive Income, Professional Speaking and Online Business I discovered a great new headline / subject line / subheading generator that will actually analyze which headlines and subject lines are best for your market. I negotiated a deal with the developer of this revolutionary and inexpensive software. Oh, and it's good on Mac and PC. Go here: http://jvz1.com/c/41743/183906 The Wordpress Ecourse. Learn how to Make World Class Websites for $20 or less. https://screwthecommute.com/wordpressecourse/

Magnolia Street
Ep. 172: The Book of Magic (Practical Magic 2) | The Practical Magic Book Summary Series (Book 4)

Magnolia Street

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2026 270:10


After weeks of revisiting the Owens family history, we've reached the final chapter.In this concluding installment of our Practical Magic book summary series, we're diving into The Book of Magic by Alice Hoffman—the long-awaited novel that serves as the literary continuation of the beloved story and the inspiration behind Practical Magic 2.Everything has been building to this moment.The Owens family curse has haunted generations, but now Sally, Gillian, Franny, Jet, Kylie, Antonia, and an entire new cast of players must come together for one final battle against the magic that began centuries ago with Maria Owens. We'll walk through the complete story chapter by chapter, breaking down the characters, timeline, major plot points, magical symbolism, and the emotional moments that bring the Practical Magic saga full circle.Whether you're preparing for the release of Practical Magic 2, refreshing your memory before heading to the theater, or simply want to experience Alice Hoffman's final Owens novel all over again, this episode is your complete guide.SOCIALS:⁠⁠Link Tree⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠DISCLAIMER:The Magnolia Street Podcast intends to discuss the movie, “Practical Magic” in its entirety. This will evidently result in spoilers and it is recommended that you watch and or read the following. Alice Hoffman's: Practical Magic, Rules of Magic, Magic Lessons, Book of Magic. The Magnolia Street Podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional or medical advice. Do not attempt any of the discussed actions, solutions, or remedies without first consulting a qualified professional. It should be noted that we are not medical professionals and therefore we are not responsible or liable for any injuries or illnesses resulting from the use of any information on our website or in our media.The Magnolia Street Podcast presenters, Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia are passionate fans of Alice Hoffman's work and the Practical Magic word she has created. There is no copyright infringement intended, all characters and story lines are that of Alice Hoffman. We do not own any of that material as well as any of the move score music shared within the podcast.All intellectual property rights concerning personally written music and or shared art are vested in Magnolia Street Podcast. Copying, distributing and any other use of these materials is not permitted without the written permission from Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia.

The Inventive Journey

Copying a successful product can look like smart business. The market already exists, customers understand the category, and a competitor has done much of the work of proving demand. But when a patented product is involved, “we changed a few things” can become an expensive sentence.In this episode, we break down what patent infringement actually means for startup founders, product teams, and small business owners. The biggest misconception is that infringement requires an exact copy. It does not. But simply making something similar does not automatically mean infringement either.The key issue is the patent claims.Patent claims define the legal boundaries of the patented invention. A competing product may look almost identical but avoid infringement if it does not satisfy an important claim limitation. On the other hand, a product that looks different can still create risk if its internal structure, process, or method falls within the claims.We also explain why independent development is not automatically a defense to direct patent infringement. A company can invent a product on its own and still end up practicing an enforceable patent claim. Intent matters in some areas of patent law, but direct infringement is not simply a copying contest.Another topic is the danger of relying on cosmetic changes. New colors, different dimensions, button placement, or fresh packaging may help marketing, but they do not necessarily create a legal design-around. A meaningful design-around usually requires understanding the claims and changing the product so a relevant claim limitation is no longer present.Then there is the doctrine of equivalents. This doctrine can sometimes create infringement risk even when the accused product does not literally match every word of the claim. That does not mean “same result equals infringement.” The analysis remains tied to individual claim elements.We also discuss what happens when a patent owner believes infringement is occurring. The first step may be a demand letter or cease-and-desist notice. That letter is an allegation, not a final judgment. A business receiving one should evaluate the asserted patent, the relevant claims, the accused product, possible noninfringement arguments, validity issues, redesign opportunities, licensing options, and overall business exposure.The financial consequences can be significant. Patent owners may seek monetary damages and, in appropriate cases, injunctive relief. Courts can also increase damages for especially egregious conduct, and attorney fees may be awarded in exceptional cases. The business cost can also include redesigns, delayed launches, stranded inventory, disrupted customer relationships, and distracted leadership.One of the most useful lessons for founders is that getting your own patent does not automatically mean you are free to sell your product. Patentability and freedom to operate are different questions. You may own a patent on an improvement while another company owns a broader earlier patent that still covers part of what you are doing.That is why patent strategy should happen before launch, not after. Review relevant patents while the product can still be changed. Compare important claims to the proposed design. Explore legitimate design-arounds. Document key engineering decisions. And bring qualified patent counsel into high-value product decisions before tooling, inventory, marketing, and distribution make changes painfully expensive.The goal is not to make founders afraid of patents. It is to make them better prepared.If you are building a product in a competitive market, this episode will help you understand where patent risk really comes from, which common assumptions can get businesses into trouble, and how early IP planning can turn a potential legal problem into a smarter product strategy.To chat about this one-on-one, grab a free consult at strategymeeting.com

The Multicultural Middle Ages
Unknown Hands: Women Copying the Medieval Book

The Multicultural Middle Ages

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2026 33:51 Transcription Available


In 2019, the discovery of ultramarine pigment in the dental calculus of a medieval woman provided the first physical evidence of female scribes, challenging the widespread assumption that manuscript copying was an exclusively male activity. In this episode, scholar Estelle Guéville draws on her doctoral research to explore the overlooked history of medieval women scribes and show how they played a far more significant role in literacy and book production than traditionally believed.For more information, visit www.multiculturalmiddleages.com.

Social Proof Podcast
Everybody Is Copying Everybody… Here's When It Goes Too Far

Social Proof Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 27, 2026 51:44


AI has made it easier than ever to create content, build a brand, and position yourself as an expert. But what happens when inspiration turns into imitation, or when someone uses AI to teach something they've never actually done?In this episode of the Social Proof Podcast, David Shands and Donni Wiggins break down the growing problem of creators copying content, stealing frameworks, and using AI to appear more experienced than they really are.They discuss the difference between being inspired by someone's work and taking their ideas word for word, why real experience still matters in the age of AI, and what happens when a coach or entrepreneur finally gets asked a question that AI can't answer for them.David and Donni also explain why successful entrepreneurs shouldn't be afraid of people learning from them, how innovation keeps you ahead of imitators, and why building a sustainable business requires staying in the lane of what you actually know.If you're a creator, coach, consultant, or entrepreneur using AI to grow your business, this conversation is one you need to hear.Join the Social Proof community and learn directly from David Shands and Donni Wiggins at TheSocialProofCircle.comSubscribe to the Social Proof Podcast for more conversations on business, entrepreneurship, content, money, and building a brand that lasts.Our Sponsors:* Check out Storyblocks and use my code storyblocks.com/socialproof for a great deal: https://www.storyblocks.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Back to the Barre
Christi And Kelly CALL OUT Shows COPYING Dance Moms | Back To The Barre

Back to the Barre

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 21, 2026 39:33


Christi and Kelly are back for a mini episode, and this time they are calling out the reality TV shows that keep trying to recreate the Dance Moms formula.After Christi shows Kelly the new series Team Moms: Baseball (that's produced by Kim Kardashian), they immediately notice how familiar it all feels — competitive kids, intense parents, a name that sounds a little too close, and even a look that reminds them of Dance Moms. They also talk about Ice Moms, the version that never fully got off the ground, and why networks keep coming back to the same Dance Moms idea.Later, Christi and Kelly catch up on Dancing With the Stars: The Next Pro, and the reality TV opportunities other casts seem to get. Christi also shares a sweet (but awkward) Teen Choice Awards memory involving Hayden Panettiere, Selena Gomez, and the Dance Moms girls.Welcome to Back to the Barre, the ultimate podcast channel where Kelly Hyland and Christi Lukasiak from Dance Moms spill the tea, share the laughs, and take you behind the scenes of your favorite reality TV moments!

Magnolia Street
Ep. 171: The Book of the Raven | With Special Guest Charlee of Tv Gifts Love

Magnolia Street

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 21, 2026 194:29


The Book of the Raven has officially flown from the pages of Alice Hoffman's novels onto the big screen—but long before audiences see it in Practical Magic 2, one fan brought it to life by hand.In this episode, we're joined by Charlee of TV Gifts and Love, the talented UK craftswoman behind one of the most breathtaking fan-made replicas we've ever seen. Inspired by the first Practical Magic 2 teaser, Charlee didn't simply recreate the mysterious grimoire's cover—she imagined what Amelia Bassano herself might have written inside. We explore the research, artistry, symbolism, and storytelling that transformed a fictional magical artifact into something fans can actually hold in their hands.Then, after our interview, we turn our attention back to Alice Hoffman's novels to uncover the true story of the Book of the Raven.Where did it first appear? Why did Maria Owens hide it behind the walls of the Owens Library? How did it shape Faith Owens' journey in Magic Lessons, and why does it ultimately become the key to breaking the Owens family curse in The Book of Magic?Together, we'll trace the complete history of one of the Practical Magic universe's most powerful magical objects—from its mysterious author, Amelia Bassano, to its warnings about revenge, sacrifice, love, and the extraordinary price of breaking a curse.Whether you're counting down the days until Practical Magic 2 or following along with our complete Practical Magic Book Summary Series, this is the perfect deep dive into one of the sequel's most intriguing magical mysteries.SOCIALS:⁠Link Tree⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠QUIBEY SOURCESDISCLAIMER:The Magnolia Street Podcast intends to discuss the movie, “Practical Magic” in its entirety. This will evidently result in spoilers and it is recommended that you watch and or read the following. Alice Hoffman's: Practical Magic, Rules of Magic, Magic Lessons, Book of Magic. The Magnolia Street Podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional or medical advice. Do not attempt any of the discussed actions, solutions, or remedies without first consulting a qualified professional. It should be noted that we are not medical professionals and therefore we are not responsible or liable for any injuries or illnesses resulting from the use of any information on our website or in our media.The Magnolia Street Podcast presenters, Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia are passionate fans of Alice Hoffman's work and the Practical Magic word she has created. There is no copyright infringement intended, all characters and story lines are that of Alice Hoffman. We do not own any of that material as well as any of the move score music shared within the podcast.All intellectual property rights concerning personally written music and or shared art are vested in Magnolia Street Podcast. Copying, distributing and any other use of these materials is not permitted without the written permission from Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia.

Motivation | Health | Self Help with JV Impacts
E2359 | Your Kids Are Copying Your Lies: The Brutal Truth About Why Your Family Doesn't Trust You

Motivation | Health | Self Help with JV Impacts

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 20, 2026 6:04


Pick up my new book The American Nightmare! => ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click Here!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ In Today's Episode I hear men all the time talking about how they want to protect and lead their family, but their daily actions tell a completely different story. If you say you are going to wake up early to work on your life, do you actually get out of bed, or do you negotiate with your alarm clock? If you say you are going to train, are you putting in the work, or did you make excuses and negotiate with yourself again? Your son and your daughter are watching every single move you make, and they are copying your behaviors, not your words. If they do not see you making your fitness, your finances, and your family a priority, they are never going to do it themselves. In this tactical Thursday episode, I am holding up the mirror and asking you the four defining questions you have been dodging about your schedule, your training, your money, and your leadership. If you cannot keep your word to yourself, there is absolutely no way your family is going to trust you in the future. It is time to stop negotiating with yourself, wake up when you said you would, train, handle your finances, and pray for and protect your ecosystem Warriors Rise! Other Resources! > Set Up Your Consultation with our Indexed Universal Life Insurance Team = > ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://freedominsurancellc.com/consultation⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ > Track your entire crypto portfolio, build exit strategies and receive real-time sell alerts, all in one simple dashboard. Do all of this with our Crypto Tracking App Merlin! Get 30 Days of Merlin Free => ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.merlincrypto.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ > Learn about how to join our 3T Warrior Academy ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sale.3twarrioracademy.com/home?utm_source=linktree&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=CJV⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Skincare Anarchy
From HGTV to Beauty: The Art of Reinvention with Alison Victoria

Skincare Anarchy

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 18, 2026 38:11 Transcription Available


Send us Fan MailInterior designer, HGTV host, and Volition Beauty collaborator Alison Victoria joins Skin Anarchy to talk about the free habits that actually keep her well, how your home shapes your health, how HGTV really gets made, building her Greek Goddess Glow Drops, and what it takes to break into television. Below are the biggest questions answered in this episode.Who is Alison Victoria?An interior designer turned television host and executive producer who knew her path at age 11. Design is the throughline of everything she builds. "Doing design makes me happy and being happy makes me healthy. And that's to me the most important thing."What does Alison Victoria do for self care?She anchors to the basics: a daily workout and long sleep. "I sleep nine, 10 hours a night... I do attribute so much of that to my sleep." She keeps a trainer purely for accountability, and champions the free habits over expensive trends. "Why not talk about the things that are free?"How does your home environment affect your wellness?Profoundly, in her view. She calls a happy home the foundation of a healthy life. "I feel safe here and I feel like hugged every time I come in the door." Waking up in a space you designed for yourself, she argues, sets the tone for the entire day.How should you decorate to feel good at home?With memories, not catalogs. She favors open shelving to display travels and family, and a mix of old and new over sterile perfection. "I don't like walking into a sterile home... it makes me kind of shut down and close up." Copying a showroom, she says, removes the story that makes a space feel alive.How is HGTV actually made?Slowly, and then compressed. Her show takes nearly 11 months to film and airs in about two and a half weeks. "The meat of it is sometimes lost," so she works as a producer to recreate authentic moments the cameras missed. Her early shows taught DIY steps; her rehab shows now inspire rather than instruct.What is Greek Goddess Glow Drops?Her hero product with Volition Beauty, a serum that treats and beautifies at once. She formulated it herself through 40 samples. "I truly had my hands in it from day one." Inspired by Greek summers, it uses peptides, squalane, and resveratrol, with a fresh fig scent and a nonsticky, glazed finish that suits sensitive skin.Is the beauty industry oversaturated?Yes, and she says so plainly even as a new founder. "I think the beauty world is oversaturated, which makes me feel like a hypocrite because here I am coming out with something." Her answer was restraint: one hero product instead of a sprawling line, a shift she expects the whole industry to make.What does it take to succeed in a demanding career?Relentless execution. "If I have an idea, I do everything in my power to execute. I don't let it just sit on paper." She describes failures that cost money and never once giving up, tracing the drive back to working at Subway at 14 to buy her own car.How do you avoid burnout while scaling?By building a team so the business does not depend on her alone. "You're only as good as the people that you work with." She admits to running near burnout and putting money into team building so that, as she puts it, if she checks out the wheels do not fall off.How do you break into television today?By going to them, not waiting. Her first show came from answering a cold email, then saying yes to unglamorous work and pitching herself as the first woman to host a Crashers show. "If you want something bad enough, you find a way." Casting agents scour social media now, so put yourself where they are looking.Listen to the full episode with Alison Victoria on Skin Anarchy, available wherever you get your podcasts.Don't forget to subscribe to Skin Anarchy on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred platform.Reach out to us through email with any questions.Sign up for our newsletter!Shop all our episodes and products mentioned through our ShopMy Shelf!Support the show

Missed Apex F1 Podcast
Everyone Is Copying Ferrari: F1's 2026 Development War

Missed Apex F1 Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 18, 2026 82:40


Trumpets is joined by the Titan of Tech, Matthew Summerfield, for a forensic review of the first half of F1's 2026 development battle. Why has Ferrari set the technical pace, how have Racing Bulls quietly impressed, and where have Williams, Haas and Aston Martin gone wrong? They explore Macarena wings, hanger flaps, Alpine's pod winglets, tyre-pressure politics, customer-team compromises and the FIA rule changes already coming for 2027. Who has truly understood the new regulations, and who is effectively using the rest of 2026 as an extended test session? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Inform Performance
Keith D'Amelio: Innovating not Copying In Professional Sport

Inform Performance

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 17, 2026 62:25


Episode 230: In this episode of the Inform Performance Podcast, Andy McDonald is joined by Keith D'Amelio, PhD a performance architect with more than two decades inside the highest levels of elite sport and business. Keith has led performance for the Boston Celtics and the Toronto Raptors, guided innovation at Nike's global HQ, and advised startups, athletes, and leadership teams on how to build sustainable systems that enable performance at the highest level. He founded Heretic Performance to challenge conventional thinking and to help teams and companies execute consistently and with purpose. Throughout the episode, Keith explores why sporting organisations so often default to risk aversion, and what it actually takes to build decision-making processes that hold up under pressure. The conversation examines the holistic cost of implementing new systems — the time, staffing, and cultural load that rarely appear on the invoice — and where the line sits between genuine innovation and practicality in an applied environment. The discussion also looks at what sport can learn from other high-stakes industries, why so much low-hanging fruit in performance still goes unpicked, and how practitioners can focus their energy on the things that move the needle rather than the things that look impressive. Topics Discussed: Why sport teams are often risk averse The importance of decision-making processes Holistic costs of implementing new systems Balancing innovation and practicality Learning from high-stakes industries Addressing low-hanging fruit in sports performance -  Where you can find Keith: LinkedIn Instagram Heretic Performance -  Sponsors Gameplan Is a Rehab Management System providing Medical & Performance Departments with a centralised platform to plan, track & manage the return-to-play process inside a data rich environment. Gameplan provides one platform to connect the people, process and data during rehab.  - Where to Find Us Keep up to date with everything that is going on with the podcast by following Inform Performance on: Instagram Twitter Our Website

Shine Online with Ellie Swift
Stop Copying $297 Challenges - Do This Instead

Shine Online with Ellie Swift

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 17, 2026 14:39 Transcription Available


The online space feels wildly confused right now, so I wanted to sit down and dispel a few myths about what actually makes people win in 2026 — based on what I'm seeing every single day coaching 38 clients at a high level, many of them generating six, multi-six, and seven figures from their launches and funnels.I break down the three things people think are the secret to winning right now — challenges, "yapping," and how an offer is packaged — and why none of them are actually it. Then I share the one word that sums up what I really think makes you win, and exactly how to apply it to your offers, your content, and your selling.In this episode we cover:— The 3 things people think make you win online right now (and why they're wrong)— The one word that actually sums up what makes people win in 2026— How to apply embodiment to your offers, using real examples from creators I'm watching right now— Why documentation beats teaching when it comes to content— Why the "posting from the pool" era of content is over— How to apply embodiment to your selling and pitches — and why proof points make people 80% more likely to buyLINKS:Jessi Jean's Yap Challenge: https://www.instagram.com/jessijeanhome/Jun Yuh: https://www.instagram.com/jun_yuh/Amie, Lazy Millionaire (Substack Challenge): https://substack.com/@lazymillionaireofficialVix Meldrew: https://www.instagram.com/vixmeldrew/LINKS:FREE GUIDE: Sell Out & Retain Mastermind Clients in 2026: https://ellieswift.com/mastermind2026Connect with Ellie on Instagram: https://instagram.com/elliehswiftSubscribe to Inside The Mastermind Newsletter: https://ellieswift.com/newsletterWatch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@elliehswiftKeen to work together?Sell Out Your Mastermind: The Mastermind Model - https://ellieswift.com/modelBe Coached By Ellie to $500k+ : The Scalable Freedom Mastermind - https://ellieswift.com/scalablefreedom

Taking It Down
Who Won 'House of the Dragon' and Is 'Ted Lasso' Copying Itself?

Taking It Down

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2026 50:45 Transcription Available


This week, after a quick overview and introduction (0:04), the hosts talk about the recent stats about the podcast, some of which are quite surprising for them (0:34). After that, the three preview 'Lanterns' and gauge their interests in the show (1:56). For non-spoilers, they determine if the season of 'House of the Dragon' was a success (7:15) and how they felt about the second episode of the new season of 'Ted Lasso' (12:25). In spoilers, the hosts dole out specific opinions about the finale of 'House of the Dragon' (16:23) as well as why some of them think that 'Ted Lasso' may be a bit of a retread (40:23). For more, visit The Alabama Take site.

Ask the Podcast Coach
Zero to Sixty Podcast

Ask the Podcast Coach

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 15, 2026 59:14 Transcription Available


Send us feedback/questions via TextEveryone wants the 10,000-download podcast, but almost nobody wants to talk about how you actually get there. In this episode of Ask the Podcast Coach, Dave Jackson and Jim Collison dig into a listener's question that stops most podcasters cold: can you really study a podcast's rise from zero to sixty the way a business school studies a company? The answer gets messy fast. Copying what worked for someone else, chasing burger-chain nostalgia, and mistaking a microphone for a financial plan all come up before Dave and Jim land on what actually separates the podcasts that make it from the ones that quietly disappear around episode eight. If you've ever wondered whether there's a real playbook for podcast growth, or just a lot of hustle dressed up as one, this conversation is the honest version nobody's selling you.Video VersionSponsors:PodcastBranding.co - They see you before they hear youBasedonastruestorypodcast.com - Comparing Hollywood with HistoryVideo Version (unedited)Mentioned In This EpisodeSchool of Podcastinghttps://www.schoolofpodcasting.com/joinPodpagehttp://www.trypodpage.comHome Gadget Geekshttps://www.theaverageguy.tvFix My Podcasthttps://www.fixmypodcast.comFeatured Supporter: Jodi KrangleCheck out her show: Audio Branding the Hidden Gem of Marketing Leave Your QuestionGo to askthepodcastcoach.com/voicemail and leave your message to be answered on the next show.Support the showBE AWESOME!Thanks for listening to the show. Help the show continue to exist and get a shout-out on the show by becoming an awesome supporter by going to askthepodcastcoach.com/awesome want a one time donation? Buy Dave a Coffee.

Magnolia Street
Ep. 170: Antonia Owens | Character Analysis

Magnolia Street

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 14, 2026 141:57


This week on Magnolia Street, we're turning our attention to the other Owens sister... Antonia.

Your Intended Message
How to Differentiate Your Business and Make Competition Irrelevant : Daniel Den

Your Intended Message

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 14, 2026 35:37


Be Different: Stand Out in a Crowded Market How to Stand Out From Your Competition without Lowering Price Episode 317 (Daniel is based in Florida) Repeat of episode 203 In this conversation with Daniel Den we explore: why being slightly different might leave you looking like everybody else how copycat competitors can destroy a temporary advantage the danger of building a me-too business how to stack differences that become difficult to copy why customer experience can become a competitive advantage how an ordinary book became an interactive box experience how a family of brands can reinforce your positioning why memorable names can add value to ordinary features how price competition signals a lack of differentiation why your ideal customer should influence your message how the wrong message can attract the wrong customers how to escape apples-to-apples comparisons why your offer itself can become a differentiator how to discover your own “Techron” how to make your competition increasingly irrelevant ----- About our guest Daniel Den: Daniel became fascinated with marketing and sales almost two decades ago. Today he is the co-creator of the X Factor Effect methodology where he and his team have helped over 20,000 students and clients grow their businesses. Daniel teaches that “Different is the new Better” and his framework includes nine pillars for differentiating your business so that you can become a market leader or category king or queen.  Daniel Den is the author of the new book "Ideas That Influence," that was built to help business owners discover their own WILDLY SUCCESSFUL MARKETING IDEAS! ----- Get your Big Ideas Box at  https://www.bigideasbox.com/free-box-ideas-that-influence ----- Key Lessons from this conversation with Daniel Den: Being a little different might not be different enough. Copying what works for competitors creates a “me-too” business. Stack several meaningful differences to make your business harder to copy. Differentiate the customer experience, not simply the product or service. Turn ordinary products into memorable experiences. Create a family of brands, products and features that reinforce each other. Build barriers to copyability instead of relying on one clever idea. Differentiate enough that customers can no longer make an easy apples-to-apples comparison. Competing primarily on price makes you easier to compare and easier to replace. Start differentiation with a clear picture of the customer you want to attract. Your ideal customer should be someone you actually want to work with. Adjust your positioning and message when you attract the wrong customers. Package and bundle services differently to escape commoditization. Give distinctive features, methods and experiences memorable names. Aim to make your competition irrelevant rather than simply trying to beat them. ----- ----more---- Your Intended Message is the podcast about how you can boost your career and business success by honing your communication skills. We'll examine the aspects of how we communicate one-to-one, one to few and one to many – plus that important conversation, one to self. In these interviews we will explore presentation skills, public speaking, conversation, persuasion, negotiation, sales conversations, marketing, team meetings, social media, branding, self talk and more.   Your host is George Torok George is a specialist in communication skills. Especially presentation. He's fascinated by the links between communication and influencing behaviors. He delivers training and coaching programs to help leaders and promising professionals deliver the intended message for greater success.   Connect with George www.SpeechCoachforExecutives.com https://superiorpresentations.net/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgetorokpresentations/ https://www.youtube.com/user/presentationskill  

The Cass and Anthony Podcast

Copying outfits, pumpkins, casts and more! Support the show and follow us here Twitter, Insta, Apple, Amazon, Spotify and the Edge! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Frame Your Way to Five Figures Photography Podcast
How to Win in a Saturated Photography Market (Without Copying Everyone Else)

Frame Your Way to Five Figures Photography Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2026 19:13


 If you've ever scrolled Instagram and thought "there are just SO many photographers," this episode is for you. I'm talking about what it actually takes to stand out when it feels like everyone is offering the same sessions, the same style, the same everything. I'm sharing four things I believe make the biggest difference in a crowded market, and how to shift your mindset so you stop trying to out-do every photographer around you and start building something that lasts. If you're feeling discouraged by the competition, I hope this gives you a little clarity and a lot of encouragement. Want a more consistent way to book clients? Check out the Fully Booked Method._________________________________________________________Can I be your big photographer sis for a second?You do not need another saved post, random marketing tip, or strategy you'll forget by tomorrow.What you need is consistency, support, and a simple plan you can actually stick to.That's exactly what we do inside Market Like a Tog: Your photographer marketing accountability membership. A place where you always know what to post, what to work on, and how to stay visible enough to keep booking. Every month inside MLAT you get:✔ A plug-and-play monthly marketing plan ✔ Done-for-you marketing templates & systems ✔ Live group coaching with Brooke ✔ Slack accountability + community ✔ Monthly workshop/trainingCome join us inside Market Like a Tog and let's build momentum together.

The Tech Blog Writer Podcast
Preparing Unstructured Data for Enterprise AI With CTERA

The Tech Blog Writer Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2026 25:02


Could the real reason enterprise AI projects remain stuck in pilot mode be hidden inside the company's unstructured data? In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I welcome back Oded Nagel, CEO of CTERA. We discuss why enterprise AI success depends on the condition, location, permissions, and business value of the data sitting underneath models and agents. Oded defines AI-ready data as information that is searchable, classified, and permission-aware. Many enterprises have petabytes of files distributed across offices, edge locations, legacy network-attached storage, and cloud platforms. Before introducing AI, leaders need to know what information they possess, where it resides, who can access it, and whether it remains valuable. The cost implications are significant. Copying every available file into an AI ecosystem can create expensive ingestion and storage bills. It may also reduce answer quality when stale, duplicated, irrelevant, or personal files enter the model's source material. Oded describes a customer classification project where approximately 80% of the data examined was stale or archival. The company also discovered personal content, including MP3 files, stored alongside enterprise information. Feeding such material into an AI system would consume resources without improving business results. We discuss Oded's recommendation to bring AI to governed data rather than moving data outside existing controls. Keeping intelligence close to the file system can preserve access permissions, audit logs, snapshots, and recovery mechanisms. Those protections become increasingly important when autonomous agents can read, move, modify, or delete files. Oded argues that every agent should be identifiable and its activity monitored. Businesses need to know which agent accessed which information, what action it performed, and whether the result can be reversed. Without those controls, a misunderstood instruction or malicious input could cause serious damage. The conversation also covers CTERA InsightAI, an agentic intelligence layer built into the company's data platform. Oded says it analyzes security activity and file-system metadata, allowing users to ask questions about stale data, file types, access patterns, deleted files, and ransomware impact using natural language. Rather than working through traditional dashboards and filters, users can question the data and request conclusions or recommended actions. Oded says some customers are piloting InsightAI while others already use it in production. For leaders measuring enterprise AI ROI, Oded recommends concentrating on storage costs, time savings, and speed to production. AI tools should make complex information easier to understand and reduce the time required to act. A ten-page report generated instantly provides limited value if nobody knows what decision to make from it. Does your company have enough visibility and control over its unstructured data to support production AI, or would classification uncover years of stale information and unnecessary expense? Listen to the conversation and share your thoughts with me.

Brass & Unity
Britain built this ten years ago. Canada just started copying it.

Brass & Unity

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 12, 2026 15:31


In 2023, Edmonton Police expanded online reporting to include hate incidents—conduct that is not a crime—and allowed reports to be filed on behalf of someone else. In 2024, Crime Stoppers, EPS and the Government of Alberta launched buses displaying: "See hate. Report hate." In 2026, Parliament passed Bill C-9 with Liberal and Bloc support despite opposition from the Conservatives, NDP, Greens and more than 40 civil society organizations, including the CBA, CCLA, CLC and Egale.Britain adopted a similar system in 2014. Since then, police have recorded 133,000+ non-crime hate incidents. In 2023, 37 police forces made 12,183 arrests over electronic communications, with fewer than 1,119 convictions. In 2021, the Court of Appeal ruled the recording guidance had a chilling effect on free expression.**This episode examines that history, explains what Bill C-9 actually changed, corrects two claims circulating online that describe the bill as introduced rather than as passed, and explains why I believe these developments matter. Every source is below.**CHAPTERS0:00 The reel & why I wasn't shocked2:15 A web form for things that aren't crimes4:15 "On behalf of someone else"6:00 The buses said it out loud6:45 Britain has done this for ten years8:00 The court case Canada ignored11:30 What C-9 did—and didn't do14:00 Liberals, the Bloc & everyone else16:00 How this became normal19:00 Two things you can do this week☕ Buy Me a Coffee(https://buymeacoffee.com/kelsisheren)

Marquettism.org
Marquett UNMASKS His Biggest Critic… Turns Out He's…

Marquettism.org

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 11, 2026 65:53


A masked online critic built his brand around wealth, status, controversy, and attacking other creators — but what happens when people from inside his own circle begin questioning the story?In this reaction livestream, Marquett reviews clips and allegations surrounding the creator known online as “Millionaire Bachelor,” including claims about his identity, online persona, purchased followers, community, branding, and the accusations being made by former supporters and other commentators.Marquett also breaks down the larger issue behind the controversy: authenticity vs. image. Can someone teach leadership while hiding their identity? Does appearing successful online actually mean someone is successful? And why do so many internet personalities copy the branding, language, and strategies of more established creators?This episode also dives into:* The alleged identity behind the masked persona* Claims of bought followers and manufactured popularity* Why authenticity matters in leadership* Marquett's response to creators using his image and content* Copying vs. genuinely building something original* Wealth signaling and “fake it till you make it” culture* Building a real community versus chasing attention* Why credibility, reputation, and track record matterThis video contains commentary, reactions, opinions, and discussion of claims made publicly by multiple individuals. Viewers should evaluate the available material and reach their own conclusions.Do you think anonymity destroys credibility when someone is giving life, business, or relationship advice?⸻

FluentlyForward
Throwback: Why We Love Accusing Famous Women of Copying

FluentlyForward

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2026 74:19


In this throwback, we're diving deep into one of pop culture's most dissected dynamics: the internet-fueled theory that Hailey Bieber has copied Selena Gomez - from tattoos and fashion to relationships and mannerisms. We get into the timeline, the TikTok theories, and the media's role in fanning the flames of female rivalry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

FluentlyForward
Throwback: Why We Love Accusing Famous Women of Copying

FluentlyForward

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2026 77:19


In this throwback, we're diving deep into one of pop culture's most dissected dynamics: the internet-fueled theory that Hailey Bieber has copied Selena Gomez - from tattoos and fashion to relationships and mannerisms. We get into the timeline, the TikTok theories, and the media's role in fanning the flames of female rivalry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Food School: Smarter Stronger Leaner.
Stop Chasing Discipline and Start Copying Better People: how I wrote 801 blogs in a row.

Food School: Smarter Stronger Leaner.

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2026 16:20 Transcription Available


Discipline gets all the credit, but your environment does most of the work.I'm Angela Shurina, and I'm unpacking a simple idea that can change your health, habits, and results fast WITHOUT more discipline.When you choose the right “everybody,” you stop relying on willpower to do hard things.If you've ever told yourself you just aren't disciplined enough to work out, eat well, wake up early, or stay consistent with your craft, this conversation is your permission slip to redesign the inputs instead of blaming your character.We look at the crowd you're currently copying and ask the uncomfortable question: do you actually want their outcomes? Because “everybody does it” is only a good guideline if you want what everybody gets. We talk about overindulgence culture, the cost of average norms, and why being the odd one out is often the price of real change.Then we get practical: how to build a better people diet by curating your tribe across different areas of life. If you want sustainable behavior change, self-discipline, productivity, and better health and fitness, start by choosing smarter comparisons.Subscribe, share this with one person who needs a reset, and leave a review with your answer: who is your everybody?Text Me Your Thoughts and IdeasSupport the showBrought to you by Angela Shurina  Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.

Magnolia Street
Ep. 169: Growing Up Antonia Owens | Exclusive Interview with Alexandra “Lexi” Artrip

Magnolia Street

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 7, 2026 179:01


Magnolia Street Presents: An Afternoon with Alexandra "Lexi" Artrip (Young Antonia Owens)! Nearly three decades after Practical Magic first enchanted audiences, we're honored to welcome Alexandra "Lexi" Artrip, the actress who portrayed young Antonia Owens, to Magnolia Street.In this special conversation, Lexi takes us back to 1998 to share what it was like stepping into the world of the Owens family as a child. Together, we revisit her scenes from the film, hear the stories behind some of its most memorable moments, and explore what it was like working alongside an unforgettable cast. From the magic of the Owens house to behind-the-scenes memories that fans have never heard before, this episode is filled with nostalgia, laughter, and heartfelt reflections.We also dive into your fan questions, discuss the lasting legacy of Practical Magic, and talk about the excitement surrounding Practical Magic 2 as a new generation prepares to return to the Owens family story.We'll also revisit some old photographs that Lexi has been posting to her new public instagram account, where she has been sharing all of her memories from set, at the tender age of 8 years old!⁠VISIT LEXI'S INSTAGRAMWhether you've loved this film since 1998 or only recently discovered its magic, this is a conversation you won't want to miss!SOCIALS:⁠Link Tree⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SourcesDISCLAIMERThe Magnolia Street Podcast intends to discuss the movie, “Practical Magic” in its entirety. This will evidently result in spoilers and it is recommended that you watch and or read the following. Alice Hoffman's: Practical Magic, Rules of Magic, Magic Lessons, Book of Magic. The Magnolia Street Podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional or medical advice. Do not attempt any of the discussed actions, solutions, or remedies without first consulting a qualified professional. It should be noted that we are not medical professionals and therefore we are not responsible or liable for any injuries or illnesses resulting from the use of any information on our website or in our media.The Magnolia Street Podcast presenters, Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia are passionate fans of Alice Hoffman's work and the Practical Magic word she has created. There is no copyright infringement intended, all characters and story lines are that of Alice Hoffman. We do not own any of that material as well as any of the move score music shared within the podcast.All intellectual property rights concerning personally written music and or shared art are vested in Magnolia Street Podcast. Copying, distributing and any other use of these materials is not permitted without the written permission from Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia.

Styling Matters
What to Do When Someone Keeps Copying Your Style | S1E186

Styling Matters

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 6, 2026 30:53


Ever felt frustrated when someone keeps copying your style? Whether it's a work colleague, a friend or even a family member, it can leave you wondering how to stay original without changing who you are. In this episode of Styling Matters, I share practical, confidence-boosting advice to help you develop a personal style that feels authentic, distinctive and unmistakably yours.Instead of dwelling on why people copy your style, we're focusing on what you can do about it. I'll reveal six simple yet effective strategies to help you discover more unique fashion finds, stay one step ahead and build a wardrobe that reflects your personality. If you're ready to strengthen your personal style, stand out with confidence and become known for your signature look, this episode is for you.Find out more on Lizzi by following on Instagram @lizzi.richardson or on Substack.

From the Yellow Chair
Stop Copying Your Competitor's Homework

From the Yellow Chair

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 4, 2026 11:41 Transcription Available


Send us Fan MailDoes your company look and sound like every other contractor in your market?That sameness is not harmless. When customers cannot tell companies apart, they compare more options, rely more heavily on price, and force every contractor to spend more money earning attention.Ready to build a brand and marketing playbook that is actually yours? Book a call with Lemon Seed Marketing:https://www.lemonseedmarketing.com/contact/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=ftyc_ep232&utm_content=show_notes_primary_ctaIn this episode of From the Yellow Chair, Crystal Williams explains why contractors copy their competitors, how imitation makes brands forgettable, and what it takes to become the company customers remember first.You will learn:• Why looking like everyone else can increase your cost per lead• How to use other companies for inspiration without imitating them• Why recognition and emotional connection influence customer choice• How community involvement and brand consistency work together• Three questions every contractor should answer about uniqueness, investment, and professional guidance• Why the best marketing leaders continue evolving while competitors try to catch upFeatured speaker: Crystal Williams of Lemon Seed MarketingWatch the episode on YouTube:https://youtu.be/qZeS5vWIlHoFollow the show on Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/from-the-yellow-chair/id1598195561Follow the show on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/1goGP66YLPIxzpX1TxFGvTExplore more episodes:https://www.lemonseedmarketing.com/contractor-marketing-podcast/Lemon Seed Marketing helps home service contractors build recognizable brands, make smarter marketing decisions, and lead their vendors with a clear strategy.If you enjoyed this chat From the Yellow Chair, consider joining our newsletter, "Let's Sip Some Lemonade," where you can receive exclusive interviews, our bank of helpful downloadables, and updates on upcoming content.Please consider following and drop a review below if you enjoyed this episode. Be sure to check out our social media pages on Facebook and Instagram.From the Yellow Chair is powered by Lemon Seed, a marketing strategy and branding company for the trades. Lemon Seed specializes in rebrands, creating unique, comprehensive, organized marketing plans, social media, and graphic design. Learn more at www.LemonSeedMarketing.comInterested in being a guest on our show? Fill out this form!We'll see you next time, Lemon Heads!

The Systems and Workflow Magic Podcast
STOP Copying Everyone Else's Black Friday Strategy

The Systems and Workflow Magic Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 3, 2026 37:13


I am sitting down with Megan Moore, a minimalist marketing strategist and Black Friday Summit speaker, to talk about why your Black Friday sale starts today, not in November. Megan owns a marketing agency and has been helping entrepreneurs in the digital space since 2014, working from her tiny house on the side of a mountain in British Columbia. Before running her agency, she owned a Pilates studio and a digital magazine, and she now teaches business owners how to market with one strong content anchor instead of chasing every platform at once.What you'll hear in this episodeWhy Megan calls herself a "minimalist marketing strategist" and what that means for a solo business ownerThe wardrobe analogy that makes minimalist marketing clickWhy long-form content should be the anchor everything else gets built aroundWhat connection-driven Black Friday marketing looks like versus the hustle-and-panic version most of us knowAnd so much moreResources & Links Mentioned In This Episode▸ Read the full blog post that goes with this episode (that way, you get all the links mentioned): https://systemsandworkflowmagic.com/black-friday-marketing-tips-for-photographers/▸ Get your free ticket to the Black Friday Virtual Summit: https://blackfridaysummit.com/Connect with MeganInstagramConnect with Me (Dolly DeLong Education)

Magnolia Street
Ep. 168: Practical Magic | The Practical Magic Book Summary Series (Book 3)

Magnolia Street

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 31, 2026 127:56


In the third installment of our Practical Magic Book Summary Series, we're revisiting the novel that started it all—Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman. First published in 1995 and later adapted into the beloved 1998 film, this is the story that introduced us to the Owens women, their family curse, and the magic that has captivated generations of readers and movie lovers alike.Whether you're rereading the books, discovering them for the first time, or simply want a refresher before the new film arrives in theaters this September, we've got you covered.In this episode, we explore:✨ A note from Alice Hoffman✨ Character breakdowns✨ Timeline & story structure✨ A complete summary of Practical Magic✨ The story threads that continue into the rest of the Owens family sagaPour yourself a Midnight Margarita, settle into Magnolia Street, and join us as we return to the book that began the magic.SOCIALS:⁠⁠Link Tree⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SourcesDISCLAIMER:The Magnolia Street Podcast intends to discuss the movie, “Practical Magic” in its entirety. This will evidently result in spoilers and it is recommended that you watch and or read the following. Alice Hoffman's: Practical Magic, Rules of Magic, Magic Lessons, Book of Magic. The Magnolia Street Podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional or medical advice. Do not attempt any of the discussed actions, solutions, or remedies without first consulting a qualified professional. It should be noted that we are not medical professionals and therefore we are not responsible or liable for any injuries or illnesses resulting from the use of any information on our website or in our media.The Magnolia Street Podcast presenters, Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia are passionate fans of Alice Hoffman's work and the Practical Magic word she has created. There is no copyright infringement intended, all characters and story lines are that of Alice Hoffman. We do not own any of that material as well as any of the move score music shared within the podcast.All intellectual property rights concerning personally written music and or shared art are vested in Magnolia Street Podcast. Copying, distributing and any other use of these materials is not permitted without the written permission from Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia.

All In with Rick Jordan
Congress Finally Voted to Ban Its Own Stock Trading... Because Millions of People Started Copying Nancy Pelosi's Trades To Beat the Market | Chris Josephs and Rick Jordan

All In with Rick Jordan

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2026 50:25


Rick sits down with Chris Josephs, co-founder of Autopilot and the creator behind the viral Pelosi Stock Tracker, to confront a question millions of Americans are asking: Is congressional stock trading rigged?In this conversation, Chris reveals the Pelosi Tesla trade that first caught his attention, how “trade like a politician” became one of finance's most provocative ideas, and why Autopilot grew from tracking public disclosures into a marketplace where investors can automatically follow proven stock pickers. They also examine the congressional trading restrictions passed by the House on July 22, 2026, the voter ID provision attached to the bill, and why its path through the Senate remains uncertain.The deeper problem is trust. Corporate executives, journalists, bankers, and soldiers can face serious restrictions or punishment for trading on privileged information. Members of Congress have continued buying and selling individual stocks while shaping the laws, spending, and investigations that can move those companies. Chris built a business exposing that contradiction. Now the ban he has pushed for could eliminate the very controversy that helped build his company.In this conversation you'll hearThe Pelosi Tesla trade that convinced Chris something was deeply wrongHow “trade like a politician” grew into a billion-dollar investing platformWhy the congressional stock trading bill may already be designed to stallThe obscure political trades that reportedly produced staggering returnsWhat happens to Autopilot when Pelosi retires and politicians stop tradingFollow Rick's Socials:Instagram | LinkedIn | RickJordan.TVKeywords: congressional stock trading ban, nancy pelosi stock tracker, politician stock trades, chris josephs, autopilot investing app, congressional insider trading, copy trading stocks, pelosi stock portfolio, trade like a politician, politicians beating the market, stock market corruption, congressional stock disclosures, stop insider trading act, politician trade tracker, retail investing strategy, how to beat the market, stock picking strategies, investment transparency, political conflicts of interest, prediction market insider trading, polymarket insider trading, ai stock picking, long term investing, financial trust, rick jordan, frequency podcast

Marketing Money Podcast
Episode 212 | Copying The Competition Costs You

Marketing Money Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2026 27:46


— Josh and John discuss a new trend to explore a bigger problem in banking: the fear of standing out. They discuss why banks often copy competitors instead of creating distinctive brands, why marketing is one of the few true competitive advantages left, and how investing in brand creates long-term growth when products and pricing all look the same. The post Episode 212 | Copying The Competition Costs You appeared first on Marketing Money Podcast.

Magnolia Street
Ep. 167: Yarrow Magick & Lore

Magnolia Street

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 24, 2026 110:31


Have you ever wondered why Yarrow, one of history's greatest healing herbs, appears in the witches' poison garden in Practical Magic? Join us as we dig into this fascinating contradiction and explore why Alice Hoffman may have chosen to include it.In this episode, we're uncovering the incredible story of Achillea millefolium, from its feathery leaves and resilient nature to its legendary reputation as the "warrior's herb." We'll trace its botanical origins, medicinal history, and ancient connections to Achilles, Neanderthal burials, Indigenous healing traditions, and even the divination practices of the I Ching.Then, we'll step into the magical side of yarrow. Discover its centuries-old associations with protection, love, prophecy, dream work, and witchcraft, along with practical ways you can incorporate this remarkable plant into your own magical practice.Whether you're a gardener, herbal enthusiast, folklore lover, or devoted Practical Magic fan, this episode reveals why yarrow has remained one of the world's most beloved magical herbs for thousands of years—and why its place in the Owens family's world may be far more meaningful than it first appears.SOCIALS:⁠Link Tree⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠QUIBEY SOURCESDISCLAIMER:The Magnolia Street Podcast intends to discuss the movie, “Practical Magic” in its entirety. This will evidently result in spoilers and it is recommended that you watch and or read the following. Alice Hoffman's: Practical Magic, Rules of Magic, Magic Lessons, Book of Magic. The Magnolia Street Podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional or medical advice. Do not attempt any of the discussed actions, solutions, or remedies without first consulting a qualified professional. It should be noted that we are not medical professionals and therefore we are not responsible or liable for any injuries or illnesses resulting from the use of any information on our website or in our media.The Magnolia Street Podcast presenters, Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia are passionate fans of Alice Hoffman's work and the Practical Magic word she has created. There is no copyright infringement intended, all characters and story lines are that of Alice Hoffman. We do not own any of that material as well as any of the move score music shared within the podcast.All intellectual property rights concerning personally written music and or shared art are vested in Magnolia Street Podcast. Copying, distributing and any other use of these materials is not permitted without the written permission from Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia.

Lap 76
Lap 76|#637 Pregled prvog dela sezone MotoGP šampionata 2026. Kako se sve se okrenulo za 180 stepeni

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 21, 2026 163:04


Od dominacije Bezza i Aprilije na prvim trkama sezone, do oporavka Martinatora, a potom i Marqueza i Ducatija! Ai Ogura najprijatnije iznenađenje sezone, uz sjajnog Diggiu. Osvrt na prvih 11 trka, s vašim pitanjima i pričom o prevrtljivosti sezeone.IGRAJ I OSVOJI PUT NA TRKU F1 Red Bull TryOuts: https://www.redbull.com/rs-sr/projects/red-bull-tryouts

Lap 76
#636 | Antonelli ponovo pobednički, ali Ferrari vreba sa svih strana! Verstappen treći, a gotovo nevidljiv

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 20, 2026 191:05


Spa Francorchamps nam je donela kompleksnu mešavinu emocija - taktičko trkanje, dramu, incidente, kazne, a i još jedan pogled na to koliko je FIA promašila s tehničkim pravilima za 2026. godinu. Karavan odmah putuje dalje u MađarskuIGRAJ I OSVOJI PUT NA TRKU F1 - Red Bull TryOuts: https://www.redbull.com/rs-sr/projects/red-bull-tryouts

the Hello Hair Pro podcast
Why the Future Belongs to Curious Salon Owners [EP:254]

the Hello Hair Pro podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 20, 2026 38:46


"Send us a message!"What if the biggest business advantage isn't talent, experience, or even hard work?What if it's curiosity?In this episode, we explore why the best salon owners aren't the ones who blindly copy trends or follow outdated advice; they're the ones willing to ask better questions.We talk about challenging industry assumptions, learning from other businesses, embracing new technology, building original systems, and why curiosity has been one of the biggest competitive advantages in growing Hello Hair Co.From Google Ads and AI to hiring, apprenticeships, pricing, and marketing, we share why asking why has consistently led us toward better answers than simply asking how.Your business should serve you, so that you can serve others.And the future belongs to the owners willing to think for themselves.Key TakeawaysCuriosity is one of the greatest competitive advantages in business.Copying outcomes is not the same as understanding why they worked. Better questions lead to better decisions. Innovation begins with curiosity, not certainty. Build systems that fit your business—not someone else's. Patience requires engagement, not passivity. Long-term thinking beats quick fixes. New technology rewards curious business owners. Your ideas are worth exploring, even if they don't all succeed. Learn from others without outsourcing your own thinking.Time Stamps00:00 — Opening takes: stop criticizing the next generation 03:00 — Why the past shouldn't dictate the future 05:00 — The salon industry's copycat problem 06:30 — Copying outcomes vs. understanding causes 08:00 — Asking better questions in business 09:00 — Why profitable salons think differently 10:00 — Assigned stations, apprenticeships, and challenging tradition 12:00 — Hiring with curiosity instead of fear 14:00 — Why change feels uncomfortable 16:00 — Curiosity built Hello Hair Co. 18:00 — Google, SEO, and long-term thinking 20:00 — The Five Whys and deeper questions 22:00 — Why stylists choose some salons over others 24:00 — Patience vs. complacency 26:00 — Building business frameworks that last 28:00 — Turning frustrations into better systems 30:00 — Build your future instead of inheriting it 31:00 — AI, technology, and curiosity 34:00 — Your ideas are worth exploring 36:00 — Don't outsource your thinking 38:00 — Final thoughts: think for yourselfLinks and Stuff:Our Newsletter Mentoring InquiriesFind more of our things:InstagramHello Hair Pro Website

Sad Boyz
Is Palworld Still Copying Pokemon?

Sad Boyz

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 17, 2026 118:28


Check out 150+ bonus episodes at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://patreon.com/sadboyz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ✨find us everywhere✨⁠⁠ https://linktr.ee/sadboyzpod⁠⁠ 

Magnolia Street
Ep. 166: "The Man Under the Roses" | Song-i-Sode #15

Magnolia Street

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 17, 2026 93:53


In the first Song-i-sode since the beginning of Season 4, we are so excited to debut yet another song for ya! This next installation of our SONG-i-SODE series is Session #15, with our Practical Magic-inspired original song "The Man Under the Roses"!After almost a whole month of July summer magick, exploring topics like Fireflies and Kylie's Character Analysis, The Stinas felt called to showcase a song from Kylie's perspective that they wrote very early on in their collaboration, back in 2022! The song highlights Kylie's abilities to "see between the worlds" in the books & film.As per Song-i-Sode tradition, The Stinas revisit their notes & lyrics and chat about how they wrote this song! They dissect their original work verse by verse, draft by draft, and take you on the creative journey of how they wrote the song from start to finish. We'll also explore original versions of the song, scratch demos, and lyrics that just didn't make the cut. Then sit back and relax as the Stinas debut their latest demo for this song!If you love our Practical Magic-Inspired Original Music, download our debut EP Welcome to the Neighborhood | The Magnolia Street Sessions: Volume 1 over on ⁠our bandcamp⁠, or ⁠stream right here on Spotify⁠! ⁠Find our Spotify Production Playlist for this song!⁠SOCIALS:⁠⁠⁠Link Tree⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sources⁠DISCLAIMER:The Magnolia Street Podcast intends to discuss the movie, “Practical Magic” in its entirety. This will evidently result in spoilers and it is recommended that you watch and or read the following. Alice Hoffman's: Practical Magic, Rules of Magic, Magic Lessons, Book of Magic. The Magnolia Street Podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes and should not be used as a substitute for professional or medical advice. Do not attempt any of the discussed actions, solutions, or remedies without first consulting a qualified professional. It should be noted that we are not medical professionals and therefore we are not responsible or liable for any injuries or illnesses resulting from the use of any information on our website or in our media.The Magnolia Street Podcast presenters, Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia are passionate fans of Alice Hoffman's work and the Practical Magic word she has created. There is no copyright infringement intended, all characters and story lines are that of Alice Hoffman. We do not own any of that material as well as any of the move score music shared within the podcast.All intellectual property rights concerning personally written music and or shared art are vested in Magnolia Street Podcast. Copying, distributing and any other use of these materials is not permitted without the written permission from Kristina Babich and Justina Carubia.

The Basic B
How to Pick Keywords That Match Your Vision—Not Your Competition

The Basic B

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 17, 2026 12:46 Transcription Available


Copying your competitors' keywords may seem like a smart shortcut, but… it's not.This comes up a lot in my DMs & on discovery calls. And every time, it leads to the same problem: keywords that don't actually reflect YOUR vision, YOUR offers, or YOUR clients.In this episode, I'm breaking down why competitor-based keyword research keeps you stuck & what to do instead so you can build a better bat signal and finally get found online by aligned clients!→ Get the full show notes here:https://brittanyherzberg.com/blog/how-to-do-keyword-research-to-match-your-vision-not-your-competitors——

Power Blast Podcast
Transformational Minute: Why Copying Someone Else's System Never Quite Works

Power Blast Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 16, 2026 2:53


Copying a friend's exact system rarely produces the same results, even when every step is followed correctly.   A system works because it fits the person who built it, including their schedule, preferences, and way of thinking.   Borrowing a workout plan or meal plan word for word skips the adjustment that actually made it effective.   A plan only becomes powerful once it fits the life of the person using it.   Small adjustments turn a borrowed system into one that actually works long term. BOOK A CALL WITH PERRY: http://talktoperry.com TEXT ME: (208) 400-5095 JOIN MY FREE COMMUNITY: http://upsidedownfit.com The Legacy Continues with Syona: https://sharesyona.co/?url=perrytinsley RESOURCES Best Probiotic for Gut Health: https://bit.ly/probyo Best Focus & Memory Product: https://bit.ly/dryvefocus Daily Success Habits (Free Download): morningsuccesshabits.com WOW! You made it all the way down here. I'm seriously impressed! Most people stop scrolling way earlier. You officially rock, my friend.

Startup Confidential
Episode 170 - Please Stop Copying Competitors' Moves! Here's Why.

Startup Confidential

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2026 9:12 Transcription Available


Send us Fan MailMost high-growth consumer brands need to re-position as they scale. The niche positioning that got you into the eight figures will drive you into a ditch. In this episode, I share four advanced tips I once kept behind an online training paywall. Don't miss this content. In fact, copy the transcript off your screen.Your Host: Dr. James F. Richardson of Premium Growth Solutions, LLC www.premiumgrowthsolutions.comPlease send feedback on this or other episodes to: admin@premiumgrowthsolutions.com

llc competitors complease copying premium growth solutions james f richardson
Lap 76
#634 | Marquez godinu padova pretvara u godinu rekorda! Ali sve je i dalje otvoreno pet - vozača u 25 poena

Lap 76

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2026 172:36


Pobedom u Nemačkoj MM93 postao drugi vozač u istoriji sa Agostinijem koji ima 10 pobeda u kraljevskoj klasi na istoj stazi. Marco Bezzecchi padom ispao sa prve pozicije u šampionatu, nažalost i povređen. Da li je Ai Ogura zaista rival za titulu? Prva trka bez poena za Diggiu...IGRAJ I OSVOJI PUT NA TRKU F1 Red Bull TryOuts: https://www.redbull.com/rs-sr/projects/red-bull-tryouts

The James Altucher Show
Zynga Founder Mark Pincus: Why All New Fails + How to Copy to Millions

The James Altucher Show

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 25, 2026 81:12


A Note from James:Mark Pincus is one of the true OGs of the internet. You probably know him as the founder of Zynga, the company behind FarmVille, Zynga Poker, and Words With Friends. Zynga was eventually acquired by Take-Two in a transaction valued at approximately $12.7 billion. Before Zynga, Mark started Tribe, one of the first social networks—before MySpace and Facebook. He has spent more than 25 years building, failing, and studying what gets millions of people to click, play, share, and come back. His new book, Life at the Speed of Play, inspired me to start coming up with new business ideas while we were still recording.What I really love is how Mark teaches people to copy like a master without looking like a copycat. He has a framework called “Proven–Better–New.” Start with something that has already been proven. Make it obviously better. Then isolate the new idea you want to test. It's one of the best systems I've heard for creating products people actually want.We talk about the early days of Facebook and MySpace, the failure of Tribe, the gaming industry, consumer psychology, AI coding, and how agents could eventually network and work for us while we're doing something else.I loved talking with Mark. I was still thinking about this conversation afterward—and I'm literally building businesses based on what I learned. His new book is called Life at the Speed of Play. Listen to this episode, and then read the book.Episode Description:Most founders begin with an idea and then spend months—or years—trying to prove that people want it. Mark Pincus thinks that process is backward.At Zynga, Mark's teams built “failure machines”: simple systems that allowed them to test hundreds of concepts before writing the code. They put unfinished ideas in front of real users, watched what people clicked, and refused to build anything until the demand was obvious. The objective wasn't to avoid failure. It was to make failure fast, cheap, and useful.Mark explains the framework behind that process: Proven–Better–New. First, study an existing success down to every screen, click, and design decision. Then identify one improvement that current users would immediately recognize as better. Only after that should a team add the unproven idea—the part most likely to fail.James and Mark also examine the problems facing today's consumer entrepreneurs. AI has made software easier to build, but distribution has become harder. People aren't searching for new apps, established platforms restrict organic growth, and algorithmic reach isn't the same as users actively sharing something with friends.Mark uses the failure of his early social network, Tribe, to explain why virality is not enough. Tribe grew quickly but lacked retention and trust. He ignored the communities users loved because they didn't match the business model he had already chosen. That painful mistake became the foundation for much of his later product philosophy.The conversation ends with Mark's current experiments: personal AI agents modeled after members of his family, a proposed work network built specifically for agents, an enterprise AI company called Hivemind, and the difficult decision to end a four-year passion project without abandoning the instinct behind it.This is a practical conversation about testing ideas, separating instinct from ego, learning from the past, and killing the wrong product before it consumes the right opportunity.What You'll Learn:How to build a failure machine: Test headlines, offers, videos, and fake doors before investing in a finished product.How to apply Proven–Better–New: Begin with a proven behavior, make one unmistakable improvement, and isolate the risky innovation.Why distribution is now harder than development: AI can generate a prototype quickly, but it cannot guarantee attention, trust, or adoption.Why Tribe failed despite rapid growth: Virality without retention, safety, and alignment with user behavior does not create a lasting network.How to copy without becoming a copycat: Study successful products at the pixel level, preserve what works, and innovate only where it matters.When to abandon an idea: Preserve the underlying instinct, but stop funding the particular expression of it when the evidence turns against you.How AI agents may change networking: Agents could eventually search for opportunities, exchange work, build reputations, and bring useful leads back to their users.Timestamped Chapters: [02:00] Finding the “OMFG” Moment [02:58] A Note from James [05:00] Build a Failure Machine Before Building a Product [06:25] Testing Demand With Fake Doors and Broken Links [08:08] Writing Copy That People Actually Notice [10:52] Test More Ideas in a Week Than the Industry Tests in a Year [11:53] Why Neglected Products Become Innovation Labs [13:26] How Mobile Apps Slowed Product Experimentation [15:09] Can AI Bring Rapid Testing Back? [17:08] Why Consumer Technology Feels Uninvestable [18:38] The 90/10 Rule for Investable Platforms [20:08] Why Nobody Downloads New Apps Anymore [21:20] Franchises, “Spicy New,” and Healthy Platforms [23:21] The Internet's Lost Cocktail Party [27:58] Why Tribe Failed While Facebook Won [30:26] Virality Without Trust or Retention [31:31] Ignoring What Tribe's Users Actually Wanted [33:22] Facebook, Raya, and Designing for Trust [35:03] Social Networks as Lead-Generation Engines [37:12] Facebook, Instagram, and the App Nobody Knew It Wanted [37:51] Net Promoter Scores and the Feeling of Quitting a Drug [40:25] Algorithmic Virality vs. People Sharing With Friends [42:00] Building Products That Help People Create [43:47] What Entrepreneurs Should Build With AI [44:54] The Proven–Better–New Framework [47:12] What “Obviously Better” Actually Means [48:25] Why “All New Fails” [50:23] Zynga Poker and the Power of Removing One Click [52:00] What AI Does Well—and Where Humans Still Matter [54:25] Picasso, Slack, and Copying the Past [55:11] Adding Fun to Boring Enterprise Products [57:39] The Moral Arbitrage of Killing Your Ego [57:58] How to Copy Without Looking Like a Copy [59:10] Why Old Internet Mechanics Keep Returning [01:00:16] Anonymous Social Apps With an AI Twist [01:01:17] Don't Invent a New Business—Reinvent a Big One [01:02:00] Test 20 Variants Before Building One [01:02:58] Mark's Frustrating Experiments With AI Coding [01:05:29] Creating a Personal Team of AI Agents [01:07:57] Killing a Four-Year Passion Project [01:09:29] The “Social Membrane” of the Agentic Internet [01:09:57] Building a Work Network for AI Agents [01:12:16] Hivemind and the Human Side of Enterprise AI [01:13:52] Missing Twitch—and Knowing Your Zone [01:15:06] Why the Gaming Industry Still Isn't Social Enough [01:16:30] Chess Ratings, Competition, and Mark's Daughter [01:19:19] Writing Life at the Speed of Play [01:21:18] Don't Chase Every New Technology Race [01:22:05] Final ThoughtsAdditional Resources:Mark Pincus and the BookLife at the Speed of Play — official websiteLife at the Speed of Play — HarperCollins — published June 23, 2026. Mark Pincus on X — the account Mark recommends for updates on his agent-network experiments. Mark Pincus on LinkedIn Mark's interview about open-sourcing Stem Studio Zynga, Games, and Product ExamplesZynga's company history — covers its launch as a Facebook poker project and the development of FarmVille, CityVille, and Words With Friends. Words With Friends FarmVille Take-Two and Zynga acquisition announcement — the transaction carried an enterprise value of approximately $12.7 billion. Tribe.net history — the early social network Mark analyzes as a major product failure. Raya — the private community Mark discusses as an example of building trust through curation. Grow a Garden on Roblox See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.